Interview: Eric Heisserer (2012, 2014 Black List)

One of the best ways to learn the craft is read what professional screenwriters have to say about it. To that end for the next few weeks, I will be featuring interviews I have conducted with Black List screenwriters.

Today: Eric Heisserer has written two scripts which have made the Black List: Story of Your Life (2012), currently in post-production, and “Bird Box” (2014). He wrote and directed the movie Hours, and wrote the movie Lights Out which is scheduled for release this July.

Here are links to the six installments of my April 2013 interview with Eric:

Part 1: “I’m a bit of an autodidact, so I picked up Final Draft software and a couple of screenplays that I purchased through bookstores. I had an idea of what a script was supposed to look like, and I started writing.”

Part 2: “I’ve been keen to work new muscles as a screenwriter, and every year, I at least attempt to write a screenplay in a genre that I haven’t done before.”

Part 3: “What appealed to me is that it’s a polarizing issue. Therefore I feel like it’s something that is worthy of exploration.”

Part 4: “That’s my new mantra, my new mission is that whatever I write, I’m writing something that, in reading, the director knows exactly what kind of movie it is.”

Part 5: “When I’m writing a scene, and if I’m blocked, it’s typically because there’s nothing in the scene I’m excited about.”

Part 6: “Write as much as you can. Write any and all of those things…screenplays, short stories, novels. The more you understand the language in the world, the better.”

Eric is repped by UTA and Art/Work Entertainment.

Twitter: @HIGHzurrer.