Conversations in Film: Writing Action!

We will be kicking off our 2012 Conversation in Film Series this month with a bang. Derek Haas (3:10 TO YUMAS, WANTED, 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS) and Ric Roman Waugh (ex-stuntman, FELON, the upcoming SNITCH and EVEL) will join us Tuesday, February 21st for a discussion on Writing Action. Using film clips and scenes from their scripts, Ric and Derek will talk about how to craft effective action scenes on the page that both further your story and convey the tension and energy that will translate to the screen.

Derek Haas is the author of several novels and co-wrote the screenplays for 3:10 TO YUMA, WANTED, 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS and THE DOUBLE. In 2008 he published his novel THE SILVER BEAR about the young contract killer Columbus. The sequel, COLUMBUS, was released in 2009. Derek is also the creator and editor of popcornfiction.com, where he publishes short stories by various authors. Haas explains that the site "grew out of a love for pulpy short fiction that used to dominate popular magazines in the mid-20th Century. I wanted to create a place where new popular short fiction could flourish, and Hollywood could have a new resource for cultivating great ideas."

Ric Roman Waugh began his career as a stuntman and became one of the youngest stunt coordinators at the age of eighteen. Gaining success as a writer, Waugh has developed, written, and rewritten over 20 studio-based feature film screenplays for producers such as Jerry Bruckheimer, Mark Gordon, Neil Moritz, Barry Josephson, Todd Garner, Mark Canton, Jim Sheridan and Nick Wechsler.  His latest screenplay, titled THE BRAND, is a dramatic thriller about the rise of the Aryan brotherhood with Leonardo DiCaprio set to star and Marc Foster to direct. His next feature film to start this fall will be EVEL, a biopic on the legendary daredevil, Evel Knievel. You can read more about EVEL in this article written for The Hollywood Reporter.

The event will take place at the Harry Ransom Center, and to kick off the series, we'll be having a reception in the lobby at 5pm prior to the Conversation. Take in the incredible exhibit created for the occasion from the amazing film collection at the Harry Ransom Center, including the storyboard panels from the burning of Atlanta scene in GONE WITH THE WIND (below), as well as storyboards from REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE, TOP GUN, and more.

 Storyboards from GONE WITH THE WIND

  

Conversations in Film: Writing Action! takes place at 6pm on Tuesday, February 21st at the Harry Ransom Center. Tickets are $10 for general admission, $8 for AFF members, and can be purchased online here.

Admission to the opening reception and exhibit is free! Doors open at 5pm.