Archive for June, 2013
Jun
29
2013
 
Can Screenwriting Be Taught? (2.0)Posted by: screenwritingfromiowa in Screenwriting From IowaOn this re-post Saturday we’re going back to one of the first ten posts I ever wrote, Can Screenwriting Be Taught? (That’s more that 1,500 posts ago for anyone keeping score.) Not much to add here, but I think most teachers echo this thought,”I can’t guarantee to make you a great writer, but I can […]
Jun
28
2013
One Last Shot @ScreenwritingPosted by: screenwritingfromiowa in Screenwriting From Iowa“It was Chandor’s script, filled with tart exchanges and involving situations that explore unexpected areas of corporate psychology and human behavior, that attracted the high-powered cast…” Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times film critic Regarding Margin Call which starred Kevin Spacey, Jeremy Irons, Demi Moore, Stanley Tucci, Zachary Quinto, and Simon Baker Like a lot of people (including the […]
Jun
27
2013
Goal: Elicit Emotion (Tip #77)Posted by: screenwritingfromiowa in Screenwriting From Iowa“Emotion grows out of conflict.” Michael Hague “The goal of every screenplay, every movie, every novel, every story of any kind (and ultimately, every work of art) is identical: to elicit emotion. We go to the movies and we read books so we can feel something positive or fulfilling, something we can’t feel as frequently […] “I’m stuck here in this mudhole for life, doing the same dull work day after day…I never did anything really useful or interesting, and it looks as if I never will. I might just as well be dead. George Pratt in The Greatest Gift “Even the smallest voice can be heard by millions.” Jay Z Before […] “My favorite Christmas film is It’s a Wonderful Life and I think Capra did a great job of balancing the light and the dark, the comedic and the dramatic—but George Bailey from the mid-point on he’s got to go through some really tough, dark stuff. And I think the reason that that film lives on […] “My favorite Christmas film is It’s a Wonderful Life and I think Capra did a great job of balancing the light and the dark, the comedic and the dramatic—but George Bailey from the mid-point on he’s got to go through some really tough, dark stuff. And I think the reason that that film lives on […] If you’ve been following trends in Silicon Valley then you know about Live+Work Mansions (also called Live+Work Space). Basically large homes where entrepreneurs, creatives, and the like live and work together for a few days, weeks, months, or longer. The thought being that dividing where you work and where you live is old school. Plus […] “If there’s one thing I learned in prison it’s that money is not the prime commodity in our lives…time is.” Gordon Gekko 2009 script Money Never Sleeps written by Alan Loeb On this repost Saturday I’m going to go back to a 2008 post I wrote after a tornado hit Iowa. When a tragedy hits somewhere […]
Jun
21
2013
Shoebox Sceenwriting (Tip #75)Posted by: screenwritingfromiowa in Screenwriting From Iowa“The thing I’m always fighting off is wasted time and writer’s block.” Edward Burns “I have a shoebox and—I have two of them actually. And every time I have an idea for a scene or a scrap of dialogue, or even just a snippet of an impression I have that seems to connote something in […] “What I do is I try to figure out what the piece is about and link that to the story arc or the character arc. I always think there’s two things going on in any script—there’s the story and then there’s the plot. The plot is the events. If it’s a heist film, it’s how […] |
