Writing is both mask and unveiling.
June 22, 2011
Script: Seven More Scripts Every Writer Should Read
This list is composed by JT Cummins. Every script on the list is available for download at myPDFscripts (links below) including all three Lord of the Rings scripts. There’s one repeat in this list from the previous list — Alien. Guess that means you should definitely read that script:
1. Alien (Walter Hill draft)
Hill’s unique, staccato style burns imagery directly into the reader’s brain. A cold, but scorching fast-paced must read.
2. Aliens
For such a legendary taskmaster and technocrat, James Cameron is a romantic at heart, and the plots of every one of his screenplays bear this out by revolving around issues of love and loss. With its surrogate human mother vs. alien mother subplot, Aliens is no exception. Throughout, Cameron’s uses short, novelesque descriptions to enhance his action and blue collar characters and effectively weld them to a plot that escalates with every turn of the page. There’s a reason this script makes many screenwriter’s top-ten lists — it’s damn good. Along with Jeb Stuart and Steven E. de Souza’s Die Hard, Aliens is still one of the great blueprints for the modern action screenplay.
3. Tootsie
As convoluted and whacky as the premise is, the writers ground its absurdity by thoughtfully spreading the wealth of the story among a host of eccentric characters with issues that matter to each and every one of them – and thus the reader. This isn’t just Michael/Dorothy’s story, but a great ensemble piece. Like Larry Gelbart’s own television version of M*A*S*H, Tootsie is one of the rare comedic screenplays that effectively manages to mix comedy with biting social commentary — and actually work.
read more »
June 21, 2011
Script: Serenity
For those Joss Whedon fans out there, here is a draft of Serenity. Rumor has it the first draft of this script was over 200 pages. Joss just got down everything he wanted to include, and then later had to go back and trim it down to the primary story he wanted to tell. He must be a true master of the rewrite.
June 21, 2011
Quote of the Day: Nathaniel Hawthorne
Words - so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them.
June 20, 2011
Why You Don’t Have to Worry About Protecting Your Script
This article gives some helpful information on protecting your work, what that means, and what that doesn’t mean. It also makes it clear why you really shouldn’t worry about your ideas being stolen:
You can not copyright or protect- in any way- your ideas.
Ideas are not copyright-able. Only the execution of an idea is copyright-able.
So… let’s say you have an idea for a TV show about a boy who befriends a lost chupacabra. You do NOT own that idea. A TV company, a fellow writer, or your best friend could all write their own movies about boys befriending lost chupacabras… and you would (probably) have NO LEGITIMATE CLAIM they stole your idea.
Now, if you’d already written a script or treatment… and you could prove that they stole your plot, characters, lines of dialogue… you might have a case. But the idea itself—”boy befriends lost chupacabra”—is not yours. Even if you discussed it with people… you DO NOT OWN THE IDEA. You own only your execution.
Now… can you protect your “execution,” your script or treatment? Possibly.
But here’s another thing to understand…
Obtaining a copyright, or a WGA registration, does NOT guarantee protection of intellectual property.
A copyright or WGA registration simply provides a piece of EVIDENCE as to when and where you first held ownership of your material.
So if you registered or copyrighted your script on June 4, 2011, it does not mean that as of June 4, 2011, your script is protected. It means you have one piece of evidence saying that on June 4, 2011, this particular piece of intellectual property was in your possession.
…And that piece of evidence may or may not be enough to convince a court of law you yourself created this particular intellectual property.
read more »
June 20, 2011
Quote of the Day: Orson Scott Card
Metaphors have a way of holding the most truth in the least space.
June 16, 2011
Quote of the Day: Jules Renard
The story I am writing exists, written in absolutely perfect fashion, some place, in the air. All I must do is find it, and copy it.
June 15, 2011
Discounts on Recommended Script Consultants
The International Screenwriting Association recently suggested this list of script consultants. If you’re a member of ISA (which simply entails signing up for their newsletter) you can get a discount with many of these consulting services.
I personally haven’t tried any of these services, so I can’t vouch for one over another. As always, do your homework and find the one that makes the most sense for your script and your budget.
“Sell Your Script to Hollywood!”
Writer/producer and USC professor Paula Brancato offers one-on-one script consultation and industry coverage. An investment banker and music industry CFO, Brancato has successfully developed hundreds of scripts and raised over fifty million for independent film and entertainment projects.http://www.thewritersplace.org/script_consultation.shtml
~Mention This Email For $25 Off Standard Coverage Or Studio Notes!
Active industry professionals to help you!
The Happy Writers is a script consulting service consisting of hand selected consultants that are active industry professionals. They range from high profile producers, directors and respected script analysts. Not only do we simply consult, but we will help any writer with a well written script find an agent, manager or put their script in the hands of numerous production companies
http://www.TheHappyWriters.com/~
The Script Broker®…. expertise and access is key
It’s all about access. You can’t sell it if you can’t get someone to read it. I’ve developed a large professional network who respect my bar of excellence. If your project is ready to go, or you’re willing to put in the elbow grease to get it ready, I’ll help get YOU and YOUR project to my contacts on your behalf.
http://www.thescriptbroker.com / [email protected] / (323) 655-2225
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I.S.A. Member Discount: $10 offFree $25K Contest Entry with CI Script Analysis!
Top-rated Coverage Ink, run by “Creative Screenwriting” industry expert Jim Cirile, is the place for the best priced, most thorough and empowering script analysis out there. Submit your script before July 31, you’ll be entered into our $25,000 Writers on the Storm contest free! Visit coverageink.com for all the deets.
Special for I.S.A. readers Expires 7/31/11
Use this discount code when you order NETWORKISA10 and get $10 off your submission!
http://www.coverageink.com/services.html~
Mention “NetworkISA10″ for a 10% Discount!
Got Movie Ideas?
Endorsed by Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning screenwriters, MSNH! helps catapult your movie or TV show idea into the marketplace — with guaranteed industry feedback! From coverage to pitching, we can do a little, or we can do it all!
Mention “NetworkISA10” for a 10% discount! http://www.MyScriptNeedsHelp.com
~You’ve spent the time and money writing your screenplay. Now give it a fair shot at Hollywood!
There are many ways to skin a cat and now even more ways to get your script to Hollywood. Get it ready with a Script Consultation by “Top 5 Consultant” Melody Jackson. Then create a Script Marketing Campaign to get it to Select Hollywood execs. Smart Girls has helped writers since 1992. Call today: (818) 907-6511 or email [email protected].
Get more info & Free Hot Tips at: http://www.smartg.com/screenwriters/script-critique.html
~
Have you made the #1 screenwriting mistake - sending out your script before it’s ready?
ScriptCoach.com’s a premier screenwriting consulting firm run by producer/script doc David Kohner Zuckerman. David’s uniquely qualified for this work as he actively produces movies including the recently wrapped “The Fourth Noble Truth” and “All I Want for Christmas.” David also runs VPF - the only site that enables writers to pitch Hollywood Pros with a guaranteed response back. His ScriptCoach Special includes notes + a query letter + 10 free pitches from www.VirtualPitchFest.com.
http://www.scriptcoach.com~
DAVID FREEMAN - Script Consultation
All writers, even the very best, can get blind to the faults in their own scripts after rewriting them over and over again. Sometimes it takes a very trained and talented outside eye to bring a fresh perspective.
Expect a lot more from David. He won’t just spot the weaknesses in your script that can destroy a sale — he’ll roll up his sleeves and give you ideas on how to fix them.
http://beyondstructure.com/script_consult.php
June 15, 2011
Script: Knocked Up
Here’s a draft of Judd Apatow’s script for Knocked Up. Happy reading!
