Rochelle Smith

Character

2010-03-31T06:09:00.001-07:00

"It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does."

~William Faulkner

Meat for February

2010-02-06T12:03:00.000-08:00

"Writing is an adventure. To begin with, it is a toy and an amusement. Then it becomes a mistress, then it becomes a master, then it becomes a tyrant. The last phase is that just as you are about to reconciled to your servitude, you kill the monster and fling him to the public."

Winston Churchill

Linguistic Empowerment

2009-11-13T03:05:00.000-08:00

The day-to-day grind for a creative person - illustrator, writer, filmmaker - can be a lonely one. Because of this, I'm convinced that people in this field are far more likely than others to be on the lookout for things that inspire and motivate them.

For me, I've always found there to be a great deal of power in the spoken word. One of my favorite pastimes happens to be the discovery (and subsequent hoarding of) quotations and advice from strong, knowledgeable and very often successful people. For me, the only thing more fun than collecting these words of wisdom is sharing them. So, in the spirit of collective creativity, I've elected to list here a few of my favorites . . .

On Inspiration:

You can't wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.
– Jack London

Inspiration; could be called inhaling the memory of an act never experienced.

On the Importance of Imagination:

Dreams come in a size too big so we can grow into them.

Imagination grows by exercise, and contrary to common belief, is more powerful in the mature than in the young.
– W. Somerset Maugham

The Imagination is the workshop of the soul where all the plans for individual achievement are shaped.

Imagination does not mean making things up. It is a form of seeing.
-Xaphania the angel from Philip Pullman's THE AMBER SPYGLASS

When you cease to dream, you cease to live.
-Malcolm Forbes

Nothing happens unless first we dream
-Carl Sandburg

Fairy Tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.
-G.K. Chesterton

Imagination is more important than knowledge.
-Albert Einstein

On the Value of Brevity:

The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.
– Thomas Jefferson

The act of writing a screenplay is exactly like the act of seeing a movie; there must be no more written on the page than what you see or hear on the screen.
-Alvin Sargent

On the Craft:

Writing, like film directing, is a matter of making endless decisions. Every word, every sentence, the order of the paragraphs--everything is a decision. There are an infinite number of possibilities in putting something together as you write. Because of that, if a person is not decisive, he will never write anything.
-Lawrence Kasdan

Myth must be kept alive. The people who can keep it alive are artists of one kind or another. The function of the artist is the mythologization of the environment and the world.
-Joseph Campbell

Screenwriting is a fantastic job but it is the toughest and most demanding thing I’ve done in my life. I discovered it requires an enormous amount of discipline and commitment. It’s a job. It is work.
-Philippa Boyens

Moliere once said that writing is like prostitution: first you do it for love, then for a few close friends, and then for money.

In this (the Entertainment) industry, there's only one resource more valuable than people. Talent.

The Art of Storytelling:

Story is Metaphor for Life.
-Robert Mckee

I honestly feel the heart of our organization is the story department.
-Walt Disney

And when you pitch, you’re pitching story. Because story is the foundation of the screenplay. Character and action may be the glue that holds everything together, but it all starts within the context of story.
-Syd Field

Stories are Equipment for Living.
-Kenneth Burke

If the story is good the picture may be good, but if the story is weak, good color, music and animation cannot save it.
-Walt Disney

Master storytellers never explain. They do the hard, painfully creative thing-they dramatize.
-Robert Mckee

. . . today who reads Hegel or Kant without an exam to pass? Science, once the great explicator, garbles life with complexity and perplexity. Who can listen without cynicism to economists, sociologists, politicians? Religion, for many, has become an empty ritual that masks hypocrisy. As our faith in traditional ideologies diminishes, we turn to the source we still believe in: the art of story.
-Robert McKee

Story talent: the creative conversion of life itself to a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience . . .the material of literary talent is words; the material of story talent is life itself.
-Robert McKee

On Being Truthful:

All the writer is responsible for--and this is enough--is to tell the truth. There has never been a case in history--in any culture--where it's people have been hurt by getting too much truth.
-Robert McKee

If you go deep into somebody’s mind or heart, then you’re going to interest people, make them a little uncomfortable. Make them as uncomfortable and as curious as possible with the truth.
-Alvin Sargent

Truth is always exciting. Speak it, then; life is dull without it.
-Pearl S. Buck

On Structure:

In traditional 3-act structure, you want everything to be falling apart at the end of the second act-and that's exactly what's going on. (In Empire) Luke has lost his hand, and Han is frozen. Everything's gone to hell . . .
-Lawrence Kasdan

On Character:

Humor is easiest to achieve; the heart is always the toughest, because you can’t tell people to feel a certain way – they have to discover it for themselves. In the five films we’ve done, character growth is the big thing. That character growth, for us, is where a lot of emotion comes from. Unlike humor, emotion stays with an audience longer. But to get to that emotional heart takes time, you have to set things up in order to take people to a place where they’re devastated or sad. There’s no formula.
-John Lasseter, executive producer

Invest in the human soul. Who knows, it might be a diamond in the rough.
-Mary McLeod Bethune

WHAT plus WHY equals WHO.
-Joshua James

The character that lasts is an ordinary guy with extraordinary qualities.
-Raymond Chandler

On Technique:

There are so many different kinds of writing and so many ways to work that the only rule is this: do what works. Almost everything has been tried and found to succeed for somebody. The methods, even the ideas of successful writers, contradict each other in a most heartening way, and the only element I find common to all successful writers is persistence -- an overwhelming determination to succeed.
– Sophy Burnham

The creative side of filmmaking has nothing to do with the medium in which you're shooting the film. Things haven't changed that much since silent films - you're telling a story and you're creating images. you learn your craft, and you learn the system you're creating your images on, but it's the images that count, not how you got there.
-George Lucas

On Motivation and Never Giving Up:

Aspiration is the seed of life.
-Joan Chittister

Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come; you have to get up and make them. -Madame C.J. Walker

What a lovely surprise to discover how unlonely being alone can be.
-Ellen Burstyn

Fear and Uncertainty inhibit success.

The next time someone is really critical of your work, just remember that even steel must be hammered before it is allowed to harden.

In Hollywood people don't fail, they quit.
-Jack Sowards (1929-2007)

To those who need encouragement, remember this: Beware of quitting too soon. Dr. Seuss’ first children’s book was rejected by 23 publishers. The 24th publisher sold 6 million copies.

Press on. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unrewarded talent. Education alone will not: the world is full of educated failures. Persistence alone is omnipotent.
-Calvin Coolidge

Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind.
-Leonardo da Vinci, painter, sculpter, writer

It is never too late to be what you might have been.
-George Eliot

A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit.
-Richard Bach

Fall down seven times, stand up eight.
-Japanese proverb

Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong.
-Ella Fitzgerald

On Living:

Line from a William Blake poem: Think in the morning, act in the noon, read in the evening, and sleep at night.

. . . what's most important above all in a world that is unpredictable, in a world that is changing so much there seems to be nothing you can own, is that there are two things you can own: You can own your story - so you better live a good one - and you can own the love you have for the people who really love you and who you love back. And, that is all there is . . everything else is secondary.
-Baz Luhrmann

If you truly love something, you never question the time it takes to nurture it - be it marriage, hobby, pet, sports, religion, whatever.
-Walt Stanchfield

Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to follow talent to the dark place where it leads.
-Erica Jong

Hollywood is the only place where you can die from encouragement
-Dorothy Parker

Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best.
-Henry Van Dyke, clergyman, writer

The Dialogue

2007-11-12T13:46:00.000-08:00

I've been watching an extremely inspiring series of DVDs called THE DIALOGUE: LEARNING FROM THE MASTERS. A buddy of mine suggested I check them out some time ago but I've only just recently seen volumes one and two show up on netflix.

If you're at all interested in how movies get made, I highly recommend them.

There are (currently) 27 discs in the series and each one features an interview with an A-list screenwriter or screenwriting team. The scribes chat very casually with an interviewer about the craft of screenwriting and about their own individual process, but also manage to slip in the occasional story about how they got started or what it's like working in Hollywood. Very interesting and very, very informative.

Unlike other profile-type interviews with filmmakers, the discs in this series have managed to keep me engaged all the way through. Each one is between 80 and 90 minutes long and the host, Mike DeLuca, keeps things moving without too many interruptions. In fact, DeLuca is a big reason why I enjoy them so much (in addition to being a movie fanatic, DeLuca has been President of Production for New Line Cinema, Dreamworks and Sony and has worked as a screenwriter, producer and/or executive on films like SE7EN, BOOGIE NIGHTS, ZATHURA, DARK CITY, FREDDY'S NIGHTMARE and GHOST RIDER to name a few). DeLuca's bedside manner comes across as low-key, natural and entertaining.

I've seen three discs so far (Paul Haggis, Nia Vardalos and Stuart Beattie) and will likely purchase the Stuart Beattie one.

Concerning the Writer's Strike

2007-11-05T13:07:00.000-08:00

For those interested, there's lots of good dialogue about it over on Craig Mazin's blog.

Festival Gems

2007-10-16T18:15:00.000-07:00

Back from Texas (and feeling much too exhausted after my first day back at work . . . )

Viewed quite a few interesting films over the course of the weekend but felt that the following warranted a special shout-out:

In the realm of narrative features:

JUNO (narrative feature directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody). In my opinion, the best written and most entertaining of the very few films I managed to see. Wouldn't be surprised to see it get Oscar attention.

RESERVATION ROAD (directed by Terry George, written by John Burnham Schwartz and Terry George). Intense and sometimes difficult-to-watch drama. Very well-done.

KABLUEY (narrative feature written and directed by Scott Prendergast). Small in scope but delightfully warm and funny.

Documentaries for me are often notoriously difficult to sit through, but I really liked TIME PIECE by UK director Kat Mansoor. Also, over the course of the weekend, I heard a lot of great things about CHASING THE DREAM, a documentary about eight high school surfers seeking a career in professional surfing. Really wish now that I had been able to find a way to squeeze that one in.

In the category of animated shorts, I have to list as my favorites OVER THE HILL (Peter Baynton) and THE PEARCE SISTERS (Luis Cook). There is also lots to like in ZOOLOGIC (by Nicole Mitchell) and YOURS TRULY (Osbert Parker).

Off to AFF . . .

2007-10-08T13:33:00.000-07:00

I'll be in Texas this weekend for the 14th Annual Austin Film Festival.

I look forward to attending. My brother plans to meet me there, and the entire event is considered by many in the film industry to be one of the more informative (and enjoyable) festivals for writers and filmmakers.

If any other writers - professional or aspiring - plan to be in town between the 11th and the 15th, let me know . . .

Hammered

2007-09-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

This year, I'm reminded of just how subjective screenwriting competitions can be.

Behold the carnage . . .

The 2007 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting

Received the oft-discussed "top 10%" email (this means that my script finished among the top 508 out of this year's 5,050 entries).

While being part of the top ten percent at Nicholl is very respectable, I cannot help feeling as if I've lost a bit of ground. In 2005, an early draft of the same script finished in the top 15% and last year a rewrite finished in the top 6% (missing the quarterfinals by less than one percent).

Austin Film Festival 2007

Submitted two very different scripts this year but neither advanced.

The results here were especially disappointing, mainly because the exact same script advanced to the second round of last year's competition. It' also unfortunate because I'm scheduled to attend the festival this year and having "second rounder", "semifinalist" or "finalist" on one's badge reportedly gains the attendee instant credibility with fellow writers and other industry types.

The 9th Annual Scriptapalooza Screenwriting Competition
This is my first time submitting to Scriptapalooza, despite its fast-growing reputation as one of the more respected competitions. I received an email from them in August letting me know that my script advanced to the quarterfinals (top 311 out of 3519 entries) but heard nothing after that. Ultimately, I had to visit the website to see this year's results (I did not, by the way, advance to the semifinals).

The 2007 (9th Annual) Cynosure Screenwriting Awards
Originally, I approached this contest with a high degree of skepticism, but was intrigued by the contest's unique angle of limiting the field of entries to scripts featuring strong female protagonists. Against my better judgement, I elected to gamble the entry fee. My instincts were confirmed, unfortunately, when I

a. failed to receive confirmation of my entry and
b. never received a single letter, phone call or email from the contest administrators regarding the competition or status of my entry

Eventually I dropped by the website to view the semifinalists (a list in which my script was not included).

As discouraging as the above results are, the year wasn't all bad. After countless unreturned telephone calls from entertainment attorneys, producer's assistants and agents over the last three years, I did manage to get my work in front of some fairly important people. While networking at a Women in Film event, my wife passed one of my scripts on to some creative executives at a mid-sized production company and after meeting with a highly respected attorney in Beverly Hills, I managed to submit a project (via his office) to an A-list producer.

Rochelle's Moviewatch!

2007-08-31T13:48:00.000-07:00

Two sample film reviews:

"Hot Fuzz" (2007) directed by Edgar Wright

Summary: A London "supercop" faces boredom and frustration when he is reassigned (against his will) to a sleepy little village in the country. But things get interesting for the sergeant and his dim-witted constable when a rash of fatal "accidents" strike the hamlet . . .

Things I Liked: The film's style and the very solid direction. The camera work expertly evokes (and parodies) the action-filled, big-budget police movies we Americans adore. I found the characters and the relationships between them to be very interesting but I did not in a million years expect the film's story to have as much depth and complexity as it did.

Things I Disliked: The title. The film is funny but the humor is not nearly as pervasive as the humor in SHAWN OF THE DEAD. Wright could have wrapped things up ten minutes earlier and I still would have been satisfied.

Three and one half stars out of five stars

The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946) Directed by William Wyler

Summary: Three WWII veterans struggle to adapt following their return home to small town America.

Things I Liked: The characters. The fluid manner in which director William Wyler juggles multiple storylines, all the while managing to keep each one interesting. Excellent performances by Myrna Loy, Teresa Wright, Harold Russell, Fredric March and Hoagy Carmichael. Worthy of every one of the seven (7!) Oscars it won.

Things I Disliked: The delayed climax made me more aware of the film's running time than I otherwise would have been.

Three stars out of five stars

Moviewatch Ratings Legend:

One Star: Hated it
Two Stars: Didn't like it
Three Stars: Liked it
Four Stars: Really liked it
Five Stars: Loved it

I write these little five-minute reviews primarily to help me analyze the films I watch. I purposely posted here an older film along with a more recently released one in order to reinforce the importance of watching films from all eras.

Composing reviews in this way serves two purposes. One, it forces me to find the good in something I might otherwise not care for. A lot of hard work goes into making a film -- even a bad one -- and this is a much less critical and/or negative way for me to comment on the strengths and/or weaknesses of the film (in fact, I'll even go so far as to say that even the worst movies have something to like about them). Secondly (and most usefully), writing down what I think works and what doesn't has really, really helped me understand the visual storytelling process better.

Disney's Big Decision

2007-07-27T17:47:00.000-07:00

Disney recently announced their pledge to ban smoking in it's films. According to the news, they are the first major studio to do so, and anti-smoking groups have applauded the decision.

While I find Disney's attempts at being socially conscious to be commendable, I worry that they're merely pandering to families and that, ultimately, the company's mission of telling the "best story possible" will suffer from the creation of such restrictions. To quote Robert McKee: Stories are metaphor for life and in real life, people smoke.

Some of the most interesting people I've known are smokers. People in my family smoke. The fact that a person smokes, or even the way that a person smokes, often leads to a much richer characterization of that person. And where does it stop? Will studios next eliminate all overweight characters from their films? After all, being heavy is not exactly the best thing for one's health, and according to many studies, overeating is addictive and obesity in children is on the rise.

While it is unfortunate that parents appear to be doing a worse job of raising their children than ever before, I have never felt that it's the responsibility of a major corporation to do it. As a child, I watched countless films featuring smoking children (PAPER MOON) and teens (THE BAD NEWS BEARS) and never once felt the urge to try it. Not once. And you know what? Neither did most of my peers, many of whom watched the same movies and grew up with smoking parents, friends and celebrities as role models.

What worries me most are the rumors that Disney plans to go into it's vaults and erase any and all smoking from their classic films. The cigarette-rolling scene in Disney's PECOS BILL animated short has already been digitally altered and the character's actions now make no sense whatsoever.

I simply cannot imagine Cruella de Ville without that beautifully insidius wreath of toxin about her head. And it frightens me how the studio's banning of tobacco might affect that endearingly flawed - but very human - character of Wilhelmina Bertha Packard in ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE.

One more thing: I can't be the only parent out there who uses the moviegoing experience as just another tool to discuss alcohol, drugs, swearing and smoking with my "little roommates". What will these parents talk about when every film features perfectly unrealistic, overly sanitized human beings?

And as human beings, are we not beautiful in our imperfection?

Wisdom of the West

2007-07-16T11:31:00.000-07:00

"In Hollywood people don't fail, they quit."
-Jack Sowards (1929 - 2007)

"Hollywood is the only place where you can die from encouragement."
-Dorothy Parker

Resources

2007-07-02T20:01:00.000-07:00

There are an awful lot of screenwriting resources out there and the choices can be pretty overwhelming for someone new to the craft. After burning through my own mountain of screenwriting and storytelling books (read "every one I can get my hands on"), these are the ones I would recommend.

Keep in mind that this is merely a list of books that have proven most useful to me. Anybody who's been working at this for a while will almost certainly have their own favorite resources on the subject, and you can bet that what works for one person might not work for another. I've rated the books from one to five stars based on how helpful they've been to me in the long run.

**"Making a Good Script Great" by Linda Seger

Borrowed this from the Library because it's one of the most popular and recommended books on the basics. Although I highly recommend it to beginners (like me), I am glad I didn't buy it because I didn't learn anything new. It's a fast read and covers a lot of basics using such stalwarts as WITNESS, "BACK TO THE FUTURE and ROMANCING THE STONE to illustrate her points.

***"The Big Deal: Hollywood's Million-Dollar Spec
Script Market" by Thom Taylor

While not a "How-to" book, it's an awesome read and really educates one about important aspects of the business. Loaded with true stories of successful (and not so successful) screenwriters. Very credible, as most of the content comes from interviews with ex agents, writers (both working and unworking), and development executives.

****"The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure for
Storytellers & Screenwriters" by Christopher Vogler

Vogler used to be a bigshot at Fox. He's advised on a lot of Disney classics and is quoted a lot in "The Big Deal". Many of the story guys and development execs at Disney swear by it.

***"The Screenwriter's Bible" by David Trottier

This workbook-style book has an awesome chapter on how to handle and correctly format unusual things (such as handling inserts, interruptions, etc.). It also has a fair amount of sample query letters, loglines, script excerpts, etc.

****"Adventures In the Screen Trade" by William
Goldman

Very funny. A bit dated but both entertaining and educational.

****"Which Lie Did I Tell" by William Goldman
More of Goldman's genius. Good reading even if you aren't interested in becoming a writer.

*****"The Art of Dramatic Writing" by Lajos Egri

Originally published in 1946. One of my favorites - I've reread it several times and consult it frequently. Just goes to show you that there are certain things that have worked for the stage and the screen throughout time and that you can only break away from principles once you've mastered the principles . . .

*****"Story" by Robert McKee

This is my "bible". A lot of people find it a difficult read but those colleagues of mine that understand it, love it . . . I disagree with those who say it's a "how-to write a script" book - it's more of an analysis of why good stories work. And once you know why we love our favorite movies . . .

***Doing It For Money: The Agony and Ecstasy of Writing and Surviving in Hollywood edited by Daryl G. Nickens for The Writers Guild Foundation

A fascinating collection of essays on screenwriting by working screenwriters. I especially like the variety of tales included in the book - it's nice to read stories from people who have had positive experiences working in Hollywood.

***The Screenwriter's Survival Guide: Or, Guerrilla Meeting Tactics and Other Acts of War by Max Adams

The best book I've read on the topic of "surviving". I'm amazed at how many people garner that first big meeting or win that prestigious script competition but then flounder because they are unprepared and/or had an unrealistic idea of what to expect next. Max has won the awards, had her stories produced, and so dispenses that kind of everyday, real-world writer's wisdom that most of the other books neglect.

After reading so many other books, the Syd Field ones about "how to write screenplays" seem kind of weak. Having said that, however, SCREENPLAY: THE FOUNDATIONS OF SCREENWRITING and SELLING A SCREENPLAY: THE SCREENWRITER'S GUIDE TO HOLLYWOOD happened to be the very first books I read on the subject and I learned a lot from them at the time (film schools use them).

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of reading actual produced screenplays -- both good ones and bad ones. It takes the same amount of time as watching a movie (two hours or so) and if you read one a week, that's 52 a year. I'm amazed at the impact this has had on my own writing. There are a few websites that offer free scripts for downloading but because nearly every screenwriting blog out there already has links to the best websites I won't bother listing them again here.

If you're new to the business, then I hope this list helps and if you're a seasoned screenwriter (professional or not), then I'd love to hear which publications - listed or not listed - worked (or didn't work) for you.

Recent Reading

2007-05-16T15:29:00.000-07:00

Just finished reading the script for the movie FREQUENCY by Toby Emmerich.

I liked it.

I remember seeing FREQUENCY in the theater when it came out in 2000 and found it to be entertaining as well. For the record, Emmerich is currently Head of Production at New Line Cinema. He also happens to be a very prolific producer and wrote the script for the recent New Line release THE LAST MIMZY. I admire Emmerich -- he seems more genuine (and more creative) than a lot of Hollywood executive types.

I also re-read NOTTING HILL by Richard Curtis and EL LABERINTO DEL FAUNO by Guillermo del Toro. NOTTING HILL is really great but EL LABERINTO feels like it lost something, style-wise, in the translation. I'd love to read it in del Toro's native Spanish.

I plan to read THE FUGITIVE next. Second Acts are notoriously difficult to write (in nearly every medium) and several screenwriting teachers have recommended reading and/or studying THE FUGITIVE in order to see how a good writer handles that treacherous "middle part" of a story. I remember liking the movie a great deal and I certainly don't recall there being any really slow parts in the film, so I'm excited to get started . . .

Huzzah!

2007-05-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

The new GROO comic is available for preorder.

That's the first new issue in a very long time. I am more excited by this than I am about the possibility of there someday being a GROO movie.

For those of you who don't know, GROO THE WANDERER is a long-running humor comic co-created by Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier. The comic book, which is a parody of the sword and sorcery fantasy genre made famous by titles like CONAN THE BARBARIAN or RED SONJA, is very, very funny and extremely well-written. Mark and Sergio co-write the stories and Sergio illustrates them.

The character of Groo is a mindless (and, aside from his loyal hound Rufferto, friendless) warrior who meanders aimlessly about the realm slaying entire armies, laying waste to kingdoms and eating cheesedip. The name "Groo" is synonymous with bad luck and the mere presence of the barbarian is enough to cause chaos. When Groo comes to town, ships sink, farms flood and bridges collapse.

If this sounds like a one-joke comic, it is. Yet somehow, Mark and Sergio do a great job of making each new storyline feel fresh. My children and I spend an awful lot of time rereading the stories; many of which - like the best fairy tales - feature a timeless moral or theme.

I've met Sergio and he is a super guy, very friendly and incredibly generous. He's best known for his lightning fast drawing ability and those famously tiny marginals that appeared in MAD Magazine. Mark is a longtime writer of comics and television and has amassed more than a few credits in the world of television animation. He has his own blog at http://www.newsfromme.com/.

The new GROO is slated to come out in August and is available for preorder from here, or your favorite neighborhood comic shop.

Happy Birthday to You!

2007-03-02T16:15:00.000-08:00

A colossal "Happy Birthday" to Theodor "Dr. Seuss" Geisel, who along with J.R.R Tolkien, ranks right up there as one of my favorite -- and most inspirational -- authors.

Seuss was born on March 2nd, 1904 and practically revolutionized the picture book industry with his whimsical artwork and thematic stories.

I'm not the only one who recognizes this creative genius and tireless advocate of literacy. Ten years ago today, the National Educational Association chose this date to start their "Read Across America" campaign, dubbed "The Nation's Largest Reading Celebration".

I like to think that Dr. Seuss, where ever he may be, is settling back right now to enjoy a slice of his "Official Katroo Happy Birthday Cake!*"

*as detailed in his 1959 classic, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!"

Marvel or DC?

2006-11-13T19:51:00.000-08:00

Which were you?

Like Betty or Veronica, Elvis or the Beatles, Wilma Flintstone or Betty Rubble, most comic book fans my age lean towards one or the other.

Me? I was a Marvel guy growing up. No question about it. I'm not sure why, except that maybe the more whimsically colorful and fantasy-based world of Marvel -- with all those radioactive spiders, mutants, and gamma radiation -- better satisfied the unbridled imagination of my youth. By contrast, the whole D.C. pantheon seemed so much more believable, so much more steeped in reality. So much more . . . well . . . boring.

Nowadays, I tend to prefer a good dose of believability in my superheroes. But not back then. No sir.

Maybe it's a matter of identification. I grew up a skinny asthmatic who preferred reading and drawing to playing sports and hanging out. I could always relate better to Marvel's "everymen": reluctant, misunderstood heroes such as the nerdy Peter Parker, or the meek Bruce Banner.

Don't get me wrong -- I read both. In spades. And for whatever reason, I liked the villains from both. Favorite bad guys of mine included Scarecrow, The Green Goblin and the Hobgoblin. I liked The Lizard, too. Lame villains were really plentiful, too. Guys like the Vulture, Scorpion, Rhino and perhaps the weakest villain of all, the mustachioed guy with the lion tights (I think his name was Kraven the Hunter). Never understood why any self-respecting hero would fear that guy.

Maybe Marvel appealed to me because at the time, it was a much younger and hipper company than D.C. Maybe they were more in tune to the interests of my generation. I mean, my wife's dad was a fan of Superman and Captain Marvel, so how on earth could those comic book heroes be cool to me?

I also adored monsters, fantasy, and humor. Marvel just seems a better fit when you're also devouring stuff like EPIC ILLUSTRATED, FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND, CREEPY, EERIE, SAVAGE SWORD, FANGORIA, MAD MAGAZINE, and FAMOUS FILM MONSTERS. For the record, I was an equal opportunity comic book reader. I read comics that other kids routinely tossed: War comics, horror comics, even ARCHIE and those other humor-based books produced by Harvey and Whitman.

As an adult, I have met very few people who prefer Marvel over D.C. It's been difficult finding other Marvelites because most of my friends these days have discovered new favorites among the indies (that goes for me, too by the way. GROO, THE WANDERER by Sergio Aragones is my current favorite and has been for a very long time). Those few former Marvel aficionados that I have managed to run into seem to have been passionate about a single title or set of characters in particular -- say, SPIDER-MAN or THE FANTASTIC FOUR.

So speak up, comic book fans past and present -- which line did you prefer and (more importantly) why?

'Tis the Season

2006-10-17T15:45:00.000-07:00

October Fun with Sharpie!

2006-10-17T15:41:00.000-07:00

I like drawing with Sharpies. It forces you to think about your line and where that line is going to go before committing it to the paper. Some of my best life drawing has been with markers but lately, I've been into these wacky little simplified masks.

Merry Halloween

2006-10-17T14:19:00.000-07:00

In Defense of McKee

2006-10-17T14:13:00.000-07:00

I've read a lot of opinions recently about that old stalwart of Story, Robert McKee. Some of it is nice but a lot of it is just downright nasty. Having attended his seminar, and having read his book numerous times, I think the guy has been a bit unjustly maligned.

First of all, I think it's wise to be wary of "how-to" books. There are a lot of authors and self-professed "screenwriting teachers" out there - people of questionable skill and talent, with no real credits to their name, waiting to get our money (there are few people more skeptical than me in this regard, and I'm always careful to do my research before rushing out and purchasing a new one -- whether the book is about buying a house, raising a child, or writing a screenplay).

As far as STORY is concerned, I've read the book numerous times and I've paid the five-hundred plus dollars for his seminar and I enjoyed it. For me, there's always that chapter or two in a book that never makes sense until I hear it lectured to me. So there's that.

To me, McKee is not so much teaching screenwriting or structure so much as he is trying desperately to preserve the art form of storytelling. His book has made me aware of elements of storytelling that have worked consistently since who knows when and for that alone I am grateful. Some of his advice I like, and some I don't. They're principles, for goodness sake, not rules. Take what you think you can use and move on. And while he may not have churned out any Oscar-winning films, I will say this -- the guy's sure as hell done his research.

There's a lot of talk about McKee's delivery (or his "performance" if you will). Some people find it annoying and fake -- little more than a showman's performance of his own memorized text. Others find his energy to be very motivational, even inspirational. Myself (and a lot of my colleagues who actually make their living in this industry) happen to fall into the latter category. Despite his curmudgeonly approach, the excitement I felt about screenwriting lingered for months afterwards and I don't think I can put a price on that. And yeah, I know he's plowed through the same routine countless times and continues to do so with near autonomous mathmatical precision, but I still feel the guy is genuinely passionate about the art of story and that sure can be catching.

Remember, too, that it's human nature to complain. When someone is unhappy with a product or experience, you usually hear about it (if my aunt has a great time at Disneyworld, she might mention it, but if she had a miserable time, you'll hear every moment of the ordeal in excruciating detail). Just keep in mind that there are a lot of satisfied McKee disciples out there, too.

If you're still doubtful, that's fine. Check out STORY from the Library. Most of us understand that the mere act of reading a book doesn't automatically make you adept at doing it (if that were the case, we'd all be doctors and lawyers) and if you find it's something you think you'll refer to over and over again, then by all means, consider buying it. If, after reading the book, you find that it isn't your cup of tea, fine. But don't rip the guy just because you heard from a lot of other people that he's trying to force writers into doing things a certain way. And don't vilify him because he's one of those dreaded "Three Act Classical Story Mongers" and you just don't want to believe in structure.

Big B, Little b . . .

2006-09-26T17:05:00.000-07:00

This image kills me.

The drawing came home in my five-year old son's folder, apparently as part of his completed classwork.

I wish I drew it.

So much for my pledge not to post other people's drawings . . .

That's it for 2006 . . .

2006-09-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

I recently received word from the following two screenwriting competitions:

Screenwriting Expo 5 Screenplay Competition: According to the email, there were more than 2,400 features and almost 600 shorts submitted this year. Unfortunately for me, my screenplay failed to make the quarterfinals and was not listed among the top 25% of entries.

Austin Film Festival Screenwriting Competition: Last year I got the standard form letter. This year, I got a nifty "second rounder" letter, which stated that my script advanced to the second round in the "Adult/Family" category. The letter went on to say that "Over 4,000 writers submitted their screenplays in the Adult/Family and Comedy categories, and just below 15% made it to the second round." According to the folks at Austin, "reaching the second round is a tremendous accomplishment" and I should be "very proud of my entry". This letter was immediately followed by a second letter -- and a telephone call -- espousing the benefits of being a second rounder and advertising the discounted rates for second rounders interested in attending the festival in October.

That's the last of this year's competitions. I plan to start submitting again in about three months.

The Moneychanger

2006-08-30T16:58:00.000-07:00

A Different Take . . .

2006-08-30T16:55:00.000-07:00

. . . on the tooth fairy

My Mother's An Alien . . .

2006-08-30T16:51:00.000-07:00

A (really old) thumbnail for a film production company logo.

Slamdance Results

2006-08-30T15:56:00.001-07:00

Well, it's official.

Slamdance has announced their 2006 screenplay competition quarterfinalists and my script was not among them.

Again.

I got pretty decent feedback from a Slamdance reader so I'm not upset or anything. But I am curious about something. I've read testimony from a lot of contest winners who have experienced success at multiple competitions -- sometimes year after year -- and not one of them has ever claimed to have done very well at Slamdance. Maybe the readers over at Slamdance are looking for something uniquely different in a screenplay. More likely, my script just isn't quite there yet.

Oh well. No use crying over bent brads. I wish the 2006 Slamdance quarterfinalists the best of luck.

Marker Monster

2006-08-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

I don't remember when or why I did this, but it was most likely inspired by the visual development stuff from Pixar's "Monsters, Inc."

Roger Avary

2006-08-23T15:17:00.000-07:00

In my last post, I quoted a segment of something screenwriter Roger Avary said on his website (www.avary.com). His advice is so good that I couldn't resist posting the rest of it here.

For those of you who don't know, Roger wrote and directed 1994's "Killing Zoe". He also cowrote "Pulp Fiction" with Quentin Tarantino and is currently working with Neil Gaiman on a screen adaptation of the classic "Beowulf".

Everything that follows is Roger's:

Remember the Three P's:

Persistence: Believe me, there's plenty of talentless people making real good livings in Hollywood. It's not luck. Edison didn't believe in luck, and neither do I -- good or bad. It's all about keeping at it. If you work at it long enough, and learn from your mistakes, eventually something is going to happen.

Passion: No one wants to finance the film of a passionless individual. What most people want is to ride your passion. They want to feel that they're going to be part of something magnificent and exciting that's going to change humankind. Can't do that without passion. And if you're not passionate -- fake it.

Positive-Visualization: Trust me, you're going to go through some dark times. You absolutely must remain focused on the positive future. Visualize where you see yourself at nearly every step along the way. Soon you look back and realize you've actually gone somewhere. Visualization is key.

As far as your scripts go, keep writing. Keep sending them to whoever will read them. Just know that you can't expect anyone to do it for you. You have to do it yourself. And if you really need to, you'll shoot your movie on 8mm.

On Failure

2006-08-23T13:45:00.000-07:00

There's a really great essay about failure over at The Artful Writer blog.

It's certainly not uncommon to read about the lack of success in this business but this piece is especially timely for me (see my recent post). Failure happens to be one of those subjects that has for a long time both hindered and motivated me and there's a reason for this.

I submitted portfolios to Walt Disney Feature Animation twice a year, for four long years before finally being accepted into the company's Character Animation Internship. That's a whole lot of failure. When I wasn't spending weekends drawing at the zoo, filling sketchbooks with cafe drawings, or writing letters to the current manager of training, I was amassing large amounts of written inspiration to keep me going.

And now -- more than eight years later -- I find myself relying once again on that inspiration.

So, in the spirit of the thread started by Craig Mazin, I have selected to list here some of the more powerful comments that I've unearthed on the subject of "not succeeding":

"Failure is the opportunity to start over again - more intelligently"
-Henry Ford

"Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm"
-Winston Churchill

"To those in need of encouragement, remember this: Beware of quitting too soon. Dr. Seuss' first children's book was rejected by 23 publishers. The 24th publisher sold 6 million copies"

"Press on. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unrewarded talent. Education alone will not: the world is full of educated failures. Persistence alone is omnipotent"
-Calvin Coolidge

"It's all about keeping at it. If you work at it long enough, and learn from your mistakes, eventually something is going to happen"
-Roger Avary

"A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit"
-Richard Bach

It's important to remember that each one of the individuals listed above has, in my book, been enormously successful, and every one of them appears to advocate "coming up short" once in a while. Heck, some even praise it. Growing up, I was always suprised by the amount of people out there who resented the enormous success of a Michael Jackson, a Michael Eisner or a Michael Jordan but I would venture to guess that very few of those people ever witnessed the countless times those guys slipped and bashed their face as they clawed their way up the career ladder. I read recently that Stephen King got rejected 75 times before he got published. That's probably a lot fewer rejections than most writers get . . .

I'm not sure who said it, but there's another great quote which reads:

"A man's life is interesting primarily when he has failed -- it is a sign that he tried to surpass himself"

I hope that the above quotations serve in some way to enhance your outlook on life. Wisdom like this has been a pretty invaluable thing to have it in front of me when things get frustrating.

Creeeaature . . .

2006-08-21T08:59:00.000-07:00

Per your request, Paul . . .

Screenwriting Competition Update

2006-08-17T14:22:00.000-07:00

"Fall seven times, stand up eight"
Japanese Proverb

I returned from vacation to a fresh pile of rejection letters.

The bulk of the mail came from a gaggle of literary agents expressing disinterest in my latest picture book manuscript but there were also a couple of pretty big disappointments in the screenwriting department as well.

Sundance Screenwriter's Lab: Despite Sundance's excellent reputation for finding and nurturing new filmmakers, this is my first year submitting to them. Sundance asks for the first five pages of your screenplay, along with a bio, cover letter, synopsis and letter of interest. Based on the strength of your first five pages, the directors of the program determine whether or not to request the balance of the script. The folks at Sundance didn't say why they chose not to read the other 109 pages of my script, but the fact that it's a historical drama probably didn't help -- Sundance tends to favor lower budget independent films in the vein of "Reservoir Dogs" or "Boys Don't Cry" .

Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting: Nicholl is regarded by many to be the most prestigious screenwriting competition out there, so I was encouraged when my script last year placed in the top fifteen percent (there were 5,879 entries in 2005). This year, my rewrite of the same script finished in the top six percent, missing the quarterfinals by a lousy one percent.

I submitted to a few other competitions this year but I'm not nearly as concerned with those results. Free software and magazine subscriptions just don't carry the same weight as actual industry recognition and the chance to meet with agents, managers, producers, and studio executives. I keep reminding myself, too, that submitting to screenplay competitions is just a small part of the overall plan. There's always the chance (however rare) that I'll get a call from that producer or agent I queried last month.

And if not, well then there's always next year's Nicholl Competition.

My Favorite Films

2006-07-28T19:15:00.000-07:00

Here we go -- My top ten favorite films (based on personal enjoyment):

I. Casablanca (1942)
II. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
III. Excalibur (1981)
IV. Rob Roy (1995)
V. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
VI. Leon (aka "The Professional") (1994)
VII. Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi (aka "Spirited Away") (2001)
VIII. The Little Mermaid (1989)
IX. Unforgiven (1992)
X. Monsters, Inc. (2001)

*Honorable Mention:

The Iron Giant (1999)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Wallace and Gromit: The Wrong Trousers (1993, short film)
Remains of the Day (1993)
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
The Sword in the Stone (1963)
Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)
The Hobbit (1977, TV)
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Army of Darkness (1992)
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
A Christmas Story (1983)

**Worth Mentioning:

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
The Dark Crystal (1982)
Dangerous Liasons (1988)
Groundhog Day (1993)
Ghostbusters (1984)

The top ten are in order of importance. As you can see, 2001 was a good year for me (as was the period dating from 1992-1994)

The Top Ten

2006-07-18T22:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, here's a fun game.

Right now, without too much thought, see if you can reel off your top ten favorite films of all time.

Harder than it looks isn't it? I know. And here's why: Nobody wants to leave out one of those "gems" that forever affected them (or maybe even helped shape a part of their life).

I constructed my first list about five years ago. A close buddy of mine recently reissued the challenge and I'm still amazed at just how difficult it is to whittle a lifetime of great cinema down to a measly ten titles.

It's especially entertaining when your significant other, close friend, co-worker or family member lists a film that you'd never in a million years suspect them of liking.

There are a few rules:

1. Don't spend a lot of time thinking about it -- just jot down the most memorable films that pop into your head. You can always re-edit your list later (and trust me, you will)

2. Animated films absolutely count. My wife wanted to have her own separate top ten list for feature-length animated fare but in this game, it's not a separate category.

3. An entire trilogy (like the"Godfather" movies or the "Star Wars" films) DOES NOT count as just one film (come on . . . you didn't expect it to be that easy did you?)

4. Here's a helpful hint: Think "Watchability". It doesn't matter how "well-constructed" the film is or how critically acclaimed it was. All that matters is how enjoyable or meaningful it was to you. One good rule of thumb is to ask yourself whether or not a film has successfully withstood the test of time. For example, I'd be hard-pressed to label "Beastmaster", "Evil Dead" or "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" great cinema, but I've seen each of them a hundred times over. And if I crossed through a room in which any of the three happened to be playing on cable, I'd have a pretty hard time not plopping down and watching them again

It's always surprising to see what comes to mind first. After further editing, I ended up sticking with about eight of my original titles. For those of you who care, I'll publish my list in a separate post.

Happy listing!

"Sizzle" Thumbnails

2006-07-17T14:04:00.000-07:00

Marker and ink roughs for a girl's softball team.

Recent Reading

2006-07-17T00:14:00.000-07:00

Recently read the following screenplays: SLING BLADE by Billy Bob Thornton and AFFLICTION by Paul Schrader.

Liked them both.

Sushiman

2006-07-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

Favorite Screenwriters?

2006-07-16T22:31:00.000-07:00

Someone asked me recently who my favorite screenwriters are and what types of scripts I'd recommend.

Now before you laugh at my recommendations, you have to understand that my exposure is pretty limited -- I've only been reading scripts for about two years and for the most part, I've been limited to what I can read for free from the internet. Still, in that short amount of time I've found plenty to like, plenty to admire, plenty of screenplays that I believe to be very well-written.

On the topic of favorite writers, I have a strong feeling that my absolute favorite would be that bastion of Merchant-Ivory films, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. If the theatrical cuts of A ROOM WITH A VIEW and HOWARDS END are any indication, she is an absolute virtuoso at taking a novel and adapting to film the depths and subtleties of human interaction (according to IMDB, both of her Oscar wins were for adapted screenplays of E.M. Forster novels). However, I'm basing my assumption on the screenplays she's written that I've seen. You see, I haven't actually been able to find any copies of her work to read (REMAINS OF THE DAY is notoriously hard to find, so if anyone knows where I can get my hands on a copy -- other than the copy residing at the Academy Library -- I'd be eternally grateful).

Jhabvala isn't the only screenwriter I'd like to read but can't find. Alvin Sargent and Frank Cottrell Boyce are two screenwriters whose work I'd like to read as soon as possible. Ditto Joyce Carol Oates.

A lot of my colleagues prefer Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary, and David Mamet. I like those guys too, but I also like Richard Curtis (LOVE ACTUALLY, NOTTING HILL).

Of course, screenwriters have different strengths. For character, I like Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor. Both ELECTION and SIDEWAYS are incredibly lean scripts. So is GODS AND MONSTERS by Bill Condon. It's a goal of mine to write as minimally yet as powerfully as these guys.

For that pure moviegoing experience -- that sensation of looking at a bunch of words and actually seeing a film in your head, Jim Cameron and Frank Darabont are hard to beat. Read ALIENS (Cameron) or THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION (Darabont) and you'll see what I mean. THE GREEN MILE, another Darabont adaptation of a Stephen King work, is really good too.

I haven't read much comedy yet, but I am exceptionally fond of GROUNDHOG DAY (Danny Rubin and Harold Ramis) and TOY STORY (John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Andrew Stanton, Joe Ranft, Joss Whedon, Joel Cohen, Alec Sokolow).

Other scripts I'd recommend include AMERICAN BEAUTY by Alan Ball, THE WILLIAM MUNNY KILLINGS (UNFORGIVEN) by David Webb Peoples and SENSE and SENSIBILITY by Emma Thompson.

And then there are those scripts I appreciate, but whose style doesn't appeal to me personally. I have never regretted reading (nor would I hesitate to recommend) WITNESS, THELMA and LOUISE, ADAPTATION, THE GODFATHER, GOOD WILL HUNTING, BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID, THE TRUMAN SHOW, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, GLADIATOR and THE PRINCESS BRIDE. I learned something from every single one of them (I liked most of the finished films just as much as, if not more than, the ones listed above) and each is very successful as a screenplay. But would I pick them up again purely for enjoyment? Probably not. It's just personal taste.

What about the masters, you say? What about Ingmar Bergman? Billy Wilder? The Horton Foote's? Well, I've read CASABLANCA, THE SEVENTH SEAL, THE WIZARD OF OZ, and CHINATOWN but everybody talks about those.

I'm going on vacation in three days. My planned reading?

Wilder's SUNSET BOULEVARD. Also ROCKY, THE USUAL SUSPECTS, and an early, unproduced version of SPIDER-MAN by David Koepp.

And Horton Foote? I'm looking forward to reading him. And I'm gonna throw in some Nora Ephron, and some David Twohy and Jeb Stuart, too. Heck, I've wanted to read Alan Sharp's version of ROB ROY for a long time -- see if I like it as much as I liked the film.

Just give me time.

Camp Meigs and Caide

2006-07-10T01:03:00.000-07:00

Quick invitation for a themed Birthday Party . . .

Speaker-Men

2006-07-07T22:51:00.000-07:00

As I sat down to write (at four a.m.) one morning, this nearby set of old computer speakers seemed to be, um . . . looking at me . . .

Reading the Movies

2006-07-06T18:56:00.000-07:00

"Read as many scripts as you can"

Beginning screenwriters hear it all the time, but let me tell you, it's good advice.

Really good advice.

It's not that I didn't put stock in the advice (I mean, how can reading lots of scripts not make one better at writing them?) but I did severely underestimate the impact that reading lots of scripts would have on my own writing.

Early on, I think I placed too much emphasis on watching gobs and gobs of movies (or on reading all those highly recommended "how-to" books) and too little emphasis on simply reading as many scripts as I could get my hands on. I'm also more or less continuously involved with a novel, so there is the issue of time. When I did read scripts, I'd try to be too selective (I wanted to read the very best ones) or I'd find myself embroiled in ridiculous, irrational fears. For example, I'd be halfway through a poorly written script and think "Wait a minute: I'm still a beginner. I'm still developing and growing. What if I continue plowing through this horribly executed script and I somehow subconsciously absorb some of these bad habits and incorporate them into my own writing?"

Of course, the absolute best way to get better at writing screenplays is simply by doing it. Writing and rewriting. Day in and day out. That's always been the case and always will be. But the importance of reading the screenplays of other writers should not be overlooked.

If you're eager to start reading screenplays, you need to understand that the positive effects of reading lots of them can take some time. It's a cumulative process. You might learn some great things right away from reading your first good (or not so good) screenplay but the real benefit is probably going to show up a bit further down the road.

AMERICAN BEAUTY was the first script I picked up after making the decision to try screenwriting seriously. I read it and reread it. I could come away from that script and see instantly where my own script was lacking. I learned a lot about formatting. It's a heck of an example to compare your work to. But it wasn't until much later, after I had read large amounts of vastly different works, works as different from one another as ADAPTATION and GROUNDHOG DAY, that the light really came on. It's a phenomenon you hear people talk about again and again but you never really understand it until it happens to you.

I still watch lots of movies. I've also learned quite a bit from some of those "how-to" books (Robert McKee's STORY and Lajos Egri's THE ART OF DRAMATIC WRITING have been particularly helpful to me) but I make it a priority now to read one or two scripts a week.

As a more established screenwriter once said in his blog: "One script a week is fifty-two a year!"

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

2006-07-06T12:37:00.000-07:00

I recently finished "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson, and I have to say it's a pretty decent "crawler". The writing conjures such nice visuals that I briefly considered adapting the work into a screenplay (yeah, I know the movie's been done a million times, but one can learn a lot from adapting a classic).
I eventually decided against it because I don't think the real horror of this book would translate well to the screen. Film is a visual medium and the really terrifying thing about this book is the idea that man can separate his decent side from his wicked side and that the wicked side might just be strong enough to stamp out said decency.

I was surprised by the lack of characterization regarding Edward Hyde in the book. People who meet him get a bad vibe but they never attribute it to his appearance. Hyde's never actually described as monstrous -- at least not physically. He is quite a bit smaller than Jekyll (presumably because the wicked side of a predominantly decent man has not been exercised as much as his good side and is therefore not as developed) but he's not at all the brutish, hairy fellow that cartoons and cinema would have us believe.
I'm looking forward to seeing each and every one of the "Jekyll and Hyde" films (there are at least four listed on netflix) but I'll be very surprised if a single one of them affects me as much as the good Doctor's letter did at the end of the book . . .

Seven Samurai

2006-07-06T11:42:00.000-07:00

I just saw Akira Kurasawa's "Seven Samurai" for the first time and really enjoyed it. Visually, "Samurai" is an amazingly elegant film, but it also features a strong story and some pretty unforgettable characters. It's one of those "highly recommended" films that I wish I had seen earlier.

If you happen to be one of those story-driven moviegoers (like me), check it out.

Welcome!

2006-07-01T22:40:00.000-07:00

I am a writer, husband and stay-at-home father of two. It is my sincere hope that this site might serve as an interesting and informative commentary on filmmaking and the art of writing screenplays. I'd also like to use this blog to post the occasional drawing.

I graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington with a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts. I very nearly double-majored in English, but needed (and wanted) to be out in four years. Following graduation, I moved to Orlando, Florida where I spent the next twelve years with Walt Disney Feature Animation contributing to such classics as THE LION KING, MULAN, and LILO & STITCH. Working in both Production Management and as a Visual Effects Artist allowed me exposure to every facet of the filmmaking process, from conception to post production. While at Disney, I attended numerous seminars, lectures and workshops on writing and storytelling for film, and it was during this time that I wrote my first screenplay.

My second script, a bleak comment on loneliness, was good enough to be made into a short film, and an early draft of my first feature-length screenplay placed in the top fifteen percent at the 2005 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting.

My interests include reading, writing, drawing, storytelling, picture books and mythology and folklore. I enjoy watching movies and playing board games with my wife and two children. I am fascinated by the period of Norse and Scandinavian History dating from 750-1100.