Monday, February 16, 2015

Research: Reading screenplays

I read the first half of the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind today. One of my favorite films.

A few of my notes:

  • The writing is clever. With simple, short descriptions about the ways that Joel and Clementine order coffee, we really see their characters and personalities. 
  • Reading scripts that I am familiar with is helpful to show how the words on the page created the movie on screen. However, I think I also need to read scripts for films that I haven't yet seen. In reading Eternal, I am so enamored with the film that I bring that favorable bias to bear on the script. The foreshadowing is easy to spot. The character traits are easily seen. However, when sharing a screenplay with a potential producer, they don't have the luxury of such a favorable bias. They are reading it as words on a page, completely new, rather than words on a page that connect with a finished film.
  • Clementine is fascinating from the start. She is in stark contrast to Joel (orange hair vs gray suit, outspoken vs mumbling, brave vs timid, inconsistent vs consistent, unpredictable vs predictable, colorful vs blank). Her character makes me want to turn the page, but especially to discover what has drawn these two characters together. 

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