Film Courage: Since [your book] Writing for the Green Light which was published in 2014 or?
Scott Kirkpatrick: 2015.
Film Courage: 2015…okay. Has your personal opinion wavered on anything in the book that you were maybe more dogmatic about and then since [such as] a new film has come out or some thing has shifted, you’ve actually changed your opinion?
Scott Kirkpatrick: No. I mean only in the sense that when you’re writing a book…you know…if it were a blog or something else, you can be a little bit more like this is what is working today and right now. I wrote that book and the book I am working on also about distribution, I focus on principles, not rules, not gimmicks, not trends, principles.
Think about engineering for instance. We sent human beings to the moon and we returned them to the earth with as much computing power on board as 4-function calculator. People were using slide rulers at NASA to calculate how are we going to land an object on the moon. So you think technology today is going to send us to wherever and all these other things. The truth is the principles that work in technology today in an engineering level are exactly the same as they were in the 60’s, just different tools to get to the same result.
Writing for the Green Light is the same idea. If you are trying to be a writer, if you are trying to build your career as a writer, there are certain tools that you have in your tool kit that are going to propel you and there are others that are just going to hold you back. Those Goldmine Genres that I wrote about in the book are as true today as they were in the 60’s, as they were in the 40’s, as they will be 30 years from now.
You know, Sharknado is a great example of a creature feature. You see women in peril thrillers all the time on TV, you see them all over the world. Action movies with aging stars have been here from the beginning of the B-movie, as the second-tier to the major one. And they are going to continue no matter what. They were big in the 80’s and the 90’s because of video rentals and now they are big today because of VOD opportunities.
These are just core value content pieces that every company looks for in one capacity or another.
It’s as true as it was written a few years ago as it will be in the future. And because it’s a book, I really focus on the stuff that is going to stick around.
Question for the Viewers: Name something you believe is a screenwriting principle?
100,000 Screenplays Written Every Year, How Does A Screenwriter Stand Out?
by Author Scott Kirkpatrick
CONNECT WITH SCOTT KIRKPATRICK
Linkedin.com
Facebook.com/writingforthegreenlight
Amazon Page for Scott’s Book
About Scott Kirkpatrick:
Scott is the author of the book Writing for the Green Light: How to Make Your Script the One Hollywood Notices and is the Senior Vice President of North & South American business development, sales and global digital strategy for the London-based distributor DRG. Previously, Kirkpatrick served as Executive Director of Distribution for MarVista Entertainment, a Los Angeles-based production and distribution company that produces original TV movies and has managed international TV deals on major franchises including Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. Before shifting to the distribution side of the industry, Kirkpatrick worked behind the scenes on major studio productions, including Talladega Nights: The Balled of Ricky Bobby. Kirkpatrick has also produced and directed TV series and feature films including Eye for an Eye, Muslims in America and Roadside Massacre.