Table Of Content

On Story — Screenwriters and Their Craft AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd ii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM On Story AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd iiii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Screenwriters and Their Craft austin film festival Edited by BBaarrbbaarraa MMoorrggaann and MMaayyaa PPeerreezz University of Texas Press Austin AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd iiiiii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Copyright © 2013 by Austin Film Festival, Inc. All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First edition, 2013 Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should be sent to: Permissions University of Texas Press P.O. Box 7819 Austin, TX 78713-7819 http://utpress.utexas.edu/index.php/rp-form Design by Lindsay Starr Th e paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of ansi/niso z39.48-1992 (r1997) (Permanence of Paper). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data On story : screenwriters and their craft / edited by Barbara Morgan and Maya Perez. — First edition. pages cm ISBN 978-0-292-75460-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Screenwriters—Interviews. 2. Motion picture authorship. 3. On story: presented by Austin Film Festival (Television program) I. Morgan, Barbara, 1962–, editor of compilation. II. Perez, Maya, 1970–, editor of compilation. III. Austin Film Festival. PN1996.O5 2013 808.2'3—dc23 2013008525 doi:10.7560/754607 AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd iivv 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Dedicated to Frank Pierson, Polly Platt, Sydney Pollack, and Bud Shrake AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd vv 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Contents Foreword by Brian Helgeland ix Acknowledgments xi Screenwriter Biographies xiii Introduction by Barbara Morgan 1 1. Inspiration 5 A Conversation with Randall Wallace 7 2. Story 25 What Makes a Great Story: A Conversation with Bill Wittliff 27 Steven Zaillian on Where the Story Originates 34 Peter Hedges on Crafting Story 35 Lawrence Kasdan on Story and Th eme 36 3. Process 37 A Conversation with John Lee Hancock 39 Sacha Gervasi on Getting Started 48 Th e Basics with Nicholas Kazan 50 Advice from Bill Wittliff 52 vi AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd vvii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Anne Rapp’s Writing Routine 54 Caroline Th ompson’s Writing Process 58 Lawrence Kasdan on the Challenges of Writing 59 4. Structure 61 Structure and Format: A Conversation with Frank Pierson, Whit Stillman, Robin Swicord, and Nicholas Kazan 63 Caroline Th ompson on Structure 81 Lawrence Kasdan on the Rules of Script Formatting 82 Visual Storytelling: A Conversation with John August, John Lee Hancock, and Randall Wallace 85 5. Character and Dialogue 105 Building Characters and Mapping Th eir Journeys: A Conversation with Lawrence Kasdan and Anne Rapp 107 Nicholas Kazan on Writing Characters 115 Crafting Characters: A Conversation with Lawrence Kasdan 117 Dialogue and Finding the Voice: A Conversation with John August and John Lee Hancock 127 6. Rewriting 141 Writer’s Block: A Conversation with Bud Shrake and Bill Wittliff 143 Bill Wittliff on When to Let Something Go 149 Steven Zaillian on Defi ning Scenes: What to Keep In, What to Leave Out 150 Anne Rapp on Keeping the Writing Fresh 151 Nicholas Kazan’s Rewriting Process 152 On Rewriting: A Conversation with Daniel Petrie Jr., Peter Hedges, and Sacha Gervasi 153 Lawrence Kasdan on How You Know When You’re Done 155 Contents vii AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd vviiii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM 7. Collaboration 157 A Conversation with Steven Zaillian 159 Peter Hedges on Collaborating 173 Lawrence Kasdan on Writing with a Partner 174 Randall Wallace on Working with Other Writers 175 8. Go Forth 177 viii on story AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd vviiiiii 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM Foreword Is screenwriting an art or a craft? I really don’t give a rat’s ass. A story’s a story. A movie’s a movie. I want the end product, not how it got there. Th e truth is, the Pope gave Michelangelo notes on the Sistine Chapel. Th e truth is, the ceiling’s centerpiece, the creation of Adam, is not even an original idea. Old Mike Angelo adapted it from a scene in Genesis. Th e truth is, it was a work for hire. Another truth is that there are some people who want to believe the world is a scam, a place where if you can just work out the game, every- thing falls into place. Read this book. Read between its lines, and do you know what you’ll learn? Th ere is no shortcut to excellence; there is no trick to writing a movie. It is hard work. Th e sacrifi ce involved is daunting; the dues you must pay are monumental. Th at’s what Frank Pierson and John Lee Hancock know. You get to where you want to be by getting there. You want to play baseball? Don’t show up in the Bronx and tell them you’re ready to play shortstop for the New York Yankees. Go to a sandlot with a bat, a glove, and a ball. Carnegie Hall? Practice, baby, practice. Go on. You might have the time of your life along the way. I personally am uncomfortable with the title of writer. I am a fi lmmaker. I make movies. Watching them as a boy made me realize there was a world out there. Movies altered my horizon. As an adult, movies have put me in a solitary cell for months at a time. Th ey have taken me around the world literally and fi guratively. Th ey’ve introduced me to my greatest friends and my most mortal enemies. Th ey sprung me from my childhood purgatory and gave me my life, and I am inescapably in their debt. ix AAuussFFiillmmFFeesstt__55446633__BBKK..iinndddd iixx 77//3311//1133 1122::3377 PPMM