AFF for the First-Timer by Jennifer Westcott

Jennifer Westcott on the set of LOCKED IN A GARAGE BAND.

LOCKED IN A GARAGE BAND, written and directed by Jennifer Westcott and produced by her sister Victoria Westcott, at the 2012 Austin Film Festival.

Sisters Jennifer and Victoria Westcott attended the Austin Film Festival for the first time last year, in 2010, and enthusiastically made the most of all the event had to offer – panels, films, workshops and most importantly, networking and introducing themselves to our guest speakers.

We thought they were the perfect people to have share their Festival experience as we announce our Independent Filmmaking Panel series planned for the 2011 Conference. They just wrapped production on their first feature film, Locked in a Garage Band, which was written and directed by Jennifer and produced by Victoria.

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AFF for the First-Timer by Jennifer Westcott

My sister Vicky and I experienced the awesomeness that is the Austin Film Festival for the first time last year. Knowing that we were going to be shooting our first feature in the months to follow (I as the writer/director, she as the producer) we wanted to milk as much information, fun and networking as we possibly could out of our two producer badges. And milk those badges we did! We learned more in four panel-packed days than either of us thought possible, partied harder than since we were students, and made a ton of amazing friends that have since helped us survive the crazy that is making your first feature with their unshakeable support, guidance and all-round kickassery.

So here’s our Top Ten Must-Dos for Rocking the AFF:

1. Go Big. Get the badge that gives you the most bang for your buck. We went whole hog: The Producer’s Badge. It gets you into everything - movies, panels, pitch competition, awards ceremonies, round-tables, PARTIES. Yeah, it costs the most but it gets you the most. If you can even remotely afford it, get it. You will not regret it.

2. Get Your Priorities Straight. We knew we wanted to learn as much as we possibly could, so we split up. I hit as many writer/director panels as humanly possible (side note: if you ever get a chance to hear Michael Arndt give a talk about screenwriting, you must do everything in your power to attend - YOU MUST) while Vicky attended what some might see as the less glamorous panels about the nuts and bolts of filmmaking. You might not think that compared to hearing Shane Black and Robert Rodriguez riff about story, delving into the legal intricacies of music licensing or learning how to assemble a competent no-budget film crew would actually be cool. But you’d be wrong. She walked away from those panels a crap-ton more knowledgeable than when she went in and that much more prepared to produce our feature. So figure out what you want to learn and plan accordingly. It’s all there.

3. Talk to Strangers. That’s right. Ignore what your parents told you. The only way to meet people is to talk to them! Sure, you’re alone and feeling dorky and maybe everyone seems way, way cooler than you (or maybe that’s just how I felt?) but I promise you, there are a bunch of other people in that conference room (or lobby, or bar) who feel exactly the same way, and they’re either pretending to be engrossed in their festival guide or riveted by their smartphone. Trust me. They’re not. TALK TO THEM!

4. Pace Yourself. If you’re really going to get all you can out of AFF, your days are going to be jam-packed learning stuff and your nights will be spent partying with your new friends talking about everything you just learned. It can be overwhelming. So make sure you eat - Austin has some of the best food anywhere. Enjoy it. Get some sleep. And I’m sure I’m going to sound like your shawl-clutching, pearl-clasping grandma with this next bit of advice, but take it easy on the booze. Hangovers make it hard to get out of bed in time to make the morning panels.

5. Choose Your Accomodations Wisely. Stay somewhere close. Preferably at a hotel or with a friend within walking distance of the Driskill (or better yet, stay at the Driskill!) Saving a few bucks on a hotel room further afield will just mean you spend it on cabs after staying out too late partying with all of your new friends.

6. It’s All About Location, Location, Location. Where you sit in the room, that is. Get to your panels/workshops/round-tables/table-reads early and get a good seat! Watching the hottest Hollywood actors read an amazing Black-List script is way better when you’re feet don’t hurt from having to stand at the back of the room.

7. Be Cool (otherwise known as Don’t be a Dick). This really belongs in the Talk to Strangers portion of our Must-Dos, but I didn’t want to put too much pressure on those readers who feel freaked out enough by having to speak to someone they don’t know, let alone having to worry about whether or not they’re coming off as a dick (truth be told, it’s been my experience that people who worry about being dicks usually aren’t dicks. Take from that what you will.) Be open. Listen. Be polite. Smile. Wanna make friends with a cool producer or star screenwriter? Don’t just shove your business card in their hand and mumble about having the next billion dollar script sitting on your laptop waiting to be discovered. Talk to them. Try to find some common ground...a mutual interest...a shared hobby...anything to forge some kind of genuine connection. Better yet, talk to everyone. You never know who the person you’re sitting next to will turn out to be. Last year I started up a conversation with a woman who’d snuck her chihuahua into a film screening - having three of my own, I was naturally impressed at her chutzpah. We got to chatting and she revealed that she was a development executive at a major studio. She requested my script, loved it and passed it along to the studio head who then purchased it in a high-seven figure deal that turned out to be the spec sale of the decade. Our two families bought a time share in Majorca last month. OK. That was all a complete lie. Especially the part about me having three chihuahuas. But it TOTALLY could have happened. So be cool.

8. Deets. Have business cards. Give them out (when asked! see Don’t Be a Dick for further study). A little tip: keep them in your badge holder, that way you always have them around and don’t have to rummage through your purse or man-bag to find them. Store cards that people give you in there, too. It’s a perfect little system. Thank you AFF!

9. See Some Movies. With everything going on around you, you might forget that there are a whole whackload of awesome films being screened all around you in some of the coolest theaters you’re ever going to get to see a movie in. Watching a film at the Alamo Drafthouse is an experience unto itself - there are servers who bring you food and alcohol (Yes. You read that right. Alcohol.) right to your seat. It is insane. So, go. See a movie there. Have your mind blown. Aspire to having one of your movies shown there someday. Dream.

10. Rinse and Repeat. That’s right, odds are, you’ll return to do it all again the next year. We are. See you in October!


Jennifer and Victoria Westcott both live in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. We look forward to their submitting LOCKED IN A GARAGE BAND for the 2012 Austin Film Festival Film Competition!

Announcing 2011 Script-to-Screen Panels!

The 2011 Script-to-Screen conversations will include examinations of FIGHT CLUB with screenwriter Jim Uhls, THE GRADUATE with screenwriter Buck Henry, and “Veronica Mars” with creator Rob Thomas. During the Script-To-Screen section of the Conference lineup, film and television writers go in depth about their triumphs and tragedies as they worked to bring the project from script to screen.

Advance sign up is now open to Weekend, Conference and Producers Badge holders only for THE GRADUATE with Buck Henry and "Veronica Mars" with Rob Thomas. Advance sign up is open to Conference and producers Badge holders only for FIGHT CLUB with Jim Uhls.

If you already have a Producers Badge or Conference Badge, just forward your confirmation e-mail to maya@austinfilmfestival.com with the title/s in the subject line: FIGHT CLUB, THE GRADUATE and/or "Veronica Mars."

If you have not yet purchased your Badge, you may purchase here and then send an e-mail including your name, mailing address and phone number to maya@austinfilmfestival.com with the title/s in the subject line: FIGHT CLUB, THE GRADUATE and/or "Veronica Mars."

If you have a Lone Star or a Weekend Badge, you can call our office at 800.310.3378 to upgrade your Badge and then - you guessed it - send an e-mail including your name, mailing address and phone number to maya@austinfilmfestival.com with the title/s in the subject line: FIGHT CLUB, THE GRADUATE and/or "Veronica Mars."

2011 SCRIPT-TO-SCREEN PANELS



Script-to-Screen: FIGHT CLUB with Jim Uhls

In 1997, Chuck Palahniuk's manuscript for the soon to be published FIGHT CLUB had made the rounds all over town and been rejected by everybody as being "unadaptable." Laura Ziskin, then the executive running Fox 2000, a branch of Fox newly created with the mandate to do more experimental and serious film projects, was convinced the novel could be a film and hired screenwriter Jim Uhls to write the adaptation. David Fincher was brought on to direct and develop the script with Uhls, and FIGHT CLUB, starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter, went on to become one of the most controversial and talked-about films of 1999, turning the book into an instant cult classic.

With script in hand and film clips on the wall, screenwriter Jim Uhls (FIGHT CLUB, SEMPER FI, JUMPER - full bio available here) will dissect his critically acclaimed screenplay FIGHT CLUB, discussing his writing process, what worked, what didn't, what needed to be changed for film production and why. This case study will contain information that screenwriters and filmmakers can apply to their own works.

Attendees will get the most out of this session if they have watched the film and read both the screenplay (coming soon) and Chuck Palahniuk's novel (available in libraries and bookstores.) Date & time TBA.





Script-to-Screen: THE GRADUATE with Buck Henry

"...funniest American comedy of the year." - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, 1967

Ranked as the seventh greatest film of all time on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies, THE GRADUATE is a 1967 classic comedy-drama directed by Mike Nichols and based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb. The screenplay was written by the prolific Buck Henry, Oscar-nominated screenwriter (for his adaptation of THE GRADUATE) and director (for HEAVEN CAN WAIT, along with co-director Warren Beatty), and the film went on to receive Academy Award nominations for Best Cinematography, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture, as well as acting nominations for Anne Bancroft, Dustin Hoffman, and Katharine Ross. Mike Nichols won the Academy Award for Best Director.

On Saturday afternoon, October 22nd, from 2:15 - 4:15PM, with film clips on the wall, Buck Henry (whose screenwriting credits also include TO DIE FOR, WHAT'S UP, DOC?, THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT, CATCH-22, as well as the original television series "Get Smart" - his full bio available here) will dissect his critically acclaimed screenplay THE GRADUATE, discussing his writing process and the film's production, what worked, what didn't, what needed to be changed and why. This case study will contain information that screenwriters and filmmakers can apply to their own works.

Attendees will get the most out of this session if they have re-watched the film and read both the screenplay (coming soon) and Charles Webb's novel (available in libraries and bookstores.)




Script-to-Screen: "Veronica Mars" with Rob Thomas

"Best. Show. Ever. Seriously, I've never gotten more wrapped up in a show I wasn't making, and maybe even more than those... These guys know what they're doing on a level that intimidates me. It's the Harry Potter of shows."
- Joss Whedon

"Nancy Drew meets Philip Marlowe, and the result is pure nitro. Why is Veronica Mars so good? It bears little resemblance to life as I know it, but I can't take my eyes off the damn thing."
- Stephen King

Rob Thomas' critically acclaimed TV series "Veronica Mars," starring Kristen Bell in the title role, premiered on September 22, 2004 during television network UPN's final two years, and ended tragically prematurely on May 22, 2007. During the series' run, it was nominated for two Satellite Awards, four Saturn Awards, five Teen Choice Awards and was featured on AFI's TV Programs of the Year for 2005.

With script in hand and film clips on the wall, television producer, screenwriter, and author Rob Thomas ("Veronica Mars," "Party Down," "Cupid," "90210" '08, DRIVE ME CRAZY - full bio available here) will dissect his pilot episode of "Veronica Mars." Using this episode as a case study for how a TV show comes together, he will discuss how the idea for the show came about, the research and staff writing process, and other aspects of the show's production.

Attendees will get the most out of this session if they have watched the episode - really, all seasons - and read the teleplay (available here.) Please note: this is the very first draft of the pilot, not the shooting teleplay, so attendees will better see the evolution. Date & time TBA.


Please note that all speakers and events are based on permitting schedules and subject to change and/or cancellation without notice.

18 Days of Austin Film Festival Membership

Do you want to see a bunch of free movies year-round? Do you want discount prices on film related events or to this year's festival? Do you want to look cool? Well, an AFF year-round membership can do all of those for you.

And guess what? If you sign up for a membership from now until August 1st, you could win a daily giveaway from Violet Crown Cinemas, Yoga Yoga, Texas Tribune Festival, Uchi/Uchiko, Pearl Brewery, Fun Fun Fun Fest...the list goes on and on. Free stuff is cool!

You can't get an opportunity like this with any other membership in Austin, so take advantage of it while you have the chance.

Upcoming Member Events:
Fright Night (1985)
How to Eat Fried Worms
Friday Night Lights Membership Happy Hour Event
Friday Night Lights (TV Series)
The Debt - Advance Screening
Piranha (1978)

Interview with "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Seinfeld" Writer Alec Berg

It's shaping up to be a great year for TV and screenwriter Alec Berg, with Larry David, Sacha Cohen and Anna Faris all on his production playlist, and we can't wait to hear all about it this October at the Conference. In the meantime, check out the below brief interview we just did with him. But first, some more info on Alec:

Alec Berg’s television credits include "Seinfeld" where he was a writer and executive producer, and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" where he currently serves as a writer, executive producer and director.

His feature film work includes writing the screenplays for The Cat in the Hat (which was made into a terrible film) and Eurotrip (which he produced and co-directed and is excellent.) He is currently writing and producing The Dictator for Sacha Baron Cohen. He has also done extensive rewriting, having worked on films for Jim Carrey, Will Ferrell, Will Smith, Ivan Reitman and Robert Zemeckis.

Alec has been nominated for numerous Emmy awards, a WGA Award, a DGA award and a Razzie (yes, for The Cat in the Hat, it’s that bad.)


Austin Film Festival: Tell us about your new feature THE DICTATOR. How did this project come about?

​Alec Berg: It comes out next May. Sacha Baron Cohen is great in it. The longish, slightly boring story of my involvement: years ago my partners (David Mandel, Jeff Schaffer) and I worked with Larry Charles on Seinfeld. Larry went off to direct Borat, and when they were editing he asked us to come in for a day or two to help them come up with a new ending. In the process we got to know Sacha, who hired us to do a lot of work on Bruno. At that point we had Sacha's ear so we came up with a few ideas and pitched him (among other things)the basic character and story of what became The Dictator. And he said no. To everything we pitched him. Then a few days later he called and said that in spite of his better instincts this Dictator idea had been growing on him, and we started to kick it back and forth and kept getting together and it grew and eventually after several months of working it up we set up a bunch of pitch meetings, took it around and eventually sold it to Paramount, who put it into production.

​I don't want to give away too much other than we shot it over the summer in New York and a bit in Spain, it comes out this May and I think it's really really funny and at one point during production I got urinated on by a cow.


AFF: Can you give us some of your background? How you got involved with
the film industry?

​AB: I was a comedy nerd growing up. I listened to stand-up records the way other kids listened to music. When I was ten I could do hours of Bill Cosby and Steve Martin bits word perfect. I went to high-school in Pasadena, so I was show-business adjacent, just close enough to see it as a possible future. Actually a bunch of people I grew up with ended up working in show business, Ted Griffin, Mike White and Sean Bailey among them. In college I did a lot of film-making and wrote forthe college humor magazine, which got me more interested in the writing side of things. I decided I wanted to give writing a shot before I caved in and got a real job, so after I graduated college I spent about six months living with my parents (who had moved to Massachusetts at this point) writing like a fiend, generating a bunch of samples. Eventually it became clear that (as is the case today) you really have to move to L.A. to get started. So I scraped together enough money to last for a few months and headed out to L.A.. I spent those few months relentlessly calling and harassing anyone and everyone I could, asking them to read my stuff or give me thoughts on how to break in. Finally one small thing led to another until after three years of patchwork jobs, none lasting longer than thirteen weeks, I finally got a break and got hired at the brand new Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Then I got Seinfeld, and that became a bit of a calling card.


AFF: Even though Hollywood operates in trends i.e., indie, high concepts, etc. Do you see a common thread in the stories you tell?

AB: Are you asking if my stories fit into a specific genre? I hope the common thread, should there be one, is that they are funny. But just as importantly that they are well written. Most of what I learned about screenwriting I learned from Larry David. He taught me the value of structure. We would spend weeks and weeks, sometimes months, outlining a single "Seinfeld" episode to the point where you could take that outline and write a draft from it in a couple of days (we still write the same way on "Curb"). And it's how I continue to work. Structure, structure, structure. Every single thing in a script must advance the plot or define a character more deeply (ideally both, in a hilarious way) or it will die in the edit. If something doesn't HAVE to be in your script then it shouldn't be. Of course, comedy trumps. If it makes you piss yourself laughing then you figure out a way to keep it.


AFF: From a writer's perspective, which is easier to break into and establish yourself as a writer, TV or film?​

​AB: I think it depends a lot on your personality as a writer. I always liked writing with other people. TV is more conducive to that, especially comedy. Most TV comedies are written in groups. It's a very collaborative process. But impose that process on a lot of solitary feature writers and they blanch at the idea of having other people question their ideas and paw through their work in progress.On the flipside of that coin, a lot of TV writers would hang themselves if they were locked in a room alone and forced to write for any length of time.

​The key difference breaking in is that TV is about selling yourself and your value as an ongoing contributor to a show, while features are more about selling this specific thing you've written. I'd buy a great script from an asshole, but I wouldn't want to sit in a room with them for fourteen hours a day. And honestly, in terms of which one's easier to break into, I don't have the foggiest idea. I'm fairly certain if I were starting today I'd fail.


AFF: While "Seinfeld" and "Curb" are their own shows in many ways, they ultimately represent a nearly unbroken, two-decade-long streak of observational humor and socially dysfunctional characters that have remained consistently hilarious. Is a "show about nothing" the best bet for longevity?

AB: I think the best bet for longevity is to somehow trick Larry David into hiring you, con him into thinking you're a valuable member of his team, then work really really hard to keep him happy. I don't use the term genius lightly, but I am a genius and I think Larry David is one of the great comedic minds of our time.


AFF: Will this be your first time to Austin? What are you most looking forward to - are there fellow panelists you already know? Anyone you're looking forward to meeting?

AB: I've been to Austin several times but never for the festival. I'm friendly with a number of the panelists, and mortal enemies with one as well (he knows exactly who he is.) It sounds like a lot of fun. And I'm most excited about meeting Barry Manilow. I was told he'd be coming. Was that wrong?