Go Into The Story

On Writing

“Character gives us qualities, but it is in actions — what we do — that we are happy or the reverse. All human happiness and misery takes…

Page One: “The Boondock Saints” (1999)

Written by Troy Duffy

“Conversations With Wilder”: Part 2

Billy Wilder is my all-time favorite filmmaker. Consider just some of his movies: Double Indemnity (1944), Sunset Blvd. (1950), Stalag 17…

Script To Screen: “Batman”

The Final Struggle in the 1989 movie Batman.

Similar but different

Or Precedent / Analogy. However you refer to it, it’s how Hollywood operates.

Page One: “Bohemian Rhapsody” (2018)

Screenplay by Anthony McCarten, story by Anthony McCarten and Peter Morgan

Great Scene: “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”

A cinematic moment in Spielberg’s classic science fiction movie.

Story Type: Fish Out Of Water (FOOW)

When a central character finds themselves WAY out of their natural element.

Writing and the Creative Life: One key to creativity… naps?

“There is a cultural bias against sleep that sees it as akin to shutting down…”

Page One: “Blue Ruin” (2013)

Written by Jeremy Saulnier

How They Write A Script: Alvin Sargent

“I think too many people are too organized; they’ve got it all worked out, instead of hearing their characters first. Get the goop out…

Script To Screen: “Beetlejuice”

A memorable scene from the 1988 movie Beetlejuice with some significant changes from script to screen [screenplay by Michael McDowell and…

Screenwriting Mantra: “Writing is rewriting”

Perhaps no more true than in relation to screenwriting.

Page One: “Blood Diamond” (2006)

Screenplay by Charles Leavitt, story by Charles Leavitt and C. Gaby Mitchell

Stacking projects

One key to the craft: Learn how to manage several projects at once.

Spec Script Deal: “Reality Vice”

Paramount Pictures acquires comedy spec script “Reality Vice” written by Katie Silberman. Via Deadline:

The Business of Screenwriting: It’s not just about the script

Yes, you should focus on your spec script, but there’s much more to learn.

Page One: “Blonde” (2022)

Written for the screen by Andrew Dominik, based on the novel by Joyce Carol Oates

Break your story in prep

My only Prep: From Concept to Outline workshop of 2024 begins July 8th.

Screenwriting Mantra: Watch Movies. Read Scripts. Write Pages.

I came up with this screenwriting mantra a decade ago. Still works.

How They Write A Script: Wendell Mayes

Wendell Mayes (1918–1992) had a significant career as a screenwriter and TV writer with quite a range of movies including The Spirit of St…

Page One: “The Blob” (1988)

Screenplay by Chuck Russell & Frank Darabont, story by Irvine H. Millgate, earlier screenplay by Theodore Simonson and Kay Linaker

Short Film: “The Smallest Power”

This compelling animation is the first in a series of The New Yorker documentaries.

Script To Screen: “Before Midnight”

The final scene in the 2013 movie Before Midnight, written by Richard Linklater & Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke, characters by Richard…

Screenwriting 101: Paul Thomas Anderson

“Bad movie dialogue speaks in complete sentences without any overlapping or interruption, and avoids elliptical speech, which is truer to…