Here we explore five of his cinematic trademarks and common themes found in his blockbuster resume. 

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Sense of Spielberg Wonder Through Transitions to Wide Shots 

Because Spielberg’s filmography spans more than fifty years of directing movies in multiple genres and subgenres, we sometimes have to differentiate his common themes and trademarks from decade to decade as he evolved as a cinematic storyteller. However, there’s at least one common theme and trademark of his work found in all of his movies — moments that showcase a sense of wonder and catharsis through cinematography.

Visually, all Spielberg movies utilize visual camera placement and movement to create an added sense of wonder. Spielberg's most wonder-filled work came early in his career with films like Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. 

Wonder could be achieved through intimate moments between characters, yes. 

But true wonder in Spielberg films encompasses his transition from intimate or close shots to extreme wide shots that showcase the context of the story’s world. 

In Jaws, the quest to kill the shark begins through a wide shot that transitions from the camera moving through a shark bone jawline as we watch the Orca head out to see. It gives us this sense of wonder as the characters embark on their journey. 

In Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg offers multiple wide shots in his film that encapsulate the wonder the characters are experiencing. We see their reactions (more on that below), but it’s not until Spielberg transitions to a wide shot that we experience the sense of intended wonder of the moment. 

In Raiders of the Lost Ark, the wide-shot perspectives create wonder in the audience as we see the scope of the story ever-present.

In E.T., we feel the wonder and awe of our own world through E.T.’s as he first lays eyes on the expansive valley of suburbs. We wonder who within that valley E.T. will turn to for help.

In Jurassic Park, it’s not enough to just see the first dinosaur in the park. The wide shot of Grant’s first sighting is impactful for sure. But it’s not until we experience the true welcoming to Jurassic Park that leaves that sense of cathartic awe.

As he grew as a director, he tackled more serious subjects not involving fantasy, adventure, and outright wonder. Yet he still managed to create wonderment by using wide-shot transitions. 

So when you watch Spielberg’s movies, pay attention to these wide-shot transitions and how they create a sense of wonder, even if during some of his movies that wonder is horrifying (Schindler’s List).

Spielberg Fraction

In Spielberg's movies, he's got this other way of kicking things off — he plays with fractions. Not the math kind, though. These are tiny glimpses and snippets of things that make you ponder their meaning and compel you to continue watching. It could be a specific piece of clothing, a cool weapon, or just some random visual elements we don’t understand yet but will. He throws them at us in bits and pieces, making us scratch our heads and wonder how the heck these things fit into the character or the story that's about to unfold.

At the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark, as the opening credits roll, we catch these quick glimpses of this mysterious figure.

• We don’t see his face.
• He’s checking a map.
• He’s examining poisoned darts.
• His companions hang on his every step.

It’s not until something threatens him that we see his face.

In the opening of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, we catch glimpses of something or someone in the woods. We see brief visuals of an alien ship. And we see silhouettes of individuals searching for that something or someone — particularly a man wearing a set of keys. All of these fractions engage our interest and are later answered as the story goes on.

In the opening of Schindler’s List, we see fractions of Schindler. 

• Suits
• Ties
• Cufflinks
• Money
• Cigarettes
• And finally, his Nazi pin.

We also notice the reactions of people as he walks through the room. He’s a man of power and respect. 

We also get this experience of Spielberg fractioning during kinetic suspense scenes as well. Look back to the moment when we first saw the T-Rex. The introduction started with fractions of visuals leading to the big reveal. 

Even the opening of the film played with our imaginations and wonder by way of fractions. 

And when we go back to Spielberg’s first blockbuster hit, Jaws, we see the results of Spielberg fractions. Now, we also know that this wasn’t initially Spielberg’s intended choice. Because of production issues with the shark, Spielberg was forced to show us less and less of the shark throughout the film. But this fractioning actually added to the tension and suspense. 

Read More: Screenwriting Wisdom from Steven Spielberg

Spielberg Family Dynamics

Once you watch Spielberg’s autobiographical film, The Fabelmans (Spielberg was Oscar-nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay), you’ll understand why his films often presented the dynamics of family. It’s the most common (and probably the most easily recognized) theme within most Steven Spielberg films — especially the early ones.

Spielberg came from a broken home. He dealt with divorce. He had issues with his father while also holding him high. He loved his mother very much. Everything we see in The Fabelmans is represented in most of his movies. 

In Jaws, Chief Brody takes a moment to connect with his son amidst the chaos and stress of trying to keep his town safe from a man-eating shark.

In Close Encounters, Spielberg reveals the strain between Roy and his family after he has a close encounter with the UFO.

In E.T., we get to see Elliot's dysfunctional family — two brothers who don't get along, a single mother who is barely hanging on, and a kid sister who's just along for the ride.

The great thing about his use of family dynamics is that it allows the audience to further empathize with his characters, especially when the broken family elements are in plain sight (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, War of the Worlds, The Fabelmans). The audience can relate to those dynamics because they represent a majority of families in one way, shape, or form.

Spielberg Faces

Often considered a Spielberg crutch in some circles, Spielberg faces refers to the director’s use of cutting to the close-up reactions of characters and their faces to showcase an intended emotion. In many of his films, it’s used as a way to showcase, you guessed it, wonder. Some see this as a cheat for Spielberg to get audiences to feel a certain way. It’s often misrepresented as manipulation on his part. But what such critics don’t understand is that all of cinema utilizes visuals (and sounds… more on that below) to conjure an intended reaction in the audience. He’s just mastered that cinematic tool. 

'Jaws'

These close-ups of his character’s faces convey:

• Wonder
• Drama
• Suspense
• Horror
• Fear
• Shock
• Uncertainty
• Love

He further accompanies these close-ups with the effective use of the dolly shot — camera movement that enhances the reaction shots of his characters, delivering the intended emotion full-force with dramatic and cinematic flare.

Whether you love them or find them cliche, it’s a Spielberg go-to — an effective one.

John Williams Music in Spielberg Movies

Steven Spielberg and John Williams share one of the most iconic and enduring collaborations in the history of cinema. Their partnership spans over fifty years, playing a pivotal role in shaping the emotional landscape of Spielberg's films. Their first collaboration occurred in 1974 for the film Sugarland Express. Williams has scored the music for the majority of Spielberg's films, creating unforgettable and instantly recognizable soundtracks. Their collaboration is marked by a seamless integration of music and storytelling, with Williams' compositions enhancing the emotional depth and impact of Spielberg's visuals.

• The iconic two-note theme from Jaws 
• The soaring melodies of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• The triumphant march of Raiders of the Lost Ark (and its sequels)
• The haunting score of Schindler's List 

These are just a few examples of the magical synergy between Spielberg's directorial vision and Williams' musical genius. And Williams, now likely retired, closed off their collaboration with The Fabelmans. 

Williams has a talent for being able to capture the essence of Spielberg's storytelling and elevate it to new heights. The music for each of his Spielberg movie scores — iconic or not — becomes an integral part of the narrative, enhancing the audience's emotional connection to the characters and the story. Once again, some find the music overly manipulative — but, again, that’s the point. 

Spielberg has often credited Williams with bringing his films to life through music, and Williams, in turn, has spoken highly of Spielberg's unique storytelling abilities. Their work together has not only left an indelible mark on the films they've created but has also enriched the cinematic experience for audiences around the world.

These are just five of the director’s trademarks. Keep an eye out for them as you watch his films. And as you do, which other common Spielberg trademarks have you noticed? 

Read More: 3 Spielbergian Ways Screenwriters Can Introduce Their Characters

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner, the feature thriller Hunter’s Creed, and many Lifetime thrillers. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies and Instagram @KenMovies76

CHECK OUT OUR PREPARATION NOTES SO YOU START YOUR STORY OFF ON THE RIGHT TRACK!

The post 5 Trademarks of Steven Spielberg Movies appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Read More: Aha! The Power Of Plant And Payoff

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The Screenwriting Plants and Payoffs of Jaws

Note: Beware of  Spoilers.

Based on the Peter Benchley novel of the same name, the film tells the story of a killer shark that unleashes chaos on the vacation beach community of Amity Island. Chief of Police Martin Brody enlists the help of Hooper, a marine biologist, and Quint, an old Captain Ahab-like seafarer. Together the trio of unlikely allies set out to the deeper depths of the ocean to lure, hunt, and kill the shark.

Throughout the script, the tone of the story works as a four-way genre hybrid as it shifts from:

• Creature feature horror based on the fear of a relentless and unseen monster from the depths
• Political thriller as Brody deals with the town's Mayor and board that want to keep the island open for tourist season
• Lighthearted family drama with Brody coming home to his wife and boys
• Thrilling seafaring adventure

Throughout the story, the script maintains a light comic undertone to keep the horror from becoming too intense and the anxiety from making it a pure thriller. This opens up the film to a broader audience.

Brody's Fear of Water

Brody's fear of the water is established early on in the screenplay. He's actually not an islander. He's an East Coast city cop that took the job to get his family away from the city.

Because we know that he has a fear of the very substance that the killer shark hides within, each moment he's on or near the water intensifies the scene. That knowledge of his fear lends more suspense and empathy as he deals with this unseen threat. Every time that he is on or near the water grabs our attention more.

And as the story progresses, more and more is asked of Brody. He's forced to go with Hooper on Hooper's high-tech boat — at night, nonetheless. He then agrees to go on Quint's Orca boat to hunt down the shark. So the plant of him being afraid of the water pays off through his character arc as well.

As the third act progresses, Brody is forced closer and closer to the water.

• He is assigned to drop the fish chum into the wake of the boat. It is here where he comes closer to the killer shark than any surviving character has thus far.
• As the Orca sinks, he's forced to maneuver through the water within the boat.
• When Hooper disappears, and Quint is killed, Brody climbs to the top of the boat tower as the boat sinks. As the tension of the impending shark attack builds, Brody comes closer and closer to the water until he finally kills the shark. Only then does he actually get into the water to float back to shore with Hooper.

The payoff of Brody's fear is spread throughout the whole screenplay, giving the story — and his character arc — more and more depth (pun intended).

Shark Books

One of the more brilliant — but subtle — examples of plants and payoffs in Jaws is revealed early on when Brody has gone to the library to check out books about sharks. He knows nothing about them, so he's doing his due diligence to learn what he can.

During his research, we see images that foreshadow events to come. And plants and payoffs are cinematic examples of foreshadowing in film and television.

We see a shark using its nose to bust through the hull of a boat.

In the film, the shark uses this tactic to bust a hole in the hull of the Orca.

We also see a picture of a shark biting down on a metal rod used to measure the strength of its bite. The rod resembles an air tank.

This information tells Brody that sharks will instinctively bite down on objects placed within their jaws. As we know, this tactic is utilized in the climax of the film as Brody throws a scuba diving air tank into the jaws of the shark. More on what that leads to below.

As you can see, these subtle but informative plants pay off so well in the film's climax.

Quint's Past and Fate

The characterization of Quint offers some subtle and deep plants that eventually lead to payoffs in the climax of the story. Yes, this above screenshot of when he first appears in the story isn't that subtle. If anything, this is a bit on-the-nose, as far as foreshadowing his doomed fate.

But we have two more subtle moments that offer great plants.

The Song Quint Sings

Throughout their adventure at sea, Quint repeatedly sings an old British naval song called Spanish Ladies. We mentioned above that Quint was a Captain Ahab-like seafarer, which references Herman Melville's classic novel, Moby Dick. Quint is very similar to that novel's iconic character, Captain Ahab.

Quint is obsessed with killing sharks. Ahab is obsessed with killing the whale. They are both motivated by revenge (see below). And, yes, both are killed by their adversaries of the deep sea.

The Story Quint Tells

During a drunken conversation, Quint reveals that he was on the crew of the U.S.S. Indianapolis. The 900 men who survived the sinking were afloat in the ocean for four days. Only 316 men survived. The rest having been victims of shark attacks and dehydration.

This is a haunting monologue that reveals why Quint is obsessed with hunting down and killing this shark. It's his revenge for the brothers-in-arms that he lost that fateful day.

As Quint was a survivor of those shark attacks, it's almost as if the past wasn't through with him yet. He would suffer the same fate as his fallen Navy brothers — killed from the waist-down bite of a shark.

Air Tanks

As Brody, Quint, and Hooper set off to sea, ready to hunt down the great white shark that has been terrorizing a vacation island, Quint watches with a smile as Hooper loads his high-tech equipment — which includes scuba diving air tanks.

During their voyage, Brody pulls a wrong knot, sending the air tanks tumbling. Hooper scolds him. He then warns them of how dangerous those tanks really are — they could explode if not handled with caution.

When you pair this with the knowledge that Brody acquired in the shark books (sharks will instinctively bite down on objects placed within their jaws), we're presented with one of the greatest cinematic payoffs we’ve seen on the big screen.

In that above climactic scene, we see three screenwriting plants collide for the ultimate payoff.

• Brody's fear of water creates tension as he sinks closer and closer to what he had previously feared the most.
• The knowledge of sharks biting down on objects placed within their jaws.
• The danger of the air tanks and the knowledge that they will explode if not handled with caution.

The result is a now-iconic climax to an equally iconic film.

Screenwriting Lesson Learned

Pepper your screenplays with plants and payoffs. Why?

• They enhance the read.
• They elevate your screenwriting.
• They prove to script readers (interns, assistants, readers, producers, development executives, managers, agents, and talent) that you have attention to detail in your writing.

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Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, and Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries BLACKOUT, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner, the feature thriller HUNTER'S CREED, and many produced Lifetime thrillers. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies and Instagram @KenMovies76.

For all the latest ScreenCraft news and updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

CHECK OUT OUR PREPARATION NOTES SO YOU START YOUR STORY OFF ON THE RIGHT TRACK!

The post Screenwriting Plants and Payoffs: 'Jaws' appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Yes, both of those things a true, to an extent, but something even more compelling to explore is how The Fabelmans is Spielberg’s finest manifestation of how he has used filmmaking as a way to cope with his personal reality and trauma.

This film reveals how cinema has been his perfect tool for catharsis throughout his life — and there's proof even in his earlier films.

Let’s take a look at some of his other films to get an understanding of how Spielberg has always, from the very beginning, used his films as a way to cope with reality and trauma.

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Jaws: Facing the Unknown

What is Jaws About?

Jaws is a classic thriller that has captivated audiences since its release in 1975. While the film's main plot revolves around a man-eating great white shark terrorizing a small beach town, it also explores deeper themes related to fear, masculinity, and the unknown.

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What is Jaws Really About?

One of the most prominent subtextual themes in Jaws is the fear of the unknown, which is reflected in the way the shark is mysteriously presented — which was initially only because they could not get the mechanical shark to work correctly. The shark is rarely shown in full, and when it is, it's often in quick, ominous shots that only heighten the tension to create a more compelling experience.

This fear of the unknown can be seen as a reflection of Spielberg's personal life — seeing as he grew up in a broken home and often felt like an outsider. This feeling of not belonging may have influenced his approach to the film and his decision, subconscious or not, to create a monster that is shrouded in mystery.

The Catharsis

The catharsis in Jaws is clear. Not only do the characters confront their fear of the unknown, they literally blow it to pieces.

Read More: Screenwriting Plants and Payoffs: 'Jaws'

Jurassic Park: Controlling the Uncontrollable

What is Jurassic Park About?

Jurassic Park is about a group of scientists that travel to a remote island to tour a theme park full of dinosaurs that were created using DNA. It's a dream come true for all the visitors until the animals break out and turn their incredible journey into a nightmare.

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What is Jurassic Park Really About?

Jurassic Park was a groundbreaking science fiction film that explores the ethical implications of bringing extinct animals back to life through genetic engineering. While the film is primarily a thrilling adventure classic, it also explores much deeper themes related to human ambition, control, and the consequences of playing God.

Subtextual Theme: The Dangers of Human Ambition and Control

One of the primary subtextual themes in Jurassic Park is the danger of human ambition and needing to have control. The film's main characters, who are attempting to create a theme park with genetically engineered dinosaurs, are portrayed as overly confident but reckless in their pursuit of scientific discovery. This theme can be seen as a reflection of Spielberg's own experiences with success and ambition — seeing as he has often been criticized for being too controlling on set and pursuing projects that are too ambitious, especially in his very early career.

We will get to this more when exploring The Fabelmans, but the idea of control can actually be considered what initially started Spielberg’s journey as a filmmaker–his need to make a film about a toy train crash in order to feel as if he has some type of control over his life as a child–after being scared by The Greatest Show on Earth, the first film he saw in the cinema.

'Jurassic Park' (1993)

Subtextual Theme: The Consequences of Playing God

Another subtextual theme in Jurassic Park is the consequences of playing God. One of the film's villains, who attempt to steal the dinosaur embryos and profit from the technology, is ultimately punished for their hubris–being eaten by a dinosaur in the scene we all remember too vividly. This theme can be seen as a cautionary tale about the dangers of meddling with nature and the consequences that can arise when we try to control the world around us. Again, this plays directly into Spielberg’s need to control his perception of reality with his control over his films. More on that soon.

The Catharsis

The catharsis in Jurassic Park is that of escape and retribution. The two antagonists who were led by greed, not considering the lives of others, were both eaten by the monsters they did not have enough respect for. The man behind the creation of the park was only spared after he contended with his own need to play God and realized his mistakes. And the people who saw the issues with the park, having a deep respect for the dinosaurs from the beginning, all made it out alive.

All of these are metaphors for lessons we, the audience, can learn in our own lives about human ambition, control, and the consequences of playing God.

Schindler’s List: The Importance of Empathy and Compassion

What is Schindler's List About?

Schindler's List is arguably Spielberg’s most powerful film — a historical drama that tells the true story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved the lives of more than 1,000 Jewish people during the Holocaust.

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What is Schindler's List Really About?

While the film is primarily a historical drama that has impacted millions of people around the world, even being honored in Germany after it provoked serious rumination when it was released, it also explores deeper themes related to the human capacity for good and evil, the importance of empathy, and the consequences of inaction.

Subtextual Theme: The Importance of Empathy and Compassion

The importance of empathy and compassion is probably the most important subtextual theme in Schindler's List. The film's main character, Oskar Schindler, begins as a self-centered businessman who cares only about profit, driven by greed and the need for significance. However, throughout the film, he develops a deep empathy for the Jewish people and becomes determined to save as many lives as possible, willing to sacrifice his business and money to do so.

Read More: 3 Spielbergian Ways Screenwriters Can Introduce Their Characters

This theme, the importance of empathy and compassion, can be seen as a reflection of Spielberg's own values and beliefs, as he has been an advocate for social justice and human rights throughout his career. More obviously, being a Jewish person himself, he felt a calling — a need to be the person to bring this movie to life. Initially, Martin Scorsese was supposed to make the film, but he and Spielberg traded projects after much discussion. And aren’t we all happy they did…

'Schindler's List' (1993)

Subtextual Theme: The Consequences of Inaction

Another subtextual theme in Schindler's List is the consequences of inaction. The film's secondary character, Amon Goeth, represents the evil and indifference that allowed the Holocaust to happen. This theme can be seen as a commentary on the dangers of apathy and the importance of taking action to prevent atrocities.

From my own interpretation, this ties into Spielberg’s personal life in that it mirrors how he stepped away from his Jewish culture for many years after being bullied for it as a child. To him, being Jewish was just another reason to feel like an outsider, but making Schindler’s List was his way of stepping back into the culture with even more love than ever before, creating a profound bond and new understanding of what his ancestors went through. He even talks about how hard the shoot was — being in locations where all the atrocious events took place. You can only imagine how cathartic it must have been for him.

The Catharsis

Again, the catharsis here is seeing a man transform from a greedy, power-hungry human to a man willing to sacrifice the things he used to value for the people he once overlooked.

The Fabelmans

Now, on to the final act…

What is The Fabelmans About?

The Fabelmans is about a boy, Sammy Fabelman, who aspires to be a filmmaker, but begins to uncover devastating truths about his dysfunctional family once his camera starts rolling.

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What is The Fabelmans Really About?

It's a story about the power of cinema — how it can reveal the truth about life, those around us, and ourselves. The Fabelmans reveals the traumas Spielberg went through before he became the famous director we know and love today, including the issues he faced at home, being bullied as a kid for being Jewish, and feeling like an outsider.

It's Spielberg's way of addressing his family issues, his struggle with identity, feeling like an outsider, and discovering filmmaking as a way to not only cope with trauma (and reality) but a way to control it — a way to understand it.

Subtextual Theme: The Need for Control

The most prominent subtextual theme in The Fabelmans is the need for control. This is even stated at the beginning of the film by Spielberg’s mother (Sammy’s mother). After going to The Greatest Show on Earth, a 1952 movie, the first movie Spielberg saw in the cinema, he was scared by a scene where a train crashed, killing people and creating a sense of chaos. You can only imagine how terrified a young boy would be in the 50s seeing something like that on the screen for the first time.

The way Spielberg instinctively coped with his fear was by recreating the crash with a toy train set. As stated by his mother in the film, recreating the crash made him feel like he had some sense of control. But to take it even further, he filmed it so he could watch the scene over and over again and not have to worry about his father getting mad at him.

That’s where the seed was planted. Not only did it give him literal control but it also helped him process his own fear in an empowering way, allowing him to express his creativity and feel a sense of purpose.

'The Fabelmans' (2022)

How Cinema Helped Spielberg Face His Biggest "Big Bad"

Spielberg has used some pretty scary villains and monsters to face the biggest sources of pain in his life, from sharks, to dinosaurs, to literal Nazis. However, the "big bad" in The Fabelmans might be the biggest of them all, at least to Spielberg.

It's that small piece of celluloid — that seemingly innocent moment captured on film that, when examined more closely, tears apart the fabric of his entire family.

The film directly mirrors Spielberg’s real life in terms of his mother being secretly in love with his father’s best friend, which eventually led to their divorce, creating tension throughout the entire family. In the film, the way in which Sammy discovers what is going on with his mother is only when he is editing a film he recorded of a camping trip. On the trip, he gets footage of his mother and the man she’s in love with.

In real life, Spielberg never noticed that there must have been something going on between them until he added an aspect ratio around this shot. Then, he was able to see beyond the surface and realize the romance between them.

“I obviously observed my mom’s behavior — how she lit up when she was around, you know, Bernie, and I never thought there was anything untoward about them. I never was suspicious about that. It was just my mom had a best friend that just so happen to be my dad’s business partner. But somehow, when I put an aspect ratio around that through my little Bolex 8mm camera, and took it home, starting cutting my little — all the little camping trip films together — the film told me the truth, where my eyes couldn’t.”

The moment in the film when Sammy has this realization, editing the 8mm film reels together, is the perfect encapsulation of what the entire film is about subtextually. It’s only through directing, filming, editing, and the creation of a controlled vision that Sammy is about to process reality in a true sense — just like Spielberg does in real life.

Spielberg uses his films to explore themes about the human condition that he has contended with himself. And through the process of directing, filming, editing, and the creation of a controlled vision is he not only able to understand these themes better, creating catharsis for himself, but he also allows us to understand these themes better, creating catharsis for millions of other people too.

Read More: Screenwriting Wisdom From Steven Spielberg

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To bring this back to the start: Yes, this film is Spielberg’s most personal film not only because we get to literally see what a young Spielberg went through. It is his most personal film because he allows us to dive deeply into the crevices of his own mind, seeing exactly how he has been able to process his trauma — and this little thing we all experience called reality.

Inspired to write your own autobiographical script? Check out our preparation notes so you start your story off on the right track!

The post The Fabelmans: How Steven Spielberg Uses Filmmaking To Cope appeared first on ScreenCraft.

In this inaugural installment of ScreenCraft's Where the Script Could Have Gone Wrong series, we turn to one of the most iconic movies ever made — E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. We'll look at key moments in the screenplay and eventual film and imagine that the script was either written by a novice screenwriter or we'll ask ourselves the hypothetical question of "What if screenwriter Melissa Matheson had made some of the most common novice screenwriter mistakes?"

By imagining such a scenario — with this or any successful screenplay — screenwriters can look at screenwriting examples from a much more different analytical perspective. Not by examing what they did right or what they did wrong, but what could have gone wrong had they made some of the most common mistakes that many screenplays are plagued with.

The Genesis of E.T. 

The concept was inspired by an imaginary friend Director Steven Spielberg had created after the 1960 divorce of his parents. He said that the imaginary alien was "a friend who could be the brother [he] never had and a father that [he] didn't feel [he] had anymore."

He planned on shooting a small personal film on the subject of divorce called Growing Up in 1978. When production was delayed on his film 1941, Growing Up was pushed aside. He later began to develop a follow-up to his critically acclaimed box office hit Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The film would be called Night Skies and tell the story of aliens that terrorize a family.

While filming Raiders of the Lost Ark, his mind began to wander back to the concept. He told screenwriter Melissa Matheson, who was dating Harrison Ford at the time, about the project and they began to develop a subplot from the story, in which Buddy, the only friendly alien, befriends an autistic child. The last scene was that alien's abandonment on Earth. That moment would be the genesis of the concept that audiences now know and love.

Matheson wrote the first draft titled E.T. and Me in eight weeks. The script then went through two more drafts, deleting an Eddie Haskell-like friend of Elliott. The chase sequence was developed, as well as the scene where E.T. gets drunk.

The script was written for Columbia Pictures but was put into turnaround because the studio heads thought it was too Disney-like and wouldn't be commercially viable.

Steven Spielberg approached President of MCA (then-parent company of Universal Studios) Sid Sheinberg, asking him to acquire the E.T. script from Columbia Pictures. Sheinberg wisely agreed and bought it back for $1 million, striking a deal in which Columbia would retain 5% of the film's net profits.

The rest is cinematic history.

"What If... The Script Focused More on the Mysterious 'Keys' Character?"

Peter Coyote's character was referred to as "Keys" in the original script. This was due to the fact that we never saw the E.T. pursuer's face. The camera always focused on the keys attached to his pants as he surveyed the scene of the forest that E.T. and his extra-terrestrial friends explored.

Keys and his government cohorts are utilized as the story's antagonists — always hot on the trail of Elliott's alien friend. We later learn that they aren't an embodiment of evil government agents. They actually want to learn from E.T. But because they are up against Elliott's plan to keep E.T. safe from harm — and later to get him back home — they are antagonists through a majority of the film.

https://youtu.be/Q8uJV3FJ6V0?t=303

We've seen this type of antagonist before.

In the film The Fugitive, U.S. Marshall Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) is in hot pursuit of Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford). The story bounces back and forth between Gerard's pursuit of Kimble and Kimble's investigation into his wife's death with the hopes of proving his innocence. The characters are given near-equal screen time.

What if the same treatment had been given to Keys in E.T.?

While that approach was appropriate for The Fugitive, it would have been a drastic mistake in the context of E.T.

The whole story of centers on the relationship between Elliott and his new friend. Elliott is dealing with the divorce of his parents. He's struggling to find his place in this new situation. And then comes E.T.

Had the script attempted to push more thriller plot points into the mix with a secondary narrative focus centered on Keys, the intimacy of the relationship between Elliott and E.T. would have been drastically affected. The central story and characterizations would be shifted from that cathartic relationship to more of an on-the-run chase thriller piece.

While this wouldn't necessarily be a rookie move from a screenwriter's perspective, there is the truth that many novice screenwriters don't know or understand what the true story is that they are trying to tell.

Over-plotting the story is a common issue with screenplays. When you spread the screen time between multiple characters and their own perspectives, something is lost every time.

Lesson Learned?

You always need to explore every possible angle of your concept before you start writing it. You need to ask yourself what character arc you want to focus on and, in turn, which character offers the most emotional, dramatic, and cathartic narrative.

"What If... The Writer Delivered Elliott's Plan of Rescue and Escape Through Exposition?"

In the movie, after Elliott has discovered that E.T. is alive, he and his brother try to break him out amidst the close grasp of the government agents and police in and around their house.

We cut from a visual of Elliott telling his brother Greg that E.T. is alive to their little sister Gertie walking into a room full of government agent activity, holding the now-alive flowers and a note. Her mother is talking with Keys about how long they are going to be detained.

Gertie interrupts them, asking, "Are they gone, Mama?"

This leads to confused looks from Keys and the mother as Gertie reveals that she was told to give their mother a note when they boys were gone.

We then go directly to the thrilling escape sequence.

But, what if the screenwriter had made the common mistake of telling us, rather than showing us.

We've seen it many times before. Characters are making a plan to escape or pursue something, which leads to at least a few pages of expositional dialogue explaining how they are going to go about doing that.

Read ScreenCraft's Three Easy Ways to Write GOOD Exposition in Your Scripts!

In a lesser script, there would have been an additional scene after Elliott told Greg that E.T. was alive. They would likely have hidden in the closet as Elliott explained his plan. Greg would have surely asked many questions about how they were going to pull this off, leading to more dialogue from Elliott explaining the obstacles and how they would overcome them.

Yawn.

Thankfully, Spielberg and Matheson decided to show, rather than tell.

The Gertie moment offers us some mystery and intrigue. We don't know what's going on. We don't know where Elliott, Greg, and E.T. are. We don't know what the note says. We don't know what Gertie means when she asks if the boys are gone yet.

And even when the escape sequence begins, with Elliott running down the plastic tunnel towards the van that holds E.T.'s body, we have no clue what their plan is and what's going to happen.

This throws us into an amazing chase sequence.

Had the script described all of these events and obstacles, the thrill factor would have been cut in half because there would have been no twists or surprises, no matter how subtle they would be.

Lesson Learned?

Always choose to show rather than tell. When you catch yourself writing dialogue scenes where a character is explaining past, present, or future actions, stop and try to find a way to unveil these elements organically.

Cinema is a visual medium. Show us.

"What If... E.T.'s Powers Were Kept as a Surprise for the Climax?"

Throughout the movie, E.T. displays his ability to move objects with his mind. We see this first when he's in Elliott's room with the kids, trying to communicate where he is from. He uses his telekinetic powers to manipulate objects, revealing that he's from another part of their solar system. We see him use this power again as he lifts himself and Elliott, both riding on a bike, off of the ground and into the night sky. He also uses the power to put his intergalactic phone together as well.

Later on, when Elliott, Greg, and Greg's friend are escaping with E.T. on their bikes, they face a barrier of police cars, police officers, and government agents. At the last second, E.T. uses his powers to lift all of them to safety within the nearby forest.

A lesser writer may have made the common screenwriting mistake of not setting up the rules of the story and concept early on, as far as what the world and the characters are and are NOT capable of, and not offering some key methods of plant and payoff that screenwriters need to master.

Read ScreenCraft's Best “Plant and Payoff” Scenes Screenwriters Can Learn From!

When you're writing a genre script, we need to know the possibilities and boundaries of the premise and any powers or capabilities within. Had the writer withheld that information of E.T.'s powers and suddenly had him unleash this otherwise unknown ability at the last second when the characters were in peril, without any form of foreshadowing or set-up, the reader and eventual audience would have been left scratching their heads wondering, "Where the heck did that come from?" The plausibility factor of your script would have been challenged.

A moment like that with no set-up or explanation would have been a cheat. And audiences don't like to be cheated.

Within the movie, E.T. and his abilities were properly foreshadowed, planted, and later paid off. While we had never seen him use those powers to make multiple characters fly into the air, his moment with Elliott planted that question of what the bound of his capabilities were.

Lesson Learned?

Plants and payoffs are so important. You need to pepper your script with them. And beyond that, you need to set up the rules of your concept and world. The audience needs to know at least some of the perimeters. And those plants, payoffs, and reveals are the best ways to accomplish that.

"What If... the Ending Was Written as More Upbeat and Happy?"

In the film, E.T. escapes, thanks in due part to Elliott, his brother, and their friends. We've also now learned that Keys isn't the "evil" government force that we thought he may be. He doesn't want to hurt E.T. at all.

When they arrive in the forest and the spaceship arrives, Elliott doesn't want E.T. to go. And E.T. wants Elliott to go with him. They clearly have a close connection.

But in the end, E.T. chooses to go home. But not before expressing to Elliott that he'll always be with him — likely implying that their special connection can span the light years between Earth and wherever E.T. is going.

It's a sad and heartbreaking moment because we, the audience, have grown to love E.T. We don't want to see him go either.

But what if the script had made the mistake of offering the more upbeat ending of E.T. somehow choosing to stay with Elliott?

Choosing the more upbeat and happy ending is often a common mistake — both by novice screenwriters and by executives giving notes. There is a frequent misconception in movies that audiences want to leave the theater happy, knowing that their characters have been left in a good place by the end of the story and that everything is all right.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Audiences want a cathartic experience. They want to be moved. They want their emotions to be f***ed with, for lack of a better phrase.

**Spoiler Alert Below***

In Shane, the title character leaves the family he helped as the young son yells his name in tears, hoping he'll come back.

In Forrest Gump, Forrest loses the love of his life and is clearly mourning her death, despite the fact that he's been blessed with his son.

In La La Land, the two lovers and dreamers don't even end up together.

But those endings left audiences feeling a deep catharsis. That is what screenwriters need to strive for.

And in the case of E.T., having E.T. leave was the ultimate way to create a lasting cathartic response from the audience.  Sure, it would have been cute to end the film with the family back in their every day lives with E.T. watching cartoons while they were at school and work — many scripts in the market choose to go that route — but the final ending of the iconic film touched the heart of millions because it pulled at our heartstrings.

Lesson Learned?

Always strive to create a cathartic response in the eyes of the reader or audience. You have to be willing to end on a conflicting note. You have to be willing to let go of your characters, either by killing them off for emotional effect or sending them off into the sunset as their loved ones wave goodbye in tears.

Before you start writing, explore your concept and all of the avenues you could take with it — and then choose wisely, as far as what characters you focus on and what story you want to tell.

Always choose to show, rather than tell. Remember that you're writing a cinematic feature. And cinema is a visual medium.

Do your best to pepper your script with plants and payoffs, and use them to dictate the rules of your concept, story, and the worlds and characters you create.

And finally, always strive to conjure those cathartic moments within your script, even if it means sacrificing characters and the relationships they've built within your story.

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

For all the latest ScreenCraft news and updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The post Where the Script Could Have Gone Wrong: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Entertain the Elk's YouTube post Spielberg: How to Introduce Characters introduces two creative and cinematic ways to create amazing first impressions for your protagonists, antagonists, and villains. We elaborate on those points and also take it a step further by adding a third Spielbergian method that has proven to be effective in Steven Spielberg's films, as well as many others outside of his filmography.

Introducing characters within screenplays is an undervalued art in of itself. It's important to develop those cinematic moments with much thought because those first impressions are vital to the audience's engagement with your characters and your stories. How you write those moments can often determine how engaged the audience will be. You want to trigger their interest and compel them to keep watching — or to keep reading in the context of submitting your scripts to Hollywood for consideration.

Read More: 'The Fabelmans': How Steven Spielberg Uses Filmmaking to Cope

1. Action 

The tried and true adage of screenwriting — show, don't tell — is vital to the success of any screenplay. It's a visual medium. Screenplays don't have the luxury of going into literary detail of exposition and explanation — or at least they shouldn't.

Antagonists and villains should never outright tell the audience that they are scary and a threat to be reckoned with. Their actions and reactions are what genuinely define those elements.

Read ScreenCraft's 15 Types of Villains Screenwriters Need to Know!

The Shark in Jaws obviously never spoke a word when it was introduced, but we also never heard any characters talking about how dangerous or menacing it was before we witnessed the carnage that it could create. A lesser script would have had a buildup of Brody finding a body and later discovering that the death was due to a shark — then leading to an investigation which would bring in an expert Marine Biologist and a cunning fishing boat captain.

Instead, the film opens with the action of the villain in the film.

In the non-Spielberg film No Country for Old Men, one of the greatest screen villains — Anton Chigurh — showcases that he is a menacing force to be reckoned with through action.

And from those horrific moments on, his actions continue to engage the audience. We know what he is capable of, so every moment that he is onscreen, we're engaged as we wonder what horrible things he is going to do next. This knowledge that we attained from the character's introduction creates anticipation. And anticipation in any scene in any genre is what drives amazing storytelling.

This works for the protagonist as well.

Indiana Jones was introduced subtly in Raiders of the Lost Ark (see below) until a moment of action proved that this adventurer was a force to be reckoned with himself.

Immediately following that moment, his actions portray the essential elements of his character. He's a man of knowledge, strength, ability, and survival.

No matter what genre you're writing in, introducing a protagonist, antagonist or villain has to be memorable. That first impression is what will draw a reader or audience into your story.

2. Fraction

Spielberg often uses another type of introduction in his films — fraction — which consists of bits and pieces of visuals and information that peek our interest through a little mystery and intrigue.

It can be a piece of wardrobe, a weapon, some other type of item, or a particular action, all of which are presented in fragments. It forces the reader or audience to wonder what these visuals have to do with the character being introduced or the upcoming story.

The opening to Raiders of the Lost Ark accomplished this before Indiana made that fateful action when a threat was present. We see brief images and actions of him as the credits roll. We see this faceless figure with a map, following clues, examining darts, and with men following him as they anticipate his every move.

E.T. introduced the title character through this method. We learn so many of the key details of this character through that opening. Features that are intriguing and explained later on in the story. We see images of the ship, its contents, additional aliens, and even character elements of E.T. being kind and gentle.

The film also introduced the key antagonist — referred to only as Keys in the opening of the script — by featuring only the keys dangling from his waistline as he tracks down the friendly alien.

The opening of Schindler's List uses fractions of the character to showcase character elements that will come into play later on in the story until Schindler's face is finally revealed.

We see his expensive wardrobe, his suits, his ties, his cufflinks, his money, his cigarettes, and finally his Nazi pin, all of which are specific to the character we are about to meet. We also notice the reactions of the people around him, accompanied by his action of tipping to get his own table as those around him stare at him in adoration. This is all accomplished before we even see his face.

This method is especially effective with antagonists, villains, and overall threats as well.

There is a true buildup to the reveal of the T-Rex in Jurassic Park. The dinosaur doesn't just appear in full frame at first. In fact, we don't even see any visual elements to hint at its presence. Instead, we see the result of an action.

The raptors in the same film are never seen when they are first introduced. It is the fraction of their action that resonates with audiences. The unknown.

And speaking of the unknown — in the context of antagonists, villains, and threats — Jaws proves that with these types of characters, the less we see of them, the more horrifying they are because of the audience's imagination, curiosity, and wonder.

In the opening, we never even really see the shark. And then throughout the whole film, we only see various fractions of the threat (initially due to the production difficulties in presenting it well onscreen). The use of the barrels was an ingenious decision in creating tension and suspense.

The Hitchcock film Psycho accomplishes the same effect by never showing the killer's true identity until the end. In the famous shower scene, we only get to see a fraction of the murderer.

Skeptics may point out that using fractioning as a screenwriting method may fall under the umbrella of directing a scene, which is a rightfully "forbidden" screenwriting practice.

Read ScreenCraft's What You Are NOT Responsible for as a Screenwriter!

The thing to remember is that when you are writing on spec, you need to pay specific attention to offering the reader a cinematic experience. Stipulating fraction visuals within your screenplay to creatively and cinematically introduce your characters is not the same as dictating angles, camera motions, and other directions throughout a screenplay.

You're doing it for a specific effect that is partial to the character and story.

3. Chain Reaction

Chain Reaction is our addition to these featured Spielbergian ways of introducing your characters within your scripts.

Sometimes your character introductions don't have to utilize action or fraction. Sometimes you just want to introduce them in their own ordinary and otherwise dull world. And sometimes those worlds aren't action-packed, exciting, intriguing, or mysterious.

But there's still a way you can engage the audience.

After the iconic Jaws opening scene (see above), we cut to the regular life of Brody waking up. He's in his house. He's having coffee. He has some character-revealing small talk with his wife. Nothing exciting.

The chain reaction effect is in play though. We've just watched a girl get eaten by an unseen force of nature beneath the ocean surface. The next visual we see is Chief Brody in his otherwise regular world that is about to suffer a chain reaction from the opening events. This effect leaves audiences wondering how this everyman character is going to deal with the threat that was just witnessed moments before.

That's engaging. How is this old, tired Chief that hates the water going to defeat this unseen monster?

In Close Encounters of the Third Kind, we witness air traffic controllers confronting an Unidentified Flying Object.

From that suspenseful moment, the film cuts to Roy and his family in their everyday routine. He's a suburban husband and father, living in an average house and dealing with normal "conflicts" of disciplining his children and trying to figure out what they're going to do that night.

The chain reaction effect is in play in the audience's mind as we wonder how this normal, average character is connected to a possible UFO.

That's engaging.

In E.T. we are introduced to the title character within an engaging sequence and then watch as he escapes into the night lights of suburbia. From that moment, we cut to deep within that suburban landscape and are introduced to Elliott, his brother, his sister, his brother's friends, and his mother, all of whom will be showcased in the fantastical adventure to come. They as characters are living their normal life dealing with sibling rivalry and parenting.

The chain reaction effect is in play as we wonder how these characters are going to be connected to this alien and those chasing after him.

And then with each of these films we see the character being introduced to the chain reaction of the opening event.

Brody is called out to investigate a disappearance and possible drowning (the girl that was attacked by the shark in the opening).

Roy is called into action by his job after a citywide power outage. Soon after, he has his own close encounter that launches him into the concept that was introduced in the opening of the film.

Elliott is called out to retrieve the pizza and hears something in the backyard.

The adventure begins for each of those characters. The audience witnesses the chain reaction of the opening sequence.

When you create engaging opening scenes that either introduce the concept or the antagonist, villain, or threat, you can then introduce the characters in their normal worlds with the applied expectation that the reader or audience will experience as they invest themselves into discovering how these otherwise normal characters are going to be involved.

These three types of character introductions — often found in the films of Steven Spielberg but used well beyond them as well — offer screenwriters creative and cinematic ways to introduce their characters and engage readers and audiences alike.

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

For all the latest ScreenCraft news and updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The post 3 Spielbergian Ways Screenwriters Can Introduce Their Characters appeared first on ScreenCraft.

He is the first director in the history of cinema to see his films (those he directed) cross the $10 billion mark. He has never directed a mainstream superhero film. Any sequel he has directed was a direct follow-up to original films or adaptations he himself directed — hence, he's not just a big studio franchise work-for-hire.

He's been nominated for seven Best Director Academy Awards, winning two of them (Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan). In 1987, he was awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award for his work as a creative producer and received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1995.

Read More: 'The Fabelmans': How Steven Spielberg Uses Filmmaking to Cope

Spielberg has also directed in multiple genres, including Action-Adventure, Science Fiction, Thriller, Horror, Crime Drama, Spy Drama, War Drama, Drama, Comedy, and Fantasy.

Here we feature some of Steven Spielberg's greatest quotes on directing, writing, and cinematic storytelling as a whole — followed by our own elaboration.

"All good ideas start out as bad ideas, that’s why it takes so long."

A good idea isn't enough. There are millions of people that think they have outstanding ideas for a movie — but only a small percentage of those people have the passion, vision, skill set, and drive to do the work and take that good idea and make it into a compelling and engaging cinematic story.

It takes work to do that, and do it well, so roll up your sleeves and be ready to develop, explore, and help that idea evolve.

"I’m not really interested in making money. That’s always come as the result of success, but it’s not been my goal, and I’ve had a tough time proving that to people."

If you're chasing the big paychecks, you're not going to last. First and foremost, it usually takes a decade of hard work before they start coming — if they come at all. Secondly, if you don't have the passion to tell stories and are motivated only by a payday, you're not going to be able to create anything magical enough to warrant that eventual payday. You'll be simply coloring by the numbers. That's not art and that does not make you stand out.

"I don’t dream at night, I dream at day, I dream all day — I’m dreaming for a living."

That's the magic of screenwriting. We dream of dreaming for a living.

"I’ve always been very hopeful which I guess isn’t strange coming from me. I don’t want to call myself an optimist. I want to say that I’ve always been full of hope. I’ve never lost that. I have a lot of hope for this country and for the entire world."

The day a screenwriter loses their hope is the day that they either quit or lose the passion. Avoid the pitfall of becoming disgruntled and cynical — it's a deep hole to dig yourself out of.

"Whether in success or in failure, I’m proud of every single movie I’ve directed."

Every screenplay you write matters. Sure, the first few are often your worst, but they are the genesis of the great writer you have become — or will soon become.

And with every misstep you may have along the way, you learn from it and evolve as a screenwriter. You can't prevail unless you fail.

"You have many years ahead of you to create the dreams that we can’t even imagine dreaming. You have done more for the collective unconscious of this planet than you will ever know."

What storytellers — screenwriters, novelists, songwriters, musicians, playwrights, poets — do matters. What you create matters. Stories told in whatever medium can change lives. They can awake, inspire, and teach. They can make someone laugh when they need to laugh, cry when they need to cry, and scream when they need to scream.

"The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves."

The knowledge, experience, and skills must be passed down. When you've reached a certain level as a screenwriter where you can pass on what you've learned, you can become a key mentor to the future. But always remember that when you're in that position, you're not there to create another version of you. You are there to shepherd their own journey, story, and vision.

"My imagination won’t turn off. I wake up so excited I can’t eat breakfast. I’ve never run out of energy."

You'll know when you're truly meant to be a writer when the ideas never stop flowing through you in every waking minute.

"All of us every single year, we’re a different person. I don’t think we’re the same person all our lives."

Allow yourself to grow each and every year. Your writing will grow with it.

"Every time I go to a movie, it’s magic, no matter what the movie’s about."

It's very easy to forget how magical film really is. Too often we get caught up in the details of structure, format, concept, marketing, and networking. We forget that every single movie that is on that screen is magic. Each one existed only in the mind of one individual at one time. And then that idea become a screenplay. And that screenplay was given to directors, actors, camera operators, stunt teams, special effects teams, grips, lighting technicians, set designers, prop masters, wardrobe designers, film scorers, etc.

And then suddenly, when the lights go dim and the curtains pull away to reveal the screen — magic happens.

Never lose the awareness of that magic. It will keep you going through those rough times.

"People have forgotten how to tell a story. Stories don’t have a middle or an end anymore. They usually have a beginning that never stops beginning."

Hollywood is concept-driven. The art of story and character arcs often falls by the wayside. But the true films that stand the test of time are those that deliver an excellent concept through amazing character and story arcs.

"Failure is inevitable. Success is elusive."

When you understand this, your screenwriting journey will be much more survivable. Too many screenwriters go in expecting instant success with as few rejections as possible. It just doesn't work that way.

Go in expecting failure at every turn and be ready to learn from it so that you can eventually capture that success.

"The work that I'm proudest of is the work that I'm most afraid of."

Taking the easy street is going to catch up with you. You'll become complacent. Only when you take on those stories that intimidate you will you truly feel your best writing reveal itself.

"When I was a kid, there was no collaboration; it's you with a camera bossing your friends around. But as an adult, filmmaking is all about appreciating the talents of the people you surround yourself with and knowing you could never have made any of these films by yourself."

Film is a collaborative medium. It only begins with the screenplay. Writing partners, managers, development executives, producers, actors, and members of the crew bring the vision to life.

"Movies are always in a state of locomotion. You start with a general idea of how it should feel and then you find you've got a runaway train. You have to race to catch up — the movie is telling you what it wants to become, and when that happens there's no greater feeling."

There is no better rush than the story revelations that appear organically from nowhere. When a screenwriter experiences that, they can learn to trust that the movie will reveal itself — as long as the writer is there to chip away the granite to let the "statue" escape into freedom.

"When you listen, you learn. You absorb like a sponge and your life becomes so much better than when you are just trying to be listened to all the time."

Always listen to the feedback you receive. Too many screenwriters get overly defensive any time anyone has something to say about their scripts that doesn't align with their preconceived notion of it.

You don't have to agree with everything, but at least listen. You may just discover the answer to the script problems you didn't even know you had.

"Sometimes a dream almost whispers… it never shouts. Very hard to hear. So you have to, every day of your lives, be ready to hear what whispers in your ear."

If you're wondering what route to take, what decision to make, and what script to undertake, listen to that little voice that has been whispering you answers all along. Don't ignore it. Listen to it every day. It's trying to tell you something.

Watch the man himself in this inspiring Top 10 Steven Spielberg Rules for Success...

Read ScreenCraft's 33 Screenwriting Lessons from the Philosophy of Bruce Lee!

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

For all the latest ScreenCraft news and updates, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The post Screenwriting Wisdom from Steven Spielberg appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Over two decades later, the trio reunited with the original cast members from their childhood in order to complete their masterpiece in what IGN has dubbed "the Boyhood of fan movies."

Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made is just that — the story of this long-gestating project's culmination, chronicling the friends' dedication to their artistic vision-mixed in with some movie magic-to create a personal, epic love letter to a true modern classic, in "a triumphant, feel-good documentary of the highest caliber that dares you to dream" (Cut Print Film).

This ultimate bootleg fan film has taken nearly 30 years to complete. We share what we learned in this amazing documentary about what it really takes for screenwriters and filmmakers that have a passion for a cinematic storytelling to realize that dream no matter what the cost.

1. Inspiration

There’s a reason screenwriters and filmmakers want to write and make movies — because they love them. These three kids — now men — were driven by Steven Spielberg’s vision. They were driven by films of the 1970s and 1980s, specifically those with the cinematic scope that captured their imaginations.

Inspiration is what fuels screenwriters and filmmakers to go to the lengths they do to tell their stories. They themselves want to inspire others as Steven Spielberg inspired them.

2. Aspiration

The inspiration of the movies and stories that screenwriters and filmmakers love force them to aspire to achieve that quality in their own writing and filmmaking.

These kids in the 80s aspired to emulate their cinematic hero in Steven Spielberg. They saw what he did and asked themselves, “Can we do that?” And then that aspiration lead them to a point where most would respond with, “No. That’s too hard. It would take too much money, time, and effort.”  Instead, their response was, “Let’s find out.”

And that’s where screenwriters and filmmakers are born. The people that chase a dream are an uncommon breed that embrace their inspirations and aspirations.

3. Dedication

It takes a lot of time and effort to write great screenplays. It takes a lot of time, effort, and money to produce and direct an indie film, or in the case of these three kids — the ultimate fan film.

As you’ll see in this amazing documentary, their dedication is off the charts. They gave away their evenings, nights, weekends, paychecks, birthday gifts, holiday gifts, and even some of their childhood — and later adulthood — to finish this film. And not just for two or three months. For seven years. And then years later, they returned to finish it despite past quarrels, estrangement, and the possibility of losing their jobs.

Without dedication, screenwriters and filmmakers won’t last. You can’t just phone it in when you have some free time now and then. You have to dive into the process head first and be willing to swim through anything in order to accomplish your vision.

And like the journey with these three kids, the journey of the screenwriter and the filmmaker is a long one. There are no such things as overnight successes in Hollywood. The media likes to sell that story, but that first script sale or that first hit film are just the product of years upon years of hard work, failure, lessons learned, and yes, dedication.

4. Determination

Beyond dedication, screenwriters and filmmakers need to be utterly determined to finish what they started, whether it be a single script, single film, or realizing a dream of a career doing what they love.

Dedication means nothing without determination. Determination is what drives you to accomplish what you’ve dedicated yourself to do.

This Raiders of the Lost Ark-loving trio were determined to finish their movie. They wouldn’t let anything stand in their way. And if something did with no hope of breaking through it, they found a way around it.

That’s what screenwriters and filmmakers need to do. That’s the perspective that drives them through all of the rejection, failure, and dead ends.

5. Imagination

Without imagination, there is no storytelling.

And it’s not just about being able to conjure a concept, setting, character, or scene. It’s not just about creating worlds, drama, laughs, scares, twists, turns, and thrills.

It’s about imagining solutions.

These guys didn’t have millions of dollars to make their shot-for-shot remake. So what did they do? They used their imaginations to find solutions to their restraints.

They imagined ways to create a life size rolling rock to chase after their Indiana Jones. They imagined ways to recreate the otherwise death defying stunts of the original Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Screenwriters need to find solutions for any number of questions that come up regarding where their stories and characters are going and what will engage and surprise an audience most. They need to find solutions to even get the script read, and then get the script to the point where when a reader puts it down, they’re ready to give it their recommend.

Filmmakers need to do the same, only on a whole different elevated plain. They need to use their imagination to solve hundreds of problems per shooting day.

Despite what many may think, there is no single way to find the right solution for every screenplay or film. Each script and each movie being written or produced is different than every one that came before. That's where imagination truly kicks in.

6. Execution

It’s not enough to be inspired. It’s not enough to aspire to be something or create something. It’s not enough to just be dedicated and determined. And it’s certainly not enough to just have a great imagination.

You have to execute.

Day in and day out these three kids executed what they set out to do. They were inspired by Spielberg’s film, they aspired to emulate that cinematic experience, they were dedicated and determined to make it happen, and they had the imagination to accomplish it. And then they went and did it.

Even two decades after they were done, with one final scene that was never shot due to the expense and scope of it — the scene where Indy tries to stop the plane from taking the Ark to Germany — they finally executed that scene.

That’s what it takes to be a screenwriter and filmmaker. Those six elements that these three friends had drove them to realize a dream that most would have given up on.

And the endgame for them wasn’t even a career in screenwriting or film. It certainly wasn’t about money, as they knew that they could never profit from a fan film.

They had a vision and they wouldn’t let anything stand in their way — not even time — to realize it.

And they even had the chance to meet their hero, Steven Spielberg, after all of those years.

What’s your dream? Will you be able to go the distance using your inspiration, aspiration, dedication, determination, imagination, and execution?

Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala and Jayson Lamb did.

Do you want to see your own vision of your favorite movie, TV, or literary characters come to life in an ultimate bootleg film? Enter ScreenCraft's Bootleg Universe Short Script and Story Contest! 

Tim Skousen & Jeremy Coon's critically-acclaimed documentary Raiders!: The Story of the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made (Certified Fresh by Rotten Tomatoes with a 93% rating and an Audience Score of 92%) premiered at SXSW in 2015 and enjoyed a healthy festival campaign before its debut in theaters and On Demand. It then debuted on Blu-ray and DVD.

Special features include more than four hours of bonus content such as dual audio commentary tracks (with Skousen & Coon as well as Strompolos & Zala), deleted scenes from the documentary, outtakes from the Adaptation, Q&A footage from the Adaptation's 2003 premiere at the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, TX, a photo booklet featuring storyboard art from the Adaptation and a free HD digital copy of the film.

The release is a must-watch for screenwriters, filmmakers, movie buffs, and dreamers alike.

The post Screenwriting & Filmmaking Wisdom From the Greatest Fan Film Ever Made appeared first on ScreenCraft.

The reason Spielberg succeeds so completely is that he isn't afraid to take his time and use compounding elements to build up tension until it hits the breaking point. He never just throws something at the audience — he slowly brings their anticipation to a screaming boil. It's only when he has them wrapped around his pinky finger that he delivers the goods.

So what does that look like? Well, a great example lies in one of his most iconic movies — Jurassic Park. Arguably, the film's stand out moment is the T-Rex breaking out of its fenced habitat and attacking the lead characters. On paper, the scene sounds great — and it is in practice — but there were so many ways it could have gone wrong. We're going to look at how Spielberg got it right by carefully building up tension. If you apply the tricks he uses, it can turn any good suspense scene you write into an outstanding one.

And what's the first thing Spielberg does? He disappoints you. Our heroes are on a preliminary tour of Jurassic Park and they haven't seen much. Their first dinosaur was a no-show, so the park owners stop the cars in front of the T-Rex section so they can get a show.

What are the elements that Spielberg sets up?

There are a few, and he builds them up slowly:

1. There's a big storm about to hit the island, which is going to complicate everyone's lives a lot.
2. Dennis Nedry sabotages the park so he can escape with stolen dinosaur embryos.
3. The park crew bring out a goat to lure the T-Rex out for the tour, but the T-Rex doesn't seem to be interested.

How does Spielberg pay them off?

1. The storm hits, stranding the tour in front of the T-Rex cage.
2. Nedry cuts the power to the T-Rex cage, so it can't electrify anything.

With those elements in place, Spielberg draws out this last part. This is really what we want to examine:

Before we see any reveals, we hear and feel them. Instead of bringing us straight to the goat, Spielberg builds up to it by having the characters hear the T-Rex's footsteps (tease moment #1) and then see the ripples they create in a glass of water (tease #2). He knows you always need bring the audience in with small images and work your way out to bigger ones.

These small tastes of the T-Rex's presence drive up the audience anticipation and builds it towards the reveal of the kids noticing the goat is f***ing GONE. There's your third and final tease.

That's when the goat's leg hits the car window — the exclamation point that leads us to the next part of the scene.

That's when we see the T-Rex in all its glory, right?

Nope. Spielberg just spent an entire minute just to let you know the T-Rex was in the scene. Now he's going to tease out its reveal with the following images:

1. A single T-Rex hand checking the fence and discovering it's not electrified.
2. A rising shot through wet, foggy, and blood splattered glass to reveal a T-Rex head swallowing that goat, then looking at the tour car full of kids. And boy is she hungry.
3. The Lawyer ditches the kids and runs past Dr. Grant and Ian Malcolm's car. Just as they're looking at him, the entire fence is ripped out behind them.

And then, after two full minutes — that's two pages of script — of stringing the audience along, Spielberg finally lets us see the T-Rex in all her glory. By that point, the special effects could be terrible but you'd still be terrified of the thing because it was built up so effectively.

What's an example of the wrong way to do this scene?

Glad you asked. The dinosaur franchise's own Jurassic World has a perfect example:

What's the set up for that scene? Two boys sneak into the dinosaur habitat in a park gyro-sphere vehicle. A big genetically enhanced dinosaur, the I-Rex, just escaped containment and is running loose.

What are the elements that scene sets up? Just one. The two boys are arguing about getting in trouble, and then one counts four dinosaurs in front of them. The other corrects them and says five, because of the reflection on the window of the I-Rex standing behind them. Then the camera pulls up through the glass to reveal the entire I-Rex behind them. It takes 45 seconds for this to go down. You can probably tell this whole thing is pretty flat.

What's the takeaway here?

When setting up a scene, whether it be the reveal of a character or an event, introduce the audience with individual smaller elements that build upon each other. They could be images of objects, as long as they don't reveal too much. That way, you keep the audience on the edge of their seat and build up their anticipation.

It took Spielberg one whole minute and three individual elements — the footsteps, the water, the goat — before we knew for certain the T-Rex was there. Then he spends another minute with three more beats — the hand checking the fence, the T-Rex's head swallowing the goat, the fence being ripped out — before he throws everything he has at us. If you show your hand too early in the scene, then you have nowhere left to go but down. But if you build it up slowly, you can create one hell of a fever pitch for your audience.

This article was written by Ashley Scott Meyers who is a screenwriter and podcaster over at SellingYourScreenplay.com. He has sold and optioned dozens of scripts over the last two decades. Through SYS he runs a screenplay analysis service, provides paid job leads to screenwriters, and helps screenwriters connect with producers who are looking for material.

The post Anatomy of a Scene: How to Write Outstanding Suspense Sequences appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Charman is an award-winning British playwright whose productions include three world premieres at London’s prestigious National Theatre. He is currently nominated for an Academy Award in the Best Original Screenplay category for the feature film Bridge of Spies, a Cold War thriller directed by Steven Spielberg, which he co-wrote with Joel and Ethan Coen. The film stars Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance and Amy Ryan. Prior to that he co-wrote the screenplay for Suite Française, starring Michelle Williams, Kristin Scott Thomas and Margot Robbie.

Charman’s current projects include: a feature film adaptation of his 2013 play, The Machine, for Film Nation; an untitled bank heist thriller to be directed by Matt Reeves; Opposite Number, a 10-part political thriller for British and U.S. television; and Patriot’s Day, directed by Peter Berg with Mark Wahlberg attached to star.

We've put together some of the best questions from Quora users from that session, as well as Charman's outstanding and informative answers where he talks about screenwriting and working with one of the most iconic directors of all time, Steven Spielberg.

Quora: How did you teach yourself screenwriting?

Matt Charman: I used to sneak into the second acts of West End plays while I was at University in London. I couldn't afford to buy tickets so after the interval, I would slip in behind people who had been outside having a cigarette, wait for the lights to go down and find an empty seat. That's really bad of me (and I should probably advise you not to do it!) but it was an amazing education because only seeing the second acts made me spend the whole night making up what the first act might have been in my head, before I was able to check in the University library the next day. I didn't know it at the time, but I was learning the art of structuring stories and what you do and don't need to know. It was a great grounding for me.

Quora: What is the first rule of screenwriting?

Matt Charman: Be where the hottest point of the drama is and make sure the scene you're writing is where the audience wants to be. Don't be in the room next to the action, but with the action itself. That doesn't mean the most dramatic place isn't quiet and still, it just means what we're hearing and seeing is the most thrilling part of the story at that exact moment.

Quora: What did Steven Spielberg teach you about writing and filmmaking?

Matt Charman: Sitting opposite Steven Spielberg, while he turns the pages of your script and talks about each scene as he goes, is about the best film school you can get. I learnt so much that it's hard to boil it down, but here's one thing: he wanted me to embrace complexity and the grey areas in characters. That is a gift of a note to a writer, because it means that you can create roles that actors will truly want to inhabit, roles that have both good and bad qualities to them. And audiences love to be compelled by watching those kind of characters too. Steven pushed me to do that, the total opposite of streamlining and dumbing down.

Quora: How involved were you in the filming of Bridge of Spies?

Matt Charman: I spent time on set in New York and Berlin sitting next to Steven Spielberg while he worked, which was the biggest thrill of my life. Seeing him direct Tom Hanks, or block a scene with Mark Rylance or get the lighting just right was mind blowing and I just kept thinking "you've got to remember as much of this as you can."

Quora: I have a movie (plot) idea, but I am having a difficult time getting the idea to paper. What recommendations do you have?

Matt Charman: Tell the story to a friend, like it's something that happened to you or something you just heard. Then forget about it and a week later tell another friend. Then wait a week and tell another friend. We're all natural story tellers and so the tale you're telling will start to find a rhythm the more you tell it, and the bits that don't fit will naturally drop out. You'd be amazed how much you can hone a story this way.

Quora: How can I establish a reputation for myself as a screenwriter in order to make a career of it?

Matt Charman: You have to just get started and keep going. There's no way to get better at it other than doing it. Ask any screenwriter and they will have a hard drive or a stack of notebooks filled with first drafts of plays, movies, or pilots that they wrote years ago and will never get made. You need to accrue those flying hours before someone lets you get behind the wheel of a jumbo jet (I'm aware they don't have steering wheels but you know what I mean...).

Quora: With your own screenplays, when you adapt history for a movie, are there any inviolate truths about history that must not be compromised?

Matt Charman: [For Bridge of Spies], I found a footnote about James Donovan and the part he played in this spy swap in a biography of JFK. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck and I was desperate to know more. I pieced the story together through articles and archives but it wasn't until I met James Donovan's son that the enormity of this story really landed with me.

Sitting opposite John Donovan and seeing the emotion in his eyes when he spoke about not only his father, but what the family had endured being regarded as traitors or friends of the communist cause, made me realize just how important it was to tell this story right and do justice to everyone involved.

I wanted the Donovan family to watch the movie and be able to recognize their father up there on screen. When I sat behind them at the premiere in New York. I was obviously nervous, but their reaction was the most wonderful review you could ever get and I feel proud we put the real man up there. It takes work to plot a course that is both thrilling and truthful, but it's worth it.

Quora: What are your best pieces of advice for aspiring screenwriters?

Matt Charman: If you hear a good line of dialogue on the bus or tube, write it down. If you have a good character name in your head, write it down. A good opening image? Write it down. Most writers are like hoarders who find little pieces of 'treasure' and hide them away in a safe place to use later. You never know when you might need something so if it's good, write it down.

These questions and answers originally appeared on Quora — the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

The post The Best of Oscar-Nominated Screenwriter Matt Charman's Quora Q/A Session appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Amblin Partners will develop and produces films using all three labels — Amblin, DreamWorks, and Participant. The DreamWorks label will remain intact.

Spielberg's more recent deal at Disney began in 2009 under former studio chairman Dick Cook and expires officially next August. The deal was made prior to the acquisition of both Marvel and Lucasfilm, which have obviously seen much greater success than Spielberg's DreamWorks. The family film The BFG and The Light Between Oceans (starring Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander and Rachel Weisz) are the last two titles that will be released by Disney and they bow next year. The BFG is scheduled for July 1.

Amblin Partners brings the legendary filmmaker back to the studio where he began about 45 years ago. Yes, Spielberg films will finally be returning to Universal Pictures, who will handle the marketing and distribution for the new entity in what is being described as a multi-year pact covering four to seven films, beginning with DreamWorks’ The Girl on the Train, which is based on Paula Hawkins’ best-selling novel of the same name. The thriller will be released on Oct. 7.

Ready Player One, a co-production between Amblin Partners and Warner Bros., which Spielberg is directing, is scheduled to be released on Dec. 16, 2017.

So with Spielberg back in the Amblin mix full swing with financing and distribution back in place, does this mean we'll see remakes of some of his most famous films?

“I would never remake one of my own movies — starting with Jaws — but there are Amblin titles in the library that could inspire new stories that were made popular by the films,” he said. “There isn’t a single title that I’ve earmarked, but yes, I would like to. I will be discussing that with Jeff (Skoll) and Ronnie (Meyer) and Donna (Langley).”

Source: Deadline

The post News: Steven Spielberg's Amblin is Back at Universal appeared first on ScreenCraft.

When you break down the cinematic experience, the one single constant that is ever-present, no matter what the genre, is emotion. Movies make us laugh when we want to laugh, cry when we want to cry, scream when we want to be thrilled, etc. It has been that way since the days of silent film.

Beyond that, we want to see the characters on that big screen go through an emotional journey of their own. Great screenplays have great emotional conflict. Those elements drive the story and character arcs forward.

Read: The Engine of Empathy: Three Ways to Convey Characters' Emotions

But how do screenwriters ensure that they are giving their characters and stories enough emotion and conflict?

Almost twenty-five years ago, screenwriter James V. Hart collaborated with Francis Ford Coppola on Bram Stoker's Dracula. This is where Hart was introduced to the concepts that would eventually evolve into The HartChart, created by the technical team behind WriterDuet screenwriting software.

We had the amazing opportunity to interview Hart, which lead to a discussion that began with his childhood storytelling roots, to his screenwriting collaborations with the likes of Coppola (Bram Stoker's Dracula), Steven Spielberg (Hook), and Robert Zemeckis (Contact), and then onward to his amazing and helpful HartChart.

ScreenCraft: Where did your own storytelling roots begin?

J.V. Hart: My father, Albert Jones Hart, lived to his 95th year.  He was a Lt. in the 87th Engineers during WWII and built the Alkan Highway at the beginning of the war. His bedtime stories were all about the 2 Brown Bear cubs his troop adopted that he named TNT and Dynamite. Dad regaled my brother and I with their adventures in Alaska every night before going to bed. Toke was the Husky sled dog who was always at Dad’s side during the construction of the road. His stories about the war in New Guinea offered another level of seeing the world at a very young age. His stories still resonate with me today. His father, Warren Bryant Hart, and his mother Berth Hart, could never finish a sentence without it leading into a story that had a point and was relevant to whatever the situation was – like convincing me to eat my spinach, or wooing me to shut-up and go to sleep.

Good question. I had not really thought about it until just this moment. I had a great story-telling tradition growing up. In fact I now remember as a child making up these elaborate stories and incidents about things that never happened to me, my friends, and my family. I was a bald faced pre-pubescent liar it seems. I even had three imaginary friends, Ronnie, Honnie, and Ponnie. Maybe they will return to me in my senior years and inspire some more awfully big adventures.

ScreenCraft: What was it like working with the likes of icons Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, and Robert Zemeckis?

J.V. Hart: Maestro Coppola was the single most completely satisfying experience I have had in this writing life. Francis is a writer first. He knows how hard it is to get those words onto the page in the first place. Coppola displayed enormous respect for my script as a director who did not generate the material on his own and included me in the rewrite process, rehearsals, production, and even in the editing room when we were writing new bits and pieces of narrative the film needed.  

My favorite part of working with Francis was the immersion into all departments of the film; working with Eiko Ishioka, our academy award winning costume designer, Tom Sanders on the production design, the interaction with the amazing actors during rehearsals and production, Michael Lantieri on the imaginative old fashioned special effects, including Roman Coppola’s brilliant use of miniatures and puppetry in the production.

Watching Francis conduct all these amazing creative talents like a symphony had an enormous impact on me; be prepared, prep is everything, and know what you want before you walk onto the set. I have worked with many directors since Mr. Coppola — good, great, and not so great. I am not sure I will ever have the Dracula experience again in my career.

Hook preceded Dracula by a few months, so I had two legends back-to-back as a screenwriter, beginning with Steven Spielberg.

Steven Spielberg has one thousand ideas a minute and you had to be a smart pair of sneakers and keep your brain agile to keep up. My family gave birth to Hook, it was my son’s idea when he was six years old. Steven respected that throughout the process and gave Jake access as an 11-year-old to an amazing experience during the shooting of the chaotic but ultimately rewarding production.

Hook gave us a new family, which continues today. Deep and lasting friendships with dear sweet Bob Hoskins and his beloved family, as well as much loved Robin Williams and his amazing tribe who are all forces of nature. So many long term relationships to this day — Lily and Jill Collins, Caroline Goodall, Bonnie Curtis, The Great Ormond St. Hospital, and our very own charity The Peter Pan Children’s Fund.

Steven Spielberg dropped everything on his radar to make room to direct Hook. I formed a new and unexpected appreciation of directors and the challenges they face everyday to bring a vision to life on the screen. Mr. Spielberg is no different. He is dedicated and works harder than anyone can imagine with his boundless energy and amazing knowledge of making films. Hey, he has been directing since he was ten years old.

Contact. I had two and a half amazing years with the great Carl Sagan and his wife, Annie, working on finding the movie inside his staggering book. No one can take that away from me. And there will never ever ever be another Carl Sagan. Jodie Foster survived three writers and two directors to get Contact made on her terms. She is my hero always for her devotion to telling Ellie Arroway’s story.  

“If it’s just us, seems like an awful waste of space,” is a line I am most proud of. I found the quote in my research from a quote by Thomas Carlyle. When Carl read the line in the script he said to me,”That’s it. That is the theme of everything we need to say about life in the universe.”

ScreenCraft: Where did the concept of the HartChart come from?

J.V. Hart: I learned a great deal about structure and character driven narrative from Coppola during Dracula. He gave me a series of questions, interrogatories to pose to your fictitious characters and the ensuing answers essentially resulted in a character driven narrative instead of plot driven. I needed more than cards on a wall to follow the emotional journey of my characters through the story. I need a big picture full screen beginning-to-end overview of my script and story.

When having my regular heart checkup, I watched the needle on the EEG and wondered if I could measure the heartbeat of my characters the way my cardiologist checked mine, and could I take that heartbeat, that pulse of my story and plot it on a graph like the EEG.  

So I began to draw early charts at workshops using the narrative signposts I have come to rely on over the years. I drew the charts at Sundance, EQuinoxe workshops in Europe, my grad classes at Columbia, etc. But the first official charts were born at the Austin Film Festival Writer’s Ranch where the philosophy and taking charge of one’s own script but creating your own chart for your own material really emerged.  

I remember one night at the second Writer’s Ranch when one writer challenged the chart and said, "Can we watch one of your movies you have not charted and see if your theory holds up?"

Well, we watched Contact that night and we all called out the signposts as they happened onscreen.  When we got to the Cinderella moment [see www.hartchart.com signposts] I swear it was the moment where Jodie Foster arrived at the gala charity event in a black limo and stepped out in a Cinderella dress just like Cinderella going to the ball to meet the Prince. Even I was gobsmacked at the veritas of The HartChart at that moment.

I use the mapping tool everyday in my own work. The Chart is a serious writing tool and not some book you put on a shelf about writing screenplays and never use again.

Check it out. You will never face a blank page again.

Guy Goldstein has developed a very smart app that carefully follows my process for using the chart and I am grateful to him for persevering and making this whole new adventure happen. WriterDuet is a practical screenwriting program that works hand-in-hand with the HartChart as other screenwriting programs.

ScreenCraft: What are the key elements to the HartChart and what does it do for the screenwriter and their scripts?

J.V. Hart: The core questions require that the writer make essential decisions about their characters which results in a character driven narrative rather than a plot driven narrative. Your characters will lead you through the narrative rather than you the writer pushing them through the story .

The chart signposts are the other ingredient used to measure in a visual and tangible way the emotional journey of your characters. You can see the highs and lows, the good and bad, the progress, the setbacks, the surprises and the rewards you characters experience on one widescreen page.

ScreenCraft: Can the HartChart be used in all genres?

J.V. Hart: Yes. I used the chart to write my first novel; Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth. An Irish playwright used the HartChart to structure improvisations with his actors to completely rewrite a problematic play that ended up receiving rave reviews. Two noted TV writers are using the HartChart to map out an entire season of episodes. The HartChart applies to storytelling in all shapes formats lengths and sizes.

ScreenCraft: How does the HartChart stand up with Chris Vogler’s The Writer’s Journey and other similar processes?

J.V. Hart: Chris Vogler’s quote about the HartChart says it all for me. Chris and I do workshops together, he is a firm believer as am I that there are certain story telling principles in the Universe that cannot be denied or altered. We have charted films together using The Hero’s Journey from his discipline side by side with the HartChart, to positive results.

One of the new features coming to the HartChart in 2016 is the Vogler 12 steps of The Hero’s Journey as signposts you can use on the Chart as an alternative. Chris will also be adding his charts of other films to the example option on the App; and, even more importantly, Chris will begin doing live and streaming presentations on The HartChart for our subscribers.

We are great friends and I am honored to have him be a contributor to the HartChart community.

ScreenCraft: What’s your development process like when developing concepts and scripts?

J.V. Hart: I used to use the chart as a rewrite tool. Now it's used to break story, to develop my characters and the narrative from scratch. Once I answer the core questions and make a first pass at identifying the signposts, I produce an expanded prose version of the content and have a working document I plot on the chart and use as the basis for my first draft.  

This is not a science or a formula; it is a tool designed to capture lightning in a bottle so you have access to that lightning whenever you need it in your actual drafting process.

ScreenCraft: I’ve read that you’re writing process is similar to mine, where you often reread what you wrote the prior day before you continue on. How do you feel that helps your process?

J.V. Hart: I read what I wrote the previous day every morning before I start the new content. Once or twice a week I go back to page 1 and read from the beginning. This way I am always informed as to my characters progress and can make any course corrections or adjustments or tweaks along the way.

James V. Hart is a judge for the ScreenCraft Family-friendly Screenplay Contest. If you've got a family friendly script, submit it here! 

The wonderful aspect of The HartChart is that, like Hart himself said, it's not a formula. It's not meant to dictate what emotions or moments need to be on whatever certain page. It is a tool that screenwriters can take advantage of to discover more about their characters and their stories.

The post How Screenwriters Can Find the Emotional Journey of Their Characters appeared first on ScreenCraft.

If you can’t, well, it’s time to start honing that skillset.

“But what about character and story? Isn’t that the most important skillset to have?”

Have you written the next great action film? Enter the ScreenCraft Action & Adventure Competition here.

1. Action Is Augmented Storytelling and Characterization

It’s a device in screenplays in multiple genres that allows for kinetic, thrilling, and entertaining ways to move the story forward and reveal character depth. At least when written well. We certainly don’t want to look at a movie like Commando and say that the action is a tool to develop the story and character depth.

That type of action has its entertainment value, but it’s not as engaging as the action found in films like Die Hard where the lead character gets hurt, shows the pain, shows the emotion, and showcases the element of danger and life threatening situations.

We learn more about characters through their overall actions and reactions, thus, action sequences are central to taking a character forward. In conjunction with that, the whole reason an action sequence should exist in a film is to use them as a bridge to move the story forward to the next point.

So with those two elements together, action sequences are clearly augmented ways to tell a story and to add to a character’s depth.

The torture sequence in the original Lethal Weapon is a brilliant example of action that moves the story forward and reveals character as well.

The sequence showcases what Riggs is capable of. It showcases Murtaugh’s love for his daughter and the horror he feels as these villains torment her. And it takes the story forward as well.

2. Action Is About Objectives, Obstacles, and Conflict

Even the less character revealing iconic action sequences that stand out can be crafted better, replacing character depth with creative, engaging, and suspenseful obstacles for the hero to overcome.

The Mission Impossible and Indiana Jones franchises shine in that respect.

Rather than just put dozens of bad guys on the screen to be endless bullet catchers, as evident in the Commando clip (we do love you Arnold), those franchises create a roller coaster ride of obstacles, objectives, and conflict. Perhaps the best example is the iconic chase sequence in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The objective is getting the Ark. The obstacles are getting onto the truck and then into the truck. The conflict is the Nazi soldier army standing in Indy’s way of overcoming those obstacles. If you take the Nazi soldiers away and just have a driver that Indy must defeat, how engaging is that? If you take away the other Nazi vehicles that Indy has to maneuver past, how engaging is that?

The best action sequences are those that throw as many obstacles and conflict in between the hero and that objective as possible.

3. Action Is About the Broad Strokes

Anyone can write a blow-by-blow, gunshot-by-gunshot, and explosion-by-explosion breakdowns. It gets boring. You’ll lose a reader quickly with a detailed list of those elements. Action writing is about displaying the broad strokes for the reader. The important elements that shift the fight or chase sequences into the next gear.

Forget about the little exchanges of fists, feet, or bullets. It’s all about the major punch, kick, and gunshot that move the sequence forward.

If you watch a fight sequence like the iconic Bruce Lee versus Chuck Norris battle in Way of the Dragon, you’ll notice the major shifts in the fight.

Within the script, those opening blows wouldn’t be listed one-by-one. The script would simply read:

Violent and skilled kicks are exchanged until COLT (CHUCK NORRIS) CONNECTS HARD WITH A KICK TO TANG LUNG’S FACE, sending him flying to the ground.

That’s the first key moment to the fight. The hero is taken down, surprised. This is a major shift in the fight, thus it is the broad stroke that needs to be featured. Then he takes more of a beating and goes down. Colt shakes his finger, which is another key moment that shifts the fight sequence because Tang Lung now changes his style.

So the important thing to remember when writing any action sequences is to focus on those big moments that shift the momentum.

Test yourself by finding those elements and writing them down while watching action sequences like this epic The Matrix sequence.

Possible answers: The metal detector moment, the security guard calling for backup, the arrival of Trinity, the arrival of the S.W.A.T. team, Trinity running on the wall, Neo making his move, Trinity covering him by taking out the shotgun, Neo cartwheeling for the machine gun and then cartwheeling while firing, and finally ending with Neo’s flying double kick.

Every gun shot in between is an element that you generalize or is implied briefly within the scene description. This exercise will help you determine those broad strokes to focus on in your own writing.

4. Action Is Not About Technical Terms

Many screenwriters try to elevate their action writing by using technical terms for hits and weapons. We don’t need to know the technical name for every kick. Most people don’t always know what the difference is between an axe kick and an outward downward kick anyway (they are the same). They don’t need to know a jab from a ridge hand. Those elements will be determined by the fight coordinator.

Nor do they need to know the names of the various submachine guns like Agram 2000, Benelly CB-M2, HK-MP5, etc.? Who cares? In the end, it’s not even up to the screenwriter to determine what weapon will be used in the production. Those elements will be determined by the prop master and technical advisers. If anything, you’ve simply slammed the breaks on the read because the reader has no clue what those models look like when you could have simply said machine gun, assault rifle, shotgun, revolver, etc.

5. Action Is About the Hero Failing, Prevailing, Failing, Prevailing…

An action sequence with the hero simply dominating from beginning to end isn’t as engaging as one where the momentum constantly shifts in favor of and against them. That’s what keeps an audience (and a reader) on the edge of their seats.

The opening sequence in Raiders of the Lost Ark is a perfect example (and also works in the context of Objectives, Obstacles, and Conflict as well).

We watch as Indy first figures out the various booby traps and circumvents them to get the prized idol. But just when we think he’s prevailed, we see that he has failed. The momentum has drastically changed. Now he must fail every booby trap he previously prevailed over. He then makes the leap over the seemingly bottomless pit, but then slides to the edge. He then grabs the vine and smiles, thinking he’s survived, but then the vine slips. He then pulls himself up and is headed out, only to suddenly find himself running from a giant boulder.

Action sequences aren’t about the hero dominating and showing their skill. The best ones show them failing, prevailing, failing, and prevailing. That’s entertainment.

It’s a common misconception that the action genre is void of story and character. As you can see, nothing could be further from the truth.

Action sequences are an important element to the cinematic experience. Without story and character, they are often meaningless, forgetful, and nothing more than mayhem for sake of mayhem. But when you inject those story and character elements into those action sequences, you create memorable moments in your scripts and eventual movies.

They are meaningful — or at least they should be. They have a beginning, middle, and end, no different than any story or character arc found within a movie. They have dramatic stakes and can be found and utilized in any genre.

And finally, they aren’t just about punches, kicks, bullets, and explosions.

Master the art of action writing and you’ll find that your scripts and hopeful screenwriting career will benefit greatly.

As an added bonus, check out successful Hollywood screenwriter John August's excellent breakdown of how to write better action sequences.

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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The post What Every Screenwriter Should Know About Action Writing appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Below, we showcase the highlights as screenwriting quotes, but there's nothing better than hearing it with your own ears as well, from the mouths of those very pioneers and stars featured within the video.  

“Write the goodest you can. And write it for me.” — Sarah Silverman

“Screenwriting is no different than playing the violin. You have to practice.” — Aaron Sorkin

“There’s nothing without the writing. It’s true. [Screenwriters] are often not treated or considered with the importance that they should be.” — Danny Boyle

“Stop doing four screenplays at once. And do one at a time and address the problem.” — Ridley Scott

“[Screenwriting] is like exercising. It’s just getting your sneakers on that’s the hard part.” — Sarah Silverman

“If you just think of [screenwriting] with no stakes, then you get pen to paper, finger to keys.” — Sarah Silverman

“Don’t write a $200 million movie and wonder why no one wants to take a shot and make it.” — Seth Rogen

“The best screenwriting really starts with character.”  — Matt Charman

“I don’t think that an audience needs to like a character necessarily. They need to be compelled by them.” — Matt Charman

“Try not to concern yourself with what other people might think, or whether this will be a popular movie, or whether it conforms to the structure that movie executives expect to see.” — Joseph Gordon-Levitt

“When I can see that somebody is following a system or some formula they’ve been taught, I completely lose interest. I prefer things that break the rules somehow.” — Michael Shannon

“Follow your curiosity. Stories are found in sometimes the most unlikely places.” — Laurie MacDonald

“Don’t worry about anything other than you. Just focus on what you love. And trust that that will get you through it.” — Drew Goddard

“When the script is magnificent, everything else seems to fall into place.” — Alan Silvestri

“Be pioneers. Find stories that are risky but speak volumes of who you are as a writer.” — Steven Spielberg

 The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a professional honorary organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of motion pictures. Their Academy Awards, also known as The Oscars, is the premiere awards show where peers within the film industry and Academy nominate their own peers into the running and vote for the eventual winners.

The post Screenwriting Advice from Industry Pioneers in Just 4 Minutes appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Mathison recently reunited with her E.T. director Steven Spielberg to adapt the Roal Dahl book The BFG.  The film is currently in post-production and set to be released next year. 

She was married to actor Harrison Ford from 1983 to 2004, and they had two children together. 

Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy, a longtime Spielberg collaborator that also produced E.T., stated, "Melissa was a remarkable friend not only to me but to everyone who had the privilege to know her.  She was fiercely intelligent, confident, soulful, strong and had a smile that would light up a room.  I will miss her terribly.” 

Mathison adapted the classic novel The Indian in the Cupboard for Kennedy-Marshall Prods. She also wrote screenplays for The Escape Artist, a segment in the Twilight Zone movie, the TV movie Son of the Morning Star, as well as the Francis Ford Coppola-produced The Black Stallion. 

Mathison was born in Los Angeles on June 30, 1950, and grew up in the Hollywood Hills. Her father was Richard Mathison, a journalist who worked at the L.A. Times and then Newsweek. She attended UC Berkeley, majoring in political science, but put her studies on hold to work as an assistant to Francis Ford Coppola on the 1974 The Godfather, Part II.

Spielberg said in a statement Wednesday, “Melissa had a heart that shined with generosity and love and burned as bright as the heart she gave E.T.”

Source: Variety

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In The Infernals, Johnson has won over the dark forces but has fallen in love with the wrong girl but can’t worry too much about that as he is hunted down by Mrs. Abernathy. With his smarts and strategy and some friends, like his demon friend Nurd, they are able to rise above the darkness once again. The Infernals was published under the title Hell’s Bells in the UK.

In The Creeps, the last of the trilogy, Johnson’s band of helpers has grown to two demons, a monster and a handful of dwarfs as he is lured into being the guest of honor at an event that is not all it seems.

Connolly is based in Dublin and is an Irish journalist who also authors children books. 

The entire industry is looking for four quadrant films and franchises that appeal to the widest of audiences. Dreamworks executive Michael Wright is looking to go back to the early days of Steven Spielberg's Amblin films. 

DreamWorks recently acquired Michael Crichton’s techno-thriller Micro as well as the sci-fi action comedy Alpha Squad 7 with Dwayne Johnson attached to star. They also picked up the sci-fi thriller Intelligent Life with Colin Trevorrow (Jurassic World, Star Wars: Episode IX) attached to direct from a script that he and his writing partner Derek Connolly scripted. Frank Marshall is attached to produce both Micro and Intelligent Life. They are also developing the time-travel adventure film Stealing Time, with Trevorrow attached and  Tim Dowling (Pixels) is scripting.

Speaking of Science Fiction. Congrats to the winners of the 2015 ScreenCraft Science Fiction Contest!

Source: Deadline

The post News: DreamWorks Acquires Trilogy of Novels for New Franchise appeared first on ScreenCraft.

So sit back and let's accelerate to 88 miles per hour and travel back in time...

1. Director Robert Zemeckis and Producer Bob Gale, both of whom wrote the script together, first met in their University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts (USC) Cinema 290 Class in the fall semester of 1971. They were both more interested in mainstream movies compared to their peers that were more interested in highbrow cinema. 
2. The two Bobs, as they are called, had different aspirations. Zemeckis wanted to direct while Gale wanted to write. They decided to work as a team from that early point on. 
3. The Bob's wrote the horror script Bordello of Blood while at USC. More than two decades later, the script would be produced as a Tales of the Crypt movie with a rewritten script by A.L. Karz and Gilbert Adler. 
4. Zemeckis followed in Steven Spielberg's footsteps by hanging out around Universal Studios, even though he didn't have a job (this is famously how Spielberg got his start). When he heard that the television series Kolchak: The Night Stalker was nearing cancellation and its writers were stepping away, the two Bob's wrote a 9-page treatment. Universal bought it. They were now TV writers, netting $50,000 per contract year. They later quit that industry and decided to focus on features. 
5. They pitched their idea for a period comedy called 1941 to director/writer John Milius, who agreed to produce and took the eventual script to Steven Spielberg. 
6. While 1941 was in production, the Bobs sold their script I Wanna Hold Your Hand to Universal and Spielberg agreed to produce. Zemeckis would direct. 
7. Two years later, the Bobs wrote and produced (with Zemeckis directed) Used Cars for Columbia pictures. 
8. When Used Cars debuted (but sadly failed miserably at the box office), Bob Gale went to his home town and visited his parents. He was looking through one of his father's 1940s era yearbook when he saw a picture of his father as class president. Gale had no idea. This lead to the concept of travelling back in time to meet his own parents. 
9. The two Bobs had always wanted to make a time travel movie, both of whom were fans of H.G. Wells's The Time Machine and Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone television series. 
10. In the first draft of the Back to the Future script, Marty McFly was a video pirate running a secret black market operation with Professor Brown (not Doc), who had a pet chimp named Shemp. 
11. The script was rejected by all studios, multiple times. 
12. Most of the executives wanted to know how involved their collaborator Steven Spielberg would be. While Spielberg had agreed to exec-produce, the Bobs wanted to keep him out of the pitching process. They were close to him, but didn't want to be known as the guys that got studio jobs because of their friendship with the titan that was and is Steven Spielberg. 
13. The script was deemed too provocative for Disney because of the scene where Marty shares an awkward kiss with his teenage mother. 
14. Zemeckis was hired to direct Romancing the Stone, however, the studio was already giving up on the film during production, thinking that their other film Rhinestone, starring Sylvester Stallone and Dolly Parton, would be the runaway hit that they needed. Romancing the Stone made a then outstanding $76 million at the box office. Rhinestone bombed, making only $21 million. 
15. Back to the Future would go on to be exec-produced by Spielberg and green lit, thanks to the success of Romancing the Stone especially. 
16. Back to the Future would be Amblin's first project that Steven Spielberg himself did not direct. 
17. Studio head Sin Sheinberg insisted on changing the name of Marty's mother, then Eileen, to the first name of his wife, actress Lorraine Gary. 
18. Sheinberg hated the chimp sidekick. It was changed to a dog. 
19. Sheinberg wanted Professor Brown to be referred to as Doc. 
20. Michael J. Fox was always the first choice to play Marty, but his Family Ties contract curbed that. 
21. Johnny Depp, George Newbern, Charlie Sheen, Corey Hart, and C. Thomas Howell were considered for the role of Marty until Eric Stoltz was hired. 
22. After six weeks of shooting, Eric Stoltz was replaced. The footage and performance just wasn't panning out. Michael J. Fox worked day and night on Family Ties and Back to the Future after being finally cast. 
23. To this day, people swear that the TO BE CONTINUED at the end of Back to the Future was in theaters. It wasn't. It was later added to the VHS release when the two sequels were green lit. 
24. Crispin Glover demanded more money for the sequel(s). The studio, as well as the two Bobs, offered him a hefty raise, but Glover still balked, wanting more. He was replaced in the second film with an actor that wore facial prosthetics and the character of George McFly was virtually written out of the script. In the second film, the story point of George's death in the alternate 1985 universe was the direct result of the character being written out. 
25. There was originally once single sequel script called Paradox. Due to the scope of the story, it was separated into two sequels that would be filmed back-to-back, which at the time was a very new concept of production. 

Back to the Future went on to garner $381 million at the worldwide box office. It's sequels garnered $331 million and $244 million worldwide respectively.

Have an action packed script? Submit to ScreenCraft's Action & Thriller Screenplay Contest! Or if you think you have the next time travel hit, get it ready to ScreenCraft's Science Fiction Screenplay Contest in the summer!

The post 25 Development Facts Behind the "Back to the Future" Trilogy appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Writing great scripts worthy of consideration is only part of a screenwriter's journey. As screenwriters hone their skills, they must also work to find a way into those hallowed walls of movie studios and production companies to even be part of the conversation as far as what scripts are purchased, developed, and produced.

So how do screenwriters break through those walls? How do they get that foot in the door? And more specifically, what Hollywood jobs are available to otherwise unconnected and inexperienced novice screenwriters looking to attain the necessary edge they need to create opportunities for themselves?

Each of these jobs creates different levels of opportunity for networking and experience. And with each of them comes great responsibility as far as being careful to choose opportunities wisely.

If screenwriters are continually asking people on the lot to read their script, they'll be out of a day job pretty fast.

First and foremost, it's difficult to make the jump from novice to connected screenwriter, but it's necessary. Without contacts and proper networking, no opportunities will present themselves, and no opportunities will be made.

Here we'll explore the jobs that novice screenwriters need to make those things happen. We'll start from the bottom of the hierarchy and work our way to the top, detailing what jobs are available, what they entail, and what they can gain for screenwriters in the long run.

The Screenwriter's Studio Job Hierarchy

Studio Security Guard

It can be a rather thankless job to most. However, if put into a certain perspective, this is one of the easiest studio jobs to get into and allows for some of the most access to studios as well.

The Job:

You will be a uniform security guard assigned to studio gates, lobby desks in corporate buildings, security for special events, roaming duties on foot or golf carts, the parking office handling day-to-day traffic in regards to guest pass database, etc.

You can go to any movie studio's job website* or simply call the studio and ask for the Security Department. Some studios have their own security force while others contract out.

The Pain:

Little to no respect is often the norm for this position, which is why it is placed at the bottom of this hierarchy. You could put this next to working in facilities, custodial, and food service (not included in this list). However, security is looked upon as more of a direct hassle to employees, contractors, and visitors.

It is an essential job that benefits the studios and those within, but don't be shocked when you have to deal with some irritated people. In turn, don't be shocked to work alongside those that are there just to collect an easy paycheck. This isn't to say that all security officers are lazy and don't care, however, you'll see that all too often.

The Gain:

Access. Plain and simple. Access to the studio allows you to get a sense of how those things work.

As a security guard, you're often given full access to the studio lot. Before and after shifts, you can wander the lot (to a certain extent) and get a feel for studio life. You can usually attend employee movie screenings — which is a nice perk — and all too often have the ability to meet and converse with many A-listers as far as actors, producers, executives, etc.

The best way to take advantage of such a position is to request the security details that offer the best access to the powers that be.

Working as a lobby desk security guard in production, development, and executive offices is a fantastic opportunity to get on a first-name basis with executives, as well as visiting producers, directors, talent, etc. These types of officers all too often receive holiday gifts from the powers that be, as well as daily food, treats, etc.

That's how close screenwriters can get to them in this position. After some time, it's just a matter of finding the proper moment to possibly say, "I'm working on a great spec about a menacing great white shark that terrorizes a small island community."

Working as a gate officer at any VIP gate (often where valet parking is available) works just the same. You have less time with them compared to being a lobby guard (due to the traffic of incoming VIPs and guests). However, you'll often get to know the powers that be just as well as you greet them day after day.

Barista/Studio Store Employee

While working as a barista may apply to food services, it has more of an opportunity for social interaction with the powers that be. The same goes for working as a studio store employee. Most studios have their own main street area that often house the main coffee shop and studio store.

The studio store is where employees and visitors can buy studio apparel and other items. When employees and the powers that be bring family, friends, and acquaintances for a studio visit, they almost always make a stop there.

The Job:

Studio store employees are basically retail workers — stocking shelves, handling the cash register, doing inventory, etc.

Baristas serve coffee, drinks, and cafe snacks.

You can attain these positions by visiting the studio website's job listings. Still, it's easier to be creative and find the number of the studio store or coffee shop and inquire about possible openings.

The Pain:

Working either position can be often seen as thankless work to many. Baristas and studio store employees are doing jobs that could be done in any local shopping mall.

The Gain:

Access and networking.

While access to the studio will be a common theme in all of the jobs listed here, it is so crucial because it allows the screenwriter to create opportunities.

Both positions allow for interaction with the powers that be and while the screenwriter that takes either job may feel that it is thankless, the best thing that screenwriters can do in this position is to focus less on "the pain" of the job, and more on how it can be used to their advantage.

Baristas and studio store employees see the powers that be almost every day. They get to know who they are and especially which ones are friendlier and more approachable than others. They also usually have a lot of access to the studio lot and can experience studio life.

The best way to take advantage of such a position is to be extra friendly with amazing customer service.

Executives and higher-ups may take notice if they see that day in and day out. It's not uncommon that when they do see someone working in these positions with a standout positive attitude and excellent work ethic, they just may possibly consider them for assistant jobs, if there is a need and if a casual relationship has been made.

If not, during a slow day when they're getting their midday coffee after a studio stroll or are picking up a shirt for their kids at the store, engage them in small talk. Introduce yourself. Ask how their day is going.

Even if you know what they do and who they are, consider asking them. These moments allow for possible bridges to be made and opportunities to casually mention that you're hoping to get into development as a script reader (see below) or that you're working on your writing.

Mail Room Clerk

If you read various biographies of studio heads, major executives, and Hollywood agents, the common theme among them is often, "I started in the mailroom."

The mailroom isn't as prevalent as it used to be with the advent of electronic technology (email, PDF, etc.). However, it's still a necessary department where all branches of the film and television industry send various documents, contracts, packages, etc.

The Job:

The mailroom clerk logs, stores, and transports incoming and outgoing mail and packages. Anything being sent to and from locations within the studio walls usually goes through the mailroom, so the mailroom department is charged with running it as a more casual and hip version of the post office.

This is a job on this hierarchy that is a little more enjoyable than being a security guard, barista, or studio store employee.

There's a freedom to it compared to those jobs. Mailroom clerks often rotate positions. Sometimes they are in the mailroom department sorting while other times they are sent out to deliver the items to the necessary offices within the studio lot. If you've ever been to a movie studio and have seen people riding bikes to and fro, a majority of the time, they are mailroom clerks.

You can attain these positions by visiting the studio website job listings. Still, all too often, it's easier to be creative and find the number of the studio mailroom and inquire about possible openings.

The Pain:

While the grass is always greener on the other side, mailroom clerks have it pretty good. The monotony of sorting and delivering envelopes and packages can get old. However, because of the freedom they often have, it's one of those studio jobs that everyone wants — at least compared to the alternatives mentioned above.

The Gain:

Access and networking.

Mailroom clerks have a lot of access to the studio. They often enjoy the freedom of being out and about throughout most of the day (unless they are in the department sorting). Still, the key benefit to this position is the enhanced interaction with the individuals that play such an essential role in a screenwriter's success — assistants.

Assistants are the doorway to the powers that be. Everything goes through them, including query letters, scripts, etc. If you befriend an assistant to a major player (development executive or producer), as Johnny Depp said in Donnie Brasco, "Fuhgeddaboudit."

While you still need the right concept and script, this is a door that is open for so many in the mailroom clerk positions. Relationships are made because they see these assistants each and every day regularly. They are often — but not always — around the same age, and the small talk between the two is often a welcome break from both of their normal day-to-day duties.

Mailroom clerks have a history of moving up the ladder. They move into assistant positions and onward. It's a historical stepping stone. Thus the powers that be all too often are willing to honor that history.

Intern

Studio offices and production companies based on the lot utilize interns regularly throughout the year (mostly during the summer). While some may be tempted to put them lower in the hierarchy, they rise above the previous jobs because of the access, networking, and potential for promotion into full-time positions.

A majority of the time, with a few exceptions, you need to be enrolled in college to take advantage of internships, which can be found in the studio websites job listings.

The Job:

A little bit of everything. Answering phones, making copies, delivering documents and packages to the mailroom and other studio offices, getting lunch, getting coffee, etc. However, interns also learn how to field incoming queries and write studio coverage for incoming scripts.

The Pain:

You're a gofer. You "go for" things when asked. Depending upon the office, you may either be treated as nothing more than a gofer  — not worthy of a second thought — or if you luck out you'll work under those that remember having been there before. Thus you'll be treated better and may even be mentored in a positive light.

The pay isn't great, but at least you get paid. A few years ago, most internships were unpaid, but due to eventual lawsuits by plaintiffs claiming that unpaid internships were basically illegal free labor, studios now offer a low, but legally acceptable wage.

The Gain:

Access, networking, mentoring, and consideration of possible promotions.

Possibly the best benefit is that you'll learn how to write studio coverage. You'll usually be tasked with reading a few scripts a week.

You are then asked to write studio coverage on them. A majority of the scripts you read will be easy passes. Since internships only last for a short amount of time, you'll rarely find gems (And you're likely getting the worst of the bunch as an intern). However, you'll be learning a lot of the general guidelines and expectations of the film industry. This is vital information that will help you with your own work down the road.

Beyond that, if you collaborate well with the powers that be and showcase an excellent work ethic and attitude, chances are you may just nab yourself a full-time position as an assistant.

Assistant

This is the coveted full-time position in any branch of studio or production company operations. Assistants work directly under the powers that be, and it happens to be one of the most powerful positions in the film industry, at least concerning screenwriters trying to get their script read.

The Job:

Consider this position similar to that of the intern but on steroids. Answering phones, making copies, delivering documents and packages to the mailroom and other studio offices, getting lunch, getting coffee, etc. Yes, you'll likely do all of those things, unless you're smart and hand them off to the interns when they're in the office.

However, as an assistant, you'll be more involved with the goings-on of the office and especially your bosses. In fact, you'll be running the office to a certain extent. And you'll be reading a lot of scripts and writing a lot of coverage. You'll also be interacting directly with visiting talent, executives, agents, managers, etc.

The Pain:

Be prepared to work your ass off. Be prepared to work overtime. Be prepared to never fall into a comfortable day-to-day schedule as your responsibilities will change like the wind each and every hour, day, week, month, and beyond.

Many would-be screenwriters find little to no time to work on their own scripts. They instead either burn out or work hard and advance into junior development executives or producers, which to many, isn't such a bad thing mind you.

The Gain:

The networking is through the roof in this position. In fact, some producers and development executives insist that their assistants make networking meetings every week for one-on-ones with agents, managers, etc.

You'll be mentored by power players in the industry. You'll work directly with or around major Hollywood talent.

Studio Script Reader

Now, studio script readers and assistants are not the same as most people believe. And yes, one could argue that assistants should be at the top of this hierarchy because of the benefits that come along with that job.

However, we're primarily taking the angle that these jobs help a screenwriter become a more connected and overall better screenwriter. Thus, the studio script reader takes the edge in that respect.

Attaining a studio script reader position can prove to be very difficult — another reason why this is listed at the top of the hierarchy.

Networking comes into play here. You'll rarely find a job listing in the trades or on a studio's job site. All too often, you'll have to have worked as either an intern or assistant to attain this position, given the need for an experienced background in writing studio coverage.

The Job:

Reading scripts, novels, and writing studio script coverage. That's it.

No answering phones, no fetching coffee, no making copies, etc. All studio script readers do is read scripts, novels, and write coverage. That is the extent of their job, for the most part. The studio script reader often takes writing studio coverage to another level.

The Pain: 

That is all you do for the most part. While it sounds like a dream job, it can and does take its toll, especially given the fact that roughly 95% of the scripts read are terrible or just not ready. Yet even in those cases, script readers are required to write full coverage on the script still, detailing what works, what doesn't, and why.

The worst part about this is that they are also required to write a synopsis for each of those terrible scripts. This eventual loathing is amplified because you're all too often reading dozens of scripts per week. And thus, you're writing coverage on each of those as well.

The Gain:

This will be the most exceptional education in screenwriting that you will ever attain. Forget film school. Forget seminars. This is the ultimate education anyone can receive in the art, craft, and business of screenwriting.

You will learn what works, what doesn't work, and why. You will learn all of the guidelines and expectations of the film industry. You will learn the tricks of the trade. You will learn all of the little things to avoid. And you will be a better screenwriter than most because of all of this.

Read ScreenCraft's Confessions of a Studio Script Reader!

I've worked three of these studio jobs and have worked directly with many of the other four. My time as a script reader awarded me the best screenwriting and film industry education I've ever had.

I've seen a former intern in a major production company advance into an assistant position and is now the head of their television department.

Screenwriter Antwone Fisher was working as a security guard at Sony Studios when studio executives began hearing about his life story and offered to buy the rights. Fisher refused, insisting that he write the screenplay himself. He later sold it to Fox. Denzel Washington was brought on board to direct and star in 2002's Antwone Fisher.

Actor Derek Luke was working at the Sony Studios gift shop when he met Antwone Fisher, who was working on the lot as a security guard. When Fox Searchlight bought Fisher's screenplay, Luke asked Fisher for a copy of the script. He went to the casting director unannounced and asked to audition.

After a second audition, Denzel Washington came to the gift shop to tell Luke that he got the lead part.

Kathleen Kennedy was an assistant to John Milius and Steven Spielberg in the early 1980s. She's now one of the most prolific producers in Hollywood and happens to run the now Disney-owned Lucasfilm.

There are hundreds upon hundreds of examples of screenwriters, directors, actors, producers, and studio executives that started in these jobs. Needless to say, the proof is in the pudding.

These are the jobs that screenwriters should be looking for. Great concepts and scripts all too often aren't enough. You have to make opportunities for yourself, and the only way to do that is from within the studio walls, production company offices, agency offices (where many of these jobs can be applied as well), etc.

*If you're looking to start your search for one of these jobs, click here for the links to movie studio job sites. Also, check Variety and Deadline for job listings. 

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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Everything Pixar

Let’s get the most obvious one out of the way — Animated Films. They almost all have moments with little-to-no dialogue with great impact. Belle searching through the West Wing to find Beast’s magical rose in Beauty and the Beast, establishing the underground world in the beginning sequence in The Box Trolls, the first half of Wall-E, etc. The list goes on and on. No one does a better job of this than Pixar. The clip above is the evolution of the marriage between Carl and Ellie in the film Up, chosen because I sob just thinking about it. These films must convey a lot to a young audience very quickly, and so as the adage goes — actions speak louder than words.

E.T. and other Spielberg Films

Much like Pixar and animated films, it was hard to choose one moment from Spielberg’s vast collection of work. He also works with children a lot (the dinner table scene in Jaws is another phenomenal example) and makes stories with a wide audience age range. Here in E.T. —  written by Martha Mathison — neither the lead character nor his alien companion speak and they are not in the same location, but they are connected. It is difficult to write back-and-forth scenes in this way, and it can be difficult sometimes for script readers to keep up with it, but this moment is essential in establishing the evolution of these two characters’ relationship and seamless in its execution.

The Piano

Written & Directed by Jane Campion

While this is a very adult film, we once again have the storytellers utilizing the relationship of a child and another character. Ada and Flora McGrath have an incredibly close relationship. Their head movements are aligned as they observe George Baines, followed by this beautiful sequence on the beach. Ada plays the piano while Flora dances on the shore, with Baines now observing the women. Their connection is shown further as they play the piano together, perfectly in sync. Finally, the McGrath women go home with Baines walking directly behind them, depicting his own emotional change as he falls in love with Ada. This sequence is essential in jump starting the emotional story between Baines and Ada, but also why the betrayal of Flora at the end of the film is so upsetting.

There Will Be Blood

Written & Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

This sprawling, epic drama has no dialogue for… a while. It can be exhausting for viewers to have this much silence at such a slow pace. There isn’t a true film score as much as eerie tones that rise occasionally in the background but are absent for the most part. Anderson held onto viewers because of the beauty of every shot, and the careful precision of what is shown. In these first ten minutes we see everything we need to about this world and its protagonist.

M

Written by Thea von Harbou and Fritz Lang

Switching over to another classic, we have Swedish thriller M, about a city on the hunt for child-murderer Hans Beckert, played by Peter Lorre. This sequence shows Lorre’s character struggling to control his inner urges as he stalks a young child. One of the most interesting moments is that there is dialogue in the scene, but whenever Hans speaks he is blocked from the camera by a wall of vines. This helps to build the fear of Hans. There is another moment in the film where he speaks to a child but the camera focuses on his silhouette or the balloon the girl holds. They say that what you cannot see is much more terrifying than what you can, by keeping Hans’s dialogue off-screen it raises the fear we have of him and what he is capable of.

Amelie

Written by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Guillaume Laurant

Amelie is a foreign, romantic comedy with a fairly mute protagonist. Amelie is an introverted girl living in Paris who falls instantly in love with a man she sees at a photobooth. She feels connected to him and has built up a bit of a fantasy of the male lead in her mind. In this clip, he finally tracks her down to her apartment. They have never said a word to one another before and yet have fallen in love, so naturally, Amelie does not need that to change now in this beautiful love scene.

Made

Written by Jon Favreau

Made is an awesome, little-seen crime comedy and Jon Favreau’s directorial debut. There is plenty of dialogue in this scene, but only a couple of lines come from Favreau’s character. What this scene does so well is establish the rapport between Favreau and Vince Vaughn’s character, and clearly foreshadows how each of them is about to handle the mission they take from Peter Falke.

Blazing Saddles

Written by Mel Brooks, Richard Pryor, Norman Steinberg, & Al Unger

This scene is a comedy classic and does nothing to move the plot. In comedy you can get away with halting story if the audience is laughing, and that is what this scene does. Brooks achieves this by leaning into a basic tenant of parody, what is the logical result? Logic and comedy may seem like enemies but they can go hand-in-hand. This movie’s goal is to lambast the many tropes of the western genre. Many western films show the cowboys sitting around the fire eating a can of beans. There is a natural physiological result to eating that way. These writers saw that and called it out. It is so utterly juvenile and hysterical, and it made complete sense in the moment.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Written by Jeffrey Price & Peter S. Seaman

For some reason, this amazing movie has been forgotten in recent history by younger audiences. We need to fix this. I feel like I am constantly referencing this movie and no one knows what I am talking about. This two minute scene establishes Bob Hoskins’s character Eddie Valiant and his backstory. Everything on screen is necessary to tell us who he is while adding a good amount of whimsy to fit the tone of the movie, and mock the noir genre that Valiant exemplifies. Not a single prop is wasted and even without dialogue Hoskins’s emotions evolve throughout as he takes a trip down memory lane. So though the plot is not moving forward, the audience is learning everything they need to know while being entertained.

City Lights

Written & Directed by Charlie Chaplin

You cannot have a list of movies with little-to-no dialogue and not reference the silent film era, so here is the master: Charlie Chaplin. In this moment, Chaplin’s classic character “The Tramp” has just been released from jail and is in search of the blind girl he has fallen in love with. The girl meanwhile, has had her eye sight return to her and opened a flower shop. After being bullied by two young boys, Chaplin finds his love in a nearby shop. The girl sees him for the first time and is not turned off by him, unlike the rest of society. It is sweet and beautiful, and the perfect ending to this great comedy.

Now, a few notes on this list. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and E.T. are the only movies on the list where the writer and directors are not the same (Pixar/Disney often have different writers, but the “story by” credit almost always includes the director). You do not need to be a director to write cinematically, and you should not have to direct your own work in order to get your vision across. When you write, the goal is for it to read visually and guide the director without telling them what to do. Almost all of these scripts are available online and give you the ability to study them and learn the writing style that was utilized.

Another recurring theme in this list is innocence. This was not intentional, but There Will Be Blood, Made, and Blazing Saddles are the only films on the list that either do not include children, have a child-like innocence, or was written for a young/family audience. Innocence is a universal theme that is easy to identify on screen, and kid audiences are action-oriented making limited dialogue a stronger form of storytelling in those instances.

The "less is more" adage, also featured on ScreenCraft as one of the 15 Platinum Rules of Screenwriting, is key in writing great screenplays. Allowing the visuals, sound, and character actions to guide audiences instead of dialogue is a challenge, but compelling form of storytelling. What are some of your favorite examples of “less is more” in film? Let us know in the comments below!

Emily Jermusyk is a screenwriter and story consultant. She got her start in high school writing over 150 episodes of a soap opera parodying Knots Landing. If desired, Emily will talk to you at potentially-annoying-length about topics such as why the CW is her favorite channel, the current amazing state of underground comedy, and how she avoids TV/films about zombies because most of them do not chew with their mouths closed. Follow Emily on Twitter, and check out her website, Ruining Television.

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The story follows a group of adolescents at summer camp who are terrorized by an old urban legend that evolved from a Colonial-period tale to a summer camp ghost story.

Marshall has a first-look deal with DreamWorks and brought the project to them. He is the long time Steven Spielberg collaborator (along with Kathleen Kennedy), producing such classics as Raiders of the Lost Ark and Back to the Future, among many others.

Richard Naing and Goldberg will be writing the script. Naing is repped by APA and Circle of Confusion while Goldberg is repped by WME and New Wave Entertainment.

Source: The Tracking Board

The post News: Dreamworks and Frank Marshall Partner for "Cropsey" appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Screenwriters learn most from both their failures and their successes, which is as it should be, however, our minds work in mysterious ways.

Positive thoughts can create positive results, just as negative thoughts can create negative results. In partnership with that, listening to the words of those that have gained much knowledge and experience in the very medium and platform that screenwriters strive to succeed in can help screenwriters as they hone their writing and struggle to persevere through the business aspects of making their dreams come true as well.

In the past, ScreenCraft collected the Top 10 TED Talks on Storytelling and Filmmaking. Here we have a new collection of essential videos to watch and learn from, featuring ten of the screenwriting, filmmaking, and storytelling masters of our time as they offer inspiration, anecdotes, advice, and so much more.

Take the time to watch and ingest them. Your mind will keep what you need, leave the rest, and you'll surely see a benefit in your own writing down the road as well.

So we present to you, your masters...

Nora Ephron

William Goldman (along with other groundbreaking screenwriters)

Charlie Kaufman

Quentin Tarantino (Interviewed by Robert Rodriguez)

Steven Spielberg

J.J. Abrams

Paul Thomas Anderson

Aaron Sorkin

Alfred Hitchcock

Billy Wilder

Bonus: Andrew Stanton

Screenwriters and filmmakers alike can benefit from those that came before them, no different than how these ten masters of cinema learned from their own mentors, idols, and heroes.

The beauty of cinema is that it is and always has been such an organic storytelling medium and art form as ideas, concepts, genres, and styles are ever evolving based off of what has come before, accompanied by the contemporary discoveries that have and will come to be.

Screenwriters can recycle what they've learned from those that came before them and then create a hybrid of that shared knowledge and experience with what is inside them as storytellers, and possibly, hopeful future masters of cinema.

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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The post Ten Masters of Cinema on Screenwriting and Filmmaking appeared first on ScreenCraft.

At the recent D23 Expo, Disney announced nearly all of their films that they have planned through 2017. Below we'll take a look at what is in store from Disney, who is attached to them, and what we can expect.

It's always important to know what's going on in the film industry, what moves are being made, what writers and filmmakers are attached, etc. So here we go...

Pixar's A Good Dinosaur

November 25th, 2015

The film is directed by first-time feature director Peter Sohn and written by Enrico Casarosa (former Pixar storyboard artist) and Bob Peterson (Pixar Creative Team, and voice of Roz from Monsters Inc.) and showcases the epic journey into the world of dinosaurs where an Apatosaurus named Arlo makes an unlikely human friend. Two years ago, the film was nearly finished when Pixar decided to scrap the whole film and start anew (the same thing happened with Toy Story 2) with new writers and a new director.

Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

December 18th, 2015

JJ Abrams brings old school filmmaking back to Star Wars with creature effects, practical stunts, models, etc. — accompanied, but not dominated, by CG. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan (writer of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi) wrote the script and will serve as Executive Producers and consultants on future Star Wars films as well. The Force Awakens is a direct sequel to Return of the Jedi, set 30 years after those events, with Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford returning.

The Final Hours

January 29th, 2016

The true story of the Coast Guard's daring rescue attempt off the coast of Cape Cod after a pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a blizzard in 1952. The film is based on the book by Michael J. Tougias and Casey Sherman and the screenplay is by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, and Eric Johnson, all of whom wrote The Fighter.

Disney Animation's Zootopia

March 4th, 2016

In the animal city of Zootopia, a fast-talking fox who's trying to make it big goes on the run when he's framed for a crime he didn't commit. Zootopia's top cop, a self-righteous rabbit, is hot on his tail, but when both become targets of a conspiracy, they're forced to team up and discover even natural enemies can become best friends. The animated flick is directed by Byron Howard (Bolt) and Rich Moore (Wreck-It Ralph), with a script written by Jared Bush (Disney Creative Team) and Phil Johnston (Wreck-It Ralph).

The Jungle Book

April 15th, 2016

The classic story of an orphan boy raised in the jungle with the help of a pack of wolves, a bear, and a black panther comes to life in Jon Favreau's live action take on the tale. The film is based on Rudyard Kipling's classic novel, adapted by Justin Marks, who has been known in recent years as one of the hottest screenwriters, nabbing multiple assignments — as well as selling some amazing spec scripts. Thus far, most haven't even been produced. ScreenCraft featured one such unproduced assignment — his attachment to Federal Bureau of Physics. Although he has likely done uncredited rewrites on many top films. His most recent produced credit is 2009's Streetfighter: The Legend of Chun Li.

Captain America: Civil War

May 6th, 2016

An incident leads to the Avengers developing a schism over how to deal with situations, which escalates into an open fight between allies Iron Man and Captain America. The much buzzed about film, which picks up where Avengers: Age of Ultron left off, is directed by Captain America: The Winter Soldier directors Anthony and Joe Russo from a script written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeeley (Captain America: The Winter Soldier). This film will feature the first Disney/Marvel appearance of Spider-Man. Sony and Disney/Marvel have partnered to bring the webslinger into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Alice Through the Looking Glass

May 27th, 20156

The sequel to Tim Burton's 2010 version of the Alice in Wonderland story, this time directed by Muppets Most Wanted director James Bobin and written by Alice in Wonderland writer Linda Woolverton. Tim Burton is attached as producer as well. This time around, Alice must travel back in time to save The Mad Hatter.

Pixar's Finding Dory

June 17th, 2016

The sequel to the beloved 2003 film Finding Nemo. Andrew Stanton returns to direct from a script by Stanton and Victoria Strouse. Nemo and his dad help the friendly-but-forgetful blue tang fish reunite with her loved ones as everyone learns a few things about the true meaning of family along the way. Ellen DeGeneres and Albert Brooks return to their voice roles as well.

The BFG

July 1st, 2016

The tale of a young girl, the Queen of England and a benevolent giant known as the BFG, who set out on an adventure to capture the evil, man-eating giants who have been invading the human world. Steven Spielberg comes to Disney to direct Roald Dahl's novel. Bill Hader plays the giant and Spielberg reteams with his E.T. writer Melissa Mathison.

Pete's Dragon

August 12th, 2016

A young orphan seeks refuge from his abusive adoptive parents with the help of a pet dragon and a couple who live in a lighthouse. This is a remake of the 1977 classic Disney film that featured a blend of live action and animation. David Lowery will direct from a script written by a number of writers; S.S. Field and Seton I. Miller (both credited writers of the original), Toby Halbrooks, and the director himself, David Lowery. Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, and Karl Urban will star.

Doctor Strange

October 26th, 2016

Based on the Marvel comic character. After his career is destroyed, a brilliant but arrogant surgeon gets a new lease on life when a sorcerer takes him under his wing and trains him to defend the world against evil. Benedict Cumberbatch has taken on the title role (after Joaquin Phoenix, among others, was highly pursued until dropping out of the running) with Rachel McAdams, Tilda Swinton, and Chiwetel Ejiofor c0-starring. Horror director Scott Derrickson (Sinister movies) helms from a script written by a number of credited contributors; Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer (2011's Conan the Barbian), as well as Jon Spaihts (Prometheus). This is a new edition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe character stock, so it will be interesting to see how these magical themes will play in that world.

Disney Animation's Moana

November 23rd, 2016

A young woman uses her navigational talents to set sail for a fabled island. Joining her on the adventure is her hero, the legendary demi-god Maui (Dwayne Johnson). This will be Disney's 56th animated feature, directed by Aladdin's Ron Clements and John Musker. Like their Aladdin (they also directed The Princess and the Frog), the film will be a musical. Musker and Clements wrote the script with Taiki Waititi. Waititi was nominated for a Best Short Film/Live Action Oscar in 2004.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

December 16th, 2016

One year after Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens debuts, this stand alone feature will tell the story of the rebels that set out on a mission to steal the plans for the Death Star. The amazing cast includes Felicity Jones, Forest Whitaker, Diego Luna, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelson, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, etc. 2014's Godzilla director Gareth Edwards helms from a script written by Chris Weitz (Cinderella) and Gary Whitta (After Earth, The Book of Eli).

Beauty and the Beast

March 17th, 2017

Disney also announced another live action version of one of its classics (see above for The Jungle Book details), starring Emma Watson (Harry Potter franchise) and Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey) as the Beast.  Bill Condon (Mr. Holmes) is set to direct from a script by Evan Spiliotopoulos (Hercules) and Stephen Chbosky (Writer/Director of The Perks of Being a Wallflower). Chbosky of course directed Emma Watson in Wallflower and reunites with her, at least on a writing front, in this live action take on the classic.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

May 5th, 2017

Not much was shared of the film beyond the confirmation of the date and title. James Gunn is set to return as the writer/director with the original cast returning as well.

Star Wars Episode VIII

May 26th, 2017

Little to no details, especially given the fact that VII hasn't even come out yet. Rian Johnson is set to direct. He helmed the science fiction flick Looper. He is currently credited as a writer as well, although Lawrence Kasdan and JJ Abrams will likely contribute.

Toy Story 4

June 16th, 2017

John Lasseter announced the film, detailing that it would be about the love story between Woody and Bo Beep, who hasn't been seen since Toy Story 2, so it's possibly going to be somewhat of a prequel or we'll be taken on a journey to reunite the two. Lasseter will once again direct with Rashida Jones and Will McCormick writing the script.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

July 7th, 2017

Captain Jack Sparrow searches for the trident of Poseidon. Johnny Depp came out at the expo in character, announcing the upcoming sequel. Kon Tiki directors Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg are helming from a Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You can) script. Orlando Bloom will also be returning to the franchise after sitting out of the fourth installment.

With a belly of genres represented here, what do you have in your deck? Submit to the genre contest of your choice at ScreenCraft's Genre Screenwriting Contests.

The post Disney's Upcoming Films Through 2017 appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Screenwriters are surrounded by gurus, workshops, seminars, and countless screenwriting books that claim to have the secrets to writing the perfect screenplay. They read endlessly about the need for strict story structure, character arcs, formulas, outlines, note cards, etc. They are pulled this direction and that, as pundits declare that X needs to happen on this specific page and Y needs to happen on that specific page.

It leads to what Clint Eastwood has often referred to as the paralysis of analysis, which means that a screenwriter or filmmaker can all too often overthink the development and production of their project, and therefore lose some fantastic choices that could come in moments of inspiration.

Now, this isn’t a new term by any means. However, Eastwood brought it to the forefront of filmmaking when he told the story about the making of Flags Of Our Fathers, which Steven Spielberg produced and Eastwood directed.

Eastwood referenced Spielberg’s production of Saving Private Ryan, in which Spielberg shared that he decided against his normal storyboard process and instead created those now iconic opening battle sequences — complete with many different shots, angles, practical effects, and locations — on the day of shooting. Can you imagine? If you watch the opening of that film and see how complex, engaging, and brilliant those images are, it’s hard to believe that Spielberg made most of those decisions the day of. Eastwood utilized that style in Flags of Our Fathers and has ever since.

Rob Lorenz, one of Eastwood’s regular collaborators, stated in an interview with the Director’s Guild of America,"Analysis Paralysis means you go from the gut. That's one of the reasons he likes the first take so much. It's got that spontaneity."

Cinematographer Tom Stern reiterates, “Clint has [that paralysis of analysis] expression that he whips on me a lot because I have too many advanced degrees and it's gotten down to a kind of look he gives me over his nose when I start being analytical," Stern laughed. "He doesn't want to do that. He's spontaneous or improvisational. It's his spirit. He's very, very intuitive."

So how can screenwriters avoid the paralysis of analysis?

1. Know When to Quiet the Academic Voices

Most screenwriting books, seminars, and classes have an unfair advantage when it comes to talking about film theory. Hindsight is always 20/20. So when you take a book like Save the Cat or any other screenwriting book that presents a formula of sorts (in this case, beat sheets and page directives), all too often, you could just apply those formulas presented to almost any film, good or bad, and make them fit into that context. It’s very easy to then say, “See, these Oscar-winning films and these box office smashes used this formula, so…” Hindsight is always 20/20. And the funny thing is that even the poorly reviewed films and box office bombs out there have showcased the same “usage” of such formulas (at least in hindsight), and failed.

This isn’t to say that what Save the Cat or a guru like Robert Mckee says is useless, not by any means. It’s just that screenwriters need to understand that there is no “be all end all” answer to writing a successful screenplay. For every “proof in the pudding” example they offer, there are dozens more that have either tried the same and failed, or done something completely contradictory and succeeded.

Information is important. There are some fantastic books and seminars out there. They are often excellent food for the brain and get screenwriters thinking more about their craft. However, at some point, screenwriters need to let go, quiet those voices, and allow their own internal instincts to take hold.

2. Trust Thine Own Self

Storytelling is in our DNA as a species. We’ve been telling stories since the dawn of humankind. We still find etchings in caves, tens of thousands of years old, that display the core of storytelling; beginning, middle, and end. Stick figures holding spears (beginning), a beast appears before them (middle), and finally, the beast lies dead with spears sticking out of it as stick figures stand triumphant (end).

We’ve been ingesting stories through so many different platforms over so many different generations; books, plays, movies, radio, television, the internet, etc. It’s all there in our DNA and around us every day. We know beginnings, middles, ends, hooks, conflicts, character arcs, dialogue, silence, explosions, comedy, tragedy, scares, etc.

You need to trust yourself because, in the end, it’s just you in front of the screen with that blinking cursor staring back at you.  Feed your brain, yes, but beyond that, trust your instincts.

3. Be Prepared, Not Overly Prepared

Too many screenwriters believe that they need to go into the writing process knowing Point A through Point Z and everything in between. That’s the worst thing that a screenwriter can do. Even though screenwriting is a blueprint for an eventual film where hundreds of people will collaborate to get it made, it still is an art form. It still is storytelling. If it weren’t, computers would be writing scripts for us (knock on wood).

Know the broad strokes. Know the major beats of the story and the characters. See that lousy trailer in your head that we talked about in 5 Habits to Get Those Creative Juices Flowing. But also know that much of that can, should, and will change and evolve as you write.

All screenwriters have different processes, sure. Again, there’s no “be all end all” answer. But understand that the real gems of any screenplay often come in those moments of inspiration, seemingly out of nowhere. You need to leave room for those moments. You need to leave some space for them. Not every answer to every question you have about the story and the characters needs to or should be answered in the outlining process. You shouldn’t know where every scene and every character is going to go and what is going to come next.

Having too many detailed outlines, character breakdowns, and beat sheets will only lead to one thing in the end — paralysis of analysis. At best, find a happy medium of being prepared, but not overly so.

“First, find out what your hero wants. Then just follow him.” — Ray Bradbury

These three points are simple, but key. Not only will they help you in your own process, but they’ll also serve the eventual script. Studio script readers are smart, and chances are they are screenwriters themselves who’ve read all of the books and know what’s out there. They can all too often tell which screenwriters followed various screenwriting book formulas and directives perhaps too religiously and which scripts were meticulously over-analyzed. Many times, those scripts feel hollow, empty, and by-the-numbers. It’s not the analytics that engages the reader — be it a studio script reader, producer, director, agent, manager, or talent — it’s the passion poured into the script. They see it. They recognize it. They love it. Save yourself and your script from the effects of paralysis of analysis.

And if you find yourself possibly suffering from it, remember what Clint Eastwood’s cinematographer Tom Stern said about how the director would give him that certain look with those iconic eyes whenever he was too analytical.  Just picture those intimidating eyes to quiet those academic voices, to trust thine own self, and to be prepared, but not overly prepared. If not for yourself, if not for your script, do it for Clint.

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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The post 3 Ways Screenwriters Can Avoid the Paralysis of Analysis appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Yet, the best we can muster is a simple stare at that blinking cursor, like a zombie gazing at the open road with no “food” in sight. To me, it’s no coincidence that the word “cursor” is so similar to curser, a noun, meaning one that appeals or prays for evil or misfortune to befall someone or something. That someone being the screenwriter. That something being their screenplay.

Some call it writer’s block while others call it an excuse for being lazy. Regardless, it plagues the best of us. So how can we defeat this zombification of our writing process? How can we jump start our creativity and get those gems of ideas, concepts, and moments flowing in our scripts again?

1. Pre-Visualization

Film is a visual medium. It always has been and always will be. Cinema started with no sound, yet still captured the awe of audiences worldwide. Even after Al Jolson’s iconic words “You ain’t heard nothing yet” in The Jazz Singer were spoken, films have always been centered on what we see on that big screen. Thus, it’s a necessity in the creative process of a screenwriter that they SEE before they write.

Allow me to explain…

Writing isn’t just about putting pen to paper or fingers to keys. In my own process, I generally see 75% of the film through my own mind’s eye before I type one single word. How? Pre-visualization. It’s a vital part of my process because how can I possibly tell a visual story without seeing it in my head first so that I can communicate those visuals within the constraints and freedoms of the screenwriting format?

All too often, screenwriters are told in books and seminars that the only way to get through writer’s block or the overall screenwriting process in general is to write, write, and write frantically until you come out of the other end of the tunnel with a first draft. The problem with that concept is all too often that first draft is utterly horrible, inconsistent, fragmented, etc. It makes the rewriting process damn near impossible, like wandering through an auto junkyard searching for all of the components to make a particular model of a specific brand of car.

You need to pre-visualize most of your script before you type one single word. Here’s how…

2. Find Your Horrible, Spoiler-Ridden Studio Trailer

You know the ones I’m talking about. Those trailers that studios feel the need to tell us all of the major details and plot points of the film. The ones that told us that John Connor was the villain in Terminator Genisys and that Chris Pratt’s character in Jurassic World was working with the Raptors.

You need to visualize that trailer for your film. The broad strokes of your whole story from beginning, middle, to end.

The best way to get into this pre-visualization mode is just to go watch trailers. Watch them all, new and old (God bless Youtube)! In particular, focus on the trailers of similar movies to your own, be it genre, tone, atmosphere, subject, etc. Then apply those various visual and musical beats to your own trailer that you see through your mind’s eye and litter that trailer with those big spoiler-heavy trailer moments.

Congratulations, because you’ve just laid out the groundwork for your script by doing so. You have that map that will lead you when you’ve lost your way. But wait, there’s more to do…

3. Watch Movies

Now is the time to take that trailer and use it as a seed. You plant that seed into your creative mind, and you water it by watching movies. Before you scream “Plagiarism,” know that this isn’t about directly stealing and ripping off movies. It’s about inspiration. It’s about finding a particular tone for a moment or story arc or action sequence or character. It’s about jump-starting that imagination of yours. The best directors of the past and present always screen movies for their cast and crew to give them a visual idea of what the director is shooting for.

The great thing about screening movies before you actually start writing is that you’ll capture so many little moments or concepts that those films didn’t explore, and you’ll be able to apply them to your own concept. It can even be as simple as a character trait that you can utilize and expand on. Whatever it may be, the key here is to jump-start that creative mind. You may not even take any direct inspiration from the film beyond just the excitement of being an audience member and wanting to give the powers that be (and eventually audiences of your own) a similar experience.

Yes, our minds are incredible tools. They literally do the work for us. You could be watching a movie one day and then as you’re sleeping, your mind is looking for a context to place that memory in. And hey, you’re a screenwriter that is developing a script for a film. Where do you think the creative mind will apply that memory to? I bet you didn’t know that you’d be learning a little neuroscience today, as ScreenCraft has explored before in Creativity, Your Brain, and You, but it’s true.

Water that seed, watch movies that are similar to what you are trying to develop, and observe as that seed begins to grow into the amazing script that you’re about to write.

4. Find Your Soundtrack

If John Williams, the late James Horner (RIP my friend), Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, and many, many other great film score composers have taught us anything, it’s that music in cinema is important. No, it’s vital. Imagine Star Wars without that music. Imagine E.T. without that music. Imagine Chariots of Fire without that music. Imagine Dances with Wolves without that music. Some will jump into defensive mode and say that Steven Spielberg overuses John Williams’ E.T. music to manipulate the audience into feeling an emotion. Um, yeah, that’s the point. And mind you, E.T. grossed a stellar $435,110,554 domestically (that’s $1,151,857,200 adjusted to today’s money). Music matters.

So to embed yourself in the process of visualizing most of your script first, why not go the whole nine yards and keep the cinematic juices really flowing by pairing music to moments within the script? Sure, the music won’t be used if your script ever goes to screen. Sure, you can’t tell the powers that be to listen to your soundtrack while they’re reading your script. It doesn’t matter. This is for you, the writer.

I’m a film score fanatic myself. I collect as many as I can. I go online or even go to the local library and find as many as I can. The idea is to search for films that are similar to yours (as mentioned before in the trailer search) and compile some film score tracks (or whole albums) that best fit with the tone and atmosphere that you’re looking to capture.

Then, as you pre-visualize (see below), you will feel those emotions and moments as the music connects with the visuals that you’ve conjured. It truly is an amazing experience.

Note: Try to avoid overly iconic music like John Williams’ Star Wars, Indiana Jones, or Superman scores. Also try to avoid writing to lyrical music (pop, country, Hip Hop, etc.), as they all too often offer the temptation to inject them directly in the script, which we all know is something ill-advised given the fact that attaining rights to certain popular songs is difficult AND because the powers that be reading the script might not know the song as they’re reading, taking them out of the moment (that’s a whole different blog post altogether). 

5. Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

I know. You’re wondering why the hell I’m quoting The Wizard of Oz.

Remember that moment in the film when they are traveling through the dark woods along the scary yellow brick road path? They imagine things. They imagine those lions, tigers, and bears (Oh My!). This is your next step.

So you have your horrible, spoiler-ridden studio trailer in your head, you’ve watered that seed by watching movies, and you’ve found your soundtrack that best encompasses the tone and atmosphere of your story. Now it’s time to put all of that together and wander through those dark woods we call the writing process. But wait, you’re still not allowed to type anything beyond FADE IN. Be patient.

Remember when I wrote that writing isn’t always about putting pen to paper or fingers to keys? This is too true.

Take your iPhone (or CDs if you’re kicking it old school) and go for a drive, a walk, a run, a bike ride, or whatever equivalent. Or perhaps find a quiet room, a deserted field on a nice day, or any other comfort place that you can think of. In fact, do all of these examples and more as you listen to your soundtrack and visualize scenes from your script that you’ve conjured during the trailer creation process and through your many movie screenings.

Let your mind wander. Pay attention to the road if you’re driving, yes, but let your mind wander. It’s easy enough even when you’re simply driving to the store, driving to work, mowing the lawn, etc. Let your mind wander as you ponder your story and see it develop through your mind’s eye after being fed with all of these visuals and music.

I usually start from the opening moments of the script and just write in my head. I play what I do have visualized in my head over and over while trying to envision what happens next. And then I build, build, and build.

You’re writing. You may not have the pen, pencil, or keyboard in play… but you are writing.

You see, you’ve now created a process that feeds on creativity and visualization, paired with the cinematic teaming of sight and sound. Because the mind works how it works, this jump starts that creative mind.

When you can’t visualize something during the actual writing process, simply revert to this process. Go watch more movies. Go listen to more of your soundtrack. See that film through your own mind’s eye with all of these elements in play, and you’ll never have to worry about battling writer’s block or laziness.

These are five habits that are underutilized by novice screenwriters especially, mostly since they’ve been taught to “write through” any block or just frantically type away until they get to “the end” of a first draft.

Adopt this process. Utilize it before you type even one single word. The results will surprise you. Those creative juices will flow endlessly. And that cursed blinking cursor will be a curser no more!

Ken Miyamoto has worked in the film industry for nearly two decades, most notably as a studio liaison for Sony Studios and then as a script reader and story analyst for Sony Pictures.

He has many studio meetings under his belt as a produced screenwriter, meeting with the likes of Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Disney, Warner Brothers, as well as many production and management companies. He has had a previous development deal with Lionsgate, as well as multiple writing assignments, including the produced miniseries Blackout, starring Anne Heche, Sean Patrick Flanery, Billy Zane, James Brolin, Haylie Duff, Brian Bloom, Eric La Salle, and Bruce Boxleitner. Follow Ken on Twitter @KenMovies

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The post 5 Habits to Get Those Creative Juices Flowing appeared first on ScreenCraft.

I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. Whether it was short stories or ideas for scripts, I was always creating something. (In fourth grade I wrote a spec script for an episode of Welcome Back, Kotter!) It wasn’t until I was housesitting with someone who had a computer back in the late 80s that I wrote my first actual script. I worked on it day and night. It took two weeks and it’s still one of my best ideas.

My writing process can vary depending on what is going on in my life. When I sold my script Alone to New Line in 2002, I had written the entire thing on my breaks and lunch at my day job. Once I quit that job, I would write during the afternoons. But I found that I’m somewhat of a night owl, so while I would do some editing and brainstorming during the day, I found I did my best writing late at night between midnight and 3am. As far as working out my ideas, I still like to handwrite an outline on paper and go through the themes, character arcs, and plot points that way. Then I transfer to an actual word document.

I also do a lot of thinking (which can sometimes turn into napping, yet is oddly still effective). Oftentimes when I’ve had meetings with a manager or agent or even a producer and they’d throw ideas at me, I’d get very quiet. I realized they thought I either had no personality or didn’t understand what they were saying. In reality, my mind was spinning and I was brainstorming as they were talking.

2) How have you honed your craft since you began and what resource or activity has been the most helpful in that regard?

I’ve studied (like many) the Christopher Vogler “Writer’s Journey” (along with Joseph Campbell’s mythic structure) which I find really helpful in seeing what may be missing in my script. I also watch a lot of movies and was a film critic on a PBS show until recently. It afforded me to see a lot of films, good and bad, and it was helpful to see various styles of storytelling and study what did or didn’t work in the scripts the filmmakers worked with.

 3) What was the genesis of THE BOYS WHO CRIED WOLF? How many drafts have you done and how much has the story evolved? Have you entered it into other competitions?

I love the horror genre, but am drawn to supernatural stories rather than gore-filled ones. Ghosts and demons have always freaked me out, even if I’m not so sure what I personally believe in regarding those ideas. What draws me to stories about haunted houses is how the families personally deal with the hauntings. How do they go home at night, put their kids to bed, and not be sick with worry?

With BOYS I wanted to write a horror/tearjerker. I feel like we see horror films that solely focus on the horror and the scares, but forget that there are human beings dealing with terrifying events. How is that affecting them? And what if two younger siblings had to face something that frightening all by themselves? What would make them choose to deal with it alone? What would that do to their bond as brothers? And how far would they go to protect each other?

I honestly can’t remember how many drafts I have done, but in the original few versions the ending was quite different. I struggled for a while with how to end it and the original ending flash-forwarded to the two brothers as adults. While it was an interesting coda to the story, I realized it was very unfulfilling, so I had to really think about what the boys’ character arcs were and what would be a satisfying resolution to the story. It was always their story, not the demon’s.

I didn’t want to get into some sort of weird made-up mythology of what the demon was and why it was after the boy. It’s scarier to not know. Look at The Exorcist. We never knew why the demon was after Reagan. And because of that, we thought it could happen to us or those we loved. That sparked such a cultural freak-out that hasn’t really been matched to this day. Even in the original Halloween, Michael Myers was a faceless shape that was relentless in his pursuit of Laurie Strode. We didn’t need a backstory because we projected our fear onto him. And that made it more terrifying.

It’s something I always hold as one of the great truths of the horror genre: Sometimes not knowing “why” is scarier that whatever explanation we can come up with.

BOYS has been in a few competitions. It was one of the Top Ten in the Horror Ultimate Logline Contest. I was a finalist in the Screamfest Horror Screenplay competition, and placed in ScreenCraft’s recent Horror Screenplay Contest.

4) What kind of stories are you drawn to tell? Favorite genre? What other projects do you have besides THE BOYS WHO CRIED WOLF?

I love stories with a preternatural bent to them. Whether it is supernatural or sci-fi, anything that makes the audience think out of the box and about the bigger questions of the world draws me in. I don’t think I’ve written any script that doesn’t have some sort of supernatural or science fiction undertone to it.

I have a soft spot for horror because I love to be scared. I was a wimp as a kid and I wouldn’t even go see Poltergeist at the theatre because I was too chicken. It took me until I was 24 to actually watch the The Exorcist in its entirety. But now, it takes a lot to scare me. It’s easy to do gore and gross people out. That’s a different brand of “horror.” I like really unsettling stories that get under your skin. I keep seeing movies that almost do it, but they don’t always get there so my goal is to write films that really scare, but have great characters and stories.

There are some exceptions: Nicholas McCarthy’s The Pact and At The Devil's Door are excellent, as is Mike Flanagan’s Absentia. Those two directors excite me and give me hope that we can get back to really great scary films. I loved James Wan’s The Conjuring and Insidious, even though – for me - they were a little heavy-handed. They still made me jump out of my seat repeatedly, though.

But I also love films like Another Earth, The Sound of My Voice and Mr. Nobody. They take otherworldly setups and focus on the people experiencing them. It’s not so much about plot as it is about the characters. I love that.

I also love monster movies and have an affection for werewolves. The first script that got me attention was a horror/comedy called BITE about the “Safest Town in America” that was secretly infested by werewolves.

I have a TV pilot called THE EXPERIENCERS about a group of people in Los Angeles who meet in an alien abduction support group and realize they are part of a large and scary conspiracy.

I have several completed scripts as well:

SECOND GLANCE is based on the novel by New York Times Bestselling author Jodi Picoult. She and I became friends when I asked if I could adapt her novel (which features ghostly activity). She really liked the script and has stood by my wanting to get the story made into a feature.

THE WRONG TURN OF JESSICA BUTTONWILLOW is a darkly humorous modern-day fairy tale about a teenage girl with a seemingly perfect life who takes a “wrong turn” and finds herself in an otherworldly place where she must face a part of her life she has buried away.

THE BANISHED is a supernatural thriller about a man who must protect his nephew from what appears to be a worldwide outbreak of demonic possession.

THE ICE AGE EXPERIMENT is about the first person brought back from cryonic freeze; and the legal and ethical complications that arise when it is discovered anyone brought back has a new soul.

I’m currently working on a time-travel thriller called CHAOS and a TV/book series about everlasting life called ETERNAL.

5) What's the best operating principle or piece of advice on screenwriting you've ever gotten?

The best piece of advice I ever received was from my old manager who, when we were discussing a project I was writing, asked me “what is it you want to say with this script?” He made me realize that even if I’m writing a movie that I’m hoping to scare the shit out of people with, I had to have a point of view. I had to have something I wanted to say. So now, with every script I write, the first thing I do is ask myself that question.

6) Who are your writing influences?

This is a hard one because I’m more influenced by films as a whole or specific filmmakers. Steven Spielberg was the biggest influence on me as a kid. His sense of wonder and fantasy really spoke to me and still does. And like many, Star Wars was the be-all and end-all for me, as it was what made me first interested in film. At the same time, I can equally be moved and inspired by Terrence Malick and Zhang Yimou. As for writers themselves, Tennessee Williams always comes to mind because of his rich and interesting characters. I feel like with film, lately Mike Cahill and Brit Marling (who both co-wrote Another Earth) tend to write things that fall into areas I am fascinated by, and do so by focusing on the characters and their voices.

7) Having received the ScreenCraft Fellowship, what are your immediate goals as a writer?

I really want to crack my time-travel script. I actually have the basics of the time travel worked out; it’s the characters I’m struggling with. It all goes back to “what am I trying to say?”

I also want to continue to develop a few of the other ideas that have been stewing around in my head. This fellowship has given me the confidence to realize I have a worthwhile voice. The life of a writer can be hard because this is a tough town to master, but I never could give it up because I love it so much. This fellowship has been a game-changer for me in how I see my future, so I'm thankful for that.

Other than that, I want to find a manager and/or an agent so I can get work and hopefully get my own projects off the ground. I’m hungry and eager to write and I’m just super excited at all of the future possibilities.

Oh, and I’d really like to quit my day job. (Again.)

The post 7 Questions With ScreenCraft Fellowship Recipient Kevin P. Taft appeared first on ScreenCraft.

Smith came up with the idea for Tusk while recording Smodcast with his long time producing partner Scott Mosier. They were reading an article a man wrote advertising free rent in his home if you were willing to dress up like a walrus. Smith jokes, pauses, thinks about it. You can almost hear the metal hitting the flint. Spark. Fire!

http://youtu.be/sj932CDnRFU

You can hear the story click for Smith. It’s magical. There’s a different tone in his voice, an excitement that we get lucky to feel few times in our life.

Finding inspiration is no easy feat. We’ve all heard the platitude “Write what you know” but that’s easier said than done. It’s hard to immediately “know” anything.

So where should we go to be inspired? How can we jumpstart out imagination?

A good weird news story is a way to start but besides that I try to listen to a bunch of podcasts to grab ideas. Things like The American Life and The Moth are jam-packed with wonderful examples of human interaction, too weird to be true, and amazing characters. I listen with an open notebook, tracking things like emotions, names, locations, and even verbs used to describe actions.

http://youtu.be/kGFdRkUEi8U

One of the general complaints readers at Studios and Agencies have is that characters come off stiff, or unrealistic. Consuming articles, Podcasts, and being out in the real world will help you meet people you can turn into characters. Readers want to be able to identify with the people in the script, even if the story seems out of reach. Listening and reading about real people will help add details that make your characters relatable and could mean the difference between a Consider and a Pass.

An exercise that is wonderful is to take any kind of public transportation for an hour. Put on your headphones but don’t turn on music. See who sits/stands near you and listen to them. Observe their body language, the way they talk, you’ll pick up things you’ve never noticed before that can pump up your scripts to the next level. This is a fun way to get to know people you want in a script, to hear about different worlds, cultures, and experiences.

All in all it’s about putting yourself in a position to accept the story that comes to you. Never shut yourself off from an idea – no matter where it comes from. What’s so great about Smith is that he initially wanted to make fun of the story but you hear it wear on him, you hear it find emotional depth inside him because he chose not to cast it away. He leaves himself open and a year later he’s at Toronto showing the movie.

Challenge yourself to listen, you never know what you’ll find.

The post Where Do Your Ideas Come From? appeared first on ScreenCraft.

SK: My script, "Cosmo Kramer and Punky Brewster Save the World" is about two government scientists who turn Michael Richards and Soleil Moon Frye into their TV characters, but then are unable to turn them back. When the world is soon threatened by a former colleague of the scientists, earth's everlasting hope for not being destroyed rests, due to mishap after mishap, in the hands of Cosmo Kramer and Punky Brewster.

As for what inspired me to write it, most of my ideas usually come from an idea popping into my head. And if it's comedic, the idea has to make me laugh. For this script, the title just popped into my head and it was so absurd, it made me laugh. So I created a story for it.

 
2. How long have you been a screenwriter and do you have a specific writing process?

SK: I've been a writer for over 15 years, and the one thing I do now that I didn't do when I started is outline. I try to be as detailed as possible in the outline, so I have a clear idea of where I'm going. And I try to write first drafts as quickly as possible, without stopping. If I hit a wall, I skip over the wall and just make a note to come back to it later. There's something about having a completed first draft, even if it's very rough, that makes it easier to rewrite for me.

3. What's the most important thing you've learned since you began writing?

SK: There's a bunch of important things I've learned, including the two I mentioned above, but I'd say one extremely important thing to do is when gathering feedback, create an atmosphere where that person will feel completely comfortable to be as honest and forthcoming as possible. It's difficult for people who know you to do that because they don't want to hurt your feelings. But I tell them a producer could care less about my feelings, so if you don't tell me everything that you felt wasn't working, and I start shopping a script that isn't as good as it could have been, you're hurting me more than helping me. Also, within that atmosphere, listen and don't interrupt. How many times have we heard writers say defensively while getting feedback, "Oh, you just didn't understand." Well, again, with a producer you don't get that opportunity. You want to know the things they didn't understand and then figure out why they didn't understand it.

 
4. Who and/or what are some of your key influences?

SK: I don't actually have a lot of influences because ever since I could remember I've had a very active imagination, and fell in love with using it at an early age. So while I loved watching movies and TV and reading books and comic books, I loved using my imagination more.

Having said that, for comedy I was a huge fan of John Hughes. His dialogue had such great wit. And for overall films, I'd say Steven Spielberg. His movies were all such adventurous joyrides, and they helped me really grasp just how magical and fun and exciting movies could be.

 
5. What other projects do you have or are you working on?

SK: Ha, I write a lot so this is a long list. I was recently hired to do a rewrite for an action film called "Boone: The Bounty Hunter" which will star John Hennigan (aka John Morrison from WWE). I've worked directly with John on all the new ideas and it's been a blast. It's scheduled to start filming early next year.

I was also brought on to the writing team for a comedy webseries called "Newlywed & Broke." The producers raised $18,500 to shoot six episodes, and that's also scheduled to be filmed early next year.

As for my own projects, I have 3 scripts being read. One is the "Cosmo Kramer and Punky Brewster Save the World" one. A good producer friend of mine, Marvin Acuna, once made a movie with Soleil Moon Frye (who played Punky Brewster) and just recently got her the script.

Another one is called "Guardian Angels" about two last-chance angels who are accidentally assigned the same subject, and as they compete to see who can help his life the most, they make it so much worse... That one's being read by several companies.

And the third one being read right now is "It's Your Bedtime, Mr. President," about four kids who win a trip to the White House to visit with the president, but when he's knocked unconscious they have to run the country until he wakes up.

I also recently finished a second novel that I want to start reaching out to publishers about (I had a previous one published several years ago called "Max Mooth -- Cyber Sleuth and the Case of the Zombie Virus"). The new one is an action-thriller called "Running Out of Time" about a brilliant historian from the year 2088 who's being chased through time by a ruthless posse for a murder he didn't commit, and his best weapon for survival is his knowledge of history. It's like The Fugitive through time.

As for my literacy program, "Reading, Writing, It's Exciting," it came about after my novel was published. I did events at Barnes & Noble in which I had 9 kids read the first 9 chapters. While rehearsing once in their school's library, the librarian came up to me afterwards and was very thankful, and explained to me that two of the kids who signed up to read the book, she'd never even seen before, and that this special opportunity made them want to read, and how much that would benefit them.

She then educated me about the dire state of literacy. I learned that if kids weren't reading and writing at their grade level by the end of 2^nd grade, they almost never caught up. And that 50-80% of those kids eventually dropped out of high school, were unemployed, joined gangs, or went to prison... And the craziest stat of all was that several states actually based their future prison building plans on those numbers. That's how accurate they were!

So I wanted to do something. I even stepped away from writing for a little bit so I could create something that would hopefully be effective and make an impact. What I developed was a program where kids could be taught how to use their imaginations, and as they were having fun with that, they would start becoming better writers... And then we would provide them with memorable experiences by having celebrities come to a Barnes & Noble and perform their stories in front of an audience.

Since it launched in 2009, we've been endorsed by the L.A. Mayor's office and have expanded to working with kids throughout the country via our Online classes.

If anyone wants more info on it, they can visit our website
(http://rweprogram.org/site/) and Facebook page
(https://www.facebook.com/RWEprogram).

The post 5 Questions With Screenwriter Stephen Kogon appeared first on ScreenCraft.

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These issues weigh heavily on the minds of every studio executive, agent, industry player and distributor alike.  Recently, two of the most seminal filmmakers in history, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, were asked about these issues during a USC interview with CNBC.  Their answer?  Quite simply put, "yes, the movie business will come crashing down."

I say, not so fast...

When asked by CNBC's Julia Boorstin, "What does the world look like after that (crash)?"  Lucas replied, "there will be fewer theaters, bigger theaters, with a lot of nice things - movies are going to cost you $50 bucks maybe $100 maybe $150 - like broadway or going to a football game."  He also added that, movies may sit in the theater for up to a year.  Spielberg then recalled a time in the beginning of his career, when E.T. stayed in the theater for a year and four months.  If that's the case, it looks like history might just be repeating itself after all.

Spielberg predicts that movie-goers may "pay $25 dollars to see the next Iron Man and you're probably only going to have to pay $7 to see Lincoln." Lucas adds, "eventually the Lincolns are going to go away and be on television."  Overall, the consensus seemed to be that people have options now and television now competes with movies "one to one."  Which may be true in terms of quality of content, but I disagree with Lucas that the "interesting ones will be on TV and in the home" and not in the theaters.  The biggest concern for the industry is "how to" monetize this shift so that everybody wins.

As V. Renee mentioned in her article for nofilmschool.com:

Whether we experience exorbitant prices at theaters or not in the future, independent film is going to profit from the majors’ decline. It sounds morbid to say,  but I think it may be true. However, that doesn’t mean that indie film is going to cannibalize major pictures. Rather, their shares will be redistributed.

Last award season, The Hollywood Reporter's, Stephen Galloway and Pamela McClintock, sat down with Michael Barker of Sony Pictures Classics, Rob Friedman of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, Jim Gianopolous of Fox Filmed Entertaiment, Jeffrey Katzenberg of Dreamworks Animation, Donna Langley of Universal Pictures and Paramount's Rob Moore.  When asked by THR, "In ten years time, where is the industry going to be?"  Katzenberg replied optimistically, "movies are only growing in their popularity and I think that the power of this (holding up his mobile device) is going to do more than just simply transform the consumption of movies, I think it's going to revolutionize them."  He added, that today, about one hundred million people will see a particular movie and pay on average about ten dollars for it.  In ten years, that number will jump to two billion people, and the cost will depend on what platform the viewer uses to watch the movie.  "Some people will watch it for 65 cents on this (again, holding up his mobile device), some will watch it for $2 on a television screen, some will go to state of the art theaters, where you'll have a meal and a great whole experience there and they'll pay $50 dollars for it."

Next came the inevitable question:  "Does that mean fewer and few people will actually go to the theaters?" Katzenberg quickly replied, "No, just the opposite - it's like sports.  Look at sports today.  It has never been more popular.  In the same way that sports has been completely transformed - now you can experience it on so many different levels and price points accordingly along the way and that's what will happen to us."

In the past few years, VOD has made it possible for viewers to purchase and watch films that are still in the theater.  Rather than take away from box office revenue, it actually helped increase awareness and success of the film's theatrical release.  For example, last year Lionsgate released Arbitrage on VOD and in theaters simultaneously, resulting in success for both markets.  Friedman added, "people want to consume when they can in different ways - it really is an educational process that we are working with our partners on the exhibition side so that everybody wins - you don't want to hurt a ten billion dollar window, which is currently the theatrical window, nobody wants that, it's too important - it's really about trying to figure out how we make it available on all levels and not hurt any of the opportunities."

V. Renee from nofilmschool.com also argues:

Perhaps the trick here is to not look at VODs and other new distribution platforms as disruptive technology, but as just another way to experience a product. Because honestly, there really isn’t a way to recreate the experience of watching a film in a theater. There isn’t a TV screen big enough, surround sound loud enough, or couch full of family and friends long enough to mimic that cinematic magic.

Just this month, Vulture interviewed Michael De Luca, former president of New Line, and was asked about the moviegoing climate.  He said,  "I happen to think that studios can walk and chew gum at the same time. I think they can develop, plan for, release, and market big-budget tentpoles while also feeding their slate with other kinds of movies - as digital comes of age, I think there will be more places to put a movie than ever before, and when VOD really comes of age internationally, I think there’s going to be another spike in terms of a need for product."

The movie business is only expanding, not disintegrating.  It is true that ticket sales will increase, theaters will become nicer and movies will be available outside of the cineplex.  But at the end of the day, films were made for an audience on the big screen.  Keeping the experience interesting and engaging is up to the filmmakers.   As as we have just witnessed with the success of Gravity at the box office - we still want that public, cinematic experience.

See my related post: The Inception of Gravity: Never Giving Up in the Face of Adversity

Links:

NoFilmSchool: Will Independent Film Survive the Spielberg/Lucas Cinemapocalypse Prediction?

The Hollywood Reporter: The Executives - Full Uncensored Interview

Vulture: Interview with Michael De Luca

The post Why Spielberg and Lucas Have it Wrong...Movies Are Here to Stay. appeared first on ScreenCraft.