Do you take chances with your writing career?

When it comes to genres, we writers tend to get stuck in a type or genre of writing. Especially when it comes to film and TV. We hear that we need to form a body of work in order to sell and to have a career. But what if other opportunities present themselves? I'm one who believes that you just don't know where the next opportunity is going to come from. So I'm the last person to not try a new genre. So although comedy features were my favorite thing to write at first, I'm game to write just about anything! So when I found out someone wanted to read a sitcom from me, I partnered with a TV writer. I learned that I loved writing sitcoms and in fact it seemed easier to me than features! Then I found out someone wanted to read animation, so I partnered with someone who was good at this, learned how to do it. Now we're pitching animation shows and features. Then I found out someone wanted a sci-fi. This definitely wasn't my forte, so partnered with some sci-fi writer friends. So as you can see, it's okay to try new things. If worse comes to worse you find out for sure it's not your thing. But you grow as a writer, and there's nothing bad about that. We're writers. We're meant to be creative and try new things. There's nothing worse than seeing a writer stop themselves from success because they fear that can't do something new! In fact, I've seen it many times where a writer will have an opportunity and they say, oh yeah, I don't do that. In my mind I'm thinking, really? You could get a deal out of this, but you don't do that??? Just recently my new manager wanted to submit me for a TV show. Although it's something I love to watch, I wasn't sure I could write it. But I figured, why not? I was up for the challenge! So I told her yes, I could do it. And guess what, I've learned so much about myself as a writer. And I can already tell I can write this! Just because as a writer we haven't tried a genre, doesn't mean we are incapable of it. SO please, don't shoot yourself in the foot till you've at least tried! If someone is giving you the opportunity, do it! Take it! We only live once. So go for it! You just may surprise yourself.

"Come up" and come on down!

So writing my second review of the short films that I saw at the IFFCA film festival. I thought today I'd write about the topic, what if you're trying to do your own short film? Well, there's some things to consider first. Like knowing what is the best scenario and story to do for your film. I can imagine it's got to be a tricky thing for most writers/directors/producers, picking that one story. And a short one has to pack the punch of a feature, but quicker. For me, seeing what worked at the festival inspired me to want to do my own for sure.

Now I would say that there was no genre that was better over others, but what really mattered was if there was a story or not. There were a few short films, that I won't mention, that didn't really fit that bill and I felt suffered because of it. But the rest were great at being mini movies. So if you have yet to do your own short film and you're looking to try your hand at one, be sure you include the beginning, middle and end, with the goal and obstacles, just like any feature. And if you can, throw in a twist.

One of the short films that I felt did a great job at this was called "Come Up" directed by Christopher Boyd. It was a funny story based on an action film that happens on the set of an action film. A lot of the humor in this piece faired best with people in the industry, as you could hear them laugh the loudest during the film. Inside jokes, for sure, but that didn't mean people who hadn't worked on a set couldn't get enjoyment out of it. But I have heard from industry producers that movies about the biz don't do well outside of the group that makes them because regular movie-going folks just don't care or get the story as well. I think as far as doing a piece for a short film festival, doing a movie about the industry is perfect though. Because who else is probably going to see most of these festivals, but your movie biz peers? 

The people who created this film talked about how they figured this story out while on the set, which is another way to get your story ideas for shorts or any story you're writing. Write what you know, you know? Because when you do, the audience can tell and that comes across as a solid piece of film. 

IFFCA short film festival

So this writer actually got out of the house and stopped writing long enough to see a night of short films at the 2nd IFFCA short film festival. I'd recently become "online" screenwriting friends with a director, Amir Masud from Stage 32 connections. His friend was the creator of the IFFCA film festival and Amir was nice enough to invite me. It was held at the quaint ACME theater on La Brea. Being that that was my old neighborhood post-college for many years, I was more than thrilled to head back for a night on the town. I dragged along my talented ex writing partner, Andy Glickman, and he too was pleasantly surprised at the films we saw. I guess surprised might be the wrong word, because that connotes we didn't expect good films. But the thing is, you just never know what you'll see at a film festival. But this one had some really nice pieces. From humor, to horror, to sci-fi, to drama, to documentaries.

We made it to the last night of the film festival and since they were all really well done, I'm sorry now that I didn't make it to more. Amir swears I'll be invited every year and I'm hoping he sticks to that.

I think I owe it to each filmmaker to give a new post about each film, so tonight I'll post about one that I actually saw the next day, today. See, someone else I met from a film group on linkedin, William Hellmuth, got one of his short films into Thursday night's showings. When I saw his name on the festival lists I had to email him and say hey, maybe I'll see you there. But turned out we didn't get to go on the same nights.

William was nice enough to send "Attic" to me to watch after the festival was over. "Attic", a horror short about a young girl who hears noises in, yes, you guessed it, her attic. I don't want to give it away because you should watch it for yourself. But I will post the link in here so you can decide on your own what you think. But I'll give you my opinion, and let's just say, I was scared! I felt he had the right paces and tension to keep me wondering what was just around the corner and on the edge of my seat. I have since watched another short of his and I think he does a great job with casting and imagery to be a director I look forward to working with in the future. We've talked about it, but we haven't quite found the right project. Someday! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kkeo4gtzPmA&feature=youtu.be

Batman??? Really?

So yes, I know, there's been tons said on why Ben Affleck should or shouldn't be Batman. And yes, it's probably all been said to death. But I have my own opinion and here it is. But before I do, let's start at the beginning. First off, of course I was a Ben Affleck fan after he and Matt Damon won their first Oscar for Good Will Hunting. They were a true Hollywood story of kids seeming to come out of nowhere to go on to win an Oscar for their very first movie they wrote, plus starred-in. They had me at "I'd like to thank the Oscars".

Then Affleck goes on to do other movies, where I wasn't so fond of his acting. Shakespeare In Love, wasn't a fan of him, even if I loved the movie. Many other movies he was in, I chose not to see him, because I just wasn't sure acting was his forte. Maybe the Oscar was a fluke? I like many, I wasn't on his side. Then of course the years of where "Hollywood and its fans truly gave up on him"period. I was in that crowd too.

But then came the rumblings of how he was writing and directing and how great his movies were. Gone Baby Gone. Definitely impressed. But still, I was wary. Could this really be Affleck? Did he really have the talent we all thought he did? Or was it just a fluke? Then Argo happened. I went to see it willingly, happily, thinking, this movie is going to be good, and maybe yes, Affleck was a power to be reckoned with. I saw Argo and was hooked from the moment the movie started till the end. Yes, he was good, he was very, very good. When it won Best Movie, I was glad, and I knew it deserved it.

Then word comes of him wanting to play Batman. A role that many think is left for only the super stars of Hollywood. But the superhero fans think, nope not him. How dare he! Some stand behind him, but I doubt as many as the naysayers. But, you know what? I'm going to stand behind him too. Because you know why? Hollywood loves an underdog. And although he's proven himself as a director and producer, he still has yet to prove himself as a power house actor. At least when it comes to the fans. Because if he had proven himself, there weren't be grumblings of him being able to pull this off. I bet you he does it though, and surprises all those non-believers. Because this is his chance as an actor to redeem himself. And although he has redeemed himself as a producer, writer and director, he still wants to do it in acting too. I'm there, I'm behind him, and I want to see him pull it off. And something I never thought I'd find myself saying, but I'm on team Ben.

Finally a manager

So I'm finally dealing with managers. And not one, but two! I guess when you hit the jackpot...! And the funny way the first one happened, was this weird round about way. Turns out he's the husband of a writer I met recently. But that's not how it happened, no. I was actually working on some children animation shows and the animation guy's manager is the one I'm working with now. But that's not really how it happened either! Turns out the manager is also best friends with one of my really good friend's hubby's who's a TV writer. It all came together in such a funny way too. But guess it goes to show, it's who you know. Because maybe if I didn't have all those connections, it wouldn't have happened. And if all those things didn't line up the way they did, it might not have happened. I think what it really shows, is you just can't rush anything. Things in life, especially this career, need time for it all to line up. Haven't you noticed that? How one success leads to another which leads to another. I know that's how it's been for me. And if I didn't have all those connections that lined up, maybe I wouldn't have ever worked with him.

Then there's the other manager, and that's exciting too. They do different lines of work, so I can possibly actually have both. The 2nd one we're still in talks. But it's all exciting and things are really happening in my screenwriting career. If they weren't, maybe I actually would have posted on here sooner. Sorry I haven't written more. Not the best daily blogger I guess! But a busy screenwriter, yep!

Writing is like getting your heart stomped on

So you finally see your career taking off. You get to the point where producers want meetings with you. They want to read pages of things you're working on. You're allowed on the set, without being chased off! It's happening! And it's all so exciting. Only the problem is, it's scary too! You're finally where you've always dreamed you'd be. But once you're there, your dreams are on the line. It's no longer just dreaming. It's seeing your dreams happen and possibly be even better than you ever imagined!

It's enough to make your skin crawl and make your heart feel like it's going to jump out of your chest! But it makes sense. Being a writer means you have a passion for what you do. And passion comes from your heart. So your heart is involved and pulled and tugged. And the things you create, are from your imagination. They are your babies, as we've heard many times. So if someone is going to critique our baby? Oh my god, look out! That's going to hurt. So that's why when you're seeing your dreams come true in this career, you can feel so vulnerable. Because it's as if you're like hi, here's my heart, now take it, stomp on it, rip it apart, pour acid in it, and then give it back so I can walk around with this battered thing. Ugh!

I can feel it with the script I'm working on now with the producer I only dreamed of working with. And he's actually calling me back on a more frequent basis. For the longest time it felt like I had to remind him, hi, I'm still here, we're still working on this right? Now he actually has the time, and he's actually waiting for pages. But as I'm sending them, it's as if I were sending my kid on an overnight trip for a week! And believe me, I haven't even done that!

So what's a writer to do? Well, first thing, breathe. If you've got the attention of a producer, no matter what caliber, you're doing something right. So remember that! Then, remember, they want to make this film, they are looking to make something wonderful. And if they are placing their trust in you, it's because you showed them some sort of talent. Then, unless you had your cousin Sue write your script and you put your name on it, you obviously know how to write a script. Remember that! You know how to do this! You are in this place because you're supposed to be!

Even as I'm writing my script for this producer, I just keep telling myself, I'm just doing what I've been doing all these years. It's really no different. The only difference is that I care more what he thinks. But I can't let that psyche me out. I just do what I know how to do. And what I love to do! No more, no less. If I psyche myself out, I'll fail. So breathe, and write. And exercise! That always takes the stress off of me. And before long, you just may see your best script yet. With a producer who can actually get it made! Voila! Imagine that.

Why screenwriting is like Minecraft

So, maybe you do or don't know what Minecraft is. But it's a video game where you create things in a video world. So for instance, my 9 year old plays, and when he does, he has to build things like homes, or dig for gold or diamonds, and search in buildings for boxes that hold things he can use to protect himself against bad guys. That's the quick description of the game.

So what does this have to do with screenwriting? Well, I was watching him play yesterday and it donned on me, wow, he's really come a long way. Because the first day he played, he dug the earth and fell through the universe and his character died. It took him awhile, but eventually he got the hang of digging and not dying. And now he's really good at it. So yesterday I noticed that he learned how to find new lands and grab certain tools in one land and then use them in other lands so that he could collect things for even more lands. He's developed skills that have benefited him in this video game. So now he's not dying as easily and he's really created this whole video game world.

And it donned on me, isn't this what our screenwriting careers have been? At first, we might have presented pages in our first screenwriting class and our pages might have bombed when we read them out loud. It seemed painful and like we "died" right away when we let the class hear our pages. Then perhaps we took more classes, read more books, learned that taking a scene class or a dialogue class could actually make our script stronger. So that the next time we read pages, people actually liked what we wrote. And then that lead to a new writing group that was stronger. Which lead to doing better in writing contests. Which leads to meetings and getting managers. It doesn't happen over night. It takes learning the lay of the land, how to navigate the world.

So even though it might not happen as quickly as one would like, it does happen. And before we know it, we're gathering tools to help us survive in this crazy business called show. I wouldn't tell my son to give up as he's being chased by bad guys in the Minecraft world, or looking for tools. Nor should we give up as writers. Each tool and skill we develop helps us get further and further in our careers and craft. And as we move forward, we just become better adept and stronger to survive even longer, for new battles we might come up against. And hopefully, maybe one day, we have created the world we always dreamed of.