Interview: Daniel Turkewitz — Part 1

It’s always interesting to interview “first-timers,” writers who break into the business by selling a spec script. Such is the case of Daniel Turkewitz, a proverbial overnight success who spent years of hard work before writing “Tranquility Base” which 20th Century Fox acquired in June 2013 for a reported mid-six figures.

Recently I had a wide-ranging conversation with Daniel about his background, “Tranquility Base,” screenwriting, and what it’s like to finally get that phone call: “They want your script.”

Today in Part 1, Daniel relates how he got into screenwriting and learned the craft:

Scott: Where did you grow up and how did you find your way into writing?

Daniel: I grew up on Long Island. Writing is definitely a second career. I got a degree in architecture from Illinois Institute of Technology. I worked here in the city as an architect for about a dozen years. It was only in 2000 that I started taking writing courses at NYU.

Scott: Was that just on an ad hoc basis at NYU or were you in a program there?

Daniel: It was a program. I took four screenwriting courses, a comedy writing course and a marketing course, and got my certificate in screenwriting. You start out in course number one with an idea. By the end of the courses, you have to have a finished script.

Scott: Let’s jump back a bit. You go down this route where you’re doing architecture. Then somewhere along the line, you decide you’ve become interested in screenwriting. Is it safe to assume that you were always into movies and TV when you were growing up?

Daniel: Oh, absolutely. I’ve always loved movies. I mean, the writing courses, I was really starting from zero. My architecture school didn’t have any liberal arts program at all. But it’s always been something I’ve loved.

Scott: What are some of the most memorable movies from your youth or movies that have meant a lot to you?

Daniel: Well, growing up in the 1970s a nice Jewish boy on Long Island, of course, my two big heroes were Woody and Mel. I saw anything that Woody Allen and Mel Brooks put out. Those were my favorites.

Scott: That’s interesting because they’re both into comedies, and yet “Tranquility Base” is a science fiction movie. So did you have any interest in the science fiction back then, or is that something that developed later on?

Daniel: I’ve always enjoyed science fiction, but as to what was my favorite growing up, that’s not really where it started. I can remember the very first time I ever actually went to the movies, it was a Sleeper/Bananas double feature.

Of course, I’ve certainly seen my share of sci‑fi. I waited in line for Star Wars when it came out in ’77, so I was seeing that as well.

Scott: Was the first screenplay you wrote the one you did at NYU?

Daniel: Yes.

Scott: What was that about?

Daniel: Well, that was called “Blueprint,” and no big surprise, it stars an architect. Write what you know. It was a bank caper about an architect who is designing an office tower in New York to be the new headquarters for a bank, and he gets blackmailed by a gang into helping them rob the bank. He has to incorporate the robbery right into the design, so that once the place opens, they could walk in and clear the place out.

Scott: Did anything happen with that script?

Daniel: Yeah, I got that optioned, actually. I sent out a whole bunch of unsolicited query letters, since I didn’t have any connections. I didn’t know anybody in the business. So I sent out some letters and it got optioned by the Wolper Organization and went into development at TNT. Unfortunately, it was never made. The options ran out, and it’s back in my possession.

Scott: But that’s pretty impressive. First time out with a script and you get an option.

Daniel: Yeah, and then I thought, “That’s easy.” [laughter]

Scott: You had a background as an architect, and, of course, screenplays are oftentimes called blueprints for making movies. Do you think there’s some translatability between what you studied in terms of architecture and how you approach writing screenplays?

Daniel: There are definitely connections. Every writer has his own method for writing a script. Some people, they just sit down and start writing a script on page one, and “It’ll take me where it takes me.” I’m not like that. I start out with a two‑page synopsis. Then I string it out into a 15‑page treatment. Only then do I start writing a script. To draw a parallel to architecture, that would be like putting up the frame of the building. I like to know where everything is going. I like to have it all planned and plotted out before I start the script. That certainly feels a lot like how you would proceed in architecture. You don’t just start building a house. You have to have plans. The treatment is the screenwriting form of plans.

Scott: You write this script “Blueprint”. Then we jump to the present with your current script “Tranquility Base.” How many scripts did you write in between those two?

Daniel: I’ve got a total of five, two of which, of course, star architects. “Tranquility Base” is script number four.

Tomorrow in Part 2, Daniel discusses the origins of his script “Tranquility Base.”

Please stop by comments to thank Daniel and ask any questions you may have.

Daniel is repped by Energy Entertainment.