StoryLink > Articles > eZines > March 2009
StoryLink eZine - March 2009
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Also in this issue are tips on creating diverse characters from industry insiders Marilyn R. Atlas and Devo Cutler-Rubenstein, and a list of the top ten things to remember when writing a female-driven screenplay, by On the Page: The DVD creator Pilar Alessandra. Next month's eZine will include a Q&A with the eco-conscious team behind Fuel, the 2008 Sundance Best Documentary winner. Fuel producer Greg Reitman was recently named by MovieMaker magazine as one of "10 Moviemakers Making a Difference." If your question for Greg and the Fuel team is chosen, you'll receive a one-year subscription to MovieMaker! April also sees the launch of the annual Script Frenzy challenge. If you're interested in writing a screenplay in 30 days, check out the article by program director Jennifer Arzt for more information. StoryLink would like to congratulate Royce, the winner of the first annual StoryLink Oscar Contest! Our thanks go out to everyone who entered. And finally, a round of applause for Simon Beaufoy, Best Adapted Screenplay winner for Slumdog Millionaire and Dustin Lance Black, Best Original Screenplay winner for Milk at this year's Academy Awards. Keep your dream alive! Keep writing! Debra Eckerling |
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Tracey Jackson is StoryLink's March featured screenwriter in honor of Women's History Month. Jackson's adaptation of Sophie Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic was released last month, and she has written more than 15 feature films and 14 television pilots. Her films include The Guru, the first Hollywood/Bollywood crossover film; The Other End of the Line, a trans-global love story to be released on October 31; and the upcoming Ashes to Ashes, which she wrote with Goldie Hawn. Lucky Ducks, completed last November, is Jackson's first documentary and directorial debut. She is currently working on a book for Harper Collins. Jackson, who believes writers constantly need to reinvent themselves, got her agent by writing plays and putting on readings. Her "Hollywood break" came at a baby shower, when she met the head of ABC Movies of the Week. "She read my work and sent it to people who could help me," Jackson recalls. "People responded to my voice." Jackson is adamant that writers keep plugging along with their work, push forward, and don't give up. "Your break-through happens through not giving up. ... Calls come from unlikely places, when you least expect it, so be prepared. Nothing is worse than to be caught empty handed when opportunity comes knocking." For more of Jackson's wisdom, read her answers to questions submitted and selected from the StoryLink Community. Members whose questions were chosen for this interview will receive a copy of Pilar Alessandra's On The Page: The DVD. Here are the selected questions from StoryLink members. Read the article ... |
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Post a Question for "Fuel" Producer Greg Reitman For the Earth Day-themed April edition of the StoryLink eZine, we're featuring a Q&A with environmental advocate Greg Reitman, producer of Fuel, the 2008 winner for Best Documentary at Sundance. Wondering how you can get into the green scene? Greg will answer questions posed by the StoryLink community, so post your query today! Fuel is a revelatory film that explores America's addiction to oil, from its historical origins to political constructs that support it, ultimately revealing alternatives and steps the country can take to make a change. Reitman was recently named one of "10 Moviemakers Making a Difference" in MovieMaker magazine and is preparing to shoot at the UN for Earth Day as part of his upcoming film, Roots of Peace. He will be joined in our Q&A by Fuel director Josh Tickell and its screenwriter, Johnny O'Hara. Tickell's bestselling book, From the Fryer to the Fuel Tank, jumpstarted the US biodiesel movement, while O'Hara was nominated for a 2009 WGA documentary screenwriting award for Fuel. Submit your question for Greg and the team behind Fuel by March 30. If your question is chosen, you'll win a one-year subscription to MovieMaker Magazine. Post a question here. |
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"Creating a character is crafting, it is hard work," says entertainment insider Devo Cutler-Rubenstein. "This is miner's work with the light at the end of your helmet, digging and rooting around to find those veins of gold that will distinguish your character as special and unique and will sell movie tickets and greenlight a movie." Marilyn R. Atlas and Cutler-Rubenstein have more than 30 years experience in the industry, developing entertainment product for all markets. Atlas is an award-winning producer and manager of actors and writers with several projects in development that focus on diversity, including the forthcoming Suburban Turban and the stage musical adaptation of her film, Real Women Have Curves. Cutler-Rubenstein is a former studio executive and CEO of The Script BrokerŪ; she is also a produced writer and director, author of What's the Big Idea? Writing Shorts, and Adjunct Professor at USC's Summer Program. Atlas and Cutler-Rubenstein will lead a workshop on Creating Diverse Characters that Soar and Sell at The Writers Store on Thursday March 26, from 6 pm to 9 pm. The event's topics will include creating memorable (i.e. marketable) characters, generating dialogue and behavior that give insight into the character, and using exercises and screenwriting tools that will redefine stereotypes and spur your imagination, as well as a 50-question checklist for creating characters and 15 different ways to get to your characters. The team offers StoryLink readers a sneak-peek into their upcoming class. Read the article ... |
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Script Frenzy is the annual adventure through the Office of Letters and Light that sets down the challenge: write 100 pages of a script (or scripts) during the 30 days of April. Script Frenzy is an event, not a contest or festival. There are no prizes or judges. The event happens online, in cities and towns, in coffee shops and libraries. People gather to write together. It is a ridiculous amount of fun. There is safety, and more importantly, motivation in numbers. (A crazy, unflinching, deadline doesn't hurt either.) Jennifer Arzt, Program Director, has written two screenplays through Script Frenzy, and a novel through National Novel Writing Month (Script Frenzy's sister event in November). She holds an MFA in Film, Television, and Recording Arts. Arzt, who writes because she too has stories to tell, answers some questions about everyone's favorite short-term Screenplay Challenge - and how she first joined the Frenzy. Read the article ... |
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Bulletins From the Digital Frontier: New Adventures for Writers Conducted by: Carolyn Handler Miller When: March 14th - 11:00am-12:00pm Location: The Writers Store Cost: Free Writers Boot Camp's Secrets to Success in Screenwriting - Mini-Camp Conducted by: Jeffrey Gordon When: March 16th - 7:30pm-9:30pm Location: Writers Boot Camp Cost: Free 2-Day Plot Workshop with Martha Alderson Conducted by: Martha Alderson When: March 21st & 22nd Location: The Writers Store Cost: $95 IWOSC Seminar - Newsletters: The Good, the Bad, and the Creative Conducted by: Debra Eckerling & Tammy Takahashi When: March 21st - 10:30am-1:00pm Location: Veterans Memorial Building Cost: $15/$35 |
Producers On Creating Your Own Production Company Conducted by: Rona Edwards & Monika Skerbelis When: March 21st - 1:00pm Location: CBS/Radford Lot Cost: $10/15 Creating Diverse Characters that Soar & Sell Conducted by: Devo Cutler-Rubenstein & Marilyn Atlas When: March 26th - 6:00pm-9:00pm Location: The Writers Store Cost: $35 ($50 after 3/13) The Write Environment: Interview with Tim Minear Conducted by: Jeffrey Berman When: March 28th - 11:00am-12:00pm Location: The Writers Store Cost: Free Basics & Beyond: FrameForge 3D Studio 2 Training Conducted by: Jeff Stoltzfus When: March 28th - 2:00pm-4:00pm Location: The Writers Store Cost: $39.95 |
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Pilar Alessandra is the director of the popular writing program, On the Page, which features a "Beyond the Chick Flick" class. In this article, Alessandra offers tips on writing female-driven screenplays with an edge. Read the article ... |
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Pacific Northwest Screenwriters Contest Deadline March 30th, 2009 Visionary Screenwriter Competition Deadline March 30th, 2009 Scriptapalooza Television Writing Competition Deadline March 31st, 2009 The 2009 PAGE International Screenwriting Awards Deadline April 1st, 2009 Big Bear Lake International Film Festival & Screenplay Competition Deadline April 1st, 2009 |
2009 BlueCat Screenplay Contest Deadline April 1st, 2009 Scriptapalooza Screenplay Competition Deadline April 15th, 2009 Austin Film Festival Screenplay and Teleplay Competition Deadline May 15th, 2009 The 16th Annual Writers Network Screenplay & Fiction Competition Deadline June 15th, 2009 Big Break Contest Deadline June 15th, 2009 |