Film School

Write a character you fall in love with. We've all heard that advice, but HOW DO YOU DO THAT? How can we create a character who feels real, that people will connect with, be thrilled by, want to cosplay . . . you know, the BEST CHARACTERS. This week, we talk about our own tips and tricks as well as our observations of the best characters out there. Enjoy!

How do you know if you're writing the right story? I mean, we all know how long it takes to write something, we all know how much effort it takes. It seems like a valid question . . . why this story right now? How important (or unimportant) is it to answer that question? We answer this question for ourselves in this week's Cutting Room Floor!

A rock and a hard place. The decisions that define the arc of a character, and indeed our own lives. This is the realm of the Crisis, one of the must-have components of a scene, act, story, or even series of stories. Have a great one, and your story will sizzle. Important stuff. So . . . how do we write a good one?  Not all decisions are created equal, so how do we make sure we're really turning t...

Writing is hard. Often. Not all the time, certainly . . . writing is hard, it seems, until it's not. For a while. And then it's hard again. Writing is perhaps at it's hardest when it doesn't happen, when we don't write. So, what drives you away from the writing? What stalls you out, makes you go in circles? What makes you feel like giving up? Josh and Ira share what it is for them . . . and what t...

Go out with a BANG! Of the three most basic parts of a story–beginning, middle, and end–the ending probably gets the most attention. A good one will get you the most forgiveness, and a bad one will certainly doom you. That's a lot of pressure. So . . . what makes a great one? What are some pitfalls to avoid? And what are some heights to reach for? We share our tips, tricks, and observations!

A left turn. Off the rails. Sometimes, our story seems to have a mind of it's own, and it changes as we're writing it, perhaps even dramatically. Is . . . that okay? Or, is that some kind of red flag, a warning that we're about to get lost in the weeds? That second question is probably just anxiety, and the answer to the first is probably yes. We talk about why this week!

The dreaded "muddy middle." That's a common term amongst script writers and storytellers in general. We all know that if a story is going to bog down anywhere, it will happen in that giant middle 50% chunk of the story. There's a reason why most manuscripts get about halfway through before they're tossed in a drawer and abandoned. So, how can we avoid that? How can we make the middle the BEST part...

In the age of content . . . what makes something "art?" Anyone and everyone can make anything these days. That's objectively wonderful. Inherently, that means there area a multitude of reasons why things are created, what the goals are for those creations, and the function they serve to the audience they reach. Within all that, IS there a distinction to be made between "content" and "art?" If ther...

Start with a BANG! Hook the viewer/reader! Your story should grab them by the throat! We've all heard the advice on what the start to our stories need to be . . . but just HOW do we accomplish that? What do the great openings that we can think of have in common? This week on the CRF, we do a deep dive on BEGINNINGS.

Happy New Year! What a *YEAR* 2020 was for all of us . . . but the page has now turned. We're no longer in the past. We're living in the future. 2021 is a new year. What do you want to accomplish? What did you do poorly last year and want to do better in the new year? And what did you do well that you want to continue? We're looking ahead, this week on the Cutting Room Floor!

Kevin!!! If you're a certain age, this movie defined your childhood. Who DIDN'T want to kick the fam, watch violent movies, eat ice cream all day, and turn their house into a labyrinth of death and defeat the Wet Bandits?! Christopher Columbus and John Hughes are at their family-friendly peak, and made a true Christmas classic that STILL delivers the giggles. And, as we dig in . . . pretty gd airt...

2020: you were a motherf*cker. For real, this year has been an all-timer of a year. It's challenged our perception of what a year even IS. And it's come from all sides: personal, professional, global. 2020 will always be the year of COVID-19 . . . but there's a lot that goes into that. It was also the year of working from home, the year the "industry" changed, the year of the presidential election...

What have I done?! Alec Guinness takes a starring turn as the unbreakable WWII Colonel Nicholson. He finds himself as a prisoner of war in a work camp tasked with building the Japanese a bridge over the river Kwai. It's a battle of wits and will for self-respect, cowardice and bravery, and ultimately survival. William Holden also pitches in as the POW-turned commando Shears who returns to the camp...

If you're anything like me, the voice inside your head that lies is so good at it, it doesn't even sound like it's lying. It sounds calm, rational, confident . . . what it's saying even FEELS GOOD to listen to. But, nevertheless, it's a liar. It's based in fear. And, it's holding us back. So, how on this green earth do we tell it apart from the voices in our head that should be listened to? And wh...

Coming home can be the hardest. William Wyler flexes some considerable cinematic muscle in this ensemble WWII story of three soldiers who struggle to return to their normal lives after serving in World War II. We have Homer who's lost his hands and can't find the will to ask his long-time girlfriend to marry him; we have Fred, who's married but find himself in love with somebody else; and then the...

How do you know when it's time to level up? And, when you know it's time to take whatever that next step might be . . . how do you take it? How do you break through? Josh and Ira share how they know when that moment comes, and offer their own insights into how to accomplish it. Plus, a couple great recommendations on what to watch. Enjoy!

The motherlode! John Huston pairs up with his own father plus Bogart to spin a tale of gold and greed. It was a big influence on Lucas and Spielberg when they were developing Indiana Jones, and it's based (somewhat) on Huston's own experience in the Mexican Cavalry. Bogart plays against his type insomuch as he's definitely not a hero. Be careful what you wish for. It might just be your undoing. En...

Home. How often do our stories start with where we live? Why is that? What is it about "home," or even when we visit somewhere else and it fires up the imagination? How do we get inspired by where we live? It's certainly a personal question; how much are YOU inspired by where you live? Does it show up literally in your work? Or is it a step or two removed, bits and pieces in an otherwise alien loc...

Gentlemen, there's no fighting in here! This is the war room! Stanley Kubrick is back on the list, this time with his alternately zany and terrifying comedy (?) Doc Strange(love). Comedic genius Peter Sellers is along for the ride, playing no less than THREE roles, including the repressed nazi titular character. On the docket: nuclear annihilation! But . . . is it funny?

A lot of us want to turn pro...but what are the downsides? The allure of "turning pro" is obvious: you get to do what you want full-time and get paid for it?! Omg. That's a no-brainer! And, working the dream job is without question all of that and more . . . but part of that "more" is that there's always a cost to taking something you love and making it your job. Sometimes that cost is more than y...

The hills are alive! This classic team-up of legends Julie Andrews, director Robert Wise, and composers Rogers & Hammerstein is an indelible mark in the history of musicals. We've all heard the songs. We've all seen the precocious Maria twirling and wailing up on that hill in the Austrian Alps. So . . . how does it hold up sixty years on? We get a bit contentious with that question this week on th...

Life gets crazy. All the time! And it's never ever going to go away completely. That fantasy you have of getting everything in order and things being just perfect and right is just that . . . a fantasy. The reality is that we have to fit our creativity into our everyday life, and sometimes that can be EXTRA challenging. This week, we discuss how to squeeze in the writing no matter what!

Long live the king! Almost 100 years old, and Kong still BRINGS THE NOISE. It's rather astonishing how much of this movie still delivers the thrills today that it did so long ago. The imagery is iconic. The action doesn't stop once Kong shows up. The visual effects are beyond anything else we've seen from the era, and they STILL PLAY. It's an incredible movie. We have an incredible discussion abou...

We all fall off. How do we get back up and keep going? Failure is inevitable, big or small. We all come up short of our goals or expectations. It's a normal part of life, particularly a creative one. So, when that happens, how can we get back to the work and not get lost or derailed by the pain? We discuss methods to get back up on that horse this week!

We rob banks! It was the rallying cry of the counter-culture movement in the 1960s, and the star vehicle that brought us Warren Beatty. Based on the all-too-true story of the Barrow gang and their bloody exploits, this film was a sensation at the time for its depiction of violence and sexuality. We go full outlaw this week on Film School!