The Screenwriter's Prequel: Do You Have What It Takes?

The Screenwriter's Prequel deadline is coming up on June 1st, and applications are rolling in. You can learn more about the program here.

Are you trying to determine if the Prequel is the right fit for you? Want to know more about what it takes to be a professional screenwriter? Here are some questions to consider:

Do you feel compelled to write? Notice I didn't ask, Do you love to write? Many writers I know don't love it on a daily basis, including me. As soon as I get settled into my writing time on some days, I'd rather play another round of Candy Crush, right after a good nap. Well, most days. Okay fine, every day. However, there is a small, sometimes not so quiet, voice that urges me to get to it. Writing is on my to-do list every day, and I feel a sense of accomplishment when I check it off the list. If you're already writing, great. You get a sticker. If you love writing all the time, great. You get two stickers and a sideways glance from me wondering if you're a Stepford robot. If you've "always wanted to write" but never been able to get yourself together to actually do it, sorry. We can't help you. We don't carry any magical pixie dust that will automatically force you to sit down at your computer. If you're somewhere in between and just need a boost, a reason, or even just permission to do make writing a greater priority in your life, we can come alongside and offer plenty of motivation.

Do you love having written? So do I. That's why I force myself to do it when I'd rather nap. The reward of having written is what keeps me going when the writing itself feels more like punishment. If you can relate, you are a writer.

Are you willing to learn something new? I went to a holistic doctor recently and she mentioned that one of the most important questions she asks her patients is, "Are you willing to be well?" She says there are many people who are sick simply because some part of them is not willing to participate in the healing process. I think it is the same with screenwriters and coaches. Writers who are open to learning will break through the mental blocks that keep them from growing and achieving success. If you believe you can never be a master of this craft, only a student, then you will go far.

Do you have something to say? Writers are prophetic voices for the masses. An emerging writer may not be able to articulate exactly what it is she wants to say, but she recognizes that it is important, and it has the potential to help others. The bulk of our work mentoring writers is to help them identify and strengthen their voice. However, we can't help you if you think stories shouldn't have something to say.

Do you want to write professionally for the screen? Notice we haven't mentioned any cliches that people typically associate with a Hollywood-based screenwriting program, including how old you need to be, what genres are selling, or how hungry you are to win, win, win. We'd rather you not focus on those things because they tend to become distractions from doing the greater work. That said, the Screenwriter's Prequel faculty are chock-full of wisdom about the need to write content that also succeeds in the marketplace. If you want to make grandiose art that pleases no audience but yourself, knock yourself out- by yourself. If you want to create something of quality intended for a specific audience that has the real possibility of being seen, we can guide you through those steps, and help you lay out a specific plan to get it in front of the right people.

Notes On Adapting a Book Into a Screenplay

The practical and ethical problems of adaptation:

a)     How does form (including genre and convention) influence content and vice versa in the adaptation process?  That is, in changing a story to another storytelling form, what information needs to be lost as no longer deliverable?  What kind of new information can be added because of new possibilities in the adopted form?

b)    How much fidelity does the adapter owe the original text?  More than just meeting the expectations of a project's fan base,  how much adherence does the adapter owe to the original writer's values and intentions?  As the creator of a character, does the original author have any claim on the choices that character can be made to make in future adaptations?  Can the adaptor just do anything with the characters and story?

Any writer setting out to adapt a book to the screen or stage needs to  spend a bit of time brooding over the limits and possibilities of each respective art form as narrative mechanisms.  What conventions are appropriate to a novel but completely impossible on the stage?  How does a screen narrative bring more control of the viewer's focus than is possible on stage?  What does sound and image add to the experience of a story impossible in a book?

Main differences between books and movies:

1)     In a movie, all action is present tense (even flashbacks have to be placed in a present context)

2)    Movie characters' inner lives must mainly be shown through actions.  There is no other convincing access to their thoughts (including their dialogue).

3)    Visual storytelling has budget constraints which is not true of prose narrative – anything is possible in a book.

4)  Books can pleasantly meander.  Movies need to come in under two hours.

5)  Book story structure is very much free form.  Movies generally need to be structured in three acts.

6)  Movie storytelling involves utilizing sound, intercutting and composition.

An adaptation can take...

A)    A good book and turn it into a lousy film   (Wise Blood, Lovely Bones, Scarlet Letter, Brothers Karamazov, Simon Birch, Brideshead Revisited)

B)    A lousy book and turn it into a great film  (Dr. Zhivago, Giant, The Godfather, Jaws)

C)    A good book and turn it into a good film  (GWTW, Color Purple, Precious, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, Diary of a Country Priest)

What makes the difference is the commitment of the adaptor to the cinematic project.  The needs of the project AS A MOVIE must be paramount in the adaptor's conscioussness.

Optioning Source Material

Don't start working on any adaptation until you have completely secured the rights to the material. The first task is to figure out who is the holder of the screen rights (generally the publisher or original author).  If the material is seventy-five years or older, chances are it is in the public domain.  But you should still check.  

The next step is obtaining what is called "an option." An option gives you the exclusive right to adapt and seek to produce a screen story based on the previously published work.  Options can be for any length of time, but we recommend at least a year. Basically, with an option you can get your script written, and look for production partners or financing, or try and sell the screenplay, without having to worry about someone else taking it out from underneath you or simply working on it alongside of your efforts.  The option also prevents you from being sued for copyright violations.  There are lots of things to consider before entering into an option agreement.  Check out this book for more specifics.

Stages of Adapting a Book to the Screen

1)    Get the rights.

2)    Master the book.  Make a list of the most memorable A) Moments; B)  Lines of Dialogue; C)  Arenas; D) Other distinctive details

3)     Identify the sweep of the story and why it works – or why it doesn’t

4)     Be able to articulate the book’s several themes

5)     Choose a structure and point of view which may or may not be the same as the ones used in the source material.

Random thoughts about adaptation....

-  If you are adapting a novel or memoir that is reliant on a first person point of view, the  internal monologue of the narrator's voice is the first thing to go. Movies are not as intimate or introspective as books. You can try to preserve the first person perspective through a limited voice over, but it is going to recede to be mainly for subtext.  The story needs to play out visually in a movie.

- A great adaptation should fix problems in the original source material.  The writer needs to be reconciled to that.

- One technique is to read the book, set it for a bit, and then write an outline of the main beats that have left a residual impression.  Your task is to recreate the most memorable parts of the novel, and what you remember best could be a good indicator of those key aspects.  Generally, everything off the main through−line or not essential to the major sub−plot has to go.

- The biggest difference between a movie and the book on which it is based comes down to sheer quantity.  A movie can be thought of as nine to twelve, ten minute sequences.  A book can have scores of scenes and sequences.  The screenwriter has to choose the most cinematic scenes and the key beats.  The experience of a movie is never going to feel satisfying to a diehard fan of the book.  It is probably easier if the screenwriter ISN'T a diehard fan of the book because the necessary omissions will be easier.

You can't say the same thing with a moving picture as you can with a 
book, any more than you can express with paint what you can with 
plaster. - William Faulkner

“The great mystery of adaptation is that true fidelity can only be achieved through lavish promiscuity”—David Hare

Film Courage 'Notes to Screenwriters' Full Video Interview

A couple months ago we sat down with the producers of Film Courage to talk about our book, Notes to Screenwriters. The whole 70 minute interview is here:

Thanks, Film Courage! We enjoyed talking with you.

The Screenwriter's Prequel

If writing for the screen is what you want to do, this is where you need to be this August 1st.

CURRICULUM: 

• What are the basic skill sets of screenwriting?  How do your skills rate?
• What is your writing process?  How can it be more productive?
• What are the essential elements of a story?  What makes a story cinematic?
• What makes a story matter?  What makes it unforgettable?
• Do you have a feature idea? A short? A teleplay? A web series?
• How do you make a character better than the real?
• How can you make the audience care about your character?
• How is formatting a screenplay an art and a science?
• What is the right structure to support your plot? To highlight your theme?
• How do you find and work with writing partners, producers, investors?
• (Extra for writing teachers) How do you develop a syllabus for an effective screenwriting program?

Each writer will have the opportunity for an introductory and exit interview in which we tailor particular help according to their career hopes and plans. We will help each draft a “What Comes Next?” plan for after the program.

Post-Workshop Mentoring: Writers who complete the eight-day workshop will have the opportunity to contract with Catharsis at a special rate to continue a mentoring phase on a project or projects for the next ten months. Mentoring will consist of monthly page number targets for the writer and feedback from Catharsis on the student’s work. Writers will complete two projects during their mentoring period: either a short film and a feature or two TV projects; We will also consider proposals for web series.