Ignore them at your peril — Here on the range, where the skies are not cloudy all day, we face what appears to be yet another feeble winter, and water is increasingly scarce. Myths and hoaxes regarding the entertainment business, however, continue to be in ample supply. Let’s review a handful among them. Hollywood hoax #1: It’s not what you know, but who(m) you know. Haven’t we heard…

It’s a commissioned watercolor painting — Some years ago my wife and I discovered in a Silver Lake chotchke emporium (‘chotchke’ is Yiddish for trinkets, costume jewelry, creative paraphernalia, objets d’ art) some extraordinary water colors by a local painter. They depict scenes from around our neighborhood, a welcoming community rising on tiers of land surrounding…

That’s not a typo — That’s no typo. Not ‘better.’ ‘Bitter.’ Here follow eight precepts guaranteed to make you a writer who is unhappy and unfulfilled. 1: Never doubt that your writing is worthy. Writers travel through three stages of self-esteem. The first time we’re paid we can’t believe it’s happened. Surely we can’t rank among established professionals, and we never will. …

Indeed, what is the point of watching movies? — A letter arrived recently from Screenwriting Newsletter subscriber Ronald M. Sandgrund, a prominent Colorado attorney, law professor, and writer. (Full disclosure: Ron is also my wife’s brother.) We had both read Erik Larson’s masterful bestseller Dead Wake, which recounts the history of the sinking of the ocean liner Lusitania by…

Go with what appears to be true, even if it’s not true — In movies, appearances are not important. That is to say, they are not merely important. In movies, appearances are everything. Movies don’t even move. They only appear to move. Most everyone knows that a movie is about a hundred and fifty thousand frames. These are still pictures, shown one after…

The point of screenplays and sermons are one and the same — Over a period going back now approaching a half century, I’ve lectured to writers throughout North America and the world. My audiences have included new and experienced screenwriters, students, critics, film historians, Asians, Europeans, South Americans, Middle Easterners, and even Canadians. Perhaps my most enjoyable such experience occurred about ten…

Does the Fast & Furious franchise promote violence and criminality? — As I pen this post, The Fast and Furious franchise is shooting its tenth chapter. I don’t mind bragging that a former student of mine, Justin Lin, directed several of them. Justin is also a gifted writer. I can’t remember my grandchildren’s names, or where I parked my car, but…

Insider film connections are a myth — In past blog posts and podcasts, I have from time to time referred to a number of notions that many consider to be rock-hard, rock-steady, unbreakable principles regarding screenwriting, which I happen to regard as hoaxes. There are show-business practices and attitudes that are held to be unique to Hollywood…

Absolutely — ideas are worthless — I’ve said it before: In screenwriting, the most over-appreciated item is the idea. When you have a great idea for a movie, that’s all you’ve got. What remains after that? Everything. The characters have to be invented, the circumstances and situations, the settings, the players’ actions. The dialogue has to…