Twitter Rant: Craig Mazin on Script Consultants
Last night screenwriter Craig Mazin (The Hangover 2, Identity Theft) responded to a recent post online from a script ‘consultant’. Here is Craig’s response reprinted in its entirety by permission.
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588935599777689600
He implies that because I went to Princeton, and Princeton is really expensive, I must have had a wealthy background, ergo an advantage.
Incorrect. I attended Princeton on a combination of financial aid, scholarships, student loans and work study.
My folks were public school teachers.
He then implies that because I went to Princeton, I slid easily into a job at Disney. I wish. I did not.
My first job was through a temp agency. $20K a year to type up purchase orders at an ad agency. I didn’t know what purchase orders were.
I worked my way up from that to copywriter over the course of two years. My portfolio was what got me the job at Disney.
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588936915962834944
If his point is that I was possibly smart or something, and maybe being a little smart helps you be a screenwriter, well… Okay? And? Duh?
Look, if I were a ripoff artist, I’d tell you that you NEEDED me. Why? Because you didn’t go to the right school. Or have the right daddy.
You’d need me because you didn’t know the right people (BTW, I knew NO ONE in Los Angeles), or because you didn’t know the secret handshake.
You’d need me because people who succeeded without me were the exceptions, see? They had magic/circumstance/privileges you don’t.
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588937889842495489
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588938076577103873
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588938247029465088
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588938428558938112
https://twitter.com/clmazin/status/588938638789980160
Good night, and good luck to you all!
It’s like I say: You don’t need to spend a dime to learn the craft of screenwriting.
Watch movies. Read scripts. Write pages. If you are diligent and persistent, that’s all you need to do.
Thanks, Craig!
Follow Craig on Twitter: @clmazin.
For the archives of all the Screenwriting Twitter Rants, go here.
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