A quick statistic (from Script Magazine and Deadline Hollywood): In 2010, 360 “spec” (speculation) scripts made the rounds in Hollywood. Just 62 sold. If around 600 major Studio and Indy movies are made every year, it means the spec market hovers at around 8-10% of all non-low-budget films. So, what are they buying? What generates […]
Argo is one of the tightest thrillers in years. There’s a reason why it upset the Spielberg-Lincoln Oscar applecart. Great source story, cinematography, acting, directing, sure. But dig deeper. Why is this such a good movie? We don’t have to trot Hitchcock out again on the nature of suspense, though I do remember a documentary […]
Centipedes freak me out. They belong in the deep woods or a David Lynch Eraserhead fantasy sequence. Can’t tell the difference between the head and the tail, all those freakin’ squiggly legs… They are a nightmare, and that was before I even watched The Human Centipede. Writing is storytelling. This goes for a three-line haiku […]
**QUICK NOTE, from my friend Linda Frothingham over at Chicago Screenwriters Network: They are running a seminar for screenwriters interested in submitting to contests. Entitled “IS YOUR SCRIPT READY?” it will feature a Q & A with speakers Ade Akisanya, T.J. Cimfel & Jason Doty, all of whom are former Chicago Screenwriter Network contest winners. […]
When I first heard about the movie BURIED, written by Chris Sparling, the concept blew me away. An American imprisoned by Iraqi terrorists, attempting to escape from a buried coffin. It would still be impressive if this movie cut away in flashbacks like 127 HOURS, but it doesn’t. The full 90 minutes are in the […]
