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Screenwriter Interviews
MovieBytes Interview:
Screenwriter J. Elizabeth Martin
An interview with screenwriter J. Elizabeth Martin regarding the Acclaim TV Writing Competition.
Q: What's the title of the script you entered in this contest, and what's it about?A: “Awakening” is the story of a young woman who develops extrasensory powers and finds herself pulled between a powerful telepath with a dark past and a dangerous, secret agency bent on controlling her. It’s a thriller with a lot of action and a dash of sci-fi. The nice thing about the story is that the heroine is a real “girl next door type”, that is, until her powers appear. It was originally written as a feature but I saw it had a TV Series potential. I wrote a treatment and continued refining the story until it became an exciting pilot. It’s still available as a feature as well.
Q: What made you enter this particular contest? Have you entered any other contests with this script? If so, how did you do?A: I like both the Acclaim contests because of the feedback. Most contests don’t have any. I had done well with a "Stargate SG-1" script in the TV contest (Finalist) and decided to enter my feature “The Road to Ravenscar” and the pilot “Awakening” in the TV and Film contest in Spring 2004. I was fortunate to place in both contests with both scripts. The feedback is brief but helpful and I have found the organizers are professional.
Q: Were you satisfied with the adminstration of the contest? Did they meet their deadlines? Did you receive all the awards that were promised?A: I was very happy with the contest and received my awards promptly.
Q: Were you given any feedback on your script? If so, did you find the feedback helpful?A: The feedback was brief but helpful. It can be very hard, starting out, to get feedback. Acclaim has that and prizes too!
Q: Has your success in this contest helped you market your script? Were you contacted by any agents, managers or producers?A: I did not get contacted about my win. I think that’s the trade off of doing smaller contests. I really didn’t expect to – especially with TV scripts. I'm still looking for an agent or manager...nudge, nudge.
Q: What's your background? Have you written any other screenplays or television scripts?A: When I placed in Acclaim, I had a couple TV specs and a feature. Now I have a handful of both covering many genres. I’m a former film student who worked in computers for many years before returning to screenwriting.
Q: Do you live in Los Angeles? If not, do you have any plans to move there?A: I live in San Diego. I'm moving to Los Angeles this year.
Q: What's next? Are you working on a new script?A: I’m working on a new feature – a thriller. I've been updating my TV spec scripts to keep them current as well as researching agents and managers. On top of all that, I'm working with a local prod co developing new TV shows and sending out queries for my features. So much to do! Check out www.jemartin.net for more information...
Posted Wednesday, May 11, 2005
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