John August

QandA

Are characters based on people you know?

Go, QandA

As a writer, do you worry about everyone in your life thinking characters
are based on them?

–Dari

Surprisingly, the issue almost never comes up. I guess that means either,
(a) everyone in my life has already accepted that something they say or do
might someday end up on screen, or (b) they’re angry and repressing their rage.

A writer is inevitably going to borrow ideas from real life, both consciously
and unconsciously. With me, it’s dialogue. I’ll hear somebody say something
perfect and immediately jot it down on one of a hundred tiny slips of paper.
(Probably half of the time, I’ve actually misheard what they said, the same
way song lyrics seem much more poetic when you can’t quite make them out.)

But I’m pretty careful to never completely base a character on somebody I
know, especially not a close friend or family member. It’s just not worth the
potential grief.

Of the scripts I’ve written, GO was closest to using actual true people and
events. Tiny (played by Breckin Meyer) was inspired by Anthony Satariano, the
sports editor of my high school paper, who was a white kid talking black way
back in 1988. The food poisoning from shrimp at a Las Vegas buffet happened
to my friend Wende in 1993, while the hotel room fire is a possibly apocryphal
story related to me by my friend Tom
Smith. (No, it didn’t happen to him.)

It’s worth noting that of all these incidents, the only one I asked permission
to use was Tom’s, probably because he’s a writer himself, and might have been
saving it for one of his own projects. He was gracious enough to let me have
it.

Another factor which reduces the "Is-That-Based-On-Me?" tension
is that a lot of the projects I work on already have some form of source material,
be it a book, a TV show or whatnot. For example, my screenplay for BIG FISH
involves a lot of my experience watching my father die, and my frustration
at trying to get to know him. But the fact that it’s ultimately based on Daniel
Wallace’s book makes it easier for my family and everyone else to get some
emotional distance, and differentiate the movie-dad from my actual dad.

Do I show my scripts or my short?

Film Industry, QandA

I have just finished my first feature APPLESEED LAKE which
I wrote/directed/produced on a very low budget. I am now at the stage where
I am preparing
to show it to people whilst at the same time writing my follow up script. Would
it help me get (writing) representation by showing agents the finished film?
Or should I just stick to showing prospective agents scripts that I have written?

–Peter

If you’re interested in both writing and directing, you’ll obviously want
to find an agent who handles both fields. Both your screenplay and your feature
will be important at some stage.

Because of the time commitment involved, not many agents are apt to pop in
a videotape to check out a low-budget movie from someone they’ve never heard
of. The odds of suckage are just too high. They are, however, more likely to
crack open a script. Your instincts are right.

If your film gets into some festivals, however, that can be a great way to
get the process started. Say an agent sees your film and introduces herself.
That’s a tremendous opportunity to talk about the scripts you’ve written and
offer one to read. Most writer/directors at a film festival don’t have representation
going in, and smart agents will always be looking for new talent.

Bob Marley

QandA, Rights and Copyright

Why has no one ever considered making a movie of Bob Marley ?

–J. Quin

They have. Back when I was a terrified assistant at Oliver Stone’s production
company, one of the executives was negotiating for the rights to "Catch
a Fire," Timothy White’s biography of Marley. I know there were several
Bob Marley projects in development at some time-I’m sure at least one had Denzel
Washington attached-but none of them have made it to the screen yet.

Making a bio-pic of a musical icon can be tough for a few reasons. First,
you have to get the artist’s music rights, because without the recognizable
songs, what’s the point? Second, you need to find an actor who can pull off
the role, which for Marley could be tricky.

Finally and most importantly, you have to figure out what the cinematic story
is. Sadly, people’s actual lives don’t break down into three convenient acts with rising action and a winning combination of humor and pathos. (For that,
see "Behind the Music," which shoehorns everything into the same "…and
then drugs came into the picture" template.)

Real life is messy and tangled, with false starts and contradictory motivations.
Assuming you died today (a safe bet, since most rock stars die young), how
would your ghost write the story of your life? I suspect it would be hard to
pull out any overall themes or structure, and you know yourself better than
you know Bob Marley.

Despite these obstacles, I’m certain someone will figure out how to make a
Bob Marley movie. Maybe it will be you.

Various locations

Formatting, QandA

Can you tell me what is preferred/correct for this situation? Mabel is moving through a house (and, if necessary, outside):

INT. LIVING ROOM – DAY

Mabel searches for the cat.

INT. KITCHEN – DAY

Mabel searches for the cat.

EXT. STREET – DAY

Mabel searches for the cat.

Et cetera. Thanks very much.

–Arnold Sable

Yeah, that pretty much sucks, Arnold. Unless you are repeating the sentence for some effect, perhaps showing how intensely single-minded Mabel can be, almost anything else would be better.

The simplest choice would be to use a different scene heading that encompasses all needed locations, such as:

INT. HOUSE – VARIOUS ROOMS – DAY

Or, if you do want to show each location, try varying your descriptions of Mabel’s search so that they don’t repeat.

Finally, you could consider using a montage format:

MONTAGE as Mabel searches for the cat:

— She pulls open the dryer in the laundry room.

— Checks the kitchen cupboards.

— Searches under the porch with a flashlight.

— Pokes the broom under the sofa.

— Rechecks the kitchen cupboards again.

What format you choose really depends on the situation, and how much information you need the reader to know.