Courtesy of Julian Meyer….
Brian Schirmer
I write so you don’t have to
Grant Morrison & Stephen Fry Materialize on the BBC
Bleeding Cool has announced that Paul McGuigan will direct a seven episode series for the BBC, starring Stephen Fry and written by Grant Morrison. McGuigan elucidates:
It’s seven episodes. It takes place over seven days around an event that happens in Scotland. It’s a modern take on an old fable or fairy story. If you know Grant’s work you might have an idea of what it will be like. It’s like Twin Peaks meets Brigadoon! It’s off the wall and smart but in a watchable commercial way. It’s still in the early stages but I’m very excited about it.
Looking forward to this more than most anything else in any medium.
Worlds Apart: Cover #1
The book formerly known as Untitled Spring Anthology now has a title. And five different covers. Here’s the first one. I’ll be showcasing a different cover each week, leading up to the book’s release at Wondercon in San Francisco. Artwork here is by Jason Newhouse.
Index Cards
Saw the following on the site of screenwriter John August (Go, Corpse Bride, and others). I’m a regular practitioner of index cards/post-its when breaking a story, and he makes some good points.
- Keep it short. Maximum seven words per card.
- A card represents a story point, be it a scene or a sequence. You don’t need a card for every little thing.
- Keep cards general enough that they can be rearranged. (“Battle in swamp” rather than “Final showdown”)
- Horizontal (a table or counter) often works better than a vertical (a corkboard).
- Post-It notes make good alternative index cards.
- Consider a letter code for which characters are featured in the sequence. Helpful for figuring out who’s missing.
- Most movies can be summarized in less than 50 cards.
- Cards are cheap. Don’t hesitate to rework them.
- Consider a second color for action sequences. Helps show the pacing.
- Write big. You want to be able to read them from a distance.
Quick Oscar Thoughts
The Academy Award nominations came out today. Oddly enough, not much excites or infuriates me. Surprised that films like Nine, Invictus, and - my god - The Blind Side scored noms, considering the critical beatings they all suffered. Pleased that District 9, A Serious Man, and Fantastic Mr. Fox got nods. Oh, yes, and thrilled that Up was nominated both for Best Picture and Best Animated Feature.
I suppose it’s worth acknowledging the the number of nominations for science fiction films. Just guessing, but I suspect it’s the most ever. Can’t say I’m rooting for Avatar in anything other than visual effects - for which its victory is a given. I despised Star Trek - and its nomination for Best Makeup has me puzzled - but glad to see it represented with its genre companions.
Will likely watch the show for the first time in a couple years.
A Feature Length, Stop Motion G.I. Joe Film
Just learned about this over at Ain’t It Cool News. Guaranteed to be better than last summer’s turd. I am in awe….
The Dead Will Walk (On AMC)
Very pleased that AMC has officially greenlit the pilot for The Walking Dead. Here’s the news from Variety:
“The Walking Dead” is based on the graphic novel series about survivors of a zombie apocalypse by Robert Kirkman. Frank Darabont penned the adaptation and is onboard to direct. Gale Anne Hurd of Valhalla Motion Pictures and David Alpert of Circle of Confusion will exec produce with Darabont.
“The Walking Dead” revolves around a group of survivors, led by a police officer, who travel the country in search of a safe home.
Working with people like Frank Darabont and Gale Anne Hurd is the right way in for us to deliver a project of distinction in this genre,” AMC prexy Charlie Collier said.
I’ve been an avid reader of this series for quite some time. Its strength resides in the human characters, their interactions, and how an undead apocalypse really might affect “normal” people. And with the deep pool of talent that is Frank Darabont at the helm, this should be a fantastic series.
O Captain! My Captain!
Some tidbits….
- Beginning February 1st, I shall be teaching Writing for Comics at the Academy of Art University here in San Francisco. I’ve subbed for the course a couple times in the past, so this should be a blast. Really looking forward to inspiring and terrifying young minds.
- The still-as-yet-untitled 2010 Anthology is coming together nicely. I’m on track to have it all assembled and off to the printer by the end of the month. Plus, my Wondercon table has been confirmed for that first weekend of April. Can’t recall the table number. Will post it later.
- I have a lead on a production company that is in the market for a screenplay on a very specific subject matter, one that I actually wrote a couple years back. I’ll be contacting them later today and we’ll see. Either way, I’ll post what I find out.
- The Writers’ Guild of America announced its nominees for 2009, and some of it is just plain out there. Nevermind that certain films - Inglourious Basterds and Up among them - were ineligible, owing to strict WGA rules. Avatar for Original Screenplay? The dialogue is alternately flat and ham-fisted, while the plot itself is mocked in all circles as a retread of everything from Dances With Wolves to Pocahontas. At least they had the decency to call Star Trek an Adapted Screenplay - “based upon Star Trek, Created by Gene Roddenberry”. Wait…. Star Trek? Yep. Got the nom. Even the people that like the film freely admit that the dialogue and many of the ideas - Red Matter? Really? - amount to shite. What about District 9, whose smart storytelling made it a sleeper hit? Yeah, it’s one of those ineligible titles. All of that said, I applaud most of the other nominees…. (500) Days of Summer, Up in the Air, The Hangover, and A Serious Man were among the best films of the year. I have yet to see some of the other nominees - The Hurt Locker and Crazy Heart are on my short list.