You can order Adam's book at Michael Wiese Productions, and visit his website just screenwrite.com
Dave Watson: How did this book come about?
Adam Coplan: Slowly. I began teaching at UCLA Extension in 2007. The school wanted to balance academics with real world experience, which I really enjoyed, but logistically, I couldn’t continue and the classes became independent workshops. Developed through several years of teaching, I produced my own textbook and that ultimately became this book.
DW: Your book centers on conflict. Sometimes I see not enough conflict in films or too much. Is there a balance here in story structure?
AC: It depends on the story. There can certainly be a balance, but there’s no number or formula as conflict and the variables that create it are unique to each script. Whether it’s a big ensemble piece versus something more intimate; genre also plays a part…there should certainly be more conflict in a tense psychological thriller than say a light, family film.
DW: You also talk about cutting out scenes that are unnecessary. Are there themes you see in unnecessary scenes in finished films today? I'm thinking especially with comedies, which can be very efficient, but some drift along.
AC: Scripts and movies are two different things. Changes via the editing of film can be the result of many things having nothing to do with the script. Unnecessary scenes in screenplays are quite common, especially with amateurs or writers of any type who don’t outline and that’s the consistent theme - what caused the issue, rather than common traits in the scenes themselves.
DW: Writer David Mamet once said if you have a problem in Act Three, you likely have a problem in Act One. Would you agree?
AC: Sure, though it’s obviously a generalization. What Mamet is talking about is a failure in the setup during Act One leading to problems when it comes time to deliver a resolution. That being said, the larger and more pressing issue in my opinion, particularly among less experienced screenwriters is that they tend to be a great hurry to finish, especially when they reach the Third Act and the finish line is in sight. They’re eager for the imagined rewards that come with selling the script, the result often being a hurried final act.
DW: Like you open with an introduction, a question. Do you have to open a story with a question?
AC: Forcing a reader to ask questions should be a priority. This is most important in the opening scene, which as I say in my book, is the only scene you can be guaranteed will be read by those it’s submitted to. If they aren’t asking themselves who, what, why or how, they aren’t likely to keep reading.
DW: Your book has great writing exercises. How important is it to write often, if not every day?
AC: It’s important to write often, but I can’t advise or instruct people to write every day when I certainly don’t. Writers write. There isn’t a formula, but it’s important to write regularly. The key to remember is professionals have a hundred ideas, not one and more importantly, a desire to see them realized.
DW: Someone once said you have to know someone in the industry to get a script read. That true?
AC: You don’t have to, no, but it will help, sure. When people say that, it’s often out of bitterness because they haven’t gained entry. You can submit your screenplay to competitions or reps and get noticed, many do. I would also point out that now, more so than ever before, there are so many platforms to showcase your talent and be discovered.
DW: Over several interviews many have said the best writing is in TV versus feature films now, with stories extending over many hours. Would you agree?
AC: Absolutely, but keep in mind that most of the great writing on TV is from formerly full time feature writers. Starting about a decade ago, several factors transformed the industry. Beginning with the writer’s strike and continuing through an economic recession, the studios began to substantially cut spending. They bought fewer scripts, made fewer movies and developed less material. It used to be one in twelve scripts became a film which is a lot of wasted money. That average is now roughly one in five. They also started buying fewer original stories, deciding to manage their risk and gamble on properties that already had built in audiences such as novels, comic books and video games.
The bottom line is this resulted in a lot less work for writers. At the same time, you had this explosion in demand from television. It was no longer just the primary networks, but suddenly pay cable and streaming services as well who were hungry for content. There was also the realization among the scores of feature writers who made the shift that unlike in film where the producer and director are king, in television, the writer is the boss. That meant creative control unlike they had ever been granted before. Finally, they also discovered that instead of waiting two years and perhaps longer to see their words reach the screen, in television that wait is often reduced to a matter of months or even weeks.
DW: This came up in my first interview, where a director said if the writer doesn’t like what he sees, he gets on the phone to his/her boss. Finally, what is your favorite cinematic moment? One that continually inspires…this can be a scene or individual moment on screen.
AC: I don’t really have one. As a kid, and I know this might be cliché, but I saw Star Wars thirteen times in the theater. It was defining for my childhood. If there was a moment, it would be the bar scene with Hammerhead, Greedo. E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark and the original Clash of the Titans were also favorites.
Later, my first job in Hollywood was Story Editor at Silver Pictures at Warner Bros. During that time, we made the first Matrix film. When it was just a script, no one could really imagine what it was going to look like or how great it would be. The Wachowskis had only done Bound at that point.
DW: Which is a great movie.
AC: Yes, but it was independent and didn’t have the visual majesty of The Matrix. When I first saw dailies of the building lobby scene when Neo and Trinity battle an army of cops on their way to save Morpheus…It was mind-blowing. That was definitely a favorite cinematic moment.
Clip: The Matrix
Dave Watson is a writer and educator. He lives in Madison, WI.
Dave Watson: How did this book come about?
Adam Coplan: Slowly. I began teaching at UCLA Extension in 2007. The school wanted to balance academics with real world experience, which I really enjoyed, but logistically, I couldn’t continue and the classes became independent workshops. Developed through several years of teaching, I produced my own textbook and that ultimately became this book.
DW: Your book centers on conflict. Sometimes I see not enough conflict in films or too much. Is there a balance here in story structure?
AC: It depends on the story. There can certainly be a balance, but there’s no number or formula as conflict and the variables that create it are unique to each script. Whether it’s a big ensemble piece versus something more intimate; genre also plays a part…there should certainly be more conflict in a tense psychological thriller than say a light, family film.
DW: You also talk about cutting out scenes that are unnecessary. Are there themes you see in unnecessary scenes in finished films today? I'm thinking especially with comedies, which can be very efficient, but some drift along.
AC: Scripts and movies are two different things. Changes via the editing of film can be the result of many things having nothing to do with the script. Unnecessary scenes in screenplays are quite common, especially with amateurs or writers of any type who don’t outline and that’s the consistent theme - what caused the issue, rather than common traits in the scenes themselves.
DW: Writer David Mamet once said if you have a problem in Act Three, you likely have a problem in Act One. Would you agree?
AC: Sure, though it’s obviously a generalization. What Mamet is talking about is a failure in the setup during Act One leading to problems when it comes time to deliver a resolution. That being said, the larger and more pressing issue in my opinion, particularly among less experienced screenwriters is that they tend to be a great hurry to finish, especially when they reach the Third Act and the finish line is in sight. They’re eager for the imagined rewards that come with selling the script, the result often being a hurried final act.
DW: Like you open with an introduction, a question. Do you have to open a story with a question?
AC: Forcing a reader to ask questions should be a priority. This is most important in the opening scene, which as I say in my book, is the only scene you can be guaranteed will be read by those it’s submitted to. If they aren’t asking themselves who, what, why or how, they aren’t likely to keep reading.
DW: Your book has great writing exercises. How important is it to write often, if not every day?
AC: It’s important to write often, but I can’t advise or instruct people to write every day when I certainly don’t. Writers write. There isn’t a formula, but it’s important to write regularly. The key to remember is professionals have a hundred ideas, not one and more importantly, a desire to see them realized.
DW: Someone once said you have to know someone in the industry to get a script read. That true?
AC: You don’t have to, no, but it will help, sure. When people say that, it’s often out of bitterness because they haven’t gained entry. You can submit your screenplay to competitions or reps and get noticed, many do. I would also point out that now, more so than ever before, there are so many platforms to showcase your talent and be discovered.
DW: Over several interviews many have said the best writing is in TV versus feature films now, with stories extending over many hours. Would you agree?
AC: Absolutely, but keep in mind that most of the great writing on TV is from formerly full time feature writers. Starting about a decade ago, several factors transformed the industry. Beginning with the writer’s strike and continuing through an economic recession, the studios began to substantially cut spending. They bought fewer scripts, made fewer movies and developed less material. It used to be one in twelve scripts became a film which is a lot of wasted money. That average is now roughly one in five. They also started buying fewer original stories, deciding to manage their risk and gamble on properties that already had built in audiences such as novels, comic books and video games.
The bottom line is this resulted in a lot less work for writers. At the same time, you had this explosion in demand from television. It was no longer just the primary networks, but suddenly pay cable and streaming services as well who were hungry for content. There was also the realization among the scores of feature writers who made the shift that unlike in film where the producer and director are king, in television, the writer is the boss. That meant creative control unlike they had ever been granted before. Finally, they also discovered that instead of waiting two years and perhaps longer to see their words reach the screen, in television that wait is often reduced to a matter of months or even weeks.
DW: This came up in my first interview, where a director said if the writer doesn’t like what he sees, he gets on the phone to his/her boss. Finally, what is your favorite cinematic moment? One that continually inspires…this can be a scene or individual moment on screen.
AC: I don’t really have one. As a kid, and I know this might be cliché, but I saw Star Wars thirteen times in the theater. It was defining for my childhood. If there was a moment, it would be the bar scene with Hammerhead, Greedo. E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark and the original Clash of the Titans were also favorites.
Later, my first job in Hollywood was Story Editor at Silver Pictures at Warner Bros. During that time, we made the first Matrix film. When it was just a script, no one could really imagine what it was going to look like or how great it would be. The Wachowskis had only done Bound at that point.
DW: Which is a great movie.
AC: Yes, but it was independent and didn’t have the visual majesty of The Matrix. When I first saw dailies of the building lobby scene when Neo and Trinity battle an army of cops on their way to save Morpheus…It was mind-blowing. That was definitely a favorite cinematic moment.
Clip: The Matrix
Dave Watson is a writer and educator. He lives in Madison, WI.
