Go Into The Story

January Script Reading & Analysis: “Groundhog Day”

The GITS Script Reading & Analysis script for January is the 1993 comedy Groundhog Day, screenplay by Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis, story by Danny Rubin. The movie won the BAFTA Film Award for best original screenplay. You may download a copy of the script here. Our schedule for discussion:

Interview: Adam Kolbrenner (Madhouse Entertainment)

This week, we were fortunate to have as our guest manager-producer Adam Kolbrenner from Madhouse Entertainment, an L.A.-based production and literary management company that works with screenwriters and writer/directors in the areas of film, television and new media. Here are links to all six installments of

Screenwriting Advice From The Past: Midway in the Photoplay [Part 1]

If you are a screenwriter, you should know about Anita Loos. Loos was one of the most influential writers in the early stages of American cinema, associated with 136 film projects per IMDB. Married to writer John Emerson, the pair wrote one of the first books on screenwriting in 1920:

Screenwriting News (January 21-January 27, 2013)

Jonathan Ames writing “Bored to Death” movie version of the TV series for HBO Films. Evan Foster scripting suspense thriller “Table 18” for RadioactiveGiant. John Fusco scripting the sequel “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 2” for the Weinstein Company. Alexander Garcia’s scripted drama “Skate God” going forward with Multi-Valence

Video Interview: Ted Tally

From the Austin Film Festival, twenty minutes with screenwriter Ted Tally (The Silence of the Lambs): http://dgjigvacl6ipj.cloudfront.net/media/swf/PBSPlayer.swf HT to Shaula Evans for the link.

Daily Dialogue — January 27, 2013

Oliver: Please, Sir, I want some more. Bumble: What?! Oliver: Please, Sir… I want some… more? Bumble: More?!!! — Oliver! (1968), screenplay by Vernon Harris, based on the musical by Lionel Bart, and the novel by Charles Dickens The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is answering children’s questions, suggested

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Agents

As we bid a fond farewell to a week’s worth of answering children’s questions [thanks, @BillieJeanVK], we usher in a new theme: Agents! Sports agents, talent agents… but what about FBI agents? Secret agents? Agents of death? Hey, take this one wherever you want! I’m sure Teddy

Interview: Adam Kolbrenner (Madhouse Entertainment) — Part 6

This week, we are fortunate to have as our guest manager-producer Adam Kolbrenner from Madhouse Entertainment, an L.A.-based production and literary management company that works with screenwriters and writer/directors in the areas of film, television and new media. I will be posting the whole interview over

Great Scene: “The Deer Hunter”

This has to rank as one of the most riveting scenes in movie history: The Russian roulette sequence in The Deer Hunter (1978). Setting: Vietnam War. Two captured American soldiers, surrounded by Vietnamese guards, forced to take turns putting a pistol to their heads and pulling the trigger, while the

Saturday Hot Links

Time for another installment of Saturday Hot Links! Today: The John Belushi Birthday Tribute Edition. It’s official! This dude is directing Star Wars: Episode VII — Not Star Trek. Vulture: What we can expect from a J.J. Abrams Star Wars. Meanwhile weird differences between the first Star Wars movie

Written Interview: Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola (“Moonrise Kingdom”)

An interview by Rob Feld at WGA.org with filmmakers Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola about the script they co-wrote for Moonrise Kingdom: Wes, you’ve worked with collaborators on all your films, I believe. They are all distinctly in your voice, so what does a collaboration give to

Daily Dialogue — January 26, 2013

While TRISH puts CHLOE and TIMMY to bed, BILLY comes and sits beside BILL on his bed. BILLY: Dad? BILL: Yes, Billy? BILLY: What does come mean? BILL: Come? BILLY: You know… BILL: Well, you know how sometimes your penis gets erect… well, sometimes it gets so excited that a

Pimp Your Project!

If you’re working on a script… Or have a Kickstarter project… Or made a movie… Or have a blog about writing you want me link to on GITS… Or anything else you feel might be of interest or value to the GITS community… Feel free to post in comments.

Interview: Adam Kolbrenner (Madhouse Entertainment) — Part 5

This week, we are fortunate to have as our guest manager-producer Adam Kolbrenner from Madhouse Entertainment, an L.A.-based production and literary management company that works with screenwriters and writer/directors in the areas of film, television and new media. I will be posting the whole interview over

What are the top 10 highest grossing movies in 2012?

Per TheWrap, here are the top 10 highest grossing movies, domestic and international, from last year: Marvel’s The Avengers: $1.5B The Dark Knight Rises: $1.08B Skyfall: $1.03B The Hobbit: $888.3M Ice Age: Continental Drift: $876.4M The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: $822.7M The Amazing

Movie Trailer: “Only God Forgives”

A Bangkok police lieutenant and a gangster settle their differences in a Thai-boxing match. Written by Nicolas Winding Refn IMDB site Release Date: 23 May 2013 (Denmark) Comment Archive

Spec Script Sales Analysis 2012: First-Timers

On Monday, we broke down the 2012 spec script sales by genre. Tuesday by studios. Wednesday by agents and managers. Yesterday we looked at the year’s top sales. Today we check out the first-timers, writers who broke into the business by selling a spec script: Everybody Wants Head

Great Character: John McClane (“Die Hard”)

This month’s Great Character theme: Cops. Today: Jason Cuthbert’s guest post features John McClane from the 1988 classic action movie Die Hard, screenplay by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza, novel by Roderick Thorp. Bruce Willis was predominantly known for the television series Moonlighting until 1988 rolled

Daily Dialogue — January 25, 2013

ANNIE: You’re not really our dad, are you? Jack turns to her. She’s looking back at him with complete earnestness. They stare at each other another moment. Then… JACK: No, I’m not. A look of curiosity from Annie. JACK: I work on Wall Street, you know with

Computer love?

So writer Nathan Heller writes a fun retrospective in this week’s New Yorker: “Hello Laptop, My Old Friend.” Due to the death of his current computer, he was forced to ‘resurrect’ an old laptop: It was an affection born of shared interests and mutual experience. I bought Laptop when

Interview: Adam Kolbrenner (Madhouse Entertainment) — Part 4

This week, we are fortunate to have as our guest manager-producer Adam Kolbrenner from Madhouse Entertainment, an L.A.-based production and literary management company that works with screenwriters and writer/directors in the areas of film, television and new media. I will be posting the whole interview over

The power of screenwriters

Screenwriter Chris Sparling (Buried, ATM) tweeted this the other day: “The most important person in the motion picture process is the writer… and we must do everything in our power to prevent them from ever realizing it.” — Irving Thalberg It’s a famous quote from arguably Hollywood’s first great

Movie Trailer: “InAPPropriate Comedy”

In this comedy film, a computer tablet full of the world’s most hilariously offensive apps breaks through the borders of political correctness, stirring up cultural anarchy. Written by Ken Pringle, Ari Shaffir and Vince Offer, additional dialogue by Adrien Brody, Dante, Christina Pazsitzky, John Ryan Jr. IMDB site Release

Spec Script Sales Analysis 2012: Top Sales

On Monday, we broke down the 2012 spec script sales by genre. Tuesday by studios. Yesterday by agents and managers. Today we look at the deals with the biggest payoffs (at least as reported by various news outlets): White House Down — Action James Vanderbilt — $3M Lore — Science Fiction Action Cory

The Business of Screenwriting: Do’s and Don’ts #1

A few folks posted comments the other day, requesting I talk more about the business of being a working screenwriter. A big part of that is, frankly, paying attention to market trends, which is why I post about pitch and spec script sales, spec script sales analysis, shifts in leadership