Thursday, March 30, 2006

Billy Mernit on conventionality and salability

From "Living the Romantic Comedy":

When a reader (professional reader, producer, actor, director, civilian, et al) reads the first page of a screenplay, what is the last thing this reader wants to see?

Something they've read before.


As a reader and a writer, nothing deadens my soul, puts my hope and imagination to sleep faster, than the sense that I'm being told One of Those Stories in the Same Old Way. Now it's true that what the studio is looking for is a project that's "commercial," which by common wisdom is a story deemed to be a familiar, acessible, sellable. But in truth, the studio ideal is a story that's the same, only different.

Read the full article entitled "Mysteries of the Unrepeatable" now.

1 comment:

ScriptWeaver said...

What a small world!

I was the one who asked Billy Mernit the question that prompted his great answer!

And I...

... just happen to be a reader for the Austin Film Festival!

Hi Dawn!