The WGA website has a list ranking the top 101 screenplays. What I think is interesting about the list, is that with few exceptions, they are all good stories--I mean really entertaining.
Well, duh, they're the top 101. What I mean is that sometimes we focus too hard on the mechanics (format, character arch, loglines), and loose sight of the goal: not to bore.
WGA 101 Greatest Screenplays
27 April 2006
16 April 2006
Sample Coverage
I'm writing a sample coverage for practice, and the first striking thing I've noticed about writing the coverage is how hard it is to synopsis this screenplay in a few sentences, because it's all across the board. The main character, which is debatable whether she is the main, is mostly involved plot wise in helping the second character get across the States to find a plot of land his late father bought. The leads conflict isn't the driving obstacle in the script, and the antagonist is actually against this secondary character.
What I'm learning then is another insight as to why it's so important to have a tightly defined log-line--that is in order for execs, readers, and movie people to be able to summaries the story in a simple, quick, and marketable way. It makes a lot more sense when I consider it in this light.
What I'm learning then is another insight as to why it's so important to have a tightly defined log-line--that is in order for execs, readers, and movie people to be able to summaries the story in a simple, quick, and marketable way. It makes a lot more sense when I consider it in this light.
05 March 2006
Writing in Scene (tip of the day)
I have a scene where the main character is caught by his boss using company resources in an ill-advised manor. I want to have an awkward pause between them, but I don't want to draw attention in the script to the writer by adding:
They stare awkwardly.
(Adjective--bad!) So what I did was this:
INT. COPY ROOM - GLOBAL MEDIA INC. - DAY
Jerry is at the fax machine. A paper is taped in a loop, sending an infinite fax.
Jerry’s boss walks by, stops. They stare at each other. No one talks. Jerry sips an iced coffee.
What do you think? I feel that the line, no one talks, gives a sense of an awkward beat, without invoking the writer too much.
In unrelated news, I received another rejection letter for a short story on February 25. Congrats to me.
They stare awkwardly.
(Adjective--bad!) So what I did was this:
INT. COPY ROOM - GLOBAL MEDIA INC. - DAY
Jerry is at the fax machine. A paper is taped in a loop, sending an infinite fax.
Jerry’s boss walks by, stops. They stare at each other. No one talks. Jerry sips an iced coffee.
What do you think? I feel that the line, no one talks, gives a sense of an awkward beat, without invoking the writer too much.
In unrelated news, I received another rejection letter for a short story on February 25. Congrats to me.
23 February 2006
One-liner & Story Synopsis Revision
Well, I was pretty far along on an outline for my story. I'd even written an 80 page exploratory draft, just to up the momentum of the process. But, as I've been using this idea in the on-line course I'm taking at UCLA, I've made some big (and needed) changes.
The major thing revolved around the stakes of the story, which were pretty non-existant. The story (was) is about a man who dies and realizes heaven is a second chance to trascend ordinary and capture the life he's always wanted. Since he was already dead, the story lacked a certain, what's going to happen if he fails.
So, through discussion with a friend, we came up with the idea that maybe he's only tentitivly in heaven, and he could still go to hell. I added, what if he cheated on his wife, and since he broke a Commandment he has to complete seven labors to stay in heaven, or he'll be smote to hell. In the process, he captures a life more fulfilling than what he had on Earth.
Here's the first revision of what I call my story-idea:
The major thing revolved around the stakes of the story, which were pretty non-existant. The story (was) is about a man who dies and realizes heaven is a second chance to trascend ordinary and capture the life he's always wanted. Since he was already dead, the story lacked a certain, what's going to happen if he fails.
So, through discussion with a friend, we came up with the idea that maybe he's only tentitivly in heaven, and he could still go to hell. I added, what if he cheated on his wife, and since he broke a Commandment he has to complete seven labors to stay in heaven, or he'll be smote to hell. In the process, he captures a life more fulfilling than what he had on Earth.
Here's the first revision of what I call my story-idea:
STORY IDEA for UNTIL DEATH
Ryan Smith
One-liner: A man dies, and must complete seven labors in a liberal heaven to avoid being smote to hell.
Story synopsis: Bill dies. In a liberal heaven he must complete seven labors to avoid being sent to hell. Bill takes on these increasingly complex challenges, and in the process lives a more dynamic life than he had on Earth. When he fall in love with Georgia, a woman destined to become an angel, he compromises his virtuous goals, and is smote to hell. He climbs out of the pit, wins Georgia, and is repented. He's now living the life he always dreamed of.
One-liners:
· A man dies, and while avoiding being sent to hell, learns how to live.
· Perusing a life without regret.
Previous one-liners:
· A man transcends ordinary, turns his life around, and nails all the women he wants.
· Decides heaven is a second chance to party and get laid.
· Just a typical guy, wishing his wife were Paris Hilton.
Next up: probably working on the beat sheet, generating fresh ideas, and working out the rising tension of the story.
Process
In an effort to think more critically about my projects, to stick to my deadlines, and to have a useful purpose for this blog, I'm going to post about my current process, including examples, revisions, my thoughts on writing. A working writer's blog that will hopefull be informative, and an insight to the process.
20 February 2006
External versus Internal
I'm noticing an interesting distinction between external and internal. Conflict often has external and internal elements, as do character goals. What's interesting, is that these elements usually refer to a concrete objective for the external portion, and an emotional or thematic objective for the internal objective.
More later.
More later.
07 February 2006
Story points
What are story points? (What I'm calling them at least.) Story points are:
- Point of attack
- Inciting incident
- Mid-point
- Crisis
- Climax
06 January 2006
Log-lines
I've revisited the log-line as a tool used in script writing, and found a new appreciation for it. Now, I find that it is a powerful tool in developing stories. In general terms, a log-line is the brief summary of your script, compressing the whole work down to a few sentences at most, detailing what the script is about. Here's an example from a script I wrote:
"Jack, a psychiatrist, goes on a journey searching for his lost pen."
I've found that during the writing process, when a scene is weak or disjointed, that often indicates that it does not adhere to the log-line. Thus, losing the scene, or else refocusing it to fall on the log-line is the answer, or at least a way to re-conceive of the scene to improve the script.
This is especially helpful in the developmental stage of writing, where the story is still emerging. On my latest project, it has helped me jettison some scenes, and re-focus another sequence that was dangerously on the fringe of my story world. One more example:
"Jerry destroys his life through his obsession for retribution towards a telemarketer’s nightly phone calls. He loses sleep, his job, his girlfriend and his freedom."
"Jack, a psychiatrist, goes on a journey searching for his lost pen."
I've found that during the writing process, when a scene is weak or disjointed, that often indicates that it does not adhere to the log-line. Thus, losing the scene, or else refocusing it to fall on the log-line is the answer, or at least a way to re-conceive of the scene to improve the script.
This is especially helpful in the developmental stage of writing, where the story is still emerging. On my latest project, it has helped me jettison some scenes, and re-focus another sequence that was dangerously on the fringe of my story world. One more example:
"Jerry destroys his life through his obsession for retribution towards a telemarketer’s nightly phone calls. He loses sleep, his job, his girlfriend and his freedom."
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