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Showing posts with label struggles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label struggles. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Distractions and frustration inspire screenwriters to sought after change

Good screenwriting involves channeling creativity to advance great storytelling. As screenwriters, our mission is to capture fantasy and make believe the magic of movies. We watch movies to leave behind our waking lives. For the most part, we want to travel to a new world that we could only imagine.

In those 90 minutes, 120 minutes and even 180+ minutes, the best movies take us on a journey. The rigorous demands of life disrupts this balance. How can we juggle our bills, health issues, car problems, and everything else that seems to plague us, day-in day-out? 

To really think about the structure of movies, our conflicting struggles portray the essence of movies. How many movies have we've seen where the setup, development and the resolution are exactly alike? None. Movies rely on distractions, bad luck, unfortunate events, and all that frustrates us as humans. 

Who really wants to live a meaningless life? Every person wants something, even if our desire is to help other people overcome their hardship. The joy of screenwriting is that we can create these stories. We possess the creative control to write as we please. 

Of course, screenwriters who option their screenplays and those connected with movie studios must keep the best interest of producers in mind. Screenwriters who are unwilling to accommodate revisions won't last long in Hollywood. Studio screenwriters and optioned script writers must obey the terms and conditions of their employers. This is when screenwriting gets tricky. It is all worth the control others have over screenwriters because many of us want to become a notable fixture in Hollywood - our screenplays may become synonymous with the upper echelon of Hollywood royalty.  

Write your movie scripts like you're on a mission to change the world. What do you want to convey to your audience? How will this story change the world? Will one moviegoer find motivation to change? Will this story increase awareness on a particular movement? (i.e. Jurassic Park and its funding for dinosaur research or Top Gun increasing military recruitment efforts for the U.S. Navy). Movies are special in that way; they have the power of influence on their side. 

Distractions and frustration make screenwriters want to become better at their craft. When fans take notice of this great body of work, screenwriters can smile for that one moment. They realize their hard work in writing this script and living impossible challenges are meant for this one moment. As screenwriters, we can shine the beacon of light on millions of people. 

Screenwriters can retell past events. They can take us to the highest point on Earth. We can travel in space, go to other planets and universes and enter dimensions beyond our own existence. We dream about watching movies in the same light, as we experience while sleeping in the night. 

Our mission as screenwriters is to change the world through our vision. We write what we know best. In that sense, we are resourceful and accustomed to change; we create the world we find most attractive. We can lucid dream in Inception. We can astral project in Insidious. We can sail on the ship of dreams in Titanic. We can honor the leaders of our nation in different time periods. We can win the war in Saving Private Ryan. 

It is all about what we want in our scripts. Our passion for writing is associated with distractions and frustrations. We can live a disaster in The Duplex movie, and then change these misfortunes to write a bestselling book. Whatever we want, we can do in screenplays. If we want to win a gold medal in the Olympics, we can visualize and write this in our stories. We can visit our loved-ones in Heaven. We can battle the forces of evil to save the world. 

Screenwriting is a unique craft. As with screenwriters, novelists also understand the creative juices that flow into their stories. Once a book ending comes to fruition, this moment of realization is surreal. Write, write and keep writing. Never let go of that dream. 

If you must and require inspiration, go on an adventure to revitalize your mind. Just know that distractions and frustration represent the heart of most movies, humanizing the characters we root for in these amazing journeys to overcome their trials and tribulations. Allow visuals and dialogue to flow down the stream. Good screenwriting requires persistence and discipline. 

Happy Screenwriting!