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Dear readers, let us follow the wisdom of our friend Dreamscale, and quit reading a script if we hate it. The quality of mercy is not strained. And like that. When we are told, as I am told so often, "I couldn't get passed page 1 of your script", we (I) learn something and we (I) appreciate that.
Well, with a theme as spelled out like this, one can hardly be surprised when similarities crop up. I have to say that I did find the September challenge to be more rewarding as a reader because it allowed for such wonderful variety of genre and theme.
Especially theme, because I find the most intriguing question about any unfolding story to be "What is it about?" And when that question, if not entirely then to a large degree, has already been answered.
I do hope you don't hold the repetition against the individual author, since they had no way of knowing how many people would enter and what their particular approach might be.
Henrik,
I don't hold anything against anyone, I'm spoken for. Kidding aside, this is only I think my sixth OWC I've been around for. I"m still learning the ins and outs of how the parameters affect narrative. Some choices influence the type of story more than others. This is not me calling anyone out, just observations. And a lesson worth learning, if you want a career in the industry. People will ask for things that have a big impact on your story. Even though what they're asking for may seem innocuous to them. So, how you deal with that is a good skill to develop.
Regards, E.D.
LATEST NEWS CineVita Films is producing a short based on my new feature!
I'm half way through the OWC scripts. The lion's share of the stories set up ghost characters with a twist. It's not much of a twist after reading 19 of these. There's only so many ways you can set that up with a week to work. I thought many folks would have a less literal interpretation of the theme. Something a little more introspective with a peripheral supernatural element. The literal interpretation of the theme leaves little room to surprise a reader. However, the gothic elements have been fun to read, tasty visuals.
What are other folk's thoughts on how the theme has been utilized?
E.D.
Very difficult. But difficult to write them as well. I include myself in the bunch, because I outright hate my own work. I almost didn't enter it. In fact, if I didn't come up with one idea and a title change, I would have chucked it.
While there were personal issues that kept pulling me away from writing, there was an added disadvantage. That being the Movie Poet Month challenge. That Sept challenge was the Undead, where at least one character had to be a ghost, vamp, zombie or mummy. Roughly about the same number of entries (co-incidence?)
So after reading 30+ shorts, half of which used a ghost, and some of them were 'misunderstood' or non-violent...
It could be possible that if one reads enough ghost scripts, good and bad then partake/read in this OWC....tolerance levels are at a low scale.
I gotta say that I totally understand where Jeff is coming from and I totally understand where Henrik is coming from -- and I totally agree with both of them.
My only contribution to that debate is this:
Quoted from Dreamscale
Congrats on completing an entry for the October OWC!
It is reaching the point where this is becoming almost an insult -- or somewhat inane, at the very least.
If you (or anybody) are dropping notes on a single, tortuous, eyeball-bleeding page, then please drop this insincere postscript (or others like it) from your comments.
Unless you are being ironic or something and I missed it.
I agree with Bert. A lot of people use that expression, and it has no positive or substantive value. Better to just leave it that you don't like the script.
On the mass release of the scripts, I like this. It seems to create a feeding frenzy. One thought. I just wonder whether if released on a Friday night then reviewers would have a whole weekend to discuss.
Probably too much for Don if the deadline was thursday to Thursday?
Following my comment on the growing weeds that seems to crop up so often in the scripts, I wonder what other readers feel the humous theme is for them. Creaking doors? Distant whimpers?
I only entered this on the condition I had fun, so let's see what we can get out of this.
The Elevator Most Belonging To Alice - Semi Final Bluecat, Runner Up Nashville Inner Journey - Page Awards Finalist - Bluecat semi final Grieving Spell - winner - London Film Awards. Third - Honolulu Ultimate Weapon - Fresh Voices - second place IMDb link... http://www.imdb.com/name/nm7062725/?ref_=tt_ov_wr
On the mass release of the scripts, I like this. It seems to create a feeding frenzy. One thought. I just wonder whether if released on a Friday night then reviewers would have a whole weekend to discuss.
Probably too much for Don if the deadline was thursday to Thursday?
Following my comment on the growing weeds that seems to crop up so often in the scripts, I wonder what other readers feel the humous theme is for them. Creaking doors? Distant whimpers?
I only entered this on the condition I had fun, so let's see what we can get out of this.
Cheers
From my understanding, the Gothic genre takes the environment and it, itself, becomes a character in the script. If that's the case, then I declared one less character in my script than I should have, but that's just semantics.
What is "gothic". What was it? What is it? What will it become?
And on the theme? I think the theme doesn't need to be spoken out loud and I certainly don't think a person needs to be hit over the head with it. I like to see it handled effectively through a variety of means and not where someone necessarily need speak it.
And what of "misunderstanding"? What kinds of misunderstanding? I think I'd like to go back and take a look at these scripts from that perspective. I know my particular script really deals with misunderstanding, perhaps, the script itself will be the most highly misunderstood, but without my intention to do so. Does that make me a ghost?
I'm really glad you posted, Reef. I would like to suck all the life out of this also. (At the risky of sounding vampiric).
Just to be clear though, IMO, congrats are due for completing a script in a week, based on a genre and theme that is not chosen by the writer...whether or not it's a well written or conceived script.
Also to be clear, I don't personally think an OWC is the time to "learn". Feedback on story and the like is expected, but I'm no longer goiing to be pointing out Screenwriting 101 mistakes. If the writer doesn't realize or understand what they're doing wrong, it's not going to be me who spends his time correcting this stuff.
If there are too many mistkes early on, I'll simply bow out and say there are way too many mistakes. If that hurts someone's feelings, I'm sorry, but everyone needs to know that no one wants to read a script riddled with mistakes and poor writing.
On the issue of misunderstanding one of the questions I had was whether to provide the reader with an end conclusion, ie this script says xyz, or whether to float options and let them be debated in the reader's mind.
The danger with the last option, which I choose as it happens, is that the reader can then be annoyed and accuse the script of various sins, such as being vague, or confusing etc.
Subtle balance required, me thinks.
As to the humour emerging from this genre, i see lots of opportunities. Awards could be presented to scripts for;
The Elevator Most Belonging To Alice - Semi Final Bluecat, Runner Up Nashville Inner Journey - Page Awards Finalist - Bluecat semi final Grieving Spell - winner - London Film Awards. Third - Honolulu Ultimate Weapon - Fresh Voices - second place IMDb link... http://www.imdb.com/name/nm7062725/?ref_=tt_ov_wr
I can see the annoyance when people add "Thanks for entering the OWC" comes in after they have just savaged your script apart, but at least they tried to leave on a happy note. It does add a bit of salt into the wounds, and makes them appear above you, but I doubt that is the intention. Maybe they should just leave " You suck, give up, you will never be on my level."
I can see both sides of the debate in reading and leaving quick. I think, in defence of Dreamscale, Jeff, he acts as a producer would. To be honest, not a lot of the scripts I've read in this OWC would fly off a desk and into production. I've only read about 10-11 so a long way to go, but Jeff does do a good job in just speaking plain honest truth. He won't read beyond page one because it sucks, he says so. I don't have a problem with that at all. It's truthful and honest and if we're all trying to make something hit the screens, the harsher and more detailed the criticism, the better. You can only learn from criticism, you can't learn much from being praised!
It's perfectly fine to not read a script and state your reasons why as a criticism. There were endless debates about whether that was helpful or not to the author and we pretty much ended up agreeing that it is.
The problem is that sometimes that type of criticism is played for laughs, tries to outwit itself or worse yet it might even bring the author into the mix for a bit of a punch up. That's when things go over the line and people get hurt.
So sure it's ok to bag a script and only read a page or two or even just a log line. Just make sure you keep the criticism about the script and don't try to make too much of a joke out it because I can guarantee you that author isn't laughing. And having other people laugh at the author's expense is uncool.
Ahh, yeah, good point Michael. I see your point there and it makes me appreciate the job the mods do on this site even more. I would have said common sense should come into play but when you've been writing something for ages, put your heart and soul into it, only to find it being destroyed in comical fashion...yeah, that would not be very cool at all.
This was a pretty tough challenge, possibly the toughest one in my three year tenure here. Last years Hallowen one was pretty tough - the wheelchair, one female, etc, but at least there were some very good scripts from it.
I've read about 10 or so if the current ones, and usually read all of them and comment - no matter how bad the formatting or writing is. But I don't think I can do it with this one as most don't have much of a story IMO.
Even the few that are well written and set in perfect period detail, are still 'paint by numbers' to me, and I don't mean to be disparaging. In the effort to be loyal to the Gothic criteria, these scripts have lost any real life in them, and denote nothing of the writers own voice.
I haven't found one yet that I honestly really liked but I will read a few more. If anyone wants me to read theirs, PM me. I'm not one for the guessing game anyway, which I suspect will be nigh impossible in this case anyway.