I am awfully quick to give advice about screenwriting in this blog. And some people actually accept it. The funny thing is that none of those people have ever read any of my scripts! They might have seen one of my films, but, with a finished film, it is difficult to say who contributed what. Therefore, to help people decide whether my writing advice is any good, I am posting some pages for your pleasure and perusal.
Inspired by the three-page challenges on the Scriptnotes podcast by John August and Craig Mazin, I have decided to post the opening of some of my scripts in a series of blogs. However, rather than three pages, I am going with five pages because I feel that will provide a more accurate appraisal of my writing and the stories. I am not posting the scripts of any of my produced films. That would be complicated legally since those scripts now belong to their respective production companies. These scripts are either new or part of my back catalog. Some are ready to be pitched. Others need a little polishing. But you can read the first five pages now.
The Mark is my second script, and the first one to receive major Hollywood attention. It is a thriller inspired by the Bible's Book of Revelations. Hollywood had previously mined this territory with The Omen, however, the subgenre of End Time films hadn't come into being yet. Had I pursued this script, I might have beat Left Behind to the punch -- both the books and the movies. And I had the chance....
The Mark got genuine interest. An agent at a mid-sized agency that handled directors read it. He really liked it, but they didn't handle writers. Still, he tried to set it up with one of his directors, but he was unsuccessful.
I found the agent's attitude about the project fascinating. He was Jewish, but he wasn't put-off by the Christian content and themes. He never viewed it as a Christian film. He looked at it as a futuristic Twilight Zone-ish allegory of the Holocaust set in the United States. In fact, he said he felt the script was perhaps a little too Jewish for him!
That would never happen today. In those days, Christian content and themes were acceptable in projects as long as the story would appeal to the mainstream movie-going public. Nowadays, more Christian films than ever are being made. However, they are considered a small niche and marketed predominately to Christians mainly through outreach to the megachurches. The need for church approval severely limits what is "acceptable" content. It also severely limits the audience. Don't expect mainstream crossover hits anymore.
I think The Mark would have crossed over. I wish I would have pursued it. I tossed this script into the back catalog because I wrote Then The Judgement, which got a much stronger response. (Then I backed off that script because I was getting an even stronger response to The Long Drive....)
Oh well. That's the problem with always chasing what's new and shiny....
Here are the first five pages:
I hope you enjoyed those first five pages, If you're interested in reading more, send me an email.
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 2, The House
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 3, This Is Us
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 4, Arrival
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 5, Methodology
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 6, Clara's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 7, Clara's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 8, My Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 9, My Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 10, My Tale, Pt. 3
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 11, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 12, Natalia's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 13, John's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 14, John's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 15, Come Inside!
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 16, Marion's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 17, Marion's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 18, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 19, Jeanne's Tale, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 20, Lisa's Tale
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 21, Recap, Pt. 1
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 22, Recap, Pt. 2
The Haunting of 21 St. Helens Avenue, Part 23, Recap, Pt. 3
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