Go Into The Story

Screenwriting Lessons: “True Grit” — Part 3: Absent Nemesis

Five-part series exploring lessons from the Coen brothers screenplay.

Great Scene: “Inception”

Cobb wakes up. He’s home. Finally, home. But… is it real?

Daily Dialogue — June 28, 2017

“Saigon… shit. I’m still only in Saigon. Every time I think I’m gonna wake up back in the jungle. When I was home after my first tour, it…

J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter, Patton Oswalt and you

Oh, and let’s toss some Joseph Campbell into the mix for good measure.

Spec Script Deal: “Courage”

Twentieth Century Fox acquires science fiction spec script “Courage” written by Karl Gajdusek. From Deadline:

Black List writers on the craft: Theme (Part 2)

Over the years, I have interviewed over 40 Black List screenwriters. This month, I am running a series featuring one topic per week related…

Screenwriting Lessons: “True Grit” — Part 2: Fish Out Of Water

Five-part series exploring lessons from the Coen brothers screenplay.

Screenwriting 101: Daniel Kunka

“No matter what the concept is, no matter what spectacle you put out there, nobody cares if there’s not an empathetic way into the story…

Daily Dialogue — June 27, 2017

“That night I had a dream. I dreamt I was as light as the ether- a floating spirit visiting things to come. The shades and shadows of the…

Break your story in prep

My last Prep: From Concept to Outline workshop of 2017 begins July 17.

Reader Question: Is it true that only 2% of independent films get distribution?

A question from Lembit:

Black List writers on the craft: Theme (Part 1)

Over the years, I have interviewed over 40 Black List screenwriters. This month, I am running a series featuring one topic per week related…

Screenwriting Lessons: “True Grit” — Part 1: The First 10 Pages

Five-part series exploring lessons from the Coen brothers screenplay.

On Writing

“Always dream and shoot higher than you know you can do. Don’t bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be…

Daily Dialogue — June 26, 2017

Young Birdman (V.O.): It’s a beautiful day. Forget about the Times… everyone else has. Come on. Stand up! So you’re not a great actor. Who…

Reader Question: Are there any script rules that really shouldn’t be broken?

Or this: “How can you break screenwriting rules if there are none?”

How to make the perfect car chase

When Edgar Wright (Baby Driver) talks… filmmakers listen!

Screenwriting News (June 19-June 25, 2017)

The week’s writing deals and movie project news.

“Trust the Process”

One of the most important writing mantras.

Interview (Audio): Adam Kolbrenner

A half-hour conversation with Madhouse Entertainment manager.

Daily Dialogue — June 25, 2017

“Help me! Help me, please!”

Daily Dialogue theme next week: Voice-Over

Join the Daily Dialogue crew: 3,327 consecutive days and counting.

Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 295th installment of Saturday Hot Links, your week’s essential reading about movies, TV, streaming, Hollywood, and other…

Script To Screen: “Inception”

A nifty video from Legendary Pictures.

Interview (Audio): Lisa Joy, Jonah Nolan, Evan Rachel Wood

Talking about the HBO series ‘Westworld’, the first season and what’s next.