When it comes to screenwriting I always find myself next to a pile of crumpled up pieces of paper covered with ideas that have already been done. Some people say that we're in post-modern society where "original" ideas are just remixes of old original works. (Everything coming out of Hollywood nowadays is a perfect example) Can this copy-cat technique be avoided or is it inevitable?
Screenwriting : Everything is a Remix. by Nicolas Scroggins
Everything is a Remix.
Other topics in Screenwriting:
Check out Trending Discussions
Register / Log In
1 person likes this
Using one of the seven story arcs? Inevitable. Not re writing 'The Godfather'? Completely possible.
1 person likes this
you can't avoid it completely. A completely original work will actually have been constructed in segments from other works in the artist's brain. What's original is the collection of elements, and how they're put together. You can avoid technical plagiarism easily by not looking at other work beforehand. As the others have said, there are common techniques, layouts and formulas, but it's all about how you use them, how your ideas interact with them.
I'm learning a lot from all this feedback. Thank you all for commenting.