Recently, I saw something that I normally do not see: Development folks in a frenzied excitement over a script.
Apparently the script hit LA in the last couple of days & the email inquiries came in fast & furious. Is the script as good as the logline? Does it deliver what it promises? Who has it? Has anyone read the script? What is it like?
Here's my two cents why the concept & logline have the jaded in LA excited:
1. It's a recognizable, bankable story. The premise is CLEAR & is a tale that expands its genre, rather than a repeat of the same old, same old.
ex. Pirates of the Caribbean expanded the pirate genre, rather than repeated the same old story.
2. The logline moves. Yes, the logline BRISTLES with action. It has active verbs, and is not static.
3. There are STAKES. Already, I'm worried about the characters. For me, this is the toughest part to get into a logline.
4. There are characters who must overcome their FLAWS, or all is lost. The entire story hinges on the protagonist doing the right thing. We're rooting for this character even though we haven't seen a trailer or poster. This is key for marketing people. It's going to be easy to sell to audiences seeking someone they want to grow up to be like.
WHAT I LEARNED: Scriptdreric on Twitter said it best: "Most script readers [execs, assistants, etc.] actually WANT your screenplay to be good. We'd love to find that next big hit."
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Keepin' Comedy Loose (Ch. 33); Last Chapter!)
[Today we're reading Ch. 33 Aristotle Took Comedy Seriously, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
The author writes, "Comedy uses the tools of the dramatic structure but it shapes a looser & more episodic plot so the jokes can carry it."
Hmmm...how does this really work?
I thought back to a comedy spec script that I really liked. The main female character is dating a rich, older guy and the script focuses on this unlikely romance.
However in a minor storyline, she must deal with her wimpy ex-boyfriend who camps out on her doorstep to win her back. There are several scenes where the ex-boyfriend is pretty funny. Were they absolutely necessary? No, but these episodes with ex-boyfriend did have a purpose: they were good fodder for jokes and laughter.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: It's still plot 1st, jokes last...but perhaps I can be more conscious of playing more with plot to create more opportunities for jokes.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
The author writes, "Comedy uses the tools of the dramatic structure but it shapes a looser & more episodic plot so the jokes can carry it."
Hmmm...how does this really work?
I thought back to a comedy spec script that I really liked. The main female character is dating a rich, older guy and the script focuses on this unlikely romance.
However in a minor storyline, she must deal with her wimpy ex-boyfriend who camps out on her doorstep to win her back. There are several scenes where the ex-boyfriend is pretty funny. Were they absolutely necessary? No, but these episodes with ex-boyfriend did have a purpose: they were good fodder for jokes and laughter.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: It's still plot 1st, jokes last...but perhaps I can be more conscious of playing more with plot to create more opportunities for jokes.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Sunday, February 7, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Psychological Suffering (Ch. 32)
[Today we're reading Ch. 32 Aristotle's Take on the Importance of Drama, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
Today's chapter mentions intense emotional or psychological suffering & I thought I'd write a few words on a popular genre, the psychological thriller.
I've read a bunch of purported "psychological thriller" specs and was unimpressed. They were predictable & not truly playing with a person's mind.
What impresses me? A good lead up to the epiphany. Let me elaborate:
First, you need to lay out what the lead character's sore point is psychologically, i.e., why he is having issues.
Second, you need to gradually hammer at that sore point. Newbies make the mistake of thinking that to " hammer" means starting with HUGE FORCE. Uh, no. If you do, there's nowhere to go.
And it's creepier if you start with small discomforts and crescendo to a GIGANTOR conflict at the climax.
Third, when you reach that climax/epiphany/GIGANTOR moment, don't overplay it. Give us a beat of the antagonist remaining controlled as the protagonist explodes. THEN let the antagonist unravel.
ex. At the climax, cool, collected antagonist confesses that he killed protagonist's beloved father & buried him in a hidden location. Protagonist is reeling & is shoved into her worst fear: Her father truly is dead. Protagonist is melting down, and sobbing.
If you overplay it, you could make the protagonist leap up and confront the antagonist with a "You'll never get the best of me!" speech. *Yawn.*
If you're smart, you'll let the protagonist sob, mentally collect herself, and reach for something in her psychological arsenal that will trump the antagonist. This does 2 things: 1) It beats the bad guy at his game at the right time; & 2) It shows that the protagonist has completed her character arc.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Psychological thrillers are hot properties. But make sure to set it up properly for the most powerful effect.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Today's chapter mentions intense emotional or psychological suffering & I thought I'd write a few words on a popular genre, the psychological thriller.
I've read a bunch of purported "psychological thriller" specs and was unimpressed. They were predictable & not truly playing with a person's mind.
What impresses me? A good lead up to the epiphany. Let me elaborate:
First, you need to lay out what the lead character's sore point is psychologically, i.e., why he is having issues.
Second, you need to gradually hammer at that sore point. Newbies make the mistake of thinking that to " hammer" means starting with HUGE FORCE. Uh, no. If you do, there's nowhere to go.
And it's creepier if you start with small discomforts and crescendo to a GIGANTOR conflict at the climax.
Third, when you reach that climax/epiphany/GIGANTOR moment, don't overplay it. Give us a beat of the antagonist remaining controlled as the protagonist explodes. THEN let the antagonist unravel.
ex. At the climax, cool, collected antagonist confesses that he killed protagonist's beloved father & buried him in a hidden location. Protagonist is reeling & is shoved into her worst fear: Her father truly is dead. Protagonist is melting down, and sobbing.
If you overplay it, you could make the protagonist leap up and confront the antagonist with a "You'll never get the best of me!" speech. *Yawn.*
If you're smart, you'll let the protagonist sob, mentally collect herself, and reach for something in her psychological arsenal that will trump the antagonist. This does 2 things: 1) It beats the bad guy at his game at the right time; & 2) It shows that the protagonist has completed her character arc.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Psychological thrillers are hot properties. But make sure to set it up properly for the most powerful effect.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
TODAY'S NUGGET: Mr. Hyde, I Presume?
You will probably never actually see what readers look like when they're getting a head of steam as they cover scripts, so I thought I'd give you a glimpse what I looked like this past week.
I read on the nose dialogue, and my shoulders hunched.
(IN MY HEAD: Why are you telling me what they're thinking? Have you EVER heard someone say, "Of course I know how to dance. I was a cheerleader in high school."?)
I saw character arcs that plateaued, and my brow furrowed so deeply that I had a unibrow.
(IN MY HEAD: They're the same at the beginning and end. This is NOT A STORY.)
I read episodic scenes that just jogged in place, and I busted muscles Hulk style and threw the script across the room.
(IN MY HEAD: Where was the forward movement? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? If you're not going to take me somewhere, I don't want to get in the car. )
I turned one script upside down, and crossed my eyes, hoping that it would help clarify a plot that made no sense.
(IN MY HEAD: Just because the story takes place at a funeral doesn't mean it is interesting. Did anything happen in the middle of the story that would lead to heightened drama at the actual funeral? No. Did anything happen in the middle that would explain why a funeral was even necessary? NO. Why the )(@*#$^$#@#$!!! are we at a funeral?!)
WHAT I KNOW: Readers are people too.
Well, except the Mr. Hyde that lurks inside me. 'Course you'll never know... 'cause I keep him under wraps...until your script ticks me off...
I read on the nose dialogue, and my shoulders hunched.
(IN MY HEAD: Why are you telling me what they're thinking? Have you EVER heard someone say, "Of course I know how to dance. I was a cheerleader in high school."?)
I saw character arcs that plateaued, and my brow furrowed so deeply that I had a unibrow.
(IN MY HEAD: They're the same at the beginning and end. This is NOT A STORY.)
I read episodic scenes that just jogged in place, and I busted muscles Hulk style and threw the script across the room.
(IN MY HEAD: Where was the forward movement? Are we there yet? Are we there yet? If you're not going to take me somewhere, I don't want to get in the car. )
I turned one script upside down, and crossed my eyes, hoping that it would help clarify a plot that made no sense.
(IN MY HEAD: Just because the story takes place at a funeral doesn't mean it is interesting. Did anything happen in the middle of the story that would lead to heightened drama at the actual funeral? No. Did anything happen in the middle that would explain why a funeral was even necessary? NO. Why the )(@*#$^$#@#$!!! are we at a funeral?!)
WHAT I KNOW: Readers are people too.
Well, except the Mr. Hyde that lurks inside me. 'Course you'll never know... 'cause I keep him under wraps...until your script ticks me off...
Friday, February 5, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Bending History (Ch. 31)
[Today we're reading Ch. 31 History Repeats Itself...Real & Imagined, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
I'm a big fan of using history in scripts.
How do you balance the accuracy of history & story? My rule is that good story rules, but use as much accurate history as possible.
Be judicial which facts need to be bent, O Grasshopper. Look hard for anything that rings false, or truly implausible...because if you screw it up, there are a hundred history buffs ready to jump.
ex. I read a spec script about a female Hollywood actress. The story was based on some facts, but also some imaginings of the undocumented periods of her life. I believed it all, even though I knew much had to have come from the writer's imagination.
The key was that it could've REALLY happened just as it was laid out. There wasn't a false note.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: If you want a totally non-dramatic, entirely truthful retelling of the boring parts of a person's life, the movies are not for you.
(I actually knew a guy who didn't like "suspending disbelief." No surprise he wasn't a moviegoer.)
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
I'm a big fan of using history in scripts.
How do you balance the accuracy of history & story? My rule is that good story rules, but use as much accurate history as possible.
Be judicial which facts need to be bent, O Grasshopper. Look hard for anything that rings false, or truly implausible...because if you screw it up, there are a hundred history buffs ready to jump.
ex. I read a spec script about a female Hollywood actress. The story was based on some facts, but also some imaginings of the undocumented periods of her life. I believed it all, even though I knew much had to have come from the writer's imagination.
The key was that it could've REALLY happened just as it was laid out. There wasn't a false note.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: If you want a totally non-dramatic, entirely truthful retelling of the boring parts of a person's life, the movies are not for you.
(I actually knew a guy who didn't like "suspending disbelief." No surprise he wasn't a moviegoer.)
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
BOOK CLUB: Sly Hints (Ch. 30)
[Today we're reading Ch. 30 If Your Were a Musical, Where Would the Numbers Be?, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
The author of this book writes that the “[Greek] chorus developed the magnitude of the story, making it seem more frightening, more intense & more real.”
What does that mean to us today? Imagine a chorus of a hundred men eerily chanting the hero’s doom. I feel goosebumps.
Today, we don’t use choruses, but you can this idea to great effect.
How? Use your minor characters as your chorus to drop clues & eerily predict stuff the hero is going to face.
Ex. In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy introduced us to three awkward farmhands, & the mean neighbor. We had no idea that they’d play big roles in her journey as the Cowardly Lion, Tin Man, Scarecrow, & Wicked Witch.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: I always like it when the minor characters know more than the protagonist & then slyly hint at what he/she knows. This conflict is more interesting to watch & gets in more information in than the protagonist just divulging it.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
The author of this book writes that the “[Greek] chorus developed the magnitude of the story, making it seem more frightening, more intense & more real.”
What does that mean to us today? Imagine a chorus of a hundred men eerily chanting the hero’s doom. I feel goosebumps.
Today, we don’t use choruses, but you can this idea to great effect.
How? Use your minor characters as your chorus to drop clues & eerily predict stuff the hero is going to face.
Ex. In the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy introduced us to three awkward farmhands, & the mean neighbor. We had no idea that they’d play big roles in her journey as the Cowardly Lion, Tin Man, Scarecrow, & Wicked Witch.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: I always like it when the minor characters know more than the protagonist & then slyly hint at what he/she knows. This conflict is more interesting to watch & gets in more information in than the protagonist just divulging it.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Thursday, February 4, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Playing with the Timeline (Ch. 29)
[Today we're reading Ch. 29 The Non-Lienar Soul of Quentin Tarantino, the Movie Won’t Either, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
The author writes: “The chronological shuffling must work to create MEANING, & jolts in the movie's time line must call attention to themselves (& better be used for a good reason!)” P. 139.
Many people have tried to copy Tarantino's Pulp Fiction timeline construction. However, I think he split the middle & stuck it in the beginning & end to emphasize what is the new 'middle.' I don't think imitators quite have his flair of how and why to juxtapose scenes.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: The only reason to play with chronology is if it will dramatically increase conflict. Otherwise, leave it alone.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
The author writes: “The chronological shuffling must work to create MEANING, & jolts in the movie's time line must call attention to themselves (& better be used for a good reason!)” P. 139.
Many people have tried to copy Tarantino's Pulp Fiction timeline construction. However, I think he split the middle & stuck it in the beginning & end to emphasize what is the new 'middle.' I don't think imitators quite have his flair of how and why to juxtapose scenes.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: The only reason to play with chronology is if it will dramatically increase conflict. Otherwise, leave it alone.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Pitch = Sale (Ch. 28)
[Today we're reading Ch. 28 If the Pitch Doesn’t Fill Me with Horror & Pity, the Movie Won’t Either, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
The author writes: “Dramatic story is first & foremost an oratorical art; the incidents have to sound good to the ear (& mind) if they are going to entertain….” P. 135.
Ancient Greece’s version of movie stars were famous orators. These men had such powerful speaking skills that they could move a crowd to riot or to action.
Does your pitch create this kind of deep emotion? Or at least "I've GOT to see this opening weekend?" It should.
Tap into the primal fears, dreams, & longings we all have. Don’t settle for the surface.
Ex. The Blair Witch Project had great buzz b/c even if you didn’t like horror, you couldn’t help be captivated by the raw, palpable fear on faces in the ads.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: The easier the pitch, the quicker the sale.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
The author writes: “Dramatic story is first & foremost an oratorical art; the incidents have to sound good to the ear (& mind) if they are going to entertain….” P. 135.
Ancient Greece’s version of movie stars were famous orators. These men had such powerful speaking skills that they could move a crowd to riot or to action.
Does your pitch create this kind of deep emotion? Or at least "I've GOT to see this opening weekend?" It should.
Tap into the primal fears, dreams, & longings we all have. Don’t settle for the surface.
Ex. The Blair Witch Project had great buzz b/c even if you didn’t like horror, you couldn’t help be captivated by the raw, palpable fear on faces in the ads.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: The easier the pitch, the quicker the sale.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
BOOK CLUB: Verbal Fightfest (Ch. 27)
[Today we're reading Ch. 27 Dialog is a Piece of the Action, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
Aristotle had an interesting concept on how to construct dialogue. He called it a dialectic.
1st – A makes a statement (thesis): “You drive slower than my grandmother.”
2nd – B makes the opposite statement (anti-thesis): “Your grandmother is dead.”
3rd – The 2 statements collide and form a synthesis & we start all over again. “Exactly.”
Because of the clash, it is action and moves the story forward.
This is different from conversation which doesn’t really go anywhere.
C – “That’s a nice sweater.”
D – “I got it at a rummage sale.”
C – “Cool.”
The author suggests mixing dialectic (action dialog) & conversation in varying degrees for an interesting mix.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Whenever I see on the nose dialogue, it’s almost always conversation rather than dialectic.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Aristotle had an interesting concept on how to construct dialogue. He called it a dialectic.
1st – A makes a statement (thesis): “You drive slower than my grandmother.”
2nd – B makes the opposite statement (anti-thesis): “Your grandmother is dead.”
3rd – The 2 statements collide and form a synthesis & we start all over again. “Exactly.”
Because of the clash, it is action and moves the story forward.
This is different from conversation which doesn’t really go anywhere.
C – “That’s a nice sweater.”
D – “I got it at a rummage sale.”
C – “Cool.”
The author suggests mixing dialectic (action dialog) & conversation in varying degrees for an interesting mix.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: Whenever I see on the nose dialogue, it’s almost always conversation rather than dialectic.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
Monday, February 1, 2010
BOOK CLUB: How You Order Coffee (Ch. 26)
[Today we're reading Ch. 26 How to Create Characters That Are Really Really Really Alive, from Aristotle's Poetics for Screenwriters, by Michael Tierno (2002).]
In this chapter, the author writes that Aristotle considered 5 areas that make up a person’s psychology, & thus can be useful in creating characters:
1. Nutritive Life – eating habits
2. Desiring Life – hero’s desires
3. Sensitive Life – 5 senses
4. Locomotion – how they move
5. Capacity for Rational Thought – irrational vs. rational
I found this helpful, as I’m always looking for new ideas to express a character through action.
I hadn’t thought about eating habits, nor the 5 senses. But if you think about it, how someone orders a coffee tells you a lot about their mental state.
Ex. “Coffee, black.” Vs. “I’d like a choco choco chip moccachino with whipped cream, but real cream, not the kind in a can, & I’ll take carob chips if you have them, but if not, then regular chips are ok.”
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: I don’t drink coffee. Maybe I'll have my character order something non-caffeinated in a coffee shop.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
In this chapter, the author writes that Aristotle considered 5 areas that make up a person’s psychology, & thus can be useful in creating characters:
1. Nutritive Life – eating habits
2. Desiring Life – hero’s desires
3. Sensitive Life – 5 senses
4. Locomotion – how they move
5. Capacity for Rational Thought – irrational vs. rational
I found this helpful, as I’m always looking for new ideas to express a character through action.
I hadn’t thought about eating habits, nor the 5 senses. But if you think about it, how someone orders a coffee tells you a lot about their mental state.
Ex. “Coffee, black.” Vs. “I’d like a choco choco chip moccachino with whipped cream, but real cream, not the kind in a can, & I’ll take carob chips if you have them, but if not, then regular chips are ok.”
WHAT I’VE LEARNED: I don’t drink coffee. Maybe I'll have my character order something non-caffeinated in a coffee shop.
[DISCLAIMER: I have not been asked, nor paid, to read or comment on this book.]
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