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Just got this on the hotline from my colleague Dr David Manderson
“Congratulations to Kirsty McConnell, a graduate of last year’s Honours Screenwriting/Film-Making degree, for winning first prize in the London Screenwriters’ ‘Fifty Kisses’ short film script competition for her short script ‘Enough.
You can read her script and the judges’ comments here:
http://www.50kissesfilm.com/50-kisses-the-screenplays/enough-by-kirsty-mcconnell/
Well done Kirsty! A career beckons.”
Last week was the first recording run through of the TV Studios at the University Of The West Of Scotland‘s new 80 million pound campus in Ayr. Camera Acting students from the Contemporary Screen Acting Programme were recording the first ever series of screen dialogues at the new campus. Students re-enact duologue scenes from movies such “Juno”, “Bridesmaids” and “Let The Right One In” in order to gain experience of working in a multi-camera studio set up. The above photo shows 4th year honours student Alana Murray working on the production of her multi-media Creative Project with her cast.
Along with the finest radio and music studios in Scotland, UWS Ayr now boasts two state of the art HD studios with Green Screen Technology, Autocue, and top of the range sound and editing facilities. There is space for large scale productions such as dramas, orchestral performances and musical theatre, as well as room for up to 30 students to view the process from the gallery.
The feedback from the students has been very positive. Debbie Lochran commented ” This is fantastic. I’ve never seen a set up like this before anywhere else. You get the idea that you could create any programme you wanted”
Rachel Kennedy preps her Gaelic Children's programme
Zoe Silver said ” I feel like a real professional. The first job I had to do was to be a camera operator in headphone contact with the control room and it went really well”.
Jess Munro commented “I’ve never acted in a studio before, but within minutes I had forgotten about the cameras and lights and was able to concentrate on my performance”.
As we roll out the use of the studio for the fourth year honours students and post graduates, the amazing potential of this resource is going to be unleashed. Students will be able to create , record and distribute HD broadcast quality programmes , be they filmed dramas, documentaries or light entertainment shows.
It’s a genuinely exciting time for all involved.The first slate of programmes recording in the next few weeks include a Gaelic Children’s show, a modern digitised re-enactment of Tam O’Shanter, an experimental multi-media theatre piece and a Scottish take on the “Creep Show ” horror format.
I hope to post footage of the work as it is created, and release them through the UWS Skillset Media Academy
Television Presenting Workshop
The description of the location of a scene and the way in which the movement of the camera is described on paper is one of the most vital parts of a screenplay. Yet for all it’s importance, it seems to be one the poor relations of the practical screenwriting world. Why this should be I don’t know. Description is the first part of a script a reader sees, and if a script, especially a spec script, is a selling document, then the way that you invite your reader into the world of your drama through describing the scenes is a vital part of that marketing process. If you get the description and the scene setting wrong, you risk writing a boring script that won’t get past the reject pile on the first readers desk.
Remember.
A script which doesn’t get produced is a dead document. It’s not like a poem or a short story or even a novel. It’s a partly finished plan of a film which never got made; a telephone message never listened to; a technical drawing for a fabulous palace no maharajah ever built. It’s the saddest loneliest piece of work in the creative world. I should know. I have lots of them lurking in boxes and shelves all round my study.
But, wait. It gets worse than this, because if you never manage to get a script actually made, you will never become a better screenwriter. Trust me on this. Only by seeing your mistakes up on screen , by watching them through clenched fingers , do you ever really ever learn not to make them again. To become a better screenwriter, getting the script produced isn’t the most important thing, it’s the only thing.
So if you want to at least get past that fearsome threshold guardian, the first reader, then you have to engage them immediately , and the way to do that is through your description. Make them want to turn the pages right to the end by writing taut spare muscular description which draws them in to your story. I can’t write it for you, but here are a few thoughts which might lead you in the right direction.
But before we start, what exactly IS description?
For me, I think of description quite simply as “what the camera sees”. No more , no less. I constantly see scripts written by inexperienced writers which spend line after line describing incidents, details and action which will never actually feature in the finished film. I don’t like laws and rules of writing normally. Any good writer breaks rules, that is what they are for. But there is one rule which I think you should always adhere to. I call it……
No see? No write!
If the camera won’t see it, then the writer shouldn’t write it. End of.
Pause for effect as your forehead furrows.
“Me no Leika !“ , I hear you cry. “ I am not a camera, I am a writer. I want to drink in and communicate the richness and depth of the humanity I see unfolding in front of me in all these wonderful locations I have researched populated with unforgettable characters I have created acting out original pulsating stories. I cannot be constrained by the arbitary needs of a mere optical instrument!”
Oh yes you can.
You are writing a plan for a film, and films are a technical exercise in creativity, so your task as a screenwriter is to describe and create only what the camera, and hence your audience, will see. Think of your script like an architect’s plan. If you need to design the cellar because under the house because that’s where we meet the bogey man , then put it in the screenplay.But if you are not going there, don’t . From the first scene to the last, you are describing what the director will shoot within the camera’s frame, because that is what the viewer is going to see, and that is what you will describe in your screenplay. That is why the frame is first dimension of screen description, so lets talk about it.
1. Frame
We are organic creatures . We tend to think in tones, themes, loose images, deep metaphors. How do you write about a thing as prosaic as a right angled, rectangular frame? Quite simply this, if you have decided to write a script,( and believe me, it’s not the most obvious thing to do in the world), then you have to think of telling the story within the frame. Here’s how you do it…..
Don’t be embarrassed at this bit. Go to your location,(or one like it ) and stand where you would like the initial point of view to be from , then take your thumb and forefinger of one hand at right angles and with the thumb and forefinger of the other hand, make a rectangle at arms length, and select the frame. You now have a wonderful steadycam at your fingertips. Your job as the screenwriter is to describe what the camera will see, as it moves and follows the action of your screenplay within that frame. But it’s not as simple as that, because not everything in the frame is of equal importance. This brings us to the second dimension of description, the rank.
2. Rank
It’s not vital that you literally know how to compose a shot. Don’t get too hung up on zooms and pans and close ups .That’s the director and DOP’s job . What IS important is that you rank what the camera will see in order of importance. In other words if the crucial content of a scene is that fact that there is a dead body lying in the middle of it, then don’t spend too much time describing the curtains. You are the writer, and you have to decide what’s important in the scene, and then describe it. The director will shoot it the way she wants to , but at least you made the initial decision about what is important in the scene.
But as well as the frame, and the rank, there is a third dimension in description. Yes, you guessed it. Time.
3. Time
You may not hear it, but from the moment your screenplay opens, a clock is ticking. A timeline starts as you remorselessly tell your story in the present tense as it happens. (and yes, flashbacks are told in the present tense too!). A painting can hang in a gallery for a hundred years, frozen until the watcher looks at it, a poem sits snugly in its book waiting to be opened and read, as fresh as a daisy, but a screenplay is not frozen like that. It is a dynamic document, where each line is a second or two of very expensive screentime, and you have to be constantly aware of the constraints of this.
With that screen clock ticking remorselessly, eating up your reader’s(and hopefully your audience’s) patience, you must master the third dimension of Screenwriting description as efficiently and quickly as you can.
So to sum up Screenwriting Description. Describe what the camera will see, in the order that it is important, and at the time that the narrative demands.
Hi Everyone . Passing this on from Linda Campbell at Write Camera Action
CAST CALL: “Here’s Our Future in Front of us” written & directed by Jessica Mcdermott, shoot scheduled end November 2010. Leads cast but she requires a waitress. FEMALE, 35-55. Those of you who saw this workshopped may remember it’s a speaking part and a hilarious cameo role for someone. Interested parties contact Jess with headshot and c.v. at [email protected]
WRITERS CALL: Man vs Woman is a new sketch show looking to add writers to their team. This s a quality production last performed by George Drennan, Karen Bartke, Andy Clark and Viv G. They are looking to bring in a select group of writers and to to increase the number of actors to establish a regular sketch show. Sketches usually feature a male and female actor but this isn’t a hard and fast rule – as long as it’s funny, and a bit different from the stuff you usually watch on Scottish tv. Currently no fees for sketches used but they are approaching broadcasters early next year so it could be a great launch pad for new work.
SKETCH SHOW: The last Man vs Woman show at the Glasgow Comedy Festival in March went down a storm and the next one is happening in Nov. COME ALONG, have a great night and get a feel for the vibe of the show. Nov. 6th at the State Bar, Glasgow £6/£5 consc. Doors open 8pm with show starting at 9pm. Send sketches to . See link for sketch from last show http://www.youtube.com/watch Sex Games.
IMPROV SHOW: starring our very own Liam Hughes and others in an evening of innovative improvisation at Highlights venue, 11 Renfrew St, Glasgow. 28th October £5, £7 Dooropen 7p.m. close 7.45pm show starts 8pm £5, £7. Renfrew St.
IMPROV SESSIONS: Philip Larkin, the improv coach (among many other talents) was part of the great work at WCA Oct Improv sessions, and will come along to further WCA sessons as and when his commitments allow. In the meantime, for those who expressed an interest in attending Philips weekly sessions in Glasgow please contact him directly at [email protected]
AUDIENCE REQ’D: Free tickets available, simply book your bum on a seat. National Loterry ‘In it to win it’ with Nick Knowles Sat/Sun/Mon 13/14/15th Nov. You against the Nation with Steve Jones, Frid 5th Nov. Contact hhtp://bums-on-seats.co.uk/ hhtp://bums-on-seats.co.uk/current_shows.shtml or [email protected]
Queer Street? Turn left at the Squinty Bridge.
David Gillick is a fourth year Performance student at the University Of The West Of Scotland in Ayr.
His Creative Project is a Mockumentary Film called “Queer Street ”
He is looking for male actors to play larger than life characters in this black comedy based on the lives and loves of the participants of a fictitious Glasgow gay scene.
They all constitute a group of misfit males trying to conquer and control Glasgow nightlife.
Think Rocky Horror meets the Sopranos with a bit of Stellar Street thrown in.
David is also looking for one male actor who is comfortable in front of the camera and would be the TV interviewer of this Mockumentary.
David is hoping to start workshopping this on the 15th of November at UWS Ayr or in Glasgow, whatever suits majority of the cast.
David says that ” I wont be forcing anyone to perform outwith their comfort zone, as I know some budding actors may be put off by the sound of the material and theme of the film…all I want is to make a funny film about a bunch of Glaswegian gays”
If you think you might be interested in the project, or know someone else who is , please email David Gillick at the address below as soon as possible and he will get back to you.
Many thanks.
Due to the three year success of workshops at Write Camera Action, with such fantastic writing, talented cast and enthusiasm from all directors/producers and participants involved, it has sparked some amazing collaborative no/low-budget projects being made. WCA would like to encourage and support more independent productions with two new initiatives:
1. Open Script Competition
All scripts entered will be given feedback. A winning script will be voted by the panel to be produced sourcing cast and crew from WCA and affiliated groups, with equipment provided by Moniton Pictures. The finished film will be ready for festival entry and be a calling card for all parties involved, with the writer retaining copyright of all material included.
Submissions open from 18th Oct. 2010. Deadline closes 14th Jan. 2011. The entry fee of £15 per script will generate the funding to produce the winning script. More than one entry is not only allowed – it’s applauded! The winning script will be announced at WCA networking night at CCA on 29th Jan. 2011. Entry criteria and more details on request from
2. WCA presents a night of Film screenings & Networking
A lot of you have embraced the ethos of WCA and have formed collaborations to get those ideas work shopped at WCA actually produced, with some currently in production, WELL DONE! Some of you are still thinking about it, WELL DON’T! Now is the time to get them made, get them finished and let’s show them! WCA announces an evening of film screenings from WCA collaborations to be held on Friday 22nd April 2011 at the CCA with networking at the CCA bar afterwards.
The evening will be open to the public with specially invited industry guests. It will be ticketed to generate two cash prizes, 1) for the winning film voted for on the night by the guest panel, and 2) the winning film of the public vote from the audience. More details and reminders next year but this early announcement will allow people to get their films finished and/or into production in time to enter.
Submissions open from 30th Nov. 2010. Deadline 31st March 2011. Collaboration can mean utilizing mailing list, casting, crew, work shopping etc. Entry criteria and more details on request from Tickets £10, limited and available from CCA Box Office.
MG ALBA sponsor FilmG
Helen Mackinnon of the MG ALBA sponsored FilmG short film competition will be visiting the UWSAyr campus on Wednesday. In room A 103 at 4 pm on the 13th of October she will throw down a challenge to all local film makers. Can you create a 3 to 5 minute short film in the medium of the Gaelic Language? One of our students, Lynn Stewart took the challenge last year and won!
You don’t have to be a fluent speaker in Gaelic but you DO need to be interested in filmmaking. If so, you should give the FilmG shorts competition a go!
Don’t worry if you don’t have any experience in making films. FilmG have a range of training initiatives available to you and if you need help with your Gaelic check out TàlantG on the FilmG Website to find a talented Gaelic speaker who can help you with your film. If you already work in the industry, as long as you don’t have a broadcast credit as a producer or a director you can enter.
UWS winner Lynn Stewart with Donald Campbell (MGAlba), Michael Hines & Mike Danson (UWS) ,Iain Hamilton (HIE) and Stuart Hepburn at last years awards
This year’s theme is ‘Lamh an Uachdar’ (The Upper Hand). If your film is distinctive, imaginative and engaging, you could win some fantastic cash prizes, as well as make important industry contacts, that could help you towards a career in broadcasting.
As usual the FilmG’s prizes are fantastic, you’ll be hard pressed to find a film competition in the country that can match this.
Best Drama Short: £2,500
Best Factual Short: £2,500
Best Student Film: £1000
Best Performance :£1,000
Best First-time Director: (Industry) £1,000
Best First-time Director: (New Entrant) £1,000
Best Student Director: 1 month paid work-placement with media company
FilmG Theme Award: £1,000
This year there’s an added a work-placement prize for the best student director. If you are a student this could be your chance to get a foot in the door and get hands-on experience working in the industry.
Don’t forget, that the competition can open doors for you in the Scottish media industry. The BBC ALBA commissioners will be looking at every film submitted, and national organisations such as Scottish Screen, BAFTA Scotland and BBC Scotland attend the awards ceremony and are happy to chat and give advice on how to pursue a career in the industry.
Helen will be holding a meeting open to all in Room A 103 at 4 pm on Weds 13th at the University Of The West Of Scotland Craigie campus. Please come along, even if you are not a Gaelic speaker you may be able to become part of a team who have the chance to win the cash prizes.
Do you know any actors who would be interested in making a film about 4 disabled guys in a comedy adventure film? Our UWS Film graduate film student, Hayleigh Barclay has asked me to help in the search for four likely lads for a London Film project scheduled in the New Year.
If you are a disabled actor, or even want to take the plunge and get involved in film making, please contact Hayleigh at the above email address for more details. Please send this message on.
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Raindance Discovery Pass
Ready When You Are Mr McGill
Marshall’s Misdemeanours is a hilarious Short Film Comedy written by Glasgow writer and Actor Sandy Nelson . It was recorded for radio last year and now a 15 minute squence is being filmed by on the UWS Ayr Campus on Sat and Sun 18th and 19th of September .
We gave the same help and support to The Crews and this Production Team are looking for supporting artistes on the day, and for Technical Help.
Please take advantage of this fantastic opportunity to see how a film is shot, and also possibly to see yourself on the big screen.
The team need supporting artistes,the more the merrier as well as a boom operator, a camera assistant and a runner.
Please help if you can . Email Calum “Bob” Weir at the email below. If you are on facebook or twitter spread the word.
All the best and remember, if you want to be creative, hang out with creatives.
This is Calum “Bob”‘s email addy. [email protected]
