going to start my screenplay

ive got a story to tell.
thought about it for years so i am going to give it a go.
ive got 6-8 months or so before i have to go back to work so i need to get on it. probably should have started a while ago.

have any of you ever written one? ever read one? i know some here are in the film industry at various levels

ive been outlining bits and pieces, scenario's and such.
im going to use celtx to draft it so i can make sure it is formatted corectly.

after i finish i am going to hand it over to my wife to edit it.
she is a published author and will handle that much better i think.

another question i have is, once its done, how do i sell it?
do i have to actually be on the ground, trying to sell it you think?

a reply to: Grovit

Sending you a U2U of a member who I believe can help!

a reply to: seeker1963

thanks a lot.
going to check it now

i know this is going to be hard.
im going to start fleshing it out tonight.

i know there are rules about everything including the font to be used, the margins to be used, etc.
im going to start the flesh out in open office and write it up in celtx.

the goal is under 115 pages.

Celtx is what I have used for my features and short screenplays. It is a great preprodiction tool as well.

Be sure and register with WGA to protect your script.

Marketing a screenplay is very difficult and usually expensive; there are a few ways to go....

Pitchfests or an agent.

sceneplay.net...

As a filmmaker/ producer I often help produce and shoot a marketable trailer for other writers for their pitchfest presentation, like this one....

www.youtube.com...


If I can help with anyother additional information, feel free to u2u me.

a reply to: olaru12

thanks.
i was not aware of how strict the formatting is

ive also been reading a lot of scripts on simplyscripts to get an idea of how to go about it.

there are a lot of movie scripts on there.

this is going to be very difficult.
i have a lot of it in my head of how i would like to to play out but getting it down on paper in that format under 120 pages is going to be hard.

would be sweet if i can sell it.
id love to see my spec script turned into a movie

maybe keanu can play me since we look exactly alike

hey olaru, any tips to make the dialogue snappy?
ive been reading through scripts on the site i mentioned.

been reading a lot of tarantino and seth rogen scripts.
i like the way the dialogue in tarantino's flicks move. its very snappy. quick witted. it moves fast you know.
i like seth rogens scripts for the heavy use of pop culture references, movie references...things like that

also kevin smith dialogue. kind of like a mix of both mentioned.

im not trying to write another pineapple express or superbad..i dont mean that.
just they way his dialogue flows.

i have the story idea fleshed out in my head.

if i had to put a genera to it i would say 'dramedy'

i wouldnt want it to be some special effects extravaganza.

i want to focus more on the snap of the dialogue. the humor. the references.

think john hughes/seth rogen/kevin smith/quentin tarantino all mashed up...
thats my goal

i would like it to come across something like

pulp fiction/little miss sunshine/knocked up/sunshine cleaning/chasing amy....
combine all that dialogue into one cohesive unit. thats the goal

a reply to: Grovit

Edit, rewrite, over and over....Great idea having your wife edit for you!!

Read "Save the Cat"

a reply to: olaru12

i will read it

i just read the script for the big lebowski

hilarious man....its just as funny on the page

One day my motion production producing brother sent me a screenplay that he recently purchased for $1M from a first time author. After reading it, I thought I could do better. 3 years later I got a job offer at Paramount as a screenwriter. I did not take the job but I learned very much about the process.

I started by reading a couple standard formatting books. If you get the format wrong, even the title page, it will be tossed in the trash by the first round of readers, who have an impossible task of critiquing hundreds of screenplays per month. Because they cannot possible read that many, they look for any reason to eliminate beginners or idiots. Anybody with a computer can write. Few can write well.

At the same time, there are very critical elements that all screenplays follow. For instance, all main characters introduced by page ten, 1st, 2nd and third act turning points at specific pages, etc. If you don't follow the Hollywood format, they figure you for an idiot. (Stories abound about great screenplays passed up because of a coffee stain on the first page or other minor error).

Once I had a solid draft, I enrolled in an advanced screen writing class at Georgetown University where the prerequisite was having a completed screenplay. The professor explained that only five percent of nascent writers actually complete a 100 page script. That class helped me polish my work. The input from other motivated writers was invaluable.

When the gentlemen at Paramount realized I was not going to take the job and move to LA, (ex wife hated LA) he broke it down to me and gave me advice. He stated that no unknown writer living outside of LA or perhaps NYC, has any chance of selling a script to a studio of any consequence. Its simply too risky. You have to live out there and network and push and make a name for yourself.

Short of moving there, he said I had a better chance of selling a novel as a first time author. With that I could get a decent agent and then have at least a chance to break the living outside of LA rule.

I decided on another course. I was determined to learn how to make my own movies. I got an entry-level job in television production working for the new at the time - MSNBC $50/day for a four hour gig. Over the next six years and a series of risky moves, I graduated up to Director of Photography for a Discovery Channel series - $500/day plus huge per diem.

That crazy process started in 1993. I left the TV biz in 2004. I just started writing again but this time in novel format. I hope this helps. I had the benefit of a brother running a very large production company making movies for many millions that anybody would recognize. I also had a friend who started a company providing crews to cable news companies in DC.

The main thing I had was a certainty that I could do it and would do it. Good luck.

a reply to: Grovit

Good for you!

I have several stories I'd like to tell but have really no idea how to jump start it. My Dad wrote a book but it took ten years so, it's kind of a daunting prospect.

a reply to: mcChoodles

thanks.
ive been reading a lot about the format and structure. time constraints. things like that.

my wife thinks i should write a book instead. im a movie fan though you know.

im not the most optimistic person around and i figure there is a 99% chance my finished product will go nowhere. as you said, there is just so much stuff out there already.

i think i would have a better chance at getting a book published.

i really want to write this as a screenplay but a lot of things are telling me that a book would be so much easier. this might be the wrong term but you will get it.
if i flesh out a book it seems like there is more 'room for error'..
you know?

the hardest part for me would be keeping the dialogue in the right format. correct amount of lines and such.
i think very fast and i talk very fast. that transitions to how i write.
it can get long very quick....

do you think a first time writer would be better served writing a book?

i think a book would definitely fit what i want to write and how i write but a movie....something about seeing a character of mine on screen. even on the million to one chance. that would be so cool

im not saying a book would easy. maybe easier than a script, but not easy

a reply to: Grovit

You can always write the book and convert it to a screenplay. My team provides that service for novelists all the time.
It's expensive though!!!

Or convert the screenplay into a novel. That's common as well.

Once you start your script; you will be amazed at how fast and easy it is. The software is fantastic.

I wrote my first feature script in 23 days using this format.

www.amazon.com...

celtx....

www.celtx.com...


Tell your story! Don't worry about the final product whether it be a novel or script. When it get to the editing stage...more will be revealed!!

a reply to: olaru12

im going to start writing it today.
i had what i call a flash of genius though.

i was going to write my story.
actually 2 stories with one end. mine, my wifes, and finally ours. with fictional elements thrown in for flavor.

i changed my mind though.

im going to go for a crime story. fiction with heavy elements of my life as a base.

i know everyone feels this way then they have an idea but i feel like i have the coolest serial killer story in my head ever. from the way he does it to how he disposes of the bodies, to what he keeps as a memento.

it is sick, twisted, and im pretty sure never been done before.

ive never heard it done.

crime books are always huge.

plus my wife said with a book i can put it on amazon in pdf form and sell it for a few bucks a pop to test the waters and get reviews. maybe it will catch the eye of a publisher.

people will be blown away at how he disposes of the bodies

a reply to: Grovit

the first paragraph is done.
going to work on it a little each day.
not worried about structure and spelling/punctuation right now.
i just want to get it out.

i think if people are into crime novels, this paragraph will make them want to read more.