Screenwriters Online wishes to thank: Jessica Bendinger (Bring It On) John Hamburg (Along Came Polly, Meet The Parents) Tony Gayton(Salton Sea, Murder By Numbers) Jeff Nathanson (Catch Me If You Can, Rush Hour) Richard LaGravenese (Fisher King, Living Out Loud,) Scott Frank (Minority Report, Get Shorty,) Larry Konner(The Sopranos, Mona Lisa Smile,) and Rich Wilkes (XXX,) fantastic screenwriters all, Coleman Hough,("Full Frontal,") for great online sessions this year!! Get on our mailing list for the next one!

Screenwriter, Paul Haggis! PAUL HAGGIS was a GREAT, INSPIRING guest at Screenwriters Online. We've been rooting for him and his films for the last two years.Since Million Dollar Baby! Paul has slaved and dedicated himself to his craft and to his ideals. It's great when great people are acknolwedged in this way! Here's something interesting from his ONLINE MASTERCLASS Session with us. QUESTION: Sometimes I go to sleep at night and say to myself that this isn't working and I don't know what I'm doing and I'm not going to write anymore. The next morning I get up and my characters are yapping again. At this point in your career, do you ever have such insecure thoughts? ANSWER: Every single day. You deal with it by writing. You just sit your ass in the chair and write through it. It's the only way to solve your problems. When you come upon a problem, write directly into it. Embracing the problem is often the way to find a really interesting scene. My other trick is to say, 'What awful thing could happen to them right now?' Because sometimes, things are going too well for your characters and you have to give them the worst possible thing that could happen to them. Paul Haggis at Screenwriters Online QUESTION: What type of scripts are hot in Hollywood right now? ANSWER: Never ever ever ever ever ever think that way. That is the road to failure and hackdom. I just met with Linda Obst this afternoon, and she bemoaned the fact that all young writers are looking for a payday and therefore are writing what they think she wants to see rather than writing what is in their gut, something they have to say. I cannot stress this enough. I wrote two spec scripts that I was absolutely sure no one would ever buy: Million Dollar Baby and Crash. They both sold within a couple of years of me writing them, which is very fast. If you try and second guess what people want and then provide it, YOU WILL FAIL. Guaranteed. And never listen to any agent who tells you any different. You want to write something unique, something only you know. Paul Haggis at Screenwriters Online QUESTION: How does an unknown make it to Hollywood? ANSWER: You have to understand that for all intents and purposes, I was "unknown" to the film business four years ago. I had no more advantage or disadvantage than you have. You may not think that truth, but it absolutely is because I had no "heat" coming off any great television show. It was all about the script. If you write a great script and put it in your drawer at your cottage in Muskoka Lake, someone will track it down and find it. If you write a bad script and send 100,000 copies out, it still ain't gonna sell. The trick is really simple: write a great script. And I don't mean to be flip. That's just the truth. Write something that's in your heart, and if you have your craft down and if you're really honest with the characters, it will sell. It just may take some time. I guess that's what you should ask yourself. Not how to sell or market something, but have I written enough and experienced enough to write a good screenplay? You write, you research, you write, you research... What makes a good writer is thousands of pages written. Paul Haggis at Screenwriters Online WRITING A GREAT MOVIE! Key Tools for Successful Screenwriting Buy screenwriting Pro, Jeff Kitchen's powerful aid for the screenwriter "Jeff is a master teacher who truly understands the art and technique of the screenplay." --Chris Brancato - President, Writer1s Guild; Writer/Producer, Hoodlum, First Wave, Thieves, North Shore Click on the Book!And buy it on sale at Amazon.

Screenwriter, Producer,JJ Abrams! JJ ABRAMS is one of our favorite guests at Screenwriters Online Here's a few quotes from his ONLINE MASTERCLASS Session with us "I always wanted to direct movies. I didn't know that I wanted to write them or produce them, and I never thought about doing television So, this whole thing has been sort of a surprising ride. I decided I would try to get an opportunity to direct through writing and was lucky ...." JJ Abrams at Screenwriters Online "I think it's important to - forgive me for stating the obvious - write ONLY WHAT'S NEEDED. What do you see? What do you hear? However, it's also important to give the reader a fun ride. That means that you want to pepper the action with some fun stuff. I actually hate it when the writer talks TO the reader. EXAMPLE: "This chase scene is so great, TRUST ME. You'd rather be watching it than reading it." JJ Abrams at Screenwriters Online That's funny, I guess, but it takes me the hell out of the moment. I want to GO TO THE MOVIES when I read a script. Keep it simple, but that doesn't mean don't give it a spirit." JJ Abrams at Screenwriters Online "The best compliment I get is when people say, "When I read that script, I SAW it." That's why I love talking to my mother. JJ Abrams at Screenwriters Online Keep up the great work JJ. You've only just begun! MORE FROM THE MASTERCLASS WITH PAUL HAGGIS(Crash,Million Dollar Baby): "On another note...Thanks to Paul Haggis, I took his advice and contacted Sandra Bullock's Agent about my script called PASCAL'S WAGER that I always thought was a perfect fit for her. CAA asked me to send a query by email, and within an hour I had their request for the script! Wow! I've been trying to break into this business for a long time, but your Master Class did in one three-day session what I'd been unable to doS?get in front of the people who make decisions in Hollywood! Thanks! Barbara Springfield, MO" "I have received a request for my screenplay from Orlando Bloom's agent. They are sending over the release form to adjoin with it. Thank you so much to Screenwriters Online and Paul Haggis, I have a "toe" in a door! Sincerely, Dawn Hodson" FROM THE RECENT BRIAN SHER CLASS (ICM AGENT): "Brian, you represent some major clients. Would you consider representing one of us? Gregg" Brian Sher: Absolutely. Without a doubt. That's why I'm here. At Screenwriters Online, You never know what can happen." AND! Special Thanks to ICM Executive Story Editor, Christopher Lockhart. Chris, thanks for the NINE Hour "Log Line Marathon LIVE! We're thrilled you found 15 ideas worthy of bringing back to ICM. Check out Chris' great DVD on how to pitch in Hollywood. Click the ad to view the trailer! Also,Thanks to recent MasterClass Guests, Luke Ryan, New Line Cinema; John Fox, DreamWorks; Ryan Engle, Kopelson Entertainment; Margo Klewans, Landscape Pictures; Matt Bedrosian and Valarie Phillips, Paradigm Agency; Entertainment Attorney, Jeff Frankel; Aaron Kaplan, Kaplan/Perrone Entertainment; Sheila Hanahan Taylor, Practical-Pictures; Alex Franklin, Dimension Films; Tai Duncan, Paul Schiff Productions; Darryl Taja, Epidemic Pictures. Literary Manager Brad Kaplan, Evolution Entertainment; Literary Manager/Producer Colin O'Reilly, Smart Entertainment; Screenwriter Tom Lazarus (Stigmata), Mosaic Media Group's, Alex Ankeles; and MTA agent, Ryan Saul; Max Roman, Innovative Artists; Gaye Hirsch, Cruise/Wagner Productions; And Jeff Katz, New Line Cinema for more fantastic evenings at Screenwriters Online.

Rich Wilkes, Screenwriter (XXX)
Brian Helgeland, Screenwriter("A Knights Tale," "L.A. Confidential")
Scott Aversano, President/Producer (MTV Films)
Randall Wallace, Screenwriter ("Braveheart," "We Were Soldiers")
Scott Frank, Screenwriter (Minority Report, Get Shorty)
Gaye Hirsch, Executive (CW Television Network)
Stacey Sher, Co-Chair/Partner (Double Feature Films)
Frank Darabont, Screenwriter (Shawshank Redemption)
Kim Roth, Vp Production("Imagine Entertainment")
Phillipa Burgess, Partner/Producer(Creative Convergence)
John Eskow, Screenwriter (Mask Of Zorro)
Marsha Oglesby, Producer/SrVPDevelopment&Production(Brooklyn Films)
Emile Gladstone, Agent (ICM)
Adam Levine, Agent (Endeavor)
Dawn Saltzman, Agent (Endeavor)
Phillipa Boyens and Fran Walsh, Screenwriters (Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers)
Nicole Clemens, Agent
Ed Solomon, Screenwriter (Men In Black, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure)
Maha Dahkil, Agent (Creative Artists Agency)
Query Letter Class, Writing the Perfect Logline and Synopsis to make the sale!
(ICM)
Jeff Nathanson, Screenwriter (Catch Me If You Can, Rush Hour)
Susannah Grant, Screenwriter (Erin Brockovich)
Jennifer Fox, President (Soderberg's prodco Section Eight)
Caroline Thompson, Screenwriter("Edward Scissorhands,""The Addams Family")
Jennifer Davisson,Literary Manager("The Firm")
Akiva Goldsman, (Oscar winning Screenwriter,"A Beautiful Mind")
Ken Nolan, Screenwriter ("Blackhawk Down")
Julian Fellowes, Oscar winning screenwriter ("Gosford Park")
Robert Towne, Screenwriter ("China Town")
Steve Kloves, Screenwriter ("Harry Potter"The Fabulous Baker Boys," "Wonder Boys")

Ohio Native, Ryan Smith Comes To Hollywood Ryan Smith was chosen one of the Top Five in Screenwriters Online's "Next Draft Class " (our virtual development/screenwriting rewrite course.) RANDOM THOUGHTS ON SELF DESTRUCTION, the screenplay he completed here, has been named one of the TOP TEN finalists (out of 6000+ screenplays) in the prestigious Nicholl Fellowship Screenwriting competition. Ryan has had 120 requests for his screenplay. His agent, gained through Screenwriters Online, has block booked him for a week of meetings with some of the best producers and companies Hollywood has to offer. Congratulations Ryan! - - Your friends and fellow class mates at Screenwriters Online

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS ! Interview w/ Ed Solomon Interview w/ Morgan Freeman Interview w/ Holly Hunter Interviewer Tony Greco Click here to view Click here to view Click here to view Screenwriters Online

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