GITS: The Twitter Conversations — Script Readers (Part 14) On Wednesday, April 10th at 7PM Pacific, we had the 3rd GITS Twitter Conversation with industry insiders whose jobs involve reading scripts: Amanda Pendolino [@amandapendo], Nate Winslow [@nate_winslow], and The Bitter Script Reader [@BittrScrptReadr]. I will be posting an edited transcript of the conversation every day this week. AP
Movie Trailer: “Now You See Me” Screenplay by Ed Solomon and Boaz Yakin & Edward Ricourt, story by Boaz Yakin & Edward Ricourt FBI agents track a team of illusionists who pull off bank heists during their performances and reward their audiences with the money. IMDB site Release Date: 31 May 2013 (USA) Comment Archive
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month — Day 25 This is the fourth year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Today’s story idea: Killer On The Road: What would highway killers do without highways? In 1956, Congress passed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, authorizing the construction of 42,795 miles of an interstate road
The Business of Screenwriting: Everything you wanted to know about specs [Part 11] The Business of Screenwriting: Everything you wanted to know about specs Part 11: Slipping a script. Spec scripts, that is. I’m guessing that perhaps 90% of the people who follow this blog at some point in their lives will write a spec script. And the other 10% are involved
Daily Dialogue — April 25, 2013 “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. We are tonight’s entertainment. I only have one question. Where is Harvey Dent?” — The Dark Knight (2008), screenplay by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan, story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, characters by Bob Kane The Daily Dialogue theme for the week is
Follow Your Bliss: A Story Dotan Negrin travels the world with his piano and makes friends everywhere with the universal language of music. So yesterday I’m driving back from my favorite store in the universe — Costco, great value for customers and they treat their employees right! I’m listening to the local NPR station
Interview: Nikole Beckwith (2012 Nicholl Winner, 2012 Black List) — Part 3 Nikole Beckwith’s original screenplay, the gripping drama “Stockholm, Pennsylvania” won a 2012 Nicholl Fellowship and a spot on the 2012 Black List. Nikole was kind enough to agree to an interview and we had a probing conversation about her background, her award-winning screenplay, and her unique insight into
Spec Script Sale: “Wildflowers” 108 Production acquires action comedy spec script “Wildflowers” written by Jim Stansberry and Annika Tuneld. From the 108 Production press release: When times of financial crisis leaves a new couple with nothing left to lose, they set off on a crime spree, slipping into a romance as hot as the
GITS: The Twitter Conversations — Script Readers (Part 13) On Wednesday, April 10th at 7PM Pacific, we had the 3rd GITS Twitter Conversation with industry insiders whose jobs involve reading scripts: Amanda Pendolino [@amandapendo], Nate Winslow [@nate_winslow], and The Bitter Script Reader [@BittrScrptReadr]. I will be posting an edited transcript of the conversation every day this week. AP
Movie Trailer: “Summer in February” Written by Jonathan Smith A true tale of love, liberty and scandal amongst the Edwardian artists’ colony in Cornwall. IMDB site Release Date: 14 June 2013 (UK)
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month — Day 24 This is the fourth year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Today’s story idea: Their Home Is a Castle, Like It or Not: AMSTERDAM, N.Y. — Susan Phemister assumed it would be easy to flip a castle. She and her husband, Manfred, had been flipping
Script To Screen: “Jacob’s Ladder” A truly creepy scene from the 1990 movie Jacob’s Ladder, written by Bruce Joel Rubin. Setup: Mourning his dead child, a haunted Vietnam vet attempts to discover his past while suffering from a severe case of disassociation. To do so, he must decipher reality and life from his own
Daily Dialogue — April 24, 2013 EXT. BERGDORF GOODMAN — DAY The Fifth Avenue exit. Linda exits the building. The security guard exits a few moments later. Arthur and Hobson follow. The caravan travels back a block or so before the security guard stops Linda. SECURITY GUARD: (showing her his badge) I beg your pardon, Miss. I’
Richie Havens and spontaneous creativity In the winter of 1979, the music duo of which I was a part (Myers & O’Flynn), opened for Richie Havens at the Paradise Theater in Aspen, Colorado. After the shows, Pat Flynn and I got a chance to talk with Havens, and I took away something from that
Spec Script Sale: “You’ll Be the Death of Me” Lionsgate/Summit acquires comedy spec “You’ll Be the Death of Me” written by Mark Hammer. From Deadline: Nothing can spoil falling in love in New York City, but a masked knife-wielding psychopath hell bent on keeping you single can certainly make falling in love more difficult. Note: Mid-
Hot Topics: The Black Board A weekly update from Shaula Evans, moderator of The Black Board: Can downbeat endings work? Digging deep into personal experience in your writing Fresh Perspectives: screenwriting advice from Diversity Writers How do you get better at proofreading? Mentoring in Screenwriting “Permission to Write”: how do you get past that feeling?
Interview: Nikole Beckwith (2012 Nicholl Winner, 2012 Black List) — Part 2 Nikole Beckwith’s original screenplay, the gripping drama “Stockholm, Pennsylvania” won a 2012 Nicholl Fellowship and a spot on the 2012 Black List. Nikole was kind enough to agree to an interview and we had a probing conversation about her background, her award-winning screenplay, and her unique insight into
Spec Script Sale: “Americatown” Aldamisa Entertainment acquires crime drama “Americatown” written by Ben Poole. From Variety: …examines an ex-cop’s journey from poverty to power in the third-world American slums of world-leader China after the U.S. economy’s collapse. “Americatown” made the 2012 Black List. Poole is repped by Verve
Spec Script Sale: “Black Friday” Mammo Media acquires action-thriller spec script “Black Friday” written by John Sullivan. From Variety: Story revolves around a young man desperately trying to save his fiancé when she’s kidnapped inside a mega-mall on the busiest shopping day of the year. Sullivan is repped by Benderspink. By my
GITS: The Twitter Conversations — Script Readers (Part 12) On Wednesday, April 10th at 7PM Pacific, we had the 3rd GITS Twitter Conversation with industry insiders whose jobs involve reading scripts: Amanda Pendolino [@amandapendo], Nate Winslow [@nate_winslow], and The Bitter Script Reader [@BittrScrptReadr]. I will be posting an edited transcript of the conversation every day this week. AP
Movie Trailer: “Rush” Written by Peter Morgan A biography of Formula 1 champion driver Niki Lauda and the 1976 crash that almost claimed his life. Mere weeks after the accident, he got behind the wheel to challenge his rival, James Hunt. IMDB site Release Date: 20 September 2013 (USA) Comment Archive
A Story Idea Each Day for a Month — Day 23 This is the fourth year in a row I’ve run this series in April. Today’s story idea: A Town Abuzz Over Prostitution and a Client List: KENNEBUNK, Me. — The summer people who clog the roads here are long gone and the leaves have turned crimson and orange, but
Screenwriting 101: David Guggenheim “I think screenwriting is the cleanest and quickest way to break into the industry.” — David Guggenheim GITS Interview, April 6, 2013 For 100s more Screenwriting 101 posts, go here. The Protagonist’s Journey: An Introduction to Character-Driven Screenwriting and Storytelling is a #1 Best Seller in Film and Television.
Daily Dialogue — April 23, 2013 Annie: Are you fucking kidding me? Annie’s Mom: Annie? Annie: No, mom. Mother fucking Paris? I told you about Paris, Helen! I told you about this whole idea! Lillian: Annie, calm down… Annie: No, Lillian! What are you gonna go, you’re gonna go to Paris with Helen now?
Screenwriting and online education I’ve received a lot of email recently asking me to explain how online course like those Tom Benedek and I offer at Screenwriting Master Class work. So let me use this post to provide some answers as well as my thoughts on why online education through SMC offers a
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