Developing a winning technique for successful screenwriting


To seal the deal and sell their script, a writer must count on technique.

I practice my writer's technique four or five times a day.

 I like to use a watermelon to practice, but really you can use any fruit or even large vegetable (such as a pumpkin) that you find appropriate.

Let's break it down into stages.

1) Pucker the lips.

2) Kiss the fruit imagining that you are kissing the ass of a studio executive.

What style kiss? Slobbery or dry? Peck or impassionado?

That's up to you.

The main thing = practice, practice, practice.

(And then make a nice fruit salad.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Targeting Your Audience for Successful Screenwriting

Image
Who is this movie for? I can't tell you how many times I, Barton Bukowski, get asked that question. Over and over and over again. Oh that damn question! Who is the movie for? I like to get really specific when I answer that question. For example: "The movie I'm writing is for a 47 year old retired glassblower named Michele who lives in the Burgundy region of France." Perfect answer. Who can argue with that? Or "This movie is for my 98-year-old Great Aunt Sally who lives in a nursing home." That way, you can tailor your script for your audience. For instance, if you are writing the script for MICHELE , you can make sure to include lots of references to Napoleonic Wars and people eating frogs. Also make sure to include for fun explanations of the history of glass blowing techniques. You can customize your theme by using this rich detail: you might play with the dramatic tension between the traditional way to blow glass and the facto...
Read more

SELLING YOUR DRAMA AS A COMEDY

Image
How many times does it happen? We spend days writing a new script, say a drama, only to learn from a friend at the coffee house that "dramas are so yesterday." Now suddenly the "in" thing is R rated comedy! Oh great. And you just wasted 2 weeks! What to do? Here is how to change your DRAMA into an R rated COMEDY in ten minutes or less, using the tried-and-true "find and replace" function of your script writing program: Replace "cancer patient" with "busy uptight hero" Replace "partner" with "boozy best friend" Replace "disease" with "hilarious bar bet" Replace "dies" with "drops the f bomb" Replace "cemetery" with "bedroom" Replace "death" with "sex" You ALSO may wish to have every other dialogue block conclude with the word "dude." For example: You have an incurable disease, DUDE. I don't love ...
Read more

The successful pitch: Establishing an emotional connection

Image
IIt's important to make an emotional connection when you are pitching. Therefore, BEFORE the meeting, always do the FOLLOWING: Follow the person for several days before the pitch. Find out stuff about them, for instance, what they buy at Trader Joe's. Start out the meeting with, well, I notice that last night you bought the frozen barbecue chicken pizza while I was watching you at Trader Joes. What could be more personal than that? Go through their trash so you'll know their habits and intimate details. Drop highly personal information within seconds of meeting them to break the ice. "So how did your daughter Janie do at her seventh grade cheerleading tryouts yesterday?" Try rooting through their trash the night before to find any intimate personal tidbits you can bring up in casual conversation. "I noticed from your garbage that you were using Preparation H to treat hemmeroids." You can't break the ice better than that. ...
Read more