Saturday Hot Links
Time for the 121st installment of Saturday Hot Links!
Today: The Greatest Nicholas Cage Movie Moments With A Hat Tip To @MysteryExec Edition!
Sundance: A look back at how last year’s acquisitions fared at the box office.
Sundance: Screen 10 former festival films online for free.
Sundance: The 10 films that should sell big this year.
Sundance: 8 thoughts, predictions and trends to look for at this year’s fest.
Sundance: A survival guide.
How vinyl records are made.
Megan Ellison first woman to score two Best Picture nominations in one year.
The 10 biggest surprises in this year’s Oscar nominations.
2014 Golden Globe Awards: Complete list of winners.
The highs and lows of the 2014 Golden Globe Awards [video].
How the Black List can catapult a screenwriter’s career.
Is this the end of TV pilot season?
Romance novelist gets eight figures for new book series.
Movie ticket prices rose 2% in 2013.
33 fascinating songwriting stories.
What do movie producers do? This.
19 hard things you need to do to be successful.
Oliver Stone exits Martin Luther King biopic.
How you can know you’re getting the best deals at Costco.
Finally: An AMA on Reddit with Bill Murray.
10 famous album covers recreated in Lego.
May 6, 2016: The new release date for Batman/Superman project.
Russell Johnson, The Professor on Gilligan’s Island, dead at the age of 89.
11 of the best inventions by The Professor on Gilligan’s Island.
Spike Jonze is part of more nominated films than you may know.
7 “Twin Peaks” inspired restaurants.
How to buy a new computer in 1993 [video].
20 years after Northridge, how disaster hit Hollywood.
How Frozen killed Prince Charming.
Shock! Disney considering Frozen for Broadway treatment.
14 quotes on writing from novelist John Green.
11 movies that made less than $400 at the U.S. box office.
Photographer inserts her adult self with her child self in family photos.
15 things to know about Popeye on his 85th anniversary.
25 big novels that are worth your time.
HBO Go is coming to PlayStation.
11 gag reels from serious TV shows [video].
Why we get car sick.
12 Years a Slave tops 2014 Critics Choice Awards winners.
What if Google was a guy [video].
The deleted Spectacular Now scene that was too extreme to put on screen [video].
8 great unfinished masterpieces.
How Hollywood created the spring blockbuster.
Chuck Wendig tells us 25 things a great character needs.
The Hollywood Reporter’s top 25 power lunch spots in 2014.
What happens to your brain when you’re in love.
5 fascinating things about moviegoers from a recent poll.
Netflix orders “Marco Polo” to series.
First legal pot-selling billionaire.
The man who named Pixar quietly retired last week.
11 ways to handle a heckler.
10 actors who started out on “Law & Order”.
China surpasses U.S. as world’s largest trading nation.
“Justified” to end after 6 seasons.
Appeals court deals blow to FCC’s ‘net neutrality’ rules.
Michael Cera, John Hawkes to star in FX’s Charlie Kaufman comedy.
11 little known words for specific family members.
Trailer for “Game of Thrones,” Season 4 [video].
11 songs that brought people out of comas.
Vimeo to premiere 13 films from the Toronto International Film Festival.
Can China stop organ trafficking.
Quentin Tarantino’s next film gets a title.
Saturday Hot Links tip of the week: Monday marks the beginning of the first of eight Craft classes I will be teaching in 2014. Here is the list:
Pixar and the Craft of Storytelling
Coen Brothers and the Craft of Storytelling
Character Development Keys
Character Introductions
Handling Exposition
Story Summaries: From Loglines to Beat Sheets
Create a Compelling Protagonist
Write a Worthy Nemesis
Each is a 1-week class and gives writers a chance to dig down into a specific area of the screenwriting craft. They are popular classes and I will be offering them on pretty much a bi-weekly basis through May.
Consider enrolling in The Craft Package which enables you to take all eight Craft classes at nearly 50% and allowing you to access all the course content on your own time as well as take the live 1-week sessions. Go here to sign up.
Lectures written by me. Professional writing tips. Optional writing and logline exercises. Live teleconferences with me. And as always, an incredible gathering of writers from all around the world. The energy, discussions and learning that goes on in these classes never ceases to amaze me.
I am only teaching these Craft classes one time in 2014, so here is your chance.
As I always say, you don’t need to spend a dime to learn the craft of screenwriting. Read scripts. Watch movies. Write pages. Use the free resources on my blog.
But if you want to accelerate your understanding and focus your abilities as a writer, I honestly believe these Craft classes are a great value.
Finally, people email me frequently, asking what they can do to support what I do at Go Into The Story. Taking a class with me is one way to do that.
I look forward to the opportunity to work with you.
Onward!