flying wrestler
thoughts on screenwriting from writer-producer erik bork
First Page of a Script
The first page of a script is obviously important. Professional readers might not get much past it if it doesn't really work for them. So much of...
Creative v. Business
See that tiny sliver of overlap in the graphic above? It's not meant to depress you. But it does represent a reality of the film/TV industry: the...
SAVE THE CAT is not always right
I'm a fan of the Save the Cat books by the late Blake Snyder. I especially love the ten "genres" he came up with. I think these genres are a crucial...
Frontload your pilot
If you're writing a series pilot you probably view it as an introduction to your series. A prologue. A first chapter. Where you set up all the...
Baby Reindeer’s problem
In the weekly live session in our online community recently, I gave my thoughts and took questions about Netflix's hit Baby Reindeer. It's been a...
3 Stories per Episode
I recently watched an interview with Friends co-creators David Crane and Marta Kauffman (I think it was here). In it, Crane commented on how they...
The War of Art
The happiest and most free I ever felt as a writer was with some of my earliest scripts. They were the work of a beginner and didn’t go anywhere but I enjoyed them.
Intention and Obstacle
Aaron Sorkin says he "worships at the altar of Intention and Obstacle." What does that mean? In his Masterclass he defines it as: "Somebody wants...
Double Mumbo Jumbo
Double Mumbo Jumbo is a term in the original Save the Cat book. Blake Snyder used it to caution against including two different types of unrelated...
Insert shots
When we write action and description in a script, we’re telling the reader what the viewer would see, hear and clearly understand from that.
Nothing else.
What Good Stories Need
Five years ago this week my book was released. I'm proud to say it's been translated into Complex and Simplified Chinese and Russian. (See the...
Workplace stakes
"Will Michael Jordan agree to sign a shoe deal with Nike, so their basketball division can survive?" This is essentially the main dramatic question...