Screenwriting

For as long as I can remember, the relationship I had with my father Mike was complicated. For starters, he was legendary in Hollywood. And because he was a well-known agent, executive, and producer, the father-son bond I waited for was often put on the back burner. Things at home weren’t stable.
 I changed schools in my teen years a handful of times.
 When I started working, my father took the Bill Gates approach to parenting; make your own way without favors from one of the most powerful peopl...

Imagine your screenplay being chosen by one of the top agents in Hollywood. Are you imagining it yet? This competition has launched screenwriting careers with over a dozen of our last winners and finalists either signed, optioned, or now working in the industry! Last Year’s Grand Prize winner, Tom Batha, took meetings with executives all around Hollywood, including Robert Downey Jr.'s production company, Team Downey, literary managers at Zero Gravity, Cohen/Torgen Management and Bohemia G...

How does a budding screenwriter get started? What's more, how can he or she improve on their writing? Burt Bluestein was the assistant director on Godfather II and Point Break. Stage 32 caught up with him at Film Con Hollywood where he offered tips for up and coming screenwriters, as well as the power of networking on Stage 32. Give the image below a click to hear what he has to say!   Click Here For Burt's Advice!     Remember, if you haven't subscribed to our YouTube page, make sure yo...

You’re in your artistic element, deeply connected to your creativity and performance. Just like a river flowing from its source into the world, it feels right. It’s a connection that transcends flaws, doubts, and fears. Your inspiration, passion, skills, and talents come together into one stream of expression. You’re becoming your song, writing, or your acting. In moments like these, you can feel the ripples of emotions between you and your audience. Time stops… Nothing else matters… You and y...

Good morning Stage 32 Family! On Thursday, our network of over 500 industry executives were sent into the weekend with homework from Stage 32. Each executive received a copy of the Stage 32 “Double Recommend” Lookbook which contained the titles and loglines for some of the best projects to come to the Stage 32 Script Services team over the last month. Every month, Stage 32 Script Services receives hundreds of screenplays from writers all over the world for coverage, consultations and other...

Happy Sunday everyone, and to those celebrating, a very happy holiday weekend.  Hope you're enjoying and participating in another edition of Introduce Yourself Weekend.  Now on to another edition of Coffee & Content. First up this week, I love me a good TEDx Talk and this one from John Dufresne, How to Write a Story, certainly fits the bill.  Get yourself a backup cup of java for this vid as you may just want to watch it twice. Next up, cinematographers and gaffers, I hear ya!  You want more...

I remember seeing the trailer for Breaking Bad when it came out and thinking, "That looks dumb." Eight years later, I couldn't get enough of it. (Disclaimer: I may have been in a sh*t frame of mind when I saw the trailer, so...) There have been dozens of shows before it, since it, and after it, that have garnered tremendous attention and have become prime examples in TV writing classes all over the world and in blog posts. In this post, The New York Times gives their list of the Top 20 TV dram...

In my experience there have been three types of people who approach me with ideas:1) Those who have no idea what the creative process entails, nor respect for the creative person. With people like this, I am polite but stay at a distance. 2) Those who really want to write their stories themselves, but are blocked by their own fear and/or denial. With people like this, I am polite but will share advice. 3) Those who want you to write their story for them and are willing to discuss a contract...

When it comes to coverage, writers end up with a vast array of responses from seasoned readers, not-so-seasoned readers, producers, and executives. But how does a writer handle the coverage? And what can he or she do to make it better? Ricard Botto and Jason Mirch handle the question for a writer during the free "Ask Me Anything" webinar hosted by both gentlemen. A hint on how they responded? Be receptive to notes and let go of any defensiveness. Click below to hear more.   Click Here For...

Good morning, Stage 32 Family! We hope you have had a productive weekend and were able to carve out some time for your creative pursuits. It’s Monday, which means we are kicking off the week with a few more success stories from our Stage 32 community. For our stories this week, I wanted to highlight two executives who have been instrumental in helping some of our members push their projects forward. Of course, all of the executives who work with Stage 32 are incredibly knowledgeable about...