Coffee & Content

Hello, Creative Army.  Hope all who are celebrating are enjoying the remainder of the Thanksgiving weekend. Let's get right after it, shall we? First up, a look at one of my favorite films of the 21st century, the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men.  This one is from our friends at Lessons from the Screenplay and comes with the mandate - don't underestimate the audience! Next, short and sweet, some sage acting advice from the versatile Hugh Jackman. As always, I ask that you share thi...

Happy Sunday, everyone.  Hope you're all enjoying Introduce Yourself Weekend. Coming to you live from the Seattle Film Summit where Stage 32 is serving as the education partner.  It's been an inspiring few days of speaking and mentoring.  Also been fantastic to meet so many Stage 32 members in person. You might think all this would prevent me from bringing you Coffee & Content.  You'd be dead wrong!  Let's get to it. First, from Art and Story, a deep dive into text, subtext, and context. ...

Happy Sunday, everyone. This is going to have to be a quick one. As the official film networking and educational partner of the conference, it's been wall to wall for the Stage 32 team at the American Film Market (AFM), and this morning I am leading a talk on independent film financing with the CEO's of Hyde Park Entertainment, Bold Film, Cold Iron and the President of Millennium Entertainment. So, in short, time has been limited. But you know I wouldn't leave you hanging with just your coff...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army. It's been an amazing and rewarding week here at the Austin Film Festival.  Always a thrill getting to hang with so many Stage 32 filmmakers and screenwriters.  We'll have more on all the happenings from the last few days soon, but in the meantime, let's get to the coffee & content. Tony Gilroy has built a 20 plus year career by writing a wide variety of screenplays including NIGHTCRAWLER, TONY GILROY, THE BOURNE IDENTITY and ROGUE ONE.  Here's a screenwriting lec...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army. Let's close out the weekend with another strong cup of java and an equally potent edition of Coffee & Content. First up this week, I've been noticing many threads in the Screenwriting Lounge lately regarding the basics and the merits of writing within a 3 act structure.  One such thread reminded me of a video from Click Imagination I viewed a couple of years back.  I decided to dig it up and present it hear for consumption and discussion.  Next Up, another good...

What's up, Creative Army? Another Sunday, another edition of Coffee & Content.  Let's kick it off. First up, as you know, most industry readers give a screenplay about 5-10 pages before deciding whether they want to soldier on and spend the next 90-120 minutes of their lives with your story.  So how can you assure your screenplay sings from Page 1?  TOMKAT content provides some insights and some examples to back 'em up in their Writing the Perfect Movie Opening video. Next, I've featured m...

Greetings from sunny London.  It's been an inspiring last few days screening our 3rd Annual Short Film Program at the Raindance Film Festival and shining a light on the incredible filmmakers who won this year's competition.  More on that soon, but for now, let's get to the Coffee & Content. First up, last week's Goodfellas Script to Screen proved to be extremely popular, so I figured I'd double up this weekend with a look at Aaron Sorkin and David Fincher's work with The Social Network. Thin...

Happy Sunday to all.  Let's jump right in. First, from the guys at Script to Screen, it's a look at the famous bar scene from Goodfellas.  Get your shine box and settle in. Next, from our friends at Apture, it's 4 Cinematic Lighting Setups for filmmakers. Finally, over the last 7 years, I've received hundreds (literally) of DM's, emails, etc, asking me for recommendations on books, movies, scripts to read, workout equipment, diet and supplement advice and other things I'd rather not mentio...

Happy Sunday, everyone.  Time for another edition of Coffee & Content. First up, a look at developing characters with Aaron Sorkin.  Sorkin has created some of the most memorable and beloved characters of the last 20 years (tell me you don't know everything about every single West Wing character).  Whether working with fictional characters or those actually roaming the earth (The Social Network, Molly's Game) few writers are able to imbibe their characters with as much detail, nuance and defin...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army.  Time for another edition of Coffee & Content. First up, an oldie, but a goodie from FAST Screenplay.  This is a video I've seen referenced and debated often titled The 3 Fundamental Problems of Screenwriting Development.  I have a feeling this one will dredge up many opinions.  In the vein of Madonna, feel free to express yourself in the comments. Next up, our friends at wolfcrow take a look at the filmmaking and cinematography techniques within the beautifully...