John August

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Getting sidetracked by other movies

Psych 101, QandA

I have this problem of losing my momentum when I’m writing due to shifts in my mood. I’ll be working on a pretty heavy dramatic piece and I’ll see something like a Wes Anderson film. If the film moves me enough, my overall mood will become whimsical (in this example) and I’ll lose that dramatic edge.

Does this ever happen to you? If so, what do you, outside of sealing yourself off from outside artistic influences (which may not be a bad idea)?

— Brandon
Los Angeles

Yes, this happens to me, and just about every writer I know. The problem is that screenplays are simply so long, and take so long to write, that it’s impossible to remain in one emotional state from start to finish.

All I can offer are some tricks to help you get back in the right mood.

  1. Be an actor. Scene by scene, day by day, actors have to project emotions that they’re not naturally feeling. How do they do it? Well, you could and should read up on it — even taking a class is a good idea. But the short version is that they simply pretend. If you’re feeling glum and depressed as you sit down to work on your elephant-mating comedy, pretend you’re having a great day, and that you’re surrounded by people who think you’re funny. On the other hand, I wrote the finale for BIG FISH by deliberately bringing myself to tears before I started typing. Call it method screenwriting.

  2. Create some triggers. While I don’t usually write with music playing, I often build an iTunes playlist of songs that feel right for a certain project. For instance, Ennio Morricone’s Hamlet soundtrack has a very spooky song that I used over and over when I needed to get properly freaked out for my never-to-be-made zombie western.

  3. Acknowledge what it is about that Wes Anderson film you liked so much, but stop comparing it to what you’re writing. You know what? Wes Anderson goes to see movies, too, and probably feels the same kind of self-doubt when he sees something brilliant. But he gets over it. So get over it.

  4. Re-read what you’ve already written. Nothing feels more like your movie than your movie.

  5. Finally, do consider barricading yourself for a week or two if outside influences are keeping you from finishing. There’s a lot to be said for keeping other voices out of your head.

Back to work

News, Projects

After the trip to Miami for the Urban Challenge, and an extended Thanksgiving weekend, it’s finally back to work. That is, if I can avoid the life-destroying forces of World of Warcraft.

For those who are curious, I’ll eventually get the full write-up of the Miami race posted. The short version is that we crossed the finish line #31 (of 104), but DQ’d on a soccer question that was many teams’ undoing. Damn those corner kicks. We didn’t win the $50K, but after more than four hours running, there was simply no way we could have competed in the second race. So we were more than happy to drink our free beers and watch much better teams wrap it up.

Off to Miami

News

I’m heading to Miami tomorrow morning for the Urban Challenge championships, so don’t expect any other updates until Monday.

For those who are keeping track, we qualified for the national race back in July, by placing in the top 10 in the Los Angeles race. The Miami race itself is on Saturday, but we’re spending Thursday and Friday trying to get familiar with the city. I’ve never been there, and our friends who live there are transplants, so there’s a lot to learn. There are also a lot of small changes to the rules, so I’ll consider it a victory if we don’t get disqualified.

His name is my name too

Film Industry, QandA

questionmarkI am interested in screenwriting and would love to break into the business. My problem is that John August is my real name. Will I have to use a different name?

I have many scripts I’m working on. Any advice on the name situation would be great!

— John August
Oakland, CA

A quick Google search will reveal there are a bunch of us John Augusts. One guy wants to abolish the Australian state governments, and has been active on the internet since Usenet days. John August Swanson is a painter, while another John August does guitar instruction books. And one specializes in interlocking pavers.

My favorite non-me John August has a site dedicated to diabetic foot problems. And here I am just answering questions about bad catering.

Unlike the Screen Actor’s Guild, which forces actors to use a unique name, there’s no prohibition in Hollywood for multiple writers having identical names. As a practical matter, though, it’s quite inconvenient. But there are a few good solutions.

  1. Use your middle name or initial. On IMDb, there are at least eight David Steinbergs. But the one I know, a screenwriter, is David H. Steinberg, and he’s doing very well. He writes “David H. Steinberg” on his scripts, and no one gets confused.

  2. Use your first and middle initials. Tom Smith is a pretty common name, so my friend’s scripts are marked T. C. Smith. He got the Nicholl Fellowship, so something worked. Initials are also a good way of concealing your gender.

  3. Do you like any of the variations on “John?” Jonathan, Jack, Juan, Johann? I was a week into pre-production on Go when I realized that the familiar-looking gaffer was actually a college acquaintance, John Lampassi. He was now going by Giovani Lampassi — “Gio.” People are much more likely to remember his name because, frankly, how many Gios do you know?

  4. How do you feel about your mother’s maiden name?

  5. And remember, despite what you read on this site, there are other rewarding careers out there beyond screenwriting.

Any other ego-surfing John Augusts out there, please leave a comment so we can get a headcount.