Movie Trailer: “V/H/S: Viral” Written by Justin Benson, Gregg Bishop, T.J. Cimfel, Todd Lincoln, Aaron Moorhead, Marcel Sarmiento, Nacho Vigalondo, David White Follows fame-obsessed teens who unwittingly become stars of the next internet sensation. IMDB Comment Archive
30 Days of Screenplays, Day 3: “Jane Eyre” Take up the challenge! Read 30 screenplays in 30 days! Why 30 screenplays in 30 days? Because whether you are a novice just starting to learn the craft of screenwriting or someone who has been writing for many years, you should be reading scripts. There is a certain type of
Screenwriting 101: Dana Coen “I learned by continually asking myself those essential craft questions. Is the scene driven by the intent of the characters? Are there external and internal obstacles, and are the obstacles creating conflict? Is the conflict creating dramatic tension? Is the dramatic tension heightened by behavior and subtext? Is the exposition
Daily Dialogue — June 3, 2104 BONNIE: (putting her on) Ain’t you ashamed? Tryin’ to steal an old lady’s automobile. CLYDE: (with the same put-on) I been thinkin’ about buyin’ me one. BONNIE: Bull. You ain’t got money for dinner, let alone buy no car. CLYDE: (still the battle of wits going
Black List Live! Staged Reading Free Ticket Contest Giveaway! Yes, this event is so monumental, it’s worth a headline with two exclamation points! What is the Black List Live! Staged Reading? I first posted about it here in talking about this year’s upcoming Los Angeles Film Festival which happens June 11-June 19, 2014: A first time
The Fault In Our Stars: Q&A (Part 1) with screenwriters Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber Based on the John Green novel, the movie version of The Fault in Our Stars is creating quite a buzz in social media as it approaches its opening in theaters in North America this weekend. So I reached out to the film’s screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber
How James Cameron Wrote Three ‘Avatar’ Sequels Simultaneously Via /film: When you follow up the biggest hit in box office history, audiences expect something great. They expect something even greater from the director of two of the best sequels of all time, Terminator 2: Judgement Day and Aliens. So Cameron took his sweet time making sure the scripts
Movie Trailer: “Cold in July” Screenplay by Nick Damici, Jim Mickle, novel by Joe R. Lansdale In 1980s East Texas, two fathers pitted against each other in revenge must band together to uncover a darker truth. IMDB Release Date: 23 May 2014 (U.S.) Comment Archive
30 Days of Screenplays, Day 2: “Prisoners” Why 30 screenplays in 30 days? Because whether you are a novice just starting to learn the craft of screenwriting or someone who has been writing for many years, you should be reading scripts. There is a certain type of knowledge and understanding about screenwriting you can only get from
On Writing “The nearest I have to a rule is a Post-It on the wall in front of my desk saying “Faire et se taire” (Flaubert), which I translate for myself as ‘Shut up and get on with it.’” — Helen Simpson Via @AdviceToWriters
Daily Dialogue — June 2, 2104 Colin: I’ll stab someone with an ice pick if it gets me dinner with you. Madolyn: Here, this is my card. Colin: Nah, I don’t need that. I’m a detective. I’ll find you. [elevator door begins to close — Colin reaches out] No, I’m just kidding,
Go Into The Story Week In Review: May 26-June 1, 2014 Links to the week’s most notable posts: 12 Invaluable Tips for First-Time Filmmakers 2014 Black List Screenwriters Lab submission period now open 30 Days of Screenplays: Week 1 scripts 30 Days of Screenplays, Day 1: The Way Way Back Bill Murray: Trickster Extraordinaire Classic 90s Movie: Being John
Movie Analysis (Part 7): “Gravity” This week, I’m going through the script for the movie Gravity, excerpting every scene that touches on its primary ‘small’ story: Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) dealing with her grief related to the death of her young daughter. I laid out my rationale for this exercise in Part 1 of
Interview: Tasia Valenza From TV series to videogames, voice-over acting to commercials, Tasia Valenza has had a long and successful career in the entertainment business. In that time, there have been many changes, but one thing has remained constant: Movie trailers almost always feature male voice-overs. In fact, Tasia is one
Interview: Brad Riddell I often get asked about the merits of attending film school. While I do teach one screenwriting course per semester at the collegiate level, I didn’t attend film school, so I always feel hamstrung in terms of what information or insight I can provide. So I reached out to
Screenwriting News (May 26-June 1, 2014) Dan Ahdoot writing untitled Janoskians project for Lionsgate. Carter Blanchard rewriting Independence Day 2 for Twentieth Century Fox. Larry Charles writing remake of 2001 Australian cult hit “The Man Who Sued God” for New Films International. Tripper Clancy sells pitch “Stranded” to Sony Pictures Entertainment, Kevin James attached to star.
30 Days of Screenplays, Day 1: “The Way, Way Back” Why 30 screenplays in 30 days? Because whether you are a novice just starting to learn the craft of screenwriting or someone who has been writing for many years, you should be reading scripts. There is a certain type of knowledge and understanding about screenwriting you can only get from
Daily Dialogue — June 1, 2014 Donnie: [Talking about portals through space-time] Well, could these portals, um… Could these portals just appear anywhere, anytime? Prof. Kenneth Monnitoff: I think that’s highly unlikely. No, I think what you’re talking about is an act of God. Donnie: Well, if God controls time, then all time
Update: Black List Live! stage reading From the Black List: Kathryn Hahn, Jared Harris, Thomas Sadoski, Shannon Woodward to star in Black List Live!’s read of “1969: A Space Odyssey” We are excited to announce our first cast members… Kathryn Hahn (Bad Words, Parks and Recreation) as Barbara Penn Jared Harris (The Curious Case of
30 Days of Screenplays [2014] 30 Days of Screenplays: Vol. 2 Reading scripts. One of the single most important things you can do to learn the craft of screenwriting. Here are 30 of them with analysis. Read. Learn. Day 1: The Way Way Back Day 2: Prisoners Day 3: Jane Eyre Day 4: Spring Breakers
Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Flirting Our Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Flirting, suggested by SabinaGiado. Allan: That’s quite a lovely Jackson Pollock, isn’t it? Museum Girl: Yes, it is. Allan: What does it say to you? Museum Girl: It restates the negativeness of the universe. The hideous lonely emptiness of existence. Nothingness.
Movie Analysis (Part 6): “Gravity” This week, I’m going through the script for the movie Gravity, excerpting every scene that touches on its primary ‘small’ story: Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) dealing with her grief related to the death of her young daughter. I laid out my rationale for this exercise in Part 1 of
Interview (Part 3): Tasia Valenza, Voice-Over Artist From TV series to videogames, voice-over acting to commercials, Tasia Valenza has had a long and successful career in the entertainment business. In that time, there have been many changes, but one thing has remained constant: Movie trailers almost always feature male voice-overs. In fact, Tasia is one
Saturday Hot Links Time for the 136th installment of Saturday Hot Links. Today: The 675 Free Movies Online (Great Classics, Indies, Noirs, Westerns, Etc) Edition. There are a ton of free movies online in the public domain. The link above takes you to an Open Culture post with links to (reportedly) 675 of
Thirty Classic 90s Movies June was Classic 90s Movie month and here are links to all 30 guest posts featuring some terrific films: Before Sunrise Being John Malkovich Boyz n the Hood Chungking Express Clerks Clueless Dave Death Becomes Her Fight Club GoldenEye Good Will Hunting Goodfellas Groundhog Day Home Alone Howard’s End
