John August

QandA

Ergonomics for the screenwriter

QandA, Writing Process

I recently finished working on a large radio project, and have started my first film project; but I’ve got a problem: – my work station. The hours spent at my desk are taking their toll on my body. Since you obviously spend a lot of time writing, presumably at a desk, do you have any recommendations (reading, tips, products, or anything else) related to ergonomics, the stress of sitting, or a writer’s workstation?

–Horace Constant
Toronto

Based on my informal polling of screenwriter friends, almost every one of them has had issues with ergonomics, such as numbness in the hands or lower back pain. Personally, I have trouble with my arms falling asleep. Not just tingling, mind you. I’ll wake up at two in the morning with my arms completely paralyzed. I have to flail like a fish to sit up and then spend ten minutes shaking them back to life. This only happens when I’ve been typing way too much. It’s quite literally a wake-up call.

The human body just wasn’t meant to sit and type for hours a day, so you need to really think about how you work. Keep in mind, I’m not an expert on any of this — you should search out books or websites with more information — but I can tell you what helps me.

  1. Get a good chair. It doesn’t have to be a $700 Aeron chair (though many people swear by them), but it should have a comfortable seat, back support, and adjustable arm supports. You want something that can be easily adjusted for height and seat tilt. A cheap chair is asking for trouble.
  2. Keep your typing surface low. If your desk has keyboard tray that slides out, great. If not, try to get an adjustable table that you can set quite low — just above your knees when you slide your chair in. The goal is to keep your elbows at ninety degrees, and your wrists in line with your forearms. Again, you can spend any amount on a table, but I’m using a $69 Ikea table, with embarrassing name of Jerker.
  3. Consider using an ergonomic keyboard. The most common variety has the QWERTY layout broken in half, with the right and left sides angled slightly away from each other, so that your hands stay in a straight line. I use an Adesso keyboard, but there are many good varieties. I’d recommend going to a store with a few on display and find one that feels right. It only takes a day or two to get up to speed on the split layout.
  4. Try to keep your monitor at eye level, so that you’re not looking down all the time. If you’re using a laptop, it’s often worth it to get a cheap second monitor, rather than using the built-in screen. (Along the same lines, hook up a better, bigger keyboard than the laptop’s.)
  5. Try different mice and trackballs. I love my wireless Microsoft mouse, but everyone has a different preference. Whichever you choose, keep it at the same level as your keyboard, and set it close, so that you don’t have to extend your arm to reach it.
  6. Get a mousepad with a built-in wrist rest.
  7. If your hands get numb, consider gloves. For the last ten years, I’ve been using these spandex Handeze gloves, and they’ve made a huge difference. Medically and scientifically, they shouldn’t work, but they do for me. They’re only 20 bucks, and they last for more than a year.
  8. A lot of what people refer to as “carpal tunnel syndrome” really isn’t. In my case, I was pinching a nerve up in my shoulder blades, which was radiating all the way down to my fingers. So don’t rush to assume you have the repetitive stress injury du jour. Focus on improving your entire work routine.
  9. Finally, take breaks. Get up, walk around, do something else. Computers and the Internet are amazing, but they lull you into thinking you’re doing something when you’re just idly clicking hours away.

Hope this helps.

Getting help as a deaf screenwriter

QandA, So-Called Experts

questionmarkHi my name is Sami and I am deaf. I don’t write good in English, although I can write screenplay and know its format.

Suppose if I complete the screenplay and I want to be sure that this screenplay is complete accurate and perfect…how do I make sure it is? Do I send it to some script doctor and have them check the format, grammar, and etc? If so then do they have right to share the credit?

–Sami

answer iconOne of your instincts is right: you do need someone to look over your writing, since your English isn’t terrific. I’m guessing you grew up using American Sign Language, which many non-deaf people assume is a direct adaptation of English. It isn’t. Not only does the language omit a lot of our needless filler words (such as articles), but it can structure sentences and phrases in much different ways than a spoken language might. This is why, over time, it has become very sophisticated and robust. Unfortunately, fluency in signing doesn’t always lend itself to the written word.

Which is where you could use some help.

A “script doctor” isn’t really the right term for what you need. That term generally applies to a highly paid screenwriting pro who does specific, short-term work on a screenplay to fix some perceived problem. What you’re looking for is really just an editor, someone with stronger grammar skills who can help with spelling, word choice and punctuation. Think of it this way: if you were hired to write a magazine article in French, you wouldn’t think twice about having a native speaker look over your work. That’s what you need.

Obviously, you should write about whatever subject interests you, but I’d encourage you to seek out the work of other deaf filmmakers. There are at least three deaf film festivals running, and other entries can be found in many of the better programs around the country. There is also the opportunity for cross-over with deaf theater companies, such as the renowned Deaf West Theater in Los Angeles.

Even if your work ends up having nothing to do with deaf issues, you’d benefit from meeting other writers and artists to see how they handle the challenges and opportunities the medium presents.

Incorporating titles into a screenplay

Formatting, QandA

How should I incorporate titles regarding date, time, location, etc. into a script for the viewer to read on the screen when the movie is complete?

–DJ

Anything that needs to be printed on screen (that is, it’s not part of the set or other design) is preceded by two magic words —

TITLE OVER:

You then center whatever information you want to appear on screen, be it the location, the time, whatever. Unless you’re doing a long, Star Wars-style crawl, this should be all you need.

For GO, there was a “RONNA” at the head of her section. In the second CHARLIE’S ANGELS, one title read:

NORTHERN MONGOLIA, NEAR THE SIBERIAN BORDER.

As opposed to Southern Mongolia, which is totally different.

That said, you probably don’t need to label every new location you visit, a la “The X-Files”. Always ask yourself whether the moment would be just as clear without printing anything on the screen. And you certainly shouldn’t include any titles that are really just credits, such as “A FILM BY DJ SMITH.” (And frankly, I believe no one should ever use that credit, because it cheapens the contribution of everyone else who worked on the film.)

Some writers really frown on using titles, because they feel that it’s the director’s prerogative whether or not they’re needed. I disagree. If it helps the reader understand the flow of the story, and makes the script read more like the final movie you want to make, by all means use them.

Selling a story if you’re not a screenwriter

QandA, Treatments

Like millions of other Americans out there, I have what my peers consider a few great movie ideas based on some recognizable cartoon characters. It’s a live action big budget concept with tons of special effects and an extremely clever twist. I can’t write the thing myself, but I can participate in its development. What course of action do you recommend? Is there a pool of capable screenwriters waiting for people with ideas to draw from? What can I do to sell my concept and have others develop the story?

–Paul Threatt

We don’t usually publish last names, but “Paul Threatt” seems so cosmically calculated for success, who could resist? If I were you, here’s what I would do.

  1. Even though you’re not a writer, do the very best job you can writing down the ideas, just in prose form. Register these treatments with the Writer’s Guild. (Refer back to one of the upteen columns I’ve written about that.) Keep in mind that this is really very little protection, since you don’t own any of the copyrighted characters your idea is based upon. But this whole venture is a crazy longshot, so even a fraction of a percentage of prudence is worth something.
  2. Move to Los Angeles.
  3. Get a job working for one of the following places: a big agency, a major studio, a powerful management firm, or a successful filmmaker (producer, screenwriter or director). This isn’t easy, but it’s not impossible. Start in the mailroom, or as an intern. Learn everything you can. Figure out who the best writers are.
  4. Work very hard, so that you’re promoted a few rungs up from the bottom. This may involve switching companies several times.
  5. At this moment, and not before, present the very best of your ideas to your boss, or another powerful person you’ve befriended along the way. Convince them that this is the movie that will make their careers. Then seek out the filmmaker who could get it made, and the studio that controls the rights.

If everything works perfectly, you could have a movie in production in less than five years. Which is a very long time, granted, but par for the course in movieland.

This whole scenario may sound far-fetched, but it’s essentially what’s been happening for decades. Pretty much everyone who comes to Hollywood has one or two great ideas that they’re convinced should be made. And fortunately, remarkably, they’re right. Good luck.