|
||||||||||
|
Subscribe to the Absolute Write Newsletter and get the Agents! Agents! Agents! report free! Click here.
|
Win a 1-year subscription to Writer's Digest by subscribing to Absolute Markets-- all paying markets for your writing. Click here. |
|
| |||||||||||||
|
|
Interview
with Rebekah Bradford
How did you get your start in
TV/screenwriting? In 1996, I submitted a spec feature to John Leekley, executive
producer of the Fox TV series “Kindred: the
Embraced,” and he liked my work. Unfortunately
the series was canceled. John hired
me as the story editor for HBO’s anime series “Spawn.” How is it different working on an
established series than it is working on stories you’re creating from scratch? When writing for an established series you have a base of
character arcs and dramatic themes from which to draw ideas and creative
inspiration for storylines. Usually
an established series has a ‘look and feel’ about it that (hopefully)
conveys the creator’s original artistic vision.
In the case of the anime series “Spawn,” its creator, Todd McFarlane,
had a deep attachment and understanding of the characters he created in his
popular comic book, “Spawn.” As
a writer on a series that is not your original idea, I think achieving something
similar to a ‘Vulcan Mind Meld’ with
its creator is essential. You have
to be able to wrap your mind around the subject matter and make it yours, which
in turn allows the voice of the characters to come through you and on to the
page. For me, developing original material or concepts for a
series is the most rewarding, because I feel I’ve created something that is a
part of me. I’ve always likened
writing original material to giving birth.
You start out with an idea and then slowly, with care, you give life to
it. Tell me how it works when you're
writing for a series-- do you create entire episodes yourself, then let another
writer have a turn, or do you work in teams? On successful TV series, like Law & Order or CSI, very rarely do individual staff writers create episodes all on their own. Usually ideas for episodes are kicked around in story meetings. A show’s creator or executive producer may have a dramatic theme or story idea in mind that they want to build an episode around. Staff writers are expected to come to story meetings with a wealth of creative ideas, so it’s important to do the homework. Research is absolutely vital. After an episode idea is agreed upon, a staff writer will take a run at the first draft. Sometimes the executive producers (who are writers as well) will rewrite, retool, or do a dialogue polish to that draft, or it could be given to another writer for a rewrite. How tight are your deadlines on a
TV series? For established series, very tight.
Regarding a new pilot, once it’s picked up and episodes are ordered,
things get very crazy. The network or cable channel has a production schedule
based on when they plan on airing. How can a writer seek work on a
series? Is it best to send a spec
for a similar show? It really depends on who is reading the material.
Agents will tell writers to send original material, specifically a
feature spec script. Some executive
producers of series will want to read a spec script not only of their show but
others. It’s a good idea to have
as many samples of your work in your arsenal as possible. What are the differences between
writing for animation and writing for live actors? One of the exciting things about writing for animation is that you can include elaborate action sequences and exotic locations into your script without having to deal with the budget constraints of live action. Although Japanese anime was cutting edge at the time we did "Spawn," it was still very difficult to animate life-like human expressions, emotions, or even idiosyncratic characteristics. That can limit you as a writer when you want to assign certain expressions to a character for optimum dramatic affect. So I had to rely on dialogue that was, hopefully, not too arch or on-the-nose to explain what my character was feeling. When you write for live action, you can assign any emotion
to a character. Great actors take
your material and make it their own. They
can create magic on the screen by using their unique mannerisms, nervous tics,
facial expressions, or that look in their eyes when their heart’s been broken.
For animated projects, actors are literally creating ‘picture.’
They record their characters’ voiceovers first and then the animators
will animate the actor’s chosen take or performance.
Robin Williams in “Aladdin” and Eddie Murphy in “Shrek” are
wonderful examples of how an actor can take the lines on a page and turn them
into a very entertaining and unique animation experience. Animation technology has come a long way, so today you have
an animated movie like “The Incredibles” which not only has outstanding
writing but amazing visual effects and great animated acting to mirror
the actors’ voice over performances in the studio. It’s a very exciting time to be writing for animation. You talk about the BBTs of scenes.
What does this mean? BBTs is "Build it.
Button it. Transition it." I approach every scene like I approach an entire screenplay.
There is a beginning, middle, and end to it.
I try to write scenes that will build momentum and drive the story
forward. At the end of a scene, I
try to ‘button’ it with a line of dialogue or an action that brings
together several different dramatic themes that I may have introduced. The information you convey in a ‘button’ can also be
utilized to transition from one scene to the next. I’ve always been impressed by dramatic scenes that begin
small and end big. You may see
characters interacting on very simplistic levels or engaging in very mundane
activities, but then at the end of the scene, something startling happens that
launches the story into an entirely new direction or gives insight into another
facet of a character’s personality. I
think examples of scenes like this can be found in Alan Ball’s “American
Beauty.” How much planning and outlining do
you do before you write a draft of a script? In the planning stages, I do a tremendous amount of
research. I’m a total bibliophile
so reading 15 books on say, Einstein, is not a problem.
To me, the expression “write what you know”
has always applied to material that is autobiographical in nature.
Writing what you don’t know, but need to learn about as quickly as
possible, is so much more interesting. A scriptwriting professor of mine once told me an interesting Alfred Hitchcock/Psycho story: In a letter to Saturday’s Daily Telegraph, Dr. Ross Watkin of Chipstead wrote, “Someone should have told Hitchcock that a dead person’s pupils are widely dilated. The final shot of the murdered Janet Leigh on the shower floor showed normal-size pupils. It quite ruined the film for me...” According to my professor, when Hitchcock learned of his physiological error, he was devastated. Hitchcock felt that in order for great drama to be believable, writers and film makers should make every attempt to achieve authenticity. Even if it means convincing only one viewer. My outlines tend to be very detailed, and there are a few things I do that help me create them. I’ll write character descriptions that include extensive backgrounds/histories. I’ll write pages of notes on just the settings. I’ll do hours and hours of dictation where I’ll ‘break’ scenes, find a character’s voice, and establish plot ‘tent poles.’ Then I’ll transcribe those tapes in Final Draft format and sculpt and outline. Usually 30 pages for a one-hour pilot, 60 pages for a two-hour movie. It’s very tempting to sit down and start writing a screenplay without doing an outline. But then you get to the end of the first act and realize you have no idea what your second act is. For me, an outline has always helped me figure out where I’m going with a story before I go to script. What are your three best pieces of advice for
pre-professional screenwriters? READ: These books should be in every writer’s personal library: Screenplay: The
Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd Field Screenwriting From the Soul by Richard
Krevolin Also, read any screenplay you can get your hands on. WRITE: If you
don’t already own the script software Final
Draft, buy the most recent version.
Every agent, studio, and housewife in the greater Los Angeles area owns
Final Draft. You can e-mail your
script to people. Try to write every day.
Could be a sentence, a page or a manifesto. When writing dialogue, write how you think your character
should speak. Say the lines out
loud. If it sounds stupid, chances
are it is. Be true to your
character’s ‘voice.’ If they
speak in tongues, then so be it. But
if your reader can’t understand your character, you lose the dramatic impact
of your scene. EDIT: Be your own critic, but not your own worst enemy. Believe in your work and have faith in your abilities. If you’ve done your homework and learned the craft, don’t second guess every scene. Let it flow, but also be on the lookout for spelling, typos, and basic grammar errors. If you think a scene doesn’t drive the story forward or doesn’t have anything to do with the plot, cut it. Visit Rebekah's site at www.scriptsense.org. |
Sponsored links 
Make a Real Living as a Freelance Writer! How to find a book publisher |
Text on this site Copyright © 1998-2007
Absolute Write, all rights reserved.
|
In
1999 Rebekah Bradford received a Prime Time Emmy Award for her work as writer on
the HBO original series “Spawn.” In 2003 she co-wrote the CBS original movie
"Mafia Doctor," starring Paul Sorvino, Danny Nucci, Olympia Dukakis,
and Jonathan Scarfe.
