Month: October 2015

John Ostrander Weighs in on the ‘New Boys in Town’

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by John Ostrander

Well, it’s been a few weeks since Stephen Colbert assumed command of The Late Show and Trevor Noah has taken the reins of The Daily Show. In both cases the hosts are taking over from prior hosts who had long tenure at their respective shows (David Letterman and Jon Stewart). The new boys have been there long enough now to form some opinions.  Admittedly, they’re just my opinions but this is my column.

I want to start with The Daily Show and Trevor Noah. To be honest, this was the one that was of greater concern to me because I really loved watching Jon Stewart. I felt that he (and the show) had an important role on television. It was very funny and had a real point of view and delighted in deflating personalities and kicking other networks and other media up the butt when needed (and it has been an ever increasing need over the past few years). Jon Stewart had a keen eye and a well developed sense of outrage to go with his highly developed sense of comedy.

Could Trevor Noah compete? Could he fill those shoes? Would The Daily Show still be a must-see show for me? read article

Crowdfunding: Bureau of Creative Works

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Here’s an interesting new approach to funding and distributing work by new filmmakers. The Bureau of Creative Works will help 12 different filmmakers create 12 new short films which will, according to its Kickstarter page, be distributed “exclusively to the very supporters who helped make that film possible.”

The project page explains that 80% of the funds will go directly to the production budget of each film with the other 20% “split between Kickstarter / Amazon / VHX fees, and then operating cost, ie., The Bureau.” read article

Diana Black Loves the Dark Side – Bwahh

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by Diana Black

Come on, fess up, who amongst us have ‘loved’ and desired the rebel/bad guy/gal – in school, College, University, on the big screen or in the television show? Be careful what you wish for. You might have married one (or were): daily having to tread a fine line between exhilaration and fear, between violence and bliss. Funny, neither gender seem to be liked/suffered nobly in the workplace – but in that arena, it’s all about being a team player not the lone rebel/psychopath.

So why do they ‘reel us in’ – involving us in their complicated, often dysfunctional lives? And what makes them especially compelling when we view them on the big screen or ‘little box’?

From a biological POV, rebels tend to take risks, live precariously, face danger and either through luck or sheer ‘ballsyness’, often reap the rewards of their daring – but not always. Failures can be spectacular and collateral damage is a given. They live and die by the sword – but they live and life on the edge is strangely intoxicating – if you survive. read article

Why I Regret Going to Film School

The op-ed of all showbiz op-eds. We here at TVWriter™ consider this a “must-read”:

Is-Film-School-Worth-It-865x505by Caleb Ward

Whether it’s terminology, new techniques, or simply how to not do something, every time I step onto a film set I learn something new. Your entire career is going to be spent learning and refining your skills… at no point are you going to sit down and know everything. The industry moves way too fast and it’s simply impossible to know everything.

When people ask me if I went to film school I tell them, ‘no, I went to films.’ – Quentin Tarantino read article

Kelly Jo Brick: The Write Path With Manager Eddie Gamarra, Part 1

A series of interviews with hard-working writers – by another hard-working writer!

by Kelly Jo Brick

Eddie Gamarra headshotFinding the right representation can be a key component to growing and developing a writing career. TVWriter.com sat down with several managers to find out what they’re looking for in writers and what writers can be doing to help achieve success in the industry.

Thanks to his high school offering both film and a psychology as class selections, manager Eddie Gamarra fell in love with Hitchcock and Freud, sparking a passion for film and psychoanalysis that led him to major in Psychology at Vassar with a minor in Film. Eddie furthered his education by getting his Masters at NYU and a PhD at Emory. Rebooting his career after working as a professor, Eddie moved to Los Angeles where he started as an assistant and eventually found his way to The Gotham Group where his love for animation and experience working for a book packager found him well-suited for a role as manager with the company.

WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON QUESTION YOU GET FROM ASPIRING WRITERS? read article