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Posts published in “TV Analysis”

Inspiration vs. Stealing in TV Writing (PT58)

Inspiration vs. Stealing in TV Writing (PT58)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:54 — 33.1MB)

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Alex and Nick discuss the differences between inspiration and stealing in screenwriting and television.

What constitutes an original idea? Where is the line between inspiration and stealing? Where can you get inspiration from? What is considered an homage? How many different stories are there to tell?

Plus, an answer to how many episodes of a TV show you should watch before speccing it.

The Paper Team pays homage…

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Episodes to watch before writing a TV spec (00:52)
1 – What is an original idea? (03:34)
2 – Why everybody “steals” (06:36)
3 – Paying homage and the different stories being told (09:23)
4 – Inspiration in TV and spec scripts (22:58)
Takeaways and Next Week On (34:13)

Links

Armageddon
Deep Impact
“Protecting and Over-Protecting Your TV Script: Copyright, Ownership and Idea Theft” (PT23)
Parallel thinking
Rough Night
Girls Trip
Akira Kurosawa
Stranger Things
Aesop’s Fables
Jean de La Fontaine
Hero’s Journey
Christopher Vogler
“The Art of Fiction” – John Gardner
“Save the Cat” – Blake Snyder
“The Seven Basic Plots” – Christopher Booker
“The Six Main Arcs in Storytelling, as Identified by an A.I.” – The Atlantic
The Shield
The Simpsons movie references

This episode brought to you by Tracking Board’s Launch Pad Writing Competitions

Use code PAPERTEAM to get $15 OFF when you enter a Launch Pad Competition

Special thanks to Evan Schmitt for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Writing Your First TV Pilot – A #scriptchat Experience

Writing Your First TV Pilot – A #scriptchat Experience

Last Sunday I was invited to speak (or tweet) on the weekly #scriptchat with Nick (my Paper Team co-host).
If you’re not familiar with it, #scriptchat is a weekly Twitter discussion around the world of screenwriting.

The topic du jour: Writing your first TV pilot.

We covered a lot of things, including:
– The importance of outlining
– Where to begin with the pilot concept
– Why TV is a character’s medium
– Important TV pilots to study
– What makes a pilot stand out
– Getting feedback on your script

Clearly, a ton said (or written) in the span of 60 minutes.
Jamie Lee Scott moderated and immortalized the discussion on Wakelet. So for your enjoyment (and education), here is the full Twitter transcript:

Analyzing Great TV Pilots: Case Studies of Alias, Community, Homicide, The O.C., Scrubs and 3rd Rock from the Sun (PT54)

Analyzing Great TV Pilots: Case Studies of Alias, Community, Homicide, The O.C., Scrubs and 3rd Rock from the Sun (PT54)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:06:23 — 61.0MB)

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Update: PT54 transcript now available

Alex and Nick break down six iconic TV pilots to look at what makes them great TV scripts (Alias, Community, Homicide, The O.C., Scrubs and 3rd Rock from the Sun).

What makes a memorable TV pilot work? How do they introduce characters in unique ways? How do they set up the world and engine of the show? What rules do they bend or follow, and why? What TV writing lessons can you learn from them?

Plus, we discuss how seriously you should take glowing feedback from screenwriting competitions.

The Paper Team starts things off…

SHOWNOTES

Content

Paper Scraps: Glowing feedback from competitions (00:00:50)
1 – Introduction to the six TV pilots (00:05:49)
2 – Why we selected these TV pilots (00:10:43)
3 – Teasers and openers (00:19:55)
4 – Character introductions, ensemble dynamics and dialogue (00:26:37)
5 – World and exposition (00:42:00)
6 – Pilot structure vs. series representation (00:47:35)
Next Week On (01:02:53)

Links

BlueCat Screenplay Competition
“Feedback and Notes: Building Your Reading Onion” (PT08)
“Brains and Eggs” (1×01 – 3rd Rock from the Sun)
“Truth Be Told” (1×01 – Alias)
“Pilot” (1×01 – Community)
“Gone for Goode” (1×01 – Homicide: Life on the Street)
“Premiere” (1×01 – The O.C.)
“My First Day” (1×01 – Scrubs)
Josh Schwartz
David Simon
Dan Harmon
in medias res
“Morning Routine” – American Psycho (Video)
Paul Attanasio
“TV Characters 101” (PT46)
Tom Fontana
Diner (Movie)

This episode brought to you by Tracking Board’s Launch Pad Writing Competitions

Use code PAPERTEAM to get $15 OFF when you enter a Launch Pad Competition

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

If you enjoyed this episode (and others), please consider leaving us an iTunes review at paperteam.co/itunes! :)

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
If you have any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]