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January 31, 2014
January 30, 2014
January 29, 2014
January 28, 2014
January 24, 2014
More Ghost Stories shorts are now online
The continuing anthology of animated shorts by Late Night Work Club team.
I Will Miss You - by Dave Prosser
The Jump - by Charles Huettner
Mountain Ash - by Jake Armstrong & Erin Kilkenny
Rat Trap - by Caleb Wood
Loose Ends - by Louise Bagnall
Asshole - by Conor Finnegan
Post Personal - by Eamonn O’Neill
Post Personal - by Eamonn O’Neill
"The American Dream" by Sean Buckelew, "Phantom Limb" by Alex Grigg, & "Ombilda" by Ciaran Duffy
I Will Miss You - by Dave Prosser
The Jump - by Charles Huettner
Mountain Ash - by Jake Armstrong & Erin Kilkenny
Rat Trap - by Caleb Wood
Loose Ends - by Louise Bagnall
Asshole - by Conor Finnegan
Post Personal - by Eamonn O’Neill
Post Personal - by Eamonn O’Neill
"The American Dream" by Sean Buckelew, "Phantom Limb" by Alex Grigg, & "Ombilda" by Ciaran Duffy
January 23, 2014
Pixar Researches New Painterly Techniques for their CG Films
Last summer at SIGGRAPH, Pixar presented a paper offering some clues about one of the major new directions that CG feature animation is headed. The paper, “Stylizing Animation By Example,” explored how filmmakers could achieve more expressive rendering styles that disregard the perfect boundaries of computer graphics rendering and mimic traditional painting techniques.
Via The Brew
Via The Brew
January 22, 2014
Caveirao
New trailer for Guilherme Marcondes' Caveirao (part of "The Master's Voice" project) mixed-media short film.
"Not many people know this but every night at 3:33AM time is frozen for a moment. During what is a fraction of second to mortal eyes there is a second night, a secret one where the spirits of the city come out to play. That is the story of the eternal battle for the soul of São Paulo, the clash between bohemia and authoritarianism, between comedy and horror."
January 21, 2014
January 20, 2014
January 19, 2014
Her
It’d be easy to describe Spike Jonze’s new film, Her, in snarky or silly fashion: “Well, it’s about a lonely schlub who falls madly in love with a virtual woman.” If you immediately think of that obscure 1984 movie called Electric Dreams (or get visions of Philip J. Fry smooching a virtual Lucy Liu), then you’re the sort of sci-fi geek I respect — but let’s get all ideas of novelty and “gimmickry” out of the way right now. Yes, the fascinating and frequently sublime Her is about a man who falls in love with an artificial intelligence inside a computer's operating system, but once you get past the film’s simplest ideas, it quickly blossoms into a weird, warm, and very satisfying statement about the nature of love; how it works, why we need it, and most importantly, what it does to us.
Spike Jonze tends to makes strange films, and that's why I've always liked him. Whether they’re brilliant or absurd is up to the individual viewer, but after features like Being John Malkovich, Adaptation., and Where the Wild Things Are, it becomes hard to ignore, and harder to not like this refreshingly “anti-formula” filmmaker. I doubt I’ll ever get tired of discovering and rediscovering his movies. And this new one is simply excellent, it raises a host of questions about how we interact with technology and each other, Her is an elegantly constructed piece that seamlessly interweaves drama, design and dialogue.

Supported by one of the most open, honest, and oddly satisfying screenplays in perhaps a decade, at its core, Her is, indeed, about a nice anonymous nobody called Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) who purchases a super-advanced computer operating system that is powered by a self-aware — and perpetually evolving — operating system with a female voice. (Theodore is no idiot; he chooses the voice that sounds like Scarlett Johansson.) And then Theodore gradually proceeds to fall madly in love with “Samantha.”
In the hands of less inspired writer/directors, a concept like this would hit the screen like Short Circuit, the aforementioned Electric Dreams, or any other sci-fi film in which a man falls in love with a robot, and vice versa. But it’s that reversal — that the “virtual” woman also falls madly in love with a human being — that gives Her such a strange poignancy and off-kilter charm. Buried not too deep beneath a sci-fi / rom-com concept is a wonderfully insightful story about how love begins, how it blossoms, and how it manages to blow itself out. Making “Samantha” a non-corporeal “concept” of a woman is a brilliant conceit. Theodore doesn’t want to create a perfect woman, but technology has allowed him to create a woman who is perfect for him. Suffice to say that romantics of both genders will find much to appreciate in Jonze’s poetically meloncholic, low-key, endlessly fascinating screenplay.

Her is also a non-stop buffet of delights for film fanatics; Joaquin Phoenix is simply brilliant as he goes from slightly off-putting to entirely lovable over the course of the film; Ms. Johansson brings an essential sense of warmth and vibrancy to “Samantha” while using only her voice; the supporting cast does its job remarkably well (particularly Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Olivia Wilde); and the “feel” of the film is that of slightly advanced sci-fi mixed with a sardonic tone that never goes for the mean joke or obvious answer. I could dedicate additional paragraphs to Owen Pallett’s score or the quietly dazzling cinematography of Hoyte van Hoytema (who's work I first notice in the striking visuals of Let The Right One In), and I could note how unexpectedly funny and quietly honest this film is, or comment on how Jonze seems to get more confident and accomplished with each successive film, but I think the point is clear...
Her is a very smart, philosophical, and touching movie, and I feel like I’m a slightly better person for having seen it. Not sure you can give a film a nicer compliment than that.
January 17, 2014
January 16, 2014
January 15, 2014
January 14, 2014
January 13, 2014
January 12, 2014
January 11, 2014
January 10, 2014
The Ultimate List of Screenwriting Rules, Tips, Laws, Principles, Guidelines, and More
Screenwriting rules… Foolproof tips and guidelines to help you craft something inspiring. Laws and principles that lead you down the creative path without losing your way. Of course, rules in any creative medium are always meant to be bent, broken and reshaped depending on the project. Regardless, there are so many sound tips out there it was time someone collected them in one place.
Below is an absolutely gigantic collection of screenwriting rules. Part 1 consists of over 50 articles by screenwriters of all levels, written to inspire screenwriters. There are literally hundreds of amazing tips for you to digest and apply to your own writing.
Joss Whedon’s 10 commandments of screenwriting | Danny Stack
The new 10 commandments of screenwriting | Screenwriting U
12 Essential screenwriting tips for aspiring screenwriters | What Culture
11 Laws of great storytelling | Writer’s Store
8 Essential screenwriting principals | Go Into The Story
10 Power principals to screenwriting success | Filmmaker IQ
Billy Wilder’s 10 commandments of screenwriting | Seraphic Secret
McKee and Me: Commandments and principles | Write, Write, Write
20 Common sense script rules in no particular order | Screenwriters University
10 Screenwriting insights I wish I had 25 years ago | Cracking Yarns
Screenwriting: How to break the rules | Script Shadow
The road ahead: 10 Tips for the screenwriter | Word & Film
13 Things you should do to get your screenplay rejected | The Screenplay Writers
10 Crucial screenwriting tips | Screenwriting Goldmine
12 Rules of screenwriting | Talentville
The 5 S’s of screenwriting: Principals of storytelling | Movie Outline
Top 5 screenwriting mistakes | Stigmata Script
10 Writing tips for authors from a screenwriting guru | Where Writers Win
6 Basic rules all screenwriters should follow | Suite 101
12 Screenwriting principals | Write, Write, Write
The Screenwriting rules of Charlie Kaufman | Go Into The Story
Thirteen screenwriting rules that can never be broken | Pete McCormack
The unrules of screenwriting | L.A Screenwriters
12 Screenwriting tips for beginners | Screenwriting For Hollywood
7 screenwriting rules that are killing your creativity | Script Quack
First 10 pages: 5 Major rules | The Script Lab
The ten rules of screenwriting | Film Slate
Screenwriting: Can you break the rules? | The Single Screenwriter
30 Scriptwriting tips in one post | Galley Cat
Breaking the screenwriting rules | Writer’s Store
Meet the reader: The (real) rules of screenwriting | Script Magazine
How to write Groundhog Day: 10 Rules for screenwriters | The Daily Beast
8 Rules for surviving screenwriting | Darlene Craviotto
10 basic rules of screenwriting | Startup Nation
The unrules of screenwriting: Rick Suvalles List | Scooty Woopin’ A Way
5 Screenwriting rules to improve your writing | Hardy Stevenson
Breaking the screenwriting rules from the inside out | Lee Jessop
Screenwriting: A few hard and fast rules | Persistent Pen
Top 10 screenwriting tips from script to screen | Filmmaker Magazine
10 Rules for using parentheticals | Script Wrecked
Do you believe in script writing rules? | Script Larva
12 Rules to get your screenplay rejected right away | EZine Articles
The ridiculous rules of screenwriting | Lisa McNamee
The 5 immutable laws of screenwriting | About Freelance Writing
36 Basic screenwriting tips | Unforeseen Consequences
7 Strategy tips from the world of screenwriting | Big Spaceship
The three C’s of screenwriting | Script Magazine
SOURCE: Screenwritingspark.com
Improvement
- Improve Your Writing Habits Now
- 5 Ways to Add Sparkle to Your Writing
- Getting Over Roleplaying Insecurities
- Improve Your Paras
- Why the Right Word Choices Result in Better Writing
- 4 Ways To Have Confidence in Your Writing
- Writing Better Than You Normally Do
- How’s My Driving?
Describing
- A Description Resource
- 55 Words to Describe Someones Voice
- Describing Skin Colors
- Describing a Person: Adding Details
- Emotions Vocabulary
- 90 Words For ‘Looks’
- Be More Descriptive
- Describe a Character’s Look Well
- 100 Words for Facial Expressions
- To Show and Not To Tell
- Words to Describe Facial Expressions
- Describing Clothes
- List of Actions
- Tone, Feelings and Emotions
Masterlists
- Writing Specific Characters
- Character Guides
- Writing Help for Writers
- Ultimate Writing Resource List
- Lots of RP Guides
- Online Writing Resources
- List of Websites to Help You Focus
- Resources for Writing Bio’s
- Helpful Links for Writing Help
- General Writing Resources
- Resources for Biography Writing
- Mental Ilnesses/Disorders Guides
- 8 Words You Should Avoid While Writing
Body Language
- Body Language Cheat
- Body Language Reference Cheat
- Tips for Writers: Body Language
- Types of Crying
- Body Language: Mirroring
Grammar/Vocabulary
- Words Instead of Walk (2)
- Commonly Confused Adjectives
- A Guide on Punctuation
- Common Writing Mistakes
- 25 Synoms for ‘Expession’
- How to: Avoid Misusing Variations of Words
- Words to Keep Inside Your Pocket
- The 13 Trickiest Grammar Hang-Ups
- Other Ways to Say..
- Proofreading
- 300+ Sophiscated and Underused Words
- List of Misused Words
- Words for Sex
- 100 Beautiful and Ugly Words
- Words to Use More Often
- Alternatives for ‘Smile’ or ‘Laugh’
- Three Self Editing Tips
- Words to Use Instead of ‘Walk’, ‘Said’, ‘Happy’ and ‘Sad’
- Synonyms for Common Words
- Alternatives for ‘Smile’
- Transitional Words
- The Many Faces and Meanings of ‘Said’
- Synonyms for ‘Wrote’
- A Case Of She Said, She Said
Writer’s Block
- How to: Cure Writer’s Block
- Some Tips on Writer’s Block
- Got Writer’s Block?
- 6 Ways to Beat Writer’s Block
- Tips for Dealing With Writer’s Block
Application (Itself)
- How to: Make That Application Your Bitch
- How to: Make Your App Better
- How to: Submit a Flawless Audition
- 10 Tips for Applying
Para (Sample)
- Para Sample Ideas
- 5 Tips on Writing an IC Para Sample
- Writing an IC Sample Without Escaping From the Bio
- How to: Create a Worthy IC Para Sample
- How to: Write an Impressive Para Sample
- How to: Lengthen Short Para’s
Prompts
- Drabble Stuff
- Prompts List
- Writing Prompts
- Drabble Prompts
- How to Get Into Character
- Writing Challenges/Prompts
- A Study in Writing Prompts for RPs
- Para Prompts & Ideas
- Writing Prompts for Journal Entries
- A List of Para Starters
Personalities
- Angry
- Bad Asses
- Bitches (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
- Childishness
- Emotional Detachment
- Flirtatious
- The Girl Next Door
- Introverts (2)
- Mean Persons (2)
- Psychopaths
- Party Girls
- Rich (2)
- Rebels
- Sarcasm
- Serial Killers (2)
- Shyness (2, 3)
- Sluts
- Villains (2)
- Witt
Disorders
- Disorders in general (2, 3, 4, 5)
- Attention Deficit Disorder
- Antisocial Personality Disorder
- Anxiety (2, 3, 4, 5)
- Avoidant Personality Disorder
- Alice In Wonderland Syndrome
- Bipolar Disorder (2, 3)
- Cotard Delusions
- Depression (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
- Eeating Disorders (2, 3)
- Facitious Disorders
- Histrionic Personality Disorder
- Multiple Personality Disorder (2)
- Narcissistic Personality Disorder
- Night Terrors
- Kleptomania (2)
- A Pyromaniac
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Psychopaths
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (2)
- Sex Addiction (2)
- Schizophrenia (2)
- Sociopaths (2)
Disabilities
- Aspergers Syndrome
- Apathy
- Someone Blind (2)
- Cancer (2, 3)
- Disability
- Dyslexia
- Muteness (2, 3)
- Stutter
Jobs/Hobbies/Beliefs
- Actors
- Ballet Dancer (2)
- Christianity
- Foreigners
- Gamblers
- Hinduism
- Hitmen
- Satanism
- Smokers
- Stoners
- Taoism
- Journalists
- Vegetarians
Drugs
- Alcohol Influence (2, 3, 4, 5)
- Cocaine Influence
- Ecstasy Influence (2)
- Heroin Use
- LSD Influence
- Marijuana Influence (2, 3)
- Opiate Use
Locations
- Australia
- Boston
- California (2, 3)
- England/Britain (2, 3, 4, 5)
- New York
- Prison
- London
- The South (2)
Genders
- Females (2)
- Males (2)
- Transgenders
Supernatural
Other
- Amnesia
- Children
- A Death Scene
- Loosing Someone (2)
- Old Persons
- Physical Injuries (2, 3)
- Sexual Abuse (2)
- Fight Scenes (2, 3, 4)
- Horror
- Torture
Biography Writing
- Components of Your Biographies
- Character sheet (2, 3)
- Need Help With Character Creation?
- How to: Draw Inspiration for Characters From Music
- How to: Write a Biography (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
- How to: Write a Fully Developed Character
- How to: Create a Cast of Characters (2)
- Writing an Original Character (2, 3)
- Creating Believable Characters (2, 3)
- Bio Formats (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
- Little Things You Can Add To Your Bios
- Connections (2)
- Titles
- Bio Twists
Names
- Female Names (2, 3, 4, 5)
- Male Names (2, 3, 4, 5)
- Last Names (2, 3, 4)
Personalities
- Jung’s 16 Personality Types
- Underused Character Personalities
- Birth-Order: Personality Traits
- The Difference Between Personality and Behavior
- How to: Show a Characters Personality In a Paragraph
- 16 Character Traits
- Underused Personalities
Personality Traits
Habits
Secrets
- 300 Possible Secrets to Give Your Characters
- I Bet You Didn’t Know...
- Character Plots And Secrets (2)
- Celebrity Secrets
- Secret Masterlist
Quotes
- Song Lyrics Masterlist
- Songs for Biographies
- Favorite Quotes: TV and Movies
- Favorite Quotes: Notable Authors
- Favorite Quotes: Celebrities
- Favorite Quotes: Popular Books (2)
- Quotes From Songs
- Character Quotes
- Masterlist of Bio Lyrics
- Masterlist of Bio Quotes
- Masterlist of Song Lyrics
- Biography Lyrics
- A Masterlist of Quotes
- +130 Quotes
- The Quotation Garden
Mary Sue’s
Para Titles
- 100 Paragraph Titles
- Para Titles - Song Title Edition (2,3)
- A Whole Ton of Para Titles
- 350+ Song Titles
- Para Titles For You (2)
Starters
- How to: Create an interesting starter
- How to: Make an Interesting Starter
- Gif Conversations: A Guide
- A Brief Guide to Starters
- Interesting Gif Convesation Starters
- Starters Masterlist
- Gif Starter Posts
- 46 Interesting Gif Chat Starters
- Ideas for Gif Chat Starters
- Starters
Careers/Jobs
- Masterlist: Jobs
- Possible Careers for Characters
- Artistic Occupations
- Martha’s Vineyard Job Masterlist
- Interesting Jobs
Locations/Settings/Activities
- Para Ideas
- Masterlist: Para Ideas
- Top 50 Places for Starters
- Writing Topics: Para Ideas
- 101 Date Ideas
- 68 Date Ideas
- 22 Date Ideas
- Popular Places to Eat
Character Developement
- Character Development Questionaire
- Character Surveys
- C.D. Questionaire
- 30 Day Character Development Meme
- Character Development Questions (2)
- 100 Pt. Questionaire
- IC and OOC Surveys
- Online Test for Character Building
- 30 Days of Character Development
- How to: Develop Characters
- Get To Know Your Characters
Romance (in general)
- The Little Ways a Ship Gets Build
- Roleplaying Relationships
- 8 Ways to Say I Love You
- How to: Make a Set Ship RP Work
- How to: Write a Romantic Scene
- Do’s and Don’ts of Writing Relationships
- Putting a Label on It
- Synonyms for Love
- Pregnancy (2, 3, 4, 5)
Smut
- Smut Guide: Casual Sex
- Smut Guide: For Beginners
- How to: Write a First Time Sex Scene Romantically
- How to: Smut - The Bare Bones
- How to: Smut (For Virgins)
- How to: Write Lesbian Smut
- How to: Write Smut (2, 3)
- How to: Write a Blowjob/Prepping for Smut
- Smut Guides of Tumblr
- Tips on Writing Sex Scenes
- A Guide to Language in Smut
- Domination and Submission
- Making Love
- A Smut Guide
Kisses
Plot Writing
- How to: Create the Best Plot for Your RP
- How to: Create A Plot Outline in 8 Steps
- How to: Write A Plot in 12 Steps
- How to: Write A Quality Plot
- How to: Spice Up Your Roleplay Plots
- Components of Your Plot Page
- Writing Up A Plot
- Basics of Writing A Plot
- Links for Plot Writing Help
- Eight Unique Plot Ideas
- Plot Twists
- Situation Ideas (2, 3)
- Guide to Plotting
Eras
- Eras Masterlist
- Everything You Need to Know Abut the 20’s
- 20’s Slang
- Primary Sources on Ancient Civilizations
- How to: Play the Greek Goddess ‘Harmonia’
- How to: Roleplay In the Victorian Era
- Victorian Dialogue
SOURCE: Lover of the Dark
15 General Tips
15 General Tips
(1) Tell a great story
Nothing matters if you don’t have a great story worth telling. A tale you are passionate about. A screenplay worthy of your creativity and devotion.
(2) Master the format
Anyone can learn the industry standard for margins & overall structure of a screenplay. However, you have to master the subtleties of white space, slug lines, page counts & more. Not to mention the constant threat of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Mastering the format liberates your screenplay of distractions and leaves only the story.
(3) No stage directions
You are not the director. Leave out camera shots & notes for actors. If something must be seen then skillfully describe it.
(4) Show, don’t tell
Story is revealed through actions and characters. Your exposition shouldn’t be obvious to the reader. Show don’t tell.
(5) Get in late, get out early
This rule applies to your entire screenplay but also to individual scenes. Cut out the excess and keep your story focused on what matters most.
(6) Know your audience
Never lose sight of who you are writing for even if it’s yourself. Every screenplay should be a perfect match for the audience it’s intended for.
(7) Create obstacles
Nothing should be easy for your characters. Put them through hell so people will care when (and if) they succeed. There is no suspense without obstacles and avoid cheating by giving them convenient escapes.
(8) Clarity
Every sentence should communicate an idea (or more than one idea) and it should be crystal clear. Only you can describe what your screenplay is about. Show people the exciting moments that previously existed only in your imagination. Be clear about your characters motivations and immerse the reader in your world.
(9) Your world, your characters
If you don’t have the answers, how can you ask the questions that drive your screenplay? What is your world like? Where did your characters come from? What is your story about?
(10) Less is more
Nearly every rule in this list is related to this rule in some way. Writing with clarity requires a simplification of descriptions. Hiding exposition can sometimes require dialogue to be rewritten and often shortened. Getting into your scenes late and out often, using white space effectively and rewrites in general all point to this one rule. Less is more. Keep it in mind at all times. Make every single word matter and eliminate the ones that slow your screenplay down.
(11) Write what you know
Writing what you know doesn’t necessarily mean you have to write only what you’ve lived. On the other hand, if you don’t know anything about sharks and want to write about sharks… Maybe you should go swim with some sharks! Research is key. A screenwriter is a student of life. Seek out the answers to better inform your story. You have to know every detail.
(12) Have something to say
You’ve got a great story, vivid characters and your structure is perfect. You still can’t take your screenplay to the next level unless you have something to say. What does your story mean? What is it truly about? You have to know the answers to these questions and build them into every page.
(13) Entertain
Above all else, your screenplay has to be entertaining. When reading each and every scene in your movie ask yourself one question: Is this entertaining? If the answer is no or not really then you’ve got some work to do.
(14) Write, rewrite, repeat
The only thing greater than a good idea is a better idea. Keep writing until it’s perfect. Don’t be afraid of a bad first draft. Be confident that your story will improve with every pass. Write until you adore every sentence.
(15) Write everyday
Screenwriters write screenplays. Find time to write and never stop thinking about what happens next. The more you write the more your skills improve. You CAN write an amazing screenplay as long as you’re willing to sit down and actually write it! (and rewrite it)