Strike, day twenty-two
Early morning at Paramount was chilly but unremarkable, with a mix of familiar faces and new folks. The negotiations (which just re-opened today) were of course a major topic of conversation, but I also learned a lot about the inner workings of Ugly Betty and the wild-west state of videogame writing.
The New York Times pulled several quotes from this blog in an article that ran today. I’ve no real objections, though I’ll point out that picketing isn’t nearly the party the article might have you believe. Yes, I’ve enjoyed meeting and walking with many talented writers, people I previously only knew by credits. But I’m delighted to put down my sign at the end of every shift.
Let me be clear: Picketing sucks. It’s the situation that makes it necessary. It’s the people who make it bearable.
I’ll be back at my post tomorrow morning at 5:30 a.m., if anyone else cares to experience it first-hand.
Articles
November 26th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
The glamor of being on CNN (as our group at CBS Radford was this morning) today is highly overrated. I mean, how many times can you respond to, “Are you optimistic about the talks between the WGA and the AMPTP resuming today?” To which my reply (fortunately it wasn’t me being interviewed, that was left to those clever TeeVee comedy writer types) would be totaling inappropriate, “Ummmmm…no, it makes me depressed just to think about the possibility of ending picketing.”
Yeah, picketing sucks. The situation sucks. I’m just happy it’s not February. It won’t be much fun to be walking in the wet.
November 26th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Hire that boy a proofreader. Opps. It should be “totally” NOT “totaling.”
November 26th, 2007 at 7:52 pm
Tell us more about wild-west video game writing…
Please
November 26th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
I was there today, but must of missed out on the wild-west video game writing discussion. One Teamster refused to cross our line, which was heartening.
November 27th, 2007 at 12:00 am
Has Kevin Smith written anything about the strike? Is he out there supporting you guys?
November 27th, 2007 at 12:48 am
I don’t know if I’m actually interested in video game writing, but if it’s truly so outrageous and wild, I’d love to hear more.
November 27th, 2007 at 1:05 am
Keep it up John.
For the people coming after you.
Like me.
I’m fully behind you guys. Let me know what you need.
November 27th, 2007 at 1:06 am
Wow. I just read that article and as the creator of GAY GATE (and we’re doing it again this coming Thursday as well) it was more about boosting morale and supporting the writers of UGLY BETTY than having a mini Pride parade. We’re also doing HOLLYWOOD HOMECOMING on Friday to pay tribute to our veteran writers, actors, and directors and also put a spotlight on healthcare and pension.
Hope you can make it out on Friday. I’m going to try to hit Paramount with you this week.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:33 am
Picketing and chating with fellow scribes, brandishing a sign and an Acme brand coffee mug sounds like fun…for a day or two. After ten or twenty days though the wrong end of a shotgun must start to look tempting.
November 27th, 2007 at 11:09 am
John,
On another topic, since I didn’t see anything posted on your website (or maybe I missed it ?), I just wanted to say I’m happy to hear that you’re teaming with Tim Burton again to bring Frankenweenie to life!
November 27th, 2007 at 11:47 am
In response to Alon’s question about Kevin Smith… I haven’t read anything but he was on KROQ during the first few days of the strike. He told Kevin and Bean that he was too rich to really care, but that he was all about solidarity and supporting the writers who weren’t as fortunate as him.
November 27th, 2007 at 3:49 pm
Wow. Baked goods and waving at celebrities. You guys should picket every year. Yeah that article did make is sound like everyone is just having a great time.
Seriously, I appreciate your hard work on the picket lines John. You have one more random internet reader’s support.
November 27th, 2007 at 3:55 pm
I too would like to hear more about the video-game writing scene.
I’m a video game junkie as well as a writer and I’ve done my own research in the past. So far, everyone I’ve talked to said you need a college degree to get into the video game industry. Either that, or work your way up from being a tester.
If you want to write/proofread for video games (character dialogue, menu screens, etc.) you probably need a degree in English.
If you want to actually WRITE the game, as in the story, plot, character development, etc., most of this is handled by the game “Designer” or “Producer” and is, from what I’ve gathered, is quite a bit different than screenwriting.
But I have no first hand knowledge. Just second-hand stuff people have told me and a little experience as a game tester.
November 28th, 2007 at 4:57 am
Funny, I read your blog entry and the words that absolutely lept out at me were “wild-west state of videogame writing”. I go check the comments, and this is the same thing that almost everyone else has picked up on. You just hear that video games can now gross more than movies, and you think about the mostly substandard plots that drive your average game, and you think damn, that should be me writing that.
So, if producers are already swamped with spec scripts, maybe your average games producer has a big empty spot on their desk? (Or not)
Anyone know how to structure a game plot line? Cut scenes could probably be written like a standard script, but how do you write interactive dialogue that changes due to actions or circumstance?
Giddy up,
November 28th, 2007 at 11:24 am
Very much interested in the video-game aspect as well - I tried to figure out how one got into that industry for a while, but it was a bit of a stone wall to bash my head against.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:47 am
tagline,
What I’ve gathered from my limited research into the video game industry (and writing for games) the past year or so is that it’s much different from the movie industry, in that one most likely wouldn’t submit a script for a game idea, etc.
What I’ve come to find out is that most of the ideas themselves are handled in-house, that is, with the developers.
There are many other things that go into games. The story is just one aspect. You have gameplay, graphics, etc. And sometimes the story can get in the way of the other elements, and vice versa.
Kane & Lynch, a new release, has a good story. But I can’t really say it’s a whole lot of fun to play with the shoddy controls and lack of a cover system, etc. But those are gameplay mechanics.
That’s what makes it hard to write a good story for a game because it has to compromise with the rest of the aspects. Like, you may have some grand fantasy adventure game like Lord of the Rings and you have to fight a giant dragon in the story, but if the programmer’s can’t get the dragon up and running and make the boss fight fun and exciting, you’ll have to change something. And taking that dragon out, in your mind, may ruin the story.
That really isn’t that different that movies, now that I think about it. I’m sure writers and directors struggle with these types of things daily on set.
As an aside, the video game industry appears to be recession proof. A lot of people are noticing that and getting in the industry. It’s also taking away a large chunk of the target demographic at the cineplex.
Did anyone see the numbers on Halo 3’s release date? It made something like 180 million that week, and that same weekend was one of the worst box office weekends in history. I guess everyone was playing Halo lol.
November 29th, 2007 at 5:15 am
Kane & Lynch, a new release, has a good story. But I can’t really say it’s a whole lot of fun to play with the shoddy controls and lack of a cover system, etc. But those are gameplay mechanics.