Month: April 2010

Writer, writer pants on fire!

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Somebody once told me, if you’re good at gossip, you’re a good storyteller. But what about if you’re skilled at telling sweet little lies (with respect, F. Mac)? Do untruths make you an even greater tale spinner? ‘Cause, let’s face it, stories are just wild embellishments of facts, right? No! Stop! Rid your writer’s mind … Read more

The Unfilmables

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‘Unfilmable’ has two distinctly different meanings for screenwriters. On the one side ‘unfilmable'(*) are those works that are impossible to adapt to the screen, Ulysses being an infamous unfilmable. But we’ll talk about something else altogether. The inexperienced screenwriter, in an attempt to clarify what a scene, a shot, a line really means, will occasionally … Read more

The Great Voice Over Debate

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Yes, Robert McKee is a god. His work is full of power and majesty and inspiration. I love him for his contribution to the great discussion on the craft of storytelling. However, McKee is a flawed greek god who has his problems. He was wrong about Characters Arcs. Plus, he made all the newbie screenwriters … Read more

Best o/t Web 25 Apr

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:: The Matrix: Act I breakdown. Is Neo the One?
:: Get writing. Bring the good movies back!
:: Plots 101: a breakdown in threes.
:: IndieWire’s top 25 independent films to see this summer.
:: Could your character bio distract you from your story?
:: Find the voice of your series, then the show writes the show.
:: Save the trouble, your loved ones can be your experts.
:: Act II:2, weeding out the theme. What’s your story really about?
:: Great scene to ‘rattle your characters’ cages’: Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous.”
:: “There Will be Blood” Paul Thomas Anderson in the Hollywood Conversation Series.
:: Screenwriting help: how to write numbers in your dialogue.

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I Don’t Believe In Scripts (2)

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Many films produced at UTS by students were undisciplined attempts at story telling, seemingly without methodology. In fact, considering the subject’s structure, students were all but encouraged to defy story-telling conventions rather than learn them. Many times teachers would tell students to take the camera and: “experiment with the form”, “explore the art” or my … Read more