It’s tempting, when penning a script, to write what music our character enjoys. Why wouldn’t it be? One band’s name, whether on a poster or a shirt, can tell a great deal about the person you have created. Songs can provide valuable subtext for scenes!

Also, mentioning the above in that manner is almost a surefire way NOT to sell your script.

The reader (for the agent, producer etc.) immediately sees the budget go up when they read that your character is listening to Queen.

Why is that?

For starters, you need the artist’s permission to utilize their paraphernalia in your script. Of course that costs money. You also need the rights to the actual song in question. Because it is not the writer’s job to gain these rights etc. this means more work for the producer. Finally, suppose the reader hates the band mentioned (unfair but a reality).

So yes, they are seeing a lot of dollar signs and thus less likely to finish reading/buy your script.

You have two options in this case.

1) Make the music so pivotal to the movie that it couldn’t be done without it.

2) Stretch your writing muscles by showing both creativity and restraint. Don’t mention the music, instead tighten up the script and let them see, via characters etc., how the story unfolds. Pull readers in with your writing, not someone else’s art.

In my humble opinion, you will be pleasantly surprised when the soundtrack reflects the very emotions you meant to convey.

What are some other intellectual property considerations you keep in mind when writing your scripts?

My printer is somewhat emotional. On the rare, and or frequent, occasion I hit PRINT rather than SAVE. The easy solution is supposed to be click on the little icon and cancel the “Print Job”. My printer, however, does not like to be pushed about. I can’t just go willy nilly telling it to print one second and then to stop the next.

Just the other day this happened with some random notes I had typed up. After all my magic tricks, the laser printer still felt the need to kick out 40 pages of information that was good for nothing but advancing global warming. My printer refused to listen to me.

In my humble opinion, as writers we can be the same way my printer is.

There are times when the cosmos are telling you to let the idea simmer and work on something new, but we just bang away at it. We drag the story from our Muse rather than wooing it. We can’t see the best way to improve our plot or characters or whatever we are stuck on, but are hell bent on meeting x word count/page count goal for the day, etc. I am talking about personal deadlines not about those you are being paid to meet.

Your Muse will want the story a certain way. Until you can hear what that is, may I suggest working on something new to meet your word count for the day. Ignoring your muse can lead you stuck, frustrated and with writing of little value; much like my printer.

I am not suggesting that you cancel the project. Just don’t hit PRINT yet.

How do you get unstuck?

First off “Short” is a bit deceptive, as these films can be as long as 59 minutes; under an hour = short. I am speaking generally here, if you’re entering a festival or competition, make sure the entry is not longer than what is requested.

Now, why bother? In my humble opinion, the answer is the same whether you are a writer, actor, director or producer (etc.)

Exposure. That’s the short answer.

Longer answer: Shorts are frequently taken to festivals in order to get funding to make a feature of that same concept or to attract attention to the people involved in the making of the project. Not always for both reasons, but always for the hope of future work and accolades.

Shorts are also used in mediums on the internet, in particular YouTube (click the link for a great example), to gain a following. So again we are talking about people seeing your work and spreading the word. One of the things I love about this type of film is how it allows you to hone your craft.

The danger is that you will not take it as seriously and thus produce garbage. This will gain you the fame for doing things no one wants to see. Treat shorts, even if you plan to never let anyone see them, as though you are making a “big budget” film and you’ll find that you are a better filmmaker, writer, actor etc. for your efforts.

What advice would you give to someone new to this concept?

Please share in the comments thread so that others may benefit from your experience.

As always, thanks for reading!

I do not mean just as an actor, but as a writer.

Spoiler Alert:
I am going to tell you. lol

Both types of entertainers tend to be “people watchers”. We like to see how others interact so that we can re-create them, either on the page, screen or stage. What we learn as voyeurs is that peeps don’t get along all/most of the time. Individuals have differing opinions, feelings and backgrounds (etc.). I appreciate that this is likely not news to you.

What so many do not realize, however, is that when the audience enters a crowded theatre (be it cinema or stage) with X number of strangers, certain things happen; some mundane and some magic. All, in my humble opinion, are important.

The crowd will get food and queue up for the film, an act of unity, whether intended or not. Idle chatter follows as the assembled wait for the show to start, another act of harmony; although still mundane.

Dim the lights, start the show and these people, from various walks of life, who have entered the room for different reasons, are clapping, gasping, crying and laughing together; magic!

I hear so often about Hollywood being the vehicle of destruction in society and yet few other entities can bring such a bond to a crowd. For those 90+ minutes the captive audience is one.

The magic of bringing people together, however brief, is my motivation to write excellent work.

What’s your motivation?

As many of you know, I have been working on a short (THB) and it was recently altered to be a feature. I was thrilled, I was overwhelmed, and I was starting over.

Months put into working out story details, character analysis and so much more…useless.

The feature is indeed still host to the main characters and the short is more or less Act Two of the feature…however, now I have so many more character to develop so many more ideas that need to be explored.

I posted a week ago regarding what my process is for doing this and today have decided to talk briefly about why they are so different along with some updates.

Same title? Check!
Same Protagonist? Check!
Same Antagonist? Check!
Same goals? Hmmm
Same supporting characters? Uh…

Yup, starting over.

You see, in order to go from 30 pages to 90-110 there is a hell of a lot to flesh out. No skimping, every detail needs to be scrutinized! My main script consultant (and producer for the feature), Sae Sae Norris, (yes I have more than one) has taught me that if it is not a set up, pay off or new information…it’s a distraction! This means I had to find new motivations for this longer film. This is no more a teaser to get funding at festivals.

Don’t get me wrong, this is still an independent film, however, we are treating it as though it is not. Attached (I am not listing names [with a few exceptions] as I don’t want to overstep my bounds) the production team already has:

SAG Talent, Producer, Director, AD, Wardrobe, Set Design, Entertainment Attorney, Director of Photography, Assistant Cameraman, Production Designer, Assistant Costume Designer, Visual Effects Supervisor: Clark Schaffer (Iron Man:2, Batman Forever, Speed, U-571),Visual Effects, Hair/Make-Up, Composer: Graeme G. Stewart (Soul Stealer, BBC, Ulster Orchestra), Sound Mixer, Boom Operator, Storyboards/Conceptual Artist, VMG – greenscreen/visual effects, Stunt Choreographer, Transportation Captain (aerial unit) and finally Moi: the writer. YIKES!

OMG, so no pressure right?! It is very humbling to work with the team mentioned above and, in my honest opinion, as long as I do all my research, ask the hard questions and write until the words bleed from my soul, I won’t let these phenominal people down.

It’s been awesome to see the interest from my friends and colleagues on this project. Your enthusiasm is a great support and uber appreciated! This is an amazing experience and I’m loving it!

What is the biggest writing challenge you have had? How did you hurdle it, or are you still chipping away at it?

I realize that this is not uncommon, at some point it happens to all writers, our work vanishes. It is on a paper that is lost, a hard drive that is crashed, or simply nowhere to be found.

There are a lot of great ways to ensure your writing is backed up (when using a computer). Most software that we use to tell our stories in can be programmed to auto save. You can e-mail your work to yourself. There is even a company called iDrive that will back up any element of your hard drive you ask it to on an external server, via the Internet.

The only backup however, for human error is the imagination. I discovered this once again (notice I did not say ‘for the first time’) only two days ago. I spent a painstaking day, and I mean that literally due to my hand, writing a synopsis of the first 30 scenes of the feature I’m working on; The Haan Blade. Once I was finished I patted myself on the back and closed my document. Sadly, I seem to have said no rather than yes when asked if I wish to save my work. OOPS!

I spent all of the next day rewriting so that for my time spent I could at least break even.
I personally feel that I did more than break even. The elements for the scenes I was writing were richer after the rewrite.

While talking on Twitter with a colleague (@amirmasud) about this fiasco, I found myself telling him: It must’ve been my Muse whispering, “You can do better.” Turns out, in my humble opinion, that statement was correct.

BTW, if you’re a writer and/or a person, I recommend following my friend, listed above, on Twitter; he is an upbeat and lovely guy.

This was not the first time, as I said, that I’ve lost my writing [ha, ha, I once lost an entire novel] it is, however, the first time I didn’t have a computer to blame it on . It is also the first time that the loss has given me such an epiphany.

What’s the most work you ever had run off on you? What was your solution?

My actor friends have a tendency to be the united front of “Cold read auditions are the WORST”.

Dear actors, you couldn’t be more WRONG!

The great thing about a cold read, in my humble opinion, is that you are expected to suck. Yup. They know you have not seen the material until when you arrive, they know you are nervous and they expect you to botch it; at least a little.

Nothing makes me feel better than that.

With a prepared audition we have the added pressure of having to be…ya know…prepared. If we blow it in an audition where we should be memorized and polished it is a much bigger deal than if we walk in and rock a read that we have never seen.

So how do you prep for an audition when you don’t know what you will be reading?

For me I like to cold read in my spare time. I read anything that seems complicated. Chekhov is great, Shakespeare and the bible or anything of that nature are a few examples. FYI the last on the list is not for the religious aspect but the unnatural flow of the language.

If you can read those at random, with ease, you can read whatever is tossed in front of you.

Sharpen your audition skills by trying it out. I dread an audition (ok, I am exaggerating but you get the idea) where the casting director has high expectations of me. It is much easier to sleep when I know that I just have to show up and read quickly whatever sides I am presented with.

How do YOU prepare for an audition (cold or prepared)? If you are a director, producer etc what do you look for at a cold audition? SHARE!

(BTW: Readers in the U.S. enjoy and have a safe holiday weekend!)

Spoiler Alert: I have terrible handwriting!

Here is a little walk through my creative process. I know I have mentioned that we are now writing The Haan Blade as a feature instead of a short (hooray). The short is pretty much Act II, so my work is 1/3 done right? OMG, I wish!

Nope. With a feature I have new characters and must flesh out, rearrange or even delete scenes from the short. Basically it’s of little use to me.

We are starting over.

Exhibit A: My Floor
This is where is pour over notes that I have typed up from development meetings with the director and producer (I believe I mentioned my handwriting sucks), go through the various versions of the script for any gems we liked and start writing on my index cards; I will talk about those in a moment.

Exhibit B: The Wall of “WHY?”
Here is where I write out my “What If” idea’s (no matter how insane), develop characters and toss notes that I want to remember as I am going through the process.

You may or may not be able to read any of these, but I have a print out of “THE POPE IN THE POOL” on this wall. The late Blake Snyder brought this to my attention and it is my easy reminder that, if a scene must be expository make it one that people can’t take their eyes from. You would also see my reminders like “What makes this scene a set up or pay off?!” I am all about the “!!!” when writing on my magic wall of questions.

These are the static cling boards I mentioned in my “Sexiest Store” post; I *love* these re-usable dry erase boards. Also no, I do not write on my actual walls. I dream of having dry erase walls. That will be awesome… maybe in my next office, ha ha.

Exhibit C: The “Story Board”
Some of these are typed scenes others are on cardstock. As mentioned, I was going to just use the short to get my notes started. However, when typing up my outline it felt ‘off’. I decided to print it and cut out each scene so that I could move them around. Every piece of paper/cardstock is a new scene. The ones that are sideways are one of two things: either a reminder note or a scene that I know belongs but don’t know where to put it yet. The cards on the chair are ones that have not made the cut.

In my humble opinion you need to have some sort of system (whatever that may be) to flesh out your story and bring it to life.

What’s your system?

You may have noticed the trend in teleseminars within the world of entertainment. Suddenly, writers have access to people who have been there and sold that! You sign up, dial the number, listen attentively, and if you’re smart, you also took copious notes.

Now it’s time for Q&A! Once selected, you burst into your pitch… OMG STOP!

A pitch is not a question. A teleseminar is not a pitchfest. The rest of us who are listening are hoping that if we don’t get a chance to ask our question, someone else will.

In my humble opinion, you are doing yourself, the group and the presenter a disservice by using valuable time to pitch screenplays. I assure you no one is there to buy a script. Nope, no one.

Make a great impression on the presenter and those listening:

*Write down at least ten questions in advance (be prepared).

*Check your list to make sure that the answer isn’t in the presenters’ book/website/provided information. Otherwise, you just told them you haven’t read it.

*Ask a question that is not readily available online.

*Keep questions under a minute.

*Stay on topic.

*Avoid stretching your appreciation for more than ten seconds.

You build rapport over time, don’t try to become best friends with the presenter during your (and their) valuable moment.

Teleseminars are a great tool when used right! Check The Business of Show Institute (BOSI) run by Marvin V. Acuna & his associates as well as Info List for noteworthy presenters.

When the time arrives, say your name (you want them to remember it!), thank them for their time, ask your question and be done. Nothing shouts “pro” like professionalism.

I know my thoughts on writing are shared more than anything on here; well not today! Acting is my first love (greater than writing or shoes). I am simply wrapped into The Haan Blade at the moment.

I have my own little system to prep for an audition, whether it’s a cold read or prepared material my method is the same.

I recite Dr. Seuss out-loud and at top speed.

You read correctly. Dr. Seuss, the master of things hard to say such as “The whole wide world watching you win on TV!” Say that ten times fast. No really, try it.

A trillion (rough estimation) years ago in college (Southern Utah University) we used to warm up for performances with tongue twisters. My favorite, to this day, reads like this:

What a to do to die today, at a minute or two to two. A thing distinctly hard to say, but a harder thing to do. For the dragon will come when we beat the drum, with a rata ta tata ta tata ta um, at a minute or two to two today at a minute or two to two.

The great thing about doing these is that they force you to focus on what you are saying. This allows you, in my humble opinion, to calm down and enter the audition ready to lock and load.

There are many things you can do to prep for an audition but if your voice and mind aren’t present it won’t matter too much, unless you are going for the mime gig.

What’s your favorite tongue twister / audition prep technique?