Gerald Hanks Filmography

Monday, April 27, 2020

Screenwriting Advice: Concept vs. Craft

Thousands of aspiring writers are taking advantage of the current crisis to work on their screenplay ideas.

They envision that, once the crisis has passed, content-hungry producers will gobble up their scripts in hopes of making the next big hit feature film or streaming series.

While developing a "high concept" for your story is important, developing your skills as a writer is crucial to having a successful career.

Since the vast majority of professional screenwriters (90+%) make their living from writing assignments, a grasp of the finer points of the screenwriting process is essential.

The best way to hone these skills is to practice writing scripts, even if those stories fall outside of the writer's comfort zone.

A great way to practice honing your skills is to write the best script possible based on a completely silly idea.

After all, if writers can get paid to create scripts about shark-filled tornadoes or with characters like a gun-toting raccoon and an eight-foot-tall walking tree, then anything is possible.

So here's a fun writing exercise that can help you sharpen your skills:

  • Come up with ten absolutely ridiculous ideas.
  • For each idea, create a protagonist, and antagonist, and a helper/love interest.
  • For each character, use the VOTE Method to define the character's motivations and desires.
  • For each protagonist, use the VOTE to create a logline.
  • Choose the three VOTE loglines that interest you the most.
  • Write a one-page synopsis or beat sheet based off of each logline.
  • Write your script based on the synopsis that interests you the most.

What do I mean by "ridiculous ideas"? Here are some examples:

The point isn't that these are brilliant examples of modern cinema.

The point is that scripts like these often turn writers from aspiring amateurs into paid professionals.

So, instead of stressing out about if your idea is "original" is original enough, or if your "high concept" is high enough, focus on developing your skills as a screenwriter.

You may decide to take these scripts into the marketplace, or you may decide to hide them in a drawer for decades.

This exercise will let you have fun with a preposterous idea, while you work on your craft and become a better writer.

If you can show that you can create a strong script out of a ridiculous concept, imagine what you can do with a good one!

Besides, who would want to make a movie about killer clowns from outer space anyway?

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Whether you want to learn how to write a script on your own, or if you want to hire an experienced screenwriter to handle that task, Story Into Screenplay can help.

Some writers may feel hesitant to work on their projects during these stressful times.

On the contrary, now is the perfect time to develop that idea, hone that script, and work on that pitch.

When this crisis gets resolved, content providers will be looking for new voices, new projects, and new stories.

During this crisis, Story Into Screenplay is offering several tools that can help writers develop their skills and refine their ideas.


  • Feedback report on the first ten pages of your feature or TV pilot for US$10.
  • One hour of online or phone consultation with an experienced professional screenwriter FREE (US residents only).
  • The introductory chapter of "How To Use The VOTE Method": FREE (coming soon)


For more information, contact Story Into Screenplay by using the form on this page, by email at storyintoscreenplayblog[at]gmail[dot]com, or by sending a direct message through the Story Into Screenplay Facebook page.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Screenwriting Advice: Writing vs. Pitching

One of the most useful online screenwriting resources I've found is the aptly-named ScreenwritingU.

This site offers numerous free webinars and conference calls that provide some basic tools for beginning writers.

Of course, they use these free webinars as an opportunity to sell their online classes, but you may find their methods valuable enough to fork over a pretty penny for those classes.

One of the free webinars they offered was titled "8 Steps to Selling Screenplays".

The key takeaway from this session may sound obvious, but it's also startling in the fact that so many writers miss this point.

The primary goal a screenwriter should have in mind is to find ways to make their script "marketable".

"Marketable" doesn't mean "a copycat of every hit movie of the last ten years".

"Marketable" means a high concept with roles that will attract A-list actors and sell tickets.

How do you create roles that Oscar-winning actors will want to play?

You create strong roles by applying the VOTE Method.

Since the VOTE Method is based on the training actors undergo to grasp their roles, it's also highly useful for writers looking to craft substantial roles.

When you create strong roles, talented, well-known actors will want to attach themselves to your project so that they can play those roles.

When they attach themselves to the project, it becomes much easier to sell and get made.

Here's another takeaway from the webinar:

Before you write your script, prepare your pitch.

I can already hear you asking:

"But how can I prepare my pitch before I even start my script?"

When you develop your pitch, including the logline, you focus your story on the essentials.

A strong pitch will help you refine your story and give you a clear destination between FADE IN and FADE OUT.

"But what makes a 'strong pitch'?"

According to SU, the pitch has less to do with the story than you might think.

The elements the webinar listed in a pitch include:
  • Credibility. If you're trying to get someone to pay you thousands of dollars for a script, and spend millions more making it into a movie, then you have to show them that you know what you're doing.
    Examples of credibility can include experience as a writer, placement in contests, or expertise in the script's subject matter.
  • Genre. You're more likely to sell a comedy script, a drama script, or a thriller script than you are one script that tries to combine all three. Most producers, especially the smaller producers willing to work with rookie writers, focus on a specific genre.
    If you can deliver a script that fits their expectations for the genre, while crafting a unique story within those expectations, then you're ahead of the pack.
  • Title. Many writers avoid giving their scripts a title until the end. That's like waiting to name your baby until he or she graduates high school.
    Movies are a visual medium, and so is movie marketing. You have to imagine what that title will look like on a poster, in a trailer, or on a website. You can change it during the writing process, but you should at least come up with a working title for the pitch.
  • High concept. Most rookie writers don't understand what "high concept" means. The dictionary definition of "high concept" is "a simple and often striking idea or premise, as of a story or film, that lends itself to easy promotion and marketing".
    This is where your logline comes in. By following the VOTE Method formula for your logline, you can communicate your story's high concept quickly and clearly.
  • Short story summary. Many writers who get this far in the pitch process often blow their chances by over-talking. They spend too much time explaining all the details of the story, most of which don't matter and turn off the listener.
    You can summarize the character's journey by indicating the crucial story points, such as the inciting incident, the Act II turning point, the midpoint, the Act III turning point, and the climax. As the old show-biz saying goes, "Always leave them wanting more." 
As much as it may go against the introverted nature of most writers, your skills at selling your scripts have to match or exceed your skills at writing them.

When you learn to pitch your script and practice your pitch with whoever will listen, you'll develop more confidence in your story, which will also make you a better writer.

ScreenwritingU offers free webinars on a wide range of subjects. The SU email newsletter provides details on upcoming classes.

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Some writers may feel hesitant to work on their projects during these stressful times.

On the contrary, now is the perfect time to develop that idea, hone that script, and work on that pitch.

When this crisis gets resolved, content providers will be looking for new voices, new projects, and new stories.

During this crisis, Story Into Screenplay is offering several tools that can help writers develop their skills and refine their ideas.
  • Feedback report on the first ten pages of your feature or TV pilot from an experienced screenplay contest judge for US$10.
  • One hour of online or phone consultation with an experienced professional screenwriter FREE (US residents only).
  • The introductory chapter of "How To Use The VOTE Method": FREE (coming soon)
Whether you want to learn how to write your own script, or if you want to hire an experienced screenwriter to craft your story into a marketable project, Story Into Screenplay can help.

For more information, contact Story Into Screenplay by using the form on this page, by email at storyintoscreenplayblog[at]gmail[dot]com, or by sending a direct message through the Story Into Screenplay Facebook page.

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Your Screenplay Ideas: Original Vs. Unique

First off, I hope that you and yours are staying safe and healthy during this crisis.

If you're like a lot of writers, you're struggling with using this time to come up with an "original" idea for a script.

Some of you - from what I've seen from social media, too many of you - want to use this crisis as a jumping-off point for your script.

Others anticipate the flood of "pandemic scripts" coming out - most of them of poor to mediocre quality - and want to avoid writing on the subject altogether out of fear that your idea isn't "original" enough.

Whether you choose to write about this situation or steer clear of it entirely, the thing to remember is that what attracts readers to your script lies less in the concept and more in its execution.

If your script shows poor grammar, bad spelling, thin characters, and a nonsensical plot, then your "original" idea won't matter in the slightest.

If your script fails to show a proper understanding of screenplay format, story structure, or industry standards, then your "genius" concept will go to waste.

The best way to stand out among the herd of screenwriters is not to try to present an "original" idea.

If you go back to the first post in this blog, the idea of "originality" in screenwriting is highly overrated.

Instead of trying to be "original", writers should try to be "unique".

What's the difference?

The difference lies in presenting a story in a way that only you can tell it.

An incredibly vivid example comes from two different versions of the song "Hurt".



The Trent Reznor 1995 original comes across as a young man's lament while in the depths of depression and self-loathing.



The Johnny Cash 2002 cover uses the same melody and same lyrics (with one minor exception) and tells the story of an old man looking back on his life and facing his mortality.

After hearing Cash's version, Reznor commented, "That song isn’t mine any more."

Trent Reznor and Johnny Cash had distinctly different voices, different outlooks, and different ideas on music.

Both of them made "Hurt" a successful and memorable song.

But it was Johnny Cash's version that made a bigger impact on audiences, even by the original author's admission.

Here's an exercise: Instead of trying to work through your "original" idea, take your favorite public domain story and put your unique spin on it.

The point of this exercise is to learn the craft that goes into writing before delving into your "original" concepts and ideas.

Remember, West Side Story was a spin on Romeo and Juliet, and the film version won ten Oscars in 1962

The 1999 teen film Ten Things I Hate About You took The Taming of the Shrew and put it in a modern American high school.

Japanese director Akira Kurosawa moved Macbeth to medieval Japan and made Throne of Blood in 1957. He did the same thing in 1985 with King Lear and made Ran.

This list doesn't mean that you should shift your focus from telling your stories to retelling someone else's.

It doesn't mean that you should abandon your concepts and focus on been-there-done-that ideas.

It means that you should look for what makes your writing style unique in a world full of copycats.

You might find that, by trying to sing someone else's song, you can learn to find your true voice.

After all, even the Beatles started as a cover band.

If you need help in finding your voice, you can drop a note to Story Into Screenplay.

Story Into Screenplay can connect you with an experienced professional screenwriter, script consultant, convention speaker, and screenplay contest judge.

During the month of April, Story Into Screenplay is offering one hour of live screenplay consulting FREE!

To get your free hour of consulting, email storyintoscreenplayblog[at]gmail[dot]com or send a direct message through our Facebook page.

In the meantime, stay safe and keep writing!