Screenwriters talk about the craft

Ah… Really busy this week. Like “crazy busy.” I just want to thank everyone for the comments in the previous post. Some really outstanding discussion there and GOD, I love that! That — to me — is really what helps make a screenwriting blog.

Found a great little online thesaurus recently — it’s in my sidebar but I thought I’d share it with you today:

Give it a shot…

Also found some interesting videos… Enjoy. Be back with another screenwriting structure post in a few days.

Unk

Screenwriter, — Tricks of the trade:

Screenwriter, — Tricks of the trade:

Screenwriter - Director - Producer, Part 1

Screenwriter - Director - Producer, Jim Sheridan Part 2

Word Into Image Part 1

William Goldman Word Into Image Part 2

William Goldman Word Into Image Part 3

Blog Talk 2: Unk Responds to Mystery Man on Film

 

… Are you crazy? As we used to say in the Navy many fucking moons ago — Fuckin’ay ditty bag you’re crazy. Aren’t we all? Don’t we pretty much have to be crazy to be in this business?

But yes, it’s definitely possible that your blog could have spawned such a sloppy article… And revel in the ideal that a guilty conscience is more honorable than regret.

Works for me.

As for the “screenwriting revolution,” I hope it’s in full swing, I really do. I was just talking to a pretty big name in the business this morning and he happened to say to me, “times sure have changed…”

To which I replied, “Shit, times have changed? I don’t even think we live in a time anymore.”

He laughed and thought about it… Then he said he thought I nailed it. We’re ripping movies off left and right. The 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s spawned some great films. Movies were special. Somewhere along the line, we lost our way. Certainly we have had a smattering of films that managed to become iconic in their own right since the 80s but we’ve also dumbed everything down.

I remember when I was a kid and my Grandmother would take me to J.C. Penny’s and buy me a pair of Levis. I’d try them on and come out of the dressing room. She’d look at them and then ask the person helping us how much they’d shrink when they were washed. This person… This salesperson who took the time to really know their job no matter how trivial it might have been stood there and told us exactly what we wanted to know.

When we bought gas, there was no self-serve lane. We bought gas and the attendant lifted the hood, checked the oil and radiator without asking and then proceeded to wash the windows. Christ, for over $3 a gallon you’d think we’d get a free condom or something…

But I digress…

The point I’m trying to make is that today, try and ask some fucking idiot at clothing store about shrinkage. LOL. Fuck that — ask him or her where the bathroom is. They don’t know shit.

Unfortunately, I feel this general dumbing down has found its way into so many things these days that it’s one of the reasons a screenwriter and wannabe screenwriter is sending that first draft off to contests and or the market.

Yet when I ask a simple question like, “What’s it about?” — they’re all over the map. Sometimes what I’m told and what I’ve read are two totally different stories.

What’s up with that?

In other words, the writer doesn’t know shit either.

Don’t get me wrong… By reiterating that story, I am in no way saying that I do know shit. I “think” I do of course but I don’t just say or think I do. I write another draft. Then another. Then I read a book or an article about screenwriting and I think about what that information might have to do with my screenplay.

I let that screenplay gel. A finished draft continues to gel in my mind. I clear my head of that story so that when I come back to it, it looks and feels different to me which allows me to dig deeper.

Why?

Because I care.

I want movies to be special again and the only way I know of to help make that happen is to help spawn a new work ethic when it comes to writing a screenplay. There’s a reason that over 98% of the screenplays out there are unreadable… And, unfortunately, it always seems to come down to one thing.

Product knowledge.

Professional sales organizations are always telling their salespeople that product knowledge is 90% of the sale.

I think that’s true with screenwriting.

So many of us are so fucking quick to show that first draft to someone because we “think” it’s a masterpiece. I always like to ask one simple question…

“Have you done everything you can possibly do with this screenlay to make it the very best it can possibly be?”

When they say, “No” — and they usually do, I always reply, “Then why are you asking me to read it?” *Note: I do this all the time with pro scripts — not as much as developing writers because I already know the answer.

This goes to your statement:

Blogging about the craft does not necessarily make you or your readers better writers. If they don’t get it, they don’t get it, and all the screenwriting blogs in the world isn’t going to fix them.

Very true but I think we owe it to the readers to try and stimulate that part of the brain… To make them want to get it. Impart some piece of the puzzle that triggers more thought — more discussion — and ultimately, more knowledge. This assumes of course that you’re blogging about the craft… I realize some screenwriter bloggers don’t always do that so please don’t anyone get offended.

 

I don’t really want to talk about my day with anyone. I may want to vent some time but overall, I just really fucking love stories and especially turning a story into a screenplay. I don’t want to write a book. Maybe that’ll change one day but until it does, I like writing screenplays and I like writing about screenwriting if, for no other reason than to simply reinforce my own product knowledge.

If I can improve someone else’s product knowledge along the way, so much the better.

You also said:

I’ve long come to the conclusion that everything in this business boils down to the individual sitting across from you and how smart or dumb that individual may be. (And on the flip-side, it also boils down to me and how well I handle that conversation with that smart/dumb individual.)

Exactly. Which is why I write this shit the way I do. If you knew me and talked to me, you’d see that I write this stuff no different than the way I speak it. I learned that in the Navy… LOL. I learned that overall, the average reading and comprehension level of the people I worked with was right about at the 9th grade level. Because of that, I tend to say things more than once. I tend to draw it all out so that whomever I’m imparting knowledge to gets it. I try to make my point in more than one way so they do get it.

 

Something that’s come in very handy when writing screenplays I might add.

Opportunities… Yes, simply because of this site, I’ve been asked to review software, read and review books, interviewed, and of course, read readers’ screenplays… LOL.

It’s all good.

This was fun. Let’s do it again.

Unk

Blog Talk with Mystery Man on Film A Look Back on 2007

and I discuss 2007 screenwriting and film.

MM asked:

My first question to you, Unk, is how did you feel about 2007 in terms of screenwriting in general and the movies that were released?

The big problem for me here is that I have yet to see many of the supposedly better films of 2007. I feel unqualified to say that 2007 was an above average year.

The only 2007 films I felt compelled to watch were as follows:

Definitely better than its predecessor and defininitely worth watching. I would have tweaked the story just a bit and instead of having Crowe’s character talk about his mother throughout the film, substituted his father since Bale’s son is along for the ride. I think having Crowe talk us through fond memories of his father and then pulling the rug out from under us by telling us his father left him at the train station would have hit audiences harder…

But what do I know?

Casey Affleck can act.

I’m a huge fan of the and in fact, it is one of my top ten favorite films. This one doesn’t even come close.

I had to see Costner make the stretch of being both good and bad guy since bombed.

Maggie can act too.

What screenwriter wouldn’t want to see the 4th in the series that redefined action films? But to be honest, it was a bit dumbed down for my taste. I’d rather hear McClane say “Yippee ki-ay, motherfucker!”

The scene with the old man at the counter and the flip of the coin is worth the price of admission.

Yawn… I almost fell asleep.

Yawn again… I didn’t fall asleep but I sure as hell laughed my ass off when at least half of the audience left the theater after PLANET TERROR.

I just didn’t buy Hopkins’ “quinessential smart guy” character not being prepared for what happens at the end.

Touted as a modern remake of , also one of my top ten favorite films, I obviously had to see it. Wasn’t bad but wasn’t for me. The kids in the theater however, loved it.

I didn’t buy Smith being in his 50s. They showed him being either a Colonel or Lt. Colonel in the Army in a flashback sporting a beard. Shit like that takes me out of the movie. Why wasn’t he clean cut in the Army and sporting a beard in the aftermath? I could barely stand the CGI zombies as they looked CGI to me. I guess I liked too much. Take THAT story and stick it in I AM LEGEND and then I would have been impressed.

Underrated little action thriller. Decent story but could have been better.

Missed opportunities.

Joe… Never lose the hunger.

Yawn again.

I did see more films but nothing worth mentioning here… I have yet to see JUNO or THERE WILL BE BLOOD and a few others but as always I will eventually get to them. I don’t want to review any of the above films or spoil them for anyone that hasn’t seen ‘em yet.

From my above list however, the question remains…

I feel that screenwriting is on automatic pilot and it seems to come down to this…

  1. Pro screenwriters don’t care about being derivative
  2. Pro screenwriters think they have to be derivative
  3. The studios want derivative
  4. Pro screenwriters don’t continue to learn more about the art and the craft

Of course I’m talking about the overall aspect of screenwriting. I am highly aware that there are a couple of handfuls of Pro screenwriters out there trying to push the limits of their screenwriting but more than that?

I’m not too sure.

The proof is definitely not in the pudding which is one of the reasons I think screenwriting blogs are becoming more popular. When you read through a lot of the books and articles — by and large, there’s not a lot extra being taught. Purchase several of the best books on screenwriting and you pretty much have read most of what’s out there to learn.

The basics.

And you can tell from reading 99% of the scripts out there from people trying really hard to become a professional screenwriter — that they definitely know the basics. The basics are everywhere and can be easily learned but it’s that microcosm of scripts that you read that really seem to get it.

If that many… LOL.

A book or an article says to reveal character through action and dialogue. We get it. We know it. We’ve read it a hundred times yet we still forget to do that with our scripts.

Why?

Because it’s not the “basics” — rather, it’s one of those little extras that help separate the Pros from the wannabe pros. There’s just not enough information out there that covers those little extras that truly help pull a script up by its story and improve the writing. On top of that… When someone — a screenwriting blogger does finally attempt to reveal something they feel is a little extra, they still seem to leave something missing.

Which is one of the reasons I try to reply to any comment that asks for clarification… I know MM does that too but let’s face facts… It’s not done a lot.

I’m not saying that a post I make is even one of those little extras but I do try to write them in such a way as to generate thought and discussion and by no means am I always the answer man. I wholeheartedly welcome comments from anyone willing to join in with something worth reading.

So I guess I would say that the state of screenwriting in 2007 was interesting because believe it or not… Screenwriting blogs have some people a little scared. Some people that might be making money or trying to make money from selling their screenwriting knowledge.

But they aren’t the only ones… Other pro screenwriters — not the A-List but those lower on the totem pole are getting a little scared at some of the little extras that pop up on screenwriting blogs. Of course I have absolutely no real proof of that except maybe 50 plus emails I’ve received from supposed pro screenwriters since June 2006 complaining to me.

I find it bizarre that a mostly liberal mindset community would ever have a problem with others trying to help someone come up through the ranks so that everyone is on a level playing field and may the best man or woman win.

I’ve even shared some of my own stuff with a few pro screenwriters that I have not yet posted here and have had those screenwriters ask me not to share it. LOL.

I fucking hate that.

How are we ever going to push screenwriting back to where going to the theater to watch a movie is special again if we don’t try to help each other out? As far as I’m concerned, it should simply be a battle of imagination. Those that can come up with the best stories — win — all things being equal.

And in my own humble little way, I’m just trying to help make the playing ground equal.

Unk

EDIT: I almost forgot MM’s last question…

So, my last question to you is how much do you enjoy your anonymity? Is it a warm, protective blanket or a lonely, prison cell? How would your life change if your anonymity got stripped from you? Ya know, everything changes when people know who you are…

Well even if everyone knew who I was, I’d still be rather anonymous… Meaning that not a lot of screenwriters ever get catapulted into the limelight. So I’m happy with it. I’m not so sure I would be happy not to be able to walk down the street. It’s not a warm protective blanket — at least I don’t consider it that at all. I’m more or less a private kinda guy.

If people knew who I was — even from this blog — I’d be getting even more email than I get now that consistently keeps me from getting work done. It’s definitely no prison cell.

I like flying under the radar.

It’s who I am.

Next Page →

Search