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Screenplay & Film Consulting By Susan Kouguell

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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and Tips on Adaptation and Divisive Voice-over Devices (THE SCRIPT LAB)

July 2, 2015 / / Comments Off on Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and Tips on Adaptation and Divisive Voice-over Devices (THE SCRIPT LAB)

Tips on Adaptation and Divisive

Voice-over Devices

 by Susan Kouguell

 

 

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl opens with protagonist Greg’s line:

GREG GAINES (V.O.)
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…

Greg Gaines is an awkward high school senior whose mother forces him to spend time with Rachel — his classmate with whom he hasn’t spoken to since kindergarten– who was just diagnosed with cancer.

The beginning of Greg and Rachel’s friendship finds Greg standing at the foot of the stairs in Rachel’s house, and Rachel at the top of the stairs.

RACHEL: Look, I don’t want you hanging out with me. I don’t need your stupid pity. It’s fine. You can just go.

GREG: No, no, hey. You got it all wrong. I’m not here ’cause I pity you. I’m actually here just ’cause my mom is making me.

RACHEL: That’s actually worse.

GREG: Yeah, I know.

RACHEL: Look, it’s OK. Honestly, I’m fine. Just go.

GREG: OK. Rachel, just listen to me for a second. My mom is going to turn my life into a living hell if I don’t hang out with you. OK, I can’t overstate how annoying she’s being about this. She’s basically like the Lebron James of nagging. Lebron James plays basketball.

RACHEL: I know who Lebron James is.

GREG: OK.

Greg tries to blend in as anonymously as possible, avoiding deeper relationships as a survival strategy for navigating the social minefield that is teenage life.  He describes his constant companion Earl, with whom he makes short film parodies of classic movies, such as Sockwork Orange and Eyes Wide Butt, as more of a “co-worker” than a childhood best friend.

This coming-of-age film, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, screenplay by Jesse Andrews was adapted by the book of the same title written by Andrew.

Adapting for the Screen

The book Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is just over 300 pages – the film just under two hours.  There are many challenges adapting novels to the screen, including what should stay and what should go.  Generally, one script page equals one minute of screen time, which means that you must focus on the basic plot points of the material, thus often resulting in cutting subplots and characters in order to keep the script less than 120 pages.

 

When writing a screenplay, you don’t have the luxury to get inside your characters’ minds with pages and pages of internal thoughts as you do when writing a novel.  Characters’ motivations, agendas, goals, and so on, must be conveyed in dialogue and through visually storytelling.  Always remember the screenwriting adage: Show Don’t Tell.

Devices

The film Me and Earl and the Dying Girl contains many storytelling devices, that for many film executives, are BIG RED FLAGS. These devices include voice-overs, flashbacks, superimposed titles, such as “Day 7 of Doomed Friendship” and Claymation sequences often featuring a moose.  For many Me and Earl and the Dying Girl’s filmgoers and critics, these devices only enhance the film but for some they deter from it.  Let’s look at some of these devices and how they can and should work, and if they’re working (or not) in your screenplay.

In the following excerpts from my book Savvy Characters Sell Screenplays! I talk about devices found in screenplays:  

Many aspiring screenwriters share something in common with their screenplay characters—they have bad habits or rely on things that highlight their insecurities.  The word “vice” is defined as a bad habit; and many screenwriters’ bad habits—more specifically—their writing weaknesses and insecurities, are underscored when they overuse or mistakenly use screenplay devices.  So, when developing your characters, do not rely on vices to convey essential information, or misuse or overuse them.

VOICE-OVERS

Use voice-overs only to provide information and insight about the story and/or character(s) that you absolutely cannot express in dialogue or in action. Do not convey the same information in voice-over that will soon be revealed in dialogue, visuals, or action. If you choose to use the voice-over device, know that story analysts and film executives will regard this as a red flag—a lazy device—and they will examine each word.

In Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Greg is a self-conscious and unreliable narrator.  He’s self-effacing and uses irony to his full advantage.  Here he talks about his relationship with Rachel.

GREG (V.O.)

So if this was a touching, romantic story, suddenly our eyes would meet and suddenly we would be making out with the fire of a thousand suns. But this isn’t a touching romantic story.

Translating internal thoughts of a character without overusing voiceovers and other devices can be challenging. One way to see if you are overusing voiceovers is to remove the voiceovers from your script (temporarily) and place them on a separate page and in the order they appear in your script. By reading them on their own it is easier to see what must stay and what must go, and if you’re repeating information that is already stated in dialogue, or is too long, and not advancing the narrative.

The opening of A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens continues:

It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way- in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

At the end of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl  Greg concludes a montage with:

GREG (V.O.)

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…it was life.

 

Official Web site:  http://meandearlmovie.com/

READ MORE HERE

 

 

SELL YOUR SPEC SCRIPT

May 26, 2015 / / Comments Off on SELL YOUR SPEC SCRIPT

Ten Steps to Selling Your Spec Script

by Susan Kouguell

I know, I know, I know. I’ve heard it all before. “Selling a script is impossible. It just doesn’t happen. I don’t know anyone in the film business so I have no chance at all. It just isn’t fair. I’m just not a lucky person.”

Well, selling a screenplay does happen. But – (here it comes) – truth be told, selling a script is like winning the lottery. Some people do win the lottery and some writers do sell their scripts.

Keep your sanity! Remain focused! Remember that your screenplay has three potential goals:

1) to sell

2) to get optioned and/or produced

3) to serve as a writing sample for future work

So, here are ten steps to selling your spec script…

1. Write a great script. Okay, this sounds obvious, but often my Su-City Pictures’ clients and students have said to me, “If this awful movie I just saw was actually made, why should I work so hard on my script?” The answer is this: the competition and odds are indeed staggering, so put your best work out there. Your script is your calling card and it reflects your writing talent. Your script should demonstrate that you know the craft – this means it should have a strong voice, developed characters, solid structure, and follow the genre conventions. It’s nearly impossible to resubmit a rewrite of the same script to an agent and/or company once that script has been rejected.

2. Write an attention-grabbing query letter. Research and query production companies, studios and talent (actors, directors, producers) that are a good match for your script.

3. Compose a strong synopsis. If film industry folks respond positively to your query, you may be then asked to send a one-page synopsis with or without your script.

4. Prepare a great pitch. Once an agent, manager, production company and/or studio has read and liked your script, you may be called in to meet with them at which time you will be asked to pitch. There are other opportunities to pitch such as pitch festivals.

5. Network. You’ve heard the joke: “What’s the best way to Carnegie Hall? … Practice. Practice. Practice.” What’s the best way to break into the film business? “Network. Network. Network.” Writing is solitary, but the film industry and getting your script made into a movie is all about whom you know and the people you meet. No matter where you live, find a way to make personal contacts with industry professionals. Attending script conferences, workshops, and film festivals are good ways to make connections, as well as social media.

6. Educate yourself about the film business. Being savvy about the film industry makes you more appealing to potential agents, production companies and/or studios. Keep up-to-date by reading the trades, and screenwriting and film publications. This is a good way to learn who’s looking for what in order to help you target the right people for your project.

READ MORE HERE

 

BAUMBACH on WHILE WE’RE YOUNG

April 7, 2015 / / Comments Off on BAUMBACH on WHILE WE’RE YOUNG

Writer/Director Noah Baumbach Discusses

While We’re Young

by Susan Kouguell

Displaying NOAH1.JPG Photo Credit: Tatiana Kouguell-Hoell

In writer/director Noah Baumbach’s latest film While We’re Young, a middle-aged couple’s marriage and career are turned upside down when a disarming twenty-something couple enters their lives. Thematically, the film centers on age – growing up and growing older in one’s relationship and career, as well as taking ownership of one’s life.

I asked Noah Baumbach about his writing process on While We’re Young and how strictly he stuck to the script as the director.

Baumbach smiles and states: “My writing process is not going on the Internet.” More serious now, he continues: “I have to spend a lot of time on the script – for me, and for the actors. I stick close to the script when shooting. Scripts are a blueprint of a film. Actors bring their own interpretations. Going on set with actors on location you discover even more about the characters. Knowing that you are going to discover something else about the characters on location is something I have to acknowledge. I think about how it is going to be when they are in a certain location, how they are going to react. As the director, you’re guiding and controlling what you can.”

When asked about Jamie’s character (played by Adam Driver) Baumbach responds to the line in the film about Jamie: “He’s not evil. He’s just young.” Baumbach states: “I think that’s true. He is who he is.”

 

READ MORE HERE

Character Relationships – The Finishers

March 19, 2015 / / Comments Off on Character Relationships – The Finishers

Character Relationships:

Families Who Get Along and Those Who Don’t

By Susan Kouguell

Conveying your characters’ dynamics and their layered and complex relationships is an essential element when writing a savvy screenplay. Characters with specific opinions, attitudes and points of view, and what they need and want from their relationships, will give your screenplay the necessary depth to grab the attention of film industry folks.

Characters’ wants, needs and goals can motivate them to seek help from one character for advice and assistance, or slyly befriend another character to achieve a goal. Relationships can be judgmental or nonjudgmental, one character can hold the other accountable for his or her actions, or assist the other through a challenging time.

The opening night film of the recent 2015 ReelAbilities: NY Disabilities Film Festival The Finishers (directed by Nils Tavernier, screenplay by Nils Tavernier, Laurent Bertoni and Pierre Leyssieux), is a drama, centering on a father and son relationship. The film was inspired by the true story of Team Hoyt — Dick Hoyt and his son Rick Hoyt (with cerebral palsy), the Massachusetts father and son duo, who competed in dozens of races from 1977-2014.

At 17 years old, Julien has a great sense of humor, bags of charm, and cerebral palsy. In a bid to bond with his father, Julien challenges him to participate with him in the Ironman race in Nice, France, a triathlon in which his father has previously competed. Doing the race alone is an incredible challenge, but completing it together with Julien would be nearly impossible. Still, his father agrees and the two set out to train for and compete in one of the most intense races on earth. Beyond the sporting exploit, this is the story of one family’s exemplary journey, and a moving portrait of the love between a father and his son.

While a story about the triumph of this father and son team, the plot of The Finishersalso reveals the challenges of Julien’s mother, Claire, who has been Julien’s primary caregiver due to husband Paul’s emotional and (work-related) physical absence. An interesting triangulated relationship emerges when Julien, who is about to turn 18, finds himself in the middle of this shifting mother/son/father and father/son/mother relationship.

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IDA: THE SEARCH FOR IDENTITY

February 26, 2015 / / Comments Off on IDA: THE SEARCH FOR IDENTITY

IDA: The Search for Identity
and Creating Captivating Characters

by Susan Kouguell
WANDA
“You’re Jewish.”

These few words are revelatory in the Oscar-winning Ida, written and directed by Pawel Pawlikowski.   

The setting; 1962 post-Stalin Poland.

A few days from taking her vows at the convent where she was raised, Anna, a naive orphan and young novice, learns the existence of Wanda — her aunt. A former state prosecutor, the cynical Wanda is part of the Communist elite.  

These two women are distinct characters . Wanda drinks heavily, chain-smokes, and has one-night stands.  Indeed, she is the opposite of her niece; worldly versus sheltered, atheist versus believer.  

Wanda reveals key secrets from Anna’s past: Anna’s birth name is not Anna but Ida, and her true religious identity is that she is Jewish.  This revelation  advances the narrative forward, prompting Wanda and Ida to venture together on a journey to discover what happened to Ida’s parents during the Nazi occupation.

Characters’ specific journeys — their experiences as they attempt to achieve their goals and what they learn about themselves and others—are the basis of defining a screenplay’s themes.  The theme is what your story is about; it is the central idea or dominant subject matter that reoccurs throughout your screenplay. Examples of themes include redemption, survival, empowerment, alienation, and triumph over adversity.   In Ida, the two central themes are identity and secrets of the past.

 

 

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Susan’s: Love is Strange – Obstacles and Relationships, and Not So Strange Love

January 24, 2015 / / Comments Off on Susan’s: Love is Strange – Obstacles and Relationships, and Not So Strange Love

Love is Strange

Obstacles and Relationships, and Not So Strange Love

love is strange

 

In film, as in real life, misunderstandings and embarrassing and awkward moments are just some of the many situations couples can find themselves in when it comes to love relationships. Couples can be soulmates or polar opposites, come from the same or different backgrounds and/or social classes, have too different or too similar temperaments, and/or find themselves brought together by an odd set of circumstances without which they would not have normally even spoken.

The obstacles a couple must face can bring them together or force them apart.

In the award-winning film directed by Ira Sachs Love is Strange, co-written by Ira Sachs and Mauricio Zacharias, the obstacles longtime couple Ben and George enounter drive the narrative forward, posing the question:

How will Ben and George overcome their many hurdles in order to live together once again?

To read more:

LOVE IS STRANGE

 

 

 

Rob Marshall Speaks Into the Woods

December 6, 2014 / / Comments Off on Rob Marshall Speaks Into the Woods

Susan’s The Script Lab article 

Director Rob Marshall Speaks about Into the Woods,

Themes and Adapting to the Screen

2014-12-04 01.57.21

 DIRECTOR ROB MARSHALL (Photo credit Tatiana Kouguell-Hoell)

At the Jacob Burns Film Center on December 4, Edie Demas, Executive Director of the JBFC, spoke with director Rob Marshall after the screening of his new film Into the Woods, which was adapted from the musical by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, screenplay by James Lapine. “Film is a different pace than theater,” Marshall stated. “The song is the scene.

The 16-minute long opening song establishes the language of how the story will be told.” (Advice for screenwriters: Whatever genre you are writing in, your opening pages not only need to grab the reader’s attention, but it needs to set the tone of the script.) Reimagining the Original Play and Cutting Adapting a beloved theatrical musical to a film musical meant making some challenging choices for Marshall, who praised Lapine and Sondheim for being so open and flexible about making some changes for the film adaptation from the staged musical. “We needed to reimagine the play for the film.” Knowing that they had to get the film down to about two hours, Marshall stated, “The three of us, Sondheim, Lapine, and I, knew we needed to eliminate the musical reprises.” Citing the example of the Cinderella number in the theatrical version with Cinderella’s shoe stuck on stage, “In the play, the action happens off screen.” Marshall humbly continued, “I asked Sondheim, could you adjust the lyrics so it takes place in the moment, like an internal monologue. And he did.” Emphasizing the importance of making the difficult decisions to cut some numbers from the original musical, Marshall underscored the mantra: Serve the film. This is the mantra screenwriters should always keep in the back of their minds as they write: serve your story. Cutting scenes for the greater good — will, in the end, benefit the project. Themes Marshall stated that the central theme of the film is ‘No one is alone.’ “Sondheim said the first half of the piece is about the individual; getting your wish at any cost. The second half is about a community coming together. There are also parent/child themes. You see how the baker is concerned with being a good father, because he didn’t have a good father, he had a father who abandoned him. He’s dealing with that issue; you see that he becomes a good father with Jack. He has to comfort him and help him. With the Witch and Rapunzel relationship — the witch’s mother punished her with ugliness and the witch thinks she’s protecting her child by keeping her in the tower. It says a lot about parent/child relations. The last song reflects this: ‘Children will listen, children will see and learn;’ there are so many layers to the piece.” The Fairy Tale Examined Marshall described Into the Woods as “a fairy tale for the 21st century; it raises important issues for today.” Discussing an example of this, Marshall referred to the character of Cinderella: “She chooses to go back home.cBack to the abuse. You go back to what you know. So that’s what was used.” Further discussing the original version of the Grimm Fairy Tale, Marshall continued: Grimm is a very cautionary tale, not just a happily ever after. We see what follows happily ever after.cThere are consequences to your actions. In the end, we see how the face of the classic family has changed so much. We see this lovely family that you never imagined would be together.”   READ MORE     Photo: Disney #intothewoods #robmarshall

Susan’s The Script Lab article Posing Questions in Two Days One Night

November 28, 2014 / / Comments Off on Susan’s The Script Lab article Posing Questions in Two Days One Night

 

 

 

In the film Two Days, One Night, written and directed by brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, the protagonist, Sandra, has recently returned back to her job after an acute bout with depression only to find out that the factory for which she works can manage with one less employee and she is to be let go. Sandra learns that the employees have been given a choice: receive a bonus if they agree she will be laid off; if not, then no one receives the bonus.  Sandra’s fate will be decided on Monday morning, giving Sandra one weekend to convince her fellow coworkers to sacrifice their bonuses in order to keep her job. Sandra finds herself in a race against time – specifically two days and one night — to get her job back.

In the chapter entitled ‘Getting Your Characters’ Acts Together’ in my book Savvy Characters Sell Screenplays! I write:

Every story is essentially a “What if?” mystery. It begins by asking a question that will be answered in the script’s climax. Usually a problem is introduced or a situation that needs to be resolved is presented. The reader must feel a sense of urgency and expectation.

In the film Two Days, One Night, written and directed by brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, the protagonist, Sandra, has recently returned back to her job after an acute bout with depression only to find out that the factory for which she works can manage with one less employee and she is to be let go. Sandra learns that the employees have been given a choice: receive a bonus if they agree she will be laid off; if not, then no one receives the bonus.  Sandra’s fate will be decided on Monday morning, giving Sandra one weekend to convince her fellow coworkers to sacrifice their bonuses in order to keep her job. Sandra finds herself in a race against time – specifically two days and one night — to get her job back.

In the chapter entitled ‘Getting Your Characters’ Acts Together’ in my book Savvy Characters Sell Screenplays! I write:

Every story is essentially a “What if?” mystery. It begins by asking a question that will be answered in the script’s climax. Usually a problem is introduced or a situation that needs to be resolved is presented. The reader must feel a sense of urgency and expectation.

To read more: READ MORE HERE

View Trailer:

 

 

 

#TWODAYSONENIGHT #THESCRIPTLAB #POSINGQUESTIONSINTWODAYSONENIGHT

Susan’s: Jon Stewart Speaks About Rosewater and Adapting for the Screen

November 10, 2014 / / Comments Off on Susan’s: Jon Stewart Speaks About Rosewater and Adapting for the Screen

Jon Stewart Speaks About Rosewater and Adapting for the Screen

 

Photo credit: Tatiana Kouguell-Hoell

Adapting for the Screen

Adapting a book into a screenplay can be regarded as all about the choices you make while bringing forth the essence of the story. Translating internal thoughts of a character without overusing voiceover or another device, and/or making choices to fictionalize certain events and restructuring time frames, are just some of the elements that screenwriters must consider when adapting material for the screen.

Screenplays are generally 120 pages or less, and many novels, for example, are often double or triple that length. Generally speaking, one script page equals one minute of screen time, which means that you must focus on the basic plot points of the material, thus often resulting in cutting subplots and characters. Unlike a novel or memoir, you don’t have the luxury to get inside your characters’ minds with pages and pages of internal thoughts. Characters’ motivations, agendas, goals, and so on, must be conveyed in dialogue and through visual storytelling. Keep in mind the screenwriting adage: Show Don’t Tell. The bottom line: Film is a visual medium.

Jon Stewart Speaks about Rosewater with Janet Maslin at the Jacob Burns Film Center

As part of the Global Watch: Crisis Culture & Human Rights film series (November 6-26) at the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, New York, film critic and JBFC president Janet Maslin interviewed Jon Stewart, following the screening of his directorial debut of Rosewater. Stewart’s screenplay, adapted from Maziar Bahari’s memoirThen They Came For Me: A Family’s Story of Love, Captivity, and Survival, centers on Bahari’s family history and his arrest, torture and 107-day solitary confinement imprisonment, following the 2009 presidential election in Iran.

A few days before his arrest, Bahari, a contributor to Newsweek, appeared on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show in a taped interview with the show’s correspondent Jason Jones. Mr. Bahari does not believe that this interview was responsible for his arrest; he was already being monitored.

Stewart on Rosewater

The title ‘Rosewater’ is inspired from the rosewater scent of Maziar’s interrogator. That’s all Maziar knows (in solitary confinement and blindfolded); that’s how Maziar can identify him.

(Stewart emphasized that what drew him to this material and to direct this film, as opposed to another project, was how Maziar kept both his spirit intact during solitary confinement, and his humanity through his memories of his family. This optimism and sense of hope is what Stewart would like the audience to come away with after seeing this film.)

The Decision to Direct

If I didn’t do anything I wasn’t nervous about I would just sit in a room. I was nervous about directing.

I want my work to be about things I believe in. As a comedian I’m drawn to commentary of events around the world. I’m fascinated by human stupidity. But I’m optimistic, too. We forget that there’s some six million people living in New York City. How is New York not just some Mad Max? It’s kind of incredible.

I like my work to be about context. I want this film to be seen as relevant. Journalists are in a terrible position right now. These people are out on their own. Bloggers and active social media people are being arrested and imprisoned.

The best move I did was hiring the people I did to make this film. I showed the script and film to every director that came on The Daily Show. Paul Thomas Anderson? Sure let’s have him on! Ron Howard read it and thought, this will be a wonderful –play–add visuals if you want to make this a film. I’m thinking: How do you visualize the scenes in solitary confinement with the hallucinations in the cell and make it effective and emotional.

READ MORE HERE:

http://thescriptlab.com/features/screenwriting-101/2987-jon-stewart-speaks-about-rosewater-and-adapting-for-the-screen

Susan’s THE SCRIPT LAB: The Choices Your Characters Make: The Consequences in ‘Force Majeure’

October 26, 2014 / / Comments Off on Susan’s THE SCRIPT LAB: The Choices Your Characters Make: The Consequences in ‘Force Majeure’

The Choices Your Characters Make: The Consequences in ‘Force Majeure’

Regardless of the genre you are working in, your main characters must make key choices that will propel the narrative forward and shape your plot.

Force Majeure (written and directed by Ruben Ostlund), the official entry for the foreign language Oscar from Sweden, centers on a picture-perfect family; a handsome young couple and their two young children on a ski vacation in the French Alps. When the father makes a choice to abandon his family as an avalanche approaches, the consequences of this choice propels the narrative forward. This choice is further examined by the themes of male gender stereotypes; specifically shame and expectations of men.

In the chapter entitled ‘Your Unforgettable Characters Come Alive’ in my book Savvy Characters Sell Screenplays! I write:

Characters must be complex, fully defined, multifaceted, and distinct. Readers must understand who your characters are, their motivations, behaviors, needs and goals, and feel empathy for them.

TO READ MORE: http://thescriptlab.com/features/screenwriting-101/2945-the-choices-your-characters-make-the-consequences-in-force-majeure

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