Pilot Season

As many of our TV students know, one of the busiest times for television writers is "pilot season." Even our instructors, since they are working writers themselves, get caught up in the frenzy during this time of year. They're either pitching concepts for new shows or staffing existing ones. Recently, Writers' Program instructor Alan Kirschenbaum was fortunate enough to get his pilot "Friend Me" picked up by CBS.

To read the scoop on Deadline.com, click here.

Due to his upcoming workload, Alan regretted to inform us all that he will not be able to teach his class this upcoming summer quarter, Advanced Sitcom Rewrite. However, our other TV instructor, Phil Kellard, was nice enough to step in as a replacement.

That being said, I thought this would be a great opportunity to share an article I found that really goes into detail on what it means to go from pitching a pilot, to all of the sudden becoming the head honcho on your own network show.


Take a look at the link below, and if you have any questions about upcoming television writing courses feel free to contact a Writers' Program adviser anytime at 310-825-9415 or by emailing writers@uclaextension.edu.

Congratulations, Your Pilot Just Got Picked Up. Here’s What You Have to Do: Everything

http://hollywonk.com/post/23240406626/hawley-on-upfronts-1

TV Comedy Show All-Stars

If you've ever wanted up-close-and-personal access to television sitcom show-runners, this Saturday might be the perfect opportunity for you.

TV veteran and WP' instructor Ed Scharlach will be expanding his annual "Comedy Today" panel and hosting a six week long course -- a forum where he and a limited number of students will interview executive producers and writers of current television comedies.

I dug up an old article from Deadline.com and the information one would receive in this course is akin to this, but obviously would be far greater, as it would take place in person, and more in-depth.

http://www.deadline.com/2012/01/tv-showrunners-on-women-comedy-and-what-it-takes-to-be-funny-these-days-tca/

If you are interested in enrolling, the course begins this Saturday, May 12th. Please follow the link below for course information and click on "Add to Cart" to enroll.

TV Comedy Show All-Stars: Creating and Writing Successful Television Comedy Series w/ Ed Scharlach

https://www.uclaextension.edu/r/Course.aspx?reg=Y1218

As always, contact a Writers' Program adviser to any questions!


Original Post: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/05/tv-comedy-show-all-stars.html

Charlie Kaufman: Screenwriters on Screenwriting

Hello Writers,

It's been pretty busy here at the Writers' Program. Our annual feature film and television writing competitions are currently underway and semi-finalists should be notified sometime in mid May. Our summer course catalog is out now for anyone interested in getting a jump on enrollment (www.uclaextension.edu) and there are also a few spring courses currently left as well. Contact your friendly neighborhood advisers for more info (310-825-9415) or email writers@uclaextension.edu.

Now... shameless plugs aside, something came to my attention recently that I thought was too go NOT to share. It was a speech delivered by Charlie Kaufman for the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA).

This is a fantastic, esoteric, meta-lecture by a screenwriter (about screenwriting) and really the nature of being human itself. Which is generally what great movies always boil down to: the human condition.

Just like his films, it's really a love/hate thing, but if you're interested please find the speech at the link below, and then click the "transcript" button.

http://guru.bafta.org/charlie-kaufman-screenwriters-lecture-video

I hope you enjoy this and good luck to everyone in the spring quarter!


Original post: http://www.uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/04/charlie-kaufman-screenwriters-on.html

ADVANCED SCREENWRITING APPLICATION DEADLINE EXTENDED!

ATTN: Screenwriters,

If you missed your chance to apply to our Advanced Screenwriting Courses coming up in the spring, the deadline has been extended to 5 P.M. MONDAY MARCH 12TH!

Please take a look at the following website and read the official guidelines on how to apply:

http://www2.uclaextension.edu/writers/detail.php?sID=advSubGuide

COURSES AVAILABLE:

"Screenwriting on the Write Side of the Brain: Advanced Workshop" with Bonnie MacBird

"Advanced Feature Film Writing Workshop" with Tom Lazarus

"Writing the 1-Hour Drama Pilot: Advanced Workshop" with Joel Thompson

"Writing the Half-Hour Comedy Pilot: Advanced Workshop" with Phil Kellard

ALSO, PLEASE DON'T FORGET! The deadline for this year's FEATURE FILM AND TELEVISION WRITING COMPETITION has been extended to 5 P.M., THIS THURSDAY, MARCH 8TH!

Be sure to get your scripts in for a chance at winning an insane amount of exposure! In case you don't know what I'm talking about, see my previous blog post here: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2011/09/let-writers-program-work-for-you.html


For official rules and application procedures, click here: http://www2.uclaextension.edu/writers/detail.php?sID=competition

Best of luck everyone!


Original Post: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/03/advanced-screenwriting-application.html

Oscar Flashback: CHINATOWN

In light of the upcoming Academy Awards this Sunday, I'd like to present an Oscar Flashback Moment from 1974, when Robert Towne won Best Original Screenplay for his script "Chinatown". 

I recently had to read this script for my current class with Bonnie MacBird. Bonnie, being the thorough instructor that she is, also provided some web links to provide her students with some insight into the film. I feel like I should have known this already, or maybe I learned it in film school and forgot, but apparently the infamous ending of Chinatown was altered by the director, Roman Polanski, to be the macabre beast of a finale it is in the final cut.

http://bernardschopen.tripod.com/chinatown.html

I have no idea if this film would have ever been considered a classic if it weren't for that unconventional ending. The script was finely written, but would it have earned Towne so many awards and the career that followed if it wasn't changed? I'm sure this writer and director fought like dogs over this, but it just goes to show that sometimes, screenwriters might not know what's best.

I also found it interesting, upon researching Robert Towne, that he apparently attended acting class with Jack Nicholson and wrote the script with him in mind for Jake Gittes. For some good anecdotes by Towne, you can check out the following article:

http://www.hollywoodlitsales.com/cf/journal/dspJournal.cfm?intID=2940

In other news, while everyone's attention might be on the Academy Awards site and their Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting, I'd like to take a moment and remind all of our students out there that the deadline for UCLA Extension's own Feature Film and Television Writing Competition is coming up! Be sure to submit your screenplay, TV spec or TV pilot by MARCH 1ST! This competition is limited to our students only and is a sure fire way for budding writers to gain exposure. Click on the website below for details:

http://www2.uclaextension.edu/writers/detail.php?sID=competition

Have a good week everyone and I hope to be receiving your scripts in the mail!


Original post: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/02/oscar-flashback-chinatown.html

Writing for Video Games

Amidst all the film awards coverage and Sundance news I've been reading, I came across one film title that stood out from the pack: a film that played at Sundance called INDIE GAME: The Movie.

It's a documentary that chronicles the struggles of several independent video game creators as they work to bring their vision to life. I believe it was picked up to be a TV series, but don't quote me on that. Anyway, after watching the trailer, it was apparent to me that video game makers are just like any other artists, or writers. If they're not crafting the "narrative" of large scale, cinematic games like Resident Evil, they're still creating worlds, characters, obstacles and objectives. They feel just as close to their work, like it's their baby, and take criticism in various ways just like anyone else. And these days, with mobile games on the rise, independent game makers have an even greater shot of becoming the next MINE CRAFT millionaire. Take a look for yourself and watch the trailer at the link below:

http://www.indiegamethemovie.com/

Whether this movie could stack up to my all time favorite video game documentary, King of Kong, we'll have to wait and see, but it looked interesting nonetheless.

On a similar note, if anyone out there is interested in the creative writing side of game-making (as opposed to the code writing side) check out the course we're offering in the upcoming 4-day WRITERS STUDIO, called "Storytellers Wanted: Writing Video Games Now"

https://www.uclaextension.edu/r/Course.aspx?reg=W8629

Contact me if you have any questions about this course, and if you'll be at the Writers Studio in a couple weeks, chances are you'll see me there! Hope everyone's enjoying their winter classes so far... 'Til next time...


Original Post: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/01/writing-for-video-games.html

My Interview with Joel Thompson

Happy Monday Writers!

For any of you aspiring TV scribes out there, I recently had the chance to interview television writer and instructor Joel Thompson about his impressive list of recent credits and how he got his start. Check out the Writers' Program homepage this week to see the full article!

www.uclaextension.edu/writers

You can also hear more of what Joel has to say in his upcoming Writers Studio course on the One-Hour Drama. Click on the link below for more info, or contact a screenwriting adviser at 310-825-9415.

https://www.uclaextension.edu/r/Course.aspx?reg=W8628


Original post: http://uclaextensionwritersprogram.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-interview-with-joel-thompson.html