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specs I’ve seen series

A Look In The Spec Pile: 5 Winning Screenplays (@ShoreScripts Screenwriting Competition 2015)

B2W was asked to be a judge for the Shore Scripts Screenwriting Competition this year. Bang2writers talk highly of this competition, plus Shore Scripts wrote a great post on last year’s entries for this site, so I was happy to accept. As a judge, I didn’t read ALL the submissions – just the final five, all winners. All five are good scripts, plucked from a pile of 1800 screenplays and scored for their concepts and craft. My job as judge then was to read those winning scripts and decide which ORDER I feel they should come in, 1-5. First up though,… Read More »A Look In The Spec Pile: 5 Winning Screenplays (@ShoreScripts Screenwriting Competition 2015)

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5 Reasons I Got Involved In ASSASSIN

  1. It has not one, but TWO savvy female characters … As regular Bang2writers know, my passion is for female characters who have agency of their own and pull their weight in the narrative. Unlike many gangster films where females are purely there for decoration, Chloe and Alex both contribute to the story and are absolutely essential to the plot beats. As writer/director JK Amalou says, “The female characters play a bigger part in our story than is usual in films of this type.” 2. … But there are no patronising gender politics. I obviously read a lot of… Read More »5 Reasons I Got Involved In ASSASSIN

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Scripts I’ve Seen # 5: TRAIL OF EVIL by JK Amalou

You may have seen JK Amalou’s name on the SP Screenwriters’ list – like me, he offers a script reading service for you lot out in www.land, but unlike me, he’s written, produced and directed his own films, not to mention worked in the US as a writer and consultant for all sorts of Hollywood Tinsel types, including Martin Scorsese and Richard Gladstein. JK is a trusted reader and contact of mine and I’m pleased to say over time he’s trusted me with all his scripts too. I’ve been quite privileged to see such a body of work (oo er)… Read More »Scripts I’ve Seen # 5: TRAIL OF EVIL by JK Amalou

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Specs I’ve Seen # 4: IN GOD’S NAME by John Killeen

It’s been a while since my last confession… I mean post, in this series. There are so many great specs doing the rounds, but IN GOD’S NAME by Bang2writer John Killeen has placed not only as a Quarter Finalist in Bluecat and Silver Screenwriting, it made the top fifteen per cent of the Nicholl AND the semi-finals of Big Break! That’s quite a feat by anyone’s standards, so I thought I’d take a look at what makes this big budget action-thriller such a hit with readers over the pond, since I’ve read it too. IN GOD’S NAME might sound like… Read More »Specs I’ve Seen # 4: IN GOD’S NAME by John Killeen

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Specs I’ve Seen # 3: Technicolor By Martin Adams

Technicolor, a feature by Martin Adams is a particularly interesting project for me, not only because I have been script editing it on London Metropolitan University’s Metlab course, but because it originally came to me as a short film script well over a year ago. Martin is a particularly able short film writer – it’s a style I have never mastered myself (I find it difficult to think “small” enough, if that makes sense) – and when Technicolor first came through the doors of Bang2write, it was approximately ten minutes long. The tale of a man haunted by the ghost… Read More »Specs I’ve Seen # 3: Technicolor By Martin Adams

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Specs I’ve Seen # 2: The Vigil By Caroline Henry

Caroline first approached me last October, so she’s been a confirmed Bang2writer for almost a year. She told me she had come to writing later in life, having had all the commitments of marriage, family and work first – but it had always been something she wanted to do. Having had no formal training in creative writing, Caroline wisely wanted to “work her way up” through the basics of screenwriting by first attempting some shorts, then longer scripts, then eventually a feature – and of course I was happy to assist her. Caroline first sent me two shorts, VOLUPTUA and… Read More »Specs I’ve Seen # 2: The Vigil By Caroline Henry

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Specs I’ve Seen #1: The Woman Who Screamed Butterflies By David Bishop

Often spec screenwriters will ask me to nominate and talk about another spec work with them that I’ve read that I’ve thought particularly good. As a reader however I take confidentiality seriously, so I have to decline. These repeated requests however got me thinking and I’ve approached several writers whose work I’ve admired and asked them if I can write about their work on the blog. This is the first of the series.————————————————————————————-I’ve been a big fan of David Bishop’s work for some time now: originally a Bang2write paying client (oo er), David’s now one of my own trusted circle… Read More »Specs I’ve Seen #1: The Woman Who Screamed Butterflies By David Bishop

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