SCREENPLAY IDEAS: HOW 9 PROS GOT

THEIR SCRIPT IDEAS

BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

#1: WOODY ALLENStart with a strong title, and go from there

Woody Allen loved the title “Midnight in Paris” but he couldn't DECIDE what would happen to his character at midnight. Once he FIGURED that out, the rest came easily. You have to lay the groundwork first, and then

the fun begins.

#2: DIABLO CODYUse flashbacks sparingly, but correctly

When Diablo Cody set out to WRITE “Juno,” she had just one scene in mind -- one where a pregnant teenager interviews parents who might adopt her baby. She took that one scene and CREATED a whole story

around it.

#3: J.J. ABRAMSTake a great "What if" question & explore answers to it

Lloyd Braun, the chairman of ABC, was on vacation watching “CastAway” when he came up with an idea for “Lost.” It started with a series of

questions: What if a group of strangers survived a plane crash? How would you REINVENT yourself in a world where your past didn't matter? He got

JJ Abrams to WRITE a pilot and the process took off from there.

#4: CAMERON CROWEWrite what you know

Cameron Crowe PENNED two screenplays by writing about his real life experiences. His tales of the rock world while working for “Rolling Stone”

would inspire “Almost Famous” and his social-experiment posing as a high school student for a second senior year would become “Fast Times at

Ridgemont High.”

#5: QUENTIN TARANTINOBorrow and be inspired by other's work

Quentin Tarantino is known for REFERENCING and playing homage to the films that inspire his later work. Tarantino GIVES credit to

approximately 80 different films that INSPIRED his classic film, Kill Bill. (Including most of the Bruce Lee canon.)

#6: CHARLIE KAUFMANWrite everything down and see what you get

Spike Jonze was inspired by Charlie Kaufman's approach to writing Synecdoche, New York: "On Synecdoche, New York, which I was originally going to direct, [Kaufman] said he wanted to try to write everything he was

thinking about in that moment – all the ideas and feelings at that time –and put it into the script."

#7: SPIKE JONZEUse flashbacks sparingly, but correctly

Spike Jonze got the idea for “Her” when he READ an article about a website that allowed users to chat-online with an A.I. He BOUNCED the idea around for many years and eventually came up with the story that

would become “Her.”

#8: AARON SORKINWing it and see what you come up with under

pressure

Aaron Sorkin THOUGHT he was just having lunch with a TV producer but when he got there, realized the group of producers and agents were expecting a full-fledged show pitch. BORROWING from ideas he'd

explored in “The American President,” he blurted out an idea that would become “The West Wing.”

#9: SHONDA RHIMESUse flashbacks sparingly, but correctly

Shonda Rhimes SUMMED it up best in her Dartmouth Commencement Address, "Perfect is boring and dreams are not real. So you think, 'I wish I could travel.' Great. SELL your crappy car, BUY a ticket to Bangkok, and go. Right now. I’m serious. You want to be a writer? A writer is someone

who WRITES every day, so start writing."

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“Logic will get you from A to Z. Imagination will get you everywhere.” –Albert Einstein