Writing Movies Within Your Means, pt. 1
Forget Set and Go ☛ Film is one of the most expensive art-forms, which means getting films made is hard. One way for screenwriters to get their scripts noticed, and for writer/directors to get their first feature made, is to build affordability into the script. The challenge is that with each element you remove from … Continue reading
Inspiring Belief
An Editor’s Guide to Working with a Director ☛ Last time I wrote about how directors should approach working with an editor, this time the shoe is on the other foot. A lot is written online about how editors should work with their editing software – hints and tips. Books on editing have much to … Continue reading
The Way of the Scissor People
How to Work with an Editor ☛ I wrote some time back encouraging directors to work with editors, rather than cutting their own material. My colleagues in the cutting room report that they are working with an increasing number of directors who are using an editor for the first time. Needless to say these first … Continue reading
Film Themes
The importance of theme ☛ I wrote a piece a little time back about the essential elements of any cinematic story, where I claimed that one of the basic building blocks is ‘theme’. At the time discussion of theme got drowned out by arguments about act structure, but I think that there’s more to say … Continue reading
Why we Need to Write Weaker Female Characters
Why we Struggle to Write Good Parts for Women ☛ I had a discussion online the other day with actress Alice Lowe about the portrayal of women on screen. The place of women in the film industry, on-screen and off, is something of a hot topic following the woeful under-representation of women at this year’s … Continue reading
Credits Where They’re Due
Editing tips # 2: Preparing a title sequence Much has been written on the art of the title sequence, and I plan to cover it myself at some time, but first I thought it might be useful to provide a more practical guide to designing a title sequence. As the assistant editor on features, … Continue reading
Looking After the Little Fella
A guide to writing walk-on roles for the screen
PRODUCT REVIEW: ‘FilmConvert’ Film Emulation Software
Can Digital Really Look Like Film? ☛ Journalistic convention dictates that you review products when they’re brand new, but I’m taking the liberty of reviewing something that’s been around for a time. What can I say? It’s new to me. Be aware: this may get a little technical. FilmConvert is a bundle of software … Continue reading
Has a Line Been Crossed?
Directing tip # 1: Crossing the Line The first rule of filmmaking most students learn in film school is ‘don’t cross the line’. I’ve met those who see this rule as one of the few inviolable principles of directing for the edit, and others who think that movie grammar has outgrown this quaint prohibition. I’m … Continue reading
Rule of Thumbnail
Screenwriting tip #1: How to Introduce Characters in your Script For an unknown screenwriter it’s always a struggle getting a person of influence – an agent, a development executive, a producer – to read your script. There’s a reason for this. When these readers do turn the title page bearing an unfamiliar name, all too … Continue reading
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Guy Ducker
