Response to "Writing Movies for fun and Profit"

The reading from "Writing Movies for fun and Profit" reminded me a lot of SAC 310, the screenwriting class here at UM. Except it was even less sugar-coated, if that were possible. People hate to think about movies as having such a clear-cut structure that is the same in almost every movie, but it's true.

In the article, though, they said the inciting incident appears exactly on page 10, and I had a problem with that. It's true that there is a structure that is followed, and it doesn't vary that much from script to script, but it DOES change a little. Things don't occur exactly on certain pages in every script, but they do appear around those pages.

Of course, this is kind of the point; they are embellishing just a bit for the sake of demystifying the process of screenwriting.

This article was a summary of a number of other screenwriting books I had to read for class (and some for fun) and it's always weird to hear everything laid out so plainly. Because the fact is, movie-making is not a mystical process, it is an industry, a well-oiled machine. You could argue that independent feature films are made a little differently, but when it comes to Hollywood, it is a business that has been around for a long time. That's why we keep getting movies split into two (I HATE THAT); as long as the movies keep making money, this trend is going to continue.

This reading felt like one prolonged slap in the face. For instance:

"Your heroine should be as real as your first crush--only she's carrying the plans to destroy the Death Star and she looks great in a bikini."

As far as I know, no one objected to this rule.

 These elements, the article argues, NEED to be there in the script. It's a strange dichotomy between "real life" and "fantasy," but you can't lean too far to one direction or the other or you'll lose your audience.

I think they're right, but the way they deliver their message, as I said, is like them saying "Dummy, look at how things are!" I haven't decided yet if I think this is effective or not, because reading this made the rebel in me want to argue with them, even though I think they make some good points.

Regardless, "Writing Movies for fun and Profit" is the definition of no-nonsense writing, and it made for an interesting read.