Picking Right Idea

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  • Re: Picking Right Idea

    hmm, logline fun... I wanna play

    I young screenwriter wakes up one day to find all his screenplays are sold and in development, but he's not credited as the writer, his mother is. Now he sets forth to take revenge the only way he knows how -- murder his mother!

    Throw Momma from the Train -- part 2

    Devito as the Mother [or stepfather]
    Crystal as the jaded agent who wants his 15%
    Rudd as the son
    Ricky Slade: Listen to me, I intentionally make this gun look that way because I am smart.

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    • Re: Picking Right Idea

      Originally posted by Satriales View Post
      Cry more.

      You have zero obligation to listen to anything I write on a message board. My response of "just write it- was purposefully flip. When you're X weeks in on a mediocre idea, either get the writing reps that will help you improve or get off the pot. That seems like an easy and obvious choice to me.
      I am also too good for the people on this board and just come here to see how the little people think
      Ricky Slade: Listen to me, I intentionally make this gun look that way because I am smart.

      Comment


      • Re: Picking Right Idea

        Originally posted by Julysses View Post
        I am also too good for the people on this board and just come here to see how the little people think
        I would posit that if you don't want to hear advice that may come across as negative that you shouldn't put your stuff out there. That's my take. Your mileage may vary.

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        • Re: Picking Right Idea

          Originally posted by Julysses View Post
          'Done Deal' Will said it was fine to just randomly write stuff without anyone real point...

          I'll write a narrative ploy without any real expectation of making appoint, I'll just confuse the reader with obvious allegories about simpleton ideas and how the horse ate the carrot.

          Earnest, is a fine horse and could have been a pure breed, but I have no idea, riding is really where - and whispering to the ole' Philly was when - I did learn the 'secrets of picking the right winner' or idea... these glorious fine days in the meadow, galloping and trotting around, the stallion would talk to me about screenwriting and his love of the beach.

          Earnie was very insightful and broad in his shoulders, as carrying the weight of this knowledge was part of an acute fallacy, as he was dreaming of being in wars and experiencing life from a warhorse or someone thrust into action, but had little he could do about where they chose to plot his life, the horse was out to pasture and his daytime was writing and reading, dreaming about what he could be if given the chance to... a lonely mare out in a field alone, like a book on a shelf, placed there for me to find, such a majestic animal, but a true friend and a great talker.
          Originally posted by Julysses View Post
          I was referring to how many novelist/screenwriters dream of being someone else in another time and project themselves into these dramatic situations... I was referring to Hemingway
          Balderdash.

          Originally posted by Julysses View Post
          some people's comprehension of the writing process is super poor, and they want to believe, because you say the right thing people will like you. Sure that works in academia, or if you're someone assistant...
          Some people’s understanding of the mechanics of writing is very poor. They wish to believe they can capitalize letters randomly and incorrectly punctuate at will any way they like. Sure, that gimmick operating under the guise of style works briefly for a voiceless screenwriting wanna-be bucking the system from his Bohemian coffeehouse ragtag screenwriting group. Yet many who work on the business side of the industry are academics, do know how to write properly, and can spot pyrite from the real thing in an instant. Charles McCarthy, Jr. you are not.
          Last edited by Clint Hill; 08-01-2020, 02:58 PM.
          “Nothing is what rocks dream about” ― Aristotle

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          • Re: Picking Right Idea

            Originally posted by JeffLowell View Post
            I probably play with 50 ideas for movies a year and if I'm lucky I come up with one great one every two or three years.

            Every script will be boiled down to a logline constantly. When it's covered, someone's going to write your plot as one sentence. When your agent is trying to sell it, he's going to have to pitch it. When an exec pitches it to his boss, he's going to have to start with that logline. When a manager tries to interest his client, he's going to have to tell them what it's about.

            If that sentence doesn't catch people's attention, you're in a world of hurt. You're going to find it very hard to get people to even read the script and get to that sparkling dialogue and plotting if that logline isn't interesting.

            The Princess Bride is great. But "Princess Bride" isn't a story. It's a title. Goldman could have come up with a lot of stories that weren't great from that title. Once his daughters gave him those words, he still had a million ways to go with the idea - and he came up with a great one.

            (And FWIW, there are still many more great movies that could come from "Princess Bride." Exhibit A: Shrek.)

            My test for an idea is this: when someone hears it, they can see the movie, and they think "why hasn't anyone made that yet?"
            Please listen to Jeff.

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            • Re: Picking Right Idea

              Originally posted by JeffLowell View Post

              When it's covered, someone's going to write your plot as one sentence. When your agent is trying to sell it, he's going to have to pitch it. When an exec pitches it to his boss, he's going to have to start with that logline. When a manager tries to interest his client, he's going to have to tell them what it's about.

              If that sentence doesn't catch people's attention, you're in a world of hurt.
              My question -- are they using YOUR logline that you came up with when they requested a read, or are they relying on a reader's logline? Because that is a hell of a lot of faith/intrigue squandered if they're relying on some underpaid, overworked, resentful underling's haphazard, thrown together logline as they plow through a pile of scripts to read.

              Even thinking about it makes my head hurt.

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              • Re: Picking Right Idea

                Originally posted by figment View Post
                My question -- are they using YOUR logline that you came up with when they requested a read, or are they relying on a reader's logline? Because that is a hell of a lot of faith/intrigue squandered if they're relying on some underpaid, overworked, resentful underling's haphazard, thrown together logline as they plow through a pile of scripts to read.

                Even thinking about it makes my head hurt.
                I don't think Jeff's stuff is going to a CE.

                I'm a terrible logline writer myself. I rely on reps. I don't think my ideas are terrible but I always end up with seven commas in a logline.

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                • Re: Picking Right Idea

                  I surf through Netflix and On Demand all the time and I never read a logline and say I cant believe no one has made that yet.

                  Comment


                  • Re: Picking Right Idea

                    Originally posted by figment View Post
                    My question -- are they using YOUR logline that you came up with when they requested a read, or are they relying on a reader's logline? Because that is a hell of a lot of faith/intrigue squandered if they're relying on some underpaid, overworked, resentful underling's haphazard, thrown together logline as they plow through a pile of scripts to read.
                    Readers write their own logline. That's how good and clear your idea has to be - it has to hold up when it's rewritten by someone who's sick of his job.

                    Originally posted by Cyfress
                    I surf through Netflix and On Demand all the time and I never read a logline and say I cant believe no one has made that yet.
                    How do you decide what to spec?

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                    • Re: Picking Right Idea

                      Originally posted by Satriales View Post
                      I don’t think Jeff’s stuff is going to a CE.

                      I’m a terrible logline writer myself. I rely on reps. I don’t think my ideas are terrible but I always end up with seven commas in a logline.
                      I like commas, too.
                      Last edited by finalact4; 08-02-2020, 08:48 AM.
                      "Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy b/c you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say." -- Edward Snowden

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                      • Re: Picking Right Idea

                        Originally posted by finalact4 View Post
                        I like commas, too.
                        Beware the sub-clauses!
                        Know this: I'm a lazy amateur, so trust not a word what I write.
                        "The ugly can be beautiful. The pretty, never." ~ Oscar Wilde

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                        • Re: Picking Right Idea

                          I usually decide by genre, actors, and I give some credence to rotten tomatoes.

                          I guess it also depends what people call an idea. How in depth does the idea have to be? A complete logline or just a concept like "A blind man who is very superficial about the looks of the women he dates-.

                          I just feel that a good writer can take a simple, general idea and find the great story within. That's what I was trying to say with the Princess Bride example. Goldman had no idea, just a title and he found the story within.

                          Does anyone have examples of a bad idea that got made into a movie? I thought making a movie around the Sonic Hedgehog was a bad idea but I think that actually made money at the box office.

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                          • Re: Picking Right Idea

                            Originally posted by Cyfress View Post
                            I guess it also depends what people call an idea. How in depth does the idea have to be? A complete logline or just a concept like “A blind man who is very superficial about the looks of the women he dates”.
                            Yes, I think you need a compelling, clear logline before you start writing.

                            I just feel that a good writer can take a simple, general idea and find the great story within. That’s what I was trying to say with the Princess Bride example. Goldman had no idea, just a title and he found the story within.
                            First off, The Princess Bride isn't a great example because it was a novel, not a screenplay. But I promise you he didn't hear "Princess Bride" and sit down and start writing. He came up with the story before he started. I can't imagine anything less efficient than coming up with a title or a non-specific idea and sitting down and typing "Fade In."

                            Are you arguing that a writer doesn't need to know anything beyond a simple idea before he starts writing, and then he finds it during the rewrites? Yikes. "Man gets woman, man loses woman, man gets woman back" is the core of thousands of movies, but you need more than that before you start. Are you writing "The Graduate" or "When Harry Met Sally" or "Meet The Parents" or "Always Be My Maybe" or or or...? You don't bumble your way into a great script.

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                            • Re: Picking Right Idea

                              And to add to this, a thread from a manager on twitter who has been posting a lot and pretty sure might rep a few around here (or did). Very smart stuff about picking ideas and how that choice can affect you down the line.

                              https://twitter.com/johnzaozirny/sta...108421120?s=20

                              Comment


                              • Re: Picking Right Idea

                                Originally posted by Cyfress View Post
                                I guess it also depends what people call an idea. How in depth does the idea have to be? A complete logline or just a concept like "A blind man who is very superficial about the looks of the women he dates-.

                                I just feel that a good writer can take a simple, general idea and find the great story within. That's what I was trying to say with the Princess Bride example. Goldman had no idea, just a title and he found the story within.
                                This all sounds like madness to me. Even if one doesn't write the logline first, how do they not know the story well enough to be able to construct a logline first if need be before they start writing it?

                                Typically when I get what I consider to be a good idea (whether it's marketable is debatable), I'm hit with a rush of information about who the characters are, what their motivations are, the dilemmas they'll face, how they'll handle them and interact with each other, what the climax of the story will be, and so on almost immediately after I think about it. Then I let it marinate for a bit and let more ideas come to me as I fill in the plot before I write it.

                                Does anyone ever really go, "You know what'd be interesting? A blind guy that hates fat chicks. I don't know how that's a story, but boy I'm gonna find out!" and then start page one?

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