Movie script writing

[The Ascetic Crusader]

In my observation a great war movie is a combination of 4 main things:

- The plot
- The character
- Action
- Realism

My concern right now is the plot and the character.

- love vs hate (towards the enemy)
- home land vs enemy land (or just foreign land)
- morals vs moral decay
- life vs death
- comradeship vs traitors
- violence vs mercy (even to the enemy)
- self sacrifice vs sacrificing others
- youth (young soldiers) vs old age (all the old people in the villages)
etc.

Pick any one of those themes and go with it. See where it takes you. IMO, they´re all sure bets.

 

[FireRock]

It is a pleasure to meet both of you, The Ascetic Crusader vbmenu_register("postmenu_16558711", true); and Sword-In-Hand!
It's been very encouraging and informational to read of you experiences and such. Thank you so much for posting!

Ringu, how's the script coming? I'm excited to see what you do with it! I'm in the process of typing out a screenplay I just finished last week actually. I'm so excited about it!!! I got my inspiration from watching all the skater boys from a local youth group doing their thing outside of the church one night. I just pulled out a notebook and started writing right there...it was so fun! Anyway, I'll try and post it or something once I get it completely typed and whatnot.

Question, how do the original scripts (theater or film) that you've written for your church and such gone over? Is it usually easy to put them on or have you ever come against some objections?

 

[Ringu]

I never did it for anyone yet. I am trying to get into it but I have to learn a lot more. My story is not really coming. At first I thought to keep it close to the original (Exuperi book) but then thought it might be too boring so there has to be more action and more twists but then it's not gonna loose the phylosophy Exuperi was trying to convey.
Anyway. I'm kinda stuck. And last few weeks were crazy anyway with friends coming over and me selling old car/buying new (used) car etc. Plus I am waiting for a book in the mail I ordered from Amazon (someone selling a used book) about pilots, but it's been 2 weeks and I haven't gotten it yet.
So I will post more about it later.
It would be aweosome to read what you wrote, FireRock.

 

[draik945]

hi, is there anyone here with an interest in movie script writing? or someone who has experience already?

i've thought a bit and liked the idea of movie writing

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

I am currently working on a 30 page screenplay called " The Battle of Elah ".

 

[FireRock]

Really?? What's "The Battle of Elah" about??

(btw, I'm still typing...*sigh*...getting close though. I don't have scene cut-offs anywhere though...)

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

Really?? What's "The Battle of Elah" about??

(btw, I'm still typing...*sigh*...getting close though. I don't have scene cut-offs anywhere though...)

It´s about a 13 year old shepherd boy and how he must defend his homeland from the most terrifying force of his time : Goliath.

Goliath was an 8 foot warrior , capable of crushing a soldier´s skull with one hand. He fought for the pagan house of Philistine and helped spread terror throughout the middle East.

Nobody could stand up to this Satanic man-beast.

In the desert valley of Elah there lived a shepherd boy named David. He was very much loved by God who blessed him with superior hunting skills. Thus this young teenager learned to slay bears and behead lions at an early age in order to protect his flock from these deadly predators.

This hunter-boy would be destined to meet Goliath face to face in one of history´s most decisive battles :

The Battle of Elah

 

[FireRock]

Okay, that sounds really, really, really cool.
That should be the summary on the back of the DVD box.

I'm like halfway through my script! I'm so excited!! I'm in the process of setting up a meeting with my main cast and crew.
Only one camera so far though *gulp* Should be a fun learning experience.

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

Okay, that sounds really, really, really cool.
That should be the summary on the back of the DVD box.

Really ? What do you like about the summary ?

BTW, you´re already setting up production ? That is beyond awesome ! What´s
your movie about ?

 

[FireRock]

I don't know. I guess what I like most about the summary you wrote is that it explains the whole movie, but is very poetic at the same time. That makes a good back-of-the-box summary...it draws you in with it's mysteriousness, but you know what's it's all about at the same time. I don't know...it's kind of hard to explain but I hope you get the gist of it.

My movie is called "sk8" and it's kind of a skater movie that makes fun of skater movies. It's about these five girls who are really into extreme sports, and they take a summer road trip to different churches to see what they have for extreme sportists. It's actually pretty funny, because there's the girly one, the hardcore one, the goth/punk one, the laidback one, and the really weird one. There's going to be a lot of sterotypical things that are in a lot of skater movies, but with an odd twist to it. I'm actually quite happy with the way the script turned out, and the adjustments are going really good too. I'm trying to set up a meeting here within the next week or so to get started on all the planning and location scouting and etc. etc.

I'm so excited because this is my first full-fledged production, and although it will be insanely low budget, it's going to be so much fun!!!

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

My movie is called "sk8" and it's kind of a skater movie that makes fun of skater movies. It's about these five girls who are really into extreme sports, and they take a summer road trip to different churches to see what they have for extreme sportists.

Hey, that sounds pre-tty cool. Dogtown and Bones Brigade come to mind.
BTW, who´s gonna be doing the stunts ?

 

[Ringu]

why do you want to make fun of the other skater movies?

 

[FireRock]

As far as I know, everyone's doing their own stunts. We're getting a bunch of skater boys that have been doing it since they could walk for some of the big skatepark scenes, but other than that we need to fend for ourselves.

I'm actually a big fan of skater movies! "Extreme Days" and "Grind" are two that I really, really like. Unfortunately I can't think of the others that I've seen. That's one of the things I'm doing with the cast...going through other skater movies for pointers and such. I think the main thing is that it seems like all skater movies I've seen (and granted, that's only a handful) seem to have the same group of guys with one girl thrown in and she ends up getting together with usually the main guy, but with one of the main characters by the end, there's always some random tragic event that spurs the boys to action, they have to overcome random and weird obstacles, etc. etc. Don't get me wrong, I really like skater movies, but they've become like slasher movies in where you need to fall into this specific formula or mold, otherwise it's not right or something. *shrug* It was something me and a friend came up with after watching a couple of skater movies and seeing this thing on television about the skater culture and whatnot.

I'm planning on seeing "Lords of Dogtown" when it comes out on DVD, and looking forward to it too! Okay, so honestly there really isn't some deep hidden meaning behind this movie, except bitterness for there always being a token girl in the flick who ends up becoming the girlfriend, and because it'd be fun to go around and meet other skaters and churches and whatnot. Mostly selfish reasons for everyone involved.

 

[Ringu]

are you gonna be that girl?

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

I really like skater movies, but they've become like slasher movies in where you need to fall into this specific formula or mold, otherwise it's not right or something.

FireRock, stick to the basics ! If it works with audiences, go for it ! Who
cares if its been done before, that´s what people like to watch anyway.
Get this movie off your chest (and out of your system) so you can start work on your sophmore flick. By the way, what editing tools are you working with ?

 

[lsholes]

Script writing is an art form unto itself. It is very specific in format. There are lots of how-to books out there and also software. I write novels and can't seem to handle script writing because I like complete control. I like being able to be the director. You can also buy and/or download scripts of movies, that will give you some insight. Best of luck.
Lynn
www.grailconspiracy.com

 

[FireRock]

Ringu...NO!!! I REFUSE TO BE THAT GIRL!!! Actually I can't stand the token anything in movies. I guess it kind of rubs me the wrong way. (actually, as of now I'm the laidback chic!)

The Ascetic Crusader...I know it's best to stick to the basics, and I'm doing that in a way with this movie. It's more like taking the formula and tweeking a few variables to see what happens. You're probably right in that I really need to just get this movie out of my system...for whatever reason I just do...because the other two projects that I've been working on are more serious in nature, and I find myself really wanting to do something serious. I like digging into the guts of human emotion and having people react to deep things. That and I don't know if I could make a living off of comedies like many directors do!

Right now I'm using Pinnacle, although I don't know what version. Every aspect of filmmaking is an art form unto itself, and like so many forms of art, there are rules...and there are guidelines. An artist's joy is in finding what bends and what breaks, and what touches the deepest parts of the heart in a way words cannot describe.
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[The Ascetic Crusader]

You're probably right in that I really need to just get this movie out of my system...for whatever reason I just do...

Yep, in the words of the great Cameron Crowe ( who was himself paraphrasing legendary director Billy Wilder) : BODY of WORK.
Directors must permanently add to their body of work. What this really means is keep turning out movies ( or Docs, commercials, shorts , whatever). Most will be duds but all we really want to see is that one gem of a movie right ? [

Do you have a website or a blog for your project ? You need it to start generating BUZZ. Whats the flick called by BTW ?

 

[FireRock]

It's called "sk8" right now, mostly for lack of a better title. that and it reminds me how girls always type when they're IMing each other..."did u c that sk8er boy?! he was soooooooooooooooooooooooo rad!!!!!!!!!" *grumble* *gag* *grumble* I think putting extra o's on the word 'so' is really overrated, but I admit that I do it for my own amusement sometimes. Anyway...too much info...

I tried starting a myspace for it, but my computer has this huge thing against myspace and disconnects from teh internet everytime I try to go two pages past the homepage. *shrug* I liked that one because it wasn't just personal blogs, but you could have one for a band or other group. Any others anyone knows about that I could go on?? I know like three different blogs, and none of them really work for me.
I don't have the computer anything to create a website. We have one computer in the house that has the internet, and I'm not about to put the internet on my editing system. I might try creating a site through yahoo, once I get more names and information about what's going on with the movie and such.


"BODY of WORK. Every director must work towards adding to his body of work. Which means keep turning out movies. Most will be duds but all we really want to see is that one gem of a movie right?" I love that quote! I've heard it a few times here and there, but it really sticks with me.

 

[The Ascetic Crusader]

Of course , SK8 ! You mentioned it before. Silly me.