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If you struggle with concept like I do, then you've got to read Save the Cat!, by Blake Snyder. It's a screenwriting book that goes beyond the same old reworkings of three-act structure to get to the heart of the matter: what is the movie about? Being a Hollywood writer is all about getting paid to have good ideas, and Snyder's book is the best one I've ever seen for ideas and excercises to get you thinking big.

One of your key concepts is "the same, but different." And a big word that I hear a lot is "fresh," which means just about the same thing. As we gear up into awards season, what upcoming films--from poster/marketing along--feel the most fresh to you and why?

Ha! I love it. Yes! "Give me the same thing only different" is a phrase coined by a Disney executive I met with once who, very Sam Goldwyn-like, gave me that formula for movie success. Is this just about ripping off the last movie that was a hit? Well... kind of. Bruce Almighty is just Oh, God! in a new wrapper. American Pie is Porky's. The Girl Next Door... Risky Business. But that's not Hollywood talking, it's what storytelling has always been about. Jaws is nothing more than a new version of The Minatour in the Maze or the Dragonslayer myths of the Middle Ages. What's "fresh" about putting a new spin on an old tale? It's that sizzle in your pitch that makes the person you're pitching to say: wow! I wish I'd thought of that! This is what happens to me whenever I read the spec sales listed in the trades!

I love this business primarily because I love its combination of art and commerce, and really it's common sense. We are all of us -- screenwriters, studios, web bloggers -- just storytellers in the market square trying to figure out how to get you to stop and listen to OUR tale! That's why I have four points in my book to make your logline more "sizzle-worthy."

1. Make sure your movie idea has irony, that is basically what the "hook" is.

2. Have a target market (so you're not wasting your time yelling at the wrong people in the market square).

3. Your idea must create a mental image that "blooms in the mind" when you pitch it -- the good ones prompt the listener to add ideas to yours and do so with excitement! That plus...

4. A killer title that "says what it is", gets my attention every time.

The movies that have all these elements are the ones that will succeed. What movies will win this fall? Those films that do as well as a pitch as they do on the marquee at the cineplex. Stars do not open movies, ideas do (which explains the lukewarm response greeting the star-studded All The King's Men). Concept is king! Always has been, always will be.

Literature is a great source for stories, but going from page to screen isn't always a straightforward proposition. How do the ideas in Save the Cat! apply to book adaptations?

Save the Cat! is about the basics that make movies work. The title comes from that moment in a story when we meet the hero and the hero does something nice -- like saving a cat -- that makes us like him and want to root to see him win. This applies to anti-heroes too. Any adaptation has to be fit into the screenplay form. And yes, you often lose things in the translation. It's because the screenplay is unique; there is no going back to read a few earlier pages to check on a point you may have missed. A movie just runs. It's much more like strapping yourself into an emotion machine; once you do, it's on, so you better make sure your movie hits all the buttons that make for a great story.

I have a chapter in the book that I have gotten great feedback on called "The Immutable Laws of Screenplay Physics." This is about the rules of what it takes to tell a great screen story. One of these, which I call "Laying Pipe," is about how much screen time you must use to set up your story. In my opinion, audiences will only stand for so much of that. A good example of "too much pipe" is Minority Report, which does not get going until Minute 40. Why? Because this adaptation of the Philip K. Dick story requires A LOT of pipe! And to me, it torques the whole movie out of shape. So we must be careful. Just because we can lean on the built-in audiences that a beloved novel brings, we have to make sure we create a movie-going experience that resonates for everyone -- even those who aren't familiar with the book.

You've got strong criticism for that indie sacred-cow Memento. Granted, the numbers weren't there for that film in terms of audience, but it launched Christopher Nolan's career in a big way. Are there different rules for the aspiring writer-director? Why or why not?

My running battle with Memento has been highly exaggerated! I tweak the nose of Memento, let's just say that. And the only reason I did that is because in the process of talking to lots of writers, trying to get across the basics, they so often leap to the exceptions to the rule, as if by doing so they can discount what works 99% of the time. I get "What about Pulp Fiction?" about as much as "What about Memento?" and both of these just make me laugh. That's why I put that mention of Memento in the book.

Let me say for the record, as I did in the book, that I find Memento very entertaining, but what I admire more is something like Pirates of the Caribbean. This is because I am just in awe of the screenwriters who wrote that, and Shrek, and Aladdin, and so many great family films, Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio. Can you imagine being handed the assignment of turning a theme park ride into a movie? That is problem-solving, and they did it with such flair and fun. I really admire the "piano movers," as Preston Sturges once disparagingly referred to the workmanlike screenwriters of his day. I think the guys who sit down and work it and make it fresh like Billy Wilder and Izzy Diamond, Ganz and Mandel, my friends Cormac and Marianne Wibbery (National Treasure), and my heroes like William Goldman and Alvin Sargent, these are the really great talented craftsmen of the business, and ones I want to emulate.

All this is a different career track from those who wish to write and direct their own material like Chris Nolan did with Memento. And we will see more of these stars rise with the advent of the new technologies, the Internet, etc. I am eager for these artists to shine as well. It's really such an exciting time to be a storyteller for film. But the basics of storytelling, and learning those basics, is the key for every writer out there, no matter what career track they are on.

Selected Resources:

We've got more posts on screenwriting here.

Tune into the Zoom In Podcast on October 3rd for an interview with literary agent Maura Teitelbaum from Abrams Artists Agency.

We've got complete training on industry standard software Final Draft here.

Finally, read an article by Blake and buy Save the Cat! at the Writers Store website.