Last night we held an extraordinary event in my office: The first full table read of my student Cooper’s screenplay, Siam.
What was extraordinary wasn’t that she finished it or even that the script was great (that happens a lot around here). No, what made the event so extraordinary was that all 20 people who attended the reading said they didn’t feel like they were listening to a screenplay, they felt they were watching a movie.
I don’t teach students to write screenplays, I teach them to write a movie on paper and I was ecstatic to see that’s exactly what Cooper did.
The screenwriters behind The Matrix included a graphic novel with their script for the reader to appreciate what they were trying to do but usually you don’t have the luxury of including additional material with your script.
That’s why when you write you need to write graphically. No one should ever have to read your script. They should be able to see it. If they can’t, you have a problem.
In order to do this, you must “see” your story first and that’s what my writing system is all about.
Congratulations, Cooper!
NOTE: If you have a completed screenplay that you’d like to showcase, please feel free to contact my office at 212.600.1115. We have access to locations, actors and videographers to make sure it’s presented as professionally as possible.
