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PAST WINNERS 2006 2ND ANNUAL SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! COMPETITION
WINNERS 2005 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! COMPETITION WINNER Interview with Christopher Canole - 2006 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! - 1st PLACE
Winning the Hangman Productions competition confirmed my screenplay Felix the Flyer has matured beyond being a multiple contest winner into a becoming viable movie property. What motivated you to write this particular story? The director Armand Mastroianni approached me to write a sport bio-pic for ESPN. I remembered when I was a teen the story of the Cuban mailman, Felix Carvajal, who ran 1200 miles up the Mississippi to compete in the 1904 Olympic Marathon which was the most torturous race in Olympic history filled with cheating, racism and drug abuse. I researched and wrote the screenplay in two months. ESPN loved the screenplay but the lead time to the Olympic was too short for production. So rather than give up, I rewrote the story and entered it in several contests in 2005, the last of which was the Screenplay Shootout on New Year's Eve. How long have you been a writer? How many scripts have you written? I started writing screenplays in 2001, and am now writing my eleventh screenplay, Her Swastika Sword, about Helene Mayer German a Jewish fencer attending the University of Southern California who drew her sword to fence in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. I am writing in the style of a Western lone gunfighter forced to stand tall against multiple antagonists including Hitler and the US Olympic Committee. Tell us about your writing habits. Any advice or lessons you’d like to share with other aspiring writers? Researching a month in advanced of writing a screenplay has become an unexpected passion that acts like a rehearsal amongst actors and a director. I fill my studio walls with images of the theme of my screenplay like a set designer and cinematographer. The pre-writing momentum builds as more and more people get wind of my latest story. People from all over the world have supplied me with invaluable artifacts I never knew existed. The most important lesson I've learned this year is the absolute power of the REWRITE. Each time I win, or place high, in a contest I rewrite Felix the Flyer. I wrote a new version for a particular types of contest like the San Diego Film Festival and Screenplay Shootout, and suggestions from reading Scr(i)pt magazine. I've rewritten this script imagining John Leguizamo in the lead to bring out Felix's aggressive comedic nature, and then a rewrite with Diego Luna as Felix to accentuate the vulnerable innocent hero. Since submitting Felix to the Shootout I've written a version for a Cuban producer like Andy Garcia who can bring out more nuances to the story . And now I am writing Her Swastika Sword for a powerful actress like Charlize Theron. What are some of your influences? Favorite films? Writers/Directors? Working as a still photographer for Stu Segall Productions honed my awareness of writing a conservative budget film using Balboa Park in San Diego, and replica of the 1904 World's Fair and Olympic site. I am a fan of epic biographies, my favorite being Lawrence of Arabia. My research for a new script includes viewing at least thirty films of the genre (Westerns right now) and reading several screenplays, like Shane and Unforgiven to see how both the classic and modern screenplay writers handle the genre. What are your immediate and long-term writing goals? Like any un-produced writer I want to see my first screenplay come to life so I can see where I need to strengthen my skills. I've written two adaptations in preparation for being hired to bring a great human story or book into a wider public awareness. Having worked on many movies and TV series I look forward writing stories fellow crew members and actors will be proud of. Any final thoughts? When I first won the ScreenplayShootout! I had no idea what a major win could do to my career and confidence. I immediately re-wrote Felix the Flyer based on emails and comments from James and Shane, the hosts of the ScreenplayShootout!. Since the Shootout, Felix has won the Queens International Film Festival, Creative Screenwriting magazine's AAA contest, the International Family Film Festival and was chosen as the first screenplay to be featured in a six page story in Script magazine's Jan/Feb 2008 issue where famed writers Peter Iliff and Mike Rich polished one of my scenes. Having added the Screenplay Shootout grand prize to my IMDB web page attracted interest from many producers, directors and actors. I have used the prize money to send out mailers, enter more film festivals, and paid my way to events like Expo and the Scriptwriters Showcase. The thing to keep in mind is a win like this is not the final answer, but rather the big first step in any writer's career. [ Back to Top ] Interview with Garey Riester - 2006 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! – 3rd Place
How long have you been writing? I have been writing on and off most of my life… As a painter and writer, my creative energies have fluctuated between the two. Over the past 10 years, the writing has become the real passion. Instead of painting with pigment, I strive to create visual and narrative images with words. During this timeframe, I have worked on 18 to 20 screenplays, started 2 novels, a number of short stories, 3 treatments and 2 pilot episodes for television. I am currently working on at least 6 different projects. I have 7 completed scripts that I feel good enough about to send out. I like working on a number of diverse projects simultaneously. As with working on numerous paintings for an interval of time, I also find it useful for facilitating the writing process as well as to stay focused when there are many projects on the table to give my attention to at any chosen moment. If I am at a standstill or difficult place with one project, there is always something else to work on to keep me writing.... [ Back to Top ] Interview with Brian Jude Leahy - 2005 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! - 1st PLACE
I was truly elated. I remember saying to myself, "My God, I
just might be able to pull this off." Living in Los Angeles,
you are bombarded with THE INDUSTRY stuff, whether you want to be
or not, you can't really escape it. People are writing screenplays
on their lap tops in every Starbucks, headshots stare back at you
from printing shop windows, there are films being shot on every corner,
so you can't help but to measure your own career or lack thereof,
on a daily basis. Winning this contest was such a personal reward.
It was validation. I realize that I have a way to go, but this is
definitely the type of encouragement that I need... And $5000 never
hurt a soul. OMELETTE O'NEIL was inspired by so many different factors. After doing a movie as an actor that introduced me to a couple of guys from the stunt world, I remember thinking they'd be such great characters in a film. They were inherently more interesting than the actors on the shoot, they were wise guys, trouble makers, fathers, husbands... One guy was actually knitting. They just seemed to have a lot of passion in everything they were doing. And more importantly, they were real. So that always stuck in my head. Another inspiring moment was hearing about Gene Hackman being involved in a fender-bender on Sunset Blvd. After he got out of his car and was confronted by the younger Hollywood studs in the first car, he supposedly lit into each of them, laying them out with a couple punches. I loved that image. I love Gene Hackman. He, along with my own father became the inspiration for the character of Ackerman O'Neil. And my other inspiration is my dog, Omelette. He's the happiest being on earth. That is until we get outside the comforts of my home. Then he's anxious, crying, friends of mine always say he might be agoraphobic, hence, the anxieties that led to one of my lead characters. How long have you been writing? I've always loved writing. I didn't really consider it as a career
until a few years ago when I moved to Los Angeles and became frustrated
by the lack of control I had as a performing artist. It became a
creative outlet for me. I was so used to doing theatre back in Chicago,
and with a lot of regret, I found the theatre scene here, though
striving to improve itself, was just not as satisfying. So the writing
not only filled the void but has surpassed any of my initial thoughts
of pursuing it in my career. I actually think I have an incredible future in this industry. I
realize that sounds a bit over- confident, but there's something
in my gut that has kept me wading further into this. I've got some
other scripts that I want to see actually realized. I want to write.
I want to direct. I want to continue to act. I want to tell stories. I'm hardly in a position to give anyone any advice on the subject, seeing that I'm just being introduced myself, but I guess I would say to write what you want to write, from your gut, the insides, not what you'd think others would respond to... And stay away from some of those crappy "screenplay writing seminars." I went to one. From what I understand, he's supposedly the best on the subject. He's got a book. He's got a crowd of followers. Let them follow and you might be the one who breaks away. Contact information for Brian Jude Leahy: [ Back to Top ] Interview with Brian
K. Watanabe - 2005 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! – 2nd PLACE My initial reaction was, I hope this isn't a mistake. I rebooted my computer a few times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. Then came the rush of adrenaline. Then came the lap around the apartment with my finger pointed in the air as my cats ran under the couch. I honestly just feel lucky to have placed so high amongst so many great scripts. And I'm really excited about Benderspink reading my script. What was your inspiration for your story? I was actually downsized from an ad agency during the San Francisco dot-com bust of 2001. My art director partner was actually layed-off first. It was a complete shock. It felt like they took him to the back alley and whacked him. As the layoffs continued, the paranoia increased. Alliances were formed. Cubes emptied. You honestly didn't know if your best friend was going to stab you in the back. When I finally got fired it was almost a relief. So I thought, what would it be like if a government agency of assassins
was being downsized and instead of firing you, they killed you? Suddenly,
it didn't seem so farfetched. "The Rogues' Gallery" was
born. I'm actually an advertising copywriter, but nobody's perfect. I got serious about screenwriting that summer of 2001 spending my unemployment check on a McKee seminar in Chicago. Since then I've joined screenwriting groups, taken seminars, attended classes and read everything I could on the craft. I even managed to squeeze in some writing in there too. What are your plans and goals for the future? I'm currently finishing my next script, with more ideas in the works. I would love to pull a Lawrence Kasdan and move from advertising to screenwriting, but I know I still have a lot to learn. There has already been some interest in "Rogues'" and I'd love to see where that takes me. What advice would you give to other aspiring screenwriters? Just write. Write an outline. Write an e-mail. Write a haiku. Write
everyday. You'll find your voice in all that writing. Join a screenwriting
group for the deadlines. Read, watch and absorb everything you can:
movies, music, magazines, comic books, conversations. You never know
where that big idea will come from. Structure is your friend. Clichés
are the enemy. Write something truly original, send it to some contests
and people will notice. Finally, disregard all of the above because
I'm still one of you and what do I know? [ Back to Top ] Interview with Andrew Gerngross - 2005 SCREENPLAY SHOOTOUT! – 3rd Place
The first hard screenwriting lesson I learned is: you will be rejected and ignored. To be certain, nothing compares to receiving a positive response. I have placed high in screenwriting contests before but this is the first cash prize -- and that feels just fine. I knew I was one five finalists but I wasn't expecting to be in the top 3. Nevertheless, I checked the website repeatedly and obsessively until the announcement came. When the news did come, I was thrilled and surprised. First thing: I called a screenwriter friend who had read the earliest
draft of the script and had been very encouraging. I then wrote a
thank you email to the members of a screenwriting group who had given
me very useful feedback on an earlier draft. I spent the next 48
hours mentally casting the film and preparing Oscar speeches. Whew. Long story. When I am stuck for inspiration I turn, for some strange reason, to Philosophy and Mathematics. Honest. Several years ago I was in a fallow period and read Wittgenstein's On Certainty. The ever obsessive Austrian philosopher posed the question to himself: "How do I know I live at [such and such] an address?" (or words to that effect). I imagined a person who undergoes surgery and awakens believing his home address is not where he lives but the address of an identical house across the street. This evolved into the premise for an original TV series called Across The Way. In Across the Way, half the story takes place in an ordinary suburban home and half the story takes place across the way in an identical but apparently empty home that turns out to be a portal into the main character's dream world. Each week the main character would venture into the house across the way and slip into a mysterious noir world. The idea was to have two stories each week, one on each side of reality. Each reality would reflect and inform the other. It's unlikely that a first time writer would get an original TV series, so I put aside Across the Way and worked on other projects. With nothing else to write, I took the basic story for Across the Way and tried to turn it into a feature. I took notes for months but a complete story never presented itself. It just didn't work as a feature. I was close to abandoning the project when I thought I'd give writing the first Act a try. I got to p. 17 -- the first moment the hero ventures into the house across the way -- and I froze. I went to dinner with a fellow writer and I tried to explain the story to him but in all my note taking and ponderance had created a story and premise too baroque to work as a feature. My friend suggested I hone things down a bit. And I did. Down to a single statement: Man who thinks he knows it all, encounters death and sees what he had refused to see because he is freed from fear. It was September and a heatwave hung over Los Angeles. I was looking for an apartment and flirting with the idea of living in a deco relic in Hollywood. With some of the elements of the noir world from Across the Way, I reimagined my adopted city as the city you see in Los Angeles. How long have you been writing? What are your plans and goals for the future? Keep writing. Currently, I am working on a revisionist historical comedy about the 1964 FBI investigation into the purportedly obscene lyrics to "Louie Louie". Also, I love episodic TV and have written specs for Without A Trace, Alias and Cold Case. I have an original animated series called Game (see http://www.gameisnotagame.com) that I continue to refine and develop. Get representation. I am not represented and would very much like to hear from agents and managers. My long term goal is to deliver one of those Oscar speeches that goes on and on and on... and on. What advice would you give to other aspiring screenwriters? [ Back to Top ]
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Congratulations on taking First Place in the 2nd Annual Screenplay Shootout! Tell us about how you felt when you saw the news.
What was your reaction when you saw the news?
Congratulations on taking First Place in the Screenplay
Shootout. After all of your hard work, how does it feel? What was
your reaction when you saw the news?
**UPDATE** - LOS ANGELES is being produced by Pierce-Williams and
Andrew is now represented by Zero Gravity Management. Congratulations
Andrew!Copyright © 2005-2007 Hangman Productions, Inc.