Scott Myers

Video Interview: Brian Helgeland

A BAFTA lecture by Brian Helgeland, screenwriter of such movies as L.A. Confidential and Mystic River: For more info, go here.

Daily Dialogue — October 6, 2013

Alexander Dyle: [Reggie is sitting on his lap and kissing him] Reggie, cut it out. Reggie Lampert: OK. [stops kissing him] Alexander Dyle: Well now what are you doing? Reggie Lampert: Cutting it out. Alexander Dyle: Who told you to do that? Reggie Lampert: You did. Alexander Dyle: Oh I’

Daily Dialogue theme for next week: Assassination

For a week we have been entertained by witty banter [thanks, kevinpgoulet for that theme]. Now it’s time for a darker theme: Assassination. 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

Dispatch From The Quest: Waka Brown

Over the course of the 24 weeks I am working with the writers in The Quest, each will write a weekly dispatch to share with the GITS community. There are several reasons for doing this, the main one educational: Hopefully you will learn something of value for your own understanding

Project Drive-In

HT to Franklin Leonard for this: How many of you have fond memories of drive-in theaters? What movies do you remember seeing in drive-ins? They are an important part of our cultural landscape. Spread the word about Honda’s Project Drive-In. For more information, go here.

Great Scene: “Rocky”

Last night, GITS reader-editor-writer-director and major movie buff Kevin Wild stopped by, so I asked him for a Great Scene. He said, “Hey, you should do some that came about because of budget issues.” And he immediately thought of the ice-skating scene in the movie Rocky

Hidden Movie Gem: “Joyeux Noel”

Here is a Hidden Movie Gem courtesy of Aurélien Lainé. Movie Title: Joyeux Noel Year: (2005) Writer and Director: Christian Carion Lead Actors: Diane Kruger, Benno Fürmann, Guillaume Canet, Gary Lewis, Dany Boon, Daniel Brühl. Plot Summary: On Christmas Eve during world War I, the Germans, French, and Scottish soldiers

Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 108th installment of Saturday Hot Links! Today: It’s “The Simpsons” Gets Renewed for Season 26 Best Moments Edition. “The Simpsons” renewed for 26th season. “The Simpsons” to kill off a character this season. Speaking of notable TV demises, “Breaking Bad”’s Walter White gets an obituary

Audio Q&A: “Salinger”

An 19-minute audio recording of a recent post-screening Q&A with Shane Salerno, director of the documentary Salinger: [soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/scott-myers-15/q-a-salinger[/soundcloud] Salinger Date: 9/8/2013  Location: The Landmark  With: Shane Salerno Role: Director  Release: 9/6/13 — Limited

Written Interview: Peter Morgan

A FilmSchoolRejects interview with screenwriter Peter Morgan whose movie Rush is in theaters now: You’ve written a few bio films now. Lately we’ve seen some focusing on modern figures. Do you think you’re at a disadvantage or losing perspective by writing about a topic so immediate? I

Daily Dialogue — October 5, 2013

Tony: You know every time I think how lucky I am, I feel like screaming. Alice: Tony, please promise you’ll invite them. Tony: Uh-oh, I feel a scream coming on right now. Alice: We’ll have to face it sooner than later… Tony: It’s starting right now

Dialogue as “character communication”

In another great discussion in my current Dialogue class, one of the writers in our group Diana Ford had an interesting revelation to my lectures: On another point, since it’s really conversation-writing that is difficult for me (just as conversation-speaking is for me, LOL), it helps me

Dispatch From The Quest: Paul Wie

Over the course of the 24 weeks I am working with the writers in The Quest, each will write a weekly dispatch to share with the GITS community. There are several reasons for doing this, the main one educational: Hopefully you will learn something of value for your own understanding

“13 Low Budget Movies That Made Millions”

If you are a screenwriter looking to break into Hollywood, your chances increase as your story’s budget decreases. That’s not a rule, rather simply an awareness related to two factors: (1) The more of an unknown commodity you are to the buyers, the greater the risk in their

Go On Your Own Quest — Week 12: Prep

The 2013 version of The Quest has entered Week 12. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by because you can Go On Your Own Quest by following the structure of The Quest to dig into screenwriting theory [Core — 8 weeks], figure out your story [Prep — 6 weeks], and write

Movie Trailer: “The Nut Job”

Screenplay by Lorne Cameron, Peter Lepeniotis, Daniel Woo Surly, a curmudgeon, independent squirrel is banished from his park and forced to survive in the city. Lucky for him, he stumbles on the one thing that may be able to save his life, and the rest of park community, as they

Hidden Movie Gem: “Round Midnight”

Here is a Hidden Movie Gem courtesy of John Casu: Movie Title: Round Midnight Year: 1986 Writers: David Rayfiel and Bertrand Tavernier, based on “Dance of the Infidels” by Francis Paudras. Director: Bertrand Tavernier Lead Actors: Dexter Gordon, Francois Cluzet, Gabriell Haker, Sandra Reaves-Phillips and Herbie Hancock. Plot Summary:

Great Character: Frank (“Donnie Darko”)

With Halloween approaching, our theme this month is Supernatural Characters. Today in his regular weekly guest post, Jason Cuthbert looks at Frank in the 2001 movie Donnie Darko, written by Richard Kelly. Time Travel. Alternate Universes. Futuristic Premonitions. All of these science fiction staples pin down the already emotionally stifled16-

Daily Dialogue — October 4, 2013

John L. Sullivan: I want this picture to be a commentary on modern conditions. Stark realism. The problems that confront the average man! LeBrand: But with a little sex in it. John L. Sullivan: A little, but I don’t want to stress it. I want this picture to be

Spec Script Sale: “The Unsacred”

Screen Gems acquires thriller spec script “The Unsacred” written by Amanda Gusack. Via Deadline: The label is keeping the logline under wraps, but I’m told it’s The Possession meets The Haunting In Connecticut. Gusack is repped by Paradigm By my count, this is the 67th spec script sale

Declare Your Independents: Volume 12

GITS development assistant Wendy Cohen here, and welcome to another edition of Declare Your Independents, our new series highlighting the latest developments in the world of independent film. This week… Shakeup at Focus Features: James Schamus Out; Peter Schlessel In, FilmDistrict to be Absorbed by Focus How This Year’s

Dispatch From The Quest: Sandy Leviton

Over the course of the 24 weeks I am working with the writers in The Quest, each will write a weekly dispatch to share with the GITS community. There are several reasons for doing this, the main one educational: Hopefully you will learn something of value for your own understanding

Audio Q&A: “C.O.G.”

An 18-minute audio recording of a recent post-screening Q&A with Kyle Patrick Alvarez, writer-director of the movie C.O.G.: [soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/scott-myers-15/q-a-c-o-g[/soundcloud] C.O.G. Date: 9/21/2013  Location: Sundance Sunset Cinema  With:

Go On Your Own Quest — Week 12: Prep

The 2013 version of The Quest has entered Week 12. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by because you can Go On Your Own Quest by following the structure of The Quest to dig into screenwriting theory [Core — 8 weeks], figure out your story [Prep — 6 weeks], and write

Movie Trailer: “Like Father Like Son”

Written by Hirokazu Koreeda Ryota Nonomiya is a successful businessman driven by money. When he learns that his biological son was switched with another child after birth, he must make a life-changing decision and choose his true son or the boy he raised as his own. IMDB Release Date: