Research Dossier Screenwriters can enter their screenplays into competitions these competitions all have differing rules and restrictions, so they need to be aware of this before entering. An example of a competition screenplay writers can enter is Blue Cat, this competition has been around for around 25 years with its winners going on to be successful writers. ‘When you submit to BlueCat, you’re guaranteed a complete read of your script, as we provide a written analysis of your submission at no extra fee.’ Blue cat has become one of the largest and most prestigious screenplay competitions in the world, the cash prize is $18,500. The entry fee is dependent on what type of screenplay you enter and which date, I have included a print screen of their website where it outlines the deadlines and fees, I also print screened some success stories and the rules and regulations for the competition.
A way a writer can get commissioned is through organisations, organisations are there to take care of screenwriters and nurture them into successful writers. An example of an organisation that commissions writers is the BBC Writers Room, this organisation finances training for new writers to develop their skills so that they are able to succeed in their careers. ‘The Writers' Academy was originally created in 2005 and ran until 2013. It was revived in 2019 as part of BBC Studios ScriptWorks. It provides support and paid training for up-and-coming screenwriters and gives new writers the chance to develop their skills on some of the BBC’s flagship series, and the opportunity to develop an original series with some of the UK’s best television drama production companies.’ The BBC writers’ room has a specific window for script submission which is announced on their website’s opportunities page. In their rules and regulations section it states that they don’t accept submissions by email or post, ‘Ideas, pitches, outlines, synopses, or treatments on their own – we must always receive a script with every submission.’ More of their rules are print screened below.
Below are guidelines on the format of which to enter your submission. TITLE of the script being submitted. LOGLINE: one sentence that clearly and succinctly tells us who and what the story is about. For more information about loglines please see our blog. ADDITIONAL WRITERS: State here whether it is a joint application and provide the name of the other writer involved if applicable. Writers can only enter each window once, either individually or as part of a writing team of up to a maximum of 2 people. If entering as duo, both entrants must meet the entry requirements. You cannot submit as a duo and an individual within the same window. MEDIUM / GENRE: select the relevant options from the drop-down lists. A SHORT WRITING HISTORY: outlining your writing experience to date. ANSWERS: to a few brief questions about your motivation for applying and interest in writing for television. We would recommend preparing your answers to these outside the submissions system and pasting them in to save time when entering your submission. The system will time out after an hour if you don't click to submit your entry. It will not save uncompleted submissions. AGENT/WEBSITE (optional): You may also include a link to a personal website and agent details, but these are not required. DIVERSITY MONITORING FORM: This is optional, and the information provided is not linked to your profile in the system.
Writers seek inspiration from a variety of different places an example can be books, ‘each year an average of thirty novels are made into movies for the big screen.’ An example of a book that was adapted into a film is ‘The Colour Purple’ ‘Steven Spielberg created a stellar adaptation of Alice Walker’s novel’. Another example is a film called ‘Leaving Las Vegas’ which is based on an autobiographical novel by John O'Brien. Another way the writer can get inspiration is from other real life, a film which shows this is ‘The Social Network (2010). ‘It portrays the founding of social networking website Facebook and the resulting lawsuits.’ To do this they would have had to research into the case in order to ethically portray the subject matter in a truthful manner. There are many ways to research for a screenplay one of them is through interviews with witness. If the witnesses are deceased like in the case of 9/11, they could use the phone calls and family members as primary sources. Other primary source that can be used are letters and videos, these provide an insight into the event in a way that secondary research can’t. Primary research shows how the people were affected and provides a more reliable picture of what happened. The film United 93 tells the story of ‘The fourth, United Flight 93, that crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, after its passengers heroically fought to retake control.’ This film was created using primary and secondary research; an example of primary research used is ‘phone calls from passengers to their loved ones, and interviews with the families of the flight crew and passengers.’ I am going to add in some of my own experience I have with the topic of Alzheimer’s having had a Grandparent who lived with it. ‘Secondary sources were created by someone who did not experience first-hand or participate in the events or conditions you're researching.’ Secondary sources can include things like ‘popular books and journal articles, histories, criticisms, reviews, commentaries, encyclopaedias, and textbooks.’ Some secondary research I’ve used when writing my screen play is an article on Oculesics and the different ways you can convey emotion and conversate through the eyes, and the psychology of eye movement. I will conduct this research by reading articles and looking at differing theorists of this subject, for example, Ray Birdwhistell, Paul Ekman and Robert Plutchik. Another thing I’d have to research through secondary research is dementia and Alzheimer’s to ensure I can properly portray the disease through my writing. I will read articles and investigate the symptoms of the disease and some of the effects on patient mental health.
Through my research already I have found some of the Theorists of the oculesics theory, I have also print screened some of my findings for the topic. ‘The presence of woman is an indispensable element of spectacle in normal narrative film, yet her visual presence tends to work against the development of the story line.’- Laura Mulvey Femme Fatale; Self-sufficient, strong, seductive, them or us dynamic, secretive. The male gaze has been used for many years throughout cinema and is still used today. A good example of a film that uses the male gaze is a film called ‘Some Like it Hot’ where the main female character portrayed by Marylin Monroe pushes the tropes of the ‘Dumb Blonde’ and the ‘White Goddess’ These tropes don’t really push the narrative forward in any way and are predominantly there for the male pleasure. The first time we see Marilyn in Some Like it Hot, she struts on screen as Jerry’s (Lemmon) jaw hits the floor. Her characters sexual innocence translates to extreme sexual impact, as her qualities render her the perfect physical manifestation of conventional male desire.
I watched some film noirs and took things from each film to shape my narrative, develop the characters and mise-en-scene choices. Double indemnity: This ‘forbidden love’ narrative is what drives the story forward and the poisonous relationship between Phyllis and Walter. I also took inspiration from the ‘double crossing’ that Phyllis does to Walter at the end in my own screen play where I have Blue double cross Richard leaving him at the mercy of ‘the family’. Double indemnity also uses a voiceover as a narrative device which is also a trope in many film Noirs. Taxi Driver: Taxi Driver is a Neo Noir it uses a city scape motif which I hope to demonstrate in the opening sequence of my film. The film also uses eye gaze and has a big focus on the characters. I will use this film mainly as a source of inspiration for the cinematography elements. Strangers On a Train: This film used a switch in perspective halfway through which I am using as inspiration for my own film. Halfway through my film the perspective flips to Blues perspective.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/opportunities/send-a-script 20/10/2022 https://www.chasingthefrog.com/moviebooks.php 20/10/2022 https://www.bookbub.com/blog/best-movies-based-on-books-all-time 20/10/2022 https://guides.library.harvard.edu/HistSciInfo/secondary#:~:text=Secondary%20sources%20were%2 0created%20by,generally%20scholarly%20books%20and%20articles. https://guides.library.harvard.edu/HistSciInfo/secondary#:~:text=Secondary%20sources%20were%2 0created%20by,generally%20scholarly%20books%20and%20articles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oculesics#:~:text=Oculesics%2C%20a%20subcategory%20of%20kinesi cs,of%20medicine%20or%20social%20science. https://youtu.be/YYnI_L3mH00 10/11/2022 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Social_Network#:~:text=The%20Social%20Network%20is%20a,Fa cebook%20and%20the%20resulting%20lawsuits 11/11/2022 https://www.cfr.org/blog/seven-movies-worth-watching-about-911 17/04/2023 https://www.cfr.org/blog/seven-movies-worth-watching-about-911 17/04/2023