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| 1. The September/October Issue of Script is on Newsstands Now! |
 In the September/October issue of Script, filmmaker Spike Lee and novelist James McBride discuss the research and convictions that inform their World War II drama, Miracle at St. Anna. As part of our "Writers on Writing" series, Jeffrey Nachmanoff explains the concerns he had in writing the war-on-terror suspense flick, Traitor. Runaway Bride scribes Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott talk about turning the one-off smash The Starter Wife into an ongoing series for USA. Russell Gewirtz recounts the awe he experienced while watching screen legends Al Pacino and Robert De Niro recite his Righteous Kill dialogue. And Caroline Thompson puzzles over the children's book adaptation City of Ember. All this, and much more, in the current issue of Script!
For the complete Table of Contents, or to subscribe,
Visit: www.scriptmag.com |
  $29.95 - Special Offer for Script Readers
Get BOTH MovieMaker and Script magazines for only $29.95 per year -- that's a savings of $50 off the newsstand price.*
Get the information you need on writing, selling and producing your screenplay from the publications that take you from FADE IN: to distribution deals. This is a limited time offer! |
Visit: www.finaldraft.com/specials and use code SMV82 for discount; offer expires 12/31/08.
*Script and MovieMaker are both published bi-monthly. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery of the first issue. Prices stated above are for U.S. delivery addresses and are stated in U.S. dollars; Canada and Mexico add $22; other International subscribers add $51. |
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| 2. Robert McKee's Story Seminar |
 Robert McKee's Story Seminar - The Ultimate Screenwriting Course
For almost 20 years, Robert McKee has been teaching his 3-day STORY SEMINAR to sold-out audiences around the world. From L.A. to N.Y. to London, Paris, Sydney, Barcelona, Tel Aviv, Singapore, Toronto, Rome and 12 other film capitals around the world, more than 50,000 students have taken the intense course.
McKee's former students have won 28 Oscars® and over 150 Emmys®, and have written such film and TV hits as WALL*E, Iron Man, The Simpsons Movie, Ratatouille, Grey's Anatomy, I Am Legend, The Incredible Hulk, Enchanted, CSI, The Daily Show, and more.
The recent bestselling book The Pixar Touch (David A. Price, Knopf, May 2008) talks about McKee's influence at Pixar: "[Pixar founder John] Lasseter and [Pixar director Pete] Docter attended a three-day seminar in Los Angeles given by screenwriting guru Robert McKee. They came back … as true believers in McKee’s principles. A McKee seminar resounded with the master’s observations about story and … McKee’s teachings became the law of the land at Pixar."
Legendary Oscar-winning screenwriter William Goldman said, "I am more convinced than ever that [screenplays are] only about story. [McKee] is a tireless speaker, knowledgeable and passionate -- it's three full days over a single weekend and no one feels cheated when he's done ... After listening to him, I wish he'd been around when I started writing CUT TO: for a living."
McKee brings his 3-day Story Seminar to LA & NY this September and October, as well has his 3-day Genre Weekend seminar to NY in October. Genre Weekend is made up of three one-day seminars -- Comedy Day, Thriller Day, and the brand new Love Story Day.
Upcoming Schedule
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Los Angeles Story - Sept. 19-21, 2008
New York Genre - Oct. 17-19, 2008
New York Story - Oct. 24-26, 2008
London Story - November 2008
For information, details and registration, call 888-676-2533, or,
Visit: www.McKeeStory.com |
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| 3. The Shield Series Finale Special: Un-Scripted With Shawn Ryan |
 As the Strike Team prepares to take its final bow, creator Shawn Ryan looks back on his seminal series The Shield. In this freewheeling interview, Ryan discusses the writers strike, his prodco's plans for the future, and his beginnings as a comedy playwright.
To read the full article,
Visit: www.finaldraft.com/mm_media/mm_newsletters/080902_script/
script-vol14no05-theshield.pdf
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| 4. Writers on Writing: Lakeview Terrace |
 With as varied a CV as one is likely to possess in this business -- sci-fi series, family film, period drama, ass-kicking action -- David Loughery wanted to write a subtler story about race and violence. With the forthcoming Lakeview Terrace, Loughery says he wanted to create an "Apocalypse Now -- So-Cal style."
For an exclusive excerpt,
Visit: www.finaldraft.com/mm_media/mm_newsletters/080902_script/
vol14no05-lakeview.pdf |
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| 5. Real Men Write: GIs Script Their Version of the War |
 Last year, the box office experienced an unhappy convergence of too many Iraq-centered films with too little substance. Now some of the soldiers from Iraq's front lines have come home. They're ready to commit their stories to film, in the hopes of hitting the authenticity mark that so many recent films have missed.
For an exclusive excerpt,
Visit: www.finaldraft.com/mm_media/mm_newsletters/080902_script/
vol14no05-realmen.pdf |
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| 6. Script Extra Edition: 2008 Comic-Con: An Interview With James Gunn |
 A Comic-Con Chat With Filmmaker James Gunn
by Debra Eckerling
Comic-Con International is more than a sneak peek into what's coming soon in movies, TV, graphic novels, and the like. It's an excellent opportunity for fans and up-and-comers to connect with industry professionals. And for entertainment pros to connect with their audiences.
"Interacting with the fans is the main thing," says filmmaker James Gunn (Slither, Dawn of the Dead). "You work in a vacuum when you make movies. You make the stuff, you put it out there. Going to Comic-Con --seeing these people -- is a neat experience."
Gunn is currently filming the VH-1 reality show Scream Queens -- Gunn, actress Shawnee Smith, and acting coach John Hom are judges; the winner will be cast in a Lionsgate movie -- and was at the fest promoting another new project: Comedy pilots by horror directors made exclusively for Xbox LIVE. Gunn and producer Peter Safran (Scary Movie, Meet the Spartans) are giving horror directors the opportunity to bring their comedic visions to life. Gunn's pilot for Xbox -- in which he also stars -- is called Humanzee!. It's a sitcom about his human-chimp hybrid son, played by Gunn's brother, Sean Gunn (Gilmore Girls).
Gunn got his break as a screenwriter when he wasn't expecting it. In college, Gunn applied for a part-time job filing papers at famed B-movie studio Troma Entertainment. He ended up writing the screenplay for a movie called Tromeo & Juliet instead, for which he was paid $150. In 1997, the film became a cult hit, playing in theaters around the world, including over a year of midnight screenings in Los Angeles.
While, as a screenwriter, the key to success is to write, Gunn believes there's another element a screenwriter must keep in mind to become successful. "You have to be open," he says. "There's a delicate balance between chasing your dreams and being open to the dreams that you don't know exist.
"There were other things in life that I wanted to do when I was younger, and I really had to listen to the world, put my ear to the ground, to see where my talents truly lie. A lot of the stuff I do is really stupid. I make a show called Humanzee!. I made movie[s] called Slither and Dawn of the Dead. But when I was a kid what really meant something to me was listening to the records of Alice Cooper or watching the movies of David Cronenberg -- those things made me feel like less of an outcast, that's what I normally felt like. I felt like there was something out there, somebody out there as weird as I was. That meant a lot to me.
"And when I get those e-mails from those kids on MySpace or whatever who feel that same way about the stuff I did, there's nothing better in the world. That's the best possible experience."
Of Comic-Con's rising profile, Gunn says, "Comic-Con has really become a huge part of the movie industry. It's a place where we debut new material. We've been working on these Xbox shorts now for quite a few months. We've been holding back on the announcement, because we wanted to debut it at Comic-Con."
Pilots from directors Gunn, James Wan (Saw), David Slade (30 Days of Night), Marcus Nispel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Lucky McKee (May), and Andrew Douglas (The Amityville Horror) will debut on Xbox LIVE this fall.
For more interviews with writers, agents and execs,
Visit: www.scriptmag.com/myspace |
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| 7. Writers Marketplace |
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The following are messages from our sponsors:
StoryLink Pitch Your Story Contest
Win a macbook air plus a meeting with benderspink. Put your pitch where the pros are with StoryLink’s Pitch Your Story Contest, an online competition open to video and text pitches for feature-length screenplays in all genres. Grand Prize Winner receives a MacBook Air loaded with screenwriting software, along with an in-person meeting with Benderspink. Sponsored by The Writers Store, Final Draft, Netflix, Script magazine and others. The deadline to enter is September 30th, 2008. Entrance fee also includes a 3-month subscription to Pitch Perfect (a $39.95 value). Enter now! Learn more at StoryLink,
Visit: www.storylink.com/pitchcontest
2009 Slamdance Film Festival Call for Entries
The 15th Annual Slamdance Film Festival will be held January 15-23, 2009. The Slamdance Film Festival is dedicated to new filmmakers. We accept films in every genre, on any topic from every country around the world. Our mission is to bring attention to the most talented emerging filmmakers, showcasing their work in the media frenzy of festival week in Park City, Utah. The final deadline for all 2009 film submissions is October 10th. Slamdance 2009 films will be selected by the festival programmers. All film selections will be posted on our website during the second week of December. See you in Park City! For more information,
Visit: www.slamdance.com/festival/submissions.html
Aaron Mendelsohn Script Consulting
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Vancouver Film School Writing for Film & Television
In Vancouver Film School’s one-year Writing for Film & Television program, you will learn the screenwriter’s role in the film industry by writing, workshopping, and collaborating on a variety of storytelling forms, including feature screenplays, short film scripts, episodic TV scripts and pilots, sketch comedy, documentaries, and your own produced short film. Through our many productions during the year, you’ll also learn to write to deadlines, to work alone and as part of a writing team, and to rewrite effectively. To ensure you’re truly prepared to begin your screenwriting career, we teach you how to pitch and market your work. You’ll graduate armed with a portfolio of writing and the knowledge of how to get it made. To learn more,
Visit: www.vfs.com/screenwriter |
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