I'm happy

I'm really pleased with how my last spec turned out. I sent it out to a few people in the industry and I’m awaiting their feedback before I proceed any further. I’m now working on a new comedy spec and am thrilled with the premise and where it is going so far.

If there was any doubt that this was what I wanted to do, it was just quashed.

Happy happy joy joy

Happy holidays!

Let me ask you this...

When you guys sent out emails/letters to agents seeking representation, what did you write in the body of your email?

Thanks.

Books

I have two screenwriting books, The "101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider's Secrets from Hollywood's Top Writers" by Karl Iglesias and the third edition of Syd Field's "Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting; A step-by-step guide from concept to finished script". If anyone has any screenplay books they'd like to swap, just let me know and I'll definitely consider it.

Scripts

I say share the wealth. Here's a site with a bunch of scripts from various TV shows.

READING

I printed out my screenplay today and read it over. I am shamed to admit, since I began working on this script this is the first time I’ve done such a thing. Sure, I’ve read my screenplay (too many times to count in fact), but I’ve always just read it over on my computer. Needless to say, it ain't as good of an idea as printing it out. Being able to edit it as you're reading, for me at least, tends to break up the fluidity. In other words, I never really got through my screenplay in one reading when I was reading it on my laptop. While I did make notes and minor changes when I read the printed version, it was a much smoother read and I even got through it in one shot.

I have some scenes I've got to fix and some little things I have to add, but I'm just a few days away folks. Just a few days away.

Honestly...

I don't have much to report. It has been a fairly quiet weekend. I'm trying to put the finishing touches on my screenplay before I get it out (that's when the fun begins). Should be completed by Thursday. Also, like I mentioned I'm very excited about my trip to LA in a few weeks. Aside from that, my life has been fairly mundane. It's so snowy and dark here that going out is a fuckin chore, which I guess could be a good thing in terms of having less distractions, but it seems to be hindering my progress.

Oh, and I just realized today is a huge milestone. It's the two week anniversary of my blog. Another excuse to get hammered.

LA

I'm excited to report that I will be in LA for 11 days in early January.

Ooooh baby.

Anyone have any Lakers (or Clippers) tickets they want to part with?

Joke

Now that Vancouver will be hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics these are some questions people the world over are asking!!!! Believe it or not these questions about Canada were posted on an International Tourism Website (frightening, isn't it!)


Obviously the answers are a joke; but the questions were really
asked!!!!!

Q: I have never seen it warm on Canadian TV, so how do the plants
grow?(UK)

A. We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around and watch them die.



Q: Will I be able to see Polar Bears in the street? (USA)

A: Depends on how much you've been drinking.



Q: I want to walk from Vancouver to Toronto-can I follow the Railroad tracks? (Sweden)

A: Sure, it's only Four thousand miles, take lots of water.



Q: Is it safe to run around in the bushes in Canada? (Sweden)

A: So it's true what they say about Swedes.




Q: It is imperative that I find the names and addresses of places to contact for a stuffed Beaver. (Italy)

A: Let's not touch this one.



Q: Are there any ATM's (cash machines) in Canada? Can you send me a list of them in Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax? (UK)

A: What did your last slave die of?



Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Canada?
(USA )

A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe. Ca-na-da is that big country to your North...oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Calgary. Come naked.



Q: Which direction is North in Canada? (USA)

A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.


Q: Can I bring cutlery into Canada? (UK)

A: Why? Just use your fingers like we do.



Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? (USA)

A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is...oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in Vancouver and in Calgary, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.



Q: Do you have perfume in Canada? (Germany)

A: No, WE don't stink.



Q: I have developed a new product that is the fountain of youth. Can you sell it in Canada? (USA)

A: Anywhere significant numbers of Americans gather.



Q: Can you tell me the regions in British Columbia where the female population is smaller than the male population? (Italy)

A: Yes, gay nightclubs.



Q: Do you celebrate Thanksgiving in Canada? (USA)

A: Only at Thanksgiving.



Q: Are there supermarkets in Toronto and is milk available all year round?(Germany)

A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of Vegan hunter/gathers. Milk is illegal.



Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Canada, but I forget its name. It's a kind of big horse with horns. (USA)

A: It's called a Moose. They are tall and very violent, eating the brains of anyone walking close to them. You can scare them off by spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking.



Q: Will I be able to speak English most places I go? (USA)
A: Yes, but you will have to learn it first.

Anyone

Entering the Creative Screenwriting Mag. contest today?

The Ringer

Is it wrong that I get my news from Yahoo?

The Ringer is a movie about a guy pretending to be disabled so he can compete in the special olympics, written by Canadian Ricky Blitt (he writes for Family Guy). The Farrelly brothers are producing the soon to be released movie and are pissed off that Trey and Matt, creators of South Park, had an episode eerily similar to the movie.

You can read more about it here...

Question

If I've registered my work with the Writer's Guild of Canada is it also necessary to register it with the Writer's Guild of America?

Thanks!!!

*Cmon, somebody step up and answer the friggin question (can I swear in this fuckin thing).

Amazing Race

I'm an avid watcher of the reality show the Amazing Race on CBS. However, this past family version, which concluded last night, was a huge disappointment. It sucked balls. Especially last nights season finale. The cast came to Canada, specifically Toronto and Montreal. During one part of the show they had to choose between two "typically Canadian" tasks, curling and log rolling/lumberjacking. Now, as someone who has lived in Canada for close to 25 years, I have done neither. I've had the privilege of meeting the games producer once and hopefully I'll bump into him again and let him know how lame those tasks were. To reiterate, I was grossly disappointment with the content throughout the entire season and specifically some of the challenges they put in place last night. As well, what stuck out in my mind was the sheer naïveté of the contestants. I mean, I'm not going to contend to be an expert on every city in the world and every culture, but I would expect a team from Florida to know that in Toronto people speak English, EH.

Sample

Apparently there is some sort of share your work with other bloggers online thing going on, so I thought what the hell. This is a random part from the first "script" I ever wrote. It was never finished, but it's a 'lil glimpse into my wonderful world.

I'm way too lazy to format this properly, so this will have to do.

Enjoy


INT. STUDENT DORM, FOURTH FLOOR, ROOM 401 - DAY

Brian is fixing his hair in the dirty mirror attached to the door. Seth is standing a few feet behind him.

BRIAN
You ready?
SETH
Can't believe you're dragging me to this party.
BRIAN
Relax Seth, maybe you'll get some ass.
SETH
Are there even gonna be girls there?

Not waiting for a response, Seth drenches himself and everything around with generic cologne. The fumes cause Brian to both cough and chuckle.

EXT. COLLEGE CAMPUS - NIGHT

Brian and Seth stand outside a nearby dorm. Brian is visibly ticked off, glancing at his watch every other second.

BRIAN
Where is that douche bag?
SETH
He said he'd be waiting outside.
BRIAN
Well, I'm not gonna be late, lets just go.

Seth gives Brian a look of annoyance as they continue walking.

BRIAN
You OK?
SETH
What do you mean?
BRIAN
Dude, you're sweatin like a pedophile in a pre-school.
SETH
Shut up, you know I have a glandular problem.

The two continue to walk until they hit 'frat row', a street lined with massive fraternity houses and trees strewn with toilet paper.

SETH
(looking up at the
enormous houses)
And we're stuck in those dorms…
BRIAN
See, another reason to join a frat.
SETH
What were the others?

Holiday movie

Another screenwriting blogger (he hasn't linked me even though I asked him nicely to do so) has a poll with the best Xmas movies ever. Well, while I'm not exactly a Xmas expert (whatever that means), I'd have to say Home Alone. Home Alone (1 and 2) to me typifies the Xmas break. Just like come April I know I'm going to see Charlton Heston's face on the tube, I know when December hits and I'm freezing my ass off Macauly Culkin's formerly cute face is going to be on network TV.

Sad News

'Training Day' producer Robert Newmyer died yesterday in Toronto of a heart attack, he was 49. To read a little bit more about him click here

_______

On a lighter note, Ken Levine has a funny post today on his blog. Check it out y'all, then come back here!

So close, yet so far away

I'm so close to finshing this screenplay. I mean, I'm finished, but I'm not. There's still adjustments I have to make before I can send this bad boy out to some people. It's such a tease, because on one hand I feel like it's done and would receive great feedback from these people, on the other hand I feel like there's somethings that need to be tinkered with before I should send it out.

I guess I'll just have to suck it up and hold off on sending it until everything is perfect.

Paramount to Buy DreamWorks in $1.6B Deal

Apparently, Paramount Pictures said Sunday it had agreed to buy independent film studio DreamWorks SKG Inc. in a deal worth $1.6 billion in cash and debt.

To read the whole article click here

Honestly, I'm not sure if this is a good, bad or neutral thing...

Question

Anyone know anything about the Trigger Street web site?

Wi Fi

Read: THIS

When

The other day someone asked me how I got into screenwriting. I couldn't answer. I can't really pin-point the precise moment where I decided I wanted to do this. I started off by writing a comedy that while funny, didn't have a premise. I quickly scrapped that and began another comedy and that's sort of when I decided that this is what I wanted to do. But, there isn't an exact defining moment. I also can't explain why I started writing a screenplay, it just happened.

What about you guys? How did you get into screenwriting and when did you come to the realization that this is what you wanted to do?

Going Hollywood part II

I can hear my neighbor playing the piano, so I decided to take a break from re-touching my screenplay. Anyway, I caught the above mentioned show this afternoon. Here are my thoughts...
I liked it. I wasn't crazy about the cast at first, but now I actually think they're a solid bunch. I like the scene where the Bosnian (his name escapes me) was booking a magic show in Vegas and Method Man tells him to make sure he doesn't book a show with a magician who has a cup on his dick, to which he responds to the camera something like "if I book this magician and he ends up having a cup on his dick then I'm going to end up with a cup on my dick". Wasn’t actually funny, but the way he said it made me laugh! I think Tara from Philly, based on the little bit that I saw, would most fit in with the Hollywood life. I also liked the jalopies that TLC provided them. Did any of you catch it? If so, whad y'all think?

Curb II

So I went out for drinks last night with a few friends and the season finale of Curb Your Enthusiasm happened to come up in our conversation. One of my friends thought it was hysterical, hands down the best of the year. Odd. Maybe I'll watch it again.

Comments

Scott from Alligators in a Helicopter just informed me that he posted several comments, but none of them ever appeared on my blog. I tried commenting on one of my posts and it seemed to work. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, you obviously can't comment, so feel free to drop me an email and lemme know. Much appreciated.

*Update: Man, I'm so stupid. I didn't realize I had to approve the comments first. All the comments should be up.

August, part II

Apparently I wasn't the only one who didn't quite get what John was trying to say a few days back, so he created a second post trying to explain himself.

I posted a comment to that one, here's what I had to say:

This is funny…John, like I said before, sure there are differences in accents between an American and a Canadian, but only in so much as there are differences between a Torontonian and a guy from Vancouver, or someone from Chicago, Boston, NY, San Fran, etc. Should you be aware of that when you’re casting a Manitoban for a part of someone who’s supposed to be from Atlanta? Sure. But you’d also have to be aware of a guy from Boise’s accent if you’re casting him to play a guy from Atlanta. See my point? I think the Canadians who have spoken up are pissed because to lump them in the same category as someone with an Australian accent or a British accent is ludicrous. You’re not going to confuse a Canadian accent with an Australian accent, but you may very well confuse an American and a Canadian, whether many of us like it or not.

Writer's Arc

Unfortunately, I only spotted this contest a few days after the due date. For those of you who did manage to spot this new fellowship and enter, how did you do? Are you still around? I noticed that the fellowship begins in just over a month, so they must be whittling it down to the 25 semi-finalists soon.

Curb

I caught the season finale of Curb Your Enthusiasm on Monday. It sucked. I was disappointed, to say the least. I won't ruin it for those of you who don't get HBO and are scouring the Net for it or for those who haven't sat down to watch the TIVO'd show yet, but be warned. It ain't one of the better episodes, in my not so humble opinion.

Going Hollywood

There's a new series on TLC that's premiering tonight called 'Going Hollywood'. Obviously I haven't seen it yet, but I'm going to tune in tonight (although it partially conflicts with 'LOST'). The show "examines the flip side of Tinseltown's entourage, following three young entertainment industry hopefuls as each takes on a high-profile Hollywood internship with the production companies of entertainment's biggest stars. The respective companies of Academy Award-winning actor Kevin Spacey, legendary producer Robert Evans and hip-hop star/actor Method Man host these young interns as they learn the business of show business." Read more about it here

Walk The Line

Saw the movie tonight. Won't say much because I think it's best to comment on a movie a few days after watching it. I did think the acting was great though.

Query Letters are hard!

I'm trying to put one together and to my surprise I'm having a bitch of a time. Summarizing my screenplay in just a few sentences, wow. I'm concise, but cmon now...

*Update: By golly, I think I got it.

Synopsis, outline, etc...

Most people would recommend at least writing a synopsis before embarking on a screenplay. Well, not me. It's not that I don't recommend writing a synopsis (write one) or a 20 page treatment, character profiles, etc. However, I'm the kind of guy that likes to simply delve into the screenplay with very little. Sure, I'll have a plot, an idea of who the characters are and I will have brainstormed a little bit, but for the most part that's all I'll have. I’d like to think this worked for me on my last screenplay (I guess the higher ups will ultimately be the judge). This method (if you wanna call it that) forced me to be more imaginative and I wasn't ever really truly stuck, not knowing where to go next. I'm one of those writers that is constantly tinkering with the screenplay, going back and reading, writing an ending before I have other stuff, jotting down ideas, etc. Maybe this will change, maybe it ain't as effective as I think, but until it gives me serious problems and prevents me from writing a good script or finishing one, then I'm going to stick to it. Call me stubborn.

Since I'm venting...

Unfortunately, I just found out that I am no longer (if I ever was) being considered to be Mr. Jim Chow's (not his real name) assistant. Mr. Chow is a fairly accomplished producer/writer who I tried to build a rapport with starting back in June. He has been busy with a project and aside from meeting him once face to face, our relationship consists of basically one-sided emails from me every once in a while. However, I recently received an email from him saying that he was looking for an assistant and since I just finished my script on Thursday I figured it would be a perfect opportunity. I could work with an established writer/producer, learn from him, make some contacts, etc. Sure, I have lots of confidence in my recently completed script, in fact it's going to be read by some "important" people (fine, person) in LA, but that doesn't mean I'm going to bank on selling it, I'm still a little bit of a realist. As such, I 'm hoping to get my foot into the industry any way I can. Unfortunately, like I mentioned above, today after sending him a follow up email regarding the position (I emailed him a cover letter and a CV last week), he informed me that he's looking for someone "with very different skills". I wish I knew what that meant. I'm trying not to be bummed out because frankly I probably would not have enjoyed many aspects of the job (although no details were ever given to me), but I am. I don't think I'm as bummed out by the fact that I won't be working with him, more for the fact thatI have "ver different skills"than what he wants. I'm a young, but not teenage young, decently educated, personable writer. Isn't that the perfect combo for someone to make you coffee? Maybe he was looking for a chick with a nice rack?

Something that bugs me

Other bloggers who are hesitant to link to this site. I mean, these people have been blogging for 5 months and suddenly they're too cool to link up to the poor shlob whose shoes they were in a mere few months back. Sure, lots of screenwriting blogs pop up, sure many disappear just as quickly, but cmon, link me. Worse case scenario is that you take down the link if the site dies out. Don't be a blog whore.

Scribe bucks

A quick post...read http://screenwriting.ugo.com/screenwriting/top11highestpaidscribes.php
What's crazy is not that some of these guys got paid 3-4 million bucks, it's that many of these deals were about 5-10 yrs ago.

QUESTION

I'm not sure if anyone's reading this yet, but if there is, I have a question. Is it necessary to include the specific place inside your scene heading. For example, if my scene is taking place in a shopping mall, speicifcally in a food court, should I write INT. SHOPPING MALL - FOOD COURT - DAY or INT. SHOPPING MALL - DAY. Either way I'm mentioning in the action underneath that the scene is taking place in a food court.

ANYONE???

Good Will Hunting

Anyone that knows me knows that I love Good Will Hunting. I think the movie's brilliant. There's one particular monologue that as a screenwriter I really appreciate. I think it's exceptional, not to mention Matt Damon performs it fantastically. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about it's the speech he gives about his friend and shrapnel.

Another great monologue is in the movie Boiler Room. Damon's friend Affleck gives a speech in a board room, an awesome speech, but unfortunately not performed nearly as well as Damon's.

Which begs the question, what movie monologues stand out in your heads?

John August

For those of you who don't know who John August is, he's the scribe that helped pen Go, the Charlie's Angels remakes, Big Fish, etc. He has a fairly decent web site where you can find all sorts of cool information (if you're a screenwriter, otherwise it ain't cool), johnaugust.com, although lately he hasn't had many updates. The most recent post on his web site talks about accents. He mentions something that bothers me, he states that "If you’re an Australian actor, you can probably suppress your give-away twang, just like most Canadians can — with a lot of effort — distinguish between 'about' and 'a boot.' ..."

Sure, Canadians have accents. There are definitely subtle differences between American and Canadian accents, but only in so much as there are subtle differences between a New Yorker’s accent, a Bostonian’s accent, a Mid-Westerner’s accent, someone from the West-Coast’s accent, someone from the South’s accent, etc. Canada is the largest country in the world in terms of geography and the US is not so far behind, so obviosuly in different parts of each country we'll see people with slightly different dialects, twangs, whatever you wannna call it. To disprove the fact that Canadian accents have a negative effect on making inHollywood we just need to look at all the Canadians out there who have made it big, such as Jim Carey, Michael J. Fox, Keifer Sutherland, Pamela Anderson (yes, I said Pamela Anderson), etc. Not to mention the countless number of Canadian actors who are prospering in US television using their own REAL accents and wouldn't even know they're Canadian unless we looked them up.

My 2 cents.

What do you think?

First POST!!!~~

Welcome to my new blog. I'm positive many of you have started off by saying this, I truly never thought I'd be one of those nerds with a blog. But, lately I've been reading a bunch of blogs, including Fun Joel's blog and others, and I really like them and the whole idea of a blog (except the name). So naturally, I thought, why not start my own?!

A little background...I'm in my early twenties, old enough to drink, too young to rent a car (in some places at least), dashingly handsome, exceptionally articulate, and well-grounded. More importantly, I'm a Canadian SCREENWRITER who's looking to relocate to LA by August '06. While I have yet to sell anything, I have recently completed a comedy spec script I hope will at least open some doors for me. As well, I have a BA in Political Science, but don't fret (yes, I said fret) I'm not going to turn this blog into a bunch of crazy political rants; there's enough of those around.

That's the short of it. I will try and post often, mostly about my journey into the world of screenwriting (was that supposed to entice you!?). My trials and tribulations, etc...

Please stay with me and feel free to post comments, lots of comments. If you have an applicable web site you'd like me to link to then please leave me a comment and I will gladly do so as long as you link to mine (did you think I'd give you a link without reciprocation?!)