Tag: People’s Pilot Contest

A TV Writer Teaches Us About “NOOOO!!!”

And believe us when we say that understanding the No word and all its ramifications – and dealing with it appropriately – can make all the difference in anybody’s TV (or film) writing career:

n0by David S. Simon

I am in a war of words and I’m fighting it all by myself, day by day, battle by battle, against an insidious enemy that isn’t anywhere but is everywhere I look.

Judging by that opening paragraph it looks like I’m also in the riddle business and in some ways I am.
In this case the riddle is my life that seems to be born out of an incredibly evasive, complex code that requires an Alan Turing to break. read article

Diana Vacc Sees CRIMINAL MINDS: BEYOND BORDERS

cmbb posterby Diana Vaccarelli

Criminal Minds is following in the footsteps of Law and Order and CSI by spinning off its own clone, called Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.  This child/nephew/niece is about an elite group of FBI Agents charged with coming to the aid of and solving crimes that involve American citizens abroad.

THE GOOD

  • The fast paced writing of the series.  The numerous twists and turns keep you on your toes and in suspense. (The music helps too.)
  • The writers really bring to life the different cultures where the Agents are sent to do their thing.  For example, the pilot episode took them to Thailand, giving viewers an interesting glimpse into how women are treated in the Thai Police Force.
  • The performances by all the actors, led by Gary Sinise.  Each character on the team has a distinct personality and set of skills. Much of this is in the writing, as in Criminal Minds, but the actors’ performances seem so genuine that it wasn’t till I sat down to write this review that I even thought about possible copycatting.

THE BAD: read article

WGAW Calendar of Events for April, 2016

wgaw cal 4 16

A Clickable Version is HERE

Peggy Bechko’s World: Writing the First Draft

prachettby Peggy Bechko

Writers are always digging for tips on how to do it quicker, better, more detailed, less so, whatever!

But I note the dreaded first draft is frequently skipped or maybe sort of glossed over. So, let’s take a look.

You’re a writer, you have a great idea, but all sorts of ‘tips’ are hanging you up. You don’t want to be too wordy, you worry about what your ‘first’ reader might think, you want to get everything just right – right from the beginning.
Not going to happen. Really. read article

How a Hit TV Show Makes Its Owners RICH! RICH! RICH!

Ever why so many obvious non-writers (you know what we mean) keep trying to get into TV writing? Wonder no more:

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The Economics of a Hit TV Show
by Jon Nathanson

Ten million Americans can recall where they were the night of September 29th, 2013. They were watching the series finale of Breaking Bad. And they were watching it on AMC, a cable channel that once cut its teeth airing reruns of black-and-white movies.

The suits at the network were prepared. Like Walter White, the show’s ruthlessly efficient meth dealer, they knew they had a quality product on their hands. And they charged their customers accordingly. AMC extended the runtime of the last two episodes from 44 to 54 minutes – 75 minutes apiece with commercials – and raised its advertising rates to as much as $400,000 per 30-second spot. The 21 minutes of commercial airtime in “Felina,” the show’s final episode, may have earned the network $7-8 million in advertising revenue. read article