Aug 9, 2012

I’ve had a copy of Strangers beside my bed for a few weeks now.  Every few mornings, I pick it up and skim through it.  I’ve completed my rewrites.  I’m happy with it.  It’s such a great feeling to finally finish a feature length screenplay.  Especially after challenging myself to finish it months ago.

Strangers represents around 6 months of development and writing.  But it also represents a big leap forward when it comes to confidence in my work.  I love the story.  It tackles themes that scare me and centers on stress and anxiety I’ve felt for a long time.

It’s done…

So what now?  What will I do with my screenplay now that it’s finished?

My first instinct was competitions but I’m still hesitant to put myself out there.  The whole point to this summer was to prove to myself that I could finish a script.  But that’s all I’ve got.  ONE script.  Or is it?  I’ve also got a seed for a tale I hope will be infinitely better than Strangers.

So my latest script will be on the bench for the foreseeable future.  At least until I finish another screenplay I can be proud of.  If Strangers is the best thing I’ve ever written than I have to challenge myself to top it.  I still have to get better.

I started developing a brand new script about a week ago.  My main character has a name and a brief history.  I’m getting to know the world I want to create.  I’m having fun.  Hopefully, this new project will be ready in the fall as I want a first draft by the end of 2012.

Then it’s my goal to put these two scripts side by side.  Can I write something better?  I want to answer the following question confidently:

“Have you got any other screenplays?”

Perhaps, I’m just delaying putting myself out there?  Perhaps…  I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to wondering if this script has what it takes to become a successful film.  It’s even more tempting knowing that some answers are easily attainable whether they are good or bad.  I just don’t think I’m ready for that yet.

Regardless, I set out to prove something to myself and I’ve done that.  Strangers is finished and I’m on to the next challenge.

The journey continues.

And so…  The Summer of Screenwriting series has come to an end.  What a journey it was.  It’s been 3 months since I officially completed the final draft of Strangers and I’m still proud.  But the sense of accomplishment stretches far beyond FADE OUT.  I laid down the gauntlet.  If I hadn’t taken time away from everything to focus solely on writing, I would still be struggling through my screenplay.

The summer of screenwriting taught me to prioritize.  That’s why I only post 2-3 articles a week on this blog.  It leaves me more time to write.  I’m still working on the same script I mentioned in the post.  It has transformed into an intense drama but also a touching romance and I can’t wait to finish it.

But I’m in no hurry.  I mentioned above that I wanted to have a first draft finished by the end of 2012.  That won’t happen.  This new project has been extremely difficult to develop and I’m not going to rush things.  Maybe I’ll be finished in the Spring.  Regardless, I’m excited about the journey.  I’m happy when I write.  I’m curious to find out what comes next for my screenplay and for myself.

I want to be a better writer.  Someday, I’ll look back on this little summer experiment as a turning point.  The moment when I decided to be a screenwriter again.

Mission Accomplished.

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THE WRITER’S LIFE.  THE WRITER’S DREAMS

I got an email a while back that contained a link to a screenwriting documentary called Dreams On Spec.  A film I highly enjoyed.

Here is a the synopsis from the film’s official site:

Featuring interviews with James L. Brooks, Nora Ephron, Carrie Fisher, and other screenwriting luminaries, DREAMS ON SPEC takes an intimate look at how far people will go – and how much they will sacrifice – to pursue their dreams. This feature-length documentary follows three screenwriters as they struggle against overwhelming odds – and often their families’ disapproval – to turn their scripts into movies.

Aspiring filmmakers definitely have a lot of docs to turn to for inspiration.  Just about every DVD and Blu Ray has a commentary track or a behind the scenes documentary these days.  Many of them are elaborate and extremely inspiring. (See The Lord of the Rings Extended Editions for examples of this.)  Every once in a while, there will be a detailed look at how the screenplays came together as well.  One of my favorites is “All I Need Is An Idea” located on The Phantom Menace DVD.   However, there aren’t a ton of documentaries that focus on the aspiring screenwriter out there.

Note: If there are others I expect an email immediately…

DREAMS ON SPEC

This documentary was fantastic.  It’s a candid look at three separate writer’s journeys at different stages in their careers.  The film examines their passion for screenwriting as well as the impact that dedication has on their lives.  Ironically, the email that alerted me to this movie’s existence came about a week before I started my new feature length screenplay.  I watched it the day before I went off to the library to finish mapping out my movie.

Some might say that watching a documentary about 3 writers who struggle to make it might be discouraging to a screenwriter about to start something new.  Honestly, if I let that bother me, I don’t have the right to call myself a screenwriter.  Writing a screenplay is hard but it’s fun and that’s why we write.

The business aspect of the industry takes over once you type fade out.  Until that time, it’s just me and my characters wandering around a new world trying to tell a story.  At one point, one of the writer’s states that his new screenplay is the best he’s every written and nothing he writes afterwards will ever compare.  I have to disagree.  In the end, he will write something else but you always need that drive to be better.

In that sense, I completely related to the screenwriters in Dreams On Spec because I found myself examining my own process.  It wasn’t their dreams of money and success but instead their passion that I enjoyed watching.  It was their love of the craft of screenwriting.  The final 20 minutes or so is extremely powerful as the writer’s come to grips with their work.

One naive moment stuck out for me.  It happens around the 1:02:00 mark in which a writer expresses what he wants his project to become.

“I’d like to get 5 name actors attached to the five main roles.  I’d like to get a few million dollars… Not a kazillion but you know 5 or 10 million dollars…  I’d like it to be released theatrically.  I’d like for whoever gives me the money to give me enough creative control and kind of leave me alone…”

I think aspiring screenwriters around the world can relate to that statement but for me, it put things into perspective.  I’m not going to get ahead of myself.  First and foremost, I HAVE to write.

Dreams On Spec is a great documentary for screenwriters out there.  The outcomes of their stories may be a little bleak but I think the lesson here is simple:

Work hard to realize your goals and when it doesn’t work out…  Work harder.  Write because you love to write.

I’ve included a preview of the film below but you can watch the entire documentary FREE online at SNAGFILMS.

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A SUNDAY IN THE LIFE OF AN
ASPIRING SCREENWRITER

I recently wrote about the influence that massive world events can have on your writing choices. Events like The Royal Wedding, The death of Osama Bin Laden or a federal election.  They may not affect you specifically but when the world changes, often your perception of it changes as well.

What about personal life experiences? They don’t have to be epic world altering events but they are crucial in order to evolve as a writer.  These events can range from life changing moments to seemingly insignificant personal encounters. Every moment affects your writing. Think about it this way:

How much would a story you wrote 10 years ago change if you started from scratch today?

Is each word you write influenced by your experiences?  I think so.

The following is the tale of a single and completely bizarre day in my life. How will these events shape my writing from now on? The answer remains to be seen but they are a part of me now.  Lets start at the beginning…

I WAS IN A CAR ACCIDENT

It’s amazing how a tiny decision leads you to a certain moment. Is it fate? Or coincidence? What you believe can affect your writing too…

My girlfriend woke up and told me she felt off… She hadn’t slept well.  Our plan for the day was to join some friends and head downtown to sell some DVDs and shop for the afternoon.  The DVD store opened at noon as opposed to the 10 o’clock start time promoted on it’s website so we had some time to kill.  We were left with a decision. Head to the east end, visit a kitchen store and grab some wings or wait.

It’s hard not to think about what might have been if we would have left then but we decided to stick around…

When we finally dropped off our movies we were told it would be another 2 hours before we got our cash. (Vendors have to check each disc for scratches and such.) We finally decided to head east.  After lunch the plan was to head back downtown, pick up our money and call it a day.

We weren’t prepared for busy Sunday traffic. We were stopped when a man in an old truck slammed into us like we were the concrete wall in a crash test.  My girlfriend was driving and was the only one who saw it coming. She shrieked a mere milliseconds before we were jolted forward.  All of the sudden, the fact that she felt ‘off’ took on a whole new meaning.  In a strange way, did she subconsciously know something like this would happen?  It’s an interesting thought isn’t it?

Thankfully everyone was okay but I could tell instantly that she was shaken up.  She had never been in a car accident before.  The full financial and psychological impact of an accident is hard to prepare for. When you’re shaken up you don’t think about things like whether spending the time to compare car insurance quotes was worth it, but we were certainly thankful we had coverage that day. 

We exited the vehicle half expecting a sincere apology but it wasn’t meant to be. Even now I can’t decide if the man was in shock or if he just didn’t really care.

“I hit you. There’s nothing we can do about it now so that’s that.”

I’m paraphrasing of course but if it were me, I would have apologized 38 million times before anyone else could utter a single word. He came across as smug and unsympathetic.  If I may quote a famous line from Seinfeld:

“Smugness is not a good quality.”

We distanced ourselves from him while we waited for the police to arrive.  Yet still,  I couldn’t help but try to get into his head. Did he feel bad? Couldn’t he tell how upset we were?

At this point, we were all sore from the effects of our muscles tensing up when he hit us.  We gave our statements to the police, hopped in a rental car and went home.

Little did I know, this bizarre afternoon was just getting started…

Once our nerves settled, the four of us decided to be cautious and find a medical clinic.  We learned quickly that it’s pretty difficult to find an open walk in clinic on a Sunday evening.  Fortunately, we found one that was right around the corner from the DVD store.  The plan was to finally pick up our cash and head to the doctors.

Who could have predicted we would find ourselves in the middle of a war over a parking space!

“F*$# THIS.  CALL THE COPS!”
THE PARKING WAR

When my friend and I emerged from the store we realized very quickly that someone was waiting for our parking spot.  As we began to pull away, the guy pulled in front of us and started backing in.

Before we knew it, another guy had pulled up behind us. (Which made us nervous enough considering we were rear ended earlier that day.)  Both of the men thought our space was theirs for the taking and a battle erupted.

We got out of the car and the shouting began.  Someone had to move or we weren’t going anywhere.  The guy behind us was furious and eventually made the following statement:

“F*&# this, call the cops because I’m not moving!”

Are you kidding me!  Over a parking space? We just wanted to go home…

All the yelling eventually attracted the attention of a nearby cop.  As he approached I became fascinated.  Which one will he focus on?  Who is wrong here? Who will have to move?  We supported the car in front of us because he had the spot first.  I’m not sure why he decided to pull up and back in when he was behind us already but it was his.

In the end, the car in front of us moved just enough for us to get out without giving up the space.  We got out of there before the situation was resolved.  Mainly because we just wanted to get checked out and go home.

Was the confusion finally over for us?  Nope.

A STRANGE VISIT TO THE HOSPITAL

Waiting rooms always make me nervous when I’m waiting for a check up.  You never know who is going to walk in.  I feel terrible when I see people in pain.  I wouldn’t wish pain on my worst enemy so you can imagine how I felt when an old woman wandered into the hospital in tears…

She looked lost.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so destroyed and inconsolable.  It sounds like I’m exaggerating but it’s true.  She was absolutely devastated.  Immediately, a nurse and a doctor rushed to her aid and she began to explain what was wrong.

“I haven’t seen my daughter in a long time.  She is a lawyer and she works really hard.”

Her words were difficult to hear as she was crying uncontrollably.  We were all thinking about what could have possibly happened.  The woman didn’t appear to be injured so was it her daughter?

“She came to visit me today after so many months…  And she has gained so much weight!  What do I do?!”

What!? Her daughter gained weight? I can’t even imagine what this woman’s reaction was when she was standing in front of her daughter.  Her daughter gains weight and this woman, her mother, is so upset that she goes to the hospital?

Then I started thinking about the mental stability of this woman and I felt even worse.  What must be going through her mind?  She was so upset.  To us, the situation was strange and sad.  I’ll never know if she even had a daughter or what type of help she received but I’ve been thinking about it every since.

This was right around the time I was called in to see the doctor.

X-RAYS X3

Still pondering the fate of the old woman, I waited patiently for the doctor to arrive.  When he finally did, I became nervous again.  I was stiff and sore but I was positive that all I needed was rest.  To tell you the truth, I was more worried about my girlfriend than anything.  Her neck was really bothering her.  Still, I have a history of neck problems so they decided to take some x-rays to be sure.  Fair enough.

I had to change into a gown, walk out of my room, across the lobby (where my friends were waiting), ascend one floor in an elevator and walk down a lengthy hallway.  The lady took 3 pictures and the entire time I was thinking about the evolution of x-ray technology.  I had no idea it was digital.  I still thought they took a day or two to process.  It’s been a while since I broke my nose years ago.

Back in my room, I waited nearly 20 minutes for the doctor to arrive.  When he did, I was instructed to go BACK up to the x-ray room for more pictures.  Clutching the back of my adorable little hospital gown, I walked back across the lobby where my friends snickered a second time and made my way up to the x-ray room.

More pictures.

After 10 MORE minutes in my room, there was a subtle knock at my door.  It was the nurse.  I had to go back again!  They forgot one final pose.  Of course this led to more snickers as I traveled all the way back for more x-rays.  More snickers.

Finally, they had everything they needed in order to determine that I was completely fine.  All I needed was rest.  Unfortunately, my girlfriend suffered whiplash.  We were finally free to go home for good.

FINALLY HOME

Our bizarre day ended 5 seconds after we got home as we passed out almost right away.  Our action packed day was full of encounters with interesting characters.  Each of them handled stress in different ways and each of them fascinated me.

• The smug man who felt no remorse after hitting us with his truck.
• The woman who couldn’t bare to see her daughter because she gained weight.
• The embarrassed technician who needed 3 attempts to get my x-rays right.
• One of those two men missed out on a prime parking spot.  I wonder who it was.

THE POINT?

Perhaps, one or more of these character traits will pop up in a screenplay someday… Each of them has been stored in my mind’s character files. You never know when a particular character will come in handy.  Like virtually every screenwriter out there, I collect stories.  We all do.

All in all, it was a crazy day.

XTRA | A Year In The Life Of An Aspiring Screenwriter