Massify Studio

Writing Your Way Into Plot

Amy Allen — 2009-06-26T10:19:59Z

While necessary and ultimately fulfilling, the process of developing compelling characters for their narratives can be challenging for writers and directors alike.

Author and professor Jeff Bens gives advice on creating and developing characters for fiction and film, in addition to story structure and writing in general.

Using Technology Onscreen

Suraj Das — 2009-06-01T18:20:15Z

Imagine if Hitchcock's "Rear Window" took place in 2009; Grace Kelly would have left her phone on vibrate when she snuck into the apartment across the street, and James Stewart would've sent her a text message telling her to run away when Raymond Burr's car pulled up outside. What's more, the central mystery as to whether or not Burr's wife was dead probably wouldn't amount to much of a head-scratcher - her Facebook friends and Twitter followers would have likely pieced together the puzzle long before Stewart got around to it.

Writing a good script was hard enough before the advent of cellphones and the internet made things even harder. This insightful article in The Times explores one of the greatest challenges faced by screenwriters today - making internet activities appear dramatically interesting and exciting to watch. "If fighting now looks like making up now looks like booking travel, as it does when people conduct their affairs online," asks writer Virginia Heffernan, "how do film directors make human action both dramatic to viewers and roughly true to life?"

Heffernan provides some examples of films and television shows, including Fox's "24," that feature compelling scenes where drama unfolds over the internet. I'm sure you can think of many other examples. Let us know about your writing challenges involving technology at feedback@massify.com and we'll discuss them in a later article.

John August Answers Questions

Amy Allen — 2009-05-29T18:35:56Z

Unanswered Questions from John August on Vimeo.

Screenwriters, this video from John August is worth a watch. Not only is he a joy to listen to, but he's giving you the type of advice you'd normally pay steep tuition to receive. (Hint, if you don't read his blog, I highly recommend it.) He gives some tough love, like pointing out that while you can improve your storytelling skills by reading other screenplays and seeing what works and what doesn't, "I don't know if anybody can really improve their ability to write characters, consciously." He also encourages writers to read scripts online to inspire and inform their own work. Sounds like a plan to me. What else are you doing this weekend? No, seriously.

Help With Scene Description

Amy Allen — 2009-04-07T16:58:20Z

John August not only runs what is probably the best screenwriting blog on the web; he now also makes how-to videos. This tutorial about how to make scene description better is super useful, especially if you've ever wondered how to make tricky 'intercut' action happen.

Perkins' 14 Wins Pitch Competition!

Amy Allen — 2008-04-08T19:25:38Z

Perkins’ 14 will be produced by After Dark Films and in theaters for Horrorfest 2008.

Thoughts on the Contest

Amy Allen — 2008-03-24T17:33:23Z

We have always believed that the promise of Massify is to democratize which films get made.

Ghosts in the Machine

Sasha Nelson — 2008-02-08T23:17:00Z

For our launch, we’ve partnered with After Dark films to bring you a groundbreaking new filmmaking competition – an opportunity for you to redefine the horror genre.

We’re calling it Ghosts in the Machine. Think you have a great idea for a horror movie? Submit your pitch into competition and win the opportunity to work with a professional production crew to turn it into a feature film. One idea, as selected by the Massify community, will be produced – and in theaters – as part of After Dark’s Horrorfest 2008.