Go Into The Story

Interview: Cord Jefferson

Conversations with the writer-director of American Fiction.

Page One: “High Fidelity” (2000)

Screenplay by D.V. DeVincentis & Steve Pink & John Cusack and Scott Rosenberg, novel by Nick Hornby

How to Use Go Into The Story (Part 4): Study the Craft

Some end of the year advice for blog readers.

Interview: Tony McNamara

A conversation with the screenwriter of Poor Things.

Page One: “The Night of the Hunter” (1955)

Screenplay by James Agee, novel by Davis Grubb

How to Use Go Into The Story (Part 3): Write Pages

Some end of the year advice for blog readers.

On Writing

“Life goes on, and for the sake of verisimilitude and realism, you cannot possibly give the impression of an ending: you must let something…

Page One: “Maestro” (2023)

Written by Bradley Cooper & Josh Singer

Well put, Stephen.

I've heard this from more than one showrunner, producer, manager, and development exec: How well a writer handles supporting characters is…

More Movies Like This, Please: 2023 List

I started something in 2012. Whenever I saw a new movie I liked, I would jump onto Twitter, identify the movie, then simply tweet: “More…

Script To Screen: “Harold and Maude”

The delightful 1971 movie Harold and Maude, written by Colin Higgins, is most noted for its co-stars Harold [Bud Cort] and Maude [Ruth…

Page One: “Nyad” (2023)

Screenplay by Julia Cox, based on the book “Find a Way” by Diana Nyad

“This is the true joy of life…”

A wise quote from George Bernard Shaw.

Script To Screen: “Heat”

The face-to-face diner scene confrontation between Neil (Robert De Niro) and Hanna (Al Pacino).

Page One: “Wonka” (2023)

Screenplay by Simon Farnaby & Paul King, story by Paul King, based on characters created by Roald Dahl

2023 Black List Word Cloud Logline Challenge: Winners!

The challenge started with a word cloud based on the loglines for the 2023 Black List scripts, all 76 of them!

How to Use Go Into The Story (Part 2): Read Scripts

Some end of the year advice for blog readers.

Page One: “Origin” (2023)

Written by Ava DuVernay, based on the book by Isabel Wilkerson

Script To Screen: “Heathers”

The final sequence in the 1988 Heathers, written by Daniel Waters.

How to Use Go Into The Story (Part 1): Watch Movies

Some end of the year advice for blog readers.

Page One: “Oppenheimer” (2023)

Written for the screen by Christopher Nolan, based on the book “American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer” by…

Script To Screen: “Her”

Samantha tells Theodore she is leaving in this science fiction infused romance drama written and directed by Spike Jonze.

Screenwriting 101: Quentin Tarantino

“You know, my problem with most screenwriting is it is a blueprint. It’s like they’re afraid to write the damn thing. And I’m a writer…

Page One: “Barbie” (2023)

Written by Greta Gerwig & Noah Baumbach

Learn a Character-Driven Approach to Screenplay Structure

My upcoming one-week online Core: Plot class begins Monday, January 15.