by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) For many people, this week is about endings and new beginnings. The long days of summer are over and it’s time to go back to school. Institutions of education have long been settings of interest to writers. They work as controlled, confined metaphors for the rest of life in “the real world.”... Continue Reading →
7 Story Secrets from Netflix
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Pop culture and media historians will be examining Netflix for decades to come, trying to figure out how a company that began as a membership-based DVD rental program managed to, in a short amount of time, change the television landscape, bring chaos to the cable industry, and crash the Emmy awards. It’s... Continue Reading →
4 Ways to Face the Dragon In Your Stories
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Dragons have captured our attention from the moment they stepped into our collective imaginations. The latest iteration -- involving such a creature and a boy named Pete -- arrives in theaters later this week. These mythological representations of reptiles have appeared in virtually every culture’s storytelling, dating back literally thousands of years.... Continue Reading →
9 Films to Watch for a Dialogue Bootcamp
[Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on WeScreenplay. It is reprinted here in collaboration with that site.] by Mark Stasenko (@WeScreenplay) 1. GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS written by David Mamet What we learn: Specificity makes dialogue work It’s hard to talk about dialogue and not include David Mamet, and Glengarry Glen Ross is quintessential Mamet in... Continue Reading →
6 Films that Explore Racism and the Experiences of Police in America
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Some issues are tough to narrow down to a sound bite, despite our media’s best efforts. There are matters that shouldn’t be watered down. They deserve a story. The power of story allows us to communicate with each other in ways that defy the articulation of human language. Not all stories are... Continue Reading →
“Who wouldn’t want to see that?” - A Chat with The Secret Life of Pets Writer, Brian Lynch
by Angela Bourassa You may not have heard Brian Lynch's name, but you definitely know his work. He's one of the writers behind Hop, Puss in Boots, and Minions -- the eleventh highest grossing animated movie of all time. Lynch grew up with a love of both film and comic books, both of which he works on... Continue Reading →
Pixar Storytelling: Writing Multi-Layered Stories
by Angela Bourassa Dean Movshovitz, a screenwriter and speaker, has written a new book that delves into the secrets of Pixar's screenwriting magic. The book, Pixar Storytelling: Rules for Effective Storytelling Based on Pixar's Greatest Films, is a fun, useful read. At just 122 pages, you can digest the whole thing in a weekend and be... Continue Reading →
5 Lessons from the 2016 Best Original Screenplay Nominees
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) This Sunday night marks the 88th Academy Awards, honoring the best cinematic storytelling in 2015. As writers, we get to see the finest in our field compete for the prize of Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay. While it takes tremendous talent to adapt an existing work for the screen, those... Continue Reading →
Screenwriter Profile: Tom McCarthy
The Writer: Tom McCarthy is a successful writer, director, and actor. He is the creative force behind Spotlight, which he both co-wrote and directed. He's been nominated for three Oscars -- one for directing Spotlight, another for writing it, and one for developing the story for Up. Credits: Spotlight (written by) - 2015 The Cobbler... Continue Reading →
Screenwriter Profile: Abi Morgan
The Writer: Abi Morgan has had some of the biggest dramatic hits of the last five years with her scripts for Shame, Suffragette, and The Iron Lady. These days, the British writer spends much of her time executive producing River, a UK drama that she created and has written every episode of. She got her start... Continue Reading →