Okay, here we go. There may be only a couple of people entering, but that's okay.

As mentioned earlier, a production company and Babz are looking for a thriller involving amnesia so that will be our assignment.

You have 7 weeks, until Sept 4th to write a feature. This is not a competition, but rather a spur to make us finish a script in the time allowed. This thread is meant to be helpful to those who chose to participate. If you get stuck and need help, post your questions or concerns here.

C'mon people, I know all of you can do it!  

Pia,

I'm in!

Is there a rating they are wanting to keep it at? G, PG, R?

Shawn.....><

So far it looks like we have "me", Jeff, Shawn and Brian and 1 maybe. That's good. Maybe some others will come along later on.

I think it would be a great idea if we could discuss our scripts and the progress here as well. It might help get us through that tough second act.

I have a title for mine and even a logline. Feel free to comment.

Blackout

A young, up and coming attorney about to get married  must solve the mystery of all the dead women in his apartment before the police does.

Quoted from Ledbetter Is there a rating they are wanting to keep it at? G, PG, R?

No. You can write whatever rating you want. If you can write a G-rated one, that would probably be great. I have a feeling mine will be a hard R...well, at least I'm consistent!

Quoted from Grandma Bear So far it looks like we have "me", Jeff, Shawn and Brian and 1 maybe. That's good. Maybe some others will come along later on.

I want to do it but I'm not sure. I'll definitely look into trying it, though. At the worst, I have exactly what I started with. Nothing.

Are there any budget constraints with this?

Well, I thought about it. I have a mild idea coming together. So far, this is what I have.

Title: Gold & 38.

Basic plot: A hitman wakes up in a backroom doctor's office to discover he can't remember anything about his past but has a gut feeling that someone is coming to kill him.

I could fill in more of the "why's" but if I decide to change it later, it may not matter anyway.

I'm in. My period drama can wait.

Unless this is cheating, I'm gonna borrow the title of Bleeding Green from the OWC.

A beautiful amnesiac must recover her memory and prevent an eco-terrorist from destroying her and all mankind.

Recommend checking out http://www.thrillerwriters.org for in-depth info on the genre.

I'm down. I have to write a feature some point in my life. lol.

I'm going to use my Obscure short and expand upon it.

I have a logline in mind but can't quite capture it accurately into words. But when i do, I will definitely post here.

Hey pia

I like the concept. That type of scenario has really never been done before...I think.  

Hey Mr. Blonde

I think you might need to fix the logline. But not to worry, I'm in the same boat as you in regards to writing the logline for my script.  

Hey Blakkwolfe

Curious to see how the ecosystem works in a thriller story. I'll see if I can read the short to get a better idea of where you might be heading.

I think the tough part about amnesia scripts is the why part.

Why did this character have amnesia? And the answer to that will give all sorts of background information about that character. Actually, I think the background information is the fuel of the entire story.

And usually in amnesia thriller story, someone is killed or going to be killed, and the protagonist has to find out why.

What if the person who has amnesia is NOT our protagonist? That'd be something different.

I've got a basic idea for a twisty thriller mixed with some action. Basic idea is that the main character is pretty high up in a terrorist cell operating in New York but gets amnesia because of an accident with one of their own bombs. With no memory of how or why he is involved with something like this, he tries to piece together his past and question if what he doing is right before thousands of lives are lost. Lots of ticking time bombs and hopefully good twists in the story.

I've still to plan it out scene by scene but I've got a pretty good idea where I want it to go. Obviously, it could fall flat right away as our main character is a terrorist, and working on characters has been a terrible weak spot for me, but hey, that's why it's a challenge. No title or suitable logline yet, those can wait until the end. I hope to start writing before the end of July if I can get something out the way first.

This is my last week at work before my Summer Holiday starts on the 23rd.

My priority at the moment is the Red Planet Prize (a UK TV competition), but one way or the other that will be out of the way by the 31st, it's closing date.

Then...

I have learnt my lesson after last year, and am not going to commit myself at this point. We'll just see what we see.

I'm thinking of joining. I have a 10 page short - a thriller involving amnesia.

Here's the logline: A corrupt police officer tries to buy his identical twin's life by offering him dirty money. Little does he know that his impoverished brother has been an undercover officer working on his case.

I might have given away the plot in the logline though.

Haven't written a feature in a really long time!

Although I am to busy to work on this right now, I do have an idea based on the last table read.

I was under the imperssion that Babz wanted the first ten pages of a script THAT WAS BEING WORKED ON. So I started writing a script. Come to find out of course, it was the first ten pages of a completed script.

Maybe someone could pitch this idea to her.

The first ten pages of your work in progress to guage whether or not she might be interested.

The first ten pages to be completed in say 1 or 2 weeks.

If not, you are not out 7 weeks of work. If it does peak an interest, you can go from there to complete it.

Just a thought.

Shawn.....><

Jeff, or anyone else for that matter, you can start anytime you like. It needs to be finished by September 4th though.  

Hey everyone, I was gone all weekend.  Just found this new thread.

Sounds like you guys are well on your way already...especially Pia!  Very, very impressive.

I've been doing some brainstorming and have a rough concept for a hard R thriller involving amnesia...or at least, something like amnesia.

The protag will be either male or female.  Supporting cast will mostly all be humans.  There will be either a dog or cat that com into play.  Budget will not be small.  Language will be English.

Am I giving away too much already?

Good luck everyone!  Should be fun.

My story has changed slightly. My main character is undercover with the terrorist cell when one of the bombs explodes by accident, giving him some major amnesia. The FBI lose the terrorist cell and have to rely on him to piece together the clues and remember where the other bombs are before it's too late.

That's the idea so far, although it could probably change more as the days go on. Still not started writing, but I will when I plan every single scene in my head so I don't get stuck halfway through.

I'm not bothered about writing this to send it to a production company... I'd rather use this as an exercise to write something new again. Damn rewrites will be the death of me. Good luck to all!

Thanks Pia, sounds great. I'm in then.

Here's the short I'm expanding on:

http://waterandoil-productions.com/deanna/Robbie's%20Files/Contest/ItTakeTwo.pdf

(I didn't care to properly format it; also first half of a page is not mine, it's written by the producer - that was a part of the assignment)

Also, if you wish to read it - better copy paste it in the search window, clicking on it does not work most of the time.

So we have 6 in for sure, and a few maybes... pretty good. I'll be reading all the completed scripts, too.

Alright...feeling much better about this now.  I actually have my plot and story set.  Lead protag will be male.  A few locales even selected.

I actually really like it!  But, as always, it's deep under wraps, so I doubt I will reveal much more, other than progress or lack there of.

I'm going to set up an outline and get writing ASAP...hopefully even today.

BTW, Khamanna, your link didn't work...try re posting and make sure it's accurate.

Got my basic premise set-up. Bleeding Green is the working title, the lead is a hot chick with a photographic memory. Course, she get's amnesia, so that kind of sucks for her...

I'm in.  

I came up with an idea last night and ran with it.  Currently at 20 pages.  No workable logline yet but it involves cannibalism, torture, and sandwiches.  

Title: Let Me Hear You Scream

Greg...SWEET!  Another entry...nice job, man.

Sounds like horror to me, though.  20 pages already?  Damn..you guys (and gals) are good.  That's fast writing.

Excellent!!!!

Awesome Greg!

I'm heading to bed in a minute. I ended the day on page 34. Don't feel bad if you are not as fast. I'm notorious for being fast at writing crap! So, take your time guys. This is just how I do things. That's all.

Ok, I think I came up with a logline for mine. It's in first draft form, still, but it's functional.

Logline:

After being shot in the head for failing an assignment, a hitman develops amnesia. When he receives details on what the failed hit was, he realizes he must now protect the former target, his ex-wife, an anti-gun politician.

I've been brainstorming on four or five ideas but I've now settled on one... or I think I have. I have it clear in my mind and when I work out a few minor things, I'm ready to start writing. So to recap, no more terrorists, spies, exploding body parts and the like. Just a tense thriller with lots of suspense and mystery. I'll post the logline very soon.

A "round table" does sound extremely helpful. Did anyone else go that route?

Just took a long hike through some beautiful woods, alongside a gorgeous lake.  Lots of time to think...

Looks like I've once again changed things up in my script.  Like, totally changed things up.  And once, again, I'm happy that I didn't actually start it yet, cause this one's better.

I do have a question for you all that I need advice on...

I've come up with a title that I love, but it's already been used in the mid 90's for a movie that didn't do very well, but definitely had some star power attached to it.  Should I not worry about it, and just use the same title I like, or ditch it, and come up with something fresh?

Thanks, guys!

Sigh...so I had an idea. Whether I'll actually write it or not, I dunno - I want to get this Red Planet competition script finished and polished, which will take up the next week at least. But after that...we'll see.

Of course, that would only leave me with five weeks. Which is probably unrealistic, although with enough attention paid to outlining, who knows. I'm not going to commit to entering, and it's 80%-20% I won't...

...but it is a good idea.

I've finally kicked my ass into gear and wrote 5 pages. I have a complete outline of where the story will go and what will happen in 90% of the scenes. Things may change slightly as I write but not much. I'm certain I will complete this well before the deadline.

I don't have a logline or title yet, but my story is a fairly simple one. A young woman marries a very rich and successful businessman, but after a horror car crash on the night of their wedding, she is left with severe amnesia and can't remember the last year of her life. She doesn't even know who her new husband is. As some dead bodies are found around the town, she starts to get really paranoid and think he is the killer. No one will believe her so she has to piece together the last year of her life and find out just how well she did know her husband.

It should turn out very low budget with few characters and locations but I think I can make it interesting enough for a 90 odd page feature.  

I actually have an idea as well. It's a sci-fi thriller where a man has his memory erased and get new memories implanted in. This memory-erasing service is funded by government to protect the public. The man must infiltrate the base to retain his memory. Haven't thought about the stakes yet.

I probably don't have enough time to it...just under 5 weeks, right?

Quoted from Coding Herman After finding back his kidnapped amnesic wife, a man starts to experience strange occurrences as his wife's memory starts to recover while his memory deteriorates.

Uh...I don't know about this.  Here's why...

Finding his kidnapped, amnesiac wife is alot right there.  You've got to show she's been kidnapped, show she's an amnesiac, then have the hubby "find her" - this isn't easy stuff, and it will take a bunch of pages anyway you look at it.  Then, you kick into another completely different plot line.

Know what I mean?  IMO, this is a plot that would need many months of developing.  If I were you, I'd stick to something much simpler that you can actually plot out, and write in a total of 7 weeks....you're already inside 6 weeks as of today.

Let's try again.

A man's wife becomes amnesic after she went missing for several years. Now there are people who try to kill his wife while his memory starts to deteriorate. He needs to find out why this is all happening before he becomes amnesic.

I don't know, sounds like a rehash of some movies?

I think it would work if the wife regained her memory (as you mentioned earlier) is being sought by the kidnappers (and not just anybody, but I think you implied just that...though stating it would be even better). I like it.

Herman,

What about taking the amnesia concept a step further, like a guy wakes up and everyone in the world has amnesia, except for him.  Or maybe it's spreading like a plague through the world and this guy has to find a way to stop it.  Sort of like that film Blindness, except you're using amnesia as the affliction.

Or, I know there's a form of amnesia where someone only forgets faces.  Maybe you could weave that into a mystery or something.

Wow, these are all great suggestions! Thank you everyone.

Khama: good one, the wife escaped and now the kidnappers wanted her dead.

Jeff: I usually write a preliminary logline first, just so that I have my idea in words instead of just floating inside my head. I'm sure the logline will change the more I developed my story.

T. Joe: another good idea, that gave me thoughts about how the husband would get memory deterioration. Hmm.....maybe premature dementia?

Ryan: nice story ideas, but I'll have to save them for later on. It feels like the story would take place in an post-apocalypse setting and I'm not that prepared to write in that world yet. Maybe someday I will. Thanks.

I'm on page 17 right now. Feeling stuck - seems like my first act is done and it's only seventeen pages. Yet there's a lot of story on these pages. Might be I'm stingy with words.

I've just started page 9. Most of the boring stuff and the car crash out of the way, now onto the mystery. I've had the full day off work but didn't write a word all day but I had a late flurry tonight and done a few pages. Ideally, I want to finish two weeks before the deadline so I've time to go back and sort out any problems and catch as many typos as possible. I still think I can make it.

Good job everyone!

I'm on page 5 only, but I've made a few important changes that are taking some time to figure out exactly how it needs to go down.  The mystery has begun...

The vast majority of my research is also done now, so once I get rolling, hopefully, the page count will start increasing a bit quicker than it has.

I like where I am and where I'm going.

OK, big progress today...on page 7 now!  Ha!

This is a tough script to write.  Far from standard structure once again, but this one's tougher than anything I've written to date.  Trying to keep my scenes very short and sweet.  I'll throw in a bar scene though, don't worry!

My Frost Bite, for sure!  You guys just wait...

On page 5, but plan to do quite a bit of work this weekend, at least Act 1 completed.

Congrats to all who was able to move on with his/her script! Even if the words are not yet on paper - the main thing is to think about it

I'm on page 35. And happy about it! Though I admit Pia reaching 75 would make me jealous.

I have couple of questions (mostly formatting) about the script. I posted one on MoviePoet and got an excellent response, but since it's the challenge - thinking maybe I can post them here.

My protagonist's name is Cole. What do I do if there's
Cole (V.O.) followed by Cole no v.o. and then by Cole(V.O.) again? The entire time he's alone, weighing his chances and deciding on something.

This is the way I have it so far:

COLE
Kate... or Beechnut...

He covers quite a distance in a matter of seconds.

COLE (V.O.)
Beechnut is crammed with police... Kate or Beechnut... Kate. My Kate. Kate will think I'm Cole just like that man...

Feverish, he shout out as if to reinforce his newly made decision:

COLE
With Steve out of the way for a few hours...


--thanks for any suggestions.

Got 15pgs of a rough outline. I'm into my second act but finding it difficult to continue forward.

Gabe

If any of you guys need help to brainstorm ideas or discuss your script but don't want to do it here in the open, feel free to e-mail me. I'd be glad to help if I can.  

Question:

I got a crime scene (the exploded building) with lots of firemen and police working. They talk to each other on walkies, ususally in code. Ex. Det. David Green is Code Seven, the County Coroner is Code 14, so they would call "seven to fourteen, over."

Would the dialogue be under Coroner or under Fourteen?

Trying to eliminate confusion for the reader in this very busy scene.

Thanks in advance.

TJ.

page 65. I have a feeling I'm going to have to make some MAJOR fixing before I send mine in on Sep. 4th.

Mine seems low on intense parts. Not sure I know how to write so the thriller aspects come out.  

I'm up to page 21. It's a pretty rushed effort so far and I'm not too happy with my first 10 pages, but I'm getting into the mood now. I've got the next 3 nights with nothing else on so I can push ahead.

Star Wars... maybe I'm still all alone. I actually did see a porn segement in 'Zach and Miri Make a Porno' with Star Wars characters. That's gotta count for something. I'll need to rent them and see what all the fuss is about.  

Oh fuck, there goes the PG 13 rating!

Up to page 12 now, and VERY happy with the additions.  Also, came up with a BIG scene that I've had trouble figuring out, and it's AWESOME...and very R rated, so I'm quite pleased.

Almost at that spot where I can start filling everything in.  Setup is almost complete.

I will finish on time and it won't be a first draft...it will be DONE!

YES!!!

Looks like we've got a new entry in the 7WC.  Sweet!  

Welcome C M Hall!.  25 pages is a Hell of alot more than I have and you've still got 4 1/2 weeks to go.

You can easily make it.  I will easily make it.  We all will easily make it.

Cruising along at page 42, but cheating on some of the fight sequences for now...

I'm confused! What are you guys going on about?  

Anyway, I hit page 70, but I feel I'm very far from the end. I think this one might end up 120 pages or so.  

Close to pg 20 in my rough outline. Hoepfully I can start writing by the end of this week.

Don't worry pia. there's always time to revise.

Interrupting here with my blahblah - I'm on page 46 and got some of the ending too, just started picking scenes at random and write on them.

Quoted from Grandma Bear Anyway, I hit page 70, but I feel I'm very far from the end. I think this one might end up 120 pages or so.

Actually, I think that's a good sign -- sounds like you have a complex story and intricate plot -- I envy that!

Mine is an intricate plot but I can't squeeze more than 80 pages out of it. I wonder how that happens.

It's so intricate that I started thinking it's too much and I forget some of it so I decided to drop few plot points.
--already thinking about what to hit in the rewrite.

You guys are hilarious!  I can't wait to read all the finished scripts.

Pia, page 70, and bodies are still being discovered?  If I discovered 1 body, I'd be the Hell out of wherever I discovered it and the PoPo would be on their way.  What kind of budget are you shooting for?

I will get over the 20 page humper today...hopefully 25.

What you need assistance with Jeff?

I'm on page 75. Feel like I'm still far from the end...  

No, I don't need any, but Ken did.  I was looking for some other opinions on the advice I gave him, which he didn't seem to agree with.

I'm page 23 now. Still going rather slowly, but I'm fixing things up as I go, so what I have is pretty solid, and (hopefully) error free.  All the major players have been intro'd, and the mystery is heating up.

I'd like to get to page 30 by tomorrow. I could easily write some scenes out of order, that I know of, but I'm trying to write it all as it goes.  Like you, Pia, it seems to be writing itself now and new ideas are coming and working.

This will not be a long script, IMO.  I'm gunning for a tight 90-95 pages.  BUT, tight to me, probably isn't tight to others.  Trying not to be too chatty.  Like you, Pia, my script is kinda slow, but I think the mystery elements will work well enough to keep it entertaining.  It's also a very visual script, and I'm looking at a large budget, with lots of really cool settings.

I like it!  I'm happy.  

I've had to go back and rethink everything after straying wildly from my outline, so much so I was making stuff up to try and get back on track. Trust me when I say it turned out a complete mess, and I'm only on page 25.  

I'm going to spend the next day or two doing a new outline with my new ideas so I know where this is going. It's a pretty messy affair so far but I think I'll have the time to pull it all together before the deadline. I'm sure of it.

As for flashbacks and such. I don't have any extended flashbacks (yet), but I want to have quick flashes of images when my character remembers things from the past. I can't think of any examples of movies that you see this in, but I do know it happens in a lot. I don't know how to format this correctly but I'll worry about that when I have something that resembles a complete story first! I have no voiceovers, not really a fan of those.

I don't have anyone breaking out of or waking up in a hospital. Don't have any FLASHBACKS or V.O. either.

Still on page 75...beer time starts soon for me so I don't expect that I'll add anything today.

Brian, don't worry about it. Mine is a big mess too. Just get the first draft done and then use all the comments you get here to fix the story.

Just so all of you know, I won't have anything for this one. I had an idea, and it's an idea I sort of like, but I would never be able to sort it out and write it in four weeks. The world-building would probably take that long. The title would've been Transfer. Maybe I'll write it someday...

To all of you trying to finish, or soldier on, or even just starting - keep going! It's a great feeling when you actually reach the finish line on something like this; I j-u-s-t managed it last time, and I was really chuffed I did. I also got a half-decent script that I'm going to re-write and repost this Christmas. It's not a waste of time, it's a great learning experience, and there's no downside to having another script in your portfolio, even if it just a draft.

And if Jeff drops out of this one, too, then he's just a little weakass pussy bitch.

JB, I won't be dropping out of this one, but I may be a little weakass pussy bitch anyways.

Page 26, and still chugging along.  can't wait till I get to the big set pieces.

No dialogue yet, and no human characters intro'd as of yet.  Luckily an eagle is my main character.

I'm on page 59 seem like I have room for ten more pages, no more. Reached an action sequence and trying to write it well.

If I stop on seventy - I'll go back and add fluff here and there.

Good luck on finishing to all.

Sounds like you've already made it then, Khamanna.  Good job!  Very impressive.

Probably won't have any time over the weekend...big UFC card tonight, peeps coming over for dinner, etc.  Maybe I'll get to page 30 by Sunday night, but that will be it.

Another new breakthrough has written itself, though, so that's cool.  Basically another subplot that will fill some needed pages for me.  I'm gong to be gone all next weekend, so I really need to get on this during the week.  Hope to get through at least page 50 by next Friday.

Good luck to everyone.  Keep at it!

Change of plans. I'm back in and going to try and finish a script for the contest. I don't have it planned, I was stopped after four pages, but I'm gonna try and make something of it. 4 weeks to the day.

P.S. The sudden urge came from not finishing last year's when I said I would. I'm still dtewing over that and am also doing that, as well but this moved to the forefront.

Am I the latest one to start?

I just had a faint idea of how my story goes and begin to write characters bios. I don't think I can finish this in 4 weeks, but what the hell, I'll still write it.


Herman

Excellent you guys!!! We're here to help each other if you need any help or encouragement.

I'm on page 85. Need to set up for the final act and then some type of fight/revelation/conclusion thing and my rough first draft will be done!

Good going everyone!

Khamanna, I'm sure you'll be able to fluff it up to a real feature, no problem!  

Three joined (or rejoined) in one day! Amazing.

I'm on page 65 and almost done. I'm glad that fluff is welcomed! I've got "fluff up" strategies and am excited to use them.

For example:

COLE
What about Kate? If I'm an undercover I’ll have to let her know.
Considering Steve is my brother...

could be turned into

COLE
What about Kate?
GARRETT
What about her?
COLE
If I'm an undercover I’ll have to let her know.
Considering Steve is my brother...

Too bad I can't have a hearing impaired hero, otherwise he'd go "What?" "Sorry, could you speak up, please" the whole script, adding precious lines.

Pia, congrats on 85! Wow.

Protagonist Supporting Actress Character Name: Pick One for Me Request

25 year old female paramedic, suburban girl next door type, adrennaline junkie

I favor single sylable nick-names, loathe multi sylable names (efficient or lazy, you decide)
According to Social Security records durring the 1990's the following cherry picked names were most popular for females.

Someone pick a girl next door, adrennaline junkie, paramedic name for me.
I really don't care.

Jess / Jessie / Jessica   "Hand me that c-collar, Jess."
Sam / Samantha  "You get a line in yet, Sam?"
Meg / Megan   "Meg, dispatch wants to know why we're off route."
Jen / Jennifer  "This is Jen. She's a good guy. I order you not to shoot her."
Vic / Victoria  "Can you keep this thing under light speed, Vic?"

Way to go you guys!!!

Thank you Blakkwolfe for your excellent suggestions here!!!

I'm still at page 85, but I'm going to sit down and see if I can get a few more pages stamped out.  

Finished a first draft -- think I'll probably change just about everything in it.  Pretty much starting over, in other words.

As for today, I've got around 6 or 7 pages written but I think I can finish this by deadline. I have an outline done which has helped me alot. I still keep updating or changing certain things around but still following it. I'm aiming at 30pgs for this week. I'm really hyped to actually working on a feature. I"m glad to see other people still working hard. Can't wait to read the entries. Good luck to all.

Gabe

Hi five to c m hall - I'm done too, at 75 pages.

There are few glitches that I'm aware of and have to fix to make the plot come together. And I'll have to let it simmer to stop thinking it's another masterpiece. Then rewrite and only then edit.

Haven't even work on it this much - it came easy to me and that's scares me too. Slapped some stuff together and voila...

good luck on finishing to all!

Wow!  Very impressed, you two...very impressed.

Wolfe, you're starting all over?  Wow, that is very ambitious.  You can do it.

Page 35 for me.  Coming right along.  Should be able to hit page 45 by the end of the day, so I'm ahead of my schedule.

Where's everyone else at?

I finished today too. Came in at 100 pages. I'm going to let it sit for a few days before I reread it so my eyes are a little more fresh.

I already came up with a twist ending idea so that will probably be something I'll change.

Congrats everyone and I'm stoked to see so many people taking part whether you're finished or just now starting. AWESOME!!!  

I'm only 75 pages behind Khama.

I decided to jump in late on this because I thought it would be fun to write something like this with zero planning. Start it out the typical way: guy wakes up with a body and no identity and just see where the muse takes me. I banged out 10 pages today, and I have an idea where the next handful are going, but I have no idea how it will end just because I'm not there yet. So rather than deal in existing plot points, I'm just writing with an idea of where the story should probably shift.

I considered keeping it to myself, but since I'm doing something different, I figured I'd share. If I happen to write myself into a corner, hey, that's how life treats you sometimes. So rather than write safe, I'll be dangerous and see just how bad my guy gets tortured.

Wish me luck.

What the Hell is everyone talking about?  I'm completely lost.  This thread now has a mind of its own.

I've been sick, so no writing since Monday. On page 40.  Hope to get back to it ASAP.

Haven't written on this in three weeks even though I said I was back in. Lots of other writing. However, I did 3 pages in the last 20 minutes and am on 7, and the plot is beginning to open up. I know it's not much, but I write slowly so whatever.

On a positive note, I have a corpse and am soon to have a second one. Yay, corpses. Lol.

I only have two corpses, but I'm up to page 20. Meeting my 10 page a day quota. As I've been writing, I've had to ponder where the story is going. I don't necessarily know the next scene, but I've got a couple of killer twists, and I think I have my ending. If it works out that way, that's a sweet ending.

I've been taking story notes as I've been writing so I don't forget the ideas as they come out of sequence. Now if only I didn't have this pesky job to do on this end...

On page 14, real lite on corpses at the moment, but that is going to change in the next few pages...

Like the story revisions, fleshed out the diabolical plan and added a 70's tough guy with a massive 'fro and Village People mustache. Also bought a Congressman, nearly destroyed an innocent blue Toyota and got a hot chick half naked...

Around pg 11, hopefully can make it to pg 15 within today. Moving at a slow pace, but feel confident in what I'm creating.

Quoted from Mr.Ripley Around pg 11, hopefully can make it to pg 15 within today. Moving at a slow pace, but feel confident in what I'm creating.

Same with the exception of the page 11 part. But, in my own defense, I edit as I write which slows me down, but it's also part of not being motivated that I write slow. Up to 9. Also hope to be around 15 when today's over. =)

EDIT: It's amazing the turns these scripts make. When this scene began, I didn't expect it to become a five-page torture scene. But I like the tone it has. I just have to end it quickly, because from what I've planned ahead, there's nothing like this again in the script.

Went through a rewrite and the bad news is that  the thrill is gone.  I mean, somehow when I was filling in the holes of the plot and correcting errors the various "thriller" elements in my screenplay now seem to have a lot less punch in them -- maybe they were weak all along.

That's one of the things about writing a lot of pages in a short time -- I thought the pace of writing would sustain the pace of the plot, but... not so much.

I'm starting another rewrite, I know there was a plot in there, someplace.

Hope you're feeling better, Dreamscale.

C

On 11, now. Fell seriously short of my goal for yesterday, but if I can keep up the pace of today and yesterday, I should be able to make it this year.

Two corpses, one scene down. Yes, the opening scene was 11 pages, but pacing always been my second weakest aspect. =(

Sorry, when is the due date again? Sept. 6?

I believe we said Sep 4th....but, this is not a competition we're just trying to help everyone write a feature. If you finish on Sep 5th, no one is going to think you failed.  

There have been times I've meticulously planned every detail from start to finish including every scene and character bios. There have been other times that I have a skeleton outline and basic characters. There are other times that I just write.

For this one, I'm just writing and taking notes as I go as to what I think will happen in pages beyond where I am. In my first 20 pages, my guy wakes up, finds the obligatory body, gets picked up by the mob, threatened, escapes, goes to the dead guy's apartment, meets a girl there, goes home with her, and ends up sleeping with her. I'm not sure I would have consciously outlined that much in act 1. Today, I'll find out what happens next.

At a goal of 10 pages per day, I should be able to revisit it at least once prior to the deadline to make sure it all actually works. I mean, this isn't reality; it's fiction, so it has to actually make sense.

Almost finish my outline. Mine will be a very tame PG-13. No corpse, no swearing, no drugs, no alcohol, no sex, no nudity, but plenty of violence.

I'm up to 31 pages. Weird stuff going on. Seeing if any other stuff will eek out. I'm in the middle of a scene, but not sure how the scene will end.

Mine has evolved into a porno.  For dialogue, I now have "insert classic porn dialogue", or "ad lib dialogue here".

The animal sex scenes will have some Barry White and Tom Jones tunes playing over them.

Just finished writing my opening sequence. 6 pages.

Hey,

Do you guys and girls want me to clean up this thread a bit so you can get to the end of it easier?  Let me know.

Michael

Do it!...please.  

Just don't delete all my witty comments and asides...

What do you guys think about unfilmables in character's introduction?

I have quite a few in mine.

Quoted from Coding Herman What do you guys think about unfilmables in character's introduction? I have quite a few in mine.

Dreamscale may flay you.

This is one of the tricky things I'm finding out about this community at Simply Scripts.

On the one hand, big six studio reader quality attention to professional industry detail is enforced by the Simply Script Samurai.

On the other hand, the material reviewed here largely rides the rails through the camp of independent production where strict adherence to studio standards doesn't apply.

It's an interesting mash-up.

Quoted from Coding Herman What do you guys think about unfilmables in character's introduction?

It is considered lazy -- at any point in your script -- but the fact that you would ask makes me wonder if you fully understand what you are asking.

A few (lazy) examples to illustrate how (most) readers here will respond to such things:


*  Joe (36) walks down the street and smiles at everyone he meets.  He seems to be a very happy guy.

This is fine.

*  Joe (36) has a very good attitude about life, and smiles at everything.  He is smiling right now.

This treads the line.  Most will not care.  Some will.

*  Joe (36) used to be a cop, but now he is a school teacher, and feels much better about his life.  He is always happy, and really loves his dog, Sparky.

Most will set your script aside at this point.

Learn where to draw the line.

Mine tends towards the second example.

You know how when you see a person for the first time, you can kinda feel and tell what type of person he/she is? Something that you can tell in addition to what they are wearing and what their hairstyle is.

Can you explain further what I don't understand when I ask that question, please?

The Simply Script Samurai...damn,I like that!

I don't like unfilmables, though, and I hate asides...which brings up a really good point, that may help.

An unfilmable is an aside, and an aside is an unfilmable.  The 2 are not necessarily the same thing, but they can be, and usually are, IMO.

An unfilmable is exactly what the name implies...something that cannot be filmed, or probably better, something in the script that doesn't transfer to film.

An aside is when the writer wants to show his witty side and write little commentary into the script.  IT is almost always unfilmable in nature, and 100% extremely irritating.

So what are the differences?  Unfilmables are extra information that won't transfer to the filmed version of the script, thus being a waste of space, and also amateurish. Asides are unfilmables purposely placed within the script to show how witty and funny the writer thinks he is, but are actually a waste of space and for me the deathblow to a script.

Herman I suggest you let us see the "unfilmables" you're talking about.

I have a couple of them.

My examples:

"Their exchange leaves Lee confused. He wrinkles his forehead - it doesn’t make sense - Cole is her husband and entitled to the key."

and

"Cole freezes. A thought registers. He holds his hand out for the knife - he’s ready to do a round of shuffling for the crooked man."

If someone wishes to comment on these please do. I intend to leave them in for the first draft at least though. And then let's see.