Screenwriting : Fist Fight, Chips, Baby Boss? by Patrick Freeman

I respectfully disagree with you - lots of great films have been released so far this year, Patrick.

Bill, at least name some of the movies you felt were great so far this year.

just cause decision makers are not calling you for a job doesn't mean you can't make your own movies.

Sour grapes mentality won't get you any closer to whatever "Hollywood" means to you.

The business is not about making the best films. It's about making the most profitable films. The sad truth.

Becca-Chris M.....recent films I've seen in the theater include Kong, Get Out, Logan, John Wick, A Dog's Purpose, The Shack, Before I Fall, A Cure for Wellness, Split, The Great Wall, Passengers, Paterson, Fist Fight, Hidden Figures, Life and The Salesman. They were all great.

My film tastes run from low-brow to high-brow, and everything in between. I go to the theater every week, and am the consummate film lover (and live entertainment lover too).

I agree with Bill. There have been plenty of good movies this year. I enjoyed La La Land, Moonlight, Get Out, Manchester, Logan to name a few.

And like Bill, I'm at the movies all the time. I watch just about everything.

Jody: no disrespect to people who complain at times about the lack of quality entertainment....but, man....there is so much great entertainment available....always....year after year....I just can't understand how people can make those types of statements. Art is subjective, of course, and more power to everyone, but great films are released all the time.

This year's trailers that are currently on youtube look especially great, and there are many films that feature women as the main character. Atomic Blonde, Most Beautiful Island, Snatched, Table 19, The House Trailer, The Crucifixion, Megan Leavey, The Book of Henry, etc. etc.....2017 is going to be another great year for films.

And so many different venues! With Amazon, Netflix, Hulu and now YouTube putting out original movies and series, nobody can say there's "nothing" to watch!

Patrick: Words I often ask frequently ask myself. But just this morning, while having breakfast at the Florence Diner in Texas, I got an email from my producer buddy in LA saying he has a meeting with Paramount on Monday to discuss their interest in a project we're shopping. It's a fun, modern day adventure with elements of Lost City of Z and Heart of Darkness. So ask me in a few weeks and I may have a different answer.

Lots of crap means more opportunities to get a job & start a career. Close the gap between aspiring and working.

Easy Patrick... they'd look to see if it was done before... praise it for its originality... then push to remake it! #RejectTheRemake

I hope I become real successful so wannabe screenwriters can criticize my work.

I agree with Dan M.

LOL! Dan G, you cut too deep. TOO DEEP!

I agree with Bill. There are far too many quality films ou there, year after year, to make a general statement like that.

The operative word here is "good". I think you need to define "good". There's financial, artistic, altruistic ... but right now, Hollywood doesn't seem to be doing well at much of anything.

Movies overall are never really as bad or as good as advertised. It's art, art is subjective. I'm currently writing a haunting tale of a really good guy who busts his ass to get his finances in order and care for his family and the minute he gets his house in order, his dog needs expensive surgery on two knees and he then goes broke and loses his mind. Let's just say it's based on real events. FML.

Ryan

I am not offended. Everybody believes in their work or "art". I just think right now, it is a great time. (minus the pending WGA strike). Tons of opportunities to get a job, improve on craft, gain experience. Whatever you think is 'crap' is also better than sitting at home daydreaming.

Gotta start somewhere. Might as well get paid. it is a business. Actor Denzel Washington has to do a popcorn movie (Mag 7) so he can do a passion movie (Fences). Same as beginning writers and filmmakers. Seriously, who's gonna give you keys to a Ferrari when you got 0 experience behind the wheel?

Ryan: the thing that makes that "real art" statement sound pretentious...."elitist" is probably a better term, actually....is because it's a slap in the face to all those who don't aspire to such lofty goals, whatever the art form. I would never say to the makers of Boss Baby that what they made isn't real art. Low-brow, middle-brow, or high-brow......it's all still art, at least in my opinion.

How does "real art" equate to a "good" movie? (Or does it?)

Oh I dunno Ryan, I mean Stepbrothers certainly teaches lessons on life (don't give up on your dreams and don't steal your dads boat) showed us a different view of reality (grown men with the minds of middle-schoolers and still dependent on their parents) and the end scene of Will Ferrell singing Por Ti Volare was quite moving (boats and ho's!)

Sometimes entertainment is just that- entertainment. I'm less about changing someone's life view and more about giving them a respite from the crap we all deal with in the daily grind. I love a movie that moves me. But I also love a movie that makes me laugh, scares me, or simply transports me to a different world for a few hours.

I'm in the Joel Silver camp: "I don't make art. I buy it."

Or Fellini's response to Critics: "Go to the Post Office for messages."

Good luck making art in movies. Most folks aint Scorsese (married 5 times) or Van Gogh (no ear, died broke and unknown).

But that's just it, Ryan. It's not all there is. Movies truly have something for everyone. There are plenty of high-brow artsy movies being made ALL the time, right next to the reboot of Alien.

Someone saying there aren't any good movies these days makes me wonder if they've been living under a rock. Between big screen movies, cable and entities like Netflix, I truly feel like I'm inundated with movies on a daily basis, so many I don't know that I can ever catch up with all of them. Are they all good? Of course not. But there are still tons of great movies being made. They might not all be "art" but can still have a good story. And at the end of the day, story is what screenwriting is really all about.

Of course. But that's not an uncommon desire in this industry. I would guess that every working writer out there has some pet project up their sleeve that they see as wildly different from anything else. I would love to see some of my edgier stuff get made. But I'm also pragmatic enough to know that the path to those pet projects seeing the light of day is often by getting some other, less exciting scripts under one's belt, as well as writing for other people. Those connections are everything.

Ryan. I never wanted to make a film that pushed the medium because I don’t care about stuff like that. I only want to make good films. There is no real right or wrong here. We are all different which is a good thing.

I followed the path Jody described. I wrote spec screenplays that I felt were good but who knows for sure. I manged to option a few so maybe they were crap. Anyway then I wrote some on assignment with the producer’s objective in mind which helped me make some good connections which as Jody said is everything in this business. I am now using those connections to produce films I want to produce. Money is not my only objective but they do call it “Show Business” instead of “Show Art” for a reason.

^^^^^^^^

DanG,

Send me a job. I d ride or die with you. Reality than fantasy jobs.

Push The Medium... sounds like a decent porn title.

I was so happy to see, "Moonlight" win best picture. Bill is right there were some great films in theaters. I also enjoyed, "Nocturnal Animals" did anyone here liked that film?

Jorge, Noctural Animals is on my list, haven't gotten to it yet. Glad to hear you liked it, it got mixed reviews.

Maybe skip the first 3 minutes of Nocturnal Animals.