Screenwriting
Filmmaking - Screenwriting
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A Cinema of Gestation: On Returning to Filmmaking After a False Start, Multiple Life Changes, and 14 Years of Motherhood
Von Rohr on set with actors Raúl Castillo and Mitzi Akaha. (Photo: Nick Dawson)
A Bird Came Down is both a short and a feature-to-be by Heather von Rohr, produced by Nick Dawson, Editor of the Talkhouse and Filmmaker‘s former Managing Editor, and Emmett Kerr-Perkinson. In the guest essay below, von Rohr discusses the… Read more
Is Final Draft the Final Answer? On Alternatives to the Popular Screenwriting Software
Photo: Christin Hume, courtesy Unsplash
If you’re a screenwriter or want to be a screenwriter, then at some point you will have used Final Draft. Co-founded in 1990 and now in its 12th version, the Final Draft screenwriting software boasts both a user-friendly interface and… Read more
How the Oscar Contending Song “Brasília Bella” Is the Key to Watergate Film 18½
Vondie Curtis Hall, Catherine Curtin, Willa Fitzgerald and John Magaro in 18½
In making my Watergate historical fiction film 18½, I always knew that coming up with a consistent musical soundtrack was going to be essential for balancing the tone of a film that swings from comedy to thriller to drama at… Read more
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On‘s Team on IP Development at Gotham Week 2022
Jenny Slate provides the voice of Marcel the Shell
Several years back, Jenny Slate and Dean Fleischer-Camp traveled with friends to attend an out of town wedding. Opting to scrimp on lodging costs, the duo shared a crowded hotel room with four other friends. Slate just happened to be… Read more
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“What if the Worst Thing That Could Happen Actually Happened?”: Director/Co-writer Christian Tafdrup on Speak No Evil
Two European families—one Danish, one Dutch—meet during a picturesque Italian vacation in Christian Tafdrup’s Speak No Evil. Their bond is immediate, and soon enough the Dutch couple enthusiastically invite the Danes to visit them in Holland. The gesture is friendly enough, but the sincerity of the statement isn’t necessarily taken at face value. Shortly after the Danes—Bjørn (Morten Burian), Louisa (Sidsel Siem Koch) and their daughter Agnes (Liva Forsberg)—return to their well-kept abode, they receive a postcard in the mail. As it turns out, the Dutch family was completely serious about their offer, inviting them to visit their home in […]
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(Screen)Play Press Launches, Announces Six Inaugural Titles
Mexican-American filmmaker Eva Aridjis announced today the launch of (Screen)Play Press, which will publish scripts that have not yet been developed into feature films. Founded by Aridjis and fellow filmmaker/screenwriter Christine Vartoughian over a cup of coffee this past May, the first six titles published by (Screen)Play Press specifically spotlight scripts written by women. Each title will be available in paperback and e-book versions. “What we’d really love to emphasize is how many great un-produced screenplays we know are out there, and our desire to get these stories out into the world regardless of whether or not a film version […]
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“This Experience Really Felt Rare”: Justin Ducharme on Sundance Native Lab 2022
With the Sundance Native Lab having returned to a (hybrid) in-person model for the first time in two years, Filmmaker asked 2022 fellows to reflect on their recent experiences through short diary entries. Read the rest of the 2022 cohort’s responses. It’s an interesting thought process trying to find the right words to describe my time at the Sundance Film Festival’s Native Film Lab. From the beginning. there was an obvious feeling of kismet, an almost too good to be true energy to have when going into any creative development lab, let alone one from an institute like Sundance. But I guess […]
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“I’m Talking Emotional Tension in the Room”: Taietsarón:sere “Tai” Leclaire on Sundance Native Lab 2022
With the Sundance Native Lab having returned to a (hybrid) in-person model for the first time in two years, Filmmaker asked 2022 fellows to reflect on their recent experiences through short diary entries. Read the rest of the 2022 cohort’s responses. After a week of online Zoom meetings and activities, it was finally time to fly to Santa Fe for our in-person portion of the Native Lab. My first time traveling in ages. One of the rare flights during the end of the pandemic. As soon as I got to the gate, I immediately recognize two other people going to the lab […]
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“The Excitement Everyone Is Feeling Is Infectious”: Daniel Pewewardy on Sundance Native Lab 2022
With the Sundance Native Lab having returned to a (hybrid) in-person model for the first time in two years, Filmmaker asked 2022 fellows to reflect on their recent experiences through short diary entries. Read the rest of the 2022 cohort’s responses. I will begin this by saying that my path to the Sundance Native Lab is anything but traditional. I was born in Lawton, Oklahoma and currently live in Wichita, Kansas where I work as a public librarian. Before 2022, the only writing anyone would associate with me was stand-up jokes and memes. Filmmaking was a lifelong passion of mine, but something I […]
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“I Can Create and Be Grounded in My Own Path”: Tiare Ribeaux on Sundance Native Lab 2022
With the Sundance Native Lab having returned to a (hybrid) in-person model for the first time in two years, Filmmaker asked 2022 fellows to reflect on their recent experiences through short diary entries. Read the rest of the 2022 cohort’s responses. Sundance Native Lab was a transformative time that deeply reaffirmed my practice, giving me confidence in my work that I never had before. A huge part of it was being grounded by other Indigenous writers in my cohort and in the care of such amazing leaders such as Moi—I felt I was in a safe space to share my script in its […]
