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Newsletter, 14th Nov - it does exactly what it says on the tin.
Hi,
First things first, thank you for your feedback to last week's
newsletter. Pondering what Mr Obama might like in the way of filmed
entertainment, a number of you had come across profiles that named
'The Wire' as one of his faves, (great taste...), as well as
'M*A*S*H.'
Lynn referred us to the Facebook site, which adds 'Casablanca',
'Godfather' I & II, 'Lawrence of Arabia' and 'One Flew Over the
Cuckoo's Nest' among his personal preferences.
And as for 'The Wire', back in January the Las Vegas Sun carried an
article that included a comment from Michael Kostroff, an actor who
had met the future President Elect.
It seems Mr Obama told him he likes Omar, who the Sun describes as
"a stick-up artist who steals from drug dealers and then gives the
loot to poor people in the neighborhood".
"That's not an endorsement. He's not my favorite person, but he's a
fascinating character," Mr Obama added.
And then there's the biopic. HBO seem to have that one figured out,
albeit as a documentary. Apparently Edward Norton has been
producing the film after getting approval a couple of years ago to
start recording the momentous trail to the White House.
Filming will continue up to Inauguration Day on January 20, 2009,
so you will have to wait a short while to see it.
PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS?
We would like to draw you attention to two of the Screenwriting
Goldmine resources.
The first is what we have termed 'seeds' - ideas and inspiration
that we hope will plant some seeds in your imagination from which a
whopping great story line may grow. Or at least a bloom or two to
add colour to your screenplays.
It's good practice as a writer to collect ideas - whether it's just
a news story that makes you think, or something you overhear or
have witnessed, or just one of those daydreaming thoughts that come
out of nowhere. The notion of always having a notepad and pen to
hand is a good idea, even though it be illegible scrawl when you
revisit what you wrote after waking from a dream at 3am.
Anyway, to share the experience, we will be adding these seeds for
your delectation, or consternation, to build up an ideas repository
should you need something to set your imagination firing again.
We don't want to tell you what to write, but if you're looking for
an incident or a character or theme to give some new impetus to
your writing you might find some ideas to help.
To tempt you into this latest lot of seeds we have for your
consideration
- Chemistry explosion at school parents' evening
- Man cons fans with fake concert tickets
- Wedding videos - a tonic for independent cinemas
- What are the ramifications of social networking?
- Dragons and black dogs, and a rather peculiar ghost
- Walter Mitty was not alone
- Going on a witness protection programme
- To the letter of the law, but not the spirit
- Has anyone seen the missing carnation?
- How a surgeon changed my life - unexpectedly
- Want to know more about Nobel Prize winners?
To read more about these seeds, look on the Features pages.
The Daily Telegraph, a generally sensible grown-up sort of a UK
newspaper, is quite good at running short news stories that veer
towards strange (but true). It even has a section on its online
news pages labelled "weird" - it's worth a look: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat On Thursday two headlines were: "Hair from Charles Darwin's beard
go on show" and "Dog glues jaws together after biting fast food
menu". Of course, the National Enquirer could easily beat that, but
would anyone believe them?
And we would be very happy to hear from you if you come across
something that you think might stimulate the creative juices. You
can forward your ideas for inclusion in the Seeds section by
e-mailing Phil at
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MY QUESTION IS..?
Of course, coming up with an idea is only one aspect of
screenwriting. When you are starting out as a writer, the more you
write the more you realise that it's not as straightforward as it
might seem.
That's why another section of ScreenwritingGoldmine.com is
dedicated to the hundreds of questions writers have been putting to
Phil since he first launched the Screenwriting Programme in 2007.
When we were building the new site, Phil realised that he has
replied to well over 1,500 e-mails, many of which were from writers
asking for advice. And what a resource that is.
So that's why we are going through the replies and distilling the
wisdom contained in his responses to real questions, the sort of
questions you may well encounter in your own writing.
The aim is to add another 10 or so questions and answers each week
covering an amazing range of topics that aspiring screenwriters
like you have asked for advice on. Added to the 50 already up
there, this week, are the following subjects:
- How Detailed Should My Treatment Be?
- What Is The Difference Between Good Writing And Bad?
- How Can I Generate More Ideas For My Action Adventure Story?
- What Makes A Good Script
- Being Young, And a Non-Native English Speaker
- Is My Embarrassing True Tale Worth Telling? Or Will I Rue The Day?
- What's The Difference Between Script Structures For TV And Movies?
- I Want Someone To Help Write My Painful Life Story
- How Important Is It To Get Grammar And Vocabulary Right?
- More Tips On Attracting an Agent
To read these articles look for 'Ask Phil' in the Columns menu.
IN THE NEWS AND FORUMS
If you're interested in science you might want to know that Whoopi
Goldberg's new project Whoop Inc production company is a co
production with the Discovery Channel group. If you think you could
make science entertaining there may well be an opportunity to put
your ideas forward.
There's also the prospect of a formidable pair of British drama
commissioners opening up the US market for BBC Worldwide, as the UK
TV trade newspaper Broadcast has reported that Jane Tranter (ex
head of BBC Drama) will be joined by Julie Gardner (Head of BBC
Wales, Exex prod on Doctor Who) in LA.
In this week when we commemorated the 90th anniversary of the
Armistice signalling the end of the First World War, and remembered
those who sacrificed their lives in subsequent conflicts, a
question on the forums has started a debate about war movies.
Ben nominates a seminal example from the 1970s, and has prompted
differing opinions about what makes a good war movie. Ben has also
asked what the holiday viewing is going to be: 'Quantum of Solace',
'Frost/Nixon' or 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'.
DrBryan pointed out that he predicted back in June why Barack Obama
would win the US Presidential election, under the Rule of
Alternates - are there any tips there for character development?
Lynn has flagged up Script PIMP's annual screenwriting competition,
with a deadline of February 1 2009.
A BBC Writers' Room interview with Russell T Davies has been
stimulating blogs and forums across the internet - if you haven't
stumbled across it, here's the link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/russell_t_davies_1.shtml
Till next week
Happy reading and good writing.
The Screenwriting Goldmine Team
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