Scott Myers

Script To Screen: “Pan’s Labyrinth”

The scene in the 2006 movie Pan’s Labyrinth, written by Guillermo del Toro, wherein the Protagonist (Ofelia) moves out of the Ordinary World and into the Extraordinary World, courtesy of the Trickster: Faun. Story Summary: In the fascist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army

Daily Dialogue — January 29, 2014

DORY: Whoa. We goin’ in there? MARLIN: Yup. DORY: P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney? MARLIN: Yup. We’re gonna just swim straight. DORY: [singing] Just keep swimming, just keep swimming. MARLIN: Dory? Boy, this is taking a while. DORY: Hey, how about we play a game? MARLIN: Okay. DORY:

Leonardo DiCaprio meet Charlie Chaplin

One of the best comic sequences in movies during 2013 takes place in The Wolf of Wall Street. A recent NYT article titled “Humor, Locked and Loaded: ‘American Hustle’ and ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ as Brutal Comedies,” describes the sequence this way: Belfort dupes people for a living, but here

Interview — Part 2: Sean Hartofilis (“Beach Pillows”)

From Ivy League lacrosse star to writer-director of the new indie film Beach Pillows starring Geoffrey Arend, Vincent Kartheiser, Annette O’Toole, and Richard Schiff, the career path of Sean Hartofilis has been an interesting one. Recently I spoke with Sean about life as an indie filmmaker and Beach

2013 Spec Script Sales Analysis: Genres

By my count, Hwood studios and production groups acquired 100 spec scripts in 2013. During this week, I’ll be breaking down those numbers. Today we look at sales by genre. Some scripts are categorized as cross genres or sub-genres, so those are noted where relevant under their primary

Movie Trailer: “Starred Up”

Written by Jonathan Asser A troubled and explosively violent teenager is transferred to adult prison where he finally meets his match — a man who also happens to be his father. IMDB Release Date: 21 March 2014 (UK)  Comment Archive

So-Called Screenwriting ‘Rules’: Part 12

Three weeks ago, I posted this about an occurrence that happens with irritating regularity in the online screenwriting universe: The contentious specter of so-called screenwriting ‘rules’: What happens is pretty much this: * Somebody posts something about how there is a rule against doing this or that. * That circulates as

Screenwriting 101: Diablo Cody

“I don’t have a formal rewrite process; I just compulsively groom and regroom scenes like a cat with OCD.” — Diablo Cody HT @TheBlackBoard Comment Archive

Daily Dialogue — January 28, 2014

Lenny: Are you Dick Ritchie? Floyd: Uh, no. Lenny: Do you know a Clarence Worley? Floyd: Yes. Lenny: Do you know where we can find him? Floyd: Yes, I do. Oh. Lenny: Well, where? Floyd: At the Beverly Ambassador. Lenny: Where’s that? Floyd: Well, you go–No. Yeah. Go

Story Summaries: From Loglines to Beat Sheets

From elevator pitches to development meetings to conference calls with talent, a screenwriter’s ability to share stories in a variety of narrative forms is both a valuable and necessary skillset. In the upcoming 1-week Screenwriting Master Class online course “Story Summaries: From Loglines to Beat Sheets” [February 3–

Interview — Part 1: Sean Hartofilis (“Beach Pillows”)

From Ivy League lacrosse star to writer-director of the new indie film Beach Pillows starring Geoffrey Arend, Vincent Kartheiser, Annette O’Toole, and Richard Schiff, the career path of Sean Hartofilis has been an interesting one. Recently I spoke with Sean about life as an indie filmmaker and Beach

2013 Spec Script Deals List

Here is the final 2013 Spec Script Sales List, each with a link to the GITS post about the sale. A few comments. Tracking spec script sales is not an exact science. To make the blog’s list, there almost always has to be some sort of article in the

Movie Trailer: “Blood Ties”

Screenplay by Guillaume Canet & James Gray Two brothers, on either side of the law, face off over organized crime in Brooklyn during the 1970s. IMDB Release Date: 21 March 2014 (USA)  Comment Archive

So-Called Screenwriting ‘Rules’: Part 11

Three weeks ago, I posted this about an occurrence that happens with irritating regularity in the online screenwriting universe: The contentious specter of so-called screenwriting ‘rules’: What happens is pretty much this: * Somebody posts something about how there is a rule against doing this or that. * That circulates as

On Writing

“I believe in the democracy of storytelling. I love the fact that our stories can cross all sorts of borders and boundaries. I feel humbled by the notion that I’m even a small part of the literary experience. I grew up in a house, in a city, in a

Daily Dialogue — January 27, 2014

“Follow the Yellow Brick Road!” — The Wizard of Oz (1939), screenplay by Noel Langley & Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf, adaptation by Noel Langley, book by L. Frank Baum The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is rescue, suggested by Bretton Zinger. Today’s suggestion by Cynthia Jeub. Trivia:

Go Into The Story Week In Review: January 20-January 26, 2014

Links to the week’s most notable posts: Daily Dialogue Theme for Next Week: Directions Great Character: The Geek (Sixteen Candles) Great Scene: Wall Street Interview (Video): Damon Lindelof Interview (Written): Jennifer Lee (Frozen) Matthew Hickman: Reflections of an Independent Screenwriting Fellowship Winner [cont’d] Movies You Made: “Red’s

“Use This Map To Find Your State’s Most Popular Movie”

So I’m clicking through the Internet one day recently when I stumbled upon this HuffPo post: What if states’ identities were dictated by their most iconic movies? Colorado would scare everyone away with its “Shining” associations, and drug traffickers would flock to Florida to partake in some “Scarface” kingpin

Studying Aristotle’s “Poetics” — Part 18©: 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: Aristotle’s “Poetics”. I confess I’ve never read the entire thing, only bits and pieces. So I thought, why not do a weekly series with

Screenwriting News (January 20–26, 2014)

Jonas Carpignano sets up drama “Mediterranea” with Maiden Voyage Pictures. L. Gustavo Cooper and Sharon Y. Cobb writing supernatural thriller “June” for Raven Banner Entertainment with Cooper to direct. Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore sell science fiction spec script “Vice” to Emmett/Furla Films. Douglas McGrath writing historical drama “Brooklyn

Interview [Video]: Damon Lindelof

Adam Savage interviews Damon Lindelof: Damon Lindelof is a writer, producer, and television showrunner. He was a co-creator of Lost, and has worked on the screenplays for movies like Star Trek Into Darkness, Prometheus, Cowboys & Aliens, and the upcoming Tomorrowland. Join Adam for a conversation with Damon Lindelof

Daily Dialogue — January 26, 2014

“If I’d a known this was gonna be the last time for me and Bubba to talk, I would’ve thought of something better to say.” — Forrest Gump (1994), screenplay by Eric Roth, novel by Winston Groom The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is rescue, suggested by Despina.

Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Directions

This week: Rescue, courtesy of Despina. Next week: Directions, suggested by Bretton Zinger: “You go down there, General… if you have the nerve.” The usual drill: * Copy/paste dialogue from IMDB Quotes or some other transcript source. * Copy/paste the URL of an accompanying video from YouTube or some other

Great Scene: “Wall Street”

Today as we consumers gorge on holiday sales, I thought how appropriate to feature this famous speech from the movie Wall Street (1987). The setting: The annuals shareholder’s meeting for a corporation called Teldar. The speaker: Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) who has been allowed to take the floor to

Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 122nd installment of Saturday Hot Links! Today: The Beatles Cartoon TV Series (1965–1967) Edition The must-see films at 2014 Sundance Film Festival. 25 movies that defined the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Criticwire cheat sheet for 2014 Sundance Film Festival. 5 cold truths from an uninspiring