Andrew Stanton TED Talk: “Clues to a Great Story” A 10-part series analyzing the Pixar writer-director’s TED Talk.
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 22: Word Choice As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
The Business of Screenwriting: There is always another way Between writing assignments, I wrote a spec script. It’s a contained thriller called “Legacy,” about a child psychiatrist who ends up on a…
Page One: “The Double” (2013) Written by Richard Ayoade and Avi Korine, story by Avi Korine, novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Andrew Stanton TED Talk: “Clues to a Great Story” A 10-part series analyzing the Pixar writer-director’s TED Talk.
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Parts 20+21: Language and Words As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
Script To Screen: “A Serious Man” Leave it to the Coen brothers (Joel and Ethan) to come up with a denouement in their 2009 movie A Serious Man that resolves virtually…
Script To Screen: “A Quiet Place” The terrifying opening incident is a master class in demonstrating how to use paragraphs of scene description to suggest individual camera…
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 19: Thought and Diction As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
Screenwriting 101: George Axelrod “Writing is such a mysterious process for me. For example, I don’t use a computer, because I like the manual feeling of building something…
Page One: “Don’t Worry Darling” (2022) Screenplay by Katie Silberman, story by Carey Van Dyke & Shane Van Dyke and Katie Silberman
“Don’t let the facts get in the way of the story” Reflections on a Hollywood axiom and the power of emotional logic.
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 18(D): Chorus As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
On Writing “One thing that helps is to give myself permission to write badly. I tell myself that I’m going to do my five or 10 pages no matter what…
Great Scene: “King of Hearts” In a fundamental way, screenwriting is scene-writing, so the more we learn about this aspect of the craft, the better.
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 18(C): Multiplicity of Plots As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
Script To Screen: “The Abyss” One of the most dramatic scenes from the 1989 movie The Abyss, written by James Cameron.
Script To Screen: “Adaptation” A memorable scene from the 2002 movie Adaptation, screenplay by Charlie Kaufman and Donald Kaufman, book by Susan Orlean.
Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 18(B): Four Kinds of Tragedy As I’ve been interviewing screenwriters, I typically ask what some of their influences are. One book title comes up over and over again…
Scene Description Spotlight: “(500) Days of Summer” One of the best moments in the delightful film (500) Days of Summer is the morning-after-having-sex-with-Summer-big-dance-bit.
Go Into The Story Interview: Scott Derrickson My in-depth 2018 conversation with co-writer and director of the Marvel movie Doctor Strange as well as horror movies The Exorcism of Emily…
