Category Archives: Creative Responsibility
Screenwriters: Are You Writing for the Wrong Audience?
When you write a novel, you write for your final readers – the consumer who will purchase your book. You don’t write for an agent or an editor or anyone else.
When you write a screenplay, however, you write knowing your final viewer will never see it. So who are you writing for?
While we screenwriters envision our version of our stories on the screen, our real job is storytelling. Because we are telling a story that others will pick up and retell – adding their own twists and turns, making it their own in their telling of it. And ultimately, it will land in a director’s hands who will “catch the vision,”see it through his or her creative lens and bring the story to life through the cast and crew. This can sound incredibly frightening when you think of how intimately you know your characters, their stories, what they’re after. And how hard you’ve worked at creating scenes that tell that story. And you’re right, it is a matter of trust.
But it is also a matter of perspective. If you write solely with the idea that your words on the page will be the final result, you miss the full weight of what you can contribute and do with the story for the other creative professionals it will be entrusted to.
As I’ve said before, a screenwriter is the first trustee of the story.
We have certain responsibilities that no other creative professional – not even additional writers – can fulfill.
We carry the honor of “origin” – the story first presented itself to us and no one will ever know that original story better than we will. But, stories are more than description, action and dialogue – all stuff that can and most likely will be changed. So what is that we have that others don’t?
The meaning of the story.
Theme.
When someone else “catches the vision” of your script – it’s the theme they catch. They may or may not like the way you’ve told the story, but if they catch the theme, they’ll respond to it. If that theme resonates with them creatively, spiritually and financially, they’ll pursue it. Because at the heart of this business is storytelling. And theme drives story.
So what do our colleagues need from us?
1. A soul-driven story.
This means that your characters have human qualities, seem realistic to our emotions and move from a place of pain, need, hunger to growth, truth, and freedom. It means you write your own soul into it. You put the “humanness” into the story.
2. A story they can shape.
A well-crafted story has shape and is malleable. Actors and directors will bring life to your story that words on paper never can achieve – and they do that by being individuals and bringing their best creativity to the process. If you give them leeway in a script by giving them a solid theme-based story that they can spark ideas off of, they will. They’ll work with what you’ve presented, work with the characters, and create scenes that best present the theme.
3. Willingness to let go and let them.
If you’ve carried the theme well in your script, you’ll have faith that it will be carried into the final version of the story. Scenes, dialogue, description may change, but the story will a solid foundation to stand on and you will be able to trust others as they take responsibility for it. Remember, there’s always more than one way to get a message across. It’s the message (theme) that counts.
4. Understand their roles in the process.
As writers it’s too easy to get trapped inside our part of the process. We need to learn more about the people who will be the other trustees of the story.We need to understand their roles in the creative process and how they use the script as a working document.
Mark Travis‘s book Directing Feature Films gives a wonderful presentation of a director’s perspective of the script and the process a director may go through to capture that vision and continue the trust of the story. (He also has a very caring, respectful attitude toward writers and actors, which is refreshing and nurturing.) Exploring the craft of the other creative professionals who will be entrusted with the story is essential to understand what it is they need from you in the original script.
When you write from the perspective of theme – then you free yourself from the weight of seeing every word as “do or die” – and can tell the story in a solid way that presents the meaning of the story through the spiritual problems, growth and fulfillment of the characters. How that happens in the story may change. But the essence of the story will remain. And that’s where writers can find the deepest fulfillment. Knowing that our job is to present a powerful, moving story that touches the human spirit and inspires others to share it with the world, too.
Where Story Meets “The Sex Factor”
Doug Richardson posted an interesting article on his blog this week called The Sex Factor. (If you haven’t read it, check it out, then come back here.) Now you may find it offensive, but he warns you of the content up front. I’m not condoning the behavior presented in the article, but I get it. And what the execs in the article are actually discussing is sales and marketing.
These are the decisions that fall on the business side of, well, this business. As writers (or actors) we aren’t always as tuned in to what this world entails. The fact that someone would use sex appeal as a decision-maker may not sound right (or be right), but it is a fact in a medium where people pay money to see attractive actors on the screen. Sex sells. It always has, it always will. But, it’s not the only thing that sells. And it’s not the only thing that goes into an executive’s decision-making.
Few of us have ever managed the multi-million dollar budgets or had our jobs on the line for the decisions we make with that amount of money. Just this week, Disney’s film chief, Rich Ross, resigned over the $200 million dollar loss on the John Carter film. The stakes are high when you are managing budgets and divisions in this realm.
What can we learn from Doug’s recounting in his post? Sales and marketability are key determining factors in the decision to buy, produce and hire in the film/TV industry. The judgements levied at actors over physical appeal may not be fair; but they exist, if for no other reason that when actors present themselves for casting, they are marketing their talent and their “physical presence” – in energy, looks, mannerisms, voice, and how they relate to other actors on screen.
Which brings us back to marketing. Emmy-award winning writer-producer Erik Bork posted on this topic today in Scriptmag in his article “Sending Queries to Literary Managers about a Screenplay.” This is well worth your time in reading. Erik reminds us that the industry is hungry – always has been and always will be – for marketable material.
Marketable material. That’s solid, saleable scripts and actors who can deliver and carry the weight and risk of hundreds of millions of dollars.
So I say before we all jump up and down in outrage at the “sex factor” – we might try to walk in the shoes of the executive responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars of stockholders’ money.
And we should probably write well, too.
Why Writers Should Respect Actors
Screenwriters, when was the last time you really thought about the person who will act out your Story?
Have you considered the emotional, spiritual and mental aspects that will impact an actor who embodies a character you create? We can’t leave these people out of the equation when we’re writing, folks. We have to remember that, ultimately, we are writing for them.
And they are people. We need to see them as such.
To often we fall prey to seeing A-list actors through the alienating veil of “celebrity” and forget that they are human beings. We see them for what we stand to gain from having them attached to our work, and do not see them as creative professionals as human and vulnerable as we are. We forget that they are co-creators of our stories. It’s their skill, their creative spirit, their insight that brings our characters to life.
But it’s more than that.
We use words to write our Stories. An actor has to use his or her body, heart and spirit to physically and emotionally portray our words. We need to be mindful of what it is we are asking them to do and be as human beings, for our stories.
I write drama that involves difficult scenes of human suffering. Scenes that force me to get up from my chair and walk away because it touches me that deeply. Scenes that are tough on characters. Scenes I know will be tough on actors.
I write mindful of what it is I’m asking an actor to experience. I wonder about the spiritual toll it will take on their soul. I consider how acting out violence or suffering will change them. How embodying a character will affect their energy, their spirit, their feelings about life, their world, their loved ones.
You can argue that acting is make-believe. I don’t buy it. Acting, done well, goes deeper than that in the actor. There is a part of the actor that will always carry the character.
Don’t ever lose respect for actors.
Honor them as human beings when you script their work. Be mindful of them as human beings first, actors second.
Not only will it be beneficial for the actor, it will deepen your characters’ human qualities.
5 Ways to Respect Actors in Your Script
1. Be mindful of the human spirit no matter what genre you’re writing.
2. Consider how the Story will affect an actor’s heart, spirit and mind.
3. When writing scenes, put yourself in the actor’s (not the character’s) place. What do you feel?
4. Be aware of the physical toll your Story requires.
5. Give actor’s breathing room in the script. Chances are your characters need it, too.
How to Stay Energized During Long Stretches of Creative Work
When we create we are directly connected to Source energy. Pure, undiluted, deep remembrance of who we are. When you are in the flow, your spirit doesn’t recognize the constraints of time. It’s free, fluid, energizing. It empowers you.
Your body and mind, however, get tired.
So how do you sustain yourself during long stretches of work? When you can’t set a project aside for a few days, when you must show up on set, when the deadline looms?
Basic Tips to Keep You Going ( we’ll explore more in-depth ones below):
- Recognize and acknowledge that you will get tired. Don’t waste energy insisting that you’re not.
- Take breaks. But don’t work through your break! Do something different, even for a few minutes. The change will give relief.
- Eat. Your body needs energy. Healthy energy.
- Drink water.
- Walk away, close your eyes, breathe.
- Go into your spirit.
Advanced Tips to Deal with What’s Really Going On
All of this is essential to well-being. But when you’ve been in the business long enough, you probably find that you run out of energy around specific issues.
A tough emotional scene. A character who won’t tell you what you need to know. An area that you need to express but just can’t get quite right.
Your body, mind AND spirit wear thin…and you have to find a way to work through it, because other people are counting on you. No one else can help you out of it. Here are some things to consider:
- It’s spiritual and it has to do with you. Our work is part us, part other. When we stumble up against it, it’s usually about us. So look inside. Your spirit isn’t always ready to embrace what you ask of it in your work. You may have your own issues with what you need to do. Recognize that it’s okay and separate yourself from the work. You are part of the work, but the work is not you. The work flows through you. Make an agreement with your spirit to let it flow through you.
- If you’re having a tough time or something touches you deeply. Stop. Let it touch you. Sometimes our deepest work comes out of our own emotional reaction to what we are creating.
- Remind yourself why your work matters. You do know it matters, right? You wouldn’t be doing it if it didn’t. Work has to be meaningful to you before it can matter to anyone else. Remember why you are an artist. Why this project matters. The good that you do.
- Breathe, meditate, pray. Ask Source for help. You’ll get it.
When You Need to Walk Away
You may come to your work from a place that is unfocused, something has disturbed you, you’re off-center. It’s not the work at all, it’s your life or some unkindness you have experienced. You may not even know what’s bothering you, but you just can’t get into the work.
Stop.
If walking away from the work is possible, do it. Tend to your spirit first. Refind your center. You and your colleagues will be grateful that you did.
If you can’t walk away, then acknowledge where this energy is coming from. You’re a person first, an artist second. Tend to your spirit.
Trust the Tides – It May Not Be You at All
You may be in a position working alone in your studio or at your computer. You know you should work. But you just can’t get into it. This is where you need to trust the ebb and flow of creative tides. Sometimes it’s not about you at all. Sometimes the work needs you to wait. Sometimes a character’s not ready. Sometimes the Universe needs time to give you a different thought. Learn to trust your creative energy and what it needs from you.
I’ve had times where illness, an unexpected delay, or lack of motivation has produced creative ideas and thoughts that would never have happened if I hadn’t been sidelined. So pay attention and look underneath.
Energy is about connection and staying balanced with rest, play and downtime. Listen to your spirit.
Turn off the media; turn on your power.
As you plan for 2012 and how you will shape the new year, remember that you have the power to make a positive difference.
If you listen to the media (which I no longer do), you’ll be inundated with messages of fear, despair, uncertainty – negativity of all sorts.
How much of that actually has to do with your real life?
When we stop allowing others to feed us fear, when we say “thanks, but no thank you” to fear, life settles into a far more realistic and optimistic state of being. The fear that the media creates draws listeners, pays advertisers. It separates us from our natural sense of power to shape and create our world.
So, as you move toward 2012, remember that you ARE powerful. Choose to stop letting the media influence your emotions.
If you or someone you know is facing a challenge, don’t wallow in fear. Ponder what action you can take to make a difference. Then do it. That’s how our world becomes a better place. One person at a time.
We are incredibly powerful. The sphere of influence that we each have is what we are responsible for. Use your power for good, to uplift, to encourage.
What we think about our world, is the kind of world we experience.
Create your world in 2012.
creative inside out 