Screenwriting

I'm more obsessive. I find a problem in my writing or a task I need to tackle and attack it until the problem doesn't exist. I don't schedule, I just work each problem as they come. I can't multi-task (male brain) so I hit my targets one at a time.

Good morning, Elle Bolan! My creative workday is basically networking/Stage 32 in the morning, work on a project, do other things, then I jump back and forth between networking, Stage 32, a project, and other things.

It's great to meet you, Arpad Vaczi. Welcome to the community. Stage 32 has a blog that'll help you navigate the platform and connect with creatives and industry professionals all over the world. www.stage32.com/blog/how-to-successfully-navigate-the-stage-32-platform-...

Stage 32's next Community Open House will be January 28th. It'll also help you navigate the platform and make connections. You can sign up for free here: www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32s-january-2026-community-open...

2084 sounds interesting! I'm not working on a Sci-Fi project right now, but I like writing Sci-Fi and watching it!

You could make a post in the Authoring & Playwriting Lounge asking for tips on bridging into the US market. www.stage32.com/lounge/playwriting

Hi Maurice Vaughan, thank you so much for the warm welcome and the helpful links! I'll definitely check out the blog and the Open House event. Great to meet a fellow sci-fi fan here! What is your favorite sci-fi subgenre to write or watch?

Congratulations on the script requests and meeting requests!

Congratulations everyone! Bravo!

That's incredible congrats everyone.

congrats all, fingers crossed crossed to being next on this list

Sam, thanks for the great news...and congratulations to all the writers who earned those requests!

Thanks for the encouragement, Aleksandr Rozhnov.

Thank you for this reminder!

Wish you all the best!

I love this, thank you Aleksandr Rozhnov!

The dud rate is 95%+.

I haven't used ISA in a while, but I got a script request and "Under Considerations" (I think that's what they're called) on there, Till Olshausen.

Richard Buzzell Nice to know, thanks. How did you get this information?

Till - Just an estimate using their own information about how many options and writing assignments happen, compared to the total number of requests in a year.

Richard Buzzell I see. Well done. Thank you. :-)

Thanks for sharing this series of posts. Will you be covering The Black List?

Michael Dzurak Thank you for reading. I'm thinking about it. I only used them once and had a bad experience. Maybe I'll write about that separately.

That's a fantastic idea for a Mask prequel or original movie/TV series, Vladimir Romantsev! It could be a straight Comedy, Dark Comedy, or Mystery Comedy.

Vladimir Romantsev WOW, Vladimir - that is one of the most interesting ideas I have heard about in quite a long time! I hope you pursue this and will keep us up to date.

Sandy Lane Glad it was helpful! good luck!~

You make a good point Langley Coleman about many producers having the type of movie in mind they want to make. While true, I would not say that's not a universal rule or always the case though. It's important to consider that many producers are very open minded people. Pretty much every single one I've met has been and I've met hundreds at least. They're not so one-track all the time. Yes, they have mandates and operate with those in mind, but most producers in this industry are also 100% open to being surprised and welcome the thought of seeing something unexpected or that they didn't see coming. A sharp, standout logline in the right genre will get you read, but a log line with a totally fresh, new, original idea will spark that undeniable intrigue as well. Point being: there's exceptions to the rule is all. Most of the time it is good to at least aim for the target they've set out and give them loglines they want to see that at least show some alignment.

I'll say the biggest issue I see with loglines these days is how many writers are clearly using AI to write their loglines for them.... and they are terrible! Sure the general, basic logline format is formulaic and kinda tired/old hack, but lemme tell you, AI is not reinventing the wheel with it! There's such an odd cadence to AI generated/assisted loglines, like the rhythm is totally off and the language used is needlessly descriptive or salesy. It just gives major ick! Would advise all writers to stop looking for shortcuts with AI and writing! You (hopefully) wrote your script, so you're the expert on it! Be the expert and write your own loglines people! Ok, I'll get off my soap box now

Pat Alexander So interesting you bring up the Ai loglines, because those characteristics are exactly the issues that I'm seeing in most real life screenwriters' loglines too. Given how Ai works, I guess that explains where the Ai gets its technique!

As I was saying above, my main point is that loglines are an industry tool for efficiency in development, coverage, and sales, and only secondarily a marketing tool

Pat Alexander thank you for that insight Pat! I remain hopeful every day that your perspective is the one that allows fresh ideas to surface even though when I'm watching TV these days it seems that fresh ideas are not making it to the screen in abundance. Completely understandable, art and commerce must co-exist or there is no real art scene to speak of. Easy to digest, familiar stories and especially today stories that don't confront important issues in direct ways are important because people are using TV to escape. So we as writers must figure out ways to align with the 'market' and meet our creative needs as well. THANKS AGAIN!

@Pat - absolutely. And it's not just in loglines. I see AI writing everywhere. In posts, replies, even DMs I get. I watched a post in real time and the post was clearly AI curated and over half the responders were also very obviously using AI to create replies. And honestly? It's caused me to pull back from those interactions.

I don't want to network with your chat gpt. I have my own chat gpt. I can talk to it on my own.

Networking is human to human.

Our writing is human creation.

The film that (hopefully) gets made from it will be more human creation.

I get that loglines are hard. My loglines suck. I have one that's just a series of keywords and a question. Because I was stuck. And at the time I couldn't think of anything else. I suck at loglines. It is what it is. So... I'm working on it. I am.

Not my chat gpt.

Hi, Adrian Costigan! THE MOOR CHILD sounds interesting! I think it's a great story to adapt into a series!

Stage 32 has a webinar called "How to Adapt a Book Into a Film or Series." www.stage32.com/education/products/how-to-adapt-a-book-into-a-film-or-se...

And here's a Lounge post called "Let’s Talk Adaptation: Turning Your Book into a Screenplay." www.stage32.com/lounge/playwriting/Let-s-Talk-Adaptation-Turning-Your-Bo...

Thanks, Mark Deuce. I'm thinking about turning the scene into a script. I would change some things though. Thanks for the exercise. It was fun.

Thanks, Michael Dzurak. "The media around Chicago was tuned to a dead program..." is interesting.

Maurice Vaughan It was my riff on the opening line of the cyberpunk novel Neuromancer.

"The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel."

Maurice Vaughan You covered everything, way to make me picture what the pixies look like and I love Pyro Pixie!

Thanks, Marie Hatten. Pyro Pixie is the Raphael/Buttercup of the team.

That closed circle is a real problem, but it’s not the only reason why someone might not be betting in touch with you. My recommendation is to keep improving your craft, keep making yourself more and more necessary to the show people around you, and maybe that one lead will go somewhere in the meantime. if not, your work will slowly be making yourself success into a statistical certainty regardless.

Thank you all, friends, for your responses.

They are truly interesting, important, and give a real understanding of how the industry works.

But I want to say something — maybe I’m wrong, but it feels to me that one of the most important elements of a screenplay is theme.

No theme — no film.

When a producer reads a script, they should be able to clearly understand the theme and feel whether it is relevant today, or whether it will still be relevant in one or two years, when the film is actually released.

When a script is read only from the perspective of action, structure, or dialogue, it seems to me that a “perfect” script can never be written — because even a 50th draft can still be improved.

But if a film has a clear, well-developed theme that gives the audience understanding, meaning, and a certain emotional or intellectual experience, then I believe that film is almost destined to succeed.

Если хочешь, могу сделать версию чуть короче, более философскую или наоборот — более профессионально-индустриальную, под стиль конкретного треда на Stage 32.

Look at it this way: the film exploded largely because of its groundbreaking visual effects and innovative cinematic language for its time. But what is The Matrix really about?

Is it about the idea that we are all asleep and controlled by a computer?

Is it a biblical reference — the arrival of a kind of Jesus Christ figure in the form of Neo, who comes to save humanity?

Or is it simply a war between humans and machines?

The theme is quite blurred and open to interpretation.

Now let me give you another example — Fight Club.

This is a film that almost no one fully understood at first, but later it became iconic, culturally influential, and financially successful.

Here, the theme is very clear: consumer society and how, within it, a human being can slowly lose their mind and identity. This theme is consistently and powerfully explored throughout the entire film. And eventually, people understood it.

That’s why it became successful.

So to me, theme is one of the most important elements a film must have — and it must be fully explored. When the audience watches a film and clearly understands what it is about, they gain experience, meaning, and insight from it.

And that understanding is what ultimately gives a film longevity, popularity, and box office success.

I agree with you, and this is an important point when it comes to finding the right producers and executives to pitch to.

You need to understand the core themes of your script and target producers who work on similar material and have a genuine interest in those themes.

This also helps when negotiating and convincing them of your project’s value—by showing how your story approaches the same themes from a different perspective, with a distinct emotional angle, or through unique characters.

You're welcome, Aleksandr Rozhnov. Theme is definitely one of the most important elements of a screenplay. I've tried writing scripts without themes, and I could never finish.