Interview: Will Simmons — Part 1

Will Simmons made a splash when he wrote the 2012 Black List script “Murder City” which was subsequently acquired by Aldamisa Entertainment. He also has two other projects in the works: “Romeo,” a modern day re-imagining of Shakespeare’s play, and “Defenders,” a science fiction thriller pitch bought by Warner Bros in June 2013 based upon a Hugo Award-winning novel.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Will at length about his background, “Murder City,” and the screenwriting craft.

Today in Part 1, Will talks about how he became interested in screenwriting and pursued his interest in filmmaking as a college student:

Scott: How did you find out there were actual people who wrote these things called ‘screenplays’?

Will: I suppose the Academy Awards telecasts were my first exposure to the discipline of screenwriting and the notion of a division between writers and directors. Before that, I’d always assumed that one person was the driving creative force behind every movie, which is often the case, but the Oscars helped to demystify the collaborative process of filmmaking. When I was a kid, I found it infuriating that a movie could win best screenplay but lose best picture. To me, it was unfathomable that there could be such a disconnect between the written page and the finished frame. I guess to some extent that sparked a subconscious interest in the craft of storytelling.

I remember combing through Leonard Maltin’s review anthologies in search of hidden gems from bygone eras, and I spent countless hours at the local video store reading plot descriptions on VHS boxes. But more than anything I was drawn to movies that evoked an emotional response. My parents, who are avid movie buffs, fed me a balanced diet of formative cinema; everything from A Few Good Men and The English Patient to Jurassic Park and Star Wars.

Scott: Were there some other movies you remember being important to you as a youth?

Will: I remember feeling absolutely shellshocked after seeing The Usual Suspects. It’s a film that I continually revisit, and it’s probably the most influential theater-going experience of my adolescence. On a surface level, the narrative plays as an elegantly crafted magic trick, but the true brilliance of McQuarrie’s screenplay is the dynamism of its characters. He creates an emotional investment that not only justifies the film’s major plot twist but also enriches our understanding of every event that precedes it.

Beyond the fact that it’s a supremely entertaining film, The Usual Suspects is a masterclass in how to create redeemable anti-heroes and how to execute nonlinear structure. There’s a seamless quality to the time-shifts that never feels disorienting. You’re always comfortable that Verbal Kint has a firm grasp on his recollection of the past. He lulls you into a state of complacency, and that’s the beauty of it; the unreliable narrator is presented as an insecure pushover but in reality he’s a master manipulator.

For me, The Usual Suspects is part of a holy-trinity of seminal films that every screenwriter should study. The other two are Blade Runner and Chinatown.

Scott: There’s a similar atmospheric feel running through each of those three films, isn’t there?

Will: In my opinion, atmosphere is one of the most essential and least heralded aspects of filmmaking. It’s also the most difficult thing to capture on the page. I try to use settings to reflect and reinforce my characters’ moment-to-moment mindset. And with sparing restraint, I’ll use unfilmmables to evoke a specific mood or tone to help shape the reader’s experience. Recently, there’s been a bit of a paradigm shift, where executives seem more willing to accept novelistic flourishes in screenplays. You can expose a character’s psychology through description as long as it’s also emphasized in dialogue and action. Ultimately, this affords the writer more leeway to reveal intentions through subtext and organic conversation rather than writing something on-the-nose just for the sake of clarity.

Scott: What was the very first screenplay you wrote?

Will: When I was a teenager I wrote a few story documents that were intended as screenplays but truthfully they were just hot-messes. My first legitimate foray into screenwriting was this deranged, whodunit serial-killer thriller called “Ruse,” about the black market organ trade.

Scott: When was this?

Will: During my senior year of high school, I convinced the headmaster to let me pursue an independent study in screenwriting. I had an English professor who was supervising my progress, but essentially I was left to my own devices. Despite the library’s worth of screenwriting books I’d eventually read, the foundation of my writing skills was established through trial and error. You can study every structure-paradigm under the sun, from Field to McKee to Vogler, but in the end a writer is responsible for creating memorable moments. It’s a knack more than an analytical skillset. Sure, it’s useful to be versed in the rules of storytelling, but now more than ever audiences crave “the unfamiliar”. Taking risks is crucial. There’s a great quote by Robert Altman who said “To play it safe is not to play.” As a writer you have to operate from a place of vulnerability — pour your soul onto the page, soak it in blood and sweat, because in the end a screenplay is a reflection of you in written form.

Writing my first screenplay was a transformative experience, but at the time I was also extremely passionate about music, so I attended the University of Miami with the intention of studying jazz composition. But after a year, I returned to my dramatic roots and enrolled in the creative writing program. From a cultural standpoint, Miami was an amazing place to live as a fledgling writer. I’d grown up in Boston, so the South Florida melting-pot was an unfamiliar but welcome change of scenery. I drew inspiration from my surroundings, and I cut my teeth writing short stories, but soon thereafter I transitioned into film studies. Due to a bureaucratic technicality, I wasn’t able to officially enroll as a motion-pictures major, so instead I aggressively solicited the film professors to make exceptions so that I could attend their classes. The perseverance paid off, and I ended up directing two 16mm shorts in advanced production courses.

Scott: So you’re at the University of Miami, you get your degree. How did you wind your way to Hollywood?

Will: After graduating in 2007, I knew I wasn’t ready to move to LA. My chops as a writer weren’t sharp enough to survive the Hollywood meat grinder. I needed time to hone my craft, so I moved back to Boston and worked at an Italian restaurant delivering pizzas. The best part about living at home was that my expenses were minimal, so every cent I earned went toward my wagons-west-fund. I wanted to make the most of this interim period, so I dove headfirst into writing feature specs. I wrote nonstop. Most of the scripts never saw the light of day, but my skills evolved with each completed draft. I was finding my voice.

During this time, I also made five short films. It was startling how much my directorial endeavors informed my writing. Listening to actors breathe life into your dialogue is a humbling and instructional experience. You start to understand how conversations translate from the page to the set, and how to craft dialogue with a naturalistic ear, while still retaining the narrative thrust essential to story progression.

I’d strongly encourage every writer to make a few shorts. The film festival circuit is a great place to test your mettle as a storyteller, so if you can cobble together a budget, good for you, but if money’s in short supply, then just grab your iPhone and some local actors and create a piece of cinema. Shoot basic coverage and evaluate the strength of your writing from a production standpoint. There’s really no excuse not to do it. The availability of cheap and intuitive editing software means that anyone can make a movie.

Tomorrow in Part 2, Will relates how he made his way to Hollywood and gives us background about the spec script that helped him break into the movie business: “Murder City”.

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

Will is repped by UTA and Energy Entertainment.

Twitter: @willsimmons_.

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