Advice — david trottier

When you write your first screenplay, the path to glory seems clear—find an agent who will get you a six-figure deal. A hundred and fifty query letters later, you’re languishing at Hollywood’s front gate. You’ve received a lot of encouragement, but, as Pauline Kael put it, “Hollywood’s the only town where you can die of encouragement.” Maybe it’s time to try another approach. In the film marketing business, if you lack resources but have a winner, you platform that winner by showing it to one or two markets at a time and letting it accumulate positive reviews. In other words,...

When you write your first screenplay, the path to glory seems clear: find an agent who will get you a six-figure deal. A hundred and fifty query letters later, you're languishing at Hollywood's front gate. You've received a lot of encouragement, but, as Pauline Kael put it, "Hollywood's the only town where you can die of encouragement." Maybe it's time to try the back door. In the film marketing business, if you lack resources but have a winner, you platform that winner by showing it to one or two markets at a time and letting it accumulate positive reviews. In...

A Reader's Script Formatting Question: How does a writer denote in a spec screenplay the fact that a character has a double identity and is known to individual characters under two separate identities? Example: a character is known as 'BILL' to one set of characters, but 'JIM' to another -- do you type both BILL/JIM each time he speaks dialogue in the screenplay? Bearing in mind that the crux of the story is that he appears as one person to one set of characters, and another person to another set of characters! -- Complicated, I know but I would appreciate...

There has been a lot of talk lately about the new spec formatting style. Throughout the 1990s, there has been a movement toward 'lean and clean' screenwriting: Shorter screenplays, shorter paragraphs, shorter speeches, more white space and the omission of technical instructions. It should come as no surprise that this gradual evolution continues to refine spec style. Let's take a quick look at where things stand at this moment in time.The Technical Stuff Let's start with what's forbidden. Do not write CONTINUED at the top and bottom of each page. Do not write 'continuing' as a parenthetical when a character...