Any Screenwriters On The Board??
- Thread starter LeftyLuchini
- Start date
Is there a resource for professional coverages?
Not lookin for a service - don’t want coverage.
I want to review coverages. See what readers/analysts etc have written up on scripts xyz etc
Ideal would be the same way scripts are available in online databases, there may be a library of verified professional coverages.
Writers post bits and pieces and whole coverages in forums and have for decades but I’m not aware of an actual HUB…
Could be a great resource for not just writers. Hundreds of years of scripts AND hundreds of years of coverages written on them and the tens of thousands millions I guess lol of never was scripts both spec and commissioned…
Thanks in advance for any and all resources!!
Not lookin for a service - don’t want coverage.
I want to review coverages. See what readers/analysts etc have written up on scripts xyz etc
Ideal would be the same way scripts are available in online databases, there may be a library of verified professional coverages.
Writers post bits and pieces and whole coverages in forums and have for decades but I’m not aware of an actual HUB…
Could be a great resource for not just writers. Hundreds of years of scripts AND hundreds of years of coverages written on them and the tens of thousands millions I guess lol of never was scripts both spec and commissioned…
Thanks in advance for any and all resources!!
I know this is super unlikely to ever happen lol. Kills the mystique. Even with scripts. We all know there are almost ZERO first submission drafts or even early drafts of any kind online. Almost everything is shooting or just before and even still many post production - publishing polished and ready screenplays.
In a world where most of what we see is littered with tropes, IE things we expect to see. And what we expect to see isn't necessarily how it really is, it's just what we expect to see.
I'm watching national treasure right now and it stars Nick Cage and his toadie or lackey. So you have an alpha-ish male and a beta male
Why don't we see friends who are relatively equally yoked, like Zach Braff and Donald Faison or Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. I'm sick of seeing this trope, but one of the biggest issues with going away from tropes is the audience is expecting to see the trope.
Don't forget the romantic tie in. I always struggle whether to include that in my stories or not. The idea of it simply seems forced on many occasions
My question is two parts:
1. What tropes are you sick of seeing in movies?
2. And how do you get the audience on board when you go away from what they are typically used to seeing?
I'm watching national treasure right now and it stars Nick Cage and his toadie or lackey. So you have an alpha-ish male and a beta male
Why don't we see friends who are relatively equally yoked, like Zach Braff and Donald Faison or Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. I'm sick of seeing this trope, but one of the biggest issues with going away from tropes is the audience is expecting to see the trope.
Don't forget the romantic tie in. I always struggle whether to include that in my stories or not. The idea of it simply seems forced on many occasions
My question is two parts:
1. What tropes are you sick of seeing in movies?
2. And how do you get the audience on board when you go away from what they are typically used to seeing?
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You're right. There aren't as many early drafts available online these days. But if you dig around some of the old screenplay sites, you'll find stuff from the 80s and 90s. I've always been curious about the early drafts of Good Will Hunting. There was this rumored subplot about a shadowy government agency trying to recruit Will, but Affleck and Damon were advised to drop it, so I guess they did. It would also be fun to read all the rejected scripts for Mahershala Ali's Blade movie. They've gone through at least 3-4 screenwriters at this point.
Here's an old, old site that used to be popular back in the day
It's from the guys who wrote the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. They also wrote that Denzel Washington movie, Deja Vu (2006). The site has a few scripts available to download. Some might be early drafts. The site is hella old, but some of their articles about the craft still apply.
In the end, we're probably not going to find some big piece to the puzzle by reading coverage. There are tons of stories about scripts that were rejected all over Hollywood for years but eventually became successful films. It's all subjective.
Remember Robinne Lee from Deliver Us from Eva?
Well, she wrote a novel, and it was turned into a movie starring Anne Hathaway.
Drops this Friday on Amazon.
That's the only way to do it. The only way that they will approve new IP is if it's a successful novel. Otherwise look forward to fast and the furious 17 gentlemen, whether we wanted it or not
There's more potential for conflict and/or comedy with contrasting characters. It's a staple of the buddy comedy. The visual dynamic is easy to sell in a movie poster. It's kind of funny that you mention Zach Braff and Donald Faison as a break from the norm because the interracial buddy trope has been around for decades. Doesn't matter if they're equally yoked or not, the race angle is enough.
1) This one comes to mind:
2) This is tricky. Most people don't like change or anything that challenges the status quo, so it's going to be an uphill battle to get them on board. That's where your talent as a storyteller comes in.
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30 pages and counting.
Bump.
Bump.
I just thought of this and added this to my post
"Don't forget the romantic tie in. I always struggle whether to include that in my stories or not. The idea of it simply seems forced on many occasions"
The disposable black romantic tie-in is annoying to say the least. It's just rife with lazy writing and storytelling.
I would much rather someone focus on the fact that men and women in general have so little in common rather than intentionally adding a love interest that is just cast aside because they really want to be with person X
"Do you like football? "
"No. "
"Basketball? "
"Not really."
"What would you like to do"
"I like movies"
Then you can have a bonding moment going to the movies and have him montage showing that and then showing them sitting in the movie theater or laying on a couch watching the movie together and then talking about the movie afterward.
That's authentic. It's not a trope because it's actual reality. Men and women don't typically have a whole lot in common but when there is a common ground you can draw from that
"Do you like football? "
"No. "
"Basketball? "
"Not really."
"What would do you like to do"
"I like working out"
So they go to the gym together and he's trying to show off how much he can press, and then she corrects his form. Tell him that if he keeps lifting like that he's going to tear something.
Then says that she put herself through college by being a personal trainer and went to college on a partial track scholarship.
He then brags about how fast he is and they Go to the track and race, and though he wins, it's close. He says, you're a lot faster than I thought you were. She says "what part of track scholarship don't you understand," and laughs. Then you've got banter
There are alternatives to the tropes we always see, but they always go to the easy button which is the trope
If we're lucky enough to sell a Black novel
Her other book wasn't even a Black romance; it was interracial, and they still weren't interested.
If we're lucky enough to sell a Black novel
Her other book wasn't even a Black romance; it was interracial, and they still weren't interested.
I thought I remembered her from 7 Pounds
If we're lucky enough to sell a Black novel
Her other book wasn't even a Black romance; it was interracial, and they still weren't interested.
I think I'm going to go the route that Eric Jerome dickey did in his Gideon series. He had the main character and his mother and even his brother as being ambiguous. Other characters he was more specific on as to their race, but the main character he left ambiguous.
I spoke to him on Twitter before he passed and he said he did it intentionally, although he didn't really put too much thought into the names
If we're lucky enough to sell a Black novel
Her other book wasn't even a Black romance; it was interracial, and they still weren't interested.
Wow
Whelp tv pilot season may be permanently dead
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Not sure what they're looking for in the submission materials. Screenplays, short films, pitches, or treatments? Either way, it's worth checking out.
I appreciate these posts @raze - I make sure I share them with my brother who is working on a few scripts.
Thanks.
Amazon dude getting punked. LOL
I was just gonna say the same thing
Bezos making sure to STAY rich.
Probably makes that man pay full price for Amazon Prime membership
That shit is a heinous crime.
That mf still middle class lol
I would've been like “Take me off the list I dont need yall in my business.”
If we're lucky enough to sell a Black novel
Her other book wasn't even a Black romance; it was interracial, and they still weren't interested.
Unfortunately, that’s how you gotta do it sometimes
