Heard the one about the bearded bloke and a reindeer?

Merry wotsit. I shall do my review of 2009 and goals for the coming year on Thursday because I'm just a pedantic bar steward.

I had a private response to my Solicitations blog (the previous one) from one of the actors who appeared in our Monsters mini-pilot. It was on the subject of making direct contact with producers and directors with a view to getting in. (He gave me permission to talk about it.)

There's a production company that have an amazingly commercial idea, well they've had it for at least two years. I had seen their website and their idea myself. Anyway, my correspondent saw their website, recognised that the idea had potential and introduced himself via email as an actor who'd very much like to be in it, if it ever got made.

Cutting a long story short, they stayed in touch, and two years later the film is getting attention and that means money. And it's looking like it's actually happening - at which point he gets an email inviting him to have a featured, but non-speaking, role.

Devastated.

I have another friend who's a writer-director, he's been trying to get a horror movie made for at least the last five years. It's a decent story, a decent script, and he's got real name talent attached (big names). And yet - nothing. Why? Because he wants to direct it himself and the people with the money find that prospect too scary.

It's the way it works. As Simon Beaufoy said at the Screenwriters Festival - it's their money so yes they do have a right to have their conditions met (at least some of them). They are gambling millions.

So what's the solution? There isn't one really, at least, not by being pig-headed or cutting off one's nose to spite one's face.

In the first story, this actor (having got over his initial disappointment) realised that this was a very good opportunity and that it could easily lead to better things - a credit in a successful movie is valuable.

In the second, the director has been producing other work - proving that he can direct. And things are beginning to move.

Anyway, back to the bearded bloke and the reindeer - have you heard that one? No? Pity. I don't know how it ends either.

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What's on the turntable? "Joanni" by Kate Bush from "Aerial"

Solicitations

You don't have to like David Bowie, it doesn't bother me, but I do both as a singer and an actor. One of favourite films is Labyrinth, I can watch it again and again.

***Mild Spoilerage***

At one point the characters have to cross a bridge but it's guarded by a knight who will fight anyone who tries to cross it "without my permission!". After being beaten to a standstill by the knight the main character finally just asks for permission. The knight is a bit surprised by this turn of events - apparently nobody ever just asks - gives it.

***************

This is the whole point when it comes to production companies who don't accept "unsolicited" scripts, because everybody really really wants to find good writers and hopefully good scripts.

It's the query letter or email.

I have quite a high success rate getting my scripts read by industry peeps because I get them to solicit my scripts even without representation.

My feeling is that an old-fashioned snail-mail query letter is easy to ignore and forget - what you need is a good brief email. Since I'm more of a TV writer (I'll get the hang of features one day) I tend to target TV companies. I find ones that produce things I like and are the sort of things I write. I check their website for the the right person to contact, find the email address and write a concise (sometimes not so concise) email explaining who I am, my writing credentials (such as they are) and ask them whether they'd be interested in reading my work.

Humility is called for - and a good choice of subject line. I have a subject line that works really well in all circumstances, and I'm not saying what it is (sorry).

I've even used this approach successfully with the BBC.

I personally think the key is to realise that you're selling yourself as a writer rather than attempting to push a particular script. Almost all writing jobs in film and TV will be writing what someone else wants, it's very rare to get a spec made until you've made a name for yourself, sometimes not even then.

If your scripts, or parts of them, are available on the web so much the better - then you can just direct people to the correct URL. It makes it really easy for them and that's important, the fewer barriers between them and your script, the better. It's also useful if you have more than one - just to prove you're not a one-script wonder.

I mention all this because I got an email yesterday from a production company as a response to one of these query emails. And they will be reading my scripts (plural).

Nothing may come of it, but at the very least (for better or worse) they now know my name.

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What's on the turntable? "Mobocaster" by Tangerine Dream from "Tang-Go"

Writing about writing

Yes indeedy.

I was watching Elf yester-eve. I hadn't seen it before and I'm not a huge Will Ferrell fan - but as I mentioned in this post, I'm not the sort of person that feels the need to turn their emotions up to 11, when anything from 1 to 10 might be more appropriate.

Elf is okay, amusing and doesn't get overly sentimental despite being a family feel-good movie. I wouldn't be averse to seeing it again, but wouldn't go out of my way to see it.

But that's not the point. It's the important similarity between Elf and The Fugitive that I'm talking about here - actually Elf isn't a perfect example but it has elements that reminded me of the point.

Yes, but what is the point? I hear you scream.

The Protagonist and the Hero's Journey.

Everybody knows that the Hero goes on a journey and they change in the process.

Everybody knows.

**** ESSENTIAL SPOILERS FOR THE FUGITIVE AND ELF ****

Actually that isn't always true. (Please note, I am not turning my emotion up to 11 here, I said "it isn't always true" which means there are instances where it isn't true, and instances where it is true.)

Who's the protagonist in the Fugitive? Dr. Kimble, whose wife is killed by the one-armed man, or so he claims. What journey does Dr Kimble go on in The Fugitive? Um ... none. At the beginning he knows he's right and at the end he's exactly the same. The only journey is proving he is right, he doesn't change.

But, his pursuer, Tommy Lee Jones's character, he changes but he isn't the protagonist.

In Elf Buddy is the protagonist, no question, but the journey belongs to his father. He's the one that does the classic Aristotleian Dilemma-Crisis-Decision and Action-Resolution. And it's really obvious. (Buddy does have his own sub-plot which involves some change, but it's a sub-plot.)

What it means is: the Protagonist does not have change, they can be "Steadfast". But someone does have to change.

I'm not going to pretend I thought this up all by myself, however it's taken me a while to absorb this concept thoroughly and find other examples. It comes originally from Dramatica which I read up on for a while - it appealed to my computer programming background (which is why, I suspect, some people think it's too automated - but as usual that's not right, it's just another tool which you can choose to use or not use).

So that's today's take-away, or leave-behind depending on your viewpoint. And if you want to disagree, well, I don't mind, but have a good think about it first.

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What's on the turntable? "Something to believe in" by Clannad from "Sirius"

Keeping up appearances

I've not been blogging because this is primarily a screenwriting blog - and I haven't been. I've been rather tied up with a little web-based project that could net me a few extra pounds. And we could all do with a few extra pounds (as long as they're monetary - I have plenty extra of the other sort).

Anyway if you don't read Bill Martell's blog you should and this one is another interesting insight into the curious world of scriptwriting in Hollywood.

Tomorrow I'm heading down with family to That Crazy London, to see relatives and go to a birthday party of an old friend. I'm pretty sure he doesn't read this blog - and he doesn't know we'll be there. I hope I haven't spoiled the surprise.

I'm planning to invest much of the Christmas break to writing - hopefully getting the first draft of Winter complete.

Oh, the Boy hasn't been on TV yet - we have no idea when he'll be on because it hasn't been the last two episodes of Bamzooki and isn't the next one either (apparently).

The Daughter has discovered there's a major (well-loved) fantasy book which is not currently optioned ... she wants to make it. She really wants to make it. With that kind of intention, she just might.

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What's on the turntable? "Go Your Own Way" by Fleetwood Mac from "Rumours" - except this is deluxe edition with lots of extra tracks. And this is a previously unreleased version of the song with slight differences to the released one, though not many.

So shoot me

I know, I haven't blogged in over a week. Very unlike me.

Well, I'm not blogging now, either. But I think this is important (it's about screenwriting).

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What's on the turntable? "Into the Lens" by Yes from "Drama"