Sold it! My screenplay--finalized deal this week!

A big congrats for a job well done.

I am sure this is the first of many sold screenplays, keep it up. Your an inspiration to all of us who stay up to the wee hours of the morning working on our scripts.
 
seunosewa said:
So what's the theme of your screenplay? :)
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The short form, which is quite Shakespearean, is:

Unchecked ambition leads to destruction and death.

The central character, an ausgespielt freelance journalist, lives at this extreme (start point of his character arc). The other main characters and institutions prove the theme as well, as the story unfolds and reaches its inevitable, deadly conclusion.

Too early in the morning for such dread and despair!:grin:
 
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So did you actually come up with this theme before you wrote anything else? I find it hard to be that clear about anything before much later in the process.
 
gi-jones said:
So did you actually come up with this theme before you wrote anything else? I find it hard to be that clear about anything before much later in the process.
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For this story, I started out very early with theme. I discovered the story seed while reading a conspiracy article on Wikipedia, believe it or not. Once I became familiar with the actual history and events of the Baron Report and Apollo, the underpinning of this theme became quite clear. It screamed at me. And for me, with the theme now clearly defined, the writing process became much easier, more fluid. Plus, this time I made sure that I had a solid theme-based beat sheet and treatment to work from.

PS--In response to the PM, the longer form I used is similar in structure to William's Moral Premise:

Unchecked ambition leads to destruction and death, but tempered ambition leads to new beginnings and life.
 
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We all know about theme, what it is and why it's important, but I've never heard its importance framed so elegantly, "write from theme". Makes a lot of sense as a way of keeping everything tight and structured.
 
Thank you, brianluce. I can't tell you how important that concept has been to my writing.
 
brianluce said:
It's great advice, I've been thinking about it the last few days...
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Second. The theme idea seems so simple, and somehow I've forgotten about it whenever I try working on a screenplay. I don't recall Syd Field touching on theme at all in Screenplay and The Screenwriter's Workbook, although theme was a major component of James N. Frey's How to Write a Damn Good Novel.

kyle, you've awoken a sleeping giant. :) Now all I'm going to dream about is theme. Moral.

And that makes me remember someone on earlier talking about writing from your own life experience...

Definitely awoken a sleeping behemoth. And he is mighty. :)

And before I forget, congrats on the sale. You're an inspiration.
 
Congrats on the sale!!!
One question. Did you have the story in your head already?
I'm having problems actually sitting down and writing but I know everything that happens. Don't know where I want to start.
 
I read about a related topic (to my story) on Wikipedia.

Researched my story idea for awhile. Developed a timeline. Organized the plot points for most dramatic effect (A-story). Developed characters based on the theme. Developed B-story (emotional) and C-story (psychological/need) based on theme.

Created a beat sheet. And from that, I wrote a 13-page treatment. It's a quirk of mine but I always have to write a 13-page treatment.

The reason: George Lucas did it for his original draft of The Star Wars. I know that's a stupid reason, but it's a psychological thing and I have to do it.
 
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ha, i just want money, i dont care if i sell a crap production or a good one. im a video editor not a writer, even though ive always been good at writing, and actually minored in english/lit. ha, maybe i'll give it a go. i've written a childerens book, maybe ill just sell the rights to that to be made into a short film or movie. ha. money money money!

the people who say money can't buy happiness, have never been poor. i mean read the original post. he wouldn't have said "i can't ever remember being this happy in my life" if they had offered him $10 bucks for his work. money talks people...and money will make you happy. as long as you never get greedy then money will ALWAYS make you happy. for example, if i won the lotto, le'ts say a big one like 200million, and after taxes got like 125-150million, i would not go out and buy a porche, i wouldnt go out an buy a bigger house, i would just not work for the rest of my life, and be happy for not having to work. id have plenty of money for my family, and even great great grandkids college funds for years after.

so, we've learned two things. money creates happiness, but the secret to keeping happiness is all in how manage it.

to the original poster - dont be one of the statistics (i.e. 80% of people who win the lottery file for bankruptcy within 5 years - ouch)....so congrats, and as long as you invest your money and act your wage, you will remain happy.

-connor
 
kylekmd said:
The reason: George Lucas did it for his original draft of The Star Wars. I know that's a stupid reason, but it's a psychological thing and I have to do it.
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i've gotta be honest here, and this is constructive criticism that will REALLY help you. that isn't a psychological thing, that is a follower thing. lucas was not a follower, the reason he stands out from the crowd, or any good director for that matter, is because they are unique, even down to their methodology. i suggest you completely abandon that form of writing, and creation, and do what your gut tells you. not what lucas tells you.

think about it this way...is scorsece like lucas? is lucas like spielberg? is spielberg like cappra? is cappra like bruckheimer? is bruckheimer like cheatle? is cheatle like brooks? is brooks like jackson? NONE of these directors are alike, not even remotely. take a hint ;)

-connor
 
crobs808 said:
the people who say money can't buy happiness, have never been poor. i mean read the original post. he wouldn't have said "i can't ever remember being this happy in my life" if they had offered him $10 bucks for his work. money talks people...and money will make you happy.
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Nope, you're wrong. Lots of rich people are on anti depressants. Money can't buy happiness, however it can buy happIER.
 
crobs808 said:
i suggest you completely abandon that form of writing, and creation, and do what your gut tells you. not what lucas tells you.


-connor
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I agree totally with this idea. If Kylemd persists with his current method, he runs the risk of yet another $300,000 script sale. And that would mean one more $300,000 script sale that *I* am not making. So please don't get greedy Kyle and find another way to develop your projects. Okay?
 
Just thought I'd chime in here.

It's not the money that made me write, "I can't ever remember being this happy," it's the sense of accomplishment. To work at something for so many years and to finally be recognized (at least in one sense: monetary reward, which, unfortunately seems to be the predominant measure of success in this business). And not that it matters but my day job already brings me great success, financially speaking. However, it rarely engenders the same feeling as this first sale. For me this whole experience has been about the sense of achievement, nothing more. I need a pat on the back every once in awhile that says, "Hey, Kyle, you're not wasting your time with this writing gig."

BTW, what I've noticed about money is that it tends to amplify who you are; that is, if you're a jerk when you're poor, you're a bigger jerk when you've got coin.
 
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