It sure was fun being that naive lol I just came across one of my first screenplays from high school. In all honesty reading it now; I see that it was 104 pages of doo-doo but at the time, I was sure I’d be yacht shopping within the year. It is kinda fun looking back at early work though!
Screenwriting : Remember that period of time right after you completed the very first draft of your very first screenplay and regardless of what everyone says, deep down you KNOW this ticket to the big time? by Eric WC Harmon
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The after effect of writing a first screenplay, lol. I was house shopping, walking the red carpet and mingling with big wigs. Within a year, of course.
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The very first script I sat down to write was in 5th grade after seeing "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" and I was hyped to think I could write a sequel and I never got past the first scene. Which oddly enough was a mountain rescue much like the one that actually opens the real sequel that came out much later. Just goes to show how some minds think alike!
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Of course after selling that dumpsterfir—er—I mean, masterpiece, I’d have to take a break from my new exciting life of celebrity parties, car collecting, and—hat shopping (....I don’t know what rich people do) to return the studios phone calls...they’ll be wanting that sequel.
Hahaha Oh the confidence we all have with our first screenplay lol. When I wrote my first, I thought, "well this is easy. Time to stack up those millions" lol I went back to that script 2 weeks ago and it was soooooo horrible haha! I revised it and took it from it's original 123 pages down to a 97 I believe. Yep, it was that bad lol
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Imo,
Your script wasn't that bad, actually. Remember when you asked me to read your script, and sent it to me? Well...full confessional time....I sent it to the "You Can Really Do It! Screenplay Contest" and...well....yes...I can really do it and I won the whole contest! I would share the prize with you, but it was a chocolate trophy and I already ate it.
I tried to warn you when I told you "you really don't want to send your script to me", if you recall, and now you know why. They don't call me "The King of Subtext" for nothing, buddy.
Best fortunes to all who send me their scripts!
My first script, I thought the last page was the end.
I now do so much writing before I even turn in WriterDuet. I have a script in WD at the moment. I am dragging it out and back into word to make some structure changes.
That’s just my process. If it was a house, I do frame build outside WD. That software is for painting and decorating in my metaphor.
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Well Bill, I would have won the Very Best Bigly contest with mine. My first was not so bad, I just started with big sci-fi writing a concept that I should have waited to write 24 months later.
Maybe, I could clean that sucker up and make it presentable.
Peter: I don't know if you read this a few weeks ago when I posted it, but if you didn't, my first script was bad.
Oh it was bad, it was bad. I'm telling you.
It was so bad that Final Draft paid ME to stop using their software. Yes sir, it was bad.
It was so bad that, after I entered it in the Page Screenplay Competition, the following year they changed the rules to exclude anyone named "Bill" from entering. It was that bad.
It was so bad that my script consultant went into seclusion for five years after reading it and became a Buddhist monk.
It was so bad that a Faith-Based Producer bought it, just so he could exorcise it and burn it at the stake.
It was so bad that the protagonist left at the Midpoint and never came back. What a protagonist, I'm telling you. What a protagonist, Peter.
It was so bad that Johnny Cash shot it down in Reno, just to watch it die.
If was so bad that not even Save the Cat could save it. That's how bad it was.
It was so bad that the L.A. City Council passed a resolution banning me from the city limits "until 2064, or until Hell freezes over, whichever comes last," Peter. That city council, I'm telling you. "Whichever comes last?" No respect. No respect at all.
Yes sir, Peter...it was a bad script. A bad, bad script. Well, maybe not that bad, all things considered, but....yes....it really was that bad.
Best fortunes to you, Peter, and to all Stage32 Creatives!
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Bill, Will you be here all week? ;)
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Sam: Two shows a night! LOL.
Hope the work on your upcoming film The Pitch Fork is going well, Sam - I look forward to seeing it, and best fortunes with all of your other projects, too!
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Bill, I booked you at the Pechanga Resort & Casino, Oct 8-12.
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Here's a story for you: About 20 years ago, I wrote the first 15 pages of a screenplay (using primitive screenwriting software) called "Love's Fire." I sent it plus a synopsis of the rest of the story to the annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition for that year. The script went nowhere.
Fast forward to October 2013 after I retired from teaching after 11 years in a high school classroom, I took the script and its previous incarnation as a not-very-good novel out of the drawer. Full of enthusiasm and certain success, I began working again to turn the story into the screenplay as the first script of a franchise. "Love's Fire" became "The Journey ... Finding Laney."
But, it wasn't until October 2015--after four rounds of coverage (two local, two national) and discovering the beat sheet--that I finally understood the mechanics of writing a producible script. I went on to rewrite "Laney" and to rewrite/write the other five scripts in the franchise.
So, back in June, I decided to enter "Laney" into the Writer's Digest 2019 Writing Competition in the Script Category which included stage plays, television shows, and feature films. My screenplay won an Honorable Mention which I consider definite progress. I have come full circle with this script.
One reason things have taken so long has been that I have had to learn so much new stuff to be ready for the production of my franchise. I want to direct "Laney," so my homework now includes a lot of important information about everything that goes into producing a film for theatrical release.
This is the story of my very first script ... I didn't give up.
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Patricia, Very inspiring. I personally have produced 18 films and directed seven of them, so please allow me to offer you some advice: Seek an experienced producer to help you on your journey. And, you might want to consider writing and directing a short film to help build your reel and IMDb page. Those things will help you to continue on your journey and make your first script into a reality. BREAK LEGS! And, as I always say, GOD BLESS and STAY FRESH! <3
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hahaha! Bill, sometimes the one derailing us, are ourselves. You did try to warn me, but do I ever listen, no...
At the very least, something good came of it, you got chocolate, and chocolate, is always a plus in my book. Unfortunate that you robbed me of my piece. I'll know to submit it myself next time.