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Interviews/Columns (subscribers only)
  • Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber: 500 Days of Summer
    It's a personal story that one of the two screenwriters actually lived through. So what does a guy do when his heart has been broken, pick up the pieces and make some money on it just like Scott Neustadter and his writing partner Michael Weber recently did on the soon to be released film "500 Days of Summer." Living bi-coastally and getting more work done admittedly when they aren't in the same room, both writers enjoy the process and look forward to the upcoming release of their new film. (Posted: 06/30/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Silent R Management's Jewerl Ross: The Next Greatest Thing
    It was his senior year at Yale University when Jewerl Ross decided he should be a representative in Hollywood. Ross had grown up in L.A., but left the area to study political science at Yale. Back in L.A., he pursued his new goal, working entry level positions for a few agencies before joining APA as an agent in 1999. Later, Marathon hired Ross as a manager. In January of 2006, Ross left to form his own company, Silent R Management. (Posted: 06/16/2009)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    When Is Enough, Enough
    At least a couple of times a year I get into a melancholy frame of mind and wonder if this is it. You know what I mean: the end of the world as we know it, the end of Haagen Dazs or the end of double coupons at the supermarket. This mood usually happens when I've suffered a cruel rejection, haven't lost as much weight as I'd hoped, or I'm recuperating, as I am now, from the jiggy of all kidney stone flare-ups. (Posted: 05/28/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Marvin V. Acuna: The Screenwriter is an Entrepreneur
    With more than fifteen years in the business, Marvin V. Acuna works with some of Hollywood's best talent. He is CEO and President of production company Rainmaker Films and literary representation company Acuna Entertainment, Inc. (Posted: 05/07/2009)

  • Writer/Producer Kirk Ellis: Never Settle
    Did someone say "award"? For his work on the seven-part HBO miniseries "John Adams," writer/producer Kirk Ellis won two Emmys, a Golden Globe, a Writers Guild of America Award and the Humanitas Prize. Based on David McCullough's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography of Adams and working with Tom Hank's Playtone, Ellis wrote and co-executive produced the series which starred Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney. As supervising producer and writer for "Hell on Wheels," an episode from the Steven Spielberg-produced DreamWorks miniseries "Into the West," Ellis was awarded the Western Writers of America's Golden Spur Award for Best Drama Script and the National Western Heritage Museum's Wrangler Award for Best Television Feature. Before that, he won a Writers Guild of America Award and the Humanitas Prize for the ABC miniseries "Anne Frank," which he wrote and co-produced. Ellis also earned a Critics' Choice Award for co-executive producing "Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows." Other credits include writing ABC's miniseries "The Beach Boys: An American Family" and "The Three Stooges" telefilm. (Posted: 04/23/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Miguel Tejada-Flores: Find Your Own Space and Balance
    Miguel Tejada-Flores has worked as executive, producer and writer on various projects that have taken him from Hollywood to countries around the globe. His ever-growing and prolific slate of credits spans film and television in many genres including comedy ("Revenge of the Nerds"), animation ("Lion King"), sci-fi ("Screamers"), horror ("Beyond Re-Animator"), and thriller ("Atomic Dog"). Currently, he's working on several projects including a psychological thriller with the producer of "Hotel Rwanda." (Posted: 04/16/2009)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Never Ending Story
    A question that is routinely asked on screenwriting message boards is words to the effect of, "When do I know when my script is done?" See, some people are under the impression that when they type "Fade Out, The End" that it really means, THE END. (Posted: 04/09/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Avoid Getting Sued: Attorney Mike Farris on True Stories as Source Material
    Production companies and studios often think true stories make good movies. Have you thought about scripting one? Do you know what you need to do before taking it into the market? What may cause your story to be rejected by studios and production companies? How do you balance the demands of a compelling script with the truth? Can you reduce the chances of being sued? This month, we've got the perfect person to address these questions: attorney and agent Mike Farris. (Posted: 03/26/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Creative Convergence's Bradley Kushner: Learn About the Business
    Literary Manager Bradley Kushner helps clients chart their way through Hollywood. He heads up the literary department at Creative Convergence where the company's slate of clients includes Ann Knapp Austen, a Disney Channel writer and "Power Rangers" showrunner, who in 2008 received both a HUMANITAS Prize and a WGA Award. Some of the company's other clients include Chuck Austen, comic book author and screenwriter/creator of Sci Fi's "Tripping the Rift"; screenwriter/director Gary Boulton-Brown, who penned Lifetime Movie Network's "They Come Back"; Rodney Johnson, the screenwriter/author that wrote Lifetime's "Queen Sized" and the "Rinnah Two Feathers" children's mystery novels; and screenwriter/director Gary Sinyor, who scripted "In Your Dreams" and "Bob the Butler," and directed "The Bachelor." (Posted: 03/05/2009)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    A Rose By Any Other Name Is Still Stinkweed
    Like everyone else in the country, it seems, I've been affected by the gloomy economic times. You know, I haven't always been a stay at home writer; for many years, I worked in the customer service and sales departments of a major newspaper. I spent many a lunch hour at my desk, toiling on scripts. Even though I had a full time job, I always considered myself a "writer". (Posted: 02/26/2009)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    APA's Melissa Orton: Teamwork Gets the Job
    When it comes to getting real work done, nothing beats experience. In her twenty-plus years at NBC Universal, Kathy Muraviov worked as a script services manager on projects such as "Erin Brockovich," "Junior," "Mask," "The Mummy," "The Nutty Professor," and her favorite, "Scent of a Woman." On reading "Scent," Muraviov said, "I knew, the first ten pages in, we had something special, really terrific." (Posted: 02/05/2009)

  • Screenwriter Zane Smith
    Zane Smith accomplished what few novice screenwriters do. His first script assignment, a remake of horror classic My Bloody Valentine, made it into the theaters. (Posted: 01/29/2009)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    And What Have You Done Lately Besides Procrastinate?
    It's that time of year when we're supposed to take stock of ourselves and reflect on what we've accomplished over the past year, and with the best and brightest of intentions, make all sorts of resolutions, promises and blood oaths under a full moon. (Posted: 01/16/2009)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    In Love with the Proper Script
    This is the part I hate. Oh, don't pretend that you have no idea what I'm babbling about. You know. The awkward flirting, the fumbling in the dark like teens in a back seat. The agony as you beat your brains out dreaming up the perfect bon mots, and instead you stutter like a fifth grader in a spelling bee. It's that awful, sinking feeling in the pit of your tummy as you wonder if you're compatible, if this is really going to work out, if this is the ONE...or is it just going to be another depressing, fleeting, shallow one-night fling where your soul ends up in shreds. (Posted: 12/26/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Holy crap! You wrote a script? (Part 2 of 2) Writer/Directors Tim and Tom Mullen on Craft and Collaboration
    In part one of this interview, the writing/directing team and brothers Tim and Tom Mullen talked about breaking in. This time around, it's about craft and collaboration. (Posted: 11/25/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Chicken Soup Screenwriting for the Soul
    A script is a lot like a pot of chicken soup. There's really no wrong way of doing it, yet every one (sorry, writer) has their own unique way of making it. Some writers religiously outline, some follow a beat sheet and fill in the blanks. Others dive into the deep end without a life preserver or throw in everything that they have helter skelter from the cupboard. And after a couple of hours (or days or weeks or months), after letting it all simmer, you have...a screenplay (or a batch of botulism). (Posted: 11/13/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Holy crap! You wrote a script? Writer/Directors Tim and Tom Mullen on Breaking In (Part 1 of 2)
    What kind of writers do representatives and producers love? This kind ... (Posted: 11/04/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Top Ten Ways To Lose A Contest
    Yours truly has been asked to be a first round reader in the "Pascagoula Garlic Script Competition" (Grand Prize, a year's worth of frozen garlic toast and slightly worn DVD of BABE IN THE CITY). In the spirit of friendship, I'd like to share you with the many ways that my eyes have glazed over lo these many, many, many scripts. (Posted: 10/09/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Stay on People's Radar: Pat Charles on Creating Fans
    In one of our interviews earlier this year, manager and producer Stan Spry said "The most important things for me are: 1) talent; 2) a tenacity to go out there and do some legwork on your own because it is a team effort." Tapping a trait important to representatives, Spry described client Pat Charles, as someone that did a lot of legwork. "He created some fans." (Posted: 10/02/2008)

  • Exit Speed's Michael Stokes
    Writer-Producer Michael Stokes seems to be building his resume at lightning speed these days and he's not going to get bored doing it either. Case in point, he divides his time between writing feature length thrillers and children's animated television. (Posted: 09/25/2008)

  • Screenwriter Scott Neustadter
    After high school, Scott Neustadter chose the University of Pennsylvania over schools with prestigious film departments such as NYU because it was closer to his Margate, New Jersey home. And while he had a yearning for something cinematic, he wasn't really sure what to do with himself. So he graduated Penn in 1998 with a degree in English. (Posted: 09/16/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The N Word
    It's the word that strikes a dagger in the heart, the word that makes you tremble and quiver, makes grown men weep and fall to their knees and grown women clasp their hands to their heaving breasts. No, no, not that word, ya dingbat. You know the one I mean: notes (what else?). And not the kind of notes you'd get from your crush back in third grade. (Posted: 09/11/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Preferred Artists' Paul Weitzman: Keep in Touch
    The words have to be on the page. The work must be excellent. But that alone won't bring you success as a screenwriter. Outside of great writing, what else is important? To tackle this topic, we tapped an expert who works every venue across the board from half hour comedies to feature films, Preferred Artists Literary and Talent Agent Paul Weitzman. (Posted: 08/28/2008)

  • 10 Things to Hate about Lutz and Smith
    1. Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith live the good life in sunny California.
    2. They can afford that because they are successful screenwriters.
    3. They are young, attractive, and charismatic.
    4. Their "Legally Blonde" helped boost Reese Witherspoon's career.
    5. Their "10 Things I Hate About You" kick-started the careers of Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles.
    6. Their hits keep coming.
    7. They write by a swimming pool in sunny California, usually with a bottle of excellent wine.
    8. They once wrote a script on a beach with a bucket of Corona between their legs.
    9. They have at least three projects in the production phases.
    10. They are producers as well as writers.
    (Posted: 08/21/2008)

  • Screenwriter Michael Gilvary
    Michael Gilvary grew up in New Jersey, went to college in Boston and now lives in Los Angeles, but he says he initially tried very hard to be a screenwriter from New Jersey. Afraid of Los Angeles, he notes, "I had tried living there and I hated it and thought I could do this thing without being there. I entered contests and sent out query letters and did all the futile things you're supposed to do. It's like a rain dance, I suppose. It feels silly and useless, but you need the rain, right?"

    Finally, he did move to LA and he found success there with his screenplay "Greta." "I earned money from 'Greta'" five years after I wrote it," he notes. (Posted: 08/13/2008)

  • Jarred Paul and Andy Mogel: Working with Jim Carrey Hasn't Gone to Their Heads
    Jarred Paul and Andy Mogel have had quite a bit of success in the past year, even though the writer's strike had hit just as their script "Yes Man," was being shot starring Jim Carrey. In fact, Carrey had handpicked these writers because he had read some of their earlier work. "Jim liked our first script and was coming close to doing it and then it didn't work out, but he remembered us," they note. "When 'Yes Man' needed a rewrite he asked for us. We met him and we got along great with him." (Posted: 08/08/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    So You Think U Can Dance
    Well, it was nice while it lasted. I had a manager pursue me. Yes, for awhile there, it looked as if I had found my dream man, rep, whatever. What started out as a nice phone flirtation soon turned into a torrid romance. He got me, I got him, and all this without having laid eyes on each other. Writing. It's a beautiful thing. I felt like Cinderella at the ball, even if those glass slippers were a tad snug. (Posted: 07/29/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Kathy Muraviov: Hard Work Does Pay Off
    When it comes to getting real work done, nothing beats experience. In her twenty-plus years at NBC Universal, Kathy Muraviov worked as a script services manager on projects such as "Erin Brockovich," "Junior," "Mask," "The Mummy," "The Nutty Professor," and her favorite, "Scent of a Woman." On reading "Scent," Muraviov said, "I knew, the first ten pages in, we had something special, really terrific." (Posted: 07/25/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Romancing the Phone
    I recently had the opportunity to do something I don't usually do and I had a blast doing it. No, not that. In my other life, I'm also a freelance journalist, and I was asked to do a couple of profiles/interviews for The Great American Pitchfest. (Posted: 07/17/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Kersey Management's Andrew Kersey: Develop Your Own Swing
    Literary Manager Andrew Kersey enjoys being personally invested in every stage of his clients' careers. After launching his Hollywood career at 3 Arts Entertainment, he spent a few years in development at Universal-based Mostow/Lieberman ("Terminator 3"). Wanting to work more closely with writers, he branched out and opened up Kersey Management, where he helps clients with everything from script rewrites to a long-term career strategy. Kersey's clients have sold projects to studios such as Columbia, Fox, Dreamworks, Paramount, Warner Bros. and The Weinstein Company; and to minis like Fox Atomic, Vantage and Montecito. In television, Kersey's clients have projects at FBC and Nickelodeon. (Posted: 06/19/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Killing Me Unsoftly
    Damn. It happened again. You'd think I'd be used to it be now, but I never am. I'm referring to the R word ... Rejection. Everyone gets rejected! After all this time, you'd think I'd be used to it. I mean, come on, rejection is part of the game. So yes, on one level I'm "okay" with it, or as "okay" with it as I'll ever be without slitting my throat. But then there are some rejections that just leave you, oh, I don't know how else to say it ... they make you want to grab a baseball bat and smash everything in sight. (Posted: 06/12/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Zero Gravity & Pierce/Williams Exec Eric Williams: We're There for the Writer
    In less than ten years, Pierce/Williams Entertainment has produced an impressive array of films and set up a stable of projects in production and development. Jumpstarting their success, "The Cooler" (William H. Macy, Alec Baldwin, Maria Bello) was a financial and critical hit, garnering no less than twenty prestigious awards and nominations. Showcasing an ear for unique content, the company has also produced "In Enemy Hands" (William H. Macy, Lauren Holly, Scott Caan), "Running Scared" (Chazz Palminteri, Paul Walker, Vera Farminga), "Chaos" (Wesley Snipes, Jason Statham, Ryan Phillippe) and "Flawless" (Michael Caine, Demi Moore, Joss Ackland). They currently have four films in various stages of post production. (Posted: 05/23/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Misadventures of a Soccer Mom
    The sun is out, the birds are singing, and I'm relaxing in the way that only a woman can after a good week with her man ... or in my case, boys. Not just one boy, but three. Well, if we're going to get down to brass tacks, they weren't just boys. They were three horny high school virgins desperate to get&paid. And boy, did I pay them, but not quite the way that these hormonally challenged lads thought when we first hooked up. They thought it was going to be a quickie, on the sly, on the fly, no tricks, pretty slick, hump em' and dump em'. (Posted: 05/15/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Above The Line's Rima Greer: When Somebody Says They Like It, Shut Up and Leave the Room
    Hollywood agent and author Rima Greer must be magnetic, because many of her clients have stuck with her for over 20 years. Representing feature writers and directors and in a few special cases, actors, she has negotiated thousands of deals. (Posted: 04/11/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Stripper in the Day Glow Casket
    It's April Fool, but the joke is on me. I have a boat load of work to do: columns and blogs to write, rewrites on my work, my new spec, other scripts to read and give notes on. If you didn't think that was enough, I need to e-mail my shaggy teen script to a producer and I'm shepherding my husband through his first finished screenplay (which hopefully will be his Nicholls entry), but man, that deadline is looming like an Obama-Hilary convention clash. (Posted: 04/03/2008)

  • Screenwriter Ryan Jaffe
    New Jersey native Ryan Jaffe developed an interest in screenwriting after he took a course offered at the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a double major in history and communications. But one course in college doesn't make a career. Think again. Julie Golden has struggled in her quest to see her words translated from computer to the local megaplex. But she can see the light at the end of the projector with Disney attached to the comedy, "Six-Month Curse." (Posted: 03/28/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Stan Spry: Blazing Opps for Screenwriters on the Internet
    Have you checked out entertainment on the Internet lately? If you're a screenwriter and you haven't checked out Internet options, you may be short-circuiting a field of opportunity. Recently, we searched for a hot rep to tell us more about that market, and we hit pay dirt with a prolific manager and producer, Stan Spry. (Posted: 03/07/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Mrs. McIlvaine and the Comedy That Thought It Was a Drama
    Well, that was interesting. Kid Number Two's fiancé wound up in the hospital with double pneumonia, then my Mom was felled by an awfu vertigoattack/grippe which now seems to have settled into bronchitis or smoker's cough (she stopped smoking because she was sick, which was the only good thing to come out of it). (Posted: 03/02/2008)

  • Screenwriter Julie Golden
    You'd think after serving as an executive at a few high profile production companies, green lighting successful movies, a shift from decision-maker to screenwriter would be a smooth sail. Think again. Julie Golden has struggled in her quest to see her words translated from computer to the local megaplex. But she can see the light at the end of the projector with Disney attached to the comedy, "Six-Month Curse." (Posted: 02/15/2008)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Devine Inspiration
    'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse, 'cos they're all on strike. See, Santa wouldn't give an interim waiver to the reindeer so they could fly...heh, hey, hey, what do you say, no going flying with the Santa sleigh! On the second day of Christmas, I got some reader notes on my latest spec…and promptly threw up. (Posted: 02/01/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Dannie Festa, Part Two: Anything is Possible
    Last month, Festa Entertainment Manager/Producer Dannie Festa talked about how she became a producer and manager, defined what she looks for in writers and described projects that grab her attention. In the second part of this two-part interview, Festa discusses the evolution of her passion project "Chasing the Dragon" (Tribeca and Universal), talks about working with writer/filmmakers, and highlights a studio trend that that could affect your career strategy! (Posted: 01/25/2008)

  • Screenwriter Gustin Nash
    Gustin Nash wanted to be a filmmaker. Still in his teens, he learned the best way to direct is to learn how to write. So it was off to USC's film school and a major in writing. In 2008, he'll realize his goal as a writer with the release of "Charlie Bartlett," about a rich kid who becomes the self-appointed psychiatrist to the student body of his new high school. (Posted: 01/11/2008)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Dannie Festa, Part One: What It's All About
    Dannie Festa started out working in production on Chilean soap operas and commercials and later worked for Hollywood production companies. When a writer first suggested Festa become a manager, it was something that she had never thought about before, but then she reconsidered and opened her own management and production company, Festa Entertainment, nearly six years ago. Taking the leap paid off. She and her clients have sold to companies such as Tribeca, Universal, The Weinstein Company, Walden Media, Disney, Scott Rudin Productions, and Practical Pictures. As an added bonus, she discovered she loves to help clients reach their goals. (Posted: 12/28/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Twelve Scripts of Christmas
    On the first day of Christmas, my mother said to me, "Patricia, when are you going to write something that will make a ton of dough like Harry Potter." I immediately go into a funk. On the second day of Christmas, I got some reader notes on my latest spec…and promptly threw up. (Posted: 12/15/2007)

  • Novelist/Screenwriter Andrew Klavan
    New York-born Andrew Klavan parlayed a degree in English from the University of California and jobs as a reporter into a career as a novelist and screenwriter, including two books which later became successful films: "True Crime" and "Don't Say a Word." His latest script, "One Missed Call," comes out in the theaters in January. He lives in California these days, but in his career, Klavan has written from London and New York. He spoke just as the Writers Guild went on strike. (Posted: 12/06/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Content House's Kevin Cleary: Transitioning Writers to New Forms
    Content House is a management and production company that represents book authors, comic book creators, screenwriters, directors and others with intellectual properties, such as video game companies and an animation house. Adept at deals involving cross-licensing across many platforms, Content House is an especially exciting place for writers and filmmakers that hope to transition from one form of writing to another. (Posted: 11/30/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Drive
    You never know where life will take you. The past couple of weeks have been tough. My son, falsely accused of a heinous crime, died while in jail. My poor father had a stroke. Instead of my husband and me coming together in mutual grief, we lashed out at each other, I said some truly unforgiveable things and he physically kicked me out of our marital home. If that wasn’t bad enough, to get back at the bastard, I almost did the horizontal mambo with my son’s godfather (not to mention the bastard’s best friend). (Posted: 11/23/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Magnet Management's Zach Tann: We Look for the Voice
    From around the country, college students flock to California to attend film school and break into the film industry, but Zach Tann did the opposite, leaving the state of California to study economics and business at Kalamazoo College in Michigan. In 1999, he graduated and moved to L.A., where he accepted a position at Zide/Perry Entertainment ("American Pie" movies) to start up a Web site for screenwriters. Long before it was common practice in the industry, Tann broke new ground in setting up online script submissions, which gave writers a direct online funnel to the management division at Zide/Perry. Tann also provided Internet content for the Web site and implemented a system where writers could check up on the status of their scripts. That position afforded Tann the opportunity to get his feet wet reading scripts; to learn what he liked and didn't like in material. From there, Tann worked his way into management, representing writers found through Zide/Perry's Web site and elsewhere. (Posted: 10/26/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Bulbed to the Bone
    How do you know when a script is ready? This is a question frequently posted on screenwriting message boards. Well, boys and girls, it really depends on what you want the script to be "ready" for. (Posted: 10/12/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Manager/Producer Victoria Wisdom: Understand Your Market
    For more than 15 years, Victoria Wisdom has traveled the globe, representing some of the industry's best writers and directors of renowned, award-winning films. A double literature major with graduate level cinema studies, Wisdom started in New York as a reader in publishing and later read books for sale to film and TV. Subsequently, she moved on to work as an agent at Agency for the Performing Arts (APA) and then International Creative Management (ICM), where she gained a strong international perspective on the industry working for a company with numerous European offices and filmmakers. Eventually, Wisdom relocated to Los Angeles, where she was an agent and partner at Becsey, Wisdom and Kalajian (BWK), a boutique agency that specialized in an international focus. There, Wisdom spent 14 years managing client careers and setting up projects. (Posted: 09/20/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Something to Dye For
    How do you know when a script is ready? This is a question frequently posted on screenwriting message boards. Well, boys and girls, it really depends on what you want the script to be "ready" for. (Posted: 09/06/2007)

  • Clifford J. Green: 30 Years and Counting
    While he's been writing for 30 years and has some well-known scripts attributed to his career, even Clifford J. Green has a passion project that he would like to see get made some day. In this case, it's "Hullywood," a film-a-clef, in the vein of "My Favorite Year," about the years he worked as an assistant to legendary producer Robert Evans. Green talks about this project and others and how he has made screenwriting his lifetime career. (Posted: 08/31/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Untitled Entertainment's Jennifer Levine: Having Fun Along the Way
    She started out as an English major working on Wall Street, but today Jennifer Levine is President of Production and Head of Literary Management at Untitled Entertainment, and a lot has happened along the way. Untitled Entertainment is both a management and production company. Representing writers, directors and actors, Levine's emphasis is on management, but she also produces films and is an advocate for independent artists. (Posted: 08/17/2007)

  • John Glenn - Seven Years Lucky
    John Glenn lives in Los Angeles, however he was born in Alabama and raised both there and in Phoenix, Ariz. He made his way to California to attend the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, but he dropped out before he finished in order to focus on his writing. That move has certainly paid off for him. His most recent screenplay is called "The Heaven Project" and it just wrapped production with him as the director. (Posted: 08/10/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Best Laid Plans
    I had my day all planned out. I'd work on my script in the morning, then bake by the pool in the afternoon. Since my husband and I must share a computer for the time being, we'd fallen into a routine: he used the computer for as long as he pleased, and I picked up the crumbs. I went along with this for as long as I could without exploding, and now we'd (or more to the point, I) had come up with a more equitable division of our precious computer time. (Posted: 08/03/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Judy Coppage's Other Name: "Relentless"
    During the 1980s, Judy Coppage tried to sell a 10-year old novel to Hollywood. Written by Roderick Thorp and titled, "Nothing Lasts Forever," it seemed no one wanted it, but Coppage believed in the project and kept pushing the book. After about three years, she finally sold the book to 20th Century Fox and that book launched the tremendously successful "Die Hard" franchise. (Posted: 07/27/2007)

  • Screenwriter Travis Wright
    Living in Los Angeles, screenwriter Travis Wright says he would rather be living in Seattle. However, luckily for him Los Angeles has smiled on him with the sale of a script he wrote called "Red World," with childhood friend John Glenn. Saying, "I'm happy to help others as others have certainly helped me," Wright begins explaining his journey from unsold to sold screenwriter. (Posted: 07/20/2007)

  • Screenwriters Bear Aderhold and Tom Sullivan
    Bear Aderhold and Tom Sullivan owe their careers as screenwriting partners to a game show. The chance meeting on the production team led to their recent silver screen debut with the take-off comedy "Delta Farce." Indie production company Wind Dancer Films has hired them to pen "Fear Less", a comedy centered on a fearful man who after a freak accident can no longer experience fear. (Posted: 07/13/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Buddy, Can You Spare a Cookie?
    As one who follows the trades religiously, it would seem that the new NANCY DREW didn’t do too well. I suppose I should be dancing naked around a bonfire, but I’m not. By all things right and holy, Emma Roberts should’ve been my COOKIE PHILLIPS, JUNIOR PI. (Posted: 06/29/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Evolution's Andrew Wilson On Becoming a Manager
    In 1999, Andrew Wilson decided he wanted to work in feature films and television and moved to Los Angeles to make it happen. He now works as a manager for Evolution Management, part of the Evolution Entertainment family that produced the profitable "Saw" franchise and "John Q." Headed by Mark Burg and Oren Koules whose long list of credits include "Dumb and Dumberer" and "Love Don't Cost a Thing," Evolution has also found success in the television market with the CBS hit sitcom "Two and a Half Men," and is stepping into Internet content with "Internet Killer," slated for an initial release on Break.com. (Posted: 06/22/2007)

  • Daniel Noah Pitches and Wins
    Chicagoan Daniel Noah lives in Los Angeles and recently sold a pitch for a television pilot - a dream that many a Hollywood writer would like to emulate. "Hindsight," the pilot that Noah sold, is a show that goes backwards. (Posted: 06/15/2007)

  • Adele Griffin and Geoff Watson: A Family Writing Together
    Adele Griffin and Geoff Watson live on different coasts, but have a lot of experience working together nonetheless, after all they grew up together, brother and sister. (Posted: 06/06/2007)

  • Writer/Director Cecelia Miniucchi
    There have been many types of romantic relationships portrayed on the big screen: the fatal attraction, the ill-fated lovers, the Bonnie-and-Clyde stick to your guns couples. But none has gotten more screen time than the opposites attract duo. Just when you think there can be no original way to tell this story, Cecilia Miniucchi comes up with a whole new twist and dark take on the “odd” couple. In her upcoming film, which was a darling of the Sundance circuit this year and was recently purchased by GreenStreet International. The story revolves around wallflower meter maid, Claire, a subtle Samantha Morton, and angry-at-the-world parking officer, Jay, played with moody aplomb by Jason Patric. (Posted: 06/01/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    To Ask or Not to Ask, That is the Question
    In this month’s column I’m going to address several burning questions, questions that have weighed heavily on my mind lo these many months, if not on yours. (Posted: 05/25/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Talent Manager Jeanne Field, Part Two: Write What You Love and Keep Looking
    Last month, Windfall Talent Manager Jeanne Field shared details about her unusual "lucky break" into the industry and the evolution of her amazing career in entertainment. In the second part of this interview, Field discusses working with writers as a manager and touches on a subject that many don't talk about. (Posted: 05/18/2007)

  • Screenwriter Annie Frisbie
    Annie Frisbie lives in Queens, New York and is very adamant that a screenwriter can get a break on the east coast. She's a self-professed die-hard East Coast girl, who has lived in the Big Apple for almost 13 years. "I made my break here, and I plan to make my career here" she says. (Posted: 05/11/2007)

  • Christine Yoo Stepping Out in Hollywood
    Christine Yoo lives in Venice, California by way of Buffalo, NY. A Korean American she was actually raised in Iowa City, Iowa and Memphis, Tennessee and went to boarding school outside of Boston during her high school schools before moving on to USC to complete her education. "I'm fortunate in the fact that I've lived in a lot different places and believe I bring that knowledge and experience to my writing," she says.

    Currently Yoo is working on several projects, some with her writing partner, Derek Draper. Their latest film "For Steppers Only" was recently sold to Lions Gate with Cedric the Entertainer attached to star. (Posted: 05/04/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    A Rose by Any Other Name
    For the past couple of days, I've been in a broody mood. You see, I can't decide what kind of a writer I want to be when I grow up. (Posted: 04/27/2007)

  • Kyle Long: Screenwriting for the Long Term
    Kyle Long has already written and sold several screenplays during his career as a screenwriter just like so many writers do in Hollywood. In fact most writers in Hollywood, for the most part, manage to stay below the radar screen and still enjoy a healthy living. Long is no exception. However, he certainly proves that a screenwriter can write and sell (and maybe or maybe not get the actually script produced), while still making a good living at it and enjoy waking up every morning. (Posted: 04/20/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Talent Manager Jeanne Field, Part One: Go for Opportunity
    Jeanne Field's entry into the film industry was anything but typical. In college, she majored in political science, but a unique series of events led her to films and the first two projects she worked on won Academy Awards. (Posted: 04/13/2007)

  • Matthew Cooke Delivering a Good Screenplay
    Matthew Cooke's film "Deliver Us from Evil" was nominated for an Academy Award this year, only he didn't write it, on this one he was a producer and editor. However, it is his writing that he feels passionately about and, after listening to him, you can see he exudes the mark of a true screenwriter. Living in a loft near downtown Los Angeles Cooke talks about how he and every writer needs to learn to just be cavalier about the entire experience as it seems that is when success happens. (Posted: 04/06/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    The Postman Cometh
    Letters, I get letters. Everyone wants to give me money. It’s true. I have no idea how these people got my e-mail address, but I’ve become quite popular. (Posted: 03/22/2007)

  • Dave Kalstein Is True to His Voice
    Dave Kalstein lives in the Laurel Canyon area of Los Angeles, and after working for a while at GQ magazine in New York City, he finally met someone who could help him get his first script into the hands of an actual player in Hollywood. Nowadays, Kalstein has quite a few scripts out there already having been bought and one soon to be shot. While some of Kalstein's scripts may never see the light of day, his future is assured since he learned early-on the valuable lesson of networking and being true to his own voice. (Posted: 03/16/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Literary and Talent Agent Lisa Callamaro: It's a Partnership
    Through her boutique company, The Callamaro Literary Agency, Lisa Callamaro represents screenwriters, directors, and film rights for books. A smattering of projects she has sold includes "Event Horizon" (screenplay), "Legally Blond" and "Where the Heart Is" (books), and "The Man Without a Face," (book and screenplay). Among those on her client list are the writers for Stephen King's "Firestarter 2: Rekindled" featuring Marguerite Moreau (SciFi Channel); the upcoming "Fracture" (New Line and Castle Rock) starring Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling; and "The Mutant Chronicles," (Pressman Film) with Thomas Jane and John Malkovich. (Posted: 03/09/2007)

  • Screenwriters Andy Stock and Rick Stempson
    Andy Stock lives in Austin, Texas and Rick Stempson in Omaha, Nebraska, but that didn't stop them from recently making their first screenplay sell titled, "Gary the Tennis Coach." The script is about an overzealous high school janitor who takes over as coach of the school's tennis team. The story revolves around the fact that it is unclear whether his unorthodox coaching methods will turn the boys into champions or simply warp their young minds. (Posted: 03/02/2007)

  • Writer/Director Sue Kramer
    Sue Kramer grew up in the suburban enclave of Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Now she lives in Brooklyn. New Jersey to Brooklyn. Hardly the pathway towards a career as a Hollywood screenwriter. But in between growing up and settling down, Kramer got a film degree at UCLA. The years in film school have paid off with the February release of "Gray Matters," Kramer's first script to get screen time - and also her directorial debut. (Posted: 02/23/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    From A to B
    What makes a B movie a B movie and an A movie an A movie? Such is the weighty question I found myself pondering while unpacking from our latest, and hopefully, last move. (Posted: 02/16/2007)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Summit Talent & Literary Agent Sandy Weinberg: Persistence Wins the Day
    If you've read this column before, then you are already familiar with Summit Talent and Literary Agent Sandy Weinberg. His client list includes the writers of films such as "Liar Liar," "Heartbreakers," "9 to 5," "High Crimes," "Shackles," "Mr. California," and the hit CBS mini-series "Category 6." In this interview, Weinberg shares a glimpse into his life as an agent. He discusses several projects, and reveals the common element that he believes caused those movies to get made. (Posted: 02/09/2007)

  • Hollywood vs. College With Dan Callahan and Adam Ellison
    Dan Callahan and Adam Ellison both live in LA, but both grew up in the Chicago area. Their film "College," was sold back in June - six months after they finished writing it. "College" is about "Three high school guys who are doing the typical college visit. Of course, they think it's going to be the time of their lives. No curfews. No parents. Free beer. Lot's of college girls. But instead the weekend turns into a complete disaster. They can't get laid, they can't get into the bars and the fraternity they've been staying at is making their lives a living hell. But our guys don't give up, they fight back, they stand up for themselves and in the end they find the weekend they were looking for." So how did these guys come up with their good idea? (Posted: 02/02/2007)

  • It's Magic: Barry Blaustein and Jason Hefter
    The writing team of Barry Blaustein and Jason Hefter had interesting beginnings. They recently sold the pitch "Magic 8 Ball" to Universal for Tom Shadyac to produce. Heftner is a new writer, but Blaustein was already a veteran when they started working together. (Posted: 01/26/2007)

  • Richard Potter and Matt Stravitz on Selling Two Pitches in Just Seven Months
    Richard Potter and Matt Stravitz live in Los Angeles and recently sold two studio pitches back to back - one to Warner Bros., and one to New Line. While they have both worked individually in the past with a good bit of experience under their belt, it seems that these days their work as a team is what is getting them noticed. (Posted: 01/19/2007)

  • Screenwriter James V. Simpson
    Screenwriter James V. Simpson has been a semi-finalist and finalist in several major contests, including this year’s Nicholl Fellowship. While he didn’t win one of this year’s fellowships, he did achieve something most screenwriter’s would love to have, ineligibility for next year’s contest. (Posted: 01/12/2007)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    One Logic Lapse to Go, Heavy on the Sugar
    What better way to ring out 2006 than to discuss holes the size of the Grand Canyon. (No, I'm not referring to the state of my checkbook balance). No, I'm talkin' about plot holes. (Posted: 12/29/2006)

  • Bart Freundlich Trusting the Man
    While Bart Freundlich might be most talked about in Hollywood as Julianne Moore's husband, he is also downright pleasant and as I caught up with him on his way to pick up pizza for his family in New York he talked about his latest film, "Trust the Man." His main concern was that audiences can embrace the fact that he was attempting to do something a little different in "Trust the Man." "It wasn't just that I was trying to make a buck," he says, "But I was trying to combine a couple of different styles and whether it works or not I think it is worth it to try something new." Indeed, critics have been putting the film down for mixing "tones" as they say, but really, isn't that what Hollywood is all about? (Posted: 12/21/2006)

  • Screenwriter Kelley Sane
    New York native Kelley Sane recently sold his first script called "Rendition" after writing screenplays for over 10 years and mentioning that he never did any other kind of writing beforehand. He describes the script as the story of the impact of extraordinary rendition on a family as the script tracks a rendered man, his pregnant wife, the rendered man's interrogator in Egypt and a conflicted CIA official. (Posted: 12/10/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Tiptoeing Through the Minefield: Taking Notes
    Whether you show your script to friends and family or submit it to producers and studio executives, you face the challenge of evaluating and responding to feedback on your work. The ability to execute notes is essential to the survival of your screenwriting career. Sound simple? It might be. But did you know you could find yourself getting notes from multiple parties? Possibly conflicting notes? Or notes that derail the direction dictated by the people that hired you? How do savvy screenwriters sidestep these obstacles? (Posted: 11/30/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Life Rules for Screenwriting
    Since my invitation to the TomKat wedding of the century seems to have been misplaced, my not going to Italy has given me the time to reflect on more important issues. (Posted: 11/29/2006)

  • Screenwriter Adam Grossman
    Living in Bell Canyon, Ca., Adam Grossman recently sold his first screenplay "Wardogs" to Regency Enterprises with Andrew Lazar of "Space Cowboys" fame to produce. Often being compared, Grossman says the "Wardogs" script is a "space cowboys in the military" kind of story. (Posted: 11/09/2006)

  • Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless Explain Dracula Year Zero
    Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless just sold their first screenplay called "Dracula Year Zero." The story chronicles the epic origin of Dracula, weaving vampire mythology with the true history of Prince Vlad the Impaler. The film depicts Dracula as a flawed hero in a tragic love story set in a dark age of magic and war. While both men have been writing for years, Dracula must be good luck since this is the script that got them noticed. (Posted: 11/01/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Q&A Or How Do I Get An Agent?
    For a change of pace, I thought I'd dig deep into my reader mailbag and answer some of your most burning and penetrating questions. (Posted: 10/27/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Does the Story Fit the Budget?
    When it comes to specs scripts, is there an advantage to having large or small budget stories? Do scripts more often fail to get made due to a large budget? Are writers with large or small budget scripts harder to market? This month, our panelists offer tips to help writers weigh these considerations. As with many aspects of this business, the experts often prefixed their answers with, "It depends." (Posted: 10/20/2006)

  • Mike Arnold and Chris Poole's Grackle Crackles
    Mike Arnold and Chris Poole do not live in Hollywood so they answer my question about the opportunity of selling a screenplay outside of the "machine" of LA with a bit of sarcasm, "We don't live in Hollywood, so obviously we don't think it's that important." Poole lives in Chattanooga, Tenn. and Arnold lives in Boulder, Colo. They do note however, that "Whether we ultimately move to Los Angeles remains up in the air. We know there are probably some opportunities that we're missing because we don't live in town, but such is life." (Posted: 10/13/2006)

  • Screenwriter John Strysik
    John Strysik studied film at Columbia College in Chicago and was the first recipient of the William Friedkin Film Scholarship award. While in Chicago, Strysik co-founded a company called Bioscope Productions and after establishing himself he moved to Los Angeles and was hired as a staff director for George Romero's internationally acclaimed television series "Tales From the Darkside." (Posted: 10/06/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Witless
    There are some things better left alone. The ending of GONE WITH THE WIND. Old Coke. Any food item whose label boasts that it's" "new and improved". The likeness of long dead celebrities in advertisements. Which leads me to Hollywood and its obsession with remakes. Hollywood loves to tinker. Like Dr. Frankenstein, they just can't leave well enough alone. "But, Igor, this time it will work! I know it! Hand me that spare brain!" (Posted: 09/29/2006)

  • Story Editor Cynthia Cohen Tells All
    Cynthia J. Cohen is having a good time in Hollywood and, as most people in this town know, it's not easy. She was the Executive Story Editor for "Melrose Place" and has been writing on the television show "Commander in Chief, however she still credits her first big break to being a script coordinator on "Melrose Place." (Posted: 09/22/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Your Questions
    Many reader questions have been used to help us form column topics. Every inquiry is important, but we haven't been able to address all of them in our prior columns, so this month, we're taking some time out to answer a few commonly asked questions submitted by readers. (Posted: 09/15/2006)

  • Screenwriter Andrea Berloff
    Count Andrea Berloff as part of the rarefied air of novice screenwriters who see their work in the hands of A-list directors. Work that carries a monumental message to boot. Oliver Stone directed Berloff's first produced effort, "World Trade Center," about the September 11th attack in New York. (Posted: 09/08/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Pushing Limits
    "American Beauty" tapped into taboo subject matter when Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) lusted after and almost seduced one of his daughter's friends. In "As Good As It Gets," Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) was a bigot. Aileen Wuornos (Charlize Theoron) was a prostitute that went on a pre-meditated murder spree in the true story "Monster." In the former two examples, we might reason that audiences watched because of humor or because characters underwent transformation. In the latter, Wuornos' actions cannot be forgiven. All these films tackled potentially unsympathetic characters and the roles won Academy Awards. But audiences only see the films that get made. They don't see scripts that are rejected because of potentially unsympathetic characters or taboo subjects. Also, the above films were scripted by known writers. So, are the risks a good idea? For the most widely cast net of opportunity in Hollywood, should your great "calling card" script pull in the reins or jump off the bridge into a sea of risky characters and seemingly taboo subjects? What are important considerations for the writer that wants to tackle sensitive subject matter? This month, panelists share their experiences and preferences to help you with more scriptwriting choices. (Posted: 09/01/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    When Good Ideas Go Bad
    Once upon a time, people thought the world was flat, and that the sun revolved around the earth. It sounded like a good idea at the time. (Posted: 08/26/2006)

  • From the Art of War to the Art of Cool - Alex Sabeti
    Alex Sabeti has planted himself in Hollywood writing screenplays for the past eight years, but his first sale was just recently called "The Art of Cool." Like the main character in his film, Sabeti says he just wants to be accepted like most other people in the world. (Posted: 08/18/2006)

  • Screenwriter John Hefferan
    John Hefferan is not the 72 year-old actor who appeared in almost two movies and television shows. And he isn't the Australian novelist, even though he spent a couple years down under. But John Heffernan did write Snakes On A Plane, his squirm-inducing first screenplay to see the silver screen. (Posted: 08/04/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    What's the Big Idea??
    It was a hundred in the shade, the humidity was stifling, and I was doing the only thing I could do to seek relief. I was lounging in the pool. (Posted: 07/28/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    The Rights to Write: Part Two
    Considering an adaptation or a true story? For published works, you may need to acquire rights from the original author, the author's estate, or a publisher. In the case of a true story, you need to obtain rights from the individual(s) involved in the story. Tracking down rightsholders and securing the rights to adapt material may be simple or complex. This month, we continue our discussion on seeking rights to source material with leads to jumpstart your quest for the rights to write, including a hot tip from Writer/Producer Heather Hale. (Posted: 07/14/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    Deja Vu
    Dagnabit, it happened again, only in this instance, it was the father of the groom instead of a close friend. God, I hate it when that happens! Makes me want to puke. Another fine case of the PD Syndrome. (Posted: 06/30/2006)

  • Jason Lethcoe's Wishes Come True
    Jason Lethcoe's "Tales from the Wishworks Factory" started out as a novel and eventually sold as a screenplay. In his story, Ben an eleven-year-old orphan figures out how to make his one birthday wish come true, which is a wish for "Unlimited Wishes." Needless to say, his wish wreaks havoc on the Wishworks Factory and chaos ensues until things can be set right again. (Posted: 06/20/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    The Rights to Write: Part One
    Take a quick tour of the Academy Awards database (www.oscars.org) and you'll find that the number of successful films from existing works and life stories is staggering. A great story can bring great upside potential, but writing screenplays from true stories and adaptations may also introduce risks such as lost money and time, and even lawsuits. This month, our pros discuss these and other issues to help you evaluate your options and hopefully, avoid a few mistakes. (Posted: 06/16/2006)

  • British Writer Dean Craig Lives in London, But is All About Hollywood
    British writer Dean Craig recently had his script, "Death at a Funeral" go into production in London with director Frank Oz at the helm. Craig's story is a good one since, while he lives in London, he works in Hollywood and just got signed by UTA. "Death at a Funeral" is a comedy about a funeral that goes horribly wrong and Craig explains how his idea actually came from, well ... real life. (Posted: 06/09/2006)

  • Writer/Director Nicole Holofcener
    Nicole Holofcener new film Friends with Money explores the issue of how money can complicate friendships. (Posted: 06/02/2006)

  • Adventures in Screenwriting:
    I Got Stories
    It was a crummy day. No, not just a crummy day. It was a really crummy day. It had been raining for what seemed like forty days and forty nights, a chilly, sour, dour downpour that would put anyone in a bad mood. A good day, as my mother put it, to sleep all day. Or bake. (Posted: 05/23/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Meet, Greet and More
    A writer represented by a team of agents recently reported that an advocate (a fan of his work) at a studio helped him try to get work on a television show. After several "meet and greet" sessions, the writer was assured that both the network and studio liked him, but that's where progress stopped. The writer was told the showrunner never read his work. Even if the writer had made it past the showrunner, he had been advised the showrunner would require the writer to meet with and gain approval of the rest of the staff in order to be hired. (Posted: 05/12/2006)

  • Christopher Landon Not Disturbed in 'Disturbia'
    Christopher Landon is a self-professed "weird person" who likes to listen to scary soundtracks in his car. Born and bred a Los Angeles boy, he spends a lot of time in traffic, and, it seems this is where his best ideas are born. His film "Disturbia" involves a teenage delinquent with a big imagination and it is currently being produced by Ivan Reitman's Montecito Picture Company and Dreamworks. (Posted: 05/06/2006)

  • Michael Lander & Ryan Roy Flying Their 'Kite'
    Michael Lander and Ryan Roy are well on their way to Hollywood euphoria with the pitch they just sold to Warner Bros. called "Kite." With Leo DiCaprio possibly playing the lead in this powerful prison drama, "Kite" is an intense fictional drama focusing on the privatization of the prison system and the corruption and violence on both sides of the law. (Posted: 04/28/2006)

  • Screenwriter/Playwright Adam Rapp
    Adam Rapp saw his first screenplay, "Winter Passing," not only land in the movie theaters, but under his direction. That his demand to direct the dramatic comedy about a fractious reunion of an estranged father and daughter was met spoke volumes about the respect Rapp earned as a successful playwright. (Posted: 04/27/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Stepping Into the Stream: Setting Expectations
    It's finally happened. Someone wants to buy your spec script. Or, maybe they like your spec, but want to hire you to write an assignment. Either way, what's next (after you stop celebrating)? Will you get a chance to do the rewrite on that spec of yours? If working on assignment, what kind of involvement might you receive from a representative or producer? As our panelists will tell you, every situation is different, but they've pooled their experience to give you an idea of what might be expected. (Posted: 04/14/2006)

  • Screenwriters Jim Agnew and Sean Keller
    Jim Agnew and Sean Keller live in Los Angeles and recently sold their first screenplay called "Damned," which is a tale of two families whose fear of each other is their undoing. Both Agnew and Keller say that the thing they found most compelling about the script is that both families have the same motivation, "to protect their children from a family they feel is out to get them." (Posted: 04/07/2006)

  • I'm Perfect Could be Marcus Folmar's New Mantra
    Marcus Folmar lives in Los Angeles, Califiornia by way of Denver Colorado, and with the sell and subsequent production of his first screenplay called "I'm Perfect," he has positioned himself into a pretty "perfect" place at the moment. (Posted: 04/01/2006)

  • Screenwriter Don Handfield
    Don Handfield lives in Los Angeles and recently sold his first screenplay, "Genius." He is repped by Underground Films and the script was sold to Jerry Weintraub Productions, who in turn have a deal with Warner Bros. (Posted: 03/25/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Submitting Your Script
    Do you know what should be included with your script's submission? The best way to confirm that your script has been received? Are there more favorable times for contacting people in the industry? This month, our panelists define their preferences. Echoing the industry, responses vary proving that even after your script has been requested, doing homework and tailoring your approach may prove advantageous. (Posted: 03/12/2006)

  • Piscatella & Williams: No "Underdogs" Here
    Joe Piscatella and Craig Williams are having fun. You can hear it in the answers they give - that easy banter back and forth - and it's easy to see how the two of them work so well together as a team, this time on the script "Underdog." Their first sale was a surprise with Dreamworks, yet this most recent assignment didn't come as quite such a shock since Spyglass came to them to write it. (Posted: 03/09/2006)

  • Firewall Screenwriter Joe Forte
    Growing up in New Jersey, Joe Forte never went to the movies. His parents were fundmentalist Christians who frowned on such activity. Yet there they were, proud parents at the Hollywood premiere of Firewall, the first film Forte wrote to make it to the theaters after numerous attempts. (Posted: 02/17/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Page One Impact
    Have you ever pulled a book off a store shelf and after reading only one page, you either bought the book or shelved it? If so, you already have a sense of what readers feel with your script in their hands. (Posted: 02/12/2006)

  • Carolyn Handler Miller on Writing for Children's and Family Entertainment
    With a long resume in writing for television, film and new media, Carolyn Handler Miller specializes in entertainment for children and families. She has written for ABC, NBC, CBS, the Disney Channel, PBS and many other organizations. An Afterschool Special script, "Sometimes I Don't Love My Mother" (ABC), garnered Miller an Emmy nomination. Miller's body of interactive works includes "Pocahontas Animated Storybook" (Disney Interactive) and "Toy Story Animated Storybook" (Disney Interactive and Pixar). Also the author of "Digital Storytelling: A Creator's Guide to Interactive Entertainment" (Focal Press), she has lectured and taught in workshops and conferences around the globe and at UCLA, UCSB, UCI, USC, and AFI. In this interview, Miller talks about breaking into writing for television and film and describes writing opportunities in the children's and family markets. (Posted: 02/04/2006)

  • Matt de la Pena: From Novel to Screenplay for 'Ball Don't Lie'
    Matt de la Pena lives and works in Brooklyn, where he actually called himself a novel writer long before he added his latest title of screenwriter. His book "Ball Don't Lie" was sold to Random House and it was from there that he was asked to adapt the story into a screenplay. (Posted: 01/29/2006)

  • Screenwriter Travis Beacham
    Travis Beacham's "A Killing on Carnival Row" has definitely helped him to find a good foothold in Hollywood. In Beacham's fantasy thriller, which he calls a "kind of gaslight and cobblestone noir" the backdrop is a mongrel city knocked together from Dickensian London and old folklore. (Posted: 01/21/2006)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Changing Opportunities for Screenwriters?
    (Posted: 01/14/2006)

  • Screenwriter Howard Himelstein
    Howard Himelstein followed an old adage to bring "A Good Woman" to the screen: if you want something done, do it yourself. Tired of a script languishing in option prison, Himelstein grabbed the producer role to insure the movie got greenlit. "A Good Woman" not only got made, but got made with Helen Hunt, Tom Wilkinson and Scarlett Johansson, no less. (Posted: 01/07/2006)

  • Broken Road's Sean Robins: A Writer Should be Reading More Than I Am
    Having read over 4,000 screenplays as well as countless books, plays and other media, Sean Robins, a senior development executive at Broken Road Productions, is voracious in his search for a great story. It's no surprise that he was recently tapped to identify material for development by Broken Road's Todd Garner. (Posted: 01/02/2006)

  • Screenwriter Jeff Bushell
    Jeff Bushell is no stranger to Hollywood as he has been working in the business for sometime and wearing quite a few different hats. He recently sold his script "Teacher of the Year" to New Line. It's a script that he describes as "a musical comedy about the holocaust done in sign language..." No really, "Teacher of the Year" is a feel-good, buddy comedy about two mediocre teachers, one a total scammer who never does any work and the other a huge choker who tries too hard. Both teachers are about to be fired and the only way to keep their jobs is to win the teacher of the year competition, which ensures tenure. In the course of the competition these two teachers go from being best friends to arch enemies while getting their students into serious trouble as well. (Posted: 12/26/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    HIQ 2005: Tips from the Pros
    (Posted: 12/13/2005)

  • Alicia Allain: Aim Toward a Zenith
    The Robert Evans Company President Alicia Allain produced "Autofocus," "Bark," "Lush," and "Underground." Open to high-concept material in a diversity of genres and budgets, she frequently works with first-time directors and appreciates the artistic and cultural influences on film as well as the value of entertainment. Whether a script is destined to be a small indie piece or a studio pic, Allain knows how to get a film funded. In this interview, she defines what she looks for in a script and offers valuable advice to screenwriters. (Posted: 12/03/2005)

  • Jacob Estes: On the Heels of Mean Creek
    It hasn't been long since WBW published a first interview with writer/director Jacob Estes. At that time, his script, "Mean Creek" was already winning accolades and propelling Estes' career to new places. A film rich in moral dilemma, it's about a group of kids that accidentally kill someone and must then decide what to do with the body. In his prior interview, Estes remarked he'd only been rejected by the Sundance Labs eight times. Teaching us all a lesson on the insignificance of rejection (and the power of belief plus hard work), "Mean Creek" went on to garner a Sundance Humanitas Award. At this year's 20th IFP Independent Spirit Awards, the film took home the John Cassavetes and Special Distinction awards. "Mean Creek" also received countless favorable reviews and the success of "Mean Creek" opened the door to more opportunities for Estes. He is currently at work on two writing/directing projects with The Kennedy-Marshall Company and Plan-B, which he discusses in this follow-up interview. (Posted: 11/26/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Make Your Meeting Work
    (Posted: 11/11/2005)

  • Jeff Wadlow Crying Wolf
    Jeff Wadlow's first screenplay turned film called "Cry Wolf" stars Jon Bon Jovi and Jared Padalecki from "Gilmore Girls," which is a good coup for a first-time writer. He and his writing partner, Beau Bauman ended up getting the screenplay made after winning the Chrysler Million Dollar Film Festival. "Cry Wolf" is about a group of kids that lie for fun, both on a plot level, when they stumble upon the truth about a series of murders, and no one will believe them; and on a character level, as they carelessly abuse their friendships. (Posted: 11/06/2005)

  • Flightplan Exec Producer Robert DiNozzi
    He is the executive producer of "Flightplan" starring Jodie Foster (Touchstone Pictures). At this year's Screenwriting Conference in Santa Fe, he wowed the audience with his captivating pitch for "Flightplan"--seemingly impromptu. But Robert DiNozzi (Robert DiNozzi Productions) is always prepared for moments such as that one. (Posted: 10/29/2005)

  • Ben Watkins' Quest to Ref
    Ben Watkins has been trying to get his screenplay "Quest to Ref" sold for quite a few years. He initially filmed a short based on the story winning several film festivals for his efforts. Nowadays his efforts have paid off even more since Universal has taken on the comedy about a young professional who has always been obsessed with fairness while also being in love with reffing. (Posted: 10/22/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    A Screenwriter's Background and Other Traits: What Matters and What Doesn't
    (Posted: 10/15/2005)

  • Michael Kingston: Going on Number Three
    Meet Michael Kingston. He lives in Hollywood, has a new screenplay called "Population 436" and says (jokingly or not) that his unusual writing quirk is that he writes naked with the drapes open. "I've had to move a lot." His first big break came when his assistant friend at ICM submitted his spec for coverage and it landed on the desk of a retreating agent who is now a manager. (Posted: 10/06/2005)

  • Screenwriter Jonathan Goldman
    Jonathan Goldman recently sold his first screenplay, a horror/thriller titled "Water's Edge," about a local girl who is hired by a group of young vacationers as their designated houseboat driver on Arizona's Lake Powell. The floating party turns into a nightmare as a brutal murderer begins to kill the revelers one by one. (Posted: 10/01/2005)

  • Craig Cox and Brother Jeff are on Their Way to Glory
    Jeff and Craig Cox recently sold a script called "Blades of Glory" about two male ice skaters to Red Hour/Dreamworks. The script is a broad comedy about two disgraced male figure skaters who team up to be the world's first male/male figure skating pair. (Posted: 09/25/2005)

  • Meet Jonathan Sadowski and Ben Brandstrader
    Screenwriters of "This is Bill Smith" (Posted: 09/18/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Prolific Writing: Can You Hit the Mark?
    (Posted: 09/10/2005)

  • Eric Heisserer, Part III
    Last October, I'd read screenwriter Eric Heisserer's latest website: http://www.dionaea-house.com.

    Chilling, suspenseful and eerily bizarre, his diary-blog entries wove an odd tale of the writer's involvement in a weird turn of events where he was hell-bent on helping a friend from his past. At the time, I found myself frightened for him, while (knowing Eric from our previous Moviebytes conversations) I fervently hoped that I was actually reading a well-conceived marketing ploy for his script-story world. (Posted: 09/04/2005)

  • Adam Farasati and Ethan Furman are All About Rizzle Pizzle Sizzle
    Writing together for about four years Adam Farasati and Ethan Furman have written four scripts together, but it was "Rizzle Pizzle Sizzle" that got them their first sale. Actually when the script first went out it was passed on by every studio. However, a woman named Jennifer Klein who Farasati had interned with out of college loved the script and promised she would sell it. After a few weeks of meetings and more meetings the screenwriters had almost given up when Klein called and said, "I fulfilled my promise. I sold the script." (Posted: 08/28/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Other Assets of the Script
    (Posted: 08/20/2005)

  • Scott Swan and Drew McWeeny's Cigarette Burns
    Scott Swan and Drew McWeeny's "Cigarette Burns" is an episode of the original Anchor Bay/Industry Entertainment series "Masters of Horror," an anthology program. (Posted: 08/13/2005)

  • Jessica Postigo: From Tauromaquia to The House of the Scorpion
    Jessica Postigo has a few things going on in her screenwriting career. The first script that got her attention was titled "Tauromaquia," which is the art of bullfighting. The story takes place in 1470 B.C. on the island of Crete. Basically, it's a love story between a bullfighter and a bull dancer. They come from two different clans that are forbidden to interact with each other, much less love one another. At the height of their romance, she is killed by his nemesis. The surviving lover sets out to revenge her death.

    "Tauromaquia" became her calling card, which in turn got her hired to write "House of the Scorpion" for Warner Bros. (Posted: 08/07/2005)

  • Josh Sternfeld's Winter Solstice
    Josh Sternfeld's screenplay "Winter Solstice" might be his first, but it attracted a strong cast (Anthony LaPaglia and Allison Janney) and looks to be a memorable independent film. (Posted: 07/30/2005)

  • Ben Olson's Blind Deal
    Ben Olson recently wrote the horror film "Hum" for Escape Artists after he had originally sent the company a spec script that was "scary as hell," he explains. His collaboration with the production company worked so well that they subsequently gave him a blind deal. Not too bad for a screenwriter who doesn't even live on one of the two coasts. (Posted: 07/24/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Submission Strategy & Creating Buzz
    (Posted: 07/18/2005)

  • Adam Sztykiel: the Sequel
    Adam Sztykiel, interviewed on Who's Buying What as a first time writer back in September, 2003, has scored another script sale, this time for a screenplay called "Adopted" about a couple who mistakenly adopt a grown man. (Posted: 07/04/2005)

  • Kim Barker: Vancouver Meets Hollywood for this Screenwriter
    Kim Barker is a Canadian screenwriter who took a real life situation and turned it into a script called "License to Wed," which she in turn sold to Warner Bros. While she says that living in Los Angeles can make a difference for a screenwriter, overall she doesn't feel that living in Vancouver has changed her chance for success. If you can write, she believes, that's really all that matters. (Posted: 06/28/2005)

  • Forgotten Screenwriter Gerald DiPego Underscores the Value of a Great Spec
    Since breaking in, Gerald DiPego has penned many successful features, including last year's intensely compelling "The Forgotten" starring Julianne Moore. His powerful stories hold audiences entranced and have attracted talented stars including John Travolta, Jennifer Lopez, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Sean Connery and Kevin Costner. (Posted: 06/19/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Representation: Working with with Managers
    (Posted: 06/12/2005)

  • Writer/Director Doug Atchison
    Many aspiring screenwriters are leery about entering screenplay contests. However, 39 year-old former school teacher Doug Atchison can attest to their credibility after winning the prestigious Nicholl Fellowship in 2000 and having his screenwriting career change over night. (Posted: 06/05/2005)

  • Screenwriter Hadley Davis
    When Disney wanted an ice skating script, they didn't turn to Hadley Davis. When Disney wanted an ice skating script that worked, they did. Using her own life as a template, Davis, 33, wrote "Ice Princess," her first screenplay to get the green light. (Posted: 05/30/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Representation: Working with Agents
    (Posted: 05/22/2005)

  • Stewart Lyons Taking His 'First Shot'
    Stewart Lyons has been working in the film industry for a long time. He has been a line producer and production manager, most recently working on the television show "The Division." However, his real happiness seems to have come from getting a screenplay optioned; it's clearly his real love. (Posted: 05/15/2005)

  • 'Inside, Upside, Downside Hollywood,' an interview with screenwriter Daniel Pyne
    Chris Diestler checks in with screenwriter Daniel Pyne, who has several produced screenplays to his credit, including "The Manchurian Candidate," The Sum of All Fears," "White Sands," "Doc Hollywood," and "Pacific Heights." He also wrote, produced and directed the feature film "Where's Marlowe?" for Paramount Pictures. (Posted: 05/08/2005)

  • Amy Fox Soaring to New Heights
    Amy Fox is originally from Colorado, but moved to New York City seven years ago to pursue a writing career. In addition to screenwriting, she is also a playwright and has had her plays produced in New York City and around the country. Her recent script "Heights" is based on a short play that was produced in 2000. Merchant Ivory saw the play and commissioned Fox to adapt it into a feature-length screenplay. (Posted: 05/03/2005)

  • Ari Margolis and Jim Morley III are Not Forsaken
    Ari Margolis and Jim Morley III recently sold their latest script "Forsaken" a horror thriller about a group of wanna-be criminals sitting around telling ghost stories while they're waiting for things to cool down following their first big score. Much to their chagrin, one of the ghost stories turns out to be true and monsters are infesting the forest around them. (Posted: 04/25/2005)

  • Screenwriter Julian Phillips
    Julian Phillips is screenwriter living in San Luis Obispo. Not too far from Los Angeles, but far enough that he has the opportunity to find some pretty interesting stories outside of the world of Hollywood. (Posted: 04/18/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Choices for Mapping Your Career Strategy
    Part 2: Jobs, Independent Films & Networking
    (Posted: 04/10/2005)

  • Innovative Artists' Pat Quinn Talks About Producing
    Pat Quinn, agent extraordinaire from Innovative Artists, has been around for 20 years in Hollywood and she really knows her stuff. Her advice? Get produced! (Posted: 04/03/2005)

  • Margot Black - Trying to Make it Stinkin' Rich
    Margot Black's latest project, "Stinkin' Rich" was picked up by CAA after an agent saw her during a live stand-up routine. (Posted: 03/28/2005)

  • Trigger Street Independent's Adam Kassen Seeks Filmmakers and Screenwriters
    Last September, a fresh production company appeared on the horizon with an approach to making movies that's certain to open new doors for screenwriters and filmmakers. The company, Trigger Street Independent, is headed by brothers Adam and Mark Kassen and is a sister company to Trigger Street Productions and triggerstreet.com, which are run by Dana Brunetti and Kevin Spacey. (Posted: 03/19/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Choices for Mapping Your Career Strategy
    Part 1: Genres & Adaptations
    (Posted: 03/13/2005)

  • Winship Cook: On Writing and Selling the Great Roles
    As Vice President of Development and Co-Producer for The Edward S. Feldman Company, Winship Cook selects and packages screenplays for potential development. (Posted: 03/06/2005)

  • 'Slo-Mo' Screenwriter John Krokidas Taking it Slow in New York
    John Krokidas did his time in Los Angeles and moved back to New York after a year in Hollywood. His goal: to attend film school and write and direct films. His reason: 10 years of interning and being, as he says, pretty bad at it. He recently took a short film he wrote and produced called "Slo-Mo" and made it into a feature-length screenplay. Krokidas then turned around and sold it to the company he had worked for while living in Los Angeles. (Posted: 03/01/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriters Dave Posamentier and Geoff Moore
    Dave Posamentier and Geoff Moore got representation after writing their first script together, a project titled "Veteran's Day," but that script was not their first sale. Instead these two former development executives were hired to adapt the novel "The Rule of Four." (Posted: 02/21/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Writing That Sells
    (Posted: 02/13/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Greg Lichtenstein
    Greg Lichtenstein lives in Los Angeles and recently sold his first script "Big Baby" (co-written with Adam Mazur) to Warner Bros., with Raja Gosnell attached to direct. (Posted: 02/06/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Paul Davidson
    Paul Davidson recently sold his first script, "Grounded," to Ascendant Pictures. "Grounded" is the story of an intergalactic dictator who goes undercover as a high school science teacher after crash-landing in Nebraska. (Posted: 01/30/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: James White's Big Break With Ray
    James White has been in Los Angeles for years (over 20 to be exact), but it took him this long to get his first screenplay produced. He is very specific when he says "this is my first produced screenplay, but I am not a first-time writer." By that he means that he has been writing forever, but projects just seemed to end up in development hell. (Posted: 01/24/2005)

  • Success comes sooner than expected for Ali Russell
    Florida native Ali Russell had been in Los Angeles for less than a year, and written a single script, when she developed a friendship with a reader at a literary agency. The friend agreed to have someone at the agency read and provide coverage on her script.

    Russell was excited. Until, that is, her friend called a few weeks later and asked, "Are you sure you want to read this coverage?" The reader had completely trashed her script, "Erin Go Bragh," an action-drama set in historic Ireland. (Posted: 01/11/2005)

  • HollywoodIQ:
    Target Your Market:
    Homework First
    (Posted: 01/09/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Corey Azevedo
    Corey Azevedo got his first chance in Hollywood when he went to work for Writers and Artists Agency and then agent Dave Phillips. He recently sold his first script "Saturday Night Special." (Posted: 01/03/2005)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Clayton Surratt
    Clayton Surratt lives in New York City "on the beautiful Upper East Side of Manhattan," he says. It is where he where he penned the screenplay "342," his first sale. (Posted: 12/27/2004)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Cindy McCreery
    In two months time, newcomer Cindy McCreery sold two screenplays, the first to Disney and the second, titled "Soccer Mom", to New Line. She was the winner of a Disney/ABC Feature Writing Fellowship in 2003. (Posted: 12/13/2004)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter Joe Aucoin
    Joe Aucoin, also known as Joey, lives in Los Angeles, grew up in Orange County and recently made his first screenplay sale with a script called "K Thru 12" to New Line Cinema. MovieBytes talked to him recently about his screenwriting career and his advice to those going down the same career path as his own. (Posted: 12/07/2004)

  • Looking for another way to break in?
    Try turning your idea into a comic
    It isn’t the right avenue for every script or story idea, but a recent deal between comic book publisher Platinum Studios and Gold Circle Films has opened up a new path for beginning screenwriters to jump-start their careers. (Posted: 11/30/2004)

  • James Raymond's Country Girl
    James Raymond lives in Los Angeles where his script, "Country Girl" was recently sold to New Regency. He recently signed with the management company Bondesen/Graup. (Posted: 11/16/2004)

  • Writer/Producer Bo Zenga
    A native of the Jersey Shore and a graduate of the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Bo Zenga went to L.A. with little more than a dream of making it as an actor. But he succeeded instead as a producer and a writer. He exec produced the original "Scary Movie" and recently wrote and produced "Soul Plane." (Posted: 11/09/2004)

  • The Orphan's Club: J.P. Saladin and the Art of Storymaking
    J.P. Saladin is not your average newbie. A man of letters, a small business owner and a founder of a non-profit, he's an articulate spokesperson for waiting to find your unique voice. As an unproduced screenwriter, he sold his pitch, The Orphan's Club, to Disney. (Posted: 11/02/2004)

  • The Two Highest Paid Screenwriters Around, and They Still Haven't Even Been Produced
    When Daily Variety mentioned Bobby Florsheim and Josh Stolberg in a recent article, the story was that these writers were the highest unpaid writers in Hollywood, in other words, they've sold, but haven't seen anything produced. (Posted: 10/27/2004)

  • Rob Reese & Gary Jonas Find Option Through 'Bottled Water, Practice and Cussing!'
    When Rob Reese and Gary Jonas pitched their action/thriller "The Seventh Hour" at this year's Screenwriting Conference in Santa Fe (www.scsfe.com), they caught an option with Lucky Crow Films Producer Kerry David (executive producer, "Agent Cody Banks" movies). Kerry said she requested their script "because they pitched it beautifully and grabbed my interest from minute one." (Posted: 10/19/2004)

  • Lucky Crow Films Producer Kerry David: Forging New Paths for Screenwriters & Independent Filmmakers
    Producer Kerry David, best known as the executive producer behind the successful theatrical films, "Agent Cody Banks," and "Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London," hopes her efforts will propel talented screenwriters into winning careers. (Posted: 10/08/2004)

  • Blake McCormick and his Ghosts of 21
    Blake McCormick lives in Hermosa Beach, CA, where he recently sold his first script to 20th Century Fox, called "Ghosts of 21." Coming as a shock even to him, McCormick confides that frankly, the movie industry is still a mystery, but one he is willing to learn more about, no doubt. (Posted: 10/03/2004)

  • HBO's Bettina Moss Shares Hope For Screenwriters
    HBO's Bettina Moss believes that almost any idea can be polished into a precious jewel-if the writer is willing to do the work. She carries her encouraging outlook into her private consulting with writers, where she finds and offers hope. (Posted: 09/26/2004)

  • Stepping in the Name of Love with Carl Seaton & Kenny Young
    Carl Seaton and his partner Kenny Young recently sold their first script, "Step in the Name of Love." Not letting opportunity pass them by, both Seaton and Young seem to have a knack for figuring out how to make opportunity come their way, witnessed by their ideas and motivation in regards to the business of filmmaking. (Posted: 09/21/2004)

  • Bart Baker Honeymoons with Harry
    Bart Baker is a produced screenwriter, but unsold novelist. But that didn't stop him. He wrote a novel, "Honeymoon With Harry" and recently sold the rights to the screenplay even before the novel has been published. (Posted: 09/07/2004)

  • Selling Her Second Script: Susan Brightbill
    Susan Brightbill recently sold her second spec script, this time to Fox 2000. A romantic comedy called "Twice Upon a Time," which she reportedly received mid-to-six figures for, Brightbill's humor is refreshing and her advice well given. (Posted: 09/01/2004)

  • Screenwriter Matthew Weiss
    Matthew Weiss, a 2001 graduate of the NYU film school, is a screenwriter whose first job was actually a rewrite on a film that was not his own. (Posted: 08/24/2004)

  • Todd Stein Faces His Coincidences
    As Todd Stein thought about his latest script, the fourth one he has written and the first one he has sold, he contemplated coincidences, airplanes flying overhead and the fact that perhaps all the small things in life really do have meaning. (Posted: 08/10/2004)

  • Joe Stillman meets Shrek 2
    Joe Stillman is the only writer who worked on the screenplay for both "Shrek" and "Shrek 2." While there have been other writers along the way for both films, Stillman's presence has no doubt kept the story of our favorite hero consistent. "It was just the way it worked out," Stillman says modestly. (Posted: 08/03/2004)

  • Jeanne Rosenberg: From Black Stallion to Imax' Young Black Stallion
    Jeanne Rosenberg wrote the original "Black Stallion" movie. Therefore, it is no surprise that for the prequel to the 1979 family favorite, she has again penned the screenplay, this time called "The Young Black Stallion," this time shot for IMAX. (Posted: 07/27/2004)

  • Screenwriter Steven Adams, by William H. Sokolic
    Sometimes it really is who you know. Steve S. Adams got his first produced screenplay with the help of a dear - and very successful - friend. Indeed, Larry David made the successful pitch for "Envy" on Adams behalf. (Posted: 07/20/2004)

  • Screenwriter Valerie Horwitz
    Valerie Horwitz was once wheeling and dealing in Silicon Valley as a securities lawyer among other things, but it took her mother getting sick and her taking some time off to realize what she really wanted to do with the rest of her life. (Posted: 06/29/2004)

  • Screenwriter Sheldon Turner
    From his first script sale to his current projects with the likes of Adam Sandler, Will Smith and Ice Cube attached, Sheldon Turner has definitely come far in five years. (Posted: 06/22/2004)

  • Kara Holden finds success through her 'Inner Bitch'
    It was something an acting coach once told aspiring actress Kara Holden: She was never going to make it in the business if she couldn’t learn to release her “inner bitch.” (Posted: 06/15/2004)

  • Joshua Shelov: Facing His Own Hooligans
    Joshua Shelov is a New Yorker who still makes his home in New York, Brooklyn to be exact. His screenplay "Hooligans" was recently sold and he now has a job writing a feature for MGM. (Posted: 06/01/2004)

  • The Brothers Hageman, Making It in Hollywood
    Kevin and Daniel Hageman, referred to as the Brothers Hageman in Hollywood, are originally from Oregon, but are now happily ensconced in Los Angeles, California. Their screenplay "The Nightmare of Hugo Bearing" was their big break and as they say, "CAA got a hold of Nightmare and they responded to it. It became our calling card and doors started opening." (Posted: 05/25/2004)

  • Nathan Skulnik: First Sale Leads to Success
    Nathan Skulnik made his first sale, "The Hostage", after sending his original spec script around and being told that, while it was good, it wasn't exactly what the studios were looking for. Deciding to take fate into his own hands he and a writing partner, Kenwood Youmans, wrote "The Hostage" a action film with a bit higher stakes and more to the studios liking. (Posted: 05/18/2004)

  • Screenwriter Joel Silverman
    Joel Silverman has been at screenwriting for awhile. It fact, it even took him three years just to get an agent. Nowadays, he has sold 11 scripts or pitches and recently directed his script "Death to the Supermodels." One thing he does say that he has learned in this business: not every script has to be a sweeping emotional masterpiece. (Posted: 05/04/2004)

  • Tom Schulman Welcomes Us to Mooseport
    One of Tom Schulman's first successes was not only writing the screenplay, "Dead Poet's Society," but also winning an Academy Award. Now, a decade-plus later, Schulman is still writing great screenplays, including the recent release "Welcome to Mooseport" starring Gene Hackman and Ray Romano. (Posted: 04/27/2004)

  • TV Writer Bryan Fuller
    Bryan Fuller got his start writing for “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and became a co-producer/writer for “Star Trek: Voyager”. More recently, he co-created and co-executive produced “Wonderfalls”, with Todd Holland, and wrote the pilot for “Dead Like Me” and the TV movie “Carrie.” (Posted: 04/19/2004)

  • Torque Sends Screenwriter Matt Johnson Into the Blue
    Screenwriter Matt D. Johnson sold several specs prior to breaking through with TORQUE, the first of his projects to make it to the screen. He was subsequently hired to write INTO THE BLUE based on his own idea, and accompanied director John Stockwell to the Bahamas for rewrites during the production. (Posted: 04/06/2004)

  • English Professor Makes Good: A Chat with Dave Kajganich
    Dave Kajganich is a model of screenwriting success, relying on strategic low-level marketing and perseverance to land his first sale. Having a Masters in Fine Arts doesn't hurt, either. His horror spec script, TOWN CREEK, recently sold to Warner Brothers. (Posted: 03/30/2004)

  • Ron Anderson: From in-house Disney Writer to a First Spec Sale
    Ron Anderson graduated from USC Film School at just the right time. It was the right time because he immediately ended up getting his foot in the door at Disney just when they were starting the "Disney Writers Program." He worked as an in-house writer at Disney for one year, then, as luck would have it, Revolution Film Studios asked him to do an assignment for them called "Tour Guide." His latest success is his first spec sale to MGM called "Wheels of Fire." (Posted: 03/23/2004)

  • Matt O'Neil: First Script, First Sell
    Matt O'Neil recently sold his first screenplay, "Street." He identifies with his main character because he says the two of them are so much alike, "we would dominate the NBA if only given a chance." (Posted: 03/16/2004)

  • First-time Writer Marc Wolff
    The first thing Marc Wolff says is that he wants to get something straight. The plot description in his film "My Velouria" that appeared in Daily Variety, and has since been disseminated elsewhere, is false. "There are no vampires in the script," he says. (Posted: 03/03/2004)

  • First-time Writer Kevin Walsh
    Kevin Walsh is a New Yorker. His script "The Answer" reflects his understanding of the East Coast and how often, money and power can lead people to greed and corruption. (Posted: 02/24/2004)

  • Zack Morrisette and Jason Harris Meet their 'Bad Guy'
    Zack Morrisette and Jason Harris grew up across the street from one another in New Hampshire, but never imagined they would one day create a comic book together and have a deal with Paramount Studios for the screenplay. (Posted: 02/18/2004)

  • First-time writer Johnny Rosenthal
    Johnny Rosenthal lives in Manhattan where he recently sold his script "Arrested Development." Getting his start as a writer came easier for him that one would think: Miramax optioned the film rights to an unpublished book he wrote and then hired him to adapt the book into a screenplay. Currently working on spec ideas and trying to decide on his next assignment, Rosenthal talks about his script "Arrested Development" and inside industry tips. (Posted: 02/03/2004)

  • Mission Management's Trevor Engelson
    Trevor Engelson started an assistant for Nick Osborne at Underground Films, and then partnered with Osborne to launch Mission Management. (Posted: 01/27/2004)

  • Kaplan/Perrone Literary Manager Aaron Kaplan
    Aaron Kaplan started out at one of the big agencies, but soon realized his love was management and working with new writers. Now representing about 20 writers, he and his partner Sean Perrone enjoy going to work everyday, and it shows. (Posted: 01/20/2004)

  • Benderspink Literary Manager Mason Novick
    Mason Novick has a nice list of clients, and offices out of Benderspink, doing his own thing and managing clients that he believes in for the long haul. (Posted: 01/13/2004)

  • Juliet Snowden and Stiles White: The Waiting
    Juliet Snowden and Stiles White recently sold "The Waiting" to Wes Craven's Production company and Dimension. Since that time they have worked on the rewrite for the "Untitled Boogeyman Movie" for Screen Gems with Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert producing and Stephen Kay directing. (Posted: 12/30/2003)

  • Literary Manager Mikkel Bondesen
    Mikkel Bondesen and his partner Jeffrey Graup were recently named on "Fade In" Magazines "Top 100 Hollywood Rising Stars." In addition to literary representation, Bondesen and his partner are also involved in producing films and they currently have quite a few projects in various stages of production and pre-production. (Posted: 12/16/2003)

  • Working On the Devil's Crew: An Interview with Alex Harakis and Ravi Bains
    Alex Harakis and Ravi Bains live in London, England where they both wanted to write a historical action story - their English roots no doubt. Lucky enough to get their script "Devil's Crew" to Bob Sobhani at Zide-Perry, Sobhani agreed to manage the writers eventually helping them sell the script to MGM. (Posted: 12/02/2003)

  • John Brownlow, by Rita Cook
    John Brownlow was born in England and destined to study Math at University until one day he decided that English was more to his liking. Told to write an essay of his choice, he decided on Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes as his muses and so began his writing career. Brownlow recently penned the film starring Gwyneth Paltrow, "Sylvia" making both Plath and Hughes come alive with a depth and richness unlike many recent screenplays from that era. (Posted: 11/18/2003)

  • Eric Barker: Kid's Movies, But He's No Kid
    Eric Barker imparts wisdom about selling screenplays in Hollywood like he has been doing it his entire life. With only his second sale, "Pet Store" which was bought by Twentieth Century Fox, he seems to have a wisdom beyond his years. It's easy to see how his latest success will certainly catapult him into a well-known name in screenwriting circles. (Posted: 11/04/2003)

  • Andrew Jarecki's Documentary Captures the Friedmans
    "Capturing the Friedmans" was the winner of the 2003 Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, a good end to a film that has taken Andrew Jarecki quite a few years to complete. (Posted: 11/01/2003)

  • Energy Entertainment's Brooklyn Weaver
    "My job is to find new, unique voices, introduce them to the town and get their career started. When the time is right, we find an agency team who's passionate about them and can help take their career to the next level," says literary manager Brooklyn Weaver. (Posted: 10/27/2003)

  • Thirteen: An Interview with Catherine Hardwicke
    MovieBytes checks in with Catherine Hardwicke, director and co-writer of THIRTEEN, a raw and heart-wrenching look at the life of a thirteen year old girl. (Posted: 10/21/2003)

  • Ken Youmans' Ode to Wisconsin
    With the sale of his screenplay "Cheeseheads" Ken Youmans can now proudly say he has sold not one, but two, scripts in Hollywood. Growing up in California, Youmans took a break from California Dreamin' to go to school in Wisconsin and get an entirely new perspective on life. That perspective, it seems, was worth quite a bit more than he bargained for since he parlayed it into a script that Martin Landau gave a nod to and that Miracle Entertainment realized they couldn't do without. (Posted: 10/14/2003)

  • Julianne Carlile Takes An Independent Path
    Julianne Carlile followed up on a lead posted by MovieBytes, and as a result, in February, wound up in New York watching her screenplay being filmed. (Posted: 09/30/2003)

  • First Time Writer Adam Sztykiel
    In the slow moving world of Hollywood, Adam Sztykiel's story takes place in less than a week, and there is absolutely nothing slow about it. Sztykiel wrote his script "Maid of Honor" in four weeks and was finishing the polish when everything began. He got a call from his manager while he was visiting his family in Detroit and they asked him if he could meet with UTA the following day for possible representation. He flew back to Los Angeles that night, met with UTA the next morning and five days later "Maid of Honor" was sold. Columbia Pictures purchased the film and Neal Moritzs' Original Pictures will produce it. (Posted: 09/24/2003)

  • Who's Buying What Interview: Screenwriter/Director Brian Helgeland
    Writer/director Brian Helgeland talks about his new horror film, THE ORDER. (Posted: 09/16/2003)

  • Cynthia Whitcomb’s Best Advice: Write Parts the Stars Want to Play, Be True to Your Own Vision And Keep Rolling The Dice
    Hollywood has produced 25 of Cynthia Whitcomb’s screenplays. She has sold more than 70 scripts. A sampling from her prolific body of work includes “Buffalo Girls” (Anjelica Huston, Melanie Griffith), “Selma, Lord, Selma” (Wonderful World of Disney with Mackenzie Astin, Jurnee Smollett, Clifton Powell) and “Guilty Until Proven Innocent” (Martin Sheen, Brendan Fraser). She has been honored with countless awards and prestigious nominations including the Emmy Award, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Humanitas Award, Paul Selvin Award (WGA) and Cable Ace Award. Her personal story about breaking in both confirms and defies conventional advice. (Posted: 09/02/2003)

  • WBW Interview: Writer/Director David Twohy
    David Twohy went to film school at Cal State, Long Beach and spent six years tending bar while writing before he optioned WARLOCK. Since then he's compiled an impressive list of credits as both a writer and director, including THE FUGITIVE, G.I. JANE, IMPOSTER, GRAND TOUR, THE ARRIVAL, PITCH BLACK, and BELOW. (Posted: 08/26/2003)

  • It's In the Craft: An Interview with Richard Krevolin
    Richard Krevolin is an award winning author of 16 screenplays, 12 stage plays, and three published books. Two of his screenplays, both adapted from his own stage plays, are now in development: "King Levine" and "Lawrence of Suburbia." (Posted: 08/19/2003)

  • An Interview with Shane Black
    Shane Black is a well-known legend in Hollywood. His first screenplay, right out of graduating from the University of California, at Los Angeles (U.C.L.A.), got him meetings all over town, at the young age of 24. In 1990, he became the highest paid screenwriter in the history of Hollywood, at that time, when he made 1.75 million dollars for "The Last Boy Scout." In 1996, Black outdid even himself when he earned 4 million dollars for "The Long Kiss Goodnight." (Posted: 08/06/2003)

  • For Jacob Estes, Nothing Beats Hard Work
    When Jacob Estes' script, "Mean Creek," was selected to be workshopped in the Eugene O'Neill Center's National Playwrights Conference, it set off a sequence of events that eventually led to Estes directing that film. During his month-long stay at O'Neill, Estes says "Mean Creek" matured. He later won the Nicholl fellowship and got into AFI's directing workshop with that same script, which lead to a writing assignment adapting a novel into a screenplay and the independent production of "Mean Creek" (Whitewater Films). Estes claims hard work, personal development and persistence have brought him this far, boasting that he has only been rejected by The Sundance Lab eight times. (Posted: 07/31/2003)

  • Jim Spivey Pitches "Brevity is the Key"
    Last February, Jim Spivey pitched a script called "Stag" to producers during five-minute pitch sessions at the Screenwriting Conference in Santa Fe (SCSFe). Then called "Stag," it was a story that nobody seemed to want. In October, he returned to Santa Fe and pitched "Stag" again. This time, three producers showed interest (with two others wanting to see other material)! Within six weeks, that script was optioned by David Zuckerman, who is Producer/Director of Development, Silver Lion Films ("Crocodile Dundee In L.A."). (Posted: 07/22/2003)

  • ANATOMY OF A SUCCESS: An Interview With Susan Brightbill
    Susan Brightbill sounds almost jolly over the phone. And why not? She just sold her spec script, HERGATORY, to Warner Brothers. The journey to that sale reads like a course in Savvy Screenwriting. Proactive, clever and determined, Susan has lessons for all those writers still in the pre-sale trenches. (Posted: 07/01/2003)

  • "Be Prepared for Lucky Accidents," An Interview with Screenwriter and Instructor Ian Abrams
    You may recognize Ian Abrams as the screenwriter from the movie "Undercover Blues," (Kathleen Turner, Dennis Quaid) or as the creator of the TV series "Early Edition." With 20 years in the business, he has also worked as a Hollywood script doctor and producer. (Posted: 06/24/2003)

  • First Time Writer Craig Sabin
    Craig Sabin's path to writing screenplays began when he was in high school. Sabin and a friend wrote a short film called "Killer Tennis Balls," which they finished prior to the release of the film "Killer Tomatoes." "I thought I'm in the zone," Sabin recalls. While he says he always knew he wanted to be a screenwriter, he took up acting first. "I think I always wanted it [screenwriting], I just never understood or believed I could get there. So I pursued acting for a few years." (Posted: 06/17/2003)

  • If Screenplays are our Babies…
    Writer Colleen Ventimilia has had an amazing, whirlwind year and takes the time from her busy schedule to provide us with an update and share her experiences in this follow up to our original Who's Buying What interview, published in December, 2001. (Posted: 06/03/2003)

  • Minority Report's Jon Cohen
    With the success of the high-profile "Minority Report," you'd think screenwriter, Jon Cohen, would go Hollywood. Not a chance. Cohen lives in the same college town in suburban Philadelphia he grew up in, and he couldn't be happier. (Posted: 05/27/2003)

  • Michael and Ted Peterson's First Sale - HELL WEEK
    Horror movies have grabbed the attention of the movie-going public lately so it's no surprise that the Peterson brothers, Michael and Ted, have had success with their own horror script "Hell Week," a catchy title that had actually never been used before. (Posted: 05/20/2003)

  • Writer/Director Roger Avary
    Roger Avary might well be known for his association with Quentin Tarantino and "Pulp Fiction," but his films "Killing Zoe" and "The Rules of Attraction" are uniquely his own. (Posted: 05/06/2003)

  • Writer/Director Joe Carnahan
    Joe Carnahan recounts the numerous challenges he faced writing and then directing the critically acclaimed "Narc", starring Jason Patric and Ray Liotta. (Posted: 04/29/2003)

  • Former Advertising Copywriter Collin Chang
    Collin Chang is an advertising copywriter turned screenwriter who recently sold his first script called "Meet Jane Doe." His writing partner, or collaborator as he calls Chris Soth a former teacher of his at UCLA, called Chang up one day to write a script together. The rest, as they say, is history. (Posted: 04/22/2003)

  • Russell Gewirtz: No Doors Slammed in his Face
    Some people just have a charmed life. Some people are just lucky. Russell Gewirtz is one of those people. But you can't dislike him for it because he really is a nice guy. His story is not the common Hollywood tale. After all, how many writers sell their first script to Universal? Gewirtz did and now he not only has his first sell with his script "The Inside Man," but Ron Howard is attached to direct and he has an agent at prestigious CAA. (Posted: 04/09/2003)

  • Make It Look More Expensive Than It Is: An Interview with Jeff Daniels, Part II
    In part two of our interview with actor/writer/director/producer Jeff Daniels, he discusses some of the logistics of his independent film productions. (Posted: 04/01/2003)

  • Surprise Me: An Interview with Jeff Daniels, Part I
    Best known as an actor, Jeff Daniels is also a writer/director of independent films that's he's producing and distributing through his Michigan-based company, Purple Rose Films. (Posted: 03/25/2003)

  • Producer Kate McCallum Tells Writers, "We Need You ... Go with the Confidence of That"
    If you've written a script for Hollywood, Kate McCallum knows where it belongs. Having spent most of her twenty-plus years in the business working with writers and showrunners (in addition to writing herself), she develops and pitches features and series concepts to such potential buyers as the major networks, Lifetime, TNT, Showtime, MTV, Nickelodeon and The Disney Channel. (Posted: 03/18/2003)

  • Interview: Josh Harmon & Scott Elder, by Heath Davis Havlick
    Scott Elder and Josh Harmon are really nice. Didn't anyone tell them you'll never get anywhere in Hollywood by being nice? Apparently not. Well, it's easier to retract the claws when you've worked for a major studio and have connections, but Josh and Scott are a testament to the idea that it's not just who you know but how well you write that counts. They sold their first script to Disney and are hard at work on rewrites. (Posted: 03/03/2003)

  • An Interview with Jeremy Bell from Foursight Entertainment, by Samantha Plotkin
    Jeremy Bell and the other founders of Foursight Entertainment (Michael Lasker and George Heller) started their management company while they were all still students at the USC Film School. Recently, everything came full circle when they sold THE SPY NEXT DOOR to Dimension, since the screenwriter, Joe Ballarini, was a classmate of theirs at USC and their first writing client. They have placed clients with almost every major agency. (Posted: 02/25/2003)

  • When the Writer is Ready, the Marketing Will Come
    Larry N. Stouffer has sold three scripts and two of those have been produced. His most recent script, Waitin' to Live (a collaboration with Nick Felix) was shot in January of this year and directed by Joey Travolta. (Posted: 02/18/2003)

  • Interview with Jeff Arch, by Samantha Plotkin
    Jeff Arch, the Academy-nominated screenwriter of “Sleepless in Seattle,” took some time out of his insanely busy schedule to tell us how a brilliant script can get you into Hollywood. (Posted: 01/28/2003)

  • Believe in Your Story: An Interview with Christine DeSmet and Peggy Williams, by Cindy Rinaldi
    They work tirelessly to develop writers and find inspiration in the accomplishments of others. They're also a couple of no-bones go-getters that are carving out their own success. Passion is the first requirement of any story they write. Christine DeSmet and Peggy Williams are past winners of the Slamdance Film Festival writing contest, fellowship graduates of the Warner Brothers TV Sitcom Workshop, and members of Writers Guild of America, East. Peggy is president of the Wisconsin Screenwriters Forum while Christine serves as the chairperson of its board of directors and coordinator of the WSF critique services. They have a project in pre-development with New Line Cinema, but have also optioned other material to LA producers. Christine teaches an online screenwriting course for University of Wisconsin-Madison and leads an annual screenwriting retreat in June at the UW. Peggy teaches a screenwriting mini-course for the University of Wisconsin's Union program and freelances writing corporate and educational videos. (Posted: 01/21/2003)

  • Interview with Scott Rosenberg by Samantha Plotkin
    Scott Rosenberg has written “Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead,” “Beautiful Girls,” and “Disturbing Behavior.” He’s also worked on bigger films such as; “Spider-Man,” “Imposter” (adaption credit), “Armageddon,” “Gone in Sixty Seconds,” and “Con Air.” His latest movie is “Kangaroo Jack”. (Posted: 01/18/2003)

  • Script Magazine Interviews Brooklyn Weaver
    Check out this interview with Brooklyn Weaver, who's set up 15 projects in 15 months, mostly with first-time writers. Originally published in Scr(i)pt Magazine. (Adobe PDF Format.) (Posted: 01/14/2003)

  • Finding Forrester's Mike Rich, by Randy O'Brien
    After over two decades on the air, radio reporter Mike Rich knew why traffic and weather should be together, but he had no idea how to tell the story of the movie he had in his head. After two attempts at screenwriting with little encouragement, he fell upon the idea for a reclusive writer pulled from his shell by a teenager with a genius IQ and a killer jump shot. And that has made all the difference. (Posted: 12/26/2002)

  • An interview with Charles Bohl, by Rita Cook
    Charles Bohl been working in the industry for 16 years, and his pleasant demeanor and genuine humbleness comes through as he speaks, explaining how he has marketed his work and sold his scripts, including the recent Twentieth Century Fox release, "Swimfan." (Posted: 11/29/2002)

  • Sam Schreiber Interview, by William H. Sokolic
    Sam Schreiber accomplished the kind of twofer unheard of from a screenwriter without a track record. In less than two weeks, the novice writer saw his script for Heart of Summer get the greenlight from New Line, while the company's ChickFlicks subsidiary optioned Sticks & Stones. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interivew by William H. Sokolic. (Posted: 10/31/2002)

  • Who's Buying What Interview with Script Analyst Berkeley Hunt, by Kim Townsel
    Berkeley Hunt lives in Los Angeles and is a professional script analyst and consultant. When Berkeley read and suggested changes to a friend's stories, she discovered she had a knack for discerning story elements and later segued that skill into a career. She reads for several companies, including Village Roadshow, where she reviews spec scripts, evaluates writing samples and their authors to see if they rate being hired, and comments on new drafts of projects in development. (Posted: 10/03/2002)

  • Stephen Mazur Enjoys the Process by Cindy Rinaldi
    A successful co-writer on films such as "Liar, Liar," "Heartbreakers," and "The Little Rascals," Stephen Mazur has completed original works and rewrites for studios including Warner Bros., Disney, DreamWorks, Imagine, MGM/UA and Universal. Currently, he's working on "The Crooked E" for CBS Television and is also an instructor for USC, AFI, and UCLA Extension. (Posted: 09/19/2002)

  • Interview: James (John Q.) Kearns, by William H. Sokolic
    How many screenwriters can boast their first-produced script stars Denzel Washington, Robert Duvall and James Woods. James Kearns scored such a coup with "John Q," the tale of a father who takes on the health care system to save his son. What's more, he sold the script twice - to two different studios. (Posted: 09/05/2002)

  • Interview with ICM's Christopher Lockhart By Kim Townsel
    Christopher Lockhart, Executive Story Editor at International Creative Management (I.C.M.), finds and evaluates projects for possible big screen productions for a handful of actors, including Mel Gibson, Denzel Washington, Liam Neeson, Richard Gere, Paul Walker, Matthew McConaughey, and Steve Martin. Chris earned a Master in Fine Arts in dramatic writing from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. (Posted: 08/22/2002)

  • Two Sides of a First Sale, by Marla Hayes
    Mark Hatmaker's MAMA'S BOY was picked up last fall by producer Rich Hall of the production company, A Happy Place. Hull had originally optioned the script a few years earlier when he had his own production company, Avalanche Entertainment. In this exclusive Who's Buying What interview, Marla Hayes interviews both Hatmaker and Hull. (Posted: 08/10/2002)

  • Max Wong of Pink Slip Pictures Nurtures 'Baby Writers',
    by Randy O'Brien
    'Baby writers' is not a derogatory term when used by Pink Slip Pictures producer Max Wong. It just means the writer in question hasn't matured to the level where he or she has produced a marketable script. So, it's up to the writer to complete the script, ask friends and peers to review it and make sure it's as mistake free as possible before sending it to someone. (Posted: 07/27/2002)

  • Interview: Brad Gann, by Heath Davis Havlick
    You'd never know this was Brad Gann's first interview. He's funny, down-to-earth and practical– very willing to talk about the hard work and pitfalls involved in a screenwriting career and humble enough to admit the role luck plays. His spec script, "Static", incited a bidding war, won finally by Columbia. With new projects lined up as a result of his sale, this interview is surely the first of many. (Posted: 07/12/2002)

  • Interview: Scott Johnson, by Patrick Sauer
    Scott Johnson sold his first script, the drama 'Book of Kings', to Davis Entertainment last fall, and is interviewed here by his former roommate, Patrick Sauer. (Posted: 06/27/2002)

  • Sharon Y. Cobb Says, "Reject Rejection" by Cindy Rinaldi
    Before writing scripts for Hollywood, Sharon Y. Cobb owned and operated an advertising and marketing agency. She has also been a magazine editor, publisher and freelance journalist. After years of working as a successful writer in Hollywood, her first script to be slated for theatrical release, "A Flight of Fancy," is now in production. Originally titled "Sage of Waldo," it is one of her earlier scripts. She has also sold a comedy, "Return of the Sweetbirds," to Fox 2000 and an action movie-of-the-week, "On Hostile Ground," to TBS. (Posted: 06/13/2002)

  • Manager Marc Hernandez Activates Crescendo, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Prior to forming Crescendo Entertainment Group, Marc Hernandez was a literary manager with Zide/Perry Entertainment; Vice President of Development for ShowBIZ Data. Before that, he was an assistant (and considered quite industry-savvy) in the literary department of United Talent Agency. (Posted: 05/30/2002)

  • Writer David H. Steinberg, by William H. Sokolic
    Going from corporate lawyer to screenwriter cost David H. Steinberg a bundle of bucks. Instead of taking home a six figure salary arguing cases in court, he earned $6 an hour as an intern at MGM in Los Angeles. But the career switch paid off. Steinberg sold his third script, SLACKERS, to Destination Films in 1999, and the film recently opened. The script sale also led to an assignment to help write AMERICAN PIE 2. (Posted: 05/30/2002)

  • Literary Manager Brian Overland, by Samantha Plotkin
    Brian Overland started Overland Management three and a half years ago in Washington DC. As the only manager at Overland Management, he reads every one of the scripts that he requests on his own. Since he lives and works in Washington, he doesn’t believe in the old adage, that a screenwriter has to live and work in Los Angeles. More than half of his clients are outside of the Los Angeles area. (Posted: 05/16/2002)

  • Eric Heisserer: the Sequel, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Eric Heisserer was featured as our first interview in this series after selling his spec "The Manifestant" to Artisan. We thought it might be interesting to check-in again, a little over a year later. What follows is an honest but strong dose of the reel deal sometimes in store for writers when the fanfare dies down. In Eric's own words, "Just so happens I have an economy-sized bottle of Industry Reality right here. Hold your nose, because it reeks." (Posted: 05/02/2002)

  • Contest Winner Ken Hastings, by Carlos Harrison
    Screenwriter Ken Hastings worked as a club DJ when he saw the call for the very first Final Draft Big Break International Screenwriting Contest, barely a month before the deadline. He pounded out the winning script by writing "every waking moment," FedExing it in on the very last day for entries. Write what you know, they say, and he did. He got the idea for Dawg watching and listening to the strutting macho men around his apartment complex swimming pool. Now, it's in the can (starring Denis Leary and Elizabeth Hurley) and looking for a distributor. (Posted: 04/20/2002)

  • Screenwriter in a Fugue State: Interview with Alon Kaplan, by Jerry Weinstein
    Just as Andy Warhol’s once ironic slogan, "everybody will be famous for 15 minutes" has become an entitlement, everybody also expects to be an overnight success. But truth be told, the screenwriter who "hits it," more often than not, is a seasoned writer. In screenwriting terms, it has taken Alon Kaplan nearly a decade for those 15 minutes to arrive. (Posted: 04/04/2002)

  • First-time Writer Mirko Betz, by Heath Davis Havlick
    Mirko Betz, a native German, bucked the odds and found success with his first screenplay, "Light of Peace". He studied the craft and business of screenwriting, prayed a lot and got a lucky break– but ultimately, it came down to one inspired, gutsy query letter and Mirko's passion for film. Reading his improbable story will likely infect screenwriters with that same passion. (Posted: 03/21/2002)

  • Producer Steven Pearl, by Carlos Harrison
    Producer Steven Pearl believes in the power of the Internet, and its ability to give writers and producers unprecedented access to each other. He has good reason to. He discovered the first-time writers of his two most recent projects - Lone Star State of Mind (Screen Gems, due to be released April 12) and the highly acclaimed Shining White (optioned by Digital Domain) - through cyber-searches. (Posted: 03/07/2002)

  • Writer/Producer J.J. Abrams by Samantha Plotkin
    J.J. Abrams talks about some of his early successes (and setbacks!) in this exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Samanatha Plotkin. (Posted: 02/21/2002)

  • First-time Writer Meghan McCarthy Sells 'The Bachelorette' to Universal, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Lady Luck might wink or blink, and other days she seems to be napping. One thing’s for certain though, those with talent to burn aren't content to merely sit around and wait. Take, for example, Meghan McCarthy, whose spec screenplay, "The Bachelorette," recently sold to Universal Pictures. (Posted: 02/08/2002)

  • Patricia Burroughs, A Dreamer Redeemed, Wins Nicholl Fellowship, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Patricia Burroughs has recently won one of the five open spots in the annual Nicholl Fellowship. Her story is even more dramatic since, one year earlier, she had been named a Nicholl finalist with a different script. (Posted: 01/25/2002)

  • Contest Finalist Colleen Ventimilia Sells 'Good Cook' to New Line Cinema, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Colleen Ventimilia believes screenplay competitions had a bit of a welcome hand to play in her original feature screenplay, "Good Cook, Likes Music," winning industry notice. The script was recently sold to New Line Cinema with Adam Sandler and actress Zhang Ziyi set to star and Sandler’s Happy Madison Productions also committed to produce. (Posted: 12/13/2001)

  • Bruce Meade's 'In a Nutshell' Optioned After Exposure on Zoetrope Web Site, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Bruce Meade has been a member of Francis Ford Coppola’s American Zoetrope "Virtual Studio" workshop since June 22, 2000. In August 2001, his original comedy feature, "In A Nutshell," was optioned by Custom Productions due to exposure on the Zoetrope web site. (Posted: 11/15/2001)

  • Manager Brooklyn Weaver by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Manager Brooklyn Weaver seeks to identify and do business with lesser-known writers, and has sold three different scripts from newcomers over the last several months. (Posted: 11/01/2001)

  • Highly Honored Screenplay 'Shining White' Optioned by Digital Domain, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Shawn Lawrence Otto's original feature screenplay, SHINING WHITE, won the Heathcote Art Foundation Fellowship for Best Screenplay at the 1999 Independent Feature Film Market and was presented in the Fifth Night Reading Series at the Nuyorican Poets Café (both in New York City). In Otto's home state of Minnesota, the same screenplay garnered the 1999 Barry Morrow Fellowship in Screenwriting, was awarded $10,000 in the 1999 IFP/McKnight Screenwriting Fellowship and a $25,000 grant by the Minnesota Independent Film Fund (MIFF 2000). The Hollywood Reporter on May 29, 2001, broke the story that SHINING WHITE had been optioned by Domain Films (the production arm of Scott Ross's visual effects house Digital Domain, which was co-founded with James Cameron). Given the array of awards and accolades which the screenplay, SHINING WHITE, has accrued, it should come as little surprise that 'champions' are continuing to rally behind this project. (Posted: 10/18/2001)

  • Aiello's Bump With Success, by Rita Cook
    Paul and Patrick Aiello are brothers who have found a good way to write screenplays: together. They recently sold their film "Bumper to Bumper" to Twentieth Century Fox and it is slated to be produced by well-known producer Robert Kosberg. (Posted: 10/04/2001)

  • Mark L. Smith Sells "The Devil's Kiss" through ScriptShark.com, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Mark L. Smith had been writing screenplays for six years before hooking up with Bender/Spink through a submission to ScriptShark.com. Within five days, his screenplay "The Devil's Kiss" sold to Paramount. (Posted: 09/20/2001)

  • First-timer Kyle Long Sells 'Million Dollar Fan' to Deep River Productions, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Twenty-eight year old Kyle Long seems to be an example of the film industry’s famed adage: Write a great script and they’ll find you. He’s known his manager, Brooklyn Weaver (who formed Energy Entertainment with partner Joel Viertel) for little more than this past year. Long recalls, "I started writing screenplays around five years ago. I didn't go to film school or take any screenwriting classes -- I basically learned how to write a decent script by writing a whole bunch of bad ones first. The script I sold, THE MILLION DOLLAR FAN, was only the second script I've written that I thought was good enough to show people." (Posted: 09/06/2001)

  • Brent Weindling Sells 'Pearls' to Columbia, by Rita Cook
    Brent Weindling hooked up with an agent after winning the Diane Thomas Award at UCLA Extension, and wound up selling the very first screenplay he ever wrote, "Pearls Before Swans" in a mid- against high-six figure deal in October of 2000. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What Interview by Rita Cook. (Posted: 08/23/2001)

  • The Drama Behind Kien Nguyen's First-Time Sale, by Susan Flakes
    The drama behind the writing – let alone the selling – of Kien Nguyen’s book THE UNWANTED to a publisher and to a major producer is like a film in itself. And a particularly dramatic film because at first Kien didn’t think that he wanted to write the book. Then, once the book was written, he didn’t think that he wanted to have it published, and having it made into a film was the furthest thing from his mind. But major and dynamic ‘characters’, some in the publishing and film world, came into his life and helped turn it all around for him. (Posted: 08/09/2001)

  • Matt Odgers and David Markus: Selling 'Shudder', by Rita Cook
    Matt Odgers and David Markus are both in the entertainment business and have been for years. But it wasn't until their recent sell of a script called "Shudder" to New Line Cinema that they were noticed for their talent as screenwriters. (Posted: 07/26/2001)

  • Eric Wald sells first script after entering, not winning, contest, By Zack Van Eyck
    Winning a screenwriting competition can be a tremendous boost for an aspiring writer, but what about losing? UCLA's Eric Wald entered his school's screenwriting competition but didn't make the final cut. He received the ultimate in consolation prizes, though. His script was discovered by one of the judges, a production company executive, and soon sold for $450,000 against $600,000 to Miramax. (Posted: 07/13/2001)

  • Literary Manager Andy Cohen, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Charles Memminger's manager, Andy Cohen of Grade A Productions, found him via the Maui Writers Conference Screenplay Competition and was gracious in sharing his knowledge of how the industry works from his vantage point. We were particularly interested in how competitions can reap business activity and interest for the winners, and how any writers seeking such notice (especially from agents, managers and entertainment attorneys) might best approach this essential area in jump-starting their own Hollywood careers. (Posted: 06/30/2001)

  • Charles Memminger Parlays Contest Success into TV Gig, by Didi S. DubelyeW
    MovieBytes reader Charles Memminger parlayed success in the Maui Writers Conference Screenplay Competition into a staff job on Baywatch Hawaii. Does it get any better than THAT? Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Didi S. DubelyeW. (Posted: 06/16/2001)

  • An Interview with Jon Hurwitz and Haydn Schlossberg by Rita Cook
    First-time writers Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg were still college students when they sold their raunchy sex comedy "Filthy" to MGM in a low-six figure deal in March of 2000. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Rita Cook. (Posted: 06/02/2001)

  • Connections, pseudonym help Greg Longstreet break through, by Zack Van Eyck
    Greg Longstreet used a pseudonym to sell his raunchy spec comedy "No Class" in the Feburary of 1999, but has subsequently sold a second screenplay under his own name, as well as two TV pilots, and is now working on a new feature spec. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Zack Van Eyck. (Posted: 05/19/2001)

  • First Timers @ Who's Buying What: New York-based brother and sister writing team of Martin and Marjorie Sweeney "network" their way to Hollywood
    The New York-based brother and sister writing team of Martin and Marjorie Sweeney "networked" their way to Hollywood. Using a combination of chance introductions, advice and guidance, the sibling duo maintain that having an open mind and the ability to produce results are what will take your talent to the next level. Without stepping near Los Angeles until the deal was almost set in stone the team was able to attract the attention of producer Nicholas Osborne who, over the course of a year, would shepherd the Sweeney's through the creation of a script that he felt he would sell. Marjorie Sweeney fills us in on the rest in this exclusive Who's Buying What interview. (Posted: 05/05/2001)

  • First Timers @ Who's Buying What: MovieBytes Subscriber PJ McIlvaine's persistence leads to Showtime deal
    MovieBytes subscriber PJ McIlvaine's teen comedy "My Horrible Year," formerly titled "Annus Horribilis," was purchased and is now being filmed by Showtime with Mimi Rogers and Karen Allen starring in Eric Stoltz's directing debut. It is scheduled for a spring 2001 release. (Posted: 04/21/2001)

  • College education pays off for James Vanderbilt, by Zack Van Eyck
    James Vanderbilt was a USC film student when he sold his first screenplay, "Independence, Mississippi", two days before graduation. "It was fantastic," he said. "We sent it out on a Monday. It was in at every studio by Tuesday and got bought Wednesday. Thursday, my parents flew in. Friday, I graduated." (Posted: 04/06/2001)

  • Sarah Thorpe by Patrick Sauer
    Sarah Thorpe sold the first screenplay she ever wrote ("See Jane Run"), and was hired to direct the project, as well. She's gone on to write scripts for Universal and MTV, among others. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Patrick Sauer. (Posted: 03/24/2001)

  • Nick Veronis by Quendrith Johnson
    First-time screenwriter Nick Veronis is also a first-time director, and didn't wait around for someone to buy his script, opting instead to produce the $86,000 film on his own. (Posted: 03/10/2001)

  • Greg Grabianski by Zack Van Eyck
    Move to Los Angeles and DON'T sign with an agent. That's some of the advice offered by comedy writer Greg ("Completely Pathetic") Grabianski in this exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Zack Van Eyck. (Posted: 02/24/2001)

  • Simon Kinberg, Part III, by Patrick Sauer
    In the final installment of our three part series, Simon Kinberg discusses the value of film school and the value and danger of Hollywood "heat." Careful what you wish for! (Posted: 02/09/2001)

  • Simon Kinberg, Part II, by Patrick Sauer
    In Part II of our wide-ranging interview with one of Hollywood's brightest new writers, Simon Kinberg discusses his working relationship with his agency and management company, and the mind-set he uses to approach a work-for-hire project like Disney's "Gargoyles." (Posted: 01/27/2001)

  • Simon Kinberg, Part I, by Patrick Sauer
    Write what you DON'T know. That's the strategy Simon Kinberg employed on "Ghouls of New York", a 19th century thriller he wrote as a graduate student at Columbia University, and later sold to Redeemable Features. In part one of this wide-ranging, inspiring interview with one of Hollywood's brightest and most prolific new writers, Simon Kinberg offers insight into the process of pitching, and the appeal of genre filmmaking. (Posted: 01/12/2001)

  • Lisa Lutz by Elizabeth English
    "It’s probably really, really hard to actually kill someone," says Lisa Lutz, about her idea for a screenplay that recently finished production, starring the irrepressible Diane Keaton. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview. (Posted: 12/30/2000)

  • Ben Loory by Rita Cook
    Although his original intention was to direct, Ben Loory wrote two scripts while at the AFI screenwriting program and often helps his screenwriter friends with their scripts, which is how he ended up as one of the screenwriters on his first sale, "The Code." The script was an idea his friend, Jason Marx, had thought up years before and had pitched around town. After Egg Pictures became interested in the pitch Loory sat down with Marx to help him write the outline and from there the two wrote the script. Read more in our exclusive Who's Buying What Interview. (Posted: 12/16/2000)

  • Mike Giardi by Zack Van Eyck
    Mike Giardi was teaching junior high school math in the San Fernando Valley when he finished his second feature-length screenplay, "Winners," in the spring of 1998. The comedy didn't get a lot of laughs during its first six months of existence, though, because it sat in Giardi's desk drawer. Learn how he got it out of the drawer and on its way toward the big screen in our exclusive Who's Buying What interview. (Posted: 12/02/2000)

  • E. Lynn Harris by Fran Harris
    There are no screenwriting contests in E. Lynn Harris' past, and he couldn't begin to tell you whether 90 or 120 pages is better for your offbeat comedy script. Yet his advice to all writers is sound and simple: Don't write for the money; write what you are passionate about and the rest will fall into place. Harris has taken what is becoming a traditional route to movie making success. He's a best-selling novelist who's about to descend upon Hollywood. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview. (Posted: 11/18/2000)

  • Chris Parrish by Zack Van Eyck
    Chris Parrish, who made his first script sale in April 1999 ("Syndey Crawford Wants to Bone Me"), read and wrote coverage for more than 1,000 screenplays in four-plus years (1994-99) as a reader, and heartily advises anyone hoping to sell a screenplay to read plenty of scripts, preferably produced screenplays. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Zack Van Eyck. (Posted: 11/06/2000)

  • Peter Steinfeld by Sonya Alexander
    Most screenwriters look down their noses at television writing, but it can be a BIG foot in the Industry door. When Peter Steinfeld first moved first moved to L.A. he had high hopes of selling his first screenplay. However, after six months he was still doing low-paying production work. Then he caught a break and got some invaluable advice from Chazz Palmienteri. He sold an MOW, and then it wasn’t long until he sold his first feature, “Drowning Mona.” He was finally on his way after only a short time in L.A. Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview with the author of "Drowning Mona." (Posted: 10/20/2000)

  • Literary Manager Peter Miller by Susan Flakes
    Peter Miller takes pride in being an advocate for writers in a business that is notorious for taking advantage of them. In this exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Susan Flakes, he discusses his sale of first timer Kien Nguyen's "The Unwanted", a dramatic memoir of his struggle for survival as an Amerasian boy in post-war Vietnam. (Posted: 10/13/2000)

  • Alexi Hawley by Chris Muniz
    Based in New York, Alexi Hawley has recently sold his script "Chasing Shadows," a thriller about a man who uses his psychic gifts to stalk and kill serial killers to Artisan Entertainment in a deal valued at low-to-mid-six figures. He is represented by Nicole Graham at Writers & Artists in New York and managed by Lisa Santos of Santos-Fischer Management in Los Angeles. (Posted: 10/06/2000)

  • Jay Lavender by Sarah Sternau
    First-time writer Jay Lavender ("the Bear and the Bull") offers some important insights into what new writers can do to invite opportunity in this exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Sarah A. Sternau. (Posted: 09/22/2000)

  • Andrew Fishman by Zack Van Eyck
    Tampa native Andrew Fishman didn't go to film school, or any college for that matter. He didn't attend expensive screenwriting seminars, he didn't win a contest, he didn't even move to Los Angeles. What did he do? He sold his first completed screenplay. Learn how is our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Zack Van Eyck. (Posted: 09/08/2000)

  • Attica Locke by Didi S. DubelyeW
    Guided by self-awareness matched with perseverance, writer-director Attica Locke is further grounded in her deeply-rooted love of family, and a well- developed business acumen. She's slated to direct "59," a debut feature film from her original script. Attica's story and attitude will undoubtedly inspire others to rekindle passion towards their own personal film goals. (Posted: 09/05/2000)

  • Michael Cordell by Patrick Sauer
    Screenwriter Michael Cordell sold his first script while living in Virginia, and offers some no-nonsense encouragment and advice in this exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Patrick Sauer. (Posted: 08/25/2000)

  • LaJoyce Brookshire by Amelia Feathers
    LaJoyce Brookshire is the first African American writer to novelize a major motion picture, and is now at work on the screenplay of her self-published novel, "Web of Deception." Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Amelia Feathers. (Posted: 08/22/2000)

  • Ali Rushfield and Jenni Konner by Susan Flakes
    The "dynamic duo" screenplay writing team of Alexandra (Ali) Rushfield and Jennifer (Jenni) Konner, who early in their career have landed three paid writing assignments, each from a major studio – Sony, New Regency, Warner Bros. – have two solid pieces of advice for fellow screenwriters. One: just write it. Two: "fire" your agent if you’re not getting what you want and think you deserve, even if the agency happens to be William Morris. (Posted: 08/11/2000)

  • Christopher McQuarrie by Sonya Alexander
    The pinnacle for most screenwriters would be to receive an Oscar. The odds of garnering one at all are slim…the odds of garnering one by your first or second script are virtually nil. However, a relatively unknown writer from Jersey, Christopher McQuarrie, was able to capture the seemingly elusive little gold statuette with his second produced screenplay, "The Usual Suspects." What ingredients did he use to write and sell his first project that helped him have the icing on the cake so early in his career? Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Sonya Alexander. (Posted: 08/10/2000)

  • Philip Stark by Zack Van Eyck
    Philip Stark was a year out of college in the summer of 1996 when he moved to Los Angeles with a 1990 Toyota Celica, $800 in cash and one spec screenplay. Today, Stark is in his third season as a writer on the hit Fox television series "That ‘70s Show." His first sold screenplay - "Dude, Where's My Car?" - is in production and set for a spring 2001 release. How'd he do it? Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview by Zack Van Eyck. (Posted: 07/28/2000)

  • Ira Israel by Sonya Alexander
    Have you written your umpteenth script and can't fathom the notion of writing another one that you can't sell? Or, have you just finished your first script, giddy from the high of such an accomplishment, and you feel ready to tackle the world but don't know where to start? Well, screenwriter Ira Israel can relate to and shed some light on both scenarios. He has been writing for a long time, but, finally, his hard work seems to have paid off with the recent release of his film "Live Virgin." (Posted: 07/27/2000)

  • Ellen Rapoport by Elizabeth English
    Harvard-educated attorney, Ellen Rapoport, a 26 year-old single New Yorker, wrote her spec screenplay, CLOSURE, a road-trip comedy, and sold it to Summit Entertainment. The film is in development, looking to attach the right director and talent. The big dream of all wannabe screenwriters? You bet. How’d she do it? Check out our exclusive Who's Buying What interview. (Posted: 07/15/2000)

  • Stephen Kogon by Paul Freeman
    When Stephen Kogon moved to L.A. from Maryland, he brought two spec scripts and dreams of success. Now, nine years later, those dreams appear to be on the verge of fulfillment. Working with children played a major role in Kogon’s screenwriting development, including his first sale, Capital Kids, to Michael/Finney Productions. (Posted: 07/01/2000)

  • David Howard by Susan Flakes
    After the success of "Galaxy Quest", our interview with David Howard offers a bit of encouragment to writers trying to sell their scripts without an agent, and also a bit of real world advice: get qualified legal representation. (Posted: 06/17/2000)

  • Eric Heisserer by Didi S. DubelyeW
    In early 2000, Eric Heisserer vaulted a triumphant leap over the 'first sale' wall when Artisan Entertainment purchased his feature screenplay, THE MANIFESTANT. In this exclusive Who's Buying What interview (first in a series), Eric generously offers tongue-in-cheek insights with an equally strong dose of smarts. (Posted: 06/10/2000)

Features (free!)

  • Make Your Query Work
    It is as important as the opening page to your script. Your query will tell the reader what kind of writer you are. A showcase for your skill and creativity, it will also demonstrate your professionalism and ability to do homework and follow instructions. (Posted: 08/11/2006)

  • The Screenwriter's Secret Weapon
    Often a script will get "bumped up" in a screenplay competition as a result of attention-grabbing subject matter, but won't become a finalist because the story gets lost somewhere in the second act. (Posted: 07/21/2006)

  • Pitching is a Hot Topic (Learn about the Dreaded Art!)
    While writers squawk over the sweat and tears of script revisions and the like, when it comes to pitching many would rather face a surgeon's scalpel. The idea of confronting "the man" with the stakes on the moon, and cleverly rendering the consummate sales pitch can be so traumatic that one might even consider a new career in leaving town. (Posted: 04/28/2006)

  • Sponsortainment = Opportunity
    The marketplace for hiring writers is changing. One of the causes is the influx of consumer products and services companies creating programming which features their brands in various media. These companies are investing dollars in program development and they are beginning to hire writers. (Posted: 03/18/2006)

 

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