Deluxis: The Blog

What Makes 'Twilight' So Good? (Thoughts From a Fan)

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 09:45:18 -0700

There’s no denying it. Twilight (and consequently vampires) are hot right now. With the upcoming theatrical release of the much-anticipated Twilight: Breaking Dawn - Part 1, we take some time with a true fan to explore why the Twilight Saga is so popular with so many people. For storytellers, there are plenty of insights here regarding creating a compelling story for a target audience. (Mild spoiler warning with the last question.)

Why do you love Twilight and what got you reading/watching it?

I’ve always been interested in vampire novels ever since I read the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles. I had not heard of Twilight until a friend of mine recommended it to me. What I love about Twilight is that it’s a classic “boy loves girl, girl loves boy but something is keeping them apart” kind of novel. This theme harkens back hundreds of years, but a classic example is Romeo and Juliet (no I’m not comparing the two ;-)), but there’s a twist because the male protagonist is a vampire. As soon as I started reading the novels, I was completely immersed in Stephanie Meyer’s setting. These books are geared for teenagers (specifically female teenagers), so the writing is very easy to read and the storyline moves quickly. I wouldn’t say I love these books but I’m definitely a fan of the stories.

What are some noticeable attributes of Stephanie Meyer’s writing style?

As stated above, her audience is a typical teenage girl. The writing is easy to read with a lot of dialogue and it moves quickly. I think this appeals to anyone looking to escape into a book that has a good story and is an “easy read.” She’s very good at describing the emotions of the characters as well as developing a scene. She thinks of every aspect which helps create a full picture in the mind of the reader.

How do you think the writing could be improved?

This is a hard question to answer. I have no issues with her writing style. I think those who claim to not like these novels dislike it because of the storyline, not because of the writing.

How does the Twilight experience differ on paper than on screen?

I think the directors have done an excellent job of recreating the stories so far. It’s challenging to bring a story to film when so many people have already read the books. They imagine certain characters and scenes as being a specific way. There’s also always way more information in a book than there can be in a film. And the film is really the director and screenwriter interpretation.

Are you looking forward to Breaking Dawn?

Of course. It’ll be interesting to see how the deal with a half vampire child that ages rapidly. ;-)

Margit Keerdo - Resources for Screenwriters and Finding Inspiration

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 09:24:00 -0700

Freelance screenwriter Margit Keerdo knows what it takes to succeed in the industry. With degrees in cinematography and directing, and a masters in screenwriting, her talents have channelled themselves into such works as the award-winning series Life: Class After. Today, she shares some of her trade tips and tricks with us.

Who are you and what inspired you to become a screenwriter?

I’m a freelance screenwriter living in Leeds, UK. I also do script consulting on the side, and lately, I’ve started tinkering with other forms of fiction such as short stories and stage plays.

I discovered screenwriting through filmmaking. At first I wanted to study art and become a painter but I changed my mind. I already knew I wanted to study film when I got my first job on a film crew (it was a Production Assistant on a feature film) and I then went on to have a degree in Cinematography and Directing. During that four-year course I had to write my own projects to have something to film which is where I discovered writing – I realized I enjoy working with stories – trying to figure out how to get into a character’s head and how to make a story work. I’ve had lots of different jobs on films – from video assistant to 1st AD; I’ve shot, directed and edited which all has been a great experience. I think my training as a cinematographer also helps with screenwriting and seeing the visual side of the story. Some years ago I completed an MA in Screenwriting and since then I’ve been working as a full-time screenwriter.

One other source has had a great effect on my choice of occupation – the internet. As soon as I started taking interest in filmmaking, screenwriting was the subject on which there were absolutely tons and tons of information. So I read what was available and found out a lot more about screenwriting than I had planned. I think the internet has been an irreplaceable tool for a lot of writers – you can learn about the craft, read screenplays, see what other writers are up to, interact, and, of course, work with people who are thousands of miles away.

What are some things you wish you knew when you first started screenwriting? What inspires you to keep going?

In a way, I can’t say I wish I knew this or that because there are things that you can find out only over long periods of time, knowledge you gain through different experiences, which also makes it very rewarding. But, thinking about my first projects I think I either focused too much on plot or too much on character. I guess I wish I learned earlier how to intertwine character and plot. I used to tend to go for quirky with character-driven stories or too dark with plot-driven stories. The latter were too mechanical, just serving the purpose of an angle or a twist which probably made it difficult for the reader/audience to engage with the characters.

What keeps me going? Anger and curiosity. Anger in the sense that when some issue touches me or annoys me, either something on the news or something I read about, I know I should use it in my writing. I’m sure a lot of writers got annoyed about the ministers’ expenses scandal or the journalists’ phone hacking scandal or followed the updates on the riots in London and other cities, and I’m sure these issues will start showing up in fiction soon enough. So if I find myself ranting about some issue, I know it’s something I care about and I will try to write about it. But not just anger, also fascination (I sound like a very gloomy person, I’m not!). I’m curious. I think a writer should be. I’m curious about what’s going on in the world, I’m curious about how other people live. I don’t want to write about myself (in fact, answering these questions is difficult enough), I don’t like naval-gazing. I’m interested in psychology and social issues, and there’s an inexhaustible source of material if there ever was one!

What are some of the resources you like to tap as a screenwriter (events, sites, etc… I see in your blog that you attended the Drama Writers Festival)?

I read a lot, both fiction and non-fiction. At the moment I’m reading a book called Anger and Detachment which is a study of the works of three playwrights - Arden, Osborne and Pinter. It’s only a tiny book but it’s very insightful and it’s fascinating to read about the themes they wrote about and the techniques they used.

I watch a lot of films. We go to the cinema a lot and mostly it’s the art house cinema. I’m a fan of European cinema and American indies. I don’t watch TV at all. I haven’t owned a TV set for years. We have a neat little old TV station monitor for watching DVDs. I think it saves a lot of time and spares me from the amount of repetitive advertising you see on TV. I watch TV series on DVD which for a writer is a far more useful way of watching long-running stories because you get a lot better sense of the flow of the story in the whole season or several seasons.

I enjoy attending events such as public talks with writers and filmmakers, or discussions. The BBC has been organizing a TV Drama Writers’ Festival in Leeds which I’ve attended. There’s a Screenwriters’ Festival in London. It’s inspiring to hear other writers talk about their work and what makes them tick.

I’m also addicted to several books podcasts and a radio documentary podcast at the moment. The former have book reviews and interviews with writers, the latter is a good starting point for research as they dedicate each episode to a different issue, and it’s a good source for ideas. I think the procrastinator side of me would just listen to podcasts all day, maybe take some notes and not get any writing done at all.

I did once read a lot of screenwriting books but after a while you realize they are all about the same thing, and some try to force rigid rules on you. Books on playwriting, or any type of writing, can also be very useful. I’ve also found Stella Adler and Judith Weston very inspiring – what they say about acting and directing is very valuable for a writer as well.

What are you working on now?

I’ve got a couple of commissioned projects. One is an adaptation of a youth novel about a school kid who’s having difficulties with his new classmates, the other one is an Irish-Estonian co-production. There are several specs I’m trying to find time for – there’s a feature animation, a story about criminals, and one about a support group. I’m also tinkering with some short stories and stage plays. So much to do, so little time!

Blog (where I post notes from writers’ events): keerdo.wordpress.com

Twitter: @keerdo

No one knows more about the art of storytelling than those writing and producing stories for a living. If you’d like to be featured in a future post, please send a hello email to keane(at)deluxis.com. And be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more exciting Deluxis news.

5 Best Sites for Free Downloadable Screenplays

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 09:47:00 -0700

The best way to learn is often by example. Whether you’re an aspiring screenwriter or a veteran looking for some inspiration, reading through scipts of established films and television shows is a great way to learn more about your craft.

Here are five great sites for free downloadable screenplays. I looked for sites with healthy content lists and functional site design. If you don’t see a particular script in one site, go down the list and try another. You never know what you might find.

Simply Scripts - Not only does Simply Scripts include movie screenplays, but it also provides a good number of television scripts, musicals, plays and a handful of foreign films in their native languages.

Screenplays for You - The greatest strength of this site is its clean design and quick navigation: no dead links and a fast server.

The Internet Movie Script Database - Touted as “the world’s largest movie script resource,” IMSDb offers scripts for even newer films like Hanna and Bridesmaids (you know you want it). Sadly, there are a few annoying pop-ups.

The Weekly Script - With new scripts added each week, The Weekly Script offers properly formatted .txt files for universal accessibility.

Subscene - Rather than scripts, Subscene provides subtitle text along with the time codes for each entry. The site is particularly helpful if you’re looking for dialogue of rare foreign films in their native languages.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

The Hidden Obvious Guide to Making It in Hollywood: Secret #3

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 10:33:00 -0700

Handling Rejection.

I think this is going to be the shortest in this series, because all I want to do is provide an introduction to someone else’s post.

Rejection is something that everyone faces in their life. People in creative fields must face it more often. People in highly coveted creative fields, even more so.

The best advice in the world is that you must face rejection with grace and dignity. In a rare glimpse into what it is like to fail on a large and public scale, one of the credited screenwriters of Conan the Barbarian recently wrote an eloquent personal description of what massive rejection feels like:

UPDATE: ‘Conan The Barbarian’ Scripter Answers “What’s It Like To Flop At The Box Office?” And Then Answers Some More

When you work “above the line” on a movie (writer, director, actor, producer, etc.) watching it flop at the box office is devastating. I had such an experience during the opening weekend of Conan the Barbarian 3D.

A movie’s opening day is analogous to a political election night. Although I’ve never worked in politics, I remember having similar feelings of disappointment and disillusionment when my candidate lost a presidential bid, so I imagine that working as a speechwriter or a fundraiser for the losing campaign would feel about the same as working on an unsuccessful film.

One joins a movie production, the same way one might join a campaign, years before the actual release/election, and in the beginning one is filled with hope, enthusiasm and belief. I joined the Conan team, having loved the character in comic books and the stories of Robert E. Howard, filled with the same kind of raw energy and drive that one needs in politics.

Any film production, like a long grueling campaign over months and years, is filled with crisis, compromise, exhaustion, conflict, elation, and blind faith that if one just works harder, the results will turn out all right in the end. During that process whatever anger, frustration, or disagreement you have with the candidate/film you keep to yourself. Privately you may oppose various decisions, strategies, or compromises; you may learn things about the candidate that cloud your resolve and shake your confidence, but you soldier on, committed to the end. You rationalize it along the way by imagining that the struggle will be worth it when the candidate wins.

A few months before release, “tracking numbers” play the role in movies that polls play in politics. It’s easy to get caught up in this excitement, like a college volunteer handing out fliers for Howard Dean. (Months before Conan was released many close to the production believed it would open like last year’s The Expendables.) As the release date approaches and the tracking numbers start to fall, you start adjusting expectations, but always with a kind of desperate optimism. “I don’t believe the polls,” say the smiling candidates.

You hope that advertising and word of mouth will improve the numbers, and even as the numbers get tighter and the omens get darker, you keep telling yourself that things will turn around, that your guy will surprise the experts and pollsters. You stay optimistic. You begin selectively ignoring bad news and highlighting the good. You make the best of it. You believe.

In the days before the release, you get all sorts of enthusiastic congratulations from friends and family. Everyone seems to believe it will go well, and everyone has something positive to say, so you allow yourself to get swept up in it.

You tell yourself to just enjoy the process. That whether you succeed or fail, win or lose, it will be fine. You pretend to be Zen. You adopt detachment, and ironic humor, while secretly praying for a miracle.

The Friday night of the release is like the Tuesday night of an election. “Exit polls” are taken of people leaving the theater, and estimated box office numbers start leaking out in the afternoon, like early ballot returns. You are glued to your computer, clicking wildly over websites, chatting nonstop with peers, and calling anyone and everyone to find out what they’ve heard. Have any numbers come back yet? That’s when your stomach starts to drop.

By about 9 PM its clear when your “candidate” has lost by a startlingly wide margin, more than you or even the most pessimistic political observers could have predicted. With a movie its much the same: trade[s] call the weekend winners and losers based on projections. That’s when the reality of the loss sinks in, and you don’t sleep the rest of the night.

For the next couple of days, you walk in a daze, and your friends and family offer kind words, but mostly avoid the subject. Since you had planned (ardently believed, despite it all) that success would propel you to new appointments and opportunities, you find yourself at a loss about what to do next. It can all seem very grim.

You make light of it, of course. You joke and shrug. But the blow to your ego and reputation can’t be brushed off. Reviewers, even when they were positive, mockedConan The Barbarian for its lack of story, lack of characterization, and lack of wit. This doesn’t speak well of the screenwriting – and any filmmaker who tells you s/he “doesn’t read reviews” just doesn’t want to admit how much they sting.

Unfortunately, the work I do as a script doctor is hard to defend if the movie flops. I know that those who have read my Conan shooting script agree that much of the work I did on story and character never made it to screen. I myself know that given the difficulties of rewriting a script in the middle of production, I made vast improvements on the draft that came before me. But its still much like doing great work on a losing campaign. All anyone in the general public knows, all anyone in the industry remembers, is the flop. A loss is a loss.

But one thought this morning has lightened my mood:

My father is a retired trumpet player. I remember, when I was a boy, watching him spend months preparing for an audition with a famous philharmonic. Trumpet positions in major orchestras only become available once every few years. Hundreds of world class players will fly in to try out for these positions from all over the world. I remember my dad coming home from this competition, one that he desperately wanted to win, one that he desperately needed to win because work was so hard to come by. Out of hundreds of candidates and days of auditions and callbacks, my father came in… second.

It was devastating for him. He looked completely numb. To come that close and lose tore out his heart. But the next morning, at 6:00 AM, the same way he had done every morning since the age of 12, he did his mouthpiece drills. He did his warm ups. He practiced his usual routines, the same ones he tells his students they need to play every single day. He didn’t take the morning off. He just went on. He was and is a trumpet player and that’s what trumpet players do, come success or failure.

Less than a year later, he went on to win a position with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he played for three decades. Good thing he kept practicing.

So with my father’s example in mind, here I sit, coffee cup steaming in its mug and dog asleep at my feet, starting my work for the day, revising yet another script, working out yet another pitch, thinking of the future (the next project, the next election) because I’m a screenwriter, and that’s just what screenwriters do.

In the words of Ed Wood, “My next one will be BETTER!”

This post was written by Deluxis Entertainment founder and CEO Christopher Kaminski. To catch the next secret, please follow us on Facebook and Twitter. And be sure to check out Secret #1 and Secret #2.

Finding Inspiration - Reasons to Become a Writer

Fri, 19 Aug 2011 10:55:00 -0700

I recently watched Robert Benigni’s The Tiger and the Snow (La tigre e la neve) and I was struck by a particularly great scene where Benigni’s character, the poet Attilio de Giovanni, tells his daughters why he chose to become a writer.

Daughter: How did you become a poet?

Attilio: How do you start? I was small, younger than you are now, eight or nine. I was with my mother, I loved her so much… We were at Uncle Giustino’s and there was a small forest. Do you know what happened?

Daughter: What?

Attilio: A little bird flew by, singing, flying lower… *tweets* … and lower… *tweets* He landed right here on my shoulder. I swear! He’d chosen me, of all people. I was afraid he’d fly away, so I pretended to be a tree. I didn’t move a muscle. I started to feel my heart beating, thumping actually. Buh-boom, buh-boom!

Daughter: And then?

Attilio: It flew away. I wanted to tell my mother: “Mamma, a little bird, flying and singing, landed on my shoulder and sat there for an hour!” She said: “I thought something awful happened” and carried on chatting.

Daughter: That was mean of Granny. Didn’t she like birds?

Attilio: No, Granny wasn’t mean, and she did like birds. It wasn’t her. It was me. It was my fault for not telling the story properly, for not making her feel what I’d felt. I was so upset I told myself: “There must be people whose job it is to use the right words, put things in a way… who, when their hearts beat, can get other people’s hearts to beat.” That day, I decided to become a poet.

Daughter: My heart beat.

Other Daughter: Mine too. But Granny’s didn’t…

Attilio: If the words aren’t right, nothing’s right.

Are you a writer? If so, what inspires you to create and tell stories? Let us know in the comments below!

Happy Friday, friends.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Screenwriting 101 - Creating Believable Character Motivation

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:17:00 -0700

Films and shows, as outrageous as they can be, still operate under believable human motivations. If a character’s reasons for acting don’t translate understandably to the viewer, the story could be disregarded as unbelievable, even if it’s set in a galaxy far, far away.

But what can a screenwriter do to compel the audience that a character’s motivations are strong enough to motivate momentous action? What could make our hero leap off cliffs, face dragons and take down space tyrants?

In Robert McKee’s Story, the established screenwriter describes this subject as “the principle of antagonism”:

A protagonist and his story can only be as intellectually fascinating and emotionally compelling as the forces of antagonism make them.

He describes four values that take a character to the end of the story: the Positive (the ideal), the Contrary (a somewhat negative situation), the Contradictory (the complete opposite of the ideal) and the Negation of the Negation (a doubly negative situation).

Examples from Story:

POSITIVE: Love (the ideal—what the character ultimately desires); Justice; Truth; Success; Freedom

CONTRARY: Indifference (not hate but still negative); Unfairness; White lies/half-truths; Compromise; Restraint

CONTRADICTORY: Hate (opposite of love); Injustice; Lies; Failure; Slavery

NEGATION OF THE NEGATION: Hatred masquerading as love (a more sinister version of hate); Tyranny; Self-deception; Selling out; Slavery perceived as freedom

Obviously, to end at the positive would signify a happy ending, whereas ending anywhere else (ironically or not) would present a bittersweet or tragic end. The order of progression through each element need not necessarily move from slightly negative to the worst. McKee cites Casablanca as a story that starts with an entirely negative situation (living with tyranny and self-loathing) and works back to a positive end.

But these guidelines in crafting antagonism still act as a supplement to the creative prowess of the screenwriter. How best to make the audience want for the character desperately what the character wants? In order to do this, we tap into basic human needs and desires, and create antagonism around them: quest for love, survival, saving a loved one, bringing down tyranny, getting off the island…

Do you have tips for creating antagonism to believably drive a story? Share your wisdom with others in the comments below.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

5 Great Screenwriting Sites and Why We Like Them

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 10:23:00 -0700

Writing Movies For Fun and Profit from Thomas Lennon

We’ve listed five of our favorite screenwriting sites below. We focused on quality content and informative advice. Did we miss your favorite screenwriting sites or blogs? Please let us know in the comments below! Also, the video up top is pretty funny.

1.) Script Magazine

A preeminent resource in screenwriting tips and news, Script Mag is probably the closest you’ll get to a “what’s hot in Hollywood” from the perspective of writers. See: “Primetime: 8 Great Books To Help You Break In … and When To Write a Novelty Spec”

Twitter: @scriptmag

2.) The Script Lab

Timely and with plenty of crisp photos, the site is as much an exercise in snappy design as it is one in producing great posts. Take, for example, one of today’s headlining articles: Inception: First Ten Pages.

Twitter: @TheScriptLab

3.) Scriptchat

Scriptchat is a particularly good site because it acts as a community hub for screenwriters, giving you a chance to learn and meet with other writers. If you’re in LA, the organizers of the site also host occasional Tweetups.

Twitter: @scriptchat

4.) The Story Department

Karel Segers, an Australian screenwriter, provides personal advice and tips for other writers. In a great post today, he dissects the story structure of E.T., a film favorite of his.

Twitter: @ozzywood

5.) Go Into the Story

Experienced screenwriter Scott Myers gives very concise posts on various writing topics. Having worked on major Hollywood films and co-founded Screenwriting Master Class, his knowledge is definitely worth knowing.

Twitter: @GoIntoTheStory

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

How to Write Like Neil Gaiman

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 09:59:00 -0700

Neil Gaiman’s American Gods follows the exploits of Shadow, a man recently released from prison to find his world gone. A mysterious stranger offers him a job that ultimately leads him down a path straight between a war brewing in the heart of America between two very old and mythic groups.

Following the success of Game of Thrones, the story was recently picked up by HBO and is in the process of becoming a six-season show produced by Tom Hanks’ production company.

Gaiman, no stranger to incorporating mythology into modern settings, is known best for his work on the Sandman graphic novel series, Neverwhere, Stardust, Smoke and Mirrors, Coraline and Anansi Boys. Below, we gather some writing tips from Gaiman himself in his thoughts behind creating American Gods.

Begin with the whole story - Like Harry Potter or The Usual Suspects, the best stories interweave events and recall them back in the end, testing your perception of everything that happened. You have to know where you want to end up if you want to know where to begin.

You need more than a beginning if you’re going to start a book. If all you have is a beginning, then once you’ve written that beginning, you have nowhere to go.

I wrote Chapter One around December 1998. I was still trying to write it in the first person, and it wasn’t comfortable with that. Shadow (the protagonist) was too damn private a person, and he didn’t let much out, which is hard enough in a third-person narrative and really hard in a first-person narrative. I began Chapter Two in June 1999, on the train home from the San Diego comics convention. (It’s a three day train journey. You can get a lot of writing done there.) I kept writing, fascinated. I felt, on the good days, more like the first reader than the writer, something I’d rarely felt since Sandman days.

Write outside the box - In American Gods, Gaiman skillfully changes voices and subjects in his introductions to various chapters. For example, in several chapters, Gaiman builds on the theme of mythology by telling short stories about various gods, stories related but inconsequential to the central narrative. In another introduction, he even addresses the reader directly.

I wanted to write American Gods in what I thought of as an American style—clean, simple, uncluttered—and push the narrator further into the background than I had on previous books. But the narrator crept out in the “Coming to America” chapters, where I got to play a wider set of voices.

Craft a thorough setting - Gaiman narrates his hero through an America that even few Americans have experienced (most remarkable given that Gaiman is originally from England). As the protagonist explores the rural South, so do we. As the quirkiness of roadside attractions strikes his mind, so too do we experience these reactions.

I wrote about America a lot in Sandman, but it was a slightly delirious America—one built up from movies and TV and from books. When I came out here I found it very different from the country I’d encountered in fiction, and wanted to write about that.American Gods was, in my ways, my attempt to make sense of the country I was living in.

I expect that the owners of Rock City or the House on the Rock, and the hunters who own the motel in the center of America, are as perplexed as anyone would be to find their properties in here. I have obscured the location of several of the places in this book… You may look for them if you wish. You might even find them.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Stephanie Watanabe - 5 Things Every Film Producer Should Know

Fri, 22 Jul 2011 10:01:00 -0700

No one knows more about the art of storytelling than those writing and producing stories for a living. The first in a continuing series, we’ll be picking the minds of talented storymakers around the world to collect some of the best practices and tips associated with creation. If you’d like to be featured in a future post, please send a hello email to keane(at)deluxis.com. And be sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more exciting Deluxis news.

Who is Stephanie Watanabe?

I am an independent film producer. I teach film production at Berkeley Digital Film Institute and consult with and advise creative entrepreneurs on their projects from Development through Distribution. And yes, filmmakers are most definitely entrepreneurs!

My love of storytelling goes as far back as age six when I declared to my parents that I was going to “be in the movies.” Little did they know, I was actually serious. I attended many filmmaking workshops across the country throughout high school and majored in TV/Film during my undergraduate studies. From there, I got accepted into the American Film Institute (AFI) in Los Angeles for my M.F.A. in Producing. After that, everything else just fell into place.

What are five things you wish you knew when you first started working as a producer?

1. Don’t sweat the small stuff

Seriously. DO. NOT. Sweat the small stuff. There will always be big (and little) fires for you to put out both when you’re in the production office and on set. That’s part of your job. Day-to-day disagreements, personality conflicts, pissed-off crew, a bitchy cast - all of this can ruin your mood and your day. Do your best to acknowledge the issue, resolve it, take a deep breath and then MOVE ON.

2. It’s all about the small stuff

Wait didn’t I just say, don’t sweat the small stuff? Sounds like an oxymoron, right? Let me explain. Being a great producer is in part remembering the small stuff. The little details that can be easily overlooked (and often are by a lot of producers – amateur and professionals alike).

Things like making sure you feed your crew a hot lunch, having plenty of coffee and water on set, remembering crew birthdays, finding out your lead actors’ favorite magazines and having them in the trailer when they arrive on set. Even things like making sure you invite key investors to set one day to check it out and writing handwritten thank you notes to your donors and supporters – it all counts. It may sound like a bunch of silly, irrelevant details (and a whole lot of extra work), but it’s what will set you apart. And it’s what you’ll be known for – being a thoughtful, rockstar producer that everyone wants to work with.

3. No, not all Director’s (actors, writers) are crazy

Your creative collaborators, (directors, actors, writers, etc.) are just that - creative - and it can be challenging to work with them at times. They live in the land of the creative. This is a VERY different place than where most producers live on a day-to-day basis. Meeting halfway between the creative and the practical is essential for a solid partnership.

In order to be an effective creative producer, you need to be able to speak the creative language – fluently. And have your creative team member(s) meet you at least halfway when it comes to the practical production side of things. This doesn’t mean they have to sit and do budgets with you. It does mean that they need to be aware that there is a budget to begin with. Sounds simple, but this is often a big stumbling point for many collaborative filmmaking partnerships.

4. Development is not for the faint of heart

It’s called “development hell” for a reason. Most aspiring producers think that their big challenge is production. Sorry to tell you, but that’s the EASY part. The hard part is the process of developing a project and going out for funding. It can and does take years for all of the stars to align and the project to get off the ground (financially speaking). Intellectually this is easy to understand, but when you’re sitting in your office, staring at a wall, with only $50 in your bank account, it can bring even the most dedicated producer down. Stay strong, be creative with your fundraising process and above all have a group of supportive friends, family and fellow producers who you can talk to. You’ll need it.

5. Screening your film before a packed house? Priceless.

Just as nobody can ever really prepare you for the painful process of development or the grueling hours of production – you can’t begin to know the feeling of accomplishment and elation that comes from screening your film before a real live audience. It takes your breath away. It reminds you why you do what you do (assuming you’re doing it for the right reasons). And it makes all the hard work worthwhile. It’s probably one of the greatest moments of my life – screening my film in a legendary theater on Hollywood Blvd. in L.A. There’s nothing like it.

What inspires you to keep working when you feel creativity has hit a roadblock?

I get loads of inspiration from reading books and magazines – I love to pull out inspiring images and tack them to my “inspiration board” in my office. I’m really visual (go figure), so I’m attracted to beautiful photographs, fashion, architecture, design – anything really.

I also love watching inspiring short videos on YouTube - TED Talks are really good for this. Another great way I handle creative blocks is to step away from my computer – go outside – and just breathe, walk, talk to people and generally get outside of my head for at least 15 minutes. Does the trick every time.

What are you currently working on now?

Right now I’m in development on a feature length documentary called RECOVERING IRMA (www.recoveringirma.com), about a family’s journey to find hope and healing after domestic violence homicide. I’m really excited about this project and the potential reach it can have in affecting change around the issue of partner violence. It’s my first documentary film, which is challenging and really exciting. I’m also developing a few other narrative feature films, a web series and am producing a really exciting music video for Oakland-based rock band Johnny Hi-Fi (www.johnnyhi-fi.com).

You can find out what else I’m up to on my soon-to-be-launched website:

www.stephaniewatanabe.com and via Twitter - @Steph_Watanabe

Five Great Skits from Emmy History

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 00:31:00 -0700

With the nominees for the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards announced last week, we take an opportunity to look at some of the fun events preceding this year’s ceremony.

NPH opens with a classy big band song (2009)

Conan gets Lost in a series of shows (2006)

Stewie and Brian from Family Guy make fun of Charlie Sheen before it was a meme (2007)

Jimmy Fallon and the cast of Glee (2010)

Dr. Horrible interrupts the ceremony and pokes fun at our beloved Internet-based entertainment (2009)

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Screenwriting with Jungian Archetypes and Symbolism

Mon, 11 Jul 2011 10:01:00 -0700

“All the most powerful ideas in history go back to archetypes. This is particularly true of religious ideas, but the central concepts of science, philosophy, and ethics are no exception to this rule. In their present form they are variants of archetypal ideas created by consciously applying and adapting these ideas to reality. For it is the function of consciousness not only to recognize and assimilate the external world through the gateway of the senses, but to translate into visible reality the world within us." -Carl Jung

Archetypes are universal symbols, the most basic representations of behavior and personality. Think of them as prototypes, primal forms from which all characters are derived. How are they useful to a storyteller or screenwriter? Archetypes help us understand a character’s role in terms of his or her placement in relation to the story.

Psychiatrist Carl Jung and mythologist Joseph Campbell were two of the most notable intellects in the discussion of archetypes in the mytho-cultural sense. They described archetypes as essential in the understanding of who we are.

”Jungian Archetypes“ on Wikipedia:

Jung described archetypal events: birth, death, separation from parents, initiation, marriage, the union of opposites etc.; archetypal figures: great mother, father, child, devil, God, wise old man, wise old woman, Apollo, trickster, hero - not to mention "Oedipus … the first archetype Freud discovered” or “number … an archetype of order”; and archetypal motifs: the Apocalypse, the Deluge, the Creation, etc. Although the number of archetypes is limitless, there are a few particularly notable, recurring archetypal images, “the chief among them being” (according to Jung) “the shadow, the Wise Old Man, the child (including the child hero), the mother … and her counterpart, the maiden, and lastly the anima in man and the animus in woman”. Alternately he would speak of “the emergence of certain definite archetypes … the shadow, the animal, the wise old man, the anima, the animus, the mother, the child”.

Five main archetypes are sometimes enumerated:

The Self, the regulating center of the psyche and facilitator of individuation - the representative of “that wholeness which the introspective philosophy of all times and climes has characterized with an inexhaustible variety of symbols, names and concepts”.

The Shadow, the opposite of the ego image, often containing qualities that the ego does not identify with but possesses nonetheless

The Anima, the feminine image in a man’s psyche; or:

The Animus, the masculine image in a woman’s psyche

The Persona, to Jung a mere “functional complex … by no means identical to the individuality”, the way we present to the world - a mask which protects the Ego from negative images, and which by post-Jungians is sometimes considered an “archetype … as a dynamic/structural component of the psyche”.

For a storyteller, the archetypes inherent in the characters of a narrative give them deeper appeal. These characters serve as manifestations of our psyches while still retaining the personality traits that make them unique.

Take, for example, the “Wise Old Man.” This archetype is readily found in stories like Star Wars (Obi-Wan), Harry Potter (Dumbledore) and Superman (Jor-El). The symbol is a universal representation of wisdom and guidance, though presented with variation in each story.

Take a second to discover if any of your characters connect with the archetypes Jung described above. And, if they do, consider how they compare to characters of similar symbolism in other stories. In doing so, we humanize our characters in a deeper, more profound way.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Top Five Explosive 4th of July Films

Mon, 04 Jul 2011 07:10:00 -0700

Happy Independence Day! Clear your mind and stuff in your earplugs. It’s time for cinematic fireworks (for better or worse). Here are some flick pics for our favorite red, white and blue holiday.

5.) The story of Jimmy Stewart’s D.C. vacation

4.) The story of Harrison Ford and his plane

3.) The story of a boy earning his father’s respect

2. ) The story of how two Australians liberated America from England

1.) The story of how aliens picked the wrong American holiday to invade the world

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Craig Phillips - A Screenwriting Consultant's Writing Tips

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 09:44:22 -0700

Who is Craig Phillips?

I’m a Bay Area based writer of and about film, among other hats. More recently I’ve been both teaching screenwriting and consulting individually with people in various stages of the script process. I first became interested in screenwriting after high school, and when I went to San Francisco State to study film I ended up emphasizing screenwriting. I wrote several terrible scripts that can only come from someone creative who also has no idea what he’s doing and very little life experience or perspective on anything. But I got those out of the way and then was a finalist in a national teleplay writing contest. I later moved down to LA for a spell where I did every kind of film job imaginable, mostly low end and horrible. But I did get a chance to be a script reader for several studios and from that I learned a ton about what works and what doesn’t. I started a historical script that would take me the better part of four years to write and which I optioned to a producer and then a prominent director came aboard, it got out to actors, came close… and then, as with so many projects, especially independent ones, it fell apart. I’ve since written a couple of other scripts but have recently returned to that one with the belief it could still happen.

From your work as a screenwriting consultant, what are some of the most common mistakes people make?

Mistakes vary wildly, many of which I’ve done myself at times, but some of the most common include not properly outlining, mapping out, a script before writing a draft and then it becomes obvious when the writer hits snags in plotting, paint themselves into a corner, or have characters go all over the map because the writer didn’t fully get a sense of who those characters are. I also just see scripts from people who are clearly trying to strike a hot market (which will no doubt cool off well before anyone sees their script) instead of just writing something they really believe in and are attached to. On a smaller scale, I see a lot of formatting mistakes; sometimes writers think the script is so great this won’t matter but I assure them that if they have too many format goofs that just gives studio readers an excuse to toss that script aside.

What inspires you when you hit a roadblock in creativity?

I try to at least stay in the frame of mind by watching films that may inspire that particular script project, and reading scripts for the same. And having more than one project to go back to helps me, too. If I’m stuck on one, no reason to not write at all if I have a second idea in the works I can switch to that one, or come up with a new idea. Of course that can backfire when one is a bit ADD as I am and suddenly you have too many unfinished projects, so moderation is key. Mostly I try to just take breaks but keep close enough to it where things keep percolating.

What are you working on now?

Two scripts (just two, I swear!), one a horror/black comedy (I wanted to write something that would creep me out so hopefully it will others too), the other a rewrite of a sort of action-drama about firefighters. While also doing some revising of my WWII script and lastly trying to finally find a new agent to represent me on all these suckers.

Website: Notes from Underdog.

Twitter: @craigary

The Hidden Obvious Guide to Making It in Hollywood: Secret #2

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 11:45:00 -0700

Making a movie or a television show is a challenging endeavor under the very best circumstances.

Secret #2 – Passion

In many respects, passion is the wellspring of the tenacity. Passion gets you out of bed at 4:30 in the morning on the 20th day when you are faced with another 14 hours on the set. Passion gets you back on the horse when your project falls apart at the funding stage, or your dream actor backs out of your project to take another job. Passion toughens up your skin against criticism. Passion connects you to other passionate people.

How do you keep connection with your passion? The same way you get to Carnegie Hall — Practice, practice, practice. Becoming or staying consistently passionate about your work is both a habit and a skill. Approach developing your passion in a similar way to how you would develop your body. Instead of setting aside time to go to the gym, schedule time throughout the week to get inspired or improve your skills. For example, you could watch one of your favorite movies or read a book about lighting techniques. Call someone in your field that you respect and talk through the ideas that came to you in the shower this morning. The possibilities are vast.

Mark Gordon talked about how he regularly makes big summer blockbuster films like The Day After Tomorrow so that he can pursue passion projects like The Messenger. The former is an effects-driven film with wide appeal that is perfect for a summer blockbuster. The latter is a more intimate, challenging tale that is risky when it comes to making a profit. Harvey Weinstein said that Mark’s balanced approach was one of the things he admired most.

Important related point: Even though critics didn’t fall in love with The Day After Tomorrow, Mark said the films environmental message sparked great dialog far and wide about how we can take better care of the planet. That shows that even the most commercial projects can have an impact beyond just money.

This post was written by Deluxis Entertainment founder and CEO Christopher Kaminski. For Secret #1, click here. To catch the next secret, please follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

The 3 Attributes of Great Storytelling - Greg Power's "The Power of Story" at TEDx Vancouver

Fri, 24 Jun 2011 11:07:00 -0700

“Stories are powerful. Great stories can last forever. But stories are also elusive, capricious and need to be handled with care.”

Communications expert Greg Power delivers an inspiring TEDx Vancouver talk on the power of storytelling in not only politics and business, but also in our everyday human lives. He provides great examples of the stories that surround us and dives into what he calls his three attributes that make up great storytelling.

In quick summation, a great story is…

1.) Irresistible - Drama and conflict draw us deeper into the story.

2.) Believable - Cultural relevance and empathy. You can’t change minds until you see how the audience sees the world.

3.) Unforgettable - Feelings, thoughts and desires of the unconscious mind drive decisions. Emotions lead to action more than reason. Stories drive behavior.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Storyteller Profile: Brett Snelgrove - Tips for Creating, Scriptwriting and Producing

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 10:01:00 -0700

Who is Brett Snelgrove?

I’m an Australian living and working in London. I come from a background in factual and comedy television production. I’m now focusing on writing, making contacts and development projects here in London. I’ve written for as long as I can remember and have spent a lot of time developing my craft, which translated means getting all those crap and cliche scripts out of my system. To date I have written sketches for a topical TV comedy programme, written and produced several short films, taught scriptwriting to both adults and young people, worked as a freelance script reader and have been awarded development funding for a multi-platform drama. In 2005 I wrote and produced Domestic, a self-funded HD short film which screened at 20+ festivals and won the 2006 St. Kilda Film Festival’s Editing and Craft awards, plus numerous accolades for best film, best actor and audience choice. Domestic is licensed to Atom Films and has screened theatrically and on television networks in Australia and overseas.

When you conceive an idea, what is your process/methodology for converting it into a script?

Early on I was obsessed with the likes of McKee, Field, Vogler and Snyder, which was a great way to teach myself the process and structure of screenwriting but not very conducive to creativity. Now I tend to spend as much time as possible mulling over an idea and writing notes — trying to find connections or themes or relationship that unifies a whole bunch of ideas into a story. From there it’s all about pumping out a first draft as quickly as possible. This is a traditional spew draft with every idea and plot point and characterisation I can think of crammed in there. It’s big, fat and ugly. Then I start re-writing, where I get to make discoveries about the characters and slowly shape the script into the story I imagined in my head. This is the most fun part of the process for me because I’ve got something to work with and don’t have to face the blank page.

What inspires you and how do you keep your creative juices flowing?

I try to be a keen observer and make notes about people or situations around me but also get inspiration and recharge my batteries with any number of different things. I love a good weekend breakfast with my partner at our local cafe. I read everything from magazines, to factual novels to comics and graphic novels. I go to the cinema and theatre when I can. I have a regular writer’s group here in London called Script Tank that I attend. I commute a hell of a lot around London and so listen to a wide variety of factual and entertainment podcasts. And when I’m home I watch a lot of television. I mean a lot. I love it! The number one thing that keeps me going is having people that I can bounce ideas and drafts off. I have one particular mate who has been my sounding board for as long as I can remember and has read pretty much everything I have written. Without him I would be a mess.

What are you currently working on?

Outside of keeping up contacts as a writer and producer both in London and Australia, I am currently finishing up writing a ten-episode relationship comedy web series, and in the middle of producing a pilot episode for a 2D animated sci-fi web comedy with talented Dutch animated Freek Van Haagen.

Tessa & Adam

Web sitcom Tessa & Adam exposes the awkward, confronting and explicit moments of British lad Adam and his Dutch expat girlfriend, Tessa. Virgins to cohabitation, the series captures their clash of culture, gender, love and sex and reveals just how odd sharing your life with someone can be.

New Eden

New Eden is a sci-fi web comedy for the South Park audience about a juvenile, bickering odd couple marooned on a primordial world populated with creatures determined to have them for dinner!

You can find out more information about both projects here — http://drettworlb.wordpress.com/current-projects/

I’d love to live and work in the states someday and so I’m slowly making contacts and in-roads there as well. Twitter has been a great tool for this. People can find me at @BrettSnelgrove and New Eden at @NewEdenseries.

The Hidden Obvious Guide to Making It in Hollywood: Secret #1

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:03:00 -0700

Thousands of people move to Los Angeles each and every month to chase the dream of “making it” in Hollywood. Millions more around the world fill their idle daydreams with thoughts of walking the red carpet with cameras flashing at them from every conceivable direction, or throwing lavish parties in their mid-century masterpiece house with an infinity pool overlooking the concrete jungle of the city far below. How do you really get there?

I took the opportunity to listen to some exceptional Hollywood producers recently at the Produced By Conference. I returned with a spiral bound notebook now teeming with the hard-earned wisdom of some of the most successful people in Hollywood.

Secret #1 – Tenacity

My mother might not know Mark Gordon’s name, but she knows his work. He is the producer of such remarkable films as Saving Private Ryan and Speed. He also brought us television shows like Gray’s Anatomy and Criminal Minds. One of the most important personal traits to which he credits his own success is tenacity. Hollywood suffers a very high attrition rate. Stick through the inevitable tough times and focus on doing great work on every project. You almost cannot help but make a career out of it that way.

Lauren Shuler Donner is the woman responsible for the X-Men series, the Free Willy series, and a couple dozen other big studio films. Her tips on not only becoming successful but staying relevant once you’ve achieved success are summed up in the phrase, “Hang on for dear life.” She recommend that you always look for ways to make yourself useful, and don’t be surprised or take it personally when you get bumped from a project.

One important related point: Life doesn’t automagically get easier after you’ve “made it.” You simply upgrade to higher quality problems.

This post was written by Deluxis Entertainment founder and CEO Christopher Kaminski. To catch the next secret, please follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Never Been Aired - Five Cool Shows That Didn't Make the Cut

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 10:00:00 -0700

The world is full of stories. Sometimes, a show’s ability to make it onto a network’s season run is as much serendipity as it is execution. Today we take a look at five cool television shows that have never been aired.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

Secrets of a Small Town

Secrets of A Small Town is a television pilot ordered by ABC for the 2006-2007 television season by ABC. Despite being rated as ‘one of the highest testing dramas’, the show was not picked up for series order as part of ABC’s fall lineup due to its high budget. It was created by Charles Pratt, Jr. (current Head Writer/Consulting Producer of ABC Daytime’s All My Children) and directed by Adam Davidson. Bert Salke and Chris Brancato also serve as executive producers.

The show’s cast includes well-known actors such as Denise Richards, John Terry, and Angie Harmon.

Everybody loves a good mystery, but when protagonists have secrets of their own, the story is made even more interesting. Secrets of a Small Town follows the efforts of a reporter returned home to uncover the truth behind the homicide and disappearance of a cheerleader and her twin sister. Meanwhile, the audience slowly uncovers the secret of why said reporter left her hometown in the first place…

Fearless

Fearless is a 2003/2004 television pilot based on the series of books by Francine Pascal. It starred Rachael Leigh Cook as Gaia Moore, a woman born without the ability to feel fear. While keeping the premise of the books, it took the main character Gaia and made her older and had her working for the FBI in Los Angeles. It was originally announced as airing on The WB after Gilmore Girls but was delayed till mid-season and replaced by One Tree Hill. It was later cancelled before a single episode ever aired. Reportedly, the producers had concerns about the casting of Bianca Lawson’s character, and difficulties in convincingly portraying the main character as a person who could not feel fear but could feel other emotions.

From producer Jerry Bruckheimer and beloved 90s star Rachael Leigh Cook comes a series longing to be a strange amalgamation of Alias, 24 and a Jason Statham movie.

Heat Vision and Jack

Heat Vision and Jack was a proposed 1999 comedy/sci-fi television show directed by Ben Stiller and starring Jack Black, Owen Wilson, and Ron Silver. Christine Taylor and Vincent Schiavelli guest starred in the pilot episode, the only episode filmed. While the Fox Network didn’t pick up the show, the pilot gained a cult status and an online following. The show was written and executive produced by Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab, of Scud: The Disposable Assassin, Channel 101, “Dead Alewives”, and The Sarah Silverman Program fame. It was featured as a part of the mockumentary “Tropic Thunder - Rain of Madness”, only stating that the character of “Jeff Portnoy” played the role of Jack Austin. According to a March 27, 2007 interview with Rob Schrab, a script for the Heat Vision and Jack feature film is in the works.

I can safely say this doesn’t need any further explanation.

The Amazing Screw-On Head

The Amazing Screw-On Head is the title of a one-shot comic book written and drawn by Mike Mignola and published by Dark Horse Comics in 2002, starring the character of the same name.

Mignola got the idea from action figures, particularly Batman ones, which seemed to be exactly the same figurines with different paint jobs. So he imagined a robot with a head that screwed onto different bodies to suit the occasion, hence “Screw-on Head”. An animated pilot, based on the plot of the comic, was made by the Sci-Fi Channel in 2006, with Bryan Fuller as writer and executive producer and Chris Prynoski as director. Similar in tone and theme to Mignola’s better known Hellboy, The Amazing Screw-On Head is a black comedy.

There’s something really great about “what-if” stories. Mignola paints an alternative Civil War history where President Lincoln employs Screw-On Head (Paul Giamatti) to track down Emperor Zombie (David Hyde Pierce). Also voice-starring are Molly Shannon as Zombie’s mistress and Patton Oswalt as his manservant, Mr. Groin. Did you get all that?

Lookwell

Lookwell was a television pilot written and produced by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel. It starred Adam West as a washed-up TV action hero—who at the peak of his career was ceremonially deputized by local law enforcement—who falsely believes he can solve crimes in real life. His student, Jason, becomes his sidekick and is played by Todd Field. The pilot was broadcast on NBC in July 1991 but was not picked up as a series despite being a “personal favorite” of NBC chairman Brandon Tartikoff as well as comedian Bill Maher.

Holy wacky, Batman! A show written by Conan and acted by Adam West may be a little too oddball for the normal television viewer, but anyone who can appreciate quirky, subtle humor should quickly see the potential with this marvelous union.

TIME TRAVEL - The #1 Story of 1942

Fri, 10 Jun 2011 12:47:00 -0700

Today we take a look into the past, a story that topped the charts when the charts were first created. On April 9, 1942, the New York Times began compiling the Best Seller list we all now recognize as one of the most prominent lists for successful books. Similarly, Publishers Weekly had been creating top seller lists since 1900. Below, I’ve included the number one book from both charts in 1942.

The Song of Bernadette by Franz Werfel

#1 NYT bestseller beginning August 16 and #1 PW for 1942

The Song of Bernadette is a 1942 novel that tells the story of Saint Bernadette Soubirous, who, from February to July 1858 in Lourdes, France, reported eighteen visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The novel was written by Franz Werfel and was published in 1942. It was extremely popular, spending more than a year on the New York Times Best Seller list and 13 weeks in first place.

The story of Bernadette Soubirous and Our Lady of Lourdes is told by Werfel with many embellishments, such as the chapter in which Bernadette is invited to board at the home of a rich woman who thinks Bernadette’s visionary “lady” might be her deceased daughter. In side-stories and backstory, the history of the town of Lourdes, the contemporary political situation in France, and the responses of believers and detractors are delineated. Werfel describes Bernadette as a religious peasant girl who would have preferred to continue with an ordinary life, but takes the veil as a nun after she is told that because “Heaven chose her”, she must choose Heaven. Bernadette’s service as a sacristan, artist-embroiderer, and nurse in the convent are depicted, along with her spiritual growth. After her death, her body as well as her life are scrutinized for indications that she is a saint, and at last she is canonized.

The novel is laid out in five sections of ten chapters each, in a deliberate nod to the Catholic Rosary.

Unusually for a novel, the entire first part, which describes the events on the day that Bernadette first saw the Virgin Mary, is told in the present tense, as if it were happening at the moment. The rest of the novel is in the past tense. (more…)

Not surprisingly, it was adapted for the screen and released the following year, garnering four Academy Award wins (Best Actress, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography and Best Music), eight additional nominations and three Golden Globes (Best Director, Best Motion Picture - Drama and Best Motion Picture Actress).

Not too shabby, Franz!

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.

How to Write Like J.K. Rowling - The Breakdown of Harry Potter

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 10:17:00 -0700

As we continue our examination on effective storytelling, we cannot overlook the phenomenon that is Harry Potter. First published in 1997, the robust series of young adult books has transcended itself into the hands of old adults and onto the big screen, becoming the highest grossing film franchise of all time.

Author J.K. Rowling’s manner of writing aids the digestibility of her stories. Like the pop music of literature, she utilizes carefully produced and interwoven plot lines. Sentences are flowing — almost poetic — and thus lend themselves to silver screen transfer. The books, in and of themselves, were already cinematic.

Of course, one could write a complete volume on writing style. Here, we share some of the more outstanding elements.

ESCAPE

The first characteristic of what makes the Harry Potter series so engaging is that it serves as an enjoyable escape from human life. Within a church experience, as described by mythologist Joseph Campbell, we reach higher levels of spiritual awareness from our extraction from the everyday. With stories, this effect holds true in a more cognitive sense. A viable escape sets our minds free to explore with the reminder that there is more to life than ourselves. In other words, the writer creates a vibrant and distracting universe for the audience to play in.

Harry Potter was created during a commute from Manchester to London, a crowded train ride in which Rowling initially scribbled her ideas onto napkins. In formulating the story arc, she outlined events well beyond her first book. By doing this, events far into the future often have ties to events in the past, something that can only be done by planning well beyond the first episode.

MYSTERY

One of the most compelling aspect of each book/film is the element of mystery. Think of all the best stories in your life. How many of them include this? It keeps the audience in their seat. Here is the breakdown by episode:

Harry Potter and the…

… Philosopher’s/Sorcerer’s Stone: Who is Harry Potter? Who is trying to steal the Stone?

… Chamber of Secrets: Who is opening the Chamber of Secrets and petrifying students?

… Prisoner of Azkaban: Who is Sirius Black? What is the Grim?

… Goblet of Fire: Who put Harry’s name in the Goblet of Fire? Who will win the Goblet?

… Order of the Phoenix: What is the prophecy? What’s happening to Harry Potter’s head?

… Half-Blood Prince: How did Voldemort become who he is? Who is the Half-Blood Prince?

… Deathly Hallows: How does it all end?

Add to these questions the compelling universe, extraordinary situations and clever wit, and it’s a quick read from beginning to end.

ADVERSITY

As the memory of Voldemort tells Harry Potter in Year Two:

“How is it that a baby with no extraordinary magical talent was able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time?”

Throughout the series, we ponder this question in regard to our protagonist’s future. How does a teen wizard defeat the most powerful and menacing dark wizard of all time? The adversity he must overcome is an exaggerated reenactment of the drama we have in our everyday lives (replace “Dark Wizard” with “huge laundry pile”).

As a protagonist, Harry Potter is effective because of his relative lack of talent and physical strength. His survival ability comes from his courage (internal) and his close relationship with loved ones (external). As he says in Year Six:

“But the truth is most of that was just luck. I didn’t know what I was doing half the time, I nearly always had help.”

No one likes a perfect hero. They’re boring. It’s the protagonists who are unsure, ill-prepared and scared that exhibit the greatest levels of heroism, because they have more adversity to overcome.

EMOTION

What is a story without heartbreak? What is life without loss or tragedy? Some may argue against the darkening of the Harry Potter series, but isn’t that what happens in life? As we age, life becomes complex, hefty and with serious consequences for our actions. Likewise, our victories are grander and our efforts yield more meaningful results.

Even stories meant for children need a level of gravitas.

At Deluxis Entertainment, we are devoted to the art of storytelling. Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. When we launch, you’ll be the first to know.