All language subtitles for 104 - Refining A Script

when we tell a story to our friends

about a recent vacation or a date we went on

we tell the story

most of us probably recognize that

the first time we tell the story as an anecdote

it's a little too long

it's a little awkward

it doesn't quite get the reaction

you thought it ought to

um you've forgotten something in the middle

and you have to remind people later

um you don't tell it very well

but you know

people still kind of lean into the story

and they're curious

you'll find the next time you tell it

you probably tell it a little bit better

why because

it's a communication that's meant to express an idea

and let's face it

you're you're

you're asking people to listen

you know there's an expectation that it's

in its own way

it's going to

what entertain

it's gonna engross

it's gonna fascinate

it's gonna express something in a meaningful way

by the eighth time you tell the story

you know maybe you've even embellished it a little bit

who knows uh

but it's better

it's tighter

you wanna put your screenplay through that

through that process

the director is the keeper of the story

and ultimately

it's the director's taste

that's going to determine

the creative choices that are made

and that sort of the allocation of the resources

I'm talking about a live action production now

more than animation

that comes back to the script

and the way it's going to be interpreted

and the director needs to you know

intimately understand that screenplay and support it

and if there is a difference of opinion with a writer

over the screenplay

this is where collaborators can come in

very handy but great

a great exercise

which is used in television all the time

is used in theater all the time

is used in movies some of the time

but it's so valuable

and that is to simply do a read through

get a group of actors

they don't have to be the actors

who are going to

you know be in the project

and give it a good read through

maybe videotape it so you can play it back or record it

make sure the screenwriter is there

if you want to

you can open it up to conversation

I've done read through

is where I even give people questionnaires afterwards

so that they don't

they're not shy about telling you what you know

what bothered them

but go ahead and apply extreme scrutiny to that project

and at that point

it's not a finished film

but you know

it's a really important step

and it's gonna raise some questions

it's gonna give you confidence in the

in in in some ways

because you just have a little greater sense

of how that

how that story unfolds as written

and that's um

a really important step and

and a fundamental um

misjudgement in my mind

when people don't you know

don't expose the script to that

that kind of process and that scrutiny

when it comes to rewrites

I'm very involved um

I sometimes it's a matter of sitting with the writer um

and um you know

literally pitching ideas

some writers do better under those circumstances

and other writer

writers do better having a conversation and going away

and sharing with you what they've come up with

and again I try to adapt my process

to try to elevate the way that person naturally works

so I try not to impose myself too much on the process

you know unless it's simply

you know not

not working for me

but generally

you know whether it's an actor

whether it's a music composer

cinematographer

I try to begin to discern

you know how that person excels

and try to create the

you know the environment

the opportunity for them to work you know

at their highest level um

the various ways in which a screenplay can be tested um

really you know

they begin with the director

but they carry over to the actors

and while you know

I never wanna turn

the rewrite process over to the actors

I often really benefit from um

even a pre rehearsal period

where you sit

you do a read through

you hear the scenes

actors very

very quickly come to understand those characters

and come to terms with them

in ways even more intimate than the screenwriter

because they're

they're imagining

playing those scenes are

imagining seeing them

sometimes they

they're missing something

and again it's the director's job

the keeper of the story

to be you know

policing that

and and not

not letting wrong headed ideas

push the project off in a

you know in a in a

in a misdirection

but that conversation between the writer

the director

the actor sometimes the producer

sometimes the studio executive

a kind of a round table conversation

is a very healthy thing

as long as you quickly

just fill it down to you know

a one on one conversation between the director um

and and the writer and

and ultimately

the writer is gonna go and

and and execute

I have a lot of respect for the writer's vision um

as well and I will often defer to the writer

because again

on some organic level

I trust that they understand some things

about this story and script

that go beyond intellect

um and that

that X factor is something that's

that's incredibly valuable

I think if you're a filmmaker

young or old you get to

you get either an idea that you read

an article a book um

you somehow get control of that idea

and you're a part of developing it

or it's a screenplay that you look at and you know

and you might feel like there's some

some adjustments you'd suggest here or there

but this is something you're willing to commit to

you believe in I think at that point

just you know

enjoy the excitement of it

really feel it

um you know

um um kind of

kind of glow a little bit with the inspiration

and the excitement and the possibility of it

and then you need to get down to the business

of really understanding it

and understanding how other people connect with it

so do they share your excitement for it

and if they don't

it doesn't mean you shouldn't do it

but you should understand it

are you gonna be able to bridge that gap or

are you gonna make a film

that's tailored for a niche audience

maybe your particular taste is

you know never meant to align with broad audiences

it's a you know

you have a you there

you have some like minded um

um um you know

audience members out there that

that you can communicate with

well can this idea communicate with them

who does it land with

your movie or television lover um

what would it take for you to go see it um

and begin to step away from the

the excitement you know

sort of put the idea on the table and walk around it

and sort of say

who does this work for

who does it not work for

and how do I align with that

or misalign

and I think if you get excited about that

and there are enough answers that keep coming up

that sort of say either I can overcome it

or I can work with that

or you know

this is all systems go

and you you know

imagine that as you're circling that idea

that you begin to bring others into your orbit

and you're all sort of talking

eventually you're gonna find those collaborators

who are the key ones

who can actually help you make it

maybe that's a studio executive

maybe it's an agent

maybe it's a producer

maybe it's a writer or a co writer

um maybe it's a

maybe it's an actor

you know whoever might be

begin to sort of see where those connections are

and then on a practical level

you have you know

a chance to believe that

that you know

there's a reason to go ahead and

and invest these people's resources and my own

in this project

my affection

my excitement

can be communicated in a way

and that means something