614 black list
In the Hollywood film production industry, the script is the most basic and simple link. It only requires a typewriter and a creator. It is an almost zero-cost creation link, which also attracts a large number of creatives. who.
According to statistics, 50,000 scripts are produced in Hollywood every year. This does not include the works of unregistered students, enthusiasts, and amateur screenwriters. However, among these scripts, less than 2,000 works are produced every year. After the project was approved, in the end, less than 300 works were actually put into filming. As for those that were finally screened in theaters, the proportion was less than 0.3%..
On the other hand, for film companies, they must screen scripts and select scripts that are suitable for filming and making money. This is an extremely difficult process that can only be completed manually, so every film company Film and television pre-development managers have been set up. Their daily job is to select projects worthy of investment from a large number of scripts. Dozens or even hundreds of scripts are needed in a day..
In addition to fierce competition, film companies will also stay away from new screenwriters who have no representation. Because they have no official channels to confirm whether these scripts involve plagiarism or plagiarism. Therefore, this also provides a channel for film and television early-stage development managers to obtain fresh scripts. Becoming old and stale, it is difficult to break through and innovate.
On the one hand, Hollywood production companies are having a headache because they cannot find outstanding scripts; on the other hand, talented screenwriters are distressed because their works are not being appreciated..
“It was under this background that the "Script Blacklist" was born. In 2005, Franklin-Leonard, a film and television pre-development manager, finally couldn't stand the low work efficiency anymore. They not only needed a large number of scripts, but also It must be repeated that many scripts are circulated among major production companies. After coming and going, repeating scripts is a high-probability event. This not only consumes a lot of energy, but also has little effect. It is simply finding a needle in a haystack. This year's Franklin definitely takes the initiative on Christmas.
At that time, Franklin sent an email to 80 of his colleagues, hoping that they could list the best scripts they had read that year but had not yet been put into production. In exchange, he would also provide these colleagues with lists submitted by others. In Among these lists, Franklin made a "blacklist" based on everyone's recommendations. A few days later, this list spread throughout Hollywood and became the most fashionable Christmas gift for people in the industry..
After years of development, the "blacklist" has gradually formed a system, and more and more people are participating in the selection. For this year's blacklist, the number of industry insiders participating in the selection has reached 500, which is enough to represent the aesthetics of the entire Hollywood. Taste. Before Christmas, these 500 people will provide Franklin with the best scripts they have read this year. Franklin will select 70 to 100 scripts based on the number of votes and organize the contact information of the authors. , affiliated brokerage companies and other information to form a so-called blacklist document.
This blacklist is very popular among people in the industry. First of all, it is selected by industry professionals, and the quality is sufficiently guaranteed; secondly, the entire list does not involve commercial interests, and it does not care about the fame and status of the screenwriters. The only requirement is to have recommendations from at least six industry insiders.
So far, the outstanding scripts found on the blacklist include "The Queen", "Juno", "Love Doll", "The King's Speech", "Slumdog Millionaire", "The Social Network", " "Little Miss Sunshine", "Up in the Clouds", "The Fighter"; and in the near future, there will also be "Escape from Tehran", "Life of Pi", "Crackling Drummer", "Nebraska", “Foxcatcher,” “American Sniper” and more.
It is worth mentioning that the last work Andy submitted to Renly, "Django Unchained," was also a work on the blacklist..
From this, we can see the value of the blacklisted works. Although the quality of the finished product is still open to question, it is undeniable that the basic script has been adequately guaranteed, especially for the Oscar system, which pays attention to scripts. This is even more true for art films..
If you browse the blacklist carefully, you can find that most of the scripts on it are not large-scale movies, but scripts with the inner emotions of the characters as the core. In other words, they are small-cost, small-investment, small-production, and small-scale. The script takes up most of the.
The main reason is that the scripts of commercial movies have fixed routines. The three-stage structure, the beginning, the transition, the climax/climax preparation, and even the preparation of the small climax/climax are all based on templates..
The Marvel series of movies headed by "Avengers" is a typical example. It is even so strict that it takes three minutes to shake off a burden, five minutes to advance a plot, and fifteen minutes to make a turn. These are all traceable. Their scripts It is the most representative business template.
If you take a closer look, you will find that the Marvel series of movies prefers to use unknown directors, new directors, and second-tier directors. It is even more common to change directors in every sequel, because what they need is not a director who is "full of creativity and style", but a director who is "full of creativity and style". He is a well-behaved, step-by-step director who completes his tasks and completes the shooting strictly in accordance with the frame structure of the script..
Therefore, it is difficult to find scripts that meet the standards of commercial blockbusters on the blacklist that pays attention to script structure, character emotions, and ideological innovation. Most commercial scripts are tailor-made. Although "Django Unchained" has a full investment of US$100 million, but it cannot be called a commercial script. The reason why Weinstein Films is willing to spend such a large amount of money is entirely because of Quentin Tarantino's face..
My impression is that even in 2017, there are only a handful of commercial movie scripts on the blacklist..
Now, "Edge of Tomorrow" has not only been shortlisted for the blacklist, but also ranked third on the list. It has been unanimously recognized by industry professionals and its quality is guaranteed. Moreover, this is a science fiction script that meets the standards of commercial blockbusters. Andy is naturally I was overjoyed. This kind of script is not only rare, it can even be said to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. For Renly, it is perfect in every aspect..
However, for top companies like Warner Bros., they don’t really like such scripts. They always firmly believe that scripts for commercial movies need templates. Those scripts on the blacklist that are wild and unrestrained and win with quality will instead trigger them. More worries. All people in the industry know that for commercial films, an excellent script is important, but not necessary.——
Rhythm control, style positioning, climax/tide setting, visual effects, narrative techniques, etc. These are the decisive links..
Not to mention Warner Brothers, even Andy himself is full of uncertainty in his words. Commercial films and art films are still different after all..
When an excellent art film has an excellent artistic script, it is already half successful; when an excellent commercial film has an excellent commercial script, it has only just started..
After the script is on the blacklist, it is just a first draft. Before it is put into official shooting, the script will be revised layer by layer and determined as the final shooting version. After the final draft, the appearance, storyline, and even the characters and themes of the script will all change. huge changes.
Take "Life of Pi" as an example. Among the blacklist, the authors of this script are Jean-Pierre-Jeu and Guilume-Laurant. , both are well-known French filmmakers, but when "Life of Pi" was actually released, the screenwriter was David Magee, the screenwriter who wrote "Finding Neverland".
This involves the issue of the signature rights of Hollywood screenwriters. According to the official rules of the Screenwriters Guild, a screenwriter's contribution to the final script needs to exceed 30% to be eligible for signature. If it is less than 30%, he has no signature rights. , so there are generally no more than three screenwriters for a script..
Under such circumstances, the earliest version of Jean-Pierre and Guillaume's script was extensively rewritten and revised by David. It can even be considered that David re-created a script based on the original work, which also made Jean-Pierre Erl and Guillaume were not included in the final credits.
At the beginning, 20th Century Fox was preparing to hand over "The Life of Pi" to Jean-Pierre Jeunet to direct. At that time, he had already drawn a storyboard for the film, but he proposed a cost of US$80 million. budget, but scared off 20th Century Fox.
Subsequently, after readjustment, 20th Century Fox was handed over to Lee Ahn - although Lee Ahn's proposed production cost was 120 million or even higher, Lee Ahn's appeal was significantly higher than Jean-Pierre.
As mentioned before, 20th Century Fox is a company that blindly trusts big-name directors. In the end, "Life of Pi" was handed over to Lee/Ann.
Andy also mentioned just now that the script in hand is only a first draft. Currently, Warner Bros. has not determined a producer or director. Naturally, the final version of the script cannot be determined. It is enough to use the current version. The script still needs to be rewritten according to the director's style; or it needs to match the visual effects style, leaving the story frame and completely overturning the script.？
The same script, Johnny Depp's version, Brad Pitt's version, Tom Cruise's version, will have very different effects. Even popcorn commercial movies are no exception. Different The box office results brought by the version will also be completely different..
The Blacklist script has a great reputation, but there are too many uncertain factors after all. Even veterans like Andy and Warner Bros. can't help but hesitate..
This is the second time Renly has been exposed to a blacklist script - "Django Unchained" is the first time. He can't help but become curious: Who is this commercial movie included in the blacklist? Compared with works such as "Alien Battlefield", "Super Battleship" and "Small Shadow", what are the advantages? Are these advantages enough to transform into an excellent work?？
After opening the script, Renly became serious. He never expected that it was actually this book. Could it be that the butterfly effect has begun to take effect?？2
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