Anthony even made me like the film better and I have a few reasons to have grievances with it, though, you know, it’s my baby even if it’s not quite as pretty a baby as a I wanted so I love it no matter what:

CLASSIC FILM REVIEW: EXCESS BAGGAGE (1997):

I don’t know many people who have seen this movie. When mentioned, I get the typical “with Alicia Silverstone?” reply. Yes, and Benicio Del Toro and Christopher Walken. Directed by Marco Brambilla, and written by Max D. Adams, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais (with an uncredited re-write by Aaron Sorkin according to IMDB), Excess Baggage came and went with little attention and eventually died on video store shelves, which is where I found it.

You won’t come across many positives when scouring conventional review outlets for this and that may mislead you into thinking it’s not worth a couple of hours of your time. I’m not going to defend my opinion of the movie. I love it. It’s always on my ever-changing list of favorites. That’s only to say that I don’t pay much attention to critics’ reviews. They can sour a film or hype it beyond reasonable expectation, and, either way, taint your own viewing. In fact, 1997 is a good movie year to explore this a bit. That was the year of Titanic, buoyed by a critical love affair and box office spectacle. It won a shitload of awards, too. But 1997 also featured Cop Land, L.A. Confidential, Jackie Brown and Grosse Pointe Blank. All superior films. And those are just what I can remember at the moment. So, I say Titanic can go fuck itself. Now, let’s talk about a real good flick like Excess Baggage.

Here’s the set-up:

Emily (Silverstone) fakes her own kidnapping in order to win the attention of her rich neglectful dad, Alexander (Jack Thompson). Vincent (Del Toro) is a professional high-end car thief, who jacks Emily’s BMW with her bound and gagged in the trunk. Alexander calls in Emily’s caring and shady “Uncle” Ray (Walken doing his best Walken), an unflappable ex-military man who handles Alexander’s dirty work. It’s fair to say that Alexander has made tons of money less than legitimately. Ray is tasked with finding Emily and bringing her home while the cops try their awful best to track her as well. Ray suspects from the go that the kidnapping may not be what it seems and heads out on the accurate assumption that Emily is staging the whole thing.

Vincent and Emily formally meet at his dockside warehouse when she bangs on the trunk to get out. In a panic, he handcuffs her in the bathroom while discussing what to do with his tool of a partner, Greg (Harry Connick, Jr.). They decide it’s best —

::: CONTINUE READING :::

This is the hot new book trailer for The New Screenwriter’s Survival Guide, an AFW publication, book trailer created by the epically talented Christie LeBlanc of Trailer Works.

Visual Writing Master Class: Adams will teach a three-hour condensed version of the revered class she teaches through the Academy of Film Writing and The University of Utah. This workshop will provide SCC Film School Screenwriting students with very specific craft tools in the art of making writing on the page more visual for a reader, thus more seamlessly connecting storytelling and the visual aspects of cinema. The value to students can best be summed up in the words of nationally recognized screenwriting guru Patrick A. Horton, PhD: the Visual Writing class makes “the difference between a script that reads relatively well to one that jumps off the page and vividly plays out in the mind of a succession of readers, creative collaborators, and decision makers on its way to the screen.”

Moderated Conversation and Q&A on the Correct Way to Break into Hollywood: In this two-hour event, Adams will share tips and wisdom from her nearly 20 years as a screenwriting professional, as well as from her best-selling book, “The New Screenwriters Survival Guide.” Event participants (SCC student, staff and faculty) will learn secrets to getting noticed and read with or without an agent, as well as how to avoid common pitfalls that stall or stop novice screenwriters’ careers. Top screenwriting scholar and author of The Screenwriter’s Bible David Trottier says of Adams’ book, “Before you even think of marketing your script, read this book and change your screenwriting life.”

*These events are open to students and faculty of Scottsdale Community College only.

This is one of the most powerful monologues ever put on film.  It is from Jaws, Quint’s character played by Robert Shaw delivers “The Indianapolis Speech.”  Watch.  Listen. Learn. We will be studying it hard in Dialogue Writing.

March 19th, 2013 by Kate Tilton

As many of you may know we took over the twitter chat #indiechat. #Indiechat is held every Tuesday at 9pm EST. You can check out our previous chat logs on BiblioCrunch Storify.

This week on #indiechat Kate Tilton (@Froze8) will be will be hosting from the BiblioCrunch twitter account (@BiblioCrunch) with guest Max Adams (@CelluloidBlonde). Max will be giving her tips on screenwriting and answering questions!

Hope to see you there!

About Max Adams:

Max Adams is an award winning screenwriter and author. She has written professionally for Columbia Pictures, Hollywood Pictures, Touchstone Pictures, Universal Pictures, Walt Disney Studios, and Tri-Star Pictures. Organizations she has lectured and/or taught at include University of Southern California, Austin Film Festival, Squaw Valley Community of Writers, Film Arts Foundation, New York Film Academy, Gotham Writers, University of Utah, and the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences. She is a former Writers Guild of America, West online screenwriting mentor, is the founder of two international online screenwriting workshops, The Left Door and 5150,  is the author of The New Screenwriter’s Survival Guide; Or, Guerrilla Meeting Tactics and Other Acts of War, is a University of Utah associate instructor and is the founder of the The Academy of Film Writing. Her produced feature films include Excess Baggage, The Ladykillers, and One For the Money. You can connect with Max at The Academy of Film Writing or check out her book: The New Screenwriter’s Survival Guide;  Or, Guerrilla Meeting Tactics and Other Acts of War. Photo Credit Michael J. Canales.

High Concept Writing and Character Writing begin March 13.  One week left to register for those and then they will be closed to registration.

CLICK HERE to register for March online classes.

Julie is one of my students. I would love to take credit for everything she has accomplished, but I can’t. I am her teacher, I guide. I’m a good teacher and a good guide. Hell, I’m a good writer, if it comes down to that. But. A guide can only guide someone willing to be guided who has drive to push through. I could be walking someone up Kilimanjaro, but it would not do any good if that person said, Oh I’m tired now, I think I’ll turn back. And it wouldn’t do any good if I said, Hey, try to avoid that edge. And the person being guided didn’t listen to me and walked over the edge. So there is this fine line of taking credit for the student’s accomplishments. Because, if the student isn’t special, well all the guiding in the world won’t stop that student from quitting or walking over that edge.

That said? I’m mad cap proud of Julie Howe. Here is her recent post on the Austin Film Festival blog:

AFF GUEST BLOG: JULIE HOWE IN SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT HEAVEN:

I know what you’re thinking. “She must be directionally confused, poor thing.” But hear me out because I actually do own a compass and know the difference between north and south.

When Matt Dy first rang me back in 2010 to say Joyce San Pedro, a producer based at Sony and an AFF judge and panelist, wanted to meet with me about my script, I was thinking he must have meant to call someone else — some OTHER writer who may have had the same last name as me — and he hit my number by mistake. Happens, right? Thankfully, it wasn’t a butt dial.

I’m one of those lucky writers who caught a break thanks to Austin Film Festival; as well as to an army of fellow writers who were generous and kind, brutal and honest, and most of all just plain supportive. As a result, my 2010 AFF comedy script is in development with Joyce San Pedro and Alex Siskin. It’s not a studio deal; it’s a handmade independent production deal. And I didn’t leave the baby on the doorstep and walk away. Instead, I made an arrangement with the producers that included involvement from start to finish. I wanted to learn, I wanted to know what it was really like to make a movie, to be part of a team. I didn’t know if I would be chewed up and spit out like a stale Chiclet or be able to hold my own. Not to mention being able to hold my tongue when necessary while still holding true to my vision.

As luck would have it, I was taken under the wings of the good guys and I’m thanking the gods of screenwriting I didn’t end up stuck to the bottom of somebody’s Nike. Those who championed the script from the beginning, Joyce San Pedro. Michael-Ryan Fletchall and Alex Siskin, opened the door for me and I ran through it like my hair was on fire. Let’s face it, I’m not a kid. I’m staring down the point-blank barrel of middle age. I want my shot before Medicare kicks in or I start thinking my purse belongs in the refrigerator.

I owe my tenacious attitude not only to the opportunity afforded me by Austin Film Festival but also to an amazing writer’s group called 5150 whose founder Max Adams, won the screenplay award when AFF was a pup. From the beginning of my tenure in the group, Austin Film Festival was touted as THE festival. Everyone in the group aspired to place well in the screenplay competition. Needless to say, winning was unbelievable and surreal. Like I had brought home 5150’s version of the Stanley Cup (yeah, I’m from a hockey state!). I would not be where I am without the help and guidance of these wickedly smart, talented peeps.

Although this all sounds like rah-rah cheerleader fluff…

:::continue reading:::

This is a guest post from Richard Dane Scott.  Richard recently wrote a piece for the AFF blog titled AFF IS MY BFF.  It’s a good piece.  You should read it.  What stood out to me was Richard’s blatant honesty about his early days being THAT Guy:

“When Austin Film Festival celebrates its 20^th anniversary, I will be celebrating my tenth consecutive year of attending. When I look back at my first couple of years, I’m ashamed to admit that I was THAT guy. You know THAT guy. The guy who thinks he’s written the greatest screenplay ever on his FIRST and ONLY try. The guy who pitches to anyone who will listen, even if it’s standing at the glistening rock laden urinal of the Driskill. (Those ARE pretty rocks.) The guy who raises his hand at every panel to pitch his project by masking it with an undecipherable question. See? You know that guy.”

I immediately emailed Richard and said, That’s one of the coolest and most important things I’ve seen, “that” guy seriously needs to know he is “that” guy, will you write a guest post for AFW about being THAT Guy?  And Richard did. Because Richard is just that cool.

15 WARNING SIGNS YOU MIGHT BE “THAT” GUY
~ by Richard Dane Scott

1:  You think you’ve written the greatest screenplay ever on you FIRST and ONLY try.

2:  You pitch to anyone who will listen (or can’t escape) even if it’s standing at the glistening rock laden urinal of the Driskill.

3:  You raise your hand at every panel to pitch your project by masking it with an undecipherable question.

4:  You integrate your own soundtrack into your screenplay, including that one song that must be the ONLY song in that karaoke scene you wrote.

5:  You give your casting choices in the screenplay.  And Anne Hathaway is one of them.

6:  You italicize all your narratives. [And don't know what "narrative" means.]

7:  Your script contains one conversation that lasts over three pages with NO narratives in between. [And you still don't know what "narrative" means.]

8:  All  your main characters’ names start with the same letter.  Probably “M.”

9:  You query prodcos and actor’s agents through a Google search of email addresses, not even considering trying to get representation FIRST.

10:  You have paid multiple times for script coverage on ONE screenplay, but haven’t done ONE rewrite.

11:  Your screenplay is full of camera directions because you secretly hope the prodco will ask you to direct.

12:  Your first act ends on page 47, but that’s okay, the script is 187 pages long.

13:  The only people you’ve shown your script to are your parents and significant other — and they are not Coppolas.

14:  You have NEVER read another screenplay.

15:  When you attend a panel, you are so busy planning a podium stampede to pitch your script post panel, you don’t hear the actual panel taking place.

Richard Dane Scott is a writer and producer. Richard was a 2010 AFF screenplay competition finalist with his drama Knocked Silly, now in development. In 2012, he was hired to pen four features — one of which is in pre-production titled Soul Girl. Richard’s feature Champion starring Lance Henriksen is due out this Spring.

1 PITCH, 3 ELEMENTS, 10 SECONDS

Everyone wants to sell a story. Almost no one can. Part of the reason is just that: people try to sell stories. But few (okay, no) working professionals have time to listen to or read every story that comes through the door. There are two reasons for this: all stories are long, and most stories are bad. And while other stories being bad gives you an edge if yours is good — no one knows it’s good unless they read it. And (as mentioned) no one has time to do that. What to do?

Easy: Don’t pitch the story. Pitch the concept.

Consider: the WGA registers 50,000 new screenplays every year. An undoubtedly larger number are copyrighted instead, or not registered at all. Conservatively speaking, that’s 100,000 new scripts hitting the market in any given year — on top of those already in circulation. Put yourself in the rep or buyer’s shoes: in the next three hours, you can read one script, maybe two (with a 99% probability neither will be much good) — or review well over a thousand concepts, and then ask to see only those scripts whose concepts seem promising, timely, and appropriate to your needs. Which method do you think your competitors are using?

Exactly.

A good, pitchable concept conveys the three most basic elements of your story in ten seconds or less: WHO the story is about, what their GOAL is, and the nature of the OBSTACLE that must be overcome to reach that goal. Lest you think this cannot be done, here are a few examples I cooked up for movies you may have seen:

•A fugitive doctor wrongly convicted of killing his wife struggles to prove his innocence while pursued by a relentless U.S. Marshal (The Fugitive).

•An orphaned boy attends a school for wizards, where he must learn the ways of magic to defeat the evil wizard who killed his parents — and is now after him (Harry Potter).

Even relatively complex concepts can be gotten across in this way, with the addition of a brief setup line:

•In a society where criminals are arrested before their crimes are committed, a cop convicted of a future murder goes on the run to prove his innocence (Minority Report).

Dissecting the first concept (also called a logline), we have: A fugitive doctor wrongly convicted of killing his wife (that’s our WHO) struggles to prove his innocence (the GOAL) while pursued by a relentless U.S. Marshal (the OBSTACLE). If you can’t boil your story down to a 10-second pitch, it means one of several things: you suck at loglines (an entirely different skill than writing a great story); the story itself is missing one or more of the required main elements (you can’t distill what isn’t there); or your story is non-classically structured (which means a harder pitch, a tougher sell, and less certain box office). And while unconventional films can be fabulous, know this going in: well over 90% of all commercially successful films are classically structured (three acts, seven plot points).

A story that can’t be distilled to a brief conceptual pitch makes buyers worry they won’t be able to sell the movie with a 30-second trailer — which often spells death at the box office. It also makes them wonder if the story itself has problems. Finally (or so goes their reasoning) if the pitch can’t focus and hold their attention for 10 seconds–what are the chances the writer can keep them engaged for the two or three hours it takes to read the whole script?

Don’t pitch your story. Pitch your concept. You spent hundreds of hours on your script. Spend a few more on the logline. It could make all the difference in the world.

JOHN ROBERT MARLOW is a novelist, screenwriter, producer and adaptation consultant. His latest book, Make Your Story a Movie: Adapting Your Book or Idea for Hollywood, draws on the expertise of authors, screenwriters, producers and directors whose combined films have earned over $50 billion and scores of Oscar nominations.

Who knew puppets could be so smart?  Well, besides Craig Ferguson?

:::SEE MORE BITTER SCRIPT READER:::

I’ve become a fan of Tim Ferris. He wrote The 4 Hour Work Week.  Tim can be a little grating “I’m so great” sometimes, but I figure any kid who was born with a collapsed lung and cross-eyed and got called “Tuna Fish” by his mom growing up and rebuilt himself as hard as he did probably gets to be a bit too “I’m too cool” sometimes.  He did earn it. He rebuilt himself. Also reading his book and using a few things from it has me going to bed before 5 AM once in a while. Which was not in my normal vocabulary before. But also –

I picked up on this thing he mentioned. He bribes people. Students. A lot. He had a group of students he told he’d give a ticket to anywhere in the world, a free all expenses paid vacation to ANYWHERE, if they participated in and won a competition. And here’s the thing. Most of them didn’t even enter.

Like in the Twitter thing I posted, “Be number 15 and you get a free eBook.” Sure, it’s not a ticket to anywhere in the world.  But it’s the same process.  And I’ve done this with other stuff, not just my book, Amazon and iTunes gift cards too. That is like free cash. But. The same thing happens. No one shows up. I’ve won a lot of these too. On Twitter. On Facebook. On blogs. Why?

I show up.

And this counts with writing. With, in fact, everything. Know who gets the job? The people who show up. Whether it is in the chair, in the classroom, in a workshop, on the runway, at the audition – the people who win are ALWAYS the people who show up.

I can put this in clearer terms.

Why do people open doors?

Because you knock.