Villagefest fireworks 2013

St. Anthony Villagefest fireworks August 3, 2013

Free draft screenplays viewable online IMSDB

The Internet Movie Script Database allows you to view draft versions of movie scripts.  The extensive online database has scripts of every genre.  It is an excellent resource for aspiring screenwriters who want to learn from the masters.

Here is the direct link to the Austin Powers International Man of Mystery script by Mike Myers.  He's not afraid to use (parenthetical direction), the passive voice describing action or specific music cues. 

The opening musical number to Austin Power's International Man of Mystery - 2 minutes.

Update to A Very Convenient Truthiness

I've been plugging away at a rewrite to the Very Convenient Truthiness screenplay after getting very helpful guidance from the script readers at Trigger Street Labs.   The rewrite will be completed by mid March.

Key tips from the script readers:

Show rather than tell.  Don't talk about something show it:  Instead of Ivar referring back Sophia crushing Chuck, I added a flashback showing the event.  

Use active voice present tense for action directions.

Do:   He grabbed the bat and attacked the 6 foot vampire zombie mosquito.
Don't:  He grabbed the bat while he was attacking the 6 foot vampire zombie mosquito.

I also added a romantic flashback into the script at the Split Rock Lighthouse on Lake Superior.  The beach has a large number of flat basalt rocks perfect for stacking. Since the the rocks are produced by volcanic action and the movie includes a volcano it made a good tie in.

http://themanyadventuresofjerryandben.blogspot.com/2011/06/grand-day-out.html

SCARF and success

http://www.edbatista.com/2010/03/scarf.html

Kirk Froggatt's U of MN talk on Emotional Intelligence at U of MN TLI.

David Rock's SCARF model for change.  He describes what prevents us from accepting constructive feedback or responding positively to a situation or challenge.  Screenwriters have to deal with this during the writing and editing process.  Even more of this happens during the critique as the screenplay goes through changes and revisions and finally into production.

Teamwork is not a natural act pdf

 

Tiny Drone Crazyflie quadcopter from Sweden

Fitting this tiny drone with a video camera would be an interesting addition to a teen focused screenplay about spying. 

http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/crazyflie-barebones-quadrocopter-video-02-05-2011/

 

Screenwriters style manuals

I am using several screenwriting books to help develop and format my screenplay.

The book, The Hollywood Standard: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to Script Format and Style (Hollywood Standard: The Complete & Authoritative Guide) provides the script standard from the Warner Brothers studio.  It has a helpful index and examples of proper formatting.

The book, Save The Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need is an inspirational book offering encouragement to screenwriters.  It lists the rough plot and character rules for a commercial Hollywood script.  Save the cat refers to an early action of compassion by a character done to endear them to the audience.  It allows the audience to see the soft side of character and allow them to care about what happens to this person.

The book, The Screenwriter's Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script  provides additional information on script development and offers ideas on selling your script.

Of the three books, Blake Snyder's was the most entertaining.  For day to day referral, the Hollywood Standard has been very useful for sorting out issues related proper format.

Let me know if you have found others to be helpful.