30.1.10

I Just Wanna Be Me!

So... I'm getting my 4 year old daughter ready for bed last night, and from the blue she declares "Daddy, I just wanna be naked!". Probably no cause for alarm, but as a parent my Future Adult Industry Alarm went off. I ask her "why" she wants to be naked. Imagine my surprise when the answer turned out to be deep insight into Character, Motivation and Theme:

"Because I just wanna be me. Did you ever notice in movies everyone says they just want to be them? Well, I just wanna be me!"

She then proceeds to rattle off examples of movies she's seen - Tarzan, Little Ponies, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, etc. - where the main characters wanted nothing more than to be or express their true selves. That got me thinking...










There are many different ways to analyze a story - the Hero's Journey, Aristotle's Poetics, the Dramatica method, the Gozzi/Polti theory of 36 plots, ad infinitum. But it seems to me that the simple exclamation "I Just Wanna Be Me" is a thematic sentiment that beats at the heart of most modern filmic story structure. Not all, but most. Even if it isn't at the very heart of every story, the sentiment is usually something the protagonist or one of the other main characters is going through.

Outwardly, they are fully clothed - sometimes armor-clad - in layers of pretend. They pretend to be the happy husband/wife, the loyal friend, the good employee, when in fact what they long for is something entirely different. They want to shed the clothes, shed the armor and let people see them for what they really are. They wanna be naked.

It seems to me this is the essence of the term "Inner Conflict", and if at least one of your main characters doesn't have some form of Inner Conflict, your story is bound to be shallow and therefore, not emotionally effecting.

In my work, one of the first questions I ask myself while outlining my story - BEFORE actually writing - is "what is my main character's Inner Conflict?". The reason I start here is that Inner Conflict deepens a character and deepens the story. It makes for a more complex, well rounded and realistic telling of the story, because we can all identify with Inner Conflict. Audiences empathize with flawed characters much more than with characters with no flaws/weaknesses/doubts. Yes, watching 007 or Jason Bourne kick ass is fun and gratifying, but on the whole not really emotionally involving.

But perhaps the most important reason defining the Inner Conflict is crucial before I begin writing is that Inner Conflict also leads directly to defining your THEME. In my opinion, most poorly written stories are poorly written because they lack clarity of theme. Most amateur screenplays I've read lack theme completely. To fully explore Theme in your story, you need a main character that is flawed, one that has Inner Conflict. It is through confronting this Inner Conflict that Theme is explored. Doesn't really matter if they win or lose, but for an emotionally engaging, fully fleshed out story, your main characters must have an Inner Conflict they must confront.

Same concept, different medium...

25.1.10

Sample Query Letter: Dark Rum Chronicles: The Adventures of Nick Drama

Following are two sample query letters of my latest spec I'm e & snail mailing to various management companies. I have 5 different versions, but am only posting what I believe are the two strongest.

The first is pretty straight forward. I tried opening strong by referencing a successful film/character which shares some attributes to my spec/protagonist. My goal was to immediately paint a picture in the reader's mind of the protagonist. Naturally, it makes sense to lead with my spec's strongest attribute, and my protagonist is the strongest part of my concept - he's fun & interesting and could be spun off into many stories over a variety of media:
Dear ________,
If Han Solo relocated to the Bahamas we'd have Nick Drama, an irresponsible but lovable scoundrel living the easy life in an island paradise. That is, until his ex-wife shows up. 
All she asks is one simple favor, and there's dollar signs at the end of the rainbow. But like all rainbows what you see ain't necessarily what you get, and what Nick gets is a high-flying tropical adventure that will pit him against an international drug lord with a penchant for gourmet cooking and burning people alive, a psychotic band of not-so-merry Mercenaries and a nuclear bomb plot to blow up the U.N.
Now, in order to survive (much less pay off his bar tab), Nick will have to use every ounce of discipline and loyalty he never had, pit his ragged old seaplane against four Stingray helicopters in an aerial dogfight, and possibly even face the sobering fact that no matter how hard you try, you can't turn your back on the rest of the world.
Yes, it's shaping up to be a hell of a day. But if one thing's sure as gravity, it's that wherever Nick goes, drama is sure to follow.
To request a copy of Dark Rum Chronicles or discuss other original genre properties, please send your standard release to...


The second letter I took a little more creative tack. My intent with this one was to create some connection between the reader and the story by appealing to the fantasy we've all had at some point of shrugging all of our "real world" responsibilities and finding a simpler way of life. My only concern is it may come off as gimmicky:

Dear _____,
Quit your job. 
Sell the house. 
Chuck the credit cards. 
Take the car keys, cell phone, T.V., drown 'em all in the deep end of the big blue sea. Leave the world behind and spend the rest of your days collecting little umbrellas on some palm strewn, white sand beach.
We've all had the thought. But Nick Drama is an ex-Air Force pilot who went for it -- or at least, tried. See, Nick's spent the last six years in the Bahamas reinventing himself as a carousing bush pilot, a Jack Sparrow of the Skies. But Nick's got money problems, and he's being leaned on by a local loan shark for all the scratch he owes. 
Then his ex-wife Lys shows up, offering enough cash to keep Nick's plane in the air, his business afloat and his head connected to his torso. All he has to do is give her any information that could lead her to finding her missing fiancee.
Any information. Sounds easy enough. That is, until the International Drug Lord, psychopathic Mercenaries, and nuclear bomb angles are all factored in.
Yes, it's shaping up to be a hell of a day. But if there's one constant in the universe, it's that wherever Nick goes, Drama is sure to follow.
For further information on Dark Rum Chronicles: The Adventures of Nick Drama, open assignments or other original genre properties, please forward your release to... or call...

Of course, on letterhead these letters will appear much shorter. Still, my major reservation about both of them is they may be too long.
One hallmark of a solid query letter is its brevity - no one wants to read a page long description of a spec by an unknown writer.
Another hallmark of a great query is its ability to draw the reader in immediately. Hopefully I've accomplished that.

A great query must also paint a vivid picture of the story, world and character. It gives an comprehensive idea - in broad strokes - of what the story is, where it's headed and the probable outcome. I don't think it's a good idea to give the actual ending. If they want to know the ending - which hopefully they will - they'll have to request the script!
And that leads to probably the most important attribute of a great query letter: it makes the reader NEED to know more. Hopefully both of these letters accomplish all those goals. I'm a little to close to be objective anymore, so any advice would be welcomed!

18.1.10

Query Letter Strategies

A quick initial word about query letters: I think they're the WORST way to introduce yourself. Every aspiring writer tries it, most aren't good at it, and in turn most managers/agents/prodcos don't care for them. The BEST way to get someone to read your spec is by referral, but if you have only a few or no contacts in the biz who you can use as a referral, you're stuck with querying. With that in mind...

This blog was created so I could track what I'm doing to attain my career goals, and hopefully those reading can learn from what I'm doing right, and steer clear of what's not working. But I realized I haven't talked about my own work for a while.
So what's the Dangerous Screenwriter up to?

Last year I completed my first spec that's ready for market, "Dark Rum Chronicles: The Adventures of Nick Drama". How do I know it's ready for market? Because aside from my mom and the rest of my family saying so, I slipped it to a friend at one of the big agencies who passed it to their story department for coverage.
Coverage came back mostly positive, scoring "consider"s for both writer and project. Since this coverage was from a major agency which covers thousands of scripts per year - rather than a mid-sized to small one which may cover hundreds - that feedback at least tells me my spec stands up well to other works being considered, and most importantly won't embarrass me in the marketplace & instantly turn my name to mud.
I was lucky on this one. Usually a writer never sees studio/agency coverage of their work. Usually you don't want to. But if you're starting out, seeing that coverage can be invaluable.

Another way to gauge if your spec is ready to show would be to give it to an industry contact (if you have one), or a PROFESSIONAL script analyst (not Joe Schmoe you met on some message board who has no credits and is charging you $100. Guess I'll have to write a special article on decent analysts, but for starters expect to spend @ $200-350 for good notes - not cheap but worth it in the long run to get solid notes that improve your chance of getting work/sold).
Check out Pilar Alessandra, Michael Hauge and Karl Iglesias, as well as nobullscript. and hireahollywoodexec.com/). I can't vouch for any of these services since I haven't personally used any of them, but Pilar has great credentials (Ex-reader/analyst for Imagine & Dreamworks, among others) and gives consistently excellent advice through her "On the Page" podcast. Michael Hauge and Karl Iglesias have written quite a few books with solid advice, have their own track records you can peruse and solid industry relationships. The others give consistently great advice as well, and also have great credentials & track records - at least better than $100 Joe.

So, since my spec got positive coverage, maybe at that point I should have started hitting up agents, managers, prodcos, everybody. But I didn't.

I wanted to have something else ready. My fear was, with so many people trying to write movies, I wouldn't be taken seriously. I wanted to have another polished, commercial spec to back me up, as well as flesh out some pitches of other ideas I'm working on.
When I go out with my first spec, I want to have a "portfolio" that shows I'm a writer, not some wank thinking I could make an easy million because I saw "Snakes on a Plane" forty times and know my abc's.

So I've been working on my second spec, and now feel confident enough to start querying managers, possibly some prodcos and talent. Why managers instead of agents? First, there's the nature of these beasts: agents aren't sellers and career builders, they're dealmakers and deal closers. They don't have time for unproven commodities (me). Agents nurture deals, managers are the ones that nurture careers.
Second, it's a numbers game: if you were to gather a list of all the agencies in town vs all the managers in town, managers outnumber agents by about 3-1. That's because there's plenty of talent out there to develop, not much that can actually sell. Managers, in turn, are much easier to acquire than agents and more useful and "hands on" to a fledgling writing pro.

In drafting my queries I'm using advice and templates from two very useful books every screenwriter should own, "Breakfast With Sharks" by Michael Lent, and "The Screenwriter's Bible" by David Trottier. I've also been scouring the web in places like Done Deal Pro and The Artful Writer for other query tips.

After drafting 20-30 letters (yes, you have to work just as hard on your query as you did on your spec, and it has to be just as tight if not tighter), I now have 5 different variations of queries that are solid and will try them all out, tracking results to see what's working best. I have a document "tracking sheet" where I'll be logging all the responses/non-responses to see which letters are working best. Now that I'm confident in my query letters being able to stand out among the pack and garner interest, it's time to start targeting WHO I'm going to send them to.

It makes little sense to spend the time & money hitting up a major manager who represents only major writers. So I'm making lists of management companies, then looking them up on IMDBPro for a list of their employees. I then look into each employee's credits and see if I can find anything else about them on the web.
What I'm looking for are specific manager names, clicking on them to see who they represent. I click on their clients' names, and if they represent any writers with one or no credits but things in production/development, I mark those as managers to query. I'm also looking at what RELATIONSHIPS these managers/companies have with other management, production companies & studios. Do these companies and their relations traffic in the type of fare I'm selling? If not, they don't make the list.

It's a lot of work, but all of the above research is absolutely necessary, just so I can target specific people within companies instead of "To Whom it May Concern", which will only get you an express-ticket to their trash/delete bin because it shows you haven't done your homework & can't be bothered to even find out someone's name at their company and research their interests/buying habits, much less be trusted with multi-million dollar projects.

Now I have a ton of names to send my query to, but no way to contact them (unless anyone out there wants to pass me Ron Howard's email address or cell #). What to do? There's the traditional route of purchasing the Hollywood Creative Directory, and the also traditional route of hitting up your contacts/friends. I have a few Hollywood friends, but am not in the habit of asking for favors that can cheapen a friendship.

However, since I started this blog, I've been able to do a bit of "online networking" and therefore have some "internet friends" (which by definition means our relationships are already cheap and whorey) I can hit up who traffic in just this sort of information. The point is, be creative and use what you have/have created.
Sign up for industry conference calls with agents/managers/producers through one of the many sites that offer them. In many of these calls the participants will give their contact info and preferred methods of querying to those on on the call.
Join IMDBPro and check out companies' email structures. If Imagine entertainment says to contact them at query-imagine.com, try ron-imagine.com, or ronh-imagine.com or rh-imagine.com, etc.
Like I said, be creative. Might sound like a shot in the dark, but if you have a great logline/email title line that catches their eye, they're certainly more likely to read your query than if you never tried. And if you have a solid query, you just may get requests.

Like I said, I'm just starting to apply these techniques, so can't speak from personal experience, yet. But now that I have my "master list" of managers/companies to query, I'll start sending them out & let you know what happens.


Watch The Dark Knight - clip 8 in Entertainment  |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

12.1.10

Vatican Offends the Dangerous Screenwriter

The Associated Press reports the Vatican has finally weighed in on the Artistic and spiritual merits of "Avatar". Thank God. Their review was, well, similar to mine in that it was tepid.

However, among their complaints was that the film "gets bogged down by a spiritualism linked to the worship of nature." That actually didn't bug me. Vatican Radio goes on to say the film takes the point of view that "Nature is no longer a creation to defend, but a divinity to worship," and his Holiness his'self says such notions "open the way to a new pantheism tinged with neo-paganism, which would see the source of man's salvation in nature alone, understood in purely naturalistic terms." 
I'm sensing by the Vatican's p.o.v. if Catholics ever make it to other planets, they're fairly confident the inhabitants will be Catholic as well. If not, well, I guess there's always that Crusades thing they could try. Greetings from Earth, mother fuckers (wasn't that kind of the point of Avatar?). 


The Catholic church isn't alone in its aggravation though, seems a lot of conservatives are up in arms (pun intended) about the film's anti-militaristic stance, as well as its anti-corporate stance (except, of course, those who own stock in the corporations who are making hundreds of millions off the film & merch, they're ok with it).


Anti-smokers are incensed (pun also intended) that a supporting character like Sigourney Weaver's smokes because, as we all know, kids all over the world are going to run out and buy cigarettes after the film because they all want to be like SIGOURNEY WEAVER.


There's even a handful of racist anti-racists calling it "a fantasy about race told from the point of view of white people" and that it reinforces "the white Messiah fable."


I remember when "Basic Instinct" came out (the puns, they keep a' comin'!) a vocal section of the gay community boycotted the film because Sharon Stone's character was bi and was also the BAD GUY. Why? Because gay people are the only section of the human population that don't commit murder?


Then there was the whole "Training Day" boycott because Denzel Washington - a black man - played the role of the villain, never mind he was nominated for an Oscar (little trademark registration thingy here) for his chilling portrayal.


So what's the point in me detailing all this? The point is -- and here's my point, Dude -- the point is to WRITE WHAT YOU WANT. Because in the end, no matter what you do, in today's day and age SOMEONE is going to be offended. If you try not to offend anyone, if you try to "write nice", you're going to end up with nothing but a bland story, that simple. And bland stories don't launch careers.

10.1.10

That's a Bingo!

Below is a Rope of Silicon page containing links to @ 23 downloadable pdfs of award nominated scripts from 2009.

Every awards season most studios & prodcos post their award-contending scripts online in order to garner buzz, so be on the lookout for them. They're one of the best resources I've found for current models of style and structure.

Read, grok, enjoy!

Award Scripts @ Rope of Silicon

9.1.10

Creating an Alien Planet From Life Experience

In thinking about the world of Avatar (minor spoiler ahead) I was considering the things that affected me the most. One of them was the graphic design of the planet Pandora at night. I loved the whole idea of a bioluminescent forest. I was brought to a place I'd never seen before. This led me to thinking how we as writers bring people to places they've never experienced.




I think the simple equation would be
LIFE EXPERIENCE + IMAGINATION = ORIGINALITY
Most aspiring filmmakers probably know that ever since Titanic (and maybe before) James Cameron has had a love affair with the ocean, specifically the deep sea. He's taken many submersibles down to the darkest depths, where bioluminescent creatures abound. It's easy to imagine the entire place and its denizens as existing on a totally different planet.

Cameron had the life experience of seeing that world first hand, and being deeply affected by it. In turn, he's taken that experience, applied his imagination and created a world faintly reminiscent of ours, yet uniquely his own. He's passionate about that world and it shows in his meticulous detail.

This all serves to make Cameron's fantasy world believable to viewers. As writers, I'd say that's a primary technique we must master. Do you practice marrying your life experiences with your imagination?

7.1.10

Screenwriter Billy Ray Speaks

I was lucky enough to attend the "Tales From the Script" screening a few months ago in Hollywood, and among the panelists for the post-screening Q&A was Billy Ray. Among Billy's credits are universally smart/ambitious films like State of Play and Breach, as well as lesser films like Volcano, Flight Plan and Suspect Zero. Billy's true worth to Hollywood though, is as a script doctor on countless other projects.

I was blown away by this guy, mainly because he's extraordinarily smart, focused, "real", and very serious about the craft and business of screenwriting. What follows is a 10 minute interview with Billy I was able to dig up. He gives some great writing advice and recommends a few screenplays every writer should read and study. I'm tracking them all down right now! Enjoy (sorry @ the resolution)...

5.1.10

Money, Money, Money: How Much Will I Be Paid?

Below is a link to an article written by entertainment attorney Jesse Rosenblatt. He gives a detailed overview of what dances in the back - or right up front in all its naked, giddy glory - of all of our minds: how much cash can I expect when I sell my first big spec?
Jesse Rosenblatt: Seeking the Magic Number

4.1.10

Using Parentheticals to Illustrate Character Thoughts

I'm just trying to get a better handle on my own skills here, but I'd say using parentheticals to illustrate what a character is thinking only works well when the dialogue and situation are totally different than or oppose the character's intent, thereby serving as a way to clarify actions.

For example, someone could say "I love you", but the parenthesis could read (glued to the T.V.). If the parenthetical weren't there, we'd simply think the character was saying what they meant, instead of their actions or demeanor revealing something deeper the author intended about the scene/relationship.

When looking at a screenplay's style, we also have to look at WHO wrote the script. I've read scripts by the Wachowskis, James Cameron, Chris Nolan, Tarantino, etc. - all wonderful writer/directors - and their pages were very detailed and full of black ink, which would be death to pre-pros like us as a sign of an amateur.

I've read other great writers who use parentheticals all over the place, have big speeches, lots of black ink, break other "rules", etc., but they're allowed because of their track records - people will read their scripts regardless. Since I'm not in those leagues yet, I'm not allowed those concessions. Not good or bad, that's just the way it is. 

When reading for style & format tips, I like to read PRODUCED specs by first/second time writers, usually because what they wrote was read and passed along for a reason. Aside from story and concept, their parentheticals and overall style worked well and were unobtrusive, which made them "readable". These scripts are lean and mean. The writers were hungry and their pages were sparse and easy on the eyes. When you read and write coverage for 30-some-odd scripts a week and my career depends in part on your comfort level, that becomes a major factor.

When polishing my latest spec I went through the entire script just looking for parentheticals that were unnecessary or where the same information could have been communicated in a different way and figured out ways to eliminate as many as possible. I whittled twenty-some-odd down to seven, which I believe makes the script read smoother and faster. What reader or development exec doesn't want that?