the bullhead giveaway

i have been fortunate enough to have worked on nine feature films that have made their way into cinemas across the globe and with another three being released this year and two more going into production, i am very happy with the way my career has been going. there has, however, been one thing missing – i have never had one of the films i have worked on be released theatrically in my homeland britain.

that changes tomorrow (friday feb 1) with the uk release of the belgian film ‘bullhead‘, oscar nominated last year for best foreign film. you can read more on my ‘bullhead’ adventures here and here.

to celebrate this, i am offering three writers who follow me on twitter a free, 2-hour, one-to-one consultation on a script of their choice. my speciality is features, but i will also be happy to look at tv pilots, tv episodes, shorts and webseries.

the selection process

to begin with, send a logline and a one-page synopsis to me – philATscriptguyphilDOTcom – and i will begin selecting those that interest me.

for the second phase, i will ask for the first ten pages of your script, and after reading those i will select the three successful scripts.

after reading the three scripts, i will then get in touch to arrange a mutually convenient time to chat.

note:- do NOT send complete scripts or the first ten pages unless i ask for them. if you do, they will be deleted without opening, although your logline and one-page will still be eligible.

there are some conditions, but i’ve tried to limit them as best i can.

i) the offer is only open to those who follow me on twitter

ii) scripts should be no more than 150 pages

iii) scripts should be properly formatted (if you’re unsure, check here for the basics), and as a pdf file

iv) scripts must NOT be in development at a production company or similar

v) as a writer, you will have had no more than one feature film been released theatrically (anywhere in the world)

vi) all genres are allowed – i like any genre as long as they are written well!

vii) the consultations will take place via skype

viii) scripts must be in either english or danish

ix) the scripts should be completed drafts – anywhere from the 1st draft to the 100th!

the deadline for the logline and one-page synopsis is sunday february 17th at 23.59 gmt

if you have any questions, feel free to contact me at philATscriptguyphilDOTcom or via twitter.

best of luck to you and i look forward to reading some great work

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

my films of 2012

it is now the time to take a quick look back at last year and list the movies of 2012 that i enjoyed the most.

i don’t like ranking films as such (although, as usual, i do have a favourite), and i don’t restrict the list to 10 films – last year there were only seven films, this year there were twelve that i loved!

so without further ado, here we go…

favourite cinema films — in chronological order

tinker, tailor, soldier, spy

written by bridget o’connor & peter straughan

a sharp, subtle spy drama that was as intense as it was exciting. an amazing script that takes a complicated and dense book and turns it into an elegant and concise screenplay.

attack the block

written by joe cornish

a horror comedy with an underlying social message where the script makes you side with, and become emotionally attached to, what seems to be a band of thug teenagers. pure entertainment.

shame

written by steve mcqueen and abi morgan

a deeply felt character study of addiction and loneliness, with a script that gets into the souls of the two main characters.

the raid: redemption

written by gareth evans

one of the most explosive action films i have ever seen. the script may not be deep, but it did just enough to be emotionally engaging and made sure that the fight sequences also developed character and story.

martha marcy may marlene

written by sean durkin

another sublime character study that looks at brainwashing both within a cult and within a family unit. the script is beautifully downplayed.

sleep tight

written by alberto marini

an intimate thriller that would have made hitchcock proud, the script balanced dark humour and disturbing chills to perfection. a scene in the middle with the main character trying to get out of an apartment is probably my favourite scene of the year.

killer joe

written by tracy letts

another dark comedy with disturbing elements, the script takes some terrible people and makes them fascinating to watch.

we need to talk about kevin

written by lynne ramsey & rory kinnear

a gripping look at a mother/child relationship told in a truly fascinating way. the script was sparse and intelligent, yet provocative when it needed to be.

take shelter

written by jeff nichols

this is a masterful film that will stay with me for a very long time. a powerful, yet delicate script with beautifully written characters full of nuance and depth.

weekend

written by andrew haigh

an intense and tender romance. the writing and performances are incredibly natural and get you right under the skin of the characters. it avoids cliches and preaching and simply concentrates on the way that two people can fall in love.

take this waltz — **my favourite film of 2012**

written by sarah polley

a beautiful and delicate film. truthful in the sense that i saw parts of myself in all the main characters, which made the emotions very real. a script filled with emotional pull, this is the film of last year that made me engage with the story and characters more than any other – it had a very strong impact on me, which is why it is my film of the year!

ernest et celestine

written by daniel pennac

a true joy! beautifully animated, it was touching, hilarious and completely captivating. the script was simple and effective, with just enough anarchy to balance its tenderness and its fun.

other notable films seen at the cinema this year —

50/50 (will reiser)  –  moneyball (steven zaillian and aaron sorkin)

young adult (diablo cody)  –  magic mike (reid carolin)

ted (seth macfarlane & alec sulkin & wellesley wild)

grabbers (kevin lehane)  –  looper (rian johnson)

favourite films seen on the small screen —

the good, the bad, the weird (jee-woon kim, min-suk kim)

agora (alejandro amenábar & mateo gil)  –  away from her (sarah polley)

stake land (nick damici, jim mickle)  –  girlwalk//allday (no credited writer)

sound of noise (ola simonsson, johannes stjärne nilsson)

the guard (john michael mcdonagh)

 

these films were my favourites because the stories and characters engaged me on an emotional level to a very high degree – and that is what i hope for every time the lights go down, or crack open a new script for that matter!

to catch my mini-reviews throughout the year you can join me on twitter and facebook.

i hope 2013 is your best year yet, so until next time…

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

star wars first draft

believed to be one of the first drafts of ‘star wars’ by george lucas and dated may 1974, this is one for fans who can see where this iconic series of films began.

it is a first, rough draft and absolutely a work-in-progress. usually, out of respect for the writer, i would never post a draft of a screenplay at the stage this is at, but as it is nearly 40 years old, and considering lucas has passed everything on now, it seems reasonable to consider this as both a learning tool and something for fans of the series to enjoy.

The Star Wars

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

follow me on twitter and facebook

finding inspiration everywhere

this is the 2nd of 2 short summer posts looking at inspiration. this one looks at how inspiration can show up absolutely anywhere and how it is important to keep your eyes and ears open in the hunt for that gem of a story or even a scene or character.

a few weeks ago, the film safety not guaranteed opened in america, an indie ‘time-travel’ film that i am looking forward to seeing. the basic premise is “three magazine employees head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified ad seeking a companion for time travel” (imdb), but what was just as interesting to me was how this story began.

a man called john silveira was asked to write some jokes as filler for the thin classified pages in the sept/oct 1997 issue of backwoods home magazine by a friend who worked at the publication. the classified ad (pictured above) sent america’s media into a frenzy as they searched for this self-professed ‘time traveler’.

(as it happens, the text was the opening to an unpublished novel of silveira’s!)

that the ‘poster’ of this advert was anonymous only increased the curiosity of the media! eventually, writer derek connolly and director colin trevorrow took the idea of the search for this person and made their movie.

inspiration can come from anywhere!

there is a terrific scene in the player written by michael tolkin, where are a group of studio executives discuss how ideas can be found. (there are no character names here, just the dialogue.)

“I’m just saying there’s time and money to be saved…if we came up with these stories on our own.”
“Where are these stories coming from?”
“Anywhere. It doesn’t matter. The newspaper. Pick any story.”
“Immigrants protest budget cuts in literacy program.”
“Human spirit overcoming human adversity. Sounds like Horatio Alger in the barrio. Put Jimmy Smits in it and you’ve got a sexy Stand and Deliver. Next. Come on.”
“This isn’t my field.”
“It doesn’t matter. Give it a shot. You can’t lose here.”
“How about ‘Mud slide kills hundreds in slums of Chile’?”
“That’s good. Triumph over tragedy. Sounds like a John Boorman picture. Slap a happy ending on it, the script will write itself.”

the irony of this scene is that the executives are finding out ways of creating stories themselves in order to eliminate the writer from the process, but the idea that you could open a newspaper or visit a news website and adapt a story from any real life event is very clear. try it sometime – it is exercise for the creative mind if nothing else, and who knows what you might find!

happy writing and have a great summer

phil

scriptguyphil.com

you can also follow me and make comments on twitter and facebook

remembering what got you started

this is the 1st of 2 short summer posts looking at inspiration. this one looks at keeping a hold of the first seed of an idea that started you on the long road to getting your story onto the screen.

in an interview with f/x executive john landgraf on kcrw’s podcast the business, he discussed, amongst other things, the working methods of american stand-up and tv star louis ck.

one of the interesting points that came up was that when writing his tv show, louis ck only writes a first draft, preferring the raw instinct of his original thoughts to refining the writing to a more streamlined and (hopefully) perfect place.

louis ck made his start, and continues to perform, as a stand-up comedian, so it stands to reason that the idea of a live performance would creep into his writing style somehow.

now it takes a very special talent to be able to pull that off, and as a script consultant i tend to agree more with william goldman when he stated that “writing is re-writing” in his book adventures in the screen trade. but listening to the interview, it struck me that in the constant re-writing that goes on with most projects can often lead to too much diluting of the original idea, the original inspiration, and that the heart and soul of a story can disappear if you’re not careful.

one of the first questions i ask of a writer if the process has begun to get bogged down a little is “what was the single, original image that put you on the path to writing this story?”, and it usually is an image. the big ‘what if?’ question comes at an early stage, but i’m talking about that moment when inspiration struck. if you dig deep enough (although you probably won’t have to), it will come back to you and hopefully remind you where this story was born.

so if you get bogged down, try and remember that key moment – it might help you get back on track!

happy writing and have a great summer

phil

scriptguyphil.com

you can also follow me and make comments on twitter and facebook

you write because you love it, right?

charlton heston and edward g. robinson in soylent green

while relaxing on the set of soylent green (1973), which was to be his final film, cinema legend edward g. robinson overheard a young actor complaining about the length of time they had to wait between takes. edward g. robinson agreed that it was irritating then said,

“i figure that’s what they pay me for. the acting i do for free.”

now here is a guy who obviously loved what he did! a film career that spanned 57 years and 101 films including little caesar, double indemnity, key largo, the cincinnati kid and the aforementioned soylent green, is evidence of that.

there is something to be gained from robinson’s attitude to work. his approach to which elements of his job as an actor were most important to him can be adapted to any creative field. so let’s look at why it is important to condition yourself psychologically into working for ‘free’.

as i’m sure you’ve heard many times before, writing is not the best choice of occupation if you want to be rich. storytellers do it because they love it and are compelled to do it, and if they can crank out a living out of it then that is often enough. making a living, however, requires additional skills than simply being able to spin gold out of letters and words.

when you’re working on a project, there is more to do than writing a great script. if you’re working for a production company there will be (potentially annoying and soul destroying) notes sessions, treatments and outlines to write and possibly pitching to financiers and other creative talent. writers that enjoy all of these aspects are few and far between – if you are one of them, then my hat off to you – but for many writers, these are tasks that keep you from writing scripts.

in the same way, if you are writing on spec, there is a huge amount of legwork necessary in the attempt to get producers, agents, etc., interested in you and your work. researching which production companies or agencies to approach, and which employee at those companies are the right ones to contact first, is a time consuming process. and then there is the dreaded day job if you have one – the need to put food on the table and pay your rent can take a huge chunk of your day.

this is why i feel it is important to condition yourself psychologically into believing that when you sit down to write your scripts, you are doing it for love not money. sure, its a job, but it is one you have chosen because it is what you want to do!

it is your story and they are your characters that you have nurtured and grown to love. you enjoy spending time with them and you either wonder what they’re going to get up to or how they’re going to react to what you’re about to throw at them. even when you are hired to write on a project that isn’t yours, you should find yourself eager to get to know your new found friends and what makes them tick. you have to give yourself into it otherwise it will show in your work.

relatively few people have jobs that they absolutely love, so when it is time to write, free your mind of the pressures of the real world and any money that’s involved and simply enjoy the creativity – it is what you live for after all!

it worked for edward g. robinson – i hope it works for you too!

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

you can also follow me and make comments on twitter and facebook

to the power of three

regardless of what brought you to writing – a love of telling stories, the ‘lone wolf’ lifestyle or whether it is something you simply have to do – there is no way of getting away from the fact that the film industry is a collaborative industry. even if you are steven soderbergh or robert rodriguez who shoot and edit their own films, they still work with countless others, including writers, on their films.

a great many filmmakers work with the same writers and/or crew on a regular basis, but what i want to talk about here is a triangle of collaborators that form a solid foundation for a successful and extended career:–

writer – producer – director.

making the leap into the world of professional screenwriting on your own is a daunting task! one of the best ways to make this task a little easier is to form alliances as early as possible.

you could hook up with a producer that likes your work and will get to you to do some re-writing work and build things from there. you could go to festivals and meet other filmmakers who share your perspective and taste. you could answer advertisements and work for free on shorts being made in and around your area in the hope of making some good contacts that way. all of these are valid ways of making friends and new potential collaborators, particularly if you’re coming into the industry cold.

alternatively, you could look closer to home. many of you have been involved in the industry in one way or another already. and many of you will have been to, or are still going to, film school or another kind of film/media study programme. i’m sure even at an early stage that you will have made close friends who are also ready to break into the industry? are there potential collaborating partners in your close circle of friends?

when looking at the writer-producer-director triangle, there are three examples of how successful collaborations can be formed:–

the first one that sprang to mind was the triangle of john hodge, andrew macdonald and danny boyle.

hodge was (and still is, i believe!) a doctor by trade, but he met macdonald at the edinburgh film festival in 1991. this meeting obviously inspired hodge to write a screenplay – which became shallow grave (1994). once it was finished the hunt for a director was on. that hunt ended when they saw the tv drama mr. wroe’s virgins, directed by boyle. the triangle was complete! together they made shallow grave, the era-defining trainspotting (1996), a life less ordinary (1997), a short film alien love triangle (1999) and the beach (2000). they have also worked in pairs with macdonald producing the boyle-directed 28 days later (2002) and executive producing films written by hodge, the final curtain (2002) and the sweeney (2012). boyle has recently directed a film, trance, co-written by hodge, which is currently in post production.

the next threesome has created some of the funniest and most engaging comedies of the last decade – simon pegg, nira park and edgar wright.

this collaboration began when pegg and wright worked together on the tv comedy series asylum in 1996. pegg got together with another performer on the series, jessica hynes and they wrote the cult series spaced. having both worked with wright before, they brought him in to direct. the series was produced by channel 4, but a co-producer was big talk productions run by nira park. since spaced, they have worked together on shaun of the dead (2004), hot fuzz (2007) and are due to be making the world’s end (2014). park has also produced the wright-directed scott pilgrim vs. the world (2010), as well as paul (2011) co-written by and starring pegg.

the final triangle i want to mention is relatively new – antonio campos, sean durkin and josh mond.

this is an interesting triangle because they all want to write and direct their own films. what makes the difference here is that the writer-director of a project is backed up by the other two who act as producers. they met at new york university’s film school (although only one graduated), and soon after set up their production company borderline films. after producing 4 shorts together, their first feature was afterschool (2008) directed by campos. their follow-up was the excellent martha marcy may marlene (2011) directed by durkin. their next film, simon killer, also directed by campos, has been picked up for distribution but no release date has been set. to hear their story in their own words, check out the q & a with jeff goldsmith podcast on martha marcy may marlene – where you will also hear why josh mond is yet to step into the director’s chair!

there are important things to consider when forming collaborative partnerships. all parties need to have the same kind of drive and love for filmmaking, everyone needs to pull their weight in whatever role they have taken on and above all there needs to be trust – you need to know that your partners have your back and will go that extra mile for you! i wrote a blogpost about how to assess a working relationship, which you can read here.

making the leap into the industry will always be daunting no matter what, but if you are not making that jump alone and you are with people you trust, then it makes that leap just a little bit easier!

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

if you have any comments or other examples of writer-producer-director triangles, then feel free to post them here, or you can also find me on twitter and facebook!

mini movie reviews 2012 – part 1

i thought that i’d post my mini movie reviews for the first four months of 2012 in one handy little blog post for those of you who are interested.

do you agree or disagree? what are the best films you’ve seen this year?

(note:- the reviews have been taken from my twitter feed and my facebook page, hence the varying length!)

first up, the films i’ve seen on the big screen:-

50/50 was a real treat. it was lol funny and very touching, never straying into being over-sentimental. the well-written script obviously came from the heart, but it was let down a little in the way the female characters were written – a female co-writer would have been a real advantage! having said that anna kendrick, angelica huston and bryce dallas howard all did great work to give their characters weight. highly recommended!

enjoyed moneyball. a bit long and started to drag at the end, but a solid script and well made all round. brad pitt & jonah hill had great chemistry, and you have to give props to pitt for pushing it thru some tough times to get it made. pitt could well be the robert redford everyone thought he would be. 30 years ago redford would have been a shoo in for this role!

tinker tailor soldier spy was a great adaptation. characters are beautifully realised with raw emotion being more important than ‘spying’!

young adult was refreshing. strong tone and characters with an unlikeable lead that was fascinating to watch. also avoids an ‘easy’ ending

attack the block was all kinds of awesome! i waited nearly a year to see it and it eventually came to denmark. it was funny, exciting and had some great action sequences. the script followed the genre in the proper way, but subverted the standard genre elements enough to keep the audience on their toes. couldn’t recommend it enough!

project x is a bad movie but i’d be lying if i said there weren’t a few laugh out loud moments. best seen with friends and alcohol enhanced!

mission: impossible – ghost protocol was a good entry in the franchise – better than 2 and 3, but still not matching 1 for a proper mission impossible film. it has a nicely complicated plot and better characters than normal. it suffers from a climax that, though good, is overshadowed by earlier action sequences, and although i liked jeremy renner in the film, his character was really poorly written and could have been way more complex than he was. still, it was 2 hours of fun and entertainment!!

shame was a powerful piece of emotional storytelling. minimal dialogue, stunning visuals and great performances combined to make a truly compelling film. i wish more films were made this way!

hugo was visually dynamic and the attention to detail was exquisite. my problem with the film was that the script was so cluttered. subplots, unnecessary characters and flashbacks completely swamp the fragile emotion of a beautifully simple story. the overtly theatrical acting (a bad choice by scorsese, though i saw what he was going for) and a lead actor that just couldn’t carry the film meant that it didn’t hit me emotionally – even though i am a film lover! a disappointment!

the hunger games was mildly entertaining, but definitely lacked the edge it needed to be a great movie. not necessarily in the violence, which i thought they did pretty well for a pg13, but the whole felt very superficial in its political and societal satire. its an interesting enough world, i just hope they use it better in the sequels. jennifer lawrence proved that she has what it takes and that winter’s bone wasn’t just a one off.

the passion of joan of arc is one of my favourite films and i got the chance to see it again, but with an unusual twist – on a big screen in a church, on good friday and with live organ accompaniment! the film itself is magnificent with maria falconetti giving perhaps the greatest acting performance ever seen, and the music was well performed and the organ sound felt very appropriate for the film. a great event set up by søren voigt-jakobsen.

the raid exceeded my high expectations! the action was not just intense – it was really intense! it is about two-thirds solid action and i was worried it would get monotonous, but it was consistently inventive and kept evolving. i anticipated a paper thin story, but it was more complex than you would normally find in an action film. the big surprise was how much depth the major characters had. it is violent fun for action fans, but this had hidden depths that made the experience all the more pleasurable!!

martha marcy may marlene was a strong character study, with exceptional writing and great performances. very tense and full of emotion – highly recommended!

sleep tight is a terrific new film by jaume balagueró one of the rec directors. it is a psychological thriller that truly delivers in all departments. it is creepy, disturbing and, at times, downright hilarious! one sequence in particular is one of the most tense and funniest sequences i have seen for some time. the writing and character work is excellent and it is expertly directed. highly recommended!

killer joe was a surreal and visceral film. it was gratuitous in so many ways, but was all the more enjoyable for it! generally terrific performances and well directed. tracy letts adapted his own stage play for the screen and did a great job (i’m amazed this was ever a stage play!). the script was very strong building some intriguing characters and was unpredictable and tense. not for sensitive souls, but very rewarding!

and now those i’ve seen on a screen a little smaller:-

started the new year with rio with the kids. the story was predictable, but there were plenty of belly laugh gags. surprisingly enjoyable!

rabbit hole was disappointing. i thought john cameron mitchell did a really good job visually expanded it from stage to screen, (it didn’t feel like a filmed stage play) but by doing so, the intensity and emotion of the story and characters seemed to be diluted. it had some strong scenes and performances, but they tended to be the ones that were directly lifted from the play. i’d love to see this on stage!

in a lonely place is one of my favourite movies and hands down bogart’s best role/performance. probably gloria grahame’s best too. top script (very lean and dark), and superb direction from nicholas ray. an absolute must see!

rocket science suffers from too-much-indie-quirk syndrome, but was fairly enjoyable nonetheless. some 3rd act surprises gave it a lift!

127 hours was ok. a brave choice by boyle, but he wasn’t brave enough to let the tense script work its magic. didn’t need to be so flashy!

chaplin’s the kid. its short, sweet, moving and very funny. treat the kids to this and give them a break from colour and noise!

despite some good technical work and a few atmospheric moments, danish horror film kollegiet was sadly done in by a script full of clichés and plotholes. the characters were so one-dimensional it was impossible to get emotionally involved, and the film has nothing new to offer.

be kind rewind has a lot of heart and charm. not the out-and-out laughfest i expected, but more enjoyable because of that!

love and other drugs was pretty good for an hour – some snappy dialogue and great chemistry between the leads – but then descends into being oversentimental. not too bad though.

easy a is a smart, engaging high school comedy. the writing is sharp and clever and the characters are well-defined without too much stereotyping. its well-made and zips along at a cracking pace – the only downside was laying on the pop culture references too thick. a very strong cast and a terrific central performance from emma stone.

agora is a powerful, engrossing and very challenging movie that few people seem to have heard of. it looks at religious and philosophical conflicts in 4th century alexandria, and although that doesn’t seem like a ‘fun’ premise, it really is worth hunting down. the heavy subject matter is lightened by a fresh, economical script and alejandro amenábar’s vision is a joy to behold.

wonder boys is a beautifully written movie. subtle characters, which in lesser hands would have been stereotypes, and a great tone. i hope now that harry potter is done, steve kloves now has the time and money to do more of the great work he does here.

cargo is a swiss science fiction thriller that sadly relies on the standard clichés of the genre and even seems to use moments directly from other movies. some of the acting is good, some pretty bad. the writing is not particularly good, but the directing is very solid. there is some great photography and the production design is probably the best thing about this film. for die hard fans of the genre only i’d say!

its been said before but la confidential is a masterclass in adaptation. read the book, watch the film and see what they did – phenomenal!

if you haven’t seen, or even heard of, stake land, then put it on your radar. yes, its a low-budget indie, vampire apocalypse movie, but it is so much more than that. apart from the occasional clunking line of dialogue and an ending that drags just a touch, it is a terrific tense and atmospheric film. well worth hunting down! (pun intended!)

ok, so the blues brothers wouldn’t be the best choice for a masterclass in screenwriting, but the film is so damned entertaining!

ratatouille is pixar’s most consistently enjoyable film in both laughs and storytelling, but i really wish the stakes had been higher!

the ghost writer is like a holiday novel. i kept wanting to know what happened next, but the day after i saw the plotholes and logic lapses!

disappointed with uncle boonmee. had looked forward to it, but it didn’t engage me emotionally or philosophically. stunning visuals tho’!

blades of glory – the structure was a mess, but there’s enough laughs and inspired lunacy to more than make up for it. iron lotus, anyone?

kung fu panda 2 – less focused and structured than 1, but great action and stronger emotional character development. a worthy follow up! could have used more master shifu though!

the adjustment bureau was solid entertainment, which kept focus on the personal story among its big ideas. i can’t help thinking that there was a better movie buried in here somewhere though. still, they kept it nice and tight, and the chemistry between emily blunt and matt damon was great.

timecrimes is fun and playful for about an hour then loses steam – tho’ it has probably the most logical ending for a time travel movie!

chicken run is a lot of fun with some great characters but seems to be missing the heart that aardman animations has for wallace and gromit. still streets ahead of their competitors!

trick ‘r treat was definitely a treat! a cheeky little movie with a few scares, some good laughs and a couple of neat twists! dylan baker and brian cox own the scenes they’re in, and it packs a lot in to its 78 minutes! don’t wait for halloween! check it out now!

finally saw bridesmaids and it was very funny, but not as laugh out loud funny as i expected. but that was a good thing as it turns out because it gave them a chance to develop rounded characters that made for a more satisfying film. a touch overlong, but that is me nit-picking! it deserved all the success it got!

lemony snicket’s a series of unfortunate events – as its title implies was episodic – too much for its own good. i found the voiceover very irritating and overused, which didn’t give the characters room to breathe. i thought the kids were good and the design was terrific, but just couldn’t get emotionally involved with the kids’ journey.

marie & bruce had julianne moore, whom i love, matthew broderick, whom i like, and was written by the magnificent wallace shawn. the film is a complete misfire. i’m sure the play on which it is based works well on stage, but the director was trying way too hard to make it ‘big’. performances are over the top and the characters very irritating. i’d love to see these two perform it on stage though.

the 11th hour is a eco-doc produced and narrated by leonardo dicaprio. as it discusses the world’s eco problems with a wide variety of experts it is really preaching to the converted in a very bombastic way. where this film works is in the 2nd half where many possible solutions are offered, and i found this part both optimistic and very enlightening. way better than an inconvenient truth.

paul was a treat! not up there with other pegg/frost collaborations, but i laughed the whole way through anyway! the chemistry and wordplay between all the main characters was great and all the sci-fi references were fun to play along with. (my favourite was the country & western version of the music from the cantina scene in mos eisley!). this was a lot of fun!

the tree was a slow burning story about the loss of a family member that didn’t grip me as much as i’d hoped it would. everything about it was fine, but i felt it took too long to set up its main idea – thus making it difficult to completely engage in when the emotional storyline kicks in.

big has always been an enjoyable watch, but the joy here was showing it to our 8 year old olivia – she absolutely loved it!! (although we fast-forwarded through the boob touching scene – she’s not quite ready!!). she enjoyed all the fun stuff, but also got to grips with what it would be like to be in that situation, which was a big eye-opener!

the social network i really like, but it is always a bit disappointing that the final half hour plays out in such a formulaic way. i wish that sorkin/fincher had found a way to make the ‘corruption of success’ part of the story more interesting, but i assume they wanted to be faithful to the true story. the first hour and a half is so good though, i guess i’m just being greedy!

the hole was a fun little film, and although not reaching the heights of his best work, its still joe dante – so what’s not to like!! he uses the clichés of the genre to his benefit and there are equal parts laughs and jump scares. too tame for horror fans i suspect, but for movie fans who love to be teased and toyed with, this was a fun, engaging watch! the standout scene involved bruce dern and some lightbulbs!

the taking of pelham one two three (original 74 version) is exciting, funny and has possibly the highest number of angry characters i’ve seen in a single film! this thriller, which has more than its fair share of laughs, is an incredibly enjoyable film with one of the best written scripts in its genre – and the performances make it sing. there’s not one false move in it, the score is magnificent and the final shot is worth your time alone. if you haven’t seen it, treat yourselves!

i finally got to see avatar and the question i asked myself afterwards is how can someone with as much imagination as james cameron has, write a story that is as derivative and clichéd as this one? the characters had no depth and the story beats were obvious way in advance. there were some amazing elements here (i loved the way species literally connected to each other), but the film bored me as a whole. the sad thing is cameron has proved he can write – ‘the terminator’, ‘aliens’ etc – but its clear that’s not where his heart lies now. wanted to like it, but found it very dull!

super 8 started really well, creating some engaging kids’ characters and great overall tension and atmosphere, but then became repetitive, over-manipulative and bombastic. its a shame, because the groundwork had been laid for a movie as good as those j. j. abrams obviously loved so much. sadly, he came up short by attempting to appeal to the modern audience instead of going for the all-out love letter to 80s kids adventure movies. its still worth a watch though as there are plenty of great scenes.

american splendor is a beautifully conceived film. an intriguing story of a fascinating guy that makes me wish that all biopics were this good! “ordinary life is pretty complex stuff”!

i’ll be posting part 2 of this series at the end of august.

if you have any comments then feel free to post them here, otherwise you can find me on twitter and facebook and hassle me there!

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

culture clash

i recently came home from a fun and intensive three days at the berlin film festival, where i met with filmmakers from more than 20 different countries. i heard a great many stories from many different cultures, which highlighted one of my favourite parts of my job and this industry. i find cultural differences deeply fascinating, and an integral part of what makes the film industry such a terrific area to work in.

just by looking at what is on offer at my local arthouse cinema today proves the  diversity of global filmmaking – an american film set in the uk, a danish documentary set in russia, an american film, a german documentary, a danish film, a japanese animation based on a beloved english story, a french romantic comedy, a film by an italian director made in the u.s., an iranian drama and a classic british novel directed by an american.

on a personal level, i have worked on films made in denmark, belgium, romania and canada, and have helped develop projects in the u.s., the u.k., france, spain, germany, poland, sweden and australia – and i wouldn’t have it any other way!

cultural differences present to me, not only an extraordinary variety in the projects i get the chance to work on and the writers, producers and directors i get to work with, but also one of the greatest challenges in my work.

back when i worked on belgian film bullhead (rundskop), a situation arose where the production company had worked extremely hard to reduce the number of shooting days in compliance with their projected budget, and they were still a few days too many. as i had already worked on 6 drafts of the script, they asked me to take a few days to find potential ways of reducing shooting days by cutting, combining locations, etc. i was very knowledgeable of the story, but still enough of an outsider to not be too attached to the script in a way that might affect my judgment on whether certain elements of the script were absolutely necessary or whether the production team were simply too attached to them.

one of the things i chose to do was to cut two characters (the two french mechanics) who were part of a subplot that had a small influence on the main story. i found a way of incorporating the important information from their scenes concisely into other parts of the story.

however, by doing this i had unwittingly eliminated an important part of the tone of the film relating to cultural differences. when i had worked on drafts of the script they had been translated from flemish to english, so the elements regarding the differences between flemish-speaking and french-speaking belgians had been slightly lost in translation. these cultural differences mirrored somewhat the suspicions between the flemish farmers and the french-belgian mafia that runs throughout the story. having now seen the final film, i can see what the mechanics mean to the tone, and i can understand more clearly why they are there.

in the end, we got the shooting days down, the film got made and was recently nominated for an oscar as best foreign film. and i got to learn something about the cultural differences in belgium!

as an englishman, it was an eye-opener that two countries such as england and belgium would have such pronounced cultural differences. they are so close geographically, and are both part of western europe.

many filmmakers from all corners of the globe have tried to make films in hollywood, or at the very least in english or a language different from their native one with varying degrees of success. Right from the early days of silent and talkies, filmmakers from europe (curtiz, lang, wilder, etc) have moved to America and become influential filmmakers. many suggest that the combination of a european sensibility combined with american culture is what has made the films of these filmmakers so interesting – and i’m inclined to agree with that idea.

three prominent danish directors have tried, with varying degrees of success, to make films in english and/or the u.s.

lars von trier has been incredibly successful in critical circles for many years now – albeit with a certain amount of controversy and he often divides critics. he is certainly more highly regarded outside of denmark than he is at home, but he has also never truly cracked the american market, which possibly highlights a european/american divide.

thomas vinterberg, after the huge success of his breakout film festen also tried to make the leap into english like von trier. the two films he made, its all about love and dear wendy, (the latter interestingly enough written by von trier), were both highly ambitious, critically mixed, financial failures. vinterberg is now back on track making films in denmark, including the impressive submarino.

nicolas winding refn is the one director that seems to have the ability to adapt himself better to all markets. his story is an interesting one. he broke out with pusher  and bleeder, then went to america to make the underrated and underseen fear x. after financial troubles, he relaunched his career with pusher 2 and pusher 3, two highly successful films, then went to the u.k. to make bronson and valhalla rising. most recently he made drive in the u.s. all of these films have been well-received critically and, with the exception of fear x, have had financial success.

one of the most prominent filmmakers of the last 2 decades is ang lee. after success in taiwan, he was an unusual choice to say the least to direct an adaptation of the very british sense and sensibility. a film not in his own language or time period, you could be forgiven for thinking he might be out of his depth. however, emma thompson, the film’s writer, said that it was precisely because of this cultural difference that stopped the film being the usual british period drama, and gave it an additional dimension and took the film to a higher level. it was a financial and commercial success garnering 7 oscar nominations. he since made a number of successful films in locations, time periods and genres (brokeback mountain, the ice storm, lust, caution, etc) that wouldn’t at face value seem to be a good match for ang lee, but that he has adapted to and brought his own cultural sensibilities to the project that have added something to these films.

whether it is the project, the person or a combination of the two that makes the transition succeed or not is as difficult a question to answer as what makes a film successful.

with so many films receiving financing from multiple countries, it is important, now more than ever, to embrace cultural differences. we are working in a global industry now and i see that as a very positive development.

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

(and you can follow me here on twitter and facebook)

it ain’t what you do its the way that you do it!

back in 2002, i pitched an idea to a number of producers for a thriller involving a cycle courier. the basic idea was that the best (and most arrogant) cycle courier in copenhagen was requested to deliver three packages around the city in a short period of time. after he is successful he finds millions have been deposited in his bank account, and the three prominent businessmen he delivered the packages to have all been assassinated. he has been framed and must clear his name. cue masses of tension and some breakneck cycle/car chases around copenhagen’s very photogenic city streets!

generic action film? sure! but i thought it would have at least been an interesting angle for an action film. i did some preliminary research and interviewed some cycle couriers to get an idea of their day to day routine and the aspects of the job so the script would at least have an element of reality.

i then started to work on a few other projects as a script consultant and came to realise that consulting was what i wanted to do and what i was best at. the courier film got filed away in my subconscious – although i do admit to playing out the action scenes in my head from time to time!

fast forward to 2012 and a new film by david koepp, premium rush will be coming out in august. here is the logline – “In Manhattan, a bike messenger picks up an envelope that attracts the interest of a dirty cop, who pursues the cyclist throughout the city.”

generic action film? sure! but its an interesting angle for an action film!

before you start to worry, this is not going to be me griping about someone stealing my idea – they clearly didn’t – but it reinforces the theory that it isn’t originality that matters – it is execution.

the legend goes that the minute you have an idea for a new story, four other people around the world have had the same, or at least a very similar, idea. as ridiculous as that sounds, it makes sense sometimes when so many films being released today seem to be a re-hash or an amalgam of other films that have gone before.

i’ve also read different arguments suggesting that there are only 5, 7 or 13 ‘pure’ stories – take your pick – but it is how you apply elements of those stories to your writing.

however many ‘pure’ stories there are, and how many people around the world have the same idea as you, the execution of your idea is key. if you execute well enough there’s a chance you will rise to the top of the heap and get your script out there and onto the big screen.

i was one of, i’m sure, many people around the world who’s jaws dropped when they found out that david fincher was going to make a facebook movie. i really like fincher as a director, but he isn’t a director where i feel the need to be a completist. i suspected at that early stage that the social network would probably be a film i wouldn’t see, at least on the big screen. when details eventually emerged that it was about the personal conflicts surrounding the start up of facebook i became more interested and when i finally saw the film, i was riveted from start to finish – because it was executed so well.

this isn’t about being first to the post either. great execution of a story will also give a film the opportunity of becoming a classic later on down the line. for example, in 1990 three gangster movies were released in quick succession between september and december. goodfellas, miller’s crossing and the godfather part 3 came out in that order with varied success. they earned $47 million, $5 million and $67 million respectively (figures u.s. domestic box office – source box office mojo).

i love ‘goodfellas’, and although its not particularly good, i’ve never thought that ‘the godfather part 3’ is quite as bad as its reputation suggests, but of the three ‘miller’s crossing’ would be my favourite – and it made nothing on its original release. you could say that the coen brothers later success has helped keep the film in the public eye, but i say it is such a brilliantly executed film from the script on down that it stands the test of time better than the other two. ‘goodfellas’ may still be a more popular and lauded film, but for me, ‘miller’s crossing’ is more timeless.

so if you feel that the story you are really keen to write may not be the most original story ever, find the angle that hasn’t been done before and use your unique writer’s voice to execute the story in the best and most original way you can think of.

its hard to remember the last truly ‘original’ film that i saw, but i see well-executed ones all the time!

happy writing

phil

scriptguyphil.com

(and you can follow me here on twitter and facebook)