Jim Mercurio DVD Set Now Available

Writer/Director/Screenwriting consultant Jim Mercurio from A-List Screenwriting has released his new 6-DVD set -- Complete Screenwriting from A to Z to A-List. This ain't any ol' screenwriting how-to. This insanely detailed 10+ hours of all-new material (with top-notch motion graphics) guides you step by step through developing high-concept material through execution, using examples from a panoply of hit movies like Liar, Liar, Tangled, Dead Poets Society, The Dark Knight, Superbad -- yes, Superbad -- and more! there's a reason why Mercurio is a consultant to A-List clients. His knowledge of things like Theme and adding emotional resonance to your characters is second to none.

From the description:

In this brand new DVD set, filmmaker, story analyst, and master teacher Jim Mercurio delves deep into the nitty-gritty of screenwriting and shows you how to:

- Teach your brain to see storytelling patterns everywhere.
- Understand why scene writing isn't a separate skill from screenwriting and storytelling.
- Learn to put character first and create structure organically from nothing.
- Right-brained approach to a left-brained topic - Discover how a location, a prop, or even the rewrite of one word contribute towards theme.
- Use Jim's detailed theories to jump-start your creativity and brainstorming.
- Look at the ten criteria of a line of dialogue including how to find its climax, create a reversal, incorporate it into a metaphor, align it to a concept, and reframe it toward theme.
- Perfect the most lucrative skill in Hollywood. Not how to come up with high-concept ideas... but how to execute them!
- Gain a new appreciation for the craft of screenwriting and what it can be.

So if you're looking for an all-in-one solution, the proverbial screenwriting school in a box -- here it is. Check it out right here.

Coverage Ink INDEPENDENCE DAY SALE!

Declare your independence from lame script coverage. Coverage Ink's Independence Day Sale runs from now until July 17. $20 off any analysis! Don't send out your screenplay too early. Bring in the industry experts to make sure your script rocks.

Summer is the perfect time to set aside some quality writing time. When fall comes around, the industry comes back to work -- with acquisition budgets to be spent before the end of their fiscal years. Whether you have an agent or manager, or you plan on doing queries, BlackList, Virtual PitchFest or what have you, there will be creative execs willing and ready to read. Once that door opens, it's up to you. You can send out something which is not quite there yet and get the not-especially-polite radio silence pass; or you can roll up your sleeves and polish that draft until its brilliance causes retina burn when the exec cracks the spine.

I don't know about you, but I prefer the second category.

So many of us make the same mistake -- we're so excited when we finish a script, we blast it out to our contacts without getting any constructive, knowledgable feedback. Or we get a couple friends to look at it, and they either don't know enough about screenplays to make useful comments, or they pull their punches. Neither of which does us any favors. Or we do get sone notes; we do the ones we feel like, ignore the rest and assume we're good to go.

Every one of these scenarios results in the exact same result: FAIL.

Coverage Ink has been doing this for a long time. Founded in 2002, we are one of the oldest and best-respected, and top-rated script consulting and development services in the city. Our team of 14 hand-picked story analysts have the chops to root out all your script problems. And we're crazy affordable to boot. The best thing I can say about good notes is, at least once a week I get a e-mail from a client saying that the CI story analyst who reviewed their script ferreted out things the writer always knew were an issue but just couldn't quite put their finger on. When that lightbulb moment happens, it's a beautiful thing.

That's what CI is all about -- empowering writers, pumping up your projects and giving you a fighting chance when that door opens.

Speaking of doors beiung open, mine always is, so feel free to hit me back at any time about anything at info@coverageink.com. Now GO GET 'EM.

Happy Fourth of July!


Jim Cirile
Founder, Coverage Ink

Submit your script now! Use discount code INDEP20 and receive $20 off any screenplay or teleplay analysis at www.coverageink.com.

LIBERATED

Lou Ferrigno in "Liberator"

TO CREATE A NEW SUPERHERO FRANCHISE ABOUT A SUPERHERO WHISTLEBLOWER WHO FIGHTS HIS OWN GOVERNMENT, WRITER/FILMMAKERS JIM CIRILE AND AARON POPE BROUGHT IN BIG MUSCLE.

By Tanya Klein

The writing team of Jim Cirile + Aaron Pope knew they were on to something when they sketched out their original short screenplay for Liberator – a character study of an aging ex-superhero with real-world problems. “Liberator was one of ‘America’s goodwill ambassadors’ – leader of a government-created team of supers,” says Cirile. “But that was just their cover. What they were really up to was something else entirely.” When a black op went south, the Liberator was forced to take the fall. Decades later, after a long stint in prison, Liberator is disgraced, reviled -- a traitor. “His own family, his daughter, won’t even talk to him any more. And that is just killing him.” So at great personal risk, after all this time – Liberator decides to blow the whistle and tell the truth.

“We knew that trying to launch an original superhero franchise without source material would be next to impossible,” says Pope.  "But if we had something with the right combination of grit and heart, we might just be able to speak to people with it.  That was worth the risk for us so we gambled on getting the closest thing to a real life superhero we could find and sent the script to Lou (Ferrigno)." 

Ferrigno sparked to the role immediately.  “It really spoke to him,” says Pope. “Once we had Lou on board, the cast came together quickly – Ed Asner (Up), the amazing Peta Wilson (La Femme Nikita) and Mr. Worf himself, Michael Dorn, and we were off and running.” Well, except for a little matter of money.

Aaron pope directs Lou Ferrigno and Peta Wilson.

Cirile and Pope decided the best strategy was to shoot as much as they could with the funds they had. “We had enough dough to shoot five days,” says Cirile. “That was enough to get us a lot of great footage to put together a sizzle reel for Kickstarter.” With the reel showing off genre faves Wilson and Dorn, and featuring Ferrigno himself asking for finishing funds, the team set out to raise $18,000. “It was down to the wire,” says Pope. “We were sweating it out there as the deadline got closer and closer. But then with literally seconds to spare, three big donors all came in and put us over the top. We wound up raising almost $25,000.”

Turns out Cirile and Pope had their fingers on the pulse of time. Liberator landed right in the midst of the current whistleblower debate. Huffington Post, USA Today, Fox + Friends, Yahoo! News, and soon CNN have picked up or plan to run articles on the story.

“It’s a flipped coin,” says Ferrigno, regarding how he feels with regard to NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden exposing rampant, warrantless US eavesdropping. “In Liberator, I played a government agent who was dumped from the government, and he decided to blow the whistle and write a book. Being a police offer myself—being a deputy sheriff—I think leaking information is wrong. I think (Snowden) committed a crime. But I think it’s starting a dialogue. The constitution protects freedom of speech; (Snowden) felt he had to speak out. Part of me feels that it’s almost like Big Brother. So some people see him as a hero, others a traitor. It’s the same thing with my character.”

Liberator premiered last year at Holly Shorts Film Festival and since then has been playing at film festivals and comic-cons. To date it has won Best Dramatic Short from CalShorts and the Award of Excellence from IndieFest. The project’s building momentum has resulted in a comic book deal from Bluewater Comics, with Lou Ferrigno: Liberator hitting stands this summer. Even before publication, it’s already won an award: Best Digital Comic from New Media Film Festival. “This is a dream come true and in fact, it's almost like we've come full-circle,” says Pope. “We not only get to expand the world of our characters, but we’re creating our own source material, which was the issue we faced in trying to start a new superhero franchise in the first place.”

Now that Liberator is both an award-winning short and a comic book series, can a feature film be far behind? “Franchise was our goal from the beginning,” says Cirile. “The project already has fans in the biz. We’ll see what shakes out. In the meantime, this is my geek dream cast, geek dream project, and we’re really stoked that people are feeling it. Truth is worth fighting for.”

Liberator is produced by Coverage Ink Films. More at liberatormovie.com.

Tanya Klein is a Los Angeles-based writer/director.

Writers on the Storm VI Winners & Loglines

Ladies and gents,

We're happy to present this year's winners and top ten for our writing contest WRITERS ON THE STORM. 

This is one of those years where we had a bunch of scripts with really excellent craftsmanship on the page, and no clear winner in either TV or features. Of course we did have to choose winners, but damn if there isn't a lot of talent on display here.

Over the course of the next few weeks we'll be getting our detailed feedback to the top tenners in preparation for circulating their scripts and loglines. We're going to try to polish every one of these to a brilliant shine so that they cannot be ignored. Wish us luck!

For everyone on this list, I think allowing a few moments of patting yourself on the back is in order. We get enough rejection every day as writers that a moment or two of actual feelgoodedness every now and then is mandatory. And for those of you guys who entered and did not make the cut, really, don't sweat it. We mean that. The difference between pass or consider can be as small as tweaking a few things in a two-hour rewrite sometimes. So hopefully the contest feedback will give you a heads-up as to areas that could maybe require a bit more TLC in your script. Or, we could simply have been wrong. Subjectivity is an unfortunate but unavoidable part of the process, as much as we try to standardize our criteria.

In any event, keep the faith, folks, keep on plugging, and do not give up. This writing stuff ain't easy and no one ever gets anywhere in the first ten years. And those who do, we want to strangle them, don't we? LOL!

We proudly present our WOTS top ten:

TV - WINNER

Shaman by Eric Ian Steele
A white cop is raised by a Native American shaman with the power to control animals. Now he uses the same skills to bring criminals to justice. 

RUNNER-UP

Strategic Services by Jonathan Jones + Francisco Magdaraog
The Office of Strategic Services, or OSS, was the predecessor to the CIA. This series explores America's foray into espionage, assassinations and subterfuge. 

SECOND RUNNER-UP

Stealing Home by Sebastian Arboleda
A career thief is saddled with having to raise his three difficult half-siblings while dealing with obstacles from his past and present in this outrageous comedy pilot.

THE REST OF THE TOP TEN - In No Particular Order

Ditch Plains by Bernard Urban
A teen biker tries to fit into a town of surfers, but as he learns the secrets of his new home, he believes his mother, a CIA case officer missing for over ten years, secretly lives there.

Freebird by Simon Kay
Jimmy Waits, a former rock star fallen from grace, is released from prison after serving a ten-year sentence. In the outside world, he must navigate his old band mates and former loves, as he seeks personal and musical redemption.

Freetown by Jeremy Dickens
A burned out criminal defense attorney in a violent Arizona border town struggles to navigate a new world of corruption when a shadowy private security firm is hired to keep the peace.

Path by Michael Wright
A troubled detective finds himself caught in the middle of a decades-old battle between the most powerful man in the world and a group of telepaths determined to expose his dark secrets.

The RetroCog by Steve Morris
When an adrenaline junkie is paralyzed in a motorbike crash he develops paranormal powers, which he puts to use helping a police case but his abilities turn out to have unexpected consequences.

Triple Agent by Steve Morris

When an undercover agent publicly stops a terrorist attack the revelation of his secret and convoluted life endangers him from all sides as levels of conspiracy begin to surface.

The World by Kathleen Cromie

A shooting in Washington serves as the challenge to two rivals on a renowned newspaper who vie for the newly vacant position of managing editor.

FEATURES - WINNER

Carn Evil by Jason Siner
After a traumatic incident maims a newlywed and causes the disappearance of her husband, a young woman rallies her friends to return the crime scene -- a carnival with dark, deadly secrets.

RUNNER-UP

Clouds of Sorrow by Jack Davidson
Gripping tale of ten-year-old Sudanese boy who journeys from Darfur to Chad after his family and village is murdered by Janjaweed warriors. Also winner of Austin Screenwriting Contest.

SECOND RUNNER-UP

Damascus Cover by Daniel Berk + Samantha Newton
An Israeli spy navigates the tricky terrain of love, betrayal, and shifting allegiances when he is assigned to rescue a scientist from Damascus, Syria in the late 1980s.

THE REST OF THE TOP TEN In No Particular Order:

The Basement by Dawn Marie Guernsey
LENA, trapped beneath a building toppled by a tornado, is discovered by a madman who uses the property as a dumping ground for his murder victims.

Cake by Patrick Tobin
A self-destructive woman's obsession with the suicide of an acquaintance leads to a madcap journey of self-discovery.

The Heckler by Mike Hanson
'Spy-vs-Spy heckling wars break out between a slacker comic and freshly sent-down Major League slugger -- disrupting the game-fixing scam of an eccentric bookie.'

The Idea of Fireflies by Don Balch + Zack Smith
At the end of humanity, Ezzy Moore manipulates 'event waves' in an attempt to free her fiance and prevent a deadly machine intelligence from taking over.

Lulu by Samuel Bernstein
As silent film star Louise Brooks attempts to juggle the demands of her director, her sexuality, and Hollywood, she takes on a role that will define her career and her life.

On the Edge (aka Speedville) by Patrick Hunt
A feisty young woman's success at dirt track racing comes with bent fenders, heartache, high-RPM conflict on and off the track, and the understanding that winners don't necessarily have to finish first. 

Resilience by Lena Slachmuijilder
In war-torn Congo, a rape survivor overcomes shame and stigma to become a role model for others in similar horrific circumstances.

Jen Grisanti TV Staffing and Development Class - FREE!

Jen Grisanti

There are plenty of terrific classes and panels at Great American Pitchfest this weekend (Saturday, June 1st are the panels and classes; Sunday June 2nd is the pitching). But one we wanted to highlight is Jen Grisanti's TV Staffing and Development class. 

We had the privilege of hanging with Jen at Big Island Film Festival last week, and she is the real deal. As a former TV exec with over a decade experience, she knows her stuff. This 90-minute class is a great way to get started in pursuing the last remaining space where the writer is king (or queen): television.

So after checking out our incredible Agent's Hot Sheet-Live! free panel from 11 AM to 12:30 PM, stick around for Jen Grisanti's class from 2:30 to 4 PM. Trust us -- you'll be very glad you did. Great American Pitchfest is THIS WEEKEND at the Burbank Marriott, so juggle your schedule and make room! See you there.

Agent's Hot Sheet - Live! Panel Announced

Hi folks! It is with great pleasure that I present to you the full panel of our upcoming Agent's Hot Sheet - Live! panel. This can't-miss 90-minute extravaganza will cover everything you ever wanted to know about agents and managers -- specifically, how the hell to get one (and much more.)

PANEL:

Mitch Solomon, Magnet Management
Peter Dodd, UTA
Mark Hartogsohn, Gersh
Zach Cox, Circle of Confusion
Adam Perry, APA

The panel will take place Saturday 6/1 at 11AM at Great American Pitchfest at the Burbank Marriott. If you're unaware of the coolest screenwriting event of the year, let me fill you in. Every year, day one of Pitchfest (Saturday) consists of a panoply of (mostly) free panels. It is truly the best damn deal in town. For the cost of parking at the hotel, you get a full day of priceless screenwriting info, including Jen Grisanti's panel and so much more (check out pitchfest.com for the full schedule.)

Then Sunday is the pitching, and that is a paid event, but of course, well worth it if you have a script ready to rock and the idea of meeting 120-plus creative execs and representatives appeals to you. So get your questions ready for the agents and managers and come on out and take part in the fun. And while you're at it, stop by the Coverage Ink booth and say hi! See you there.

Jim C.

Coverage Ink/Writers on the Storm Newsletter May/June 2013

1. I Don't Have Any Freaking Time to Write!
2. Shorties
3. The Fasano Factor
4. As If Hollywood Movies Aren't Homogenized Enough

I DON'T HAVE ANY FREAKING TIME TO WRITE. How many of you guys know this mantra? Well, I've really been feeling it lately. Life has a way of overwhelming us with its obnoxious demands, and the first thing we sacrifice  is our precious writing time. Work hassles. Car repairs. Relationships. Laundry. Medical issues. Children. Social events. Pets. Dental work. Workouts. Facebook posts that need responding to. And of course "The Bachelorette - The Guys Tell All" special episode is a must-not-miss. All of these things take precedence, and before you know it, it's "Eh, I'll get some writing done maybe this weekend."

Compounding the problem is that if you're like me, you need quality time to write. To really immerse into the world of the story and get anything done, I need a minimum of two hours, preferably a lot more. A 17-minute window in my schedule ain't gonna do it.  I have to get comfortable and go away into the story world, and then when I'm back up to speed on all the characters and conflicts, I can actually produce something. When I attended the UCLA Professional Program some years ago, they said that writing every day was not just advice, it was required. And I was like, "Yeah, right." Just too damn busy!

Now I know some of you are thinking this is all a bit of an excuse. Many of you can write anywhere, anytime. My 13-year-old daughter recently blew me away with a several page fantasy story she had written during lunch at school on her iPhone. (I might try this if my clumsy, fat fingers could actually manage a decent new phone. I got a touch screen phone last year and promptly returned it when I couldn't even successfully enter the activation code.) And I know there's a little bit of truth in the statement that while I may prefer to have four uninterrupted, distraction-free hours in my office with my door closed, the truth is, I don't NEED it.

I am fully aware that in theory, you can tell your kids, "Dad needs to work now, don't bother me until 3PM." You can grab your laptop and write while waiting on your mechanic or in the doctor's office or the jury pool room. I've even heard it may be theoretically possible to NOT check social media or e-mail for several hours straight, although I have yet to test this somewhat outrageous theory. So yeah, I know all this, okay? But does it make it any easier? NO. This is 2013 and our lives have become this crazy cavalcade of crapola. It seems like there's always a fire to put out, always an errand that needs doing, and before you know it, it's too late for any real creativity -- might as well just put on Jon Stewart and try again tomorrow.

Now if you're reading this expecting some sort of great revelation at the end of this rant, sorry, pal. I don't have any. No, I'm basically just whining here. I have no solutions! I'm just saying this is how it is for me, and it kinda sucks.

But you know what keeps me going? Knowing that I WILL HAVE SOME DAMN WRITING TIME SOON. Maybe it'll be next Tuesday afternoon, or on that short hop flight next week, or even (I've done this) on that sick day you take for the express purpose of knocking out 15-20 pages. I must always know there's a window of time coming up. It may not be for days, but I know it's coming and it gives me solace. It's the only way to get through sometimes. Being able to go away into a script for several hours... it's like a mini vacay. Better than any day spa or movie marathon or sporting event as far as I'm concerned. It's just around the corner.

And it will be mine, bwah ha ha ha ha! Um... sorry.

So for all of you guys in the same boat, how do you cope? How do you find time to write in this day and age? E-mail me and if anyone has any good suggestions I'll post 'em. Because you guys have got to be better at time management than me.

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Bunch of coolness going on. We have our contest wrapping up -- we're down to the top ten and will be announcing the winners soon. Somebody is gonna grab a big fat $10,000 check! And on the screenwriting education front, we have two sweet events coming up -- Great American Pitchfest and John Fasano's new workshop series. We'll talk about both below. If you're at the Pitchfest, make sure you stop by the CI booth and say hi. And I'll also be hosting the Agent's Hot Sheet-Live! panel at Pitchfest Saturday June 1 at 11AM featuring five top agents and managers. Not to be missed.

Keep on writing, brothers and sisters (ha!)

Jim Cirile
Like us on Facebook!

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Continue on to Shorties

Shorties

WRITERS ON THE STORM TOP TEN ANNOUNCED. The best of the best are here! It's our annual Writers on the Storm screenwriting contest top ten -- which for the first time this year also adds top ten TV scripts as well. To see the list of finalists (Top Ten features and Top Ten TV) just visit writerstorm.com. Also posted are our semi-finalists (top 50) and quarterfinalists (top 100.) We will be announcing the winners shortly. Who's going to walk away with the ten grand check? We'll know on June 3rd!

COVERAGE INK SALE. Time to get those screenplays ready to kick abundant quantities of buttock. Use discount code COVINKMAY20 and get $20 off any feature analysis or $10 off any TV analysis. Expires 5/31/13, and discounts cannot be combined. Submit online at coverageink.com.We look forward to seeing what you've got in store for us and the world!

PANEL EVENT OF THE YEAR. It's comin' at ya at this year's Great American Pitchfest. Saturday June 1st, 11 AM at the Burbank Marriott. CI will be presenting Agent's Hot Sheet-Live! This rollicking 90-minute free panel discussion features five top agents + managers talking about how to get their attention, what you should be working on right now, what not to do and much more. Panelists include: Mitch Solomon, Magnet Managament, Peter Dodd, UTA, Mark Hartogsohn, Gersh, Zach Cox, Circle of onfusion, and more TBA. Hosted by long-time Creative Screenwriting columnist Jim Cirile. This is your chance to talk to the very people we're all constantly trying to get the attention of. Did we mention it's FREE? For more info: www.pitchfest.com.  

Remember, Pitchfest is a weekend-long event, and most of the awesome stuff on Saturday is FREE (the pitching is Sunday, and you have to pay for that.) Best deal in town, no question. Stop on by the CI booth and say hi. See you there!

AGENT'S HOT SHEET - THE E-BOOK. Ten years. Over 80 columns. An invaluable trove of crucial intel for writers. Now Jim Cirile's long-running Creative Screenwriting series is coming back as an e-book. We've compiled the best of the columns along with a handful of important stand-alone articles into a single volume. There has never been anything like this before! For the first time in one place, the top literary representatives in Hollywood are telling you how to get their attention. Packed with a decade;'s worth of knowledge, tips and empowerment. Get your 235-page Agent's Hot Sheet e-book in PDF or Kindle format for only $5.95.

LIBERATION CONTINUES. Last year, we produced an ambitious little short film called LIBERATOR, starring Lou Ferrigno (The Incredible Hulk) as a washed-up, disgraced ex-superhero trying to get his life back on the rails. Since then we've been screening at comic-cons and festivals and to date we've won two awards -- Best Dramatic Short from CalShorts and the Award of Excellence from IndieFest. We're now pleased to announce that Bluewater Comics will be publishing a Liberator comic book series this summer! Featuring art by Gerry Kissell (Code Name: Geronimo) and script by Jim Cirile + Aaron Pope, the Liberator comic picks up where short left off. Please "like" Liberator on Facebook for your chance to win original signed art and other cool merch. And check out Liberator at any of the upcoming screenings, including Big Island Film Festival, New Media Film Festival, San Diego Comic-Con and Wizard World Comic-Con Chicago.  

Continue on to The Fasano Factor
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THE FASANO FACTOR

by Jim Cirile

Writer/Director/Producer John Fasano has done something very, very few writers manage to do: forge a successful career in Hollywood and keep it going for decades. Fasano's ever-growing list of credits includes features like TOMBSTONE and ALIEN III as well as numerous high-profile TV movies like Tom Selleck's STONE COLD and The HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME starring Mandy Patinkin and Salma Hayek, for which Fasano was nominated for a WGA writing award. Perhaps even more impressive however are all the movies Fasano did not get credit on (see our article on the WGA arbitration process right here.) Throughout the 1990s, he did uncredited drafts and polishes on practically every studio action/adventure film.

All those years in the trenches have given Fasano an ultimate insider's perspective. So when we heard he was launching his very first workshop series for writers, we knew it was a must-not-miss. They say those who can't do teach, and one quick glance at the field of "experts" lecturing on screenwriting more or less bears that out. But Fasano's done it all, and he wears his battle scars with pride. Now he's ready to share his unique experiences, perspective and razor-sharp story chops in his Teaching the Craft workshops. 

They're your huckleberries.

Jim Cirile: How did you get into this crazy biz, John?

John Fasano: I come from New York where, inspired by Ray Harryhausen and John Cassevettes, I started making 8mm films in my neighborhood when I was seven years old. I studied art, writing, acting – anything that I thought could apply to making better films. When I graduated from SUNY Purchase college, I started doing ad campaigns for New York-based grindhouse producers. They gave me a chance to actually work in their films, and after re-writing one, I got the chance to write and co-direct ZOMBIE NIGHTMARE with Adam West and Tia Carrere. This led to a string of Canadian-made horror films like BLACK ROSES and THE JITTERS. I moved to Los Angeles in late 1988 to try and break into the film business. In January 1989 I sold my first spec script, TAILGUNNER, to Morgan Creek for $450K in a bidding war with Paramount. In 1990, my first studio gig was ANOTHER 48 HRS, which is still director Walter Hill’s most successful feature. 

JC: You've been a working Hollywood writer for over two decades. What sort of changes have you seen in the Hollywood landscape that affect writers?

JF: The biggest change is the explosion in the cost of films. In the 1990s, the studio was willing to take a chance on a fresh idea in a spec because maximum budgets were in the high 30 millions. Most films were being made for less than that. Now tent pole pictures regularly cost $200 million, and even animated and comedy films cost nearly $100 million because of actors' salaries. Because of this, writers who want to work for studios are working on a smaller number of big films, all based on other movies, TV series, books and comic books. The studio is therefore turning to the people who delivered last year’s hit, so a handful of writers basically have the lion’s share of ALL studio writing assignments.

The GOOD side of the last decade is that their has also been an explosion of independent production fueled by filmmakers being able to get their hands on cheap digital cameras and equipment. Now a writer can see his movie made outside the system. Sadly, many chose to do parodies and horror films, while the real opening is for quirky dramas that no one would normally take a chance on. 

JC: What's the secret to longevity as a working writer?

JF: Write. Have a good attitude when you work, show that you WANT to work with the producer and director to see the movie made, and people will remember that and hire you again. And don’t have down time between assignments. If you don’t have a paying gig lined up and the one you’re currently working is is going to end soon, MAKE a deal to get the next one going.

JC: There are a million ways writers can get screwed. What are some of your favorites?

JF: Giving their whole idea to an exec who doesn’t intend to hire them, then being surprised a year later when that company has made a similar film! .Overselling themselves in the room and then taking forever to deliver the script. Not being willing to take criticism – this is the biggest thing.  Film is a collaborative process, so unless your family is putting up the money and you are writer and director, you HAVE to be able to make your partners happy while not betraying your vision of the project. Not easy. There’s luck and psychology at work in there as well. I’ve made some major mistakes – all of them, in fact. But I never let them destroy me or my career. What mistakes? I’m always glad to share them with people who come to me for advice.
 

JC: What do you hope to offer in your workshops to writers that they may not be able to get elsewhere? What's your special sauce?

JF: My secret is that I have had nearly ONE HUNDRED paid studio and network writing assignments, and almost half of them have been made. Most of the people who are out there teaching writing are teaching it on a theoretical level. I’ve had an average of two projects filmed every year since I arrived in Los Angeles.

From working with film companies and other writers for over twenty years, I understand the process, and my greatest desire is to let my writing students understand how to navigate the system without going crazy or losing themselves in it.

Everyone has a story to tell. I WANT you to tell the story you’ve got inside you. I don’t want to turn your story into my idea, I want to help you get your vision on page. It all starts there. It’s that beginning of the process, when your idea becomes story and story becomes script, that’s most vital. One you have that, the first draft screenplay will follow, and your producer and director can change it all they want, but if you got your original vision into your screenplay, they can never take that away from you. And that’s where my experience comes in – in guiding my students through the process of taking that script to market.

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Fasano's Beginning Screenwriting workshop is June 1 + 2; Intermediate is June 8 + 9. To sign up, please visit his website right here. Don't forget to ask for your 10% discount for Coverage Ink clients.

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Continue To As If Hollywood Movies Aren't Homogenized Enough

As if Hollywood Movies Aren't Homogenized Enough Already

Worldwide Motion Picture group's Vinny Bruzzese and Miriam Brin

Interesting and perhaps chilling article in The New York Times online about Worldwide Motion Picture Group. This company does script analysis, which is something we know a little something about of course, but from a unique perspective. For $20,000, they'll analyze your script according to box office performance data of similar movies and generate a list of recommendations based on what audiences respond best to, according to the numbers. For example:

“Demons in horror movies can target people or be summoned,” Mr. Bruzzese said in a gravelly voice, by way of example. “If it’s a targeting demon, you are likely to have much higher opening-weekend sales than if it’s summoned. So get rid of that Ouija Board scene.”

Accordingly, the company has a growing list of big Hollywood studios and producers, looking to remove as much risk (and some would say writer creativity) from the equation. And there's the rub. Certainly it's understandable that the people investing millions in movies want to try to get their money back. The majority of pictures released do not make back their production costs. So is this really any different than say, using a Joseph Campbell/mythological template, or following a strict Save the Cat! formula? Or is this trend going to further emasculate studio writers and limit creativity? Read the article and form your own opinion.

“It takes a lot of the risk out of what I do,” said Scott Steindorff, a producer who used Mr. Bruzzese to evaluate the script for “The Lincoln Lawyer,” a hit 2011 crime drama. “Everyone is going to be doing this soon.” Mr. Steindorff added, “The only people who are resistant are the writers: ‘I’m making art, I can’t possibly do this.’ ”

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Writers on the Storm TOP TEN

We proudly present our Coverage Ink/Writers on the Storm TOP TEN screenplays and teleplays for 2013.

It will come as little consolation to the 80 of you who just got eliminated that it was an insanely tough series of decisions, right down to the wire (in fact, past it -- it's now 1 AM May 2nd, and we were supposed to post May 1.) There were at least 4 feature scripts that were nipping at the heels of ones we ultimately chose, as well as several TV scripts that had people from our team passionate about them, only to ultimately be outvoted. We know it's an imperfect process by nature, but it's all we got.

Suffice it to say, if you made it to the top 50, you're a pretty damn good writer. You may well be "there" or close to it. To quote "Galaxy Quest" -- "Never give up; never surrender." There's nothing we like better than those e-mails we get a month or five after the contest telling us a script that was eliminated went on to win another contest or get optioned. That's awesome and we are ecstatic every time that happens. Regardless of whether you advanced in our little contest or not, don't let it get you down for even a second. Power forward and go kick freakin' ass.

As for the folks below, well, you lucky 20, you. Nice going, guys. But to quote another movie, "There can be only one." ;)  We'll know who that one is on JUNE 3rd. (Yes, we're pushing back announcing the winners from May 15th to give us more time to thoroughly scrutinize the 20 scripts.)

I'm proud of every single one of you for having the stones to put yourself out there and face rejection every single day in pursuit of your craft. Hell of a crazy path we've chosen. Could you imagine a dentist or attorney or a pilot facing as much rejection in their careers as we do? They'd be quivering, useless wrecks. Be proud.

We're freaking WRITERS.

Writers on the Storm Top Ten (FINALISTS) for 2013:

TV

Ditch Plains by Bernard Urban
Freebird by Simon Kay
Freetown by Jeremy Dickens
Path by Michael Wright
The RetroCog by Steve Morris
Shaman by Eric Ian Steele
Stealing Home by Sebastian Arboleda
Strategic Services by Jonathan Jones + Francisco Magdaraog
Triple Agent by Steve Morris
The World by Kathleen Cromie

FEATURES

The Basement by Dawn Marie Guernsey
Cake by Patrick Tobin
Carn Evil by Jason Siner
Clouds of Sorrow by Jack Davidson
Damascus Cover by Daniel Berk + Samantha Newton
The Heckler by Mike Hanson
The Idea of Fireflies by Don Balch + Zack Smith
Lulu by Samuel Bernstein
On the Edge (aka Speedville) by Patrick Hunt
Resilience by Lena Slachmuijilder

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Announcing John Fasano's Screenwriting Workshops

Well, this is something to take note of. Our pal John Fasano -- one of only maybe five guys who has had a 2-decade-plus career as a working Hollywood writer -- has announced his first-ever Screenwriting Workshop. John is an incredible storyteller and probably one of the best teachers around. Here is a rare chance to learn from someone who has actually DONE IT. On top of that, he's offering a 10% discount to Coverage Ink clients. Read all about the workshops below and then visit his site. Then when you're ready to rock, e-mail him at TITMinc (at) gmail.com and say, "Man, let's do this!"

--Jim C.


FROM YOUR HEAD TO THE PAGE

Learn the craft of screenwriting with Hollywood’s most prolific screenwriter, John Fasano.

In a world where getting a single script sold is a major accomplishment, WGA award nominated Screenwriter John Fasano has more than forty credits on feature films and prime time television including:  Another 48 HRS, Darkness Falls, Alien 3, Universal Soldier: The Return and Tombstone.

Former president of the Sony/Canal + Equinoxe Screenwriting seminar in Bordeaux, France and guest lecturer at AFI and the Writer’s Boot Camp, John will personally guide you from concept to script.  Classes will be held in a private Brentwood, California location. Enrollment will be limited to ten students per class so personal attention is ensured!

BEGINNING SCREENWRITING • JUNE 1 thru 2, 2013
Transforming your “big idea” into a viable outline.  Find the outlining method that works best for you. Who are your main characters?  Structure is the key.  Learn how to create a three-act structure that brings your story to life. Prerequisite:  An idea you’d like to transform into a screenplay.

$300 for two-day class*

John Fasano at the helm.

 INTERMEDIATE SCREENWRITING • JUNE 8 thru 9, 2013
Complete the journey from outline to script.  Write scenes that bring your characters to life and reveal their distinct voices.  Learn what makes great dialogue with tension on emotional and physical levels. Bonus:  Preparing to face the marketplace.  An insider’s secrets to success. Prerequisite:  A fleshed-out outline or draft of your screenplay.

$300 for two-day class*

For more information and to register contact us at: TITMinc [at] gmail.com

*10% discount for clients of Coverage, Ink.

In addition to his screenwriting John is also an accomplished Director and Producer.  His feature film credits include:  Another 48 HRS, Darkness Falls, Universal Soldier: The Return, Judge Dredd, Rapid Fire, Cargo, Tombstone, Sniper Reloaded, Sniper 5: Kill Zone, Alien 3, as well as story development for Alien vs. Predator, Flushed Away, Marvel Comics', Werewolf by Night and Hostel: Part III.  His projects for television include:  The Hunchback (WGA nomination for best teleplay), The Profiler, F/X The Series, Hannah’s Law, the Tom Selleck hit Stone Cold, The Hunley, Saving Jessica Lynch and Lifetime’s highly rated Holiday Switch.  John also works in New Media, creating and writing the Sony/Crackle series Woke Up Dead starring Jon Heder and the Anime feature version of the video game Saints Row.  

Writers on the Storm Finalists to be Announced 5/1/13

Just a slight delay, less than a week, so please don't be too angry with us! The truth is we have tough choices to make still. 50 scripts down to 10. Ugh. It never gets any easier. But we will announce our top 10 finalists, TV and features, on May 1.

Is there a Brooks Elms/Glenn Sanders in this year's batch? Brooks and Glenn are last year's winners, who got signed by UTA and their careers are now exploding. They've both landed writing assignments, and they have another project with a major producer attached which I can't say anything more about yet -- except to say holy crap, our boys done good!

So until then, sit tight -- aw heck, don't sit tight. if you made our top 50, you should definitely enter the Nicholl as well, so hurry up and get your script in quick as the deadline is rolling in fast. I seem to recall back in the day entry was free. Ha!, yeah, not anymore. Best of luck and KEEP WRITING.

Jim C.

WOTS Semi-Finalists

Writers on the Storm semifinalists are now posted! http://writerstorm.com/(and also below for your convenience.) By now, everyone should have received your feedback forms. If you haven't, please 1) check your spam filter for anything from writerstorm, then 2) email Julie at writerstorm@gmail.com and we will resend right away.

BIG Congrats to everyone who made the cut. And to the vast majority who didn't -- we feel your pain. We've all been there. Every one of us have been eliminated from contests, from consideration for jobs, grants, assignments, from so many things. Being a writer means you have to learn to take getting whacked upside the head repeatedly and pretend you're OK with it. 

The only thing I can say is, hey -- yeah, it sucks, BUT... maybe it's only a draft away. Check out the feedback and really study it closely. The stuff that made the reader balk could be fixable relatively easily. It's worth that extra level of scrutiny. It's easy enough to say "These people are idiots" and forget about it. And maybe we are. But if the feedback is even close to the mark, then as students of the biz we should all take it under consideration and at least chew it over. Knowledge is power, and sometimes even iffy notes can make us think of creative solutions or better ways to approach situations in your story. Best of luck to everyone, and to all my fellow writers: I APPLAUD YOU. 

Now comes the hard part: whittling these down to the top ten by the end of April, when they will be posted right here and of course on our facebook page. Yikes.

Much love -- Jim C.

WOTS VI SEMIFINALISTS

FEATURES

20 Million Rides To Earth by Erik Ratiff 

A Rising Tide by Chris Knight 

All God's Children by Natalie Hanson 

American Supervillains by Andrew Watt 

Arctic Circle by Daniel Ragussis

The Basement by Dawn Marie Guernsey 

The Bond by Kim Putman 

Bullets for Silverware by Jim Antonini 

Cake by Patrick Tobin 

Carn Evil by Jason Siner 

Clouds of Sorrow by Jack Davidson 

Common Ground by Robert Fullerton 

Confiteor by William Shedlick 

The Contestant by Allen Hahn 

Covers by Francis Jay 

Damascus Cover by Daniel Berk 

Dead Dolores by Michael Yagnow 

The Deal by Brian Fox 

Due Process by Shaun Raad 

Equipoise by William Shedlick 

Francis Lange by C.M. Robinson 

Fury by Dane McCauley 

The Galaxy’s Littlest Prince by Joe Borriello

The Guide by Henry Radoff 

Hap by Brian Nicol 

The Heckler by Mike Hanson 

The Idea of Fireflies by Don Balch + Zack Smith 

Illusion by Suzanne Kelman  

La Mujer (The Woman) by Steve Lucas 

The Last Lifeboat by Luke Yankee  

Lawman by Kingston Medland + Kingsley Medland 

Lulu by Samuel Bernstein 

On the Edge (aka Speedville) by Patrick Hunt 

One Bad Day by L.E. Bond 

Orange Dissection by TJ Barkwill

Passing Through by Robert G. Rhyne

Petrology by Colin Mummery

Probable Cause by Shane McCabe

Resilience by Lena Slachmuijlder

The Rim Of The World by Bettina Moss

Rum House by Michael Sieve

Second Earth (aka Divergence) by Victor Grippi

Self-Storage by Glenn McGee

Seven Times Seventy by Laura Lagasse

Silas by Scott Parisien

Sleeping Beauty by Tony Boland

Slippery Things by Lane Baker

The Taloquan Network by Robert Hestand

Theory of Everything by Tim McSmythurs

Wild Bill Rides Again by Jim Antonini

Wormweed by John + Jessica Walker

TV

Borderland by Mark O'Neill + Jonathan Ross

Ditch Plains by Bernard Urban

Freebird - And This Bird You Cannot Change by Simon Kay

Freetown - Pilot by Jeremy Dickens

Lovecraft by Levi Bailey

Messiah Project by David Baugnon

Path by Michael A Wright

The RetroCog by Steve Morris

Shaman by Eric Ian Steele

Sitters by James Papa

Stealing Home by Sebastian Arboleda

Strategic Services

Teen Spirit by Jacob Burstein-Stern

The Thief and the Prophecies by Barry Leach

Triple Agent by Steve Morris

The World by Kathleen Cromie

Wilbur Shaw by C.M. Robinson