Advice — expert series

Let's assume you have a great story. You've got a great hook, premise, structure, theme and characters. Despite these necessary qualities, it's still anyone's guess if you've got a great screenplay. Why? Because having a great story is only half the job. To get to the finish line, you also need a story that's rendered cinematically. When the studio readers read your script they need to be able to imagine it up on the screen. If they can't, you may have a great radio play or a budding novel, but it's not a screenplay unless you write it as one.Classic...

This article can be appreciated by all writers and filmmakers but will be of special interest to writer / storymakers who are trying to decide where to best invest their creative energies and talents - the novel or the screenplay. I'll begin with some general observations concerning the novelist and the filmwright (a new term I'm coining to describe a film's true primary creative artist) and then I'll describe the similarities and critical differences between a novel and a screenplay.The novelist creates and describes everything that appears in the novel -- the characters, the emotions of the characters, their actions,...

Our reader Loretta from Roseville, CA asks I only have a short time to pitch my idea. How do I make my screenplay idea stand out from the rest? Script Consultant Pilar Alessandra answers "Hook them" with your big idea right away. At a pitch-fest or writing conference, you just don't have the time to dwell on set-up. Catch the attention of the producer you're pitching to by putting your log line up front in a way that gets their attention. Try: "What if ____?" Or, "Imagine that _____." Now that you've got them thinking, you can elaborate on who...

Our reader Lauren from Memphis, TN asks I have a quirky movie that does not fit into any standard genre. How do I sell it? Reader Bryan from Wausau, WI asks What's hot in Hollywood now? What's selling? Screenwriting Expert Michael Hauge responds Both these questions address the issue of how - and whether - to decide what to write based on the marketplace. And each reveals a basic problem with the way many writers choose their stories. The first question may grow out of a desire to select among several ideas the writer is passionate about, or to avoid...

The truth of the matter is that actors and writers have to be their own best friend. After the delight of discovering that one is indeed an artist, the real work of survival sets in. There is financial survival. Waiting tables, waiting in general, cleaning apartments, being a carpenter, babysitter, assistant -- finding the most flexible and dignified day job that can be stomached. There is artistic survival. Like, "why did I choose this life and what truly sustains me?" In Los Angeles, one might get more than a few smirks if one actually talks about the artistic aspects of...