Feature scripts are behemoth in nature, at least to me. It's really the dialogue that kills me everytime. I wish I could just outsource it! lol Alas, I am currently not paid like that so, I have to step up to the plate. When I had to do it years ago, I got better at it because I just locked myself in a space and wrote and let my friends read it to see if it sounded believable. I also, didn't have to write 80+ pages. This time will have to be much of the same. I am reteaching myself all of the break down elements. Setting up the locations, character's personas, plot elements.... I know that I can do this and it's something I need. Fleshing the entire thing out from stem to stern will help me get even closer to the project. Screenwriters are genius (& I'm something like a genius so...) and there's so much that they go through. Besides all of the drafts they're like novelists on speed. In addition to the final draft that has to be in a certain format that is universally accepted there is also a treatment for the film that is 8-15 pages long that gets submitted 1st. This treatment gives all of the plot points, acts, characters and such in a condensed form that has to have its own format. So think about it like this....most features are about 80-120 pages in length allllll of that info has to be miniaturized and still make you want to buy it. That's some amazing pressure. Oh and you only use minimal dialogue and it's solely for descriptive reasons.
Moving on to the video treatment. I worked on several videos when I moved out to LA and had the privilege of reading over the Director's treatments. What most people don't know is that a large percentage of the Directors don't actually write their own treatments. I was saddened initially when I found that out, but here's why.... Mainly it's because of Directors being inundated with a catrillion projects that may or may not jump off the ground and all of the hours that are put into making a treatment could be a complete wash because if they don't choose you you don't get your pay. In those cases production companies will outsource a treatment writer to come up with a concept that the Director and Production Company can stand behind and then it gets submitted to the label. Anyhoo... a treatment for a video gives the writer more creative room as far a format goes. Sometimes, there are photos submitted to give a better sense of the art direction, wardrobe, make up etc. Even if they are not submitted there are tons of style magazines that are flipped through, books about architecture, the human body, movies, you name it that are referenced to allow the Director to fully grasp his/her vision. Cut to me as a PA driving to tons of newstands, movie stores, book stores sifting through so much to find that gem that will yield the perfect reference. No, it was not glamorous but it was fun (sometimes). lol So, the format of a video treatment is usually a one pager or at best a couple of pages consisting of paragraphs laying out the complete visual element and feel of the video down to the presence that the artist gives. It's simple yet effective as long as your adjectives are super on point.
Oh the documentary..... Well, this is a completely new field for me. The reason being is that it's live. In essence what you're doing as the Director/Writer is writing what you're looking to shoot and leaving room for real life to take place. When you're interviewing, you will have a list of questions to ask but you don't know what the answers will be and if those answers will lead you on an eye opening tangent. You come up with a list of places to drive to shoot footage and get permission to shoot and have no idea that you may come across an unexpected nook or interview that will lead you else where. The important part of this entire process is keeping track of it all and documenting the changes. Your pre-shoot/shooting script may change dozens of times to get the best story. The difference between a documentary and the aforementioned is that there are far less rules and it's your idea. It's real life and you have a plan but you end up making a lot of it up as you go along. What's amazing about it is that you have your core message/subject matter outlined and you let it develop itself, you cannot force this or else it's incredibly obvious. The downside is that without the structure, if you're not paying attention, time will fly by and you won't know when or where you're supposed to stop. It's real life so, there is no real end and you choose your own adventure.
That being stated this is my adventure to create compassionate stories that are fictional, 100% real or a combination of both. Developing my breadth of knowledge is incredible. It makes me stretch myself to be more so I can touch more people and do what I'm hear to do...Inspire dialogue and break boundaries. The bear is tackling one at a time. With Shak's "Tarantino Challenge" on the table it's must.
100.
Bright
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