As loglines can be notoriously difficult to write, I love studying them (yes, I’m a bit of a geek like that). Seeing how professionals encapsulate 110 pages into one or two sentences inspires me because what they leave in is just as important as what they leave out. So, I…
Formatting Fridays
Q. Do I Always Need to Use ‘Day/Night’ in a Slug?
It’s good form to put either “Day” or “Night” in a slug. Some people may say “Avoid descriptors like ‘Morning,’ Dusk’ or ‘Three Strokes After Midnight’” but the Formatting Police won’t come after you if you do. But what about “Continuous” vs. “Later”? Let’s Look at Election: “Continuous” should be used when…
Self-Development Sundays
What is the ‘War of Art,’ Anyway?
If I’ve learned two fundamental tenets of self-development, they are: you are the problem, and you are the solution. And sure, that’s fine and dandy and good until you get to the actual hard part of taking action. Let’s say you intend to lose those extra five pounds or sit…
Black Comedies
Decoding ‘Parasite’: Screenwriting Insights
Logline of Parasite: Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan. Script Can Be Found Here Summary of Parasite: Parasite begins with the Kims, a destitute family of scam artists who live in a Seoul basement. Father Kim…
Formatting Fridays
Q. How to Format a Flashback?
Flashbacks. Oh flashbacks. Yes, most prominent filmmakers use them (even though younger filmmakers are advised not to). Why? Not everything deserves a flashback. You don’t want to use/overuse them for at least four reasons: 1) in alluding to things in the past minimally, you actually leave the audience wanting more;…
Oscar-Winning-Scripts
Screenwriting Takeaways from ‘Promising Young Woman’
Logline of Emerald Fennell’s Promising Young Woman: After an unexpected encounter, a young woman traumatized by a tragic event in her past seeks out vengeance against those who cross her path. Script Can Be Found Here Summary of Promising Young Woman: The movie centers on Cassie Thomas, 30, (Carey Mulligan) who…
Self-Development Sundays
‘No One Wants to Read Your Sh*t’: Screenwriting Takeaways
“Nobody wants to read anything,” Steven Pressfield notes at the beginning of No One Wants to Read Your Sh*t And Other Tough Love Truths to Make You a Better Writer. “Let me repeat that. Nobody – not even your dog or your mother – has the slightest interest in your…
Oscar-Nominated Scripts
Screenwriting Takeaways from ‘Oppenheimer’
Logline of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer: Physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer and a team of scientists spend years developing the atomic bomb, forever changing the course of history. Script Can Be Found Here Summary of Oppenheimer: Oppenheimer is an epic historical drama centering on two narratives. “Fission” follows J. Robert Oppenheimer (Cillian…
Formatting Fridays
Q. Does every scene change need a ‘Cut To’ or ‘Dissolve’?
No. Whenever you write a new scene with a new slugline, it’s self-evident that a cut has been made; in most cases, “Cut To” is redundant. So when would a direction like that be relevant? As per Dave Trottier’s indispensible The Screenwriter’s Bible (p. 286), Here’s my rule of thumb:…
Save the Cat Sundays
‘Being John Malkovich’: A ‘Save the Cat’ Experiment
Logline of Being John Malkovich: A frustrated puppeteer discovers a secret portal into the mind of a famous actor, an experience he mistakenly shares with his animal-loving wife and a frosty, attractive coworker. Writer: Charlie Kaufman Director: Spike Jonze Genre: Comedy Starring: John Cusack, Cameron Diaz, Catherine Keener Release Date:…