Another year, another batch of wonderful films. To a regular moviegoer they're just entertainment, but to a screenwriter they are inspiration. Every film is a potential lesson for what to do (and maybe for what not to do). For your convenience, here are some of the best lessons you can take from the movies that lit up screens in 2015!

1) Don't Be Afraid to Put a Woman at the Center of Your Blockbuster (Star Wars: The Force Awakens / Mad Max Fury Road)

Of course women have starring roles, but it doesn't take Sherlock Holmes (male) to notice that action blockbusters typically star men. The argument of "Well, female-driven action films aren't as successful," might have been accurate at some point, but the two most acclaimed action blockbusters of 2015 both had estrogen in the central role, and one of them is now the most financially successful film in North America of all time. So do you think your action spec won't be commercial if it stars Jane McClohn instead of John McClane? Think again. The new Star Wars film tells the story of a woman in a galaxy far, far away. Even with a film called Mad Max, director George Miller found it necessary to push the title character to a secondary position to make way for the incredible Furiosa, played with zeal by Charlize Theron. The critical and commercial success of these two films prove that if you're writing a big action film, it might be in your best interest to put a woman at the center.

2) Writing a Biopic? Think Outside the Box (Steve Jobs, The End of the Tour)

The biopic is not only a staple of the Oscar circuit, but it's also a pretty solid choice for an engaging spec. But we've all seen enough biographical films to know how they generally go: a birth-to-casket movie covering a famous person's greatest hits. But the current trend is doing something different and covering just a small microcosm of the subject's life. The End of the Tour uses a single week-long interview to cut to the core of who infamous writer David Foster Wallace was behind the bandana, rather than showing his upbringing and eventual suicide. In Steve Jobs, accomplished writer Aaron Sorkin takes twenty years of turmoil and hangs them on three separate 40-minute scenes to give an artistic rendering of a business man. Both of these films show that just because you're following a true story doesn't mean you can't seek out a structure or format that we haven't seen before.

3) A Small Niche Could Be Big Business (Straight Outta Compton)

Hip-hop films have always been a niche market. 2009's biopic Notorious made a low $36 million. Hustle & Flow only $22 million. 8 Mile made a solid $116 million, but that was made at the height of Eminem's celebrity status. Straight Outta Compton, on the other hand, is a hip-hop film with no stars that made over $160 million. Off its success, multiple hip-hop films are in development including a Tupac biopic. Now this doesn't mean you have to write a hip-hop film (though if you have one now is the time to get it out there!), but rather it shows that subjects once thought to be valuable to only small markets can sometimes become major audience-pleasing hits! So don't stop writing that 1970s video game movie that you think would only appeal to hardcore video-gamers or your motorcycle thriller that might only appeal to Harley Davidson riders, because you never know when that niche will become big business.

4) Look to the Past for Thrills (Bridge of Spies / The Hateful Eight / The Revenant)

Historical films are not new, but something interesting is emerging: The critical and commercial success of not the historical drama, but the historical thriller. The historical films that used to populate the Best Picture category were usually hard dramas. Think Lincoln¸ The King's Speech, Atonement from recent years. But 2015 is the year that historical dramas got some thrilling edge. We have two Oscar-caliber films that take place around the time of the Civil War: One a little before (The Revenant) and one a little after (The Hateful Eight) and neither one plays it dramatic so much as they play it suspenseful. They're both full of white-knuckle thrills and eye-popping violence rather than dreary, slow scenes of historical detail. Bridge of Spies feels more dramatic, but by throwing an American into Communist-ruled Berlin it ends up being a real thrill ride from Steven Spielberg, a man who knows a thing or two about thrill rides. The lesson? Just because you're writing something that covers a historical period that involves old-timey, dull costumes doesn't mean you can't take your audience on a rollercoaster ride!

5) Don't Be Afraid to Write That Franchise (Creed)

Let's say you have a great idea for the next step of a beloved franchise, but you don't own the rights. What do you do? Most people would move on and try something else. It's not worth spending all that time developing an idea you don't own the rights to, right? But not writer/director Ryan Coogler. He had a great idea for a spin-off to the Rocky franchise and pursued the franchise's originator, Sylvester Stallone. Stallone didn't give an answer to his pitch right away, but after Coogler directed the indie hit Fruitvale Station, Stallone came around and allowed Creed to be made and also starred in it. So follow your creative inspiration. If you have a great idea for a James Bond spin-off where we see Moneypenny on a mission and you can't imagine yourself writing anything else, then maybe you should write it! Sure you can't make it today, but who knows where you'll be in the future. Maybe you'll one day have the opportunity to convince the right people that you know where the franchise should go!

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Aspiring screenwriters share a big dream: Selling a screenplay.  That’s the ultimate goal, isn’t it?  It’s with that in mind that most put pen to paper – or more likely put fingers to keyboard.  As such, writing a screenplay that’s un-filmable seems like a fool’s errand.  Why would you write a screenplay that no studio would want to purchase?  Well because it’s sometimes these screenplays that get attention and become your calling card to the industry. The following are five types of un-filmable, not-likely-to-get-purchased screenplays that are still worth writing!

1) The Inevitable Development Hell Script

In 2004, mostly unknown DJ Danger Mouse mixed The Beatles’ White Album with Jay-Z’s Black Album to create The Grey Album ­­-- a fantastic mash-up of Jay-Z rapping over beats pieced together from White Album samples.  It got an underground release and a small pressing, but it was short lived as record company EMI – in charge of The Beatles at the time – commenced a lawsuit, forcing the commercial release of the album to be halted. Sad ending, right?  No, because even though this work could never be legally released, the novelty of it was so fun and the end result so good that Danger Mouse made a name for himself, eventually hooking up with rising singer/rapper Cee-Lo Green to become one half of international sensation Gnarls Barkley just two years later.  He made something that was impossible to make money off of, but it got him the notoriety needed to start his career.

This is also a fine strategy in the world of screenwriting.  Just because it would be impossible to get the rights to sell your screenplay or make a movie from it, if the idea is novel enough it will get read – and likely remembered.  A few years back a writer named Christopher Weekes won a survey of the best unproduced scripts with The Muppet Man – a biopic of the late, great Jim Henson.  But this wasn’t a straightforward biopic, it utilized a fantasy world where Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo and all our favorite Muppets were living lives that mirrored the mental state of Jim Henson.  The film opens with Kermit the Frog in a bombed-out apartment in a fit of depression and a drinking problem.

This is a problem, because The Henson Company owns the life rights to Jim Henson but Disney owns The Muppets.  So for this movie to ever get made the two companies would have to get together and strike a deal, something probably not worth the negotiation time.  And even if you could get them in a room, what are the odds Disney would be cool with their huge children’s franchise being shown on screen as a bunch of alcoholics?  For these reasons the movie can never be made.  But that didn’t stop Christopher Weekes from getting city-wide recognition and being hired to write for various projects.

2) The Hollywood Insider Script

Some of the most talked-about screenplays in Hollywood recently have been behind-the-scenes scripts that show a side to a famous Hollywood story we haven’t seen.  In 2011 a spec about the filming of Star Wars through the eyes of Chewbacca-actor Peter Mayhew (called Chewie) was second in the list of best unproduced screenplays.  In 2013 the same list involved two separate screenplays about the making of the Spielberg classic Jaws (This would be The Mayor of Shark City and the wonderfully-titled The Shark is Not Working).

Hollywood insiders – the very same people who read hundreds of screenplays a year – are drawn to these works as they’re about a world that they’re familiar with.  A producer at a big studio will naturally be attracted to a script about a fun story in filmmaking.  But they’re not stupid, they know that John Doe in Tuscon, Arizona won’t find this nearly as interesting as people in Hollywood will.  Plus, they like reading such scripts because, they don’t mind laughing at themselves. They hardly ever make such self-reflexive movies because they hate they idea of other people laughing at them. As such, these films rarely get funded unless there’s some bigger hook (like Argo had with the international thriller elements).  But that won’t stop one of these screenplays from potentially getting you noticed.

3) The Crude & Rude Script

There was a trend for a bit where spec screenplays had titles that couldn’t be put on a marquee.  This is a classic way to draw attention to a screenplay that might otherwise get lost in the shuffle.  It even permeated the TV world, with shows with titles like “Shit My Dad Says” and “Don’t Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23” getting greenlit.

But it’s not just a crude title that can make your script stand out.  Reading a screenplay full of all sorts of nudity or violence that would be impossible to get by the MPAA without an NC-17 can make it memorable.  This is not to say you should throw an orgy just for the sake of an orgy, that would be better in…

4) The Insanity Script

Two working writers came together and wrote a screenplay called Balls Out and credited it as written by “The Robotard 8000”, a sort of sentient robot.  Under the name Robotard 8000, they created a cheesy web site with reviews of the script by big industry people.  The script became pretty popular and you can actually find it on their web site.  To give an idea what it’s like, it starts with “FADE THE FUCK IN:”

Obviously that film isn’t getting made, but dammit was it insane enough to attract attention.  Now of course this doesn’t mean you can just write something stupid and expect fame and fortune.  Balls Out is a legitimately well-written screenplay that just happens to be absolutely insane.  You want your script to be easy to remember?  Well this is a good way to do that!

5) The Idealist Script

H.P. Lovecraft is one of the most infamous horror writers of all time.  Stephen King called him his biggest inspiration.  Filmmaker Guillermo Del Torocredits Lovecraft’s works for inspiring his entire film career.  How come we haven’t really seen any big Lovecraft stories (such as his most famous work, Call of Cthulhu) be turned intofeature films?  It’s because his stuff would require huge budgets but would need to be rated R, a combination studios tend to avoid.  An idealist would make a big-budget, R-rated Lovecraft film because the world deserves to see it, but Hollywood isn’t an ideal place.

Balancing budget and audience/ demographic is a big part of writing a script you want to sell.  If you know what you’re writing would only appeal to a small demographic, then you want it to be low budget.  This can restrict your storytelling.  But if you’re writing a script where you don’t care about its commercial viability then you can literally do anything.  You’re writing a screenplay as an idealist: Putting story before profits. 

This can be fun for the person reading it as well.  An introspective think piece… that happens to take place on a huge spaceship!  Why not!?  Sure the film would require a budget of a huge blockbuster for what’s basically an indie drama, but hey you’re writing this for you!  That refreshing idealism can become contagious, getting into the producer who’s so accustomed to screenplays written with the cynical knowledge of demographic/budget balance.

And this boils down to why we write screenplays: To tell the story we want to tell.  The beauty of a writing sample over a spec screenplay is that since you’re not writing it with the intention to sell it, you have more creative freedom and an opportunity to really display your own unique “voice”. So that idea you have in your head that you were afraid wasn’t commercially viable?  You know, your 200 million dollar biopic of Galileo?  Or your Iron-Man/Batman mash-up?  Or your script about penis enlargement that would have to show actual erect penises?  There might be an upside to writing ‘em if you can execute them extremely well.

Up for the challenge?

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For me a fresh voice is something we all have. It’s our unique view of the world and our unique emotional response to it. The tricky thing with screenwriting isn’t necessarily how to find that voice but how to free it from all the other acquired voices in our head. That’s not to say being influenced by other people’s work is bad, just that our inspiration from that work should also be fresh and singular. Nobody reads a book or watches a film in the same way. Tarantino’s writing is hugely influenced by other filmmakers yet it still feels original.

Derivative writing and clichés are what stop our voices feeling fresh. Often the first idea we have when we write a scene is an inherited one. It takes concentration and self-reflection to come up with something original. For me the best writing is when a writer’s insight into a moment or event connects with an audience in a way they’ve never felt before. The conundrum for a screenwriter is the size of that audience. Some fresh voices connect with a small art house audience, others connect to a much wider public.

As screenwriters I think we have to accept our own voice, however begrudgingly. There’s no point writing a happy ending if your world view is bleak. The best advice I’ve read recently about writing was from Richard Linklater on Boyhood. He said he took scenes from his own experience and trusted the truth in them would connect with an audience. I think that’s the case even with genre movies and blockbusters.

If you write a space chase or zombie escape and still find some emotional detail from your life that resonates with an audience it will always enhance that scene and make it fresh.

Read the complete Fresh Voices interview with Hossein Amini here...

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Part 4)   How Do You Hone Your Voice And Keep It Fresh?

All the old adages on how to write and develop your voice are true: Write from your experiences, write what you know, write the story you want to see. We’ve heard these all before and they are all tried and tested methods for advancing your voice.

We have seen why this advice plays such an integral role in developing your voice throughout our three previous articles on “What is a Fresh Voice and Why it Matters to Your Career”. The number one piece of advice I can add to this is to be passionate about life. Be conscious and aware of what’s in your head and your heart and what it wants to say. Be inquisitive and be observant, of people and events from the past and future. Be well-read in literature, and be well-versed in cinema. But most importantly write, write, continue to write and then rewrite. 

 “There’s a line in Self-Reliance, the essay by Ralph Waldo Emerson, that says something to the effect of Speak what is true to you and trust that it’s true for all men. I think if you do that in your writing other people will connect to it.”  – Mickey Fisher (Creator CBS’s EXTANT)

As writers we evolve, trends change, audiences become wise to story-telling and film-making techniques. As a screenwriter, how do you maintain a fresh voice in an ever-morphing world and keep your audience engaged?

Keeping ones voice fresh is a struggle faced by all writers throughout their career, but even more so for fledgling writers in search of original ideas.

As many in the story-telling world will tell you, and as Christopher Booker wrote in his 2004 book “7 Basic Plots”, there are only 7 story-telling formulas from which all others stem.

2014 Fresh Voices Grand Prize Winner Chris Bowen sums it up this way:

“I have always heard that there are really only a few story templates that exist. So, to me, a Fresh Voice is someone who can bring something new, exciting, unique, or personal to one of those story templates.”  Chris Bowen (2014 Fresh Voices Grand Prize Winner)

From my experience working with writers, the advice for keeping your voice fresh is the same as discovering and developing your voice in the first place.  Keep up with emerging trends, seek out new experiences and, above all, offer your own distinct perspective on how the world turns.

As you’re writing, it is impossible to know for sure if your voice will ultimately connect with an audience. One thing is for sure, you won’t know until you share it. So be true to yourself and what you have to say, but most importantly, Let Your Voice Be Heard!

Read Part 1) What is the Screenwriter's Voice?

Read Part 2) What Makes Your Voice Fresh? 

Read Part 3) Why a Fresh Voice is Your Key to a Successful Career

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Part 3)  Why a Fresh Voice is Your Key to a Successful Career?

As a literary agent, manager and producer, selling writers and their screenplays for eighteen years before becoming a founding member of Fresh Voices, I have learnt that the paramount quality you need to establish yourself as a successful screenwriter is to find, develop and hone your own unique voice.  It is on this guiding principal that Fresh Voices was found.

Let’s face it. While many writers aspire to launch their careers in Hollywood by selling a spec script, the odds of success this route are pretty low. WGA does not provide precise data but I would venture to guess that only a slim minority of writers jumpstart their career by selling a spec screenplay, even a finely executed one. The vast majority of in-demand screenwriters build their careers by taking on writing assignments, work-for-hire jobs and commissions (rewrites, adaptations and first drafts based on pitches, treatments and synopses). These writers are not household names. They are not the A-list. They are diligent, dedicated writers who work tirelessly to bring words to life. I’ve heard them referred to as blue collar writers. They are the lifeline of the film and television business. But as an unknown writer, how do you even get such an opportunity to be considered for one of these coveted jobs, and once you are, how do you stand out among all the other writers and how do you seal the deal?

Consider this common scenario:  a producer has optioned a book and needs to find a writer whom he believes can turn this fascinating story into a cinematic journey and write the first draft. Agents, managers, even the Starbucks barista send their writing samples to vie for this job… dozens, maybe even hundreds. Now the producer has to pour through all those writing samples and find a single writer to trust with adapting the book into a first draft. How does a producer choose which writer to hire for this project? What does he look for when reading all those writing samples?

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Part 2)   What Makes Your Voice Fresh?

In Part 1 we brought a better understanding to what the Screenwriter’s Voice is, and equally important is understanding what makes the screenwriter’s voice Fresh. Every writer has their own unique voice, but what makes their voice fresh? For a voice to be considered fresh, it needs to connect with and excite an audience.

Film is one of the most powerful forms of communication known to man. Why would somebody make a film just to keep for themselves? The point of film is to show, and for the viewer to share the experience. The very purpose of film is to reach, entertain and sometimes even influence the public.

Unlike many other artistic endeavors, film is hugely expensive and labor-intensive. Film is a multi-million and these days even a multi-billion dollar business. It is to be respected as a business as much as an art form. Even the cheapest of films cost a lot of money to make and no investor would give money to a project that didn’t have an intended audience.

Crafting a story that resonates with an audience will determine whether a voice is fresh or not. So ask yourself as you write, who your audience is and why they should care about your story. What part of my story will resonate with an audience and why? Knowing this vital information early in the process will pay dividends throughout.

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Part 1) What is the Screenwriter’s Voice?

I am often asked, what does Fresh Voices look for in a winning script? Can a character-driven script that isn’t very commercial still win? Can an awesome concept trump great execution?

The answer goes well beyond what we look for in the competition. The answer is the key that sustains a long and successful career as a screenwriter.

Fresh Voices was founded on the belief that the single biggest factor in building a successful screenwriting career is the writer’s “Voice”. We’ve heard this term used in all artistic endeavors, but what does it mean for a screenwriter to have a fresh voice?

In a series of articles, we’ll try to better understand what the screenwriter’s “Voice” is? What makes a voice “Fresh”? Why is a Fresh Voice so important to your career? And how do you find your Voice and Keep it Fresh?

A “Fresh Voice” is a writer’s branding. It is their personality. It is what distinguishes them from other writers. It is their own unique style, perspective, or “take” that they bring to an otherwise familiar story. It is what makes their writing memorable, it is what producers look for when hiring a writer and it is ultimately what resonates with an audience.

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When Twilight turned 13-year-old girls into the sort of franchise-obsessed herds that usually consisted of teenage superhero fans, it sparked a vampire trend that is just now, years later, beginning to fade.  We’ve seen a hit franchise (Twilight), other vampire films (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Vampire Academy), and hit TV shows (True Blood, The Vampire Diaries).  It also spurred a hunt for the next big young adult series, with Lionsgate eclipsing Twilight with The Hunger Games.  Although maligned by most critics and filmgoers over the age of 15, Twilight spurred a trend.  If someone was sitting on a vampire spec, it was a great time to get it out there.

But what if you didn’t have a vampire spec?  What if you weren’t that sort of writer?  What if you writing about Vampires would be like Eminem recording a country album? Should you still do it? Should you follow the trend? Do you chase a zeitgeist?

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If you are still struggling to bring about some positive change in 2015, here are 7 New Year’s resolutions that will not only lead to a healthy and balanced lifestyle, but can have a hugely positive impact on your writing as well.

1. Get Up 1 Hour Earlier

Imagine what you can do with an extra hour each day. And if that hour were peaceful, quite, distraction free and possibly even inspiring. If you currently aim to write 5 pages a day, how many could you write with an extra hour? Try waking up one hour earlier, three days a week, and see your productivity increase by 156 hours a year. That’s nearly one extra full month of work a year based on a 40 hour work week.

2. Exercise Harder

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Here’s a 6 point checklist every screenwriter should consider between the time you write “The End”, and the time you begin submitting your script to screenplay competitions and the industry at large. If you’ve spent a long time and a lot of energy writing your script, you owe it to yourself to ensure your hard work receives the attention it deserves with these simple reminders.

1. Read Your Work Out Loud, or Even Better, Have A Friend Read It Out Loud For You

An informal or more formal reading of your screenplay will really allow you, the writer, to notice areas of your script and in particular your dialogue, that don’t ring true or natural to your characters. Listen to the action descriptions and clearly visualize what you hear. If you can’t picture the image, mark the line.

Don’t read your screenplay during the table read. Just listen carefully and try to see the movie, but mark up a copy of the script with your notes.

2. Polish Your Screenplay

Once you’ve heard or read your script out load, do another read through on your own and cement the changes and minor corrections you’ve made so that each of your character’s dialogue is unique and distinctive.

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