Scott Myers

Screenwriting News (March 16-March 22, 2015)

Amy Fox writing drama “Equity” for Broad Street Pictures. Chris Hager sells science fiction spec script “Proxima” to Rumble Films. Jonathan Herman rewriting remake of Scarface for Universal Pictures. Antony Hoffman and Brian Brightly sell action drama pitch “Fox Hunt” to Fox International Productions. Anthony Jaswinski sells science fiction pitch

Spec Script Deal: “Proxima”

Rumble Films acquires science fiction spec script “Proxima” written by Chris Hager. From Deadline: The sci-fi drama is about a married couple on a centuries-long mission across the universe. — - The writer is from Kansas City, MO, and he was just a guy with a dream of being a

Great Scene: “Repo Man”

The cult classic Repo Man (1984), written and directed by Alex Cos, has many memorable scenes. I want to feature the final scene in the movie, but in order to do that, we need to consider two earlier ones. First, there is the introduction of a mysterious car. Here is

Interview (Video): David Robert Mitchell (“It Follows”)

The movie It Follows is a movie currently rolling out in theaters and VOD that is drawing great reviews. Written and directed by David Robert Mitchell, it puts a new spin on the ‘sex kills’ horror movie trope. Here is a Q&A with Mitchell from February 2014 at

Daily Dialogue — March 22, 2015

“But they showed no corrections of any kind. Not one. He had simply written down music already finished in his head. Page after page of it as if he were just taking dictation. And music, finished as no music is ever finished. Displace one note and there would be diminishment.

Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Ghost

The Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Ghost. Take part in the grand Daily Dialogue tradition — 2,500+ consecutive days! How about your suggestion for this week’s theme? The usual drill: * Copy/paste dialogue from IMDb Quotes or some other transcript source. * Copy/paste the URL of an accompanying

Declare Your Independents — Vol. 51

GITS development assistant Wendy Cohen here, and welcome to the return of Declare Your Independents, our series highlighting the latest developments in the world of independent film! This week… The 25 Best Animated Films Of The 21st Century So Far Horror Hit ‘It Follows’ Reveals Challenges of Theatrical vs. VOD

2014 Screenwriters Roundtable (Part 12): Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, Greg Russo

A special treat as for the last 2 weeks, I have been posting excerpts from an extensive screenwriter’s roundtable I did in December 2014 with a group of talented Hollywood screenwriters: Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, and Greg Russo. How good are they?

Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 178th installment of Saturday Hot Links. Today: The Most Insane GoPro Videos Out There Edition. SXSW: Complete List of Winners at the 2015 Film Awards. SXSW Wrap and Winners: Distributors, Pay Attention to These Films. These 10 Female Acts Will Dominate SXSW. HBO Now Finally Breaks Up

Interview (Written): Steve Conrad

A WGA.org interview with Steve Conrad, writer of the comedy Unfinished Business. “It’s better to burn out than to fade away,” Neil Young warbled contemplatively some 35 years ago, distilling the existential angst of every wunderkind who’s ever lived. In 1988, at the age of 19, a

Great Character: Bill “D-Fens” Foster (“Falling Down”)

The Great Character theme for the month: Rebel. Today: Bill “D-Fens” Foster from the 1993 movie Falling Down, written by Ebbe Roe Smith. Health Issues. These volatile ingredients were collectively cooked at maximum temperature to bring Michael Douglas’ character Bill “D-Fens” Foster to a brutal boiling point in

Daily Dialogue — March 21, 2015

“Yeah, there was pressure. I didn’t want to get beat by a guy with a hook, you know.” — Kingpin (1996), written by Barry Fanaro, Mort Nathan The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Competition. Trivia: In the final tournament the announcer says there is a Cinderella story shaping up

2,500!

Today marks a milestone here at Go Into The Story. 2,500. Consecutive days, that is. 2,500 days in a row in which I’ve posted something at GITS. Let’s celebrate by having some fun with numbers, shall we? As of this moment, I have uploaded 16,872

Spec Script Deal: “Verona”

Sony Pictures Entertainment acquires drama epic spec script “Verona” written by Neil Widener and Gavin James. From THR: Exact details are being kept more clandestine than a love affair between two teens from opposing Italian families, but the script is said to reimagine the classic love story through a lens

2014 Screenwriters Roundtable (Part 11): Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, Greg Russo

A special treat this week and next as I will be posting excerpts from an extensive screenwriter’s roundtable I did in December 2014 with a group of talented Hollywood screenwriters: Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, and Greg Russo. How good are they? Between

Video: Rare 103-Minute Documentary: “All About Mankiewicz” (1983)

It’s one of the most storied last names in Hollywood: Mankiewicz. A partial list: Christopher Mankiewicz [Producer] Tom Mankiewicz [Writer-Director] Don Mankiewicz [Writer] Herman J. Mankiewicz [Writer] Frank Mankiewicz [Writer] John Mankiewicz [Writer-Producer] Ben Mankiewicz [Producer] And at the center of all these sons, uncles, nephews and

Movie Trailer: “Paper Towns”

Screenplay by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, novel by John Green A young man and his four friends embark upon the road trip of their lives to find the missing girl next door. IMDb Release Date: 24 July 2015 (USA)

Movies You Made: “Somebody’s Daughter”

March is Movies You Made month at Go Into The Story where we feature the work of independent filmmakers. Today: Somebody’s Daughter. Some background on the project from writer-director Gareth Peevers: We shot the film in Scotland over a weekend on a couple of Canon 7Ds with compact

Daily Dialogue — March 20, 2015

DANNY: Hey, Sawyer, dance with me? I hear you’re a natural. SAWYER: Who told you that? Woolie Mammoth trumpets. SAWYER: Listen, Danny, it’s a waste of time. You’re never gonna get to dance in the movies. DANNY: Movies? Did I say movies? No, we’re just having

2014 Screenwriters Roundtable (Part 10): Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, Greg Russo

A special treat this week and next as I will be posting excerpts from an extensive screenwriter’s roundtable I did in December 2014 with a group of talented Hollywood screenwriters: Chris Borrelli, Brian Duffield, F. Scott Frazier, Chris McCoy, Justin Rhodes, and Greg Russo. How good are they? Between

Video: “First and Final Frames”

Takeaway: As screenwriters, we need to be mindful of our script’s opening image and last image. Not only grab their attention as they start the script. Not only to leave the reader with a specific emotional state at the end. A first and final image can visualize the nature

Movie Trailer: “Infinitely Polar Bear”

Written by Maya Forbes A manic-depressive mess of a father tries to win back his wife by attempting to take full responsibility of their two young, spirited daughters, who don’t make the overwhelming task any easier. IMDb

Movies You Made: “It Practically Writes Itself”

March is Movies You Made month at Go Into The Story where we feature the work of independent filmmakers. Today: It Practically Writes Itself. Some background on the project from producer Daren Smith: Eric [Snider] wrote this for a film blog [Complex] and we saw it and loved it. A

Daily Dialogue — March 19, 2015

“Okay, Jones. You win. Blow it up.” — Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan, story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Competition. Trivia: Steven Spielberg and Melissa Mathison wrote a script during shooting breaks on the location of this film.

Explore your characters’ world view and philosophy

Once again, the conversation in one of my Screenwriting Master Class sessions has spawned some terrific insights into the craft of writing. The current course is the Coen Brothers and the Craft of Storytelling and it’s an excellent group from Iceland, Belgium, France, England, and all across North America.