happy new year
December 31, 2011
fire!
December 23, 2011
On Monday night, my cousin’s teen daughters, Solana and Maya, lost their home.
It burned to the ground.
Literally.
I am beyond grateful Solana and Maya and their mother Stefanie are okay. But they need, well —
Everything.
If you have extra clothes — emphasis on teenage girl clothes — you were thinking of tossing [the girls are sizes 2-6] please consider packing them up and sending them to:
Solana & Maya
c/o Marta Schill
PO Box 1118
Sierra Madre Ca 91025
And please consider doing that TODAY. I know it’s the holidays. I know everyone is crazed. But teenage girls need clothes.
Thank you for helping,
Your Teenage Girls Need Clothes Adams Girl
the emergency pitch
December 21, 2011
It’s October, 2011. I’m in Austin attending the Austin Film Festival. There is a huge barbeque at this French Legionnaire place that I have not figured out yet, but it is in with the film crowd, I have been there before to see an outside open air screening. The Legionnaire yard is a big open space. The sun is high. The grass is green and prickly. There are white canvas tents parked over picnic type tables. The meal of the day is barbeque – allegedly authentic Texas barbeque. [I'm sure we are in Texas. I'm not so sure about the food.] I’d rather be admiring David Boreanaz from afar than eating questionable barbeque or talking shop but one of my workshoppers grabs me by the arm and says, There’s someone here who’d like Jane’s story. [Her name isn't really Jane, but it works for this story.] Can she pitch?
“Jane” is another workshopper. She can write. We both know that. We’ve read her pages in workshop. I have no idea whether she can pitch though. I say, I don’t know, let’s find out. I turn to Jane. What’s your story about?
Jane can’t pitch. I’m getting a jumble of information none of which is telling me what the story is about. Uh oh.
What follows is fifteen minutes of intense “No, that’s not a pitch. Okay, not that, who’s doing this? Okay, what does he want? Okay, what must he do? No, not that, what must he do to not end up dead at the end of this story? Going back and forth with Jane, and then with my other workshopper — who seriously can pitch which is one reason she has the contact in the first place — till we have a simple one sentence description of the story that tells someone what the story is about. And then my other workshopper hauls Jane off to meet the important someone who would like Jane’s story and the important someone hears the short pitch and says, Send me the script.
Tragically, by the time this is all over, I am wrung out and David Boreanaz has moved on. [TRAGEDY!] But. My workshopper has a new contact and a submission and hasn’t embarrassed my other workshopper out of the business.
There are a few things you should be paying attention to there.
One, even though both of us knew Jane could write, my other workshopper was not going to introduce Jane to an important contact unless she knew Jane could pitch — because if Jane couldn’t pitch, that introduction would hurt my other workshopper. “Guilt by association.” That is not just for breakfast. You make a bad intro, your credibility just went down a notch too.
Two, my other workshopper came to me because she knew I would know or could find out real fast whether Jane could pitch. She didn’t go to Jane because she couldn’t trust Jane to know. Lots of writers don’t know they can’t pitch, they think they can pitch just fine – and can’t. So Jane would just say, Sure. But that might not be an accurate answer.
Three, if we hadn’t been able to slam a short pitch together in those fifteen minutes, Jane would never have met that contact or gotten that submission request. We could pull that off because there were two of us who seriously knew how to pitch right there hammering the right information out of Jane and stringing the pitch together for her. But. On her own? Never would have happened.
Think you can pitch?
Think or know?
In this business you have to know.
*The Art of the Pitch begins January 10th.
how you may fall for a girl on facebook
December 21, 2011
max’s holiday recipe
December 10, 2011
Oh yez, it is that time of year, when people overwhelmed by the season regularly invite you over, with one caveat: You are expected to prepare, with your own hands and in your own kitchen, some sort of delicacy to present gatherers at these holiday extravaganzas — for consumption.
[WTF?!]
This can be not only problematic, but also endanger party guests if you are food prep impaired. Fortunately, I have evolved a recipe for just these types of holiday gatherings.
[Yes, I am a genius.]
Max’s Holiday Recipe for Gatherings that Require Prepared Food Stuffs:
1. Carefully prepare a basket, something pretty with maybe a little lacy cloth.
2. Place small notes and candy canes in envelopes.
3. Place envelopes in basket.
4. Place basket strategically on dessert table.
5. All done!
Notes vary but mine usually say “I didn’t cook and you are not in the E.R. You’re welcome.”
los angeles knocks down corporate “personhood” yay!
December 8, 2011
On December 6th, 2011, Los Angeles amended its constitution and became the first city to reserve constitutional rights and liberties for human beings only. Good job, Los Angeles!
ps: see michele sutter in there? go michele go!
january classes
December 7, 2011
JANUARY CLASSES
Two January classes The Art of the Pitch and Visual Writing start January 10th. There is a preview of things to come in Art of the Pitch on the Austin Film Festival blog.
VISUAL WRITING
Begins January 10, 2012
MAKE YOUR READERS “SEE” YOUR MOVIE: You will learn how to use the visual elements space, light, and texture to create locations and scenes readers can “see”; how to establish and utilize perspective in scenes and sequences to make a script visually dynamic; how to create and utilize perspective; techniques to make characters visually dynamic and “real” for readers; techniques to juxtapose exterior and interior visuals to create visually dynamic motion and space on the film screen; and more….
Instructor | Max Adams
Reading Material | supplied in class forum & library | some outside material is linked to
Viewing Materials | posted or available via Netflix, iTunes, YouTube or your friendly neighborhood video rental
Weekly Chats | Thursday nights | 8 PM EST
Class Seating Limit : 12 |
Course Fee : $375 |
THE ART OF THE PITCH
Begins January 10, 2012
GET READ AND SELL: You will learn the five essential elements your pitch must contain to sell to producers and studios; the two pitch models; action driven vs. character driven pitching; the six points an elevator pitch must contain to interest a potential buyer — and what an elevator pitch is; how to open; how to close; how to use your story’s turning points to make your story compelling; when film comparisons work — and when they don’t; how to address the specific concerns of different members of the entertainment industry; and how to condense and expand your pitch to take advantage of new pitching opportunities and mediums.
Instructor | Max Adams
Reading Material | supplied in class forum & library. Some outside material is linked to.
Viewing Materials | posted or available via Netflix, iTunes, YouTube or your friendly neighborhood video rental.
Weekly Chats | Thursday nights | 9 PM EST.
Class Seating Limit : 12 |
Course Fee : $375 |
FUTURE CLASSES:
Two March classes High Concept Writing and Character Writing start March 13th, 2012. For a full list of upcoming classes visit :::classes:::
