“What I hope in my ideal world is that with each project, I'll either get to work with a really great script that would force me to grow, or work with a really great actor who will make me better.” WorldActorsForceGrowsProjectsIdealsScriptsReally GreatGreat ActorsIdeal World Author:Laura Linney
“In my view, madness is a place. You go. You come back. And I think we all take turns being the mental patient. Without a touch of crazy, literature can be a desolate place. In the current climate of careful speech, even fearful speech, smoke-free film scripts, thought-free songs, and child-proof locks on American minds, the oft-repeated lament of the arts is "Where have all those wonderful madmen gone?"” ThinkingMindChildrenArtFilmSongTurnsLiteratureViewsGoneWonderfulCrazySpeechArt IsMadnessClimatePatientScriptsCurrentsCarefulProofSmokeFearfulLocksMadmenLamentDesolatePlaces You Go Author:Carol O'Connell
“I would recommend that any writer get off their ass at least once and just try it. Directing is a completely different set of muscles. It also affects your writing because, once you start directing, you tend to write your scripts with directing in mind.” WritingTryingMindDifferentScriptsAssMuscles Author:Amy Sherman-Palladino
“It helps, if you've directed, to be able to write a script that is director-friendly. You're really telling them [directors], "This is how it works on this show." It takes some of the guesswork out of it.” IfsWritingHelpingShowsAbleDirectorsScriptsWork OutFriendlyGuesswork Author:Amy Sherman-Palladino
“Not knowing what's happening, from script to script, as an actor and as a character, lends itself to the same tension and anxiety of not knowing what's happening.” CharacterActorsKnowingAnxietyHappeningsScriptsTensionNot Knowing Author:Matthew Davis
“I don't fall into the physical manifestation of a man of letters. So I guess people assume the scripts are delivered to me under the door.” PeopleMenFallDoorsLettersAssumingScriptsManifestation Author:Sylvester Stallone
“I've been a film geek since I was a little kid and to start with an idea and then get a stack of papers with words on it called a script, then storyboarding the art, and you sit with these guys and now all the sudden it's a movie, and to see fans reactions to it when you put it out.” LittlesArtIdeasKidsFilmGuyFansPaperScriptsReactionsPapersLittle KidGeekStoryboarding Author:Thomas Tull
“Nobody is out to sabotage an entire script and do an improvisational experiment of a movie, but when they're feeling something in the moment, let them make it their own. That's what makes them great actors.” MomentsFeelingsActorsScriptsExperimentsGreat ActorsSabotage Author:Dan Fogelman
“I hate when I get a script and I can't see who the people are.” PeopleI CanHateI HateScripts Author:Anne Fletcher
“When you're shooting 20-odd episodes in a season, the last thing you want is for each script to be the same tone.” WantLastsSeasonsScriptsShootingOddToneEpisodes Author:Jonny Lee Miller
“It might be different for people that are A-list actors, but a lot of us really look at what's offered to us and look for something that has some traction with other people. But, it's not like I read 100 scripts a week, and then pick and choose. Maybe some actors do. I certainly don't do that.” PeopleLooksDifferentMightActorsWeekPicksScriptsListsTraction Author:John Noble
“The idea itself, the notion of what the next Tron could be, is exciting enough that it would be worth going back to do it. Obviously we hinted some things at the end of Legacy, it's kind of there for people to see what that potential is. So we just want to make sure that we have a script that delivers on that promise on an epic scale."” PeopleWantKindIdeasEndsEnoughWould BeNextPromiseExcitingNotionScriptsScalesLegacyEpic Author:Joseph Kosinski
“But the script's got to be at a level that makes it worth going back for, because it's a lot of work to make a movie like this and it's a multi-year project. So we've got our writer Jesse Wigutow on it right now writing, and fingers crossed if it all comes together, as we hope it will, there could be another Tron in the next few years, and it's going to be awesome.” IfsWritingYearsTogetherNextLevelsRight NowProjectsFingersScriptsFingers Crossed Author:Joseph Kosinski
“Sometimes with these things all the pieces fall into place. I mean, we've been talking about this for years and we don't have the script now, but sometimes things fall into place very quickly, and if everything lines up it could happen.” IfsYearsMeanSometimesHappensFallLinesTalkingPiecesScriptsFall Into PlaceThings Fall Into Place Author:Joseph Kosinski
“So Disney has their full support behind it, which is great, but again it's got to be the right story. It's got to be a script that's up to snuff and worth going back for. The idea's there, the ambition's there, the excitement's there; but we need to have all the pieces in place before they would ever pull the trigger on that.” NeedsIdeasStoriesBehindsSupportPiecesAmbitionScriptsExcitementTriggersSnuff Author:Joseph Kosinski
“When Tim asked me to do Frankenweenie, he had his original sketches from before he did the short, of what Sparky looked like, and he drew Victor and some of the other crucial people. The remarkable thing about working with Tim is that, once he's read a script, he sketches out everybody else.” PeopleOriginalsScriptsRemarkableCrucial Author:John August
“Working with an incredibly strong script is the thing that gives you the most confidence. If you go into an episode knowing the script is strong, I just feel like that's where it all starts. All collaborations that happen, in addition to that, are just bonuses, at that point.” IfsGivingFeelsHappensStrongKnowingScriptsCollaborationEpisodesBonus Author:Ty Burrell
“You never know what you're in for when you take a role. When you're reading the script, you're in some café in New York and you're loving life and it sounds great because it's like reading a book. When you step into that book and you actually have to play it out, for real, it's a totally different ball game.” KnowsBookDifferentRealPlayReadingGamesSoundStepsRolesNew YorkBallsScriptsLoving LifeBall Games Author:Melissa George
“I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to literature and theory. I wish I could have more of that in life, but I don't because I'm always reading scripts or things to prepare for movies when I'm reading.” KindReadingLiteratureWishTheoryScriptsNerd Author:Elizabeth Olsen
“A lot of the time, I won't read the script until my second or third audition just 'cause a lot of the scripts are the same and the characters are the same.” CharacterCausesThirdsScriptsAuditions Author:Kay Panabaker
“We with [ Marjane Satrapi] always work together on the script which is very important. We even film each other and we start to imagine things so that we are ready, because when you start shooting, it's pretty stressful.” ImportantTogetherFilmImagineReadyScriptsShootingWorking TogetherStressful Author:Vincent Paronnaud
“Michael Bay and his team are experts in exciting tentpole-type film and television, and the combination of their film experience plus the great television writers that have come on will be really successful in bringing us something really unique. We are looking to put on these big canvas shows, and Black Sails is going to fit into that. The scripts have been terrific. Everything that we are trying to do is incredibly ambitious, and this is certainly in that category.” TryingHas BeensShowsBigsFilmBlackSuccessfulTeamTelevisionTypeFitUniqueExcitingScriptsCombinationExpertsPlusCategoriesAmbitiousCanvasSailTerrificFilm And Television Author:Chris Albrecht
“The scripts for Marco Polo are absolutely, positively fantastic. The challenge of making that show in China has proved to be as formidable as we feared. It's not like making a movie in China where, once you load up and you leave, you're gone. We have to be able to come back and capture something that's going to feel like a major feature film, on a television budget, and do it, hopefully season after season, so we are taking more time than the producers thought.” FeelsShowsAbleFilmChallengesGoneTelevisionMajorsSeasonsScriptsChinaProducersHopefullyFantasticBudgetsFeaturesMore TimeCaptureLoadPositivelyFormidableMarcosPoloMarco Polo Author:Chris Albrecht
“So many of the great detectives that we see on television now owe their origins to Sherlock Holmes. What was very exciting about Rob's pitch and script was that he is a real Holmes-ian expert. He knew all of the mythology. He was very well-versed in the genesis of Holmes and the stories. And the twist with Watson is something we jumped at immediately. It's a very forward-thinking way of doing the show.” ThinkingWayWellsRealStoriesShowsTelevisionExcitingScriptsMythologyExpertsTwistsDetectivesGenesisHolmesWatsonForward Thinking Author:Nina Tassler
“Rob Doherty has been a real superstar for us The Mentalist for years. He is an extremely talented writer, and he just tapped into the DNA of this character in a way that we'd not heard before. So, from the moment it walked in the door, and then we read the script, it was a definite player for us.” WayYearsHas BeensRealMomentsCharacterPlayerDoorsHeardScriptsDefiniteDnaSuperstar Author:Nina Tassler
“As the actors on the show we rarely get an opportunity to, as I said we get the scripts the night before but we have great producers on this show, so every once and a while matt or mike will say "I want to take the character in a different direction this season, what do you think about this?" and we do sort of get to add to it and feed it.” ThinkingWantSaidDifferentCharacterShowsNightActorsOpportunitySeasonsAddScriptsProducersMikeDifferent Directions Author:Rachael MacFarlane
“When you read a script, you don't want to be the same guy all the time, you want to change, you're a different person. That's why acting is a wonderful career. You're not the same guy all the time.” WantPersonsDifferentGuyActingCareersWonderfulScripts Author:Robert Loggia
“You have a lot more leeway to be contradictory playing a character than most of the scripts have in them. That's how all actors are. We have so many different sides of ourselves and we're so different, in meeting with different people. The audiences relate more to that and find that more believable.” PeopleDifferentCharacterActorsSidesAudienceMeetingsScriptsRelateDifferent PeoplesContradictoryBelievableDifferent Sides Author:Joel Kinnaman
“Honestly, the two main things that I always look for is, when I read the script for the first time, do I read it quickly? Because if I read it quick, that's an important telltale sign.” IfsFirstsLooksTwoImportantFirst TimeScriptsHonestly Author:Colin Hanks
“Most of the time, with voice-overs, you're recording before they've got the graphics, and you also don't get a whole script. I get my lines, as I show up that day. You don't know what the rest of the story is, so you really rely on the people in the room that you're working with, so they can fill you in on what's going on, right around your particular lines.” PeopleKnowsWholeStoriesShowsVoiceLinesRoomsParticularScriptsRely Author:Tricia Helfer
“When you're doing an animated series, you tend to pitch storyboards. You write a script and then you draw a comic version of that script and put it up on big boards, and then you pitch it to a big room of executives and writers.” WritingBigsRoomsDrawsSeriesScriptsVersionsComicBoardsExecutivesAnimatedAnimated Series Author:Alex Hirsch
“When you're an actor, you're very much exposed, but in a strange way you're totally protected behind a character, behind a script, behind a director.” WayCharacterActorsBehindsStrangeDirectorsScriptsExposedProtected Author:Mathieu Demy
“My primary job is to choose the programs, either to co-produce them, or acquire them after they're finished. So, I read a lot of scripts, I meet with producers and I read a lot of books.” BookJobsProduceProgramScriptsFinishedProducersPrimariesAcquire Author:Rebecca Eaton
“I think the part I enjoy most is reading the scripts and screening films because I'm a bookworm and a movie buff.” ThinkingFilmReadingEnjoyScriptsScreeningBookworms Author:Rebecca Eaton
“Mom's a writer, so I grew up reading scripts and I have a real respect for them and I know how much thought goes into creating a role, so I'm always interested to find out what was the thought process of the writer and how best can I convey it rather than trying to change it to suit myself.” KnowsTryingRealReadingProcessRolesKnow HowGrewMomCreatingGrew UpScriptsSuitsTrying To ChangeThought Process Author:Naomie Harris
“Once you've written a good script, it will get made or not get made, according to variables you cannot control, like stars getting interested, and the superstitions in Hollywood rising or falling around what is over and done with versus what's in.” MadeDoneFallStarsWrittenHollywoodScriptsRisingSuperstitionsVersusVariables Author:Jon Spaihts
“A lot of screenwriters have a drawer of unsold scripts that they cut their teeth on. I don't have one. Everything I've written, after my first spec, I wrote on assignment. Everything I've written was work.” FirstsCuttingWrittenScriptsTeethAssignmentsScreenwritersDrawersSpecs Author:Jon Spaihts
“For me, the experience of making the show is very much like being in a novel. I enjoy getting the new script. I make a cup of tea and I read it the same way I would read a book, with the same amount of joy.” WayBookShowsJoyEnjoyNovelAmountScriptsCupsTeaCups Of Tea Author:Billy Campbell
“I'd be just another Marvel fan, only with a little bit bigger smile, when I would get the script and be like, "Oh, my gosh, Agent Coulson knows that?” KnowsLittlesBitsFansLittle BitBiggerScriptsAgentsOh My Gosh Author:Clark Gregg
“When I want to tackle a story or a subject, I always ask myself three questions: Is it important to talk about that? Will it interest other people than just me? Can I live with that for three or four years because that's how long it takes to do the project, to write the script, and to direct it, and then to do this.” PeopleWantWritingYearsLongImportantStoriesThreeAsksInterestFourSubjectsProjectsDirectScriptsFour Years Author:Philippe Falardeau
“I think it's the same thing for a country. We are lucky then that we can get some financing from the government, because it means when I get the money, when I get the grant to do the film, of course it's based on the script, but I have total artistic control and I can do personal stuff.” ThinkingMeanI CanCountryGovernmentFilmCoursesStuffCan DoLuckyScriptsArtisticGrantsFinancingPersonal Stuff Author:Philippe Falardeau
“In Canada, I've had success raising money. I think I was fortunate enough. But today, I would have to write a very, very bad script not to be financed for the next one. I'm assured at least of the next one, but you're always [only] as good as your last film. I think it's true for anyone.” ThinkingWritingEnoughTodayLastsFilmNextScriptsFortunateCanadaAssuredThe Next OneRaising Money Author:Philippe Falardeau
“As a fanboy myself, one of the fun things about the gig has been every time I get a new script, I get to find out more about his day - to-day life and what goes on and what his relationships are.” Has BeensFunGoes OnScriptsDay To DayGigsDay LifeFun ThingsDay To Day Life Author:Clark Gregg
“Suzanne [Collins] was very involved in the development of the script. She wrote the first draft. She was very involved with Billy Ray, when he wrote his draft.” FirstsDevelopmentInvolvedScriptsRays Author:Nina Jacobson
“I watched a lot of movies from all over the world. The Russians were very good at editing. They were specialists in editing. The Man with a Camera, if you know that movie, is incredible. I still don't understand how it works. It's a movie with no script, no actors and still it works. It's really good. It's really about editing.” IfsKnowsMenWorldStillsActorsHe ManCamerasIncrediblesVery GoodScriptsWorking ItEditingSpecialists Author:Michel Hazanavicius
“When I get a script and do my work, and then show up on set and work, it's the same zone that I'm in when I'm in front of a canvas, or when I'm writing a story about one of my paintings, or when I'm playing music. Whatever I'm doing at any given time, it's the same exact zone.” WritingStoriesShowsGivenFrontsPaintingScriptsZoneWorking ItCanvasPlaying Music Author:Michael Marisi Ornstein
“It's very tricky to know when to stop. I think there are definitely moments where you feel that is the heart of a scene. When you're working on the script, you're looking for a handle on it.” ThinkingKnowsFeelsHeartMomentsSceneScriptsHandleTricky Author:Oliver Parker
“Yeah, well I can't see a situation where I wouldn't at least re-write as a director something I was going to direct. At the moment, I wouldn't direct anything that I hadn't written. I can now say, as everybody else says, that it all depends on the script.” WritingWellsI CanMomentsSituationWrittenDependsDirectorsDirectYeahScripts Author:William Monahan
“So many times, you get a script and it says, "And then, the character cries," and you read the lines and think, "That would never make me cry. Those lines are so untruthful." My approach is just to be honest to the situation.” ThinkingCharacterLinesSituationHonestCryApproachScriptsBeing Honest Author:Shailene Woodley
“There are tons of different reasons why you do TV series and why you don't, and how it'll affect your career, and all that. Without a doubt, it has always come down to the script for me. I'm an actor who wants to do great parts, and I've been very fortunate, for a long time, to get meaty roles.” WantLongDifferentReasonActorsCareersRolesDoubtTvsLong TimeSeriesScriptsFortunateReason WhyTv Series Author:Patrick Wilson