Drop and give me 20 (pages)!
Alan Brash talks about his new script coaching and mentoring service.
Alan Brash talks about his new script coaching and mentoring service.
I’m one of those people who know how to use most of the equipment at the gym. I can talk about “super-setting” and “feeling the burn” with the best of them. I just tend not to actually do it as often as I should. In the past (before I had kids and went broke) I’d use the services of a personal trainer from time to time. Not because I needed to be shown what to do, but because I needed the inspiration. There’s nothing like having someone waiting for you – who’ll ask how many times you’ve been since he last saw you – to get you over the motivational hump of getting down to the gym.
Writing’s a lot like exercise: sure, it can be satisfying, but mostly the rewards feel a long way off. (The washboard abs; the Oscar for Best Screenplay.) After teaching screenwriting at UNITEC and South Seas – and giving numerous writers feedback on their scripts – I’ve decided that knowing the theory isn’t the biggest stumbling block for many aspiring (or working) writers. Anyone can grab a book by Syd Field, Robert McKee, Linda Seger, John Truby, or any one of the dozens of gurus who’ll tell you why their method for cracking screenplay structure is the breakthrough you’ve been looking for. I’ve read scores of them over the years, and many are filled with great tips and tricks. But they’re not enough. And after a while you realise you’re hearing different versions of the same thing, over and over – but you’re still no closer to nailing that great script. It’s like getting a subscription to Men’s Health or buying a gym membership: it feels productive but, without putting in the hard yards, it doesn’t amount to anything.
Sitting at the computer day after day, week after week – especially when the work’s on spec – can be a solitary and demoralising business. Frequently I’ve see promising students graduate from writing courses and then disappear off the radar. I’ve often wondered if a little extra encouragement and some sense of “community” might’ve been all that was needed to keep them in the hunt for that elusive green light.
Which is why I’m starting this venture. Here’s how it works: you – the working, or aspiring to work, writer – pay me a membership fee. The rate would vary depending on the level of services you wanted, but at the “basic” level would amount to less than $2 per day. Sure, you could feed a kid in Africa for that. But is he gonna get you any closer to an Academy Award? I don’t think so.
This fee would grant you access to a group of like-minded souls – all writing scripts, just like you. You’d get regular email newsletters with information, advice, inspiration and encouragement; networking opportunities; discussion board access; guest teleconference interviews (with professional writers, producers, commissioners); group teleconference brain-storming sessions; weekly “classroom hours” where you could phone in (or chat online) and ask me questions; discounts on script services such as coverage and query letter advice, and so on. And you wouldn’t need to be based in Auckland, as most of the content would be available remotely (by phone and/or email/online).
Three levels of membership will be available at different rates: Regularly scheduled, one-on-one mentoring and coaching would be a part of the premium membership packages. This can include anything from brainstorming log lines, to feedback on synopses or series proposals, to pitching and querying advice, to general industry information. The idea would be to assist you with your project from inception through to pitching and packaging (and hopefully, beyond!) – whether the strategy is to take Hollywood by storm, apply to NZ public funding bodies, or make it yourself on a shoe string. “Unlimited” email access would form a part of this package, as would in-depth script feedback (up to two screenplays/year included in the membership fee). Fees will be payable monthly and you can opt-out at any time.
But already I can hear the chorus: “This is just a slimy money-making venture, isn’t it?? A shameless grab for cash from wannabes with stars in their eyes!! What do you know about any this stuff anyway?? What’s really in it for you??”
Let’s look at these one by one:
(1) Guilty. Except for the slimy part. I plan to set this up as a business, which means it needs to be financially viable. Working in the field of screen content creation is what I do. I sort of like the idea of making a living at it. Why are people so squeamish about that?
(2) I try to tell people the truth – even if it’s hard to hear. I’ll consider all-comers; the object is not to be elitist. If I don’t think your concept/script is up to scratch, I won’t tell you it’s a sure-fire winner just so you’ll keep giving me money. Frankly, it’s much more fun working on projects that get my creative juices flowing.
(3) I started work in the film & TV industry in 1991 and got my first paid writing assignment in 1995. I’ve learnt a lot along the way and made a ton of mistakes. Maybe I can help some people avoid some of my more painful ones.
(4) What’s in it for me? Apart from some money to pay the rent? I love working with other writers. I love creating stories and helping others bring out the best in their stories. And hey, maybe we can make something together? No promises and no strings. But anything’s possible.
The details are still being hammered out, but give me a shout if you’re interested and I’ll tell you more. We’ll be getting underway in October. I can’t promise to get your script produced – or sold for a million bucks. But I can promise is this: if you don’t write it (and rewrite it more than once), you’ll never know if that great idea you’re always talking/dreaming/boasting about could’ve been the Great New Zealand Film.
Right, I’m off to the gym…
• Details of Alan’s script coaching programme can be found at: www.alanbrash.com. Or you can phone him on 021-045-7635. No free steak knives. Just inspiration, encouragement, advice, and feedback.
Writer/director (and now coach & mentor) Alan Brash (left) confers with DOP Dan Wagner on the set of Brash’s short film Be Careful. To read about the making of the short, see www.archivesearch.co.nz
Photo: Karel Lorier
Photo: Karel Lorier
Writing’s a lot like exercise: sure, it can be satisfying, but mostly the rewards feel a long way off. (The washboard abs; the Oscar for Best Screenplay.) After teaching screenwriting at UNITEC and South Seas – and giving numerous writers feedback on their scripts – I’ve decided that knowing the theory isn’t the biggest stumbling block for many aspiring (or working) writers. Anyone can grab a book by Syd Field, Robert McKee, Linda Seger, John Truby, or any one of the dozens of gurus who’ll tell you why their method for cracking screenplay structure is the breakthrough you’ve been looking for. I’ve read scores of them over the years, and many are filled with great tips and tricks. But they’re not enough. And after a while you realise you’re hearing different versions of the same thing, over and over – but you’re still no closer to nailing that great script. It’s like getting a subscription to Men’s Health or buying a gym membership: it feels productive but, without putting in the hard yards, it doesn’t amount to anything.
Sitting at the computer day after day, week after week – especially when the work’s on spec – can be a solitary and demoralising business. Frequently I’ve see promising students graduate from writing courses and then disappear off the radar. I’ve often wondered if a little extra encouragement and some sense of “community” might’ve been all that was needed to keep them in the hunt for that elusive green light.
Which is why I’m starting this venture. Here’s how it works: you – the working, or aspiring to work, writer – pay me a membership fee. The rate would vary depending on the level of services you wanted, but at the “basic” level would amount to less than $2 per day. Sure, you could feed a kid in Africa for that. But is he gonna get you any closer to an Academy Award? I don’t think so.
This fee would grant you access to a group of like-minded souls – all writing scripts, just like you. You’d get regular email newsletters with information, advice, inspiration and encouragement; networking opportunities; discussion board access; guest teleconference interviews (with professional writers, producers, commissioners); group teleconference brain-storming sessions; weekly “classroom hours” where you could phone in (or chat online) and ask me questions; discounts on script services such as coverage and query letter advice, and so on. And you wouldn’t need to be based in Auckland, as most of the content would be available remotely (by phone and/or email/online).
Three levels of membership will be available at different rates: Regularly scheduled, one-on-one mentoring and coaching would be a part of the premium membership packages. This can include anything from brainstorming log lines, to feedback on synopses or series proposals, to pitching and querying advice, to general industry information. The idea would be to assist you with your project from inception through to pitching and packaging (and hopefully, beyond!) – whether the strategy is to take Hollywood by storm, apply to NZ public funding bodies, or make it yourself on a shoe string. “Unlimited” email access would form a part of this package, as would in-depth script feedback (up to two screenplays/year included in the membership fee). Fees will be payable monthly and you can opt-out at any time.
But already I can hear the chorus: “This is just a slimy money-making venture, isn’t it?? A shameless grab for cash from wannabes with stars in their eyes!! What do you know about any this stuff anyway?? What’s really in it for you??”
Let’s look at these one by one:
(1) Guilty. Except for the slimy part. I plan to set this up as a business, which means it needs to be financially viable. Working in the field of screen content creation is what I do. I sort of like the idea of making a living at it. Why are people so squeamish about that?
(2) I try to tell people the truth – even if it’s hard to hear. I’ll consider all-comers; the object is not to be elitist. If I don’t think your concept/script is up to scratch, I won’t tell you it’s a sure-fire winner just so you’ll keep giving me money. Frankly, it’s much more fun working on projects that get my creative juices flowing.
(3) I started work in the film & TV industry in 1991 and got my first paid writing assignment in 1995. I’ve learnt a lot along the way and made a ton of mistakes. Maybe I can help some people avoid some of my more painful ones.
(4) What’s in it for me? Apart from some money to pay the rent? I love working with other writers. I love creating stories and helping others bring out the best in their stories. And hey, maybe we can make something together? No promises and no strings. But anything’s possible.
The details are still being hammered out, but give me a shout if you’re interested and I’ll tell you more. We’ll be getting underway in October. I can’t promise to get your script produced – or sold for a million bucks. But I can promise is this: if you don’t write it (and rewrite it more than once), you’ll never know if that great idea you’re always talking/dreaming/boasting about could’ve been the Great New Zealand Film.
Right, I’m off to the gym…
• Details of Alan’s script coaching programme can be found at: www.alanbrash.com. Or you can phone him on 021-045-7635. No free steak knives. Just inspiration, encouragement, advice, and feedback.
© Copyright Onfilm magazine, September 2009 www.onfilm.co.nz