About Shonda Rhimes is an American producer, writer (fiction, film and TV scripts) and showrunner. Her shows include: ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, ‘Private Practice’, ‘Scandal’, and ‘How to Get Away with Murder’, just to name a few. 1. Learn how to source ideas for your stories from everything that surrounds you. 2. If your idea has an…
Filmmaking and Writing
How to Attract Decision Makers to Your Project?
Not every decision-maker will be interested in the project you are offering. That’s why it’s important to research the decision-makers you are planning to approach. You need to be certain that you invest your time and energy in approaching the right people. Everyone needs to pitch projects and ideas to financiers, networks, distributors; some writers,…
How to Develop Characters for Your Stories?
1. Who is the character? Who does the character want to be? What makes your character/s come to life? What sort of person is your character; you need to dig deep to see how a real person would behave and react in the circumstances you are putting your characters in. 2. Where does your character/s…
Writers on Writing: Aaron Sorkin
Aaron Sorkin is one of the most celebrated and accomplished writers working in Hollywood at the moment. He writes for film, TV, and theatre. He is the creator of “West Wing” and “The Newsroom” and the scriptwriter behind “The Social Network” and “Steve Jobs”. In 2017 he directed Jessica Chastain in “Molly’s Game”, which I…
Working With Actors: Rehearsal
1. Rehearsal allows the actors to gain extra experience that will help them build the character while shooting. 2. During the rehearsal process, you get actors to ask the questions and give them specific experiences — ‘as if’ situations, scenarios to work with. Try not to give answers to their questions directly. 3. Get questions…
Filmmaking: Director’s Perspective
1. You have the script, actors, and the camera at your disposal to tell the story. 2. Try to always set up the scene as real events as may be seen through the eyes of the characters. 3. Think about what the character sees, feels and decides to do with what they see and feel…
Creative Distribution Case Study for a Film “Ringside”
My recommendations and suggestions are based on a “Ringside” trailer I watched and the EPK I read. £1000 Budget – it’s a fantastic achievement, James; let me congratulate you on that. With such a small budget, you should be bragging about this every time you give an interview, write a guest blog post or mention your…
What Are Film Director’s Responsibilities?
As a film student I read many books written by other film directors but I never fully understood what my responsibilities were going to be until I started making my own films. Below you will find my own list of director’s responsibilities. 1. I believe that director’s first responsibility is to the story, which means…
How One Pager Can Help During Film Production?
One Pager is for the director’s eyes only to remind the director of the most important things that need to take place in the scene. It’s like a cheat sheet for directors during the production. One Pager consists of: 1. The scene in a nutshell (one line, what the scene is about) 2. How did…
What Is The Director’s Relationship With the Camera?
One of those responsibilities as a director is to figure out, either on your own or with your Director of Photography, how you want to use the camera positioning, framing and movement to tell your story. Some directors work with a storyboard; others prefer working with a shot list. But the majority tell a story…