Chris Jones's Blog, page 15

The British Screenwriters’ Awards 2017 #LondonSWF

This year or the fourth time the writing community gathered together to celebrate the best and brightest among us and laud our craft, without which not much good film or TV would exist at all.

This night is ours, it’s our time to cheer great writing and laugh together at the blood sweat and tears that goes into creating it, a torturous, gruelling, and delightful, rewarding, fulfilling process that only someone else who’s attempted it can even begin to comprehend. It’s a weird thing that we do but together in our weirdness we find ourselves at home.

Hosted by screenwriter and comedian Deborah Frances-White who liberally entertained us with her Hollywood war stories and long path to breakthrough and a fine night was had by all.

I suppose in the forth year the event can no long be called a fledgling awards, but in terms of changing the zeitgeist of writers, we’re really just beginning. As we continue to edify great work we empower and inspire new work and new writers to share the magic inside them through the medium of screen.

This year is the second year of the, the ‘Fucking Awesome Award’ for incredible achievement in writing and outstanding contribution to the industry. Created last year for writer/director Simon Fitzmaurice who after becoming paralysed with Motor Neuron Disease (ALS) used only the gaze of his eyes to write and direct his first feature. The accolade this year continues and goes to an equally stellar writer who’s incredible works have made him a household name and inspired devotion across the seven continents.

The 2017 Fucking Awesome Award is given to George R R Martin.

As no dragons were available a proxy collected the award on George’s behalf and delivered his heartfelt speech. The crystal trophy will be winging it’s way to him shortly by raven and we are assured by Chris Jones that it will, at a push, definitely kill a white walker.

Outstanding Newcomer for British Feature Film Writing

100 Streets by Leon Butler
Eddie The Eagle by Sean Macaulay
WINNER: The Girl with all the Gifts by Mike Carey
The Pass by John Donnelly
Prevenge by Alice Lowe
Under The Shadow by Babak Anvari

Best British Children’s Television

The Amazing World of Gumball by the writing team
Class Dismissed by the writing team
Counterfeit Cat by the writing team
Eve by the writing team
WINNER: The Worst Witch by the writing team

Outstanding Newcomer for British Television Writing     

Apple Tree Yard by Amanda Coe and Louise Doughty
Damilola, Our Beloved Boy by Levi David Addai
WINNER: Fleabag by Phoebe Waller-Bridge
The Hollow Crown by Ben Power
NW by Rachel Bennette (Based on novel by Zadie Smith)

Best British TV Drama Writing

WINNER: Three Girls by Nicole Taylor
The Crown by Peter Morgan
Little Boy Blue by Jeff Pope
The Moorside by Neil McKay
National Treasure by Jack Thorne

Best Crime Writing on Television (Series/Single Drama)    

Broadchurch by Chris Chibnall
Born to Kill by Kate Ashfield, Tracey Malone and Kate Gartside
Broken by Jimmy McGovern, Shaun Duggan, Colette Kane and Nick Leather
WINNER: Line of Duty by Jed Mercurio
The Missing by Harry Williams and Jack Williams
Unforgotten by Chris Lang

Best Comedy Writing on Television

Camping by Julia Davis
This Country by Charlie Cooper and Daisy May Cooper
WINNER: The Durrells by Simon Nye and Gerald Durrell
Flowers by Will Sharpe
People Just Do Nothing by Asim Chaudhry, Steve Stamp and Allan Mustafa
Upstart Crow by Ben Elton

Best British Feature Film Writing

Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie by Jennifer Saunders
American Honey by Andrea Arnold
Free Fire by Amy Jump and Ben Wheatley
T2 by John Hodge (Based on the novel by Irvine Welsh)
WINNER: A United Kingdom by Guy Hibbert (Based on the novel by Susan Williams)

Christopher Vogler on Making an Introduction #LondonSWF

One person who needs little introduction at the London Screenwriters’ Festival is Christopher Vogler, author and story consultant known around the globe for his expertise on The Hero’s Journey.

Among the detailed advice he had to give us today about creating fresh and dynamic characters from ancient mythological archetypes, Christopher shared his top tips for making a character introduction for the first time.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS:

Making a character introduction is like when an actor walks out onto a stage, what actor doesn’t like to make a dynamic entrance. Left to their own devices your character will be like an actor without direction and swagger in making the most of their moment.

BUT WHAT SORT OF CHARACTER ARE THEY?

Strong impressions are good if that’s who your character is but what if strength and dynamism are not really their thing? How we first see a character can set up expectations that can engage or disengage us from the character and story later on.

USE THEIR SCHTICK TO SHOW US WHO THEY REALLY ARE. 

All characters (all people) have their method of dealing with life. Their tricks, their traits, their coping mechanisms. Maybe they mumble when they’re shy or always try to please. Characters will have a set of behaviours that they repeat as they go through their life experiences. That’s known as their schtick (an old Vaudevillan term) and that”s what you can use to show us who they are the minute we meet them on screen.

And with a whole ream of ways we can shift our characters journey it’s only right that we should take some care in knowing who they are in the first place and being able to identify with them. For me, in what was a complex session, putting the characters best foot forward seems like a great place for writers to begin.

Seeing Him Picks Up First Award at New Renaissance Film Festival

Last week in Soho London, at the New Renaissance Film Festival, Vanessa Bailey collected our first award for best actress. Well deserved too and for everyone involved, we all know that this is the most fitting award to star what we hope will be  a fun and successful festival run.

We also just got into the Canadian Creation International Film Festival and got a rather glowing review in their guide…

“When assigned a film to review, I’ll typically scan the synopsis, wince and force my way to the credits. This time I decided to look a little deeper.

Chris Jones and his producers knew what they’re doing. This project wasn’t made by a group of weekend warriors. So, I began watching with expectations. True, a director with a resume doesn’t guarantee a great movie, but it doesn’t hurt. Seeing Him is a wonderful little film. There’s not much to it. It’s simple. And it will probably make you cry.

The pace is easy and the dialogue draws the viewer in. Vanessa has a commanding on screen presence.

The lighting and color treatment are rich and vibrant. And the sound is clear and natural. Overall, the entire project is beautifully put together. The lighting, pace and subject matter reminded me of Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr in An Affair to Remember. My advice (for what it’s worth) is to leave the handheld stuff to action flicks and keep the romance smooth!

With an award winning director and power house actress, why stop at eight minutes? You left me wanting so much more!

Seeing Him is an excellent film.”

Blimey!

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

 

Fifteen Feet of FEAR! Firewalk for Disabled Youth… Help us raise £3,000

Last week we ran the Talent Campus… And that included a Firewalk where everyone present would walk the embers barefoot for charity. Specifically for a charity called READY who support kids with disabilities who need special equipment for their mobility.

These are two extraordinary groups of people – the kids who want more from life, and the talent campers who committed to face what was for some, extreme fear.

You can watch the video here and please contribute anything you can afford to the campaign too… we need to raise £3k and we are almost halfway there.

CLICK HERE

Thank you in advance, your contribution validates our delegates who were NOT fearless, in fact they were filled with fear and yet STILL faced up to it. And of course the kids whose daily challenges dwarf even the fieriest of firewalks!

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

 

Listen to the Filmmakers Podcast and get film and screenwriting tips

Yesterday I recorded this excellent podcast with Giles Alderson and Christian James for the FilmMakersPodcast – we did it in our store room at Ealing studios which is remarkable acoustically dead.

We chatted about filmmaking tips and tricks, screenwriting strategies and about being a creative. Give it a listen below.

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

 

One killer tip to make you unforgettable in any pitch or casual industry meeting (and in a good way).

This is just one tip I picked up from Bob Schultz when I was on his one day masterclass on pitching, creating relationships with producers and transforming from a writer fumbling in the dark into a writer with laser focus.

When you meet anyone powerful, and you have any kind of meaningful exchange, setup a Google Alert in their name that night (not the following day as you will likely forget).

Google Alerts are a free service from Google and will send you an email whenever this person becomes ‘newsworthy’. This could be a new job promotion, a project getting greenlit, a stand out screening etc.

Assuming you got their email when you met (and you should have), you can then just drop them an email and say ‘Hey congratulations one X Y and Z, we met at ABC if you recall.’ If you have any recent good news you could share that VERY succinctly too, ‘I just sold that project to Z producer’ or ‘My short script was produced last year’ etc.

Keep it short and focus all about THEM and the relationship.

Now imagine doing that with 200 people, or 500 or even 1,000?

Many people will write back and say thanks for the message. Many won’t. Either way you have got back on their radar at a good time in their lives and at the very least you now look media savy for knowing about their good news – and that’s a good thing.

Sometimes, they may say ‘hey what happened to that project we talked about?’ or ‘can I see your short film’ etc. That’s a win right there. And all you did was set up a Google alert and respond to their good news.

Remember, talent is great but relationships get you hired.

So… this is your final Call: One Day Pitching Masterclass This Weekend with Bob Schultz (August 5th ’17)

If you are planning on attending LondonSWF and pitching, then this one day masterclass will transform the way you present your ideas and yourself.

Consider… Why would anyone invest $millions in your idea, let alone script? Is the way you present the very best it can be? In my experience almost every writer who attends this class with Bob comes away realising how many gaps they had in their knowledge, how to fill those gaps, and perhaps most importantly, how to get people to lean into your pitch.

It’s this Saturday at Ealing Studios and there are less than ten places left – you can sign up or read more on the site HERE.

Chris Jones

www.LondonSWF.com

Low Budget Horror… You should use the Shepherd’s Tone to ratchet tension in your soundtrack

There are many ways in which a film can make huge dramatic gains without maxing out the budget. If you are making a low budget horror (and I have made two), and if everyone involved is on the same budgetary wavelength, then why not work with your composer to utilise ‘The Shepherds Tone’ so successfully exploited by Chris Nolan and Hans Zimmer?

What is it?

It’s an auditory trick whereby music or a tone seems to continually build up octave upon octave, never ending and always feeling like it’s about to peak. Of course it’s a trick where multiple rising notes or passages are layered and fade in and out rather cunningly.

This is an ideal tool for horror and thriller movies. Consider…

• It’s extremely effective at creating tension

• It’s easy to create for anyone who knows there way around sound and music

• It won’t cost a penny aside from talent and time

The video below is a great primer on what it is and how it works.

Remember, as a low budget filmmaker we have to use every trick and resource available to us. And this is one of this hidden tricks that has yet to be over used.

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

 

Christopher Vogler’s Top Quotes For The Hero’s Journey

Christopher Vogler is one of the most influential teachers of screenwriting for me. His book, The Writer’s Journey, about the Hero’s Journey and mythic structure has influenced almost everything I do – in filmmaking, screenwriting and also presenting seminars. I am delighted that he is coming to the London Screenwriters’ Festival this year, as well as running a sensational one day masterclass (HERE).

Here are some of his best quotes to get you in the mood…

‘The young, in their innocence, are often wise and capable of teaching the old.’

‘A myth… is a metaphor for a mystery beyond human comprehension. It is a comparison that helps us understand, by analogy, some aspect of our mysterious selves. A myth, in this way of thinking, is not an untruth but a way of reaching a profound truth.’

‘An effective story grabs your gut, tightens your throat, makes your heart race and your lungs pump, brings tears to your eyes or an explosion of laughter to your lips.’

‘It is a very strong rule in drama, and in life, that people remain true to their basic natures. They change, and their change is essential for drama, but typically they only change a little, taking a single step towards integrating a forgotten or rejected quality into their natures.’

‘As Dante says in the beginning of the Inferno, ‘In the midst of life’s journey I found myself in a dark wood, for the right path was lost.’ I think we’re all doing that, in our various ways Looking for our Selves in the dark wood. I hope you find yourself on your journey.’

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

George Romero dies and we lose a legend… Watch the Making Of The Classic ‘Dawn Of The Dead’

As a kid who loved horror films, seeing ‘Dawn Of The Dead’ when I was WAYYYY too young, on a scuzzy VHS tape down at my friends house (cos this family had the only on VHS player in the road), is an event seared in my memory.

I was shocked, stunned, upset, excited…

I felt Like I had seen something that frankly I should not have seen.

And I wanted MORE. The experience (along with ‘The Evil Dead’) led directly to my first super 8mm film(s), the first being Necronomicon (which you can see here, along with all the lessons I learned).

At that embryonic stage I was more into visual effects than filmmaking and loved the work of the legendary Tom Savini whose career became deeply intertwined with Romero’s.

And so we lose a legend of horror, a man who I owe a great deal to. He was always outspoken, inventive and undeniably ahead of his time.

You will be missed George.

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools

 

Top 14 Christopher Nolan Quotes for filmmakers and screenwriters

In the week that Dunkirk hits the big screen, I thought I would share some of Chris Nolan’s most inspirational, educational and resonant quotes. If you enjoy these, check out the interview we did with him and his wife and producer Emma Nolan BEFORE they were a big deal (just after ‘Following’) HERE.

“Breaking rules isn’t interesting. It’s making up new ones that keeps things exciting.”

“I got into writing because no one’s going to give you a script to direct when you’re starting out, so, I started writing, just for myself, just to be able to direct things.”

“Everybody’s situation is unique, and the one thing I’ve learned is that instead of copying someone else’s model for a low-budget film, you really have to look at what you’ve got available and see how you can tell the story you want to tell, using the things that you have around you.”

“Every film should have its own world, a logic and feel to it that expands beyond the exact image that the audience is seeing.”

“if you can get a little bit of attention, a little bit of success on the festival circuit, people say, “Well, what would you want to do next?” And the tricky thing is, if you don’t have a specific thing, you can’t capitalize on that moment.”

“You’ve got to put everything into the one movie and just try and make a great movie because you may not get this chance again.” And then, when it succeeded, we were able to think about, “OK, what would we do in a sequel?”

“The screen is the same size for every story. A shot of a teacup is the same size as an army coming over the hill. It’s all storytelling.”

“As a director in the studio system, working in the commercial world of filmmaking, you have to pick your fights; you have to choose when you’re open to input, but you also have to show strong leadership. It’s a tricky balance.”

“You need time. And that doesn’t mean necessarily even working full-time on it itself; it means time to throw some ideas together and then let them sit, go off and do something else, come back and see what still feels right and everything.”

“If you want to be a filmmaker, make a film and enjoy it; don’t be thinking about what’s the next thing, the thing after that.”

“As a filmmaker, you know, no matter how positive things seem, you always notice the bad reviews, you always notice that the things people love are the same things other people hate, so you can’t react to that. To me, it’s all about doing what you believe in.”

“Films are subjective – what you like, what you don’t like. But the thing for me that is absolutely unifying is the idea that every time I go to the cinema and pay my money and sit down and watch a film go up on-screen, I want to feel that the people who made that film think it’s the best movie in the world, that they poured everything into it and they really love it.”

“If you’re trying to challenge an audience and make them look at elements in a different way, you’ve got to give them a familiar context to hang onto. But you have to be very aware that the audience is extremely ruthless in its demand for newness, novelty and freshness.”

“Keep trying to do great work.”

Onwards and upwards!

Chris Jones

My movies www.LivingSpiritGroup.com

My Facebook www.Facebook.com/ChrisJonesFilmmaker

My Twitter @LivingSpiritPix

Sign up to my mailing list for updates on events, books and free film making tools