Kenneth Atchity's Blog, page 70
October 26, 2020
Getting Your Story Straight: Revision
Professional coaching tips to help you figure out point of view, structure, and master all the elements of story. Learn more: http://www.thewriterslifeline.com/
October 23, 2020
'The Meg 2' Finds its Director With 'Rebecca' Filmmaker Ben Wheatley
Warner Bros. is going back in the water for another bite.
The studio has set filmmaker Ben Wheatley, whose updated version of Gothic tale Rebecca debuted this week, to direct the sequel to its 2018 giant shark thriller hit, The Meg.
Much of key talent from the first movie is expected to return, including Jason Statham, who is said to be creatively involved. Jon and Erich Hoeber wrote the most recent draft working off an initial draft by Dean Georgaris (all three shared credit on the intial outting). Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Belle Avery are back as producers.
Meg starred as Statham as a shark expert who fights tooth and nail against a giant prehistoric shark called a megalodon. Jon Turteltaub, known for the National Treasure movies, directed the movie, which proved to be a worldwide hit, chomping its way to $530.3 million globally. The movie, an adaptation of the novel by Steve Alten, was a Chinese co-production and saw Li Bingbing, Rainn Wilson and Ruby Rose round out the cast.
Catherine Ying, Li Ruigang, E. Bennett Walsh, Gerald Molen and Randy Greenberg are exec producing.
Wheatley is a British filmmaker with a penchant for the dark and satirically skewed. He has racked up awards for his horror and crime movies such as Sightseers and Kill List, with each directorial outing working its way up the budgetary and acting ranks. He generated buzz for the 2015 dystopian thriller High Rise, which starred Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons, and followed that up with action comedy Free Fire, which starred Brie Larson, Cillian Murphy and Armie Hammer. Wheatley reteamed with the latter for Rebecca, which also stars Lily James and Kristin Scott Thomas, and is one of Netflix’s big movies of the fall season.
Read more at The Hollywood Reporter
Ken's Weekly Book Recommendation: Silence Her by Doug Fetterly
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
An idealistic journalist's daring activism puts her life on the line after she publically takes on corruption and the FDA.
October 20, 2020
In Conversation with Hollywood Film producer, Author, Literary Agent & Screenwriter — Ken Atchity.
With more than fifty years’ experience in the publishing world and over thirty years in entertainment, Dr. Ken Atchity (PhD Yale) has been called a “story merchant”—writer, professor, editor, producer, and literary manager. He’s launched hundreds of books and films, including New York Times bestsellers and Emmy-nominated documentaries, making over 200 films and television deals-with every broadcaster and every studio in Hollywood, and many independent film companies as well, including; HBO, Universal, CBS, Walt Disney, Warner Brothers, Paramount, NBC, Discovery, Regency, and Fox 2000 Pictures.
October 16, 2020
October 13, 2020
Getting Your Story Straight: Point of View
Professional coaching tips to help you figure out point of view, structure, and master all the elements of story.Learn more @ thewriterslifeline.comFollow Ken's series on IGTV @storymerchant
October 12, 2020
A Great Jason Statham Movie Is Finding Lots Of Love On Netflix
Jason Statham has been a regular fixture on our screens for over two decades now, but in the last few years, he’s enjoyed the most box office success of his career, largely due to his involvement in the Expendables and Fast and Furious franchises. Before that, the 53 year-old reigned for a long time as the king of the B-level action movie, churning out a series of formulaic genre flicks that were never anything less than watchable. But his career has really reached a whole new level as of late.
While a scene-stealing supporting role in Paul Feig’s Spy revealed a superb comic talent hidden underneath the rough exterior, Statham has tended to rely on his unique blend of gruff charisma to sell his personal brand, and it’s worked wonders for him. As a former competitive diver that represented his country at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, the Snatch star is obviously no stranger to the water, either, and that experience came in pretty handy when he headlined 2018 blockbuster The Meg.
National Treasure director Jon Turteltaub’s giant shark movie isn’t designed to engage the brain, but as an enjoyably preposterous piece of big budget entertainment, it definitely does the job. Jaws it most certainly isn’t, but it nonetheless ticks all of the boxes that you’d expect from a PG-13 effort armed with a budget of $150 million and populated almost entirely by recognizable but hardly A-list actors.
Audiences seemed to get a kick out of it, too, as The Meg wound up earning over $530 million at the box office, and a sequel is unsurprisingly said to be in the works. Netflix subscribers are loving it just as much as well it seems, as the enjoyable slice of mindless escapism is currently the ninth most popular title on the streaming service across the entire world today, with tons of people no doubt digging all the thrills it has to offer up.
October 8, 2020
Dr. Meg Van Deusen Author of "Stressed in the U.S. on The Panic Pod
LISTEN HERE
In this episode of the Panic Pod, Ella has a conversation with Dr. Meg Van Deusen, a Seattle-based psychologist and author of the new book Stressed in the U.S.: 12 Tools to Tackle Anxiety, Loneliness, Tech Addiction and More.
Through the stress of the Coronavirus pandemic, climate crisis related events, and state of racial inequality and the presidential election in the U.S., Dr. Van Deusen provides hope using tools that have come from practical experience as a therapist. Just a few of the many tools in her book are discussed in this interview against the backdrop of our present-day stresses.
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON
Follow Meg Van Deusen on social media or learn more about her at https://www.megvandeusen.com/
October 6, 2020
Produced BY: Mentoring Matters by Kia Kiso
Mentoring Matters - Developing A Career: Learning To Identify The Story You Want And Go After ItBy Kia Kiso,
I have more than 90 credits as an AC/Loader, Telecine Colorist and VFX Coordinator, but eight years ago I heeded my lifelong calling to produce. Since then I have shepherded award-winning videos, promos for CBS and launched two feature documentaries on Netflix. In 2013 I joined the PGA because I knew of its many benefits, and I wanted to be part of a community of like-minded creatives. Currently I have focused on building my production company to develop fictional content, with an aim at creating compelling and unique stories in order to make the world a better place.
When I applied to the 2016 PGA Mentoring Program, I had just walked away from the option on a book into which I had put a lot of time and resources. I was disappointed and wished I could have saved the project. The experience led me to realize that development was an aspect of producing I was less familiar with. I was looking for expert advice on how to assess opportunities, set up a project for success, handle relationships with authors, lawyers and talent, and run a production company.
Thankfully the PGA Mentoring Program paired me with producer Ken Atchity. I was thrilled to be matched with Ken for a lot of reasons, among them his industry experience and teaching background. However I admit, I was especially attracted to his philosophy—“I believe in the power of stories to change the world.”
Our first connection was an in-person, 90-minute meeting, in which he gave me feedback on a particular project of mine. Ken had some great advice about pitching—if a project tackles potentially controversial or delicate issues, Ken advised weaving some well-researched statistics or facts into the pitch to send the message that the material wouldn’t suggest a problem for the network and lead to a premature no. He wrapped up the meeting saying I could contact him about the project at any time, even after the mentorship ends. Very generous. Since that first meeting, we’ve had a pivotal phone conversation during which he suggested I was in a great position to go after an option I was very excited about, helping me to design a strategy on how to move forward quickly—starting with enhancing my relationship with the rights owner. He’s been ready to answer any questions by email. Even as recently as this morning, we were in touch to discuss a lunch I was preparing for with a writer who wanted to work with me.
Ken has been wonderful. He celebrates my triumphs and brainstorms solutions to my challenges. I am very grateful for his willingness to participate in the Mentoring Program and to the Producers Guild for providing it
October 5, 2020
Dealing With Your Type-C Creative Mind: Know Thyself
For all storytellers—novelists, screenwriters, journalists, nonfiction writers, and children’s book writers.
Learn more about One-on-one coaching to help understand a Type-C personality and equip you with practical tools to make yourself more productive and less frustrated with storytelling.
Learn more at www.thewriterslifeline.com
