Monday, November 30, 2015

FREE MOVIE SCRIPT DOWNLOADS FOR 2015
Read Amy Schumer's script TRAINWRECK below
The Black List just posted this awesome list of new movie scripts to read for free, legally available for instant PDF download.  There are so many gems on this list.  I can't wait to read CAROL, TRUTH and TRUMBO... also MAN UP and TRAINWRECK.  Thanks, The Black List for posting these links and to your great staff!  Reading scripts like these will help writers improve their own work.  Let's be thankful on this CYBER MONDAY for these FREE screenwriting gifts below.

Beasts of No Nation (Netflix)
Bridge of Spies (DreamWorks)
Carol (TWC)
Danny Collins (Bleecker Street)
Ex Machina (A24)
Grandma (Sony Classics)
I’ll See You In My Dreams (Bleecker Street)
Infinitely Polar Bear (Sony Classics)
Inside Out (Disney/Pixar)
Legend (Universal)
Macbeth (TWC)
Man Up (Big Talk Pictures)
Minions (Universal)
Mississippi Grind (A24)
Pawn Sacrifice (Bleecker Street)
Remember (A24)
Room (A24)
Slow West (A24)
Steve Jobs (Universal)
Straight Outta Compton (Universal)
Testament of Youth (Sony Classics)
The Diary of a Teenage Girl (Sony Classics)
The End Of Tour (A24)
The Keeping Room (Drafthouse Films)
The Lady in the Van (Sony Classics)
The Son of Saul (Sony Classics)
Trainwreck (Universal)
Trumbo (Bleecker Street)
Truth (Sony Classics)
While We’re Young (A24)
Woman In Gold (TWC)

NOTE: These scripts are for educational purposes only!
 

Thursday, November 26, 2015

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Wishing all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving!

This is my first Thanksgiving in California and we're loving it.  We started the day by going to Coronado Island here in San Diego for a leisurely walk on the beach with our dog.
Thanksgiving 2015
It was heaven!   Dogs running and playing in the ocean and families gathered for the holiday.

It wasn't exactly exercise, but we did get in a stroll of about two miles.  That should allow a second serving of mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes without too much guilt.

Over the summer, I started my new screenplay tentatively titled ABSOLUTION.  I did about four passes on it so far and it's in pretty good shape... but still needs work.

I'm giving it to my three trusted reader friends -- and will see how they react to the story and characters.  Accept their fearless feedback and then sit down for another draft.

This time of year my motivation wanes big time.  I burst out of the gates in January after the holiday slowdown and go full steam until... around now, when the next holiday season returns.  Nobody much reads scripts this time of year anyway.  So it's a good time to study, brainstorm and gear up for the new year ahead.

I'll also read produced scripts, catch up on Oscar-buzz movies and watch great TV... but today, I'm enjoying turkey leftovers and football on TV.
Trumbo
Enjoy your Thanksgiving!  For those followers outside of the USA, enjoy your day and let's share an abundance of gratitude together to make the world more harmonious in 2016.

Peace.

Until next time.

Janet Lawler is an author, playwright and screenwriter. Her screenplay The Tenant advanced to the Quarter Final Round in the 2015 Nicholl Fellowship for Screenwriting and the semifinals of the 2015 Austin Film Festival. 

Janet's debut novel From the Ground Up is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Kindle. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F3CYSU8    Visit Janet's website at www.janetjlawler.com.   Follow Janet on Twitter @JJLawler and the NY Screenwriting Life on Facebook.

Sunday, November 08, 2015

JOHN AUGUST'S WRITER EMERGENCY PACK
A Clever Tool To Help Your Story Get Unstuck
by Janet J. Lawler
November 8, 2015
Writer's Card Game from John August
John August is a prolific screenwriter and blogger.  He's written hit movies like Charlie's Angels, Big Fish and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  He co-hosts the very popular geeky screenwriter podcast ScriptNotes.

I love Scriptnotes and listen weekly (while walking my dog around San Diego).  It's an awesome podcast for screenwriters on the look out for cool new things, advice, insider tips and interesting chatter between John and his co-host Craig Mazin.

That's why the playing cards WRITER EMERGENCY PACK caught my eye.  John August created this deck of writing cards.  It's a cool idea for writers who might find themselves stuck writing their latest story.  Need some quick brainstorming games?  Pick a card, any card, and consider your hero in a new situation -- or location -- or facing a new dilemma.  There are 26 cards to help jump start your scenes.


The cards are glossy with tons of fresh ideas and suggested creative writing exercises. 

Now, if you're the type of person who hates to do writing exercises at the end of a book or chapter, then this deck of cards is not for you.  Don't waste your money.

BUT, if you're the type of writer who likes challenges and games to help flex your creative writing muscles, then the Writer Emergency Pack is worth the $19.  Here is the link to buy it  http://store.johnaugust.com/collections/frontpage/products/writer-emergency-pack-single-deck

Want to save a little money?

Readers of The NY Screenwriting Life can also get a special 10% discount off the purchase of the cards.  Use code NYSWLIFE until the end of 2015 and save.  Go to John August's website for purchase http://johnaugust.com/

The Writer Emergency Pack is a fun, helpful tool, but you'll still have to sit down and do the hard work of writing.  Pick a card and get busy!

Until next time.

Janet Lawler is an author, playwright and screenwriter. Her screenplay The Tenant advanced to the Quarter Final Round in the 2015 Nicholl Fellowship for Screenwriting and the semifinals of the 2015 Austin Film Festival. Janet's debut novel From the Ground Up is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kindle. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F3CYSU8    Visit Janet's website at www.janetjlawler.com.   Follow Janet on Twitter @JJLawler and the NY Screenwriting Life on Facebook.

Thursday, November 05, 2015

NICHOLL FELLOWSHIP IN SCREENWRITING AWARDS AND LIVE READ
Five Screenwriters Receive Praise and $35 Thousand Each to Write Their New Script
by Janet J. Lawler
November 5, 2015
Award Ceremony at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater
Ever wonder what it's like to win the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting?  The following five fellows discovered what that achievement means.   Each called it "life changing" for their writing careers.  Their feature screenplays were celebrated (with a scene read live) last night at the Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting Awards and Live Read:

ELIZABETH CHOMKO
What They Had

ANDREW FRIEDHOF
Great Falls

ANTHONY GRIECO
Best Sellers

SAM REGNIER
Free Agent

AMY TOFTE
Addis Abeka

All accepted their award (a leather-bound script of their winning work and a $35,000.00 prize.)  Each fellow now has a mandate from the Academy to write a new feature script within the year of their fellowship.
Nicholl Program
They gave speeches and thanked the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, their new agents, and spouses and families for supporting them.

Sam Regnier gave an emotional, heartfelt speech about how he kept a bottle of champagne in the fridge that he'd only open when he sold his first script.  It remained unopened for seven years.  At one point, when he and his wife had moved, the "champagne box" came up empty... Sam thought his wife had thrown it out.  Instead, she had placed it in their new fridge.  Together, they kept the dream alive... and his script FREE AGENT won the fellowship and has since sold to CBS Films.

Each screenwriter spoke about the many unsold spec scripts it took to get to Nicholl.  They know rejection like most writers.  The one theme running throughout the night was persistence and trusting your own VOICE on the page.  A reader will respond when you're honest and dig deep to find an emotional truth.  
Janet Lawler at Nicholl Awards;  2015 Nicholl Quarterfinalist
It was a fun evening in Beverly Hills!  This was my first time attending the awards and live read.  Go, if you're able to some year.  It's open and free to the public.  My script The Tenant was a quarterfinalist in Nicholl this year.  I wanted to be there in person to root for the FIVE fellows who were selected out of over 7,000 submissions in 2015.  

Congratulations to all: Elizabeth, Andrew, Anthony, Sam and Amy!  Many of the fellows had been rejected numerous times prior by Nicholl... so if you didn't win this year, never give up and keep writing your next draft for 2016!

Until then...

Janet Lawler is an author, playwright and screenwriter. Her screenplay The Tenant advanced to the Quarter Final Round in the 2015 Nicholl Fellowship for Screenwriting and the semifinals of the 2015 Austin Film Festival. Janet's debut novel From the Ground Up is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kindle. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F3CYSU8    Visit Janet's website at www.janetjlawler.com.  Follow Janet on Twitter @JJLawler



Tuesday, November 03, 2015

Hollywood Agents and Managers Beg You: Don't Become a Needy Girlfriend or Boyfriend Client

NOTES FROM THE 2015 AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL:
Don’t Become a "Needy Girlfriend/Boyfriend" Client
by:  Janet J. Lawler
November 3, 2015
WGA West Party at AFF
Managers and agents advised semifinalist and finalist writers at the Austin Film Festival to have confidence in their work, always be creating new material, and please “don’t become a needy girlfriend or boyfriend” texting or calling them every day for reassurance.

This wasn’t meant to sound snarky, but to say that writers tend to be insecure about their writing and their importance to their Hollywood agent or manager.   They want to be the favorite child, so to speak, on a long list of clients and in a very competitive business.

Getting representation ( and keeping it) is like any successful relationship — you have to contribute to it every day, be respectful and appropriate in your interactions.  Texting an agent on the weekend or during a holiday better be important and not to just say "Hi, anything cooking with my career?"

Agents and lit managers said they get insecure too — about getting dumped once their new client becomes a big shot screenwriter. 

It was awesome to be recognized as a semifinalist at this year's AFF for my feature screenplay THE TENANT.  I’m glad I booked my hotel/plane ticket through Travelocity and headed off to Texas to take part in the best writing conference in the country for screenwriters.

If you weren’t able to attend, plan on going in 2016.  It's worth it!  Here are some notes I scribbled at panels — maybe one or two will help you polish your script or start a new project.




Screenwriter and Panelist  SHANE BLACK
PITCH FEST FINALS
NEW INDUSTRY TRENDS

Readers LOVE to read short scripts, plays and short stories instead of LONG screenplays and TV specs.
Writing a TV spec is not essential like in the past.  TV producers and showrunners want to see original work with a fresh voice.  It’s not important for them to see that you can “mimic” another show’s characters anymore.  (This shocked and made a lot of writers happy to hear — dig that old play out of your desk or off your hard drive.)
Webisodes do attract attention and if an audience is growing for them, or their is buzz, producers and studios will come calling.  Be creative.
Use your smartphone for something other than to check Facebook.  Go shoot some of your funny scenes or a short film.  Post it and send links to people YOU KNOW in the business to share.
Structure is not by-the-book.  Don’t feel so confined to hitting your inciting moment in your script by a certain page count, or worry about act breaks in features — tell a good story and TORTURE your hero.  The rest will fall into place.
Less dialogue.  Don’t overwrite characters.  Write movie/TV dialogue, not real life talk that can bog down your script and add pages (Hollywood people have enough to read every day!)
Trust your insecurities, your vision, your world and invite executives/readers into it.
Have fun and keep writing NEW material.
Don’t wait to be validated or invited to the party; create your own product, IP or brand.

Tips from Edward Ricourt, Screenwriter 
(“Now You See Me”; Pitch Judge)

Read newspapers and magazines to look for original stories. 
If one catches your eye, contact the subject or writer and ask to option their story for a small fee.
Be pro-active (reading other professional scripts, always be writing something new, study the trades.)
IP (branded) material is what producers and studios are seeking mostly, an established brand or franchise.
Every year Edward gives his manager/agents his “State of the Union” — explaining his goals for the year and writing future.

Opening Remarks of the Conference by Screenwriter Shane Black:

Face your fears when you sit down to write.  Look at your insecurities and use them in your writing, to develop your characters, add emotion and truth.  This will resonate with the reader/audience as a universal theme they can relate to. 
Stay with the herd (surround yourself with other writers, writing groups, supporters).  If you stay in the herd, you won’t get picked off being out on your own or isolated.  If you’re outside the herd, it’s more likely you won’t survive alone.  Rely on the support of your fellow writers.
When you get notes, it’s a diagnosis of your script.  Hear the diagnosis (the note by a reader/manager) and see if you can come at the scene in a fresh, entertaining or original way.  Don’t be defensive.
SHOW the TONE of your story in the first 10 or less pages of your script and be consistent throughout. 
Readers complain of major tonal shifts in scripts, which pulls them out of your story.                     Read or watch the opening scene of the classic movie THE VERDICT (starring Paul Newman and directed by Sidney Lumet.)  This is a great example of showing your hero’s flaws from the opening scene of a movie/script.

Tips from Erika Weinstein, Manager of Scripted Programing at AMC

Start your story off in a gripping, original voice.
Write meaningful dialogue  (moving the story or developing story)
Own your characters and story.  Don’t be wishy-washy if asked about why you wrote it a certain way.
Looks to read fresh voices (not so much specs of TV shows anymore, rather plays, short stories, pilots.)
Make it stand out, unique
Welcome the reader into a new world they haven’t seen before.  (For instance, Erika said she gets tons of scripts about a woman having just broken up with her boyfriend — that storyline is boring unless done in a completely refreshing way.)

Tips from Emily Best, Founder and CEO Seed & Spark, Independent Filmmaker

If you’re having trouble breaking into Hollywood or filmmaking because of your diversity, find another way in or create your own IP (webisodes, book, podcast, short film).
Emily kept stressing “Use the internet, guys”.  She was adamant about being proactive as an artist.  “We’re not just creatives anymore, we’re entrepreneurs.”
Start your own, cheap website and post your scripts or video clips or short film.
Use crowd funding to support a project.  Get 10,000 followers and build your brand and make an income.
Have an audience in your pocket to attract a studio or major producer in your already-existing project online.
Be persistent and create a network of diverse friends in the industry that can brainstorm or help you.

Hope some of my notes inspire you!  Good luck!
Until next time --

Janet Lawler is an author, playwright and screenwriter. Her screenplay The Tenant advanced to the Quarter Final Round in the 2015 Nicholl Fellowship for Screenwriting and the semifinals of the 2015 Austin Film Festival. Janet's debut novel From the Ground Up is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kindle. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F3CYSU8    Visit Janet's website at www.janetjlawler.com.