Hey struggling screenwriter, wanna feel depressed?  Already do... nice well how about this, late night TV personality Stephen Colbert willbe adapting the next Lord of the Rings movie from New Line Cinema and Warner Bros... Yay!  

Character is revealed through their actions, obviously.    What your central character (protagonist) does and how he or she does it usually says a lot about them as a person.  The word protagonist comes from the Greek words protos first and agonistes actor.  He or she is the conveyor of your theme.

Why is it voice-over narration is considered by many so-called experts to be incongruous with the true nature of cinematic storytelling; hence screenwriting? Script doctors and other gurus continue to castigate the technique and have for decades.

Everyone thinks they can come up with a better movie idea than what they see on the Big Screen. From your hairdresser to the guy in that hole in the ground at the Lube center changing your car's oil, they all have thought at one time or another about how ridiculously simple writing a movie must be.

Well, be thankful most people don't pursue their Hollywood dreams. Still, there are tens of thousands of aspiring screenwriters out there… very tough odds for you regardless.

Dr. Linda Seger is the original script consultant having literally inventing the job in 1981; before her it didn't exist.  Since then she has consulted on over 2000 scripts and presented screenwriting seminars in over thirty countries around the world. Seger has written nine books on screenwriting making her the most prolific screenwriting author we have.   Seger consulted for Peter Jackson’s break-through film, BRAIN DEAD and Roland Emmerich’s breakthrough film, UNIVERSAL SOLDIER. She also has given seminars for studios, networks including ABC, NBC, CBS, production companies, television series (MacGyver, The Mary Show), film commissions, universities and film schools. 

This is an interview I was really happy to get back in 2004, it was a pleasure to interview such a screenwriting legend as John Michael Hayes.  We have also added a neat short interview with him where he discusses characters and Hitchcock.

Rear Window is considered to be Hitchcock's most "cinematic" picture. At times it had to communicate a lot to the audience without a word ever being spoken. This isn't surprising as Hitchcock started directing in 1922, during the silent era, making several silent films. By 1954, the year Rear Window was released he had clearly mastered the art of directing. However, before he could unleash his visual brilliance there had to be a great script from which to allow such a great movie to be made.

Twenty-two years ago Christopher Wehner wrote his first screenplay.   Like most writers he dreamed of seeing his work make it to the big screen.  After many struggles, rejections, and disappointments he is on the verge of his dream.   When you go to his IMDB page it shows EL CAMINO CHRISTMAS as his sole writing credit.   From that perspective you might considered him an overnight success; only its been a twenty-two year in the making one.   And like almost all of these kinds of success stories it took chance encounters, some luck, and a lot of perseverance. 

First let me stop writing the script I am currently working on so I can pound out this short editorial. Though I should say allow me to stop bleeding at the keyboard as I struggle with the current scene I am writing. I have to admit that I am my own worst enemy as a writer.  I procrastinate, often, and it can sometimes be so debilitating that I never finish some screenplays. Why?

The Oscar nominated movie NEBRASKA, with an award winning screenplay by Bob Nelson, is in my opinion one of the better scripts recently produced for screenwriters to learn a little something about the craft. Why? It’s the epitome of efficient and dramatic storytelling. The script is pithy, direct, yet it has depth and emotion (theme) that is so subtle in its presentation.