Phantom Moose Films » script

Glimmer of Hope

Jordan — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:53:53 +0000

Since the last update, we’ve been tossing around many, many other ideas, but nothing has really clicked with us. So what prompts this update?

We have a new idea that reworks our current script. It’s somewhat different and somewhat new. Some of the biggest problems with the old draft have been solved, but new ones have been added (of course).

We’ll see how it ends up working out. I’m optimistic!

(And keep an eye out for a book review post. I just need to find time to do it.)

Draft Two in Progress

Jordan — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 11:50:18 +0000

We finished writing the first draft of our new script a little while ago. Since then, we’ve been letting it sit for about a week. Now we’re jumping in again with another draft.

We’re trying something different. Rebekah and I are each writing a separate draft. No idea how this will work out, but we thought it might be beneficial.

Nothing much to report besides that. Rewriting on my end has been slow. But I did have a brainwave about half an hour ago. We’ll see how it pans out.

Book Review: Save the Cat

Jordan — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:21:45 +0000

Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need (Paperback)
by Blake Snyder
ISBN: 1932907009

Price: USD 13.57
112 used & new available from USD 9.56

Summary

A successful screenwriter gives eight chapters of important pointers for writing your screenplay. The book is written from the perspective of marketing your script to a producer from page one.

The Good

Starting with the first chapter, where the reader defines the important “what is it?” about their script, the bulk of the book is designed to help you fix your story before you write FADE IN:

One chapter deals entirely with common screenwriter errors and how to fix them. The final chapter gives some brief pointers on selling your script to Hollywood when you’ve finished writing it.

Very clear and easy to read. Real-world analogies make more abstract concepts simple to grasp. And the last section of the book is a glossary of frequently used Hollywood slang surrounding screenwriting, which is useful for deciphering other materials later.

The Bad

A smattering of language. A few mildly inappropriate examples.

The author also seems to assume that you have viewed every movie he talks about.

Overall

Save the Cat is subtitled, “The last book on screenwriting you’ll ever need.” True? Not quite. While the book has certainly helped me to see where my current project could improve, it could have gone more in-depth on a few issues. The author himself mentions several important screenwriting books in the introduction. But for a good look at screenwriting from a marketing perspective, this is a keeper.

Brief Script Update

Jordan — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:00:31 +0000

Well, we’ve been moving right along on the first draft of the script, more or less. It’s been fast at times and slower at others, but we’re well into what we think is Act 3. That may all change as we’re not totally sure our structure was right. Plus, we rearranged a bunch of stuff, just to make things interesting.

However, we’re currently taking about two weeks off to take a breath and work on a couple of other things. So things aren’t too bad.