Month: September 2010

Best o/t Web 12 Sep

by

:: John August’s blog revamped. Gorgeous!
:: Danny Boyle and the Art of Amputation
:: Blake Snyder’s Story Patterns vs. Genre
:: Universal brings King’s Dark Tower to the cinema
:: Top 7 New York Films
:: Sixty Bill Murray facts to celebrate his 60th
:: Movies for free: Phantom of the Opera
:: Carson Reeves vs. M Night Shyamalan. Guess who loses
:: Screenwriter Peter Morgan just can’t get enough of Tony Blair
:: Roger Ebert’s collection of 100 Great Movie Moments (via Kottke)
:: Actors have a job too. So stick to writing the story
:: Sequences will save you during the rewrite
:: Who might be the new Ellen Ripley? Here’s a good candidate…
:: More arthouse doom and gloom. Next victim: Breillat
:: Nolan is hot, Bruckheimer is not. Summer winners and losers
:: Mad Men: The future of American cinema is on TV, says David Hare
:: Screenwriter finally makes first sale: old lamp on eBay (Hollywood Roaster)

Read more

The Perfect One

by

The significance of a screenplay’s first page is vital. It sets up the main story whilst establishing character, the genre and tone of the film. In a good screenplay, the reader’s expectations of the script are cleverly signposted by the writer. A great example of an effective first page is that of William Goldman’s Misery. To … Read more

Writing Drama (15)

by

Yves Lavandier’s book Writing Drama currently rates as the absolute favorite of our book reviewer Jack Brislee. To give you the opportunity to delve into Lavandier’s amazing knowledge and insight, we will be publishing a weekly excerpt from the book. iv) the spectator feels that the writer is taking a sadistic pleasure in burdening the … Read more

Video: Stories In The Street

by

Marilyn Horowitz takes us out into the street on a mission to find stories and characters.

Perhaps not a surefire way to find high concepts easily but definitely an approach to getting your imagination kickstarted.

And if I were her, I would have probably made sure this guy with his laundry signed a released form.

After all, instead of a banker, he could be a lawyer. And not wanting to be seen with the dirty laundry…

Screenwriting Tips from nehir tuna on Vimeo.

With thanks to Louise Lee Mei.

Read more

The Constructive Script Review

by

As the great Mickey Lee Bukowski once told me, “Sometimes you just gotta lay the smackdown.” However – ONLY the most thoughtless, banal, idiotic, indecipherable, hideously written DRIVEL put together under the pretense of a “screenplay” deserves a smackdown. You’ll know it when you see it. Because we’re about mastering the craft, not sending it … Read more