John August

Transcribed

How movie money works

Episode - 11

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Film Industry, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

When you read articles claiming every Hollywood movie loses money, an obvious question arises: “Why do they keep making them, then?” In this installment, John and Craig explain how the film industry spends and makes money.

It’s a big and complicated topic. You could easily spend a semester studying it — John did — but this overview should give you a sense of how it all works.

The most important thing to understand is that each film is accounted for separately. Studios charge distribution fees that earn money for the company without paying down the investment in each movie. That’s how Theoretical Pictures can turn a profit even when each of the last 20 films it has released shows a loss.

Because we’re throwing a lot of terms around this episode, here’s a handy cheat sheet:

John couldn’t remember the name of it (The Paramount Decree) but it’s worth reading up on the 1948 court decision barring studios from owning movie theaters. Not only is it a fascinating anti-trust case, but it greatly influenced how the modern film industry works.

LINKS:

You can download the episode here: AAC.

UPDATE 11-17-11: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Good actors and bad writing partners

QandA, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

Craig and John go through the mailbox to answer listener questions. Can great actors save bad writing? What happens when writing partners split up? Are flashbacks always a bad idea? Should a young British comedy writer move to America?

All this, plus discussion of Halloween, Screenwriting.io and dressing up dogs.

We have a Facebook fan page: facebook.com/scriptnotes. Like us, follow us and force your interests into your friends’ feeds.

LINKS:

You can download the episode here: AAC.

UPDATE 11-7-11: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Five figure advice

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

Craig and John tackle a listener question about the early stages of a screenwriting career: deciding which meetings to take, which projects to pursue, and how not to go broke in the process.

Once you’ve been hired for your first paid screenwriting job, the temptation is to pop the champagne corks and ditch that studio apartment in Koreatown. While every success is worth celebrating, the transition from “aspiring screenwriter” to “working screenwriter” can be unexpectedly brutal.

Checks come late, notes come often and opportunities can lead you astray.

Back when you were an aspiring screenwriter, anything seemed possible, because it was all make-believe anyway. Why not write a 14th-century comedy about strudel-makers?

Now screenwriting is your job, and that means making choices about what kind of career you want, what you’ll write, and how you’ll keep a roof over your head.

LINKS:

You can download the episode here: AAC.

UPDATE 10-27-11: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

The Good Boy Syndrome, and whether film school is worth it

Education, Psych 101, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig discuss why screenwriters want to please people — and how it often hurts them and the movies they write — before a lengthy discussion of the pros and cons of going to film school.

We frame our film school discussion around John’s generic list of why people choose to go to college or graduate school:

  1. The information
  2. Certificate/degree
  3. Access to special equipment
  4. Structure
  5. Professors/instructors/experts
  6. Peers
  7. Alumni
  8. Enjoyment

That last point led to our alternate title for this podcast: Film school: An expensive way to get laid.

Craig got a new microphone, which seems like cause for celebration, but it picked up a tremendous amount of room noise. We’ll be working on that for next time.

Thank you to all the listeners who lavished stars and praise upon us in iTunes. Being classic Good Boys, that kind of validation is like mana to us.

LINKS:

You can download the episode here: AAC.

UPDATE 10-25-11: The transcript of this episode can be found here.