Archive for July, 2010

Shopping For Screenwriting Books Online

20 years ago, screenwriting books did not exist. There were no instructions on how to become successful in writing for television and movies. The people who had mastered the craft kept their secrets closely guarded so that they could be the ones benefiting from the success that was to be had.

Today, the known community of screenwriters has gone from just a handful of people to hundreds of different writers who have mastered the craft and made a name for themselves. Plus, there is plenty of room for more. Thanks to screenwriting books, anyone with an interest in writing for TV and movies can now become successful with the right resources.

While most people will tell you that writing is a creative art that people either have or they don’t, that’s not really the case. It might have been a knack that people had in the past, but there was always learning to be done so that they could fine-tune the craft. Today’s writers simply have more access to learning and the opportunity to become successful because of screenwriting books that teach them everything that they need to know about the craft. Even people who don’t have a lot of writing experience can become successful with the right tools and resources like screenwriting books and tutorials.

Screenwriting books can help you learn all about writing and selling your script, story development, screenplay structure, the entertainment industry, and many other elements that are involved in the process. You can choose from a variety of different screenwriting books based on your specific needs, allowing you to learn everything that you could possibly need to know about screenwriting. There is a lot to be learned, after all, since you can’t just write a story and expect it to turn itself into a screenplay that sells.

Anyone who is looking to make their way in the world of writing for TV and movies needs to check out screenwriting books. These tools can provide invaluable information for people from all walks of life, allowing anyone to become the screenwriter that they’ve always dreamed of being. Screenwriting books offer so many tools and tips for movie scripts, TV scripts, and how to turn any story into a great screenplay the proper way. Take advantage of the fact that these are no longer closely-guarded industry secrets and find the screenwriting books that will help you succeed today.

So Ya Wanna Write A Screenplay?

Do have a great idea for a feature film or a made-for TV movie? How about a TV sitcom or animated feature? Or even a stage production? Great! But there are ways to go about it and ways to NOT go about it.

One of the things that you have to remember about getting started in the screenplay biz is that you will be dealing with people who will expect to see your submitted screenplay in a correct and very specific format – a format that depends on what it is that you are submitting. You can’t just mindlessly write the thing in Word and expect people to ooh and ahh over your great idea.

Or even read it at all.

The people who’s job it is read submitted screenplays (for feature films or TV they’re called “spec scripts”) have to sift through hundreds if not thousands of them every week. They will tend not to give even a casual glance to anything that is not submitted in a professional manner – A professional manner that they are accustomed to dealing with in the industry.

Screenplays are divided into specific parts:

Scene Heading – Sometimes called a slug line, this identifies the scene as exterior or interior, the location of the scene and even the time of day.

Action – What it says. A description of the physical goings-on.

Character – This precedes all dialogue and tells the reader who is doing the talking.

Parenthetical – How the dialogue is delivered. This is always shown in parentheses, hence the name.

Dialogue – What the character is saying.

Transition – Marks the end of a scene and gives instructions as to how to go to the next scene.

Shot – Camera angles or movement – always written in CAPS

General – Anything else not included in the above.

Not only that, but these parts are handled and formatted differently depending on the type of screenplay.

So, you can see that you can’t approach writing any kind of screenplay or script in a casual manner. You have to follow “the rules”.

Even screenplay writers who are known in the entertainment industry use some kind of screenplay writing software instead of trying to mess around with a standard word processor such as Microsoft Word. This is something that you should consider before writing anything.

You will need to think of your screenplay or script “shot by shot” and put it all down on paper as an outline first before you write the thing.

You may also find it helpful to subscribe to an industry publication about screenplay writing for tips and examples.

Be warned. Most production companies do NOT accept unsolicited screenplays or scripts. You will either have to send a query letter to request a channel for submission, or you will need an agent to obtain representation and then let the agency handle it.

You must also make sure that your screenplay or script is free of typos, formatting errors, or copy marks. Scripts containing any of these will be rejected out of hand, and once you’ve been rejected for this reason it is doubtful that you will get a second chance.

But don’t let any of this discourage you from your dream. You simply have to do it the right way. The professional “industry-standard” way.

Good Luck.

Stay Informed Through Dish Tv Documentaries

We watch TV not only for entertainment but to learn certain things as well. We get to learn a lot of things by watching some educative programs on DISH Network. There are numerous DISH Network channels that offer educative as well as informative content. By watching such channels you can get updated knowledge about various aspects in every sphere of life. You can enhance your knowledge with the help of such shows.

DISH Network brings to you a number of documentaries on various subjects. You can satisfy your thirst for knowledge by watching these documentaries. The documentaries on DISH channels are based on researches done on particular subject matter. These documentaries are based on facts and do not have any fictional content. No matter on what subject you want to gain knowledge, satellite TV is there to help you and will satisfy your need for information. Therefore, to sum it up, you can gain a lot of knowledge by watching documentary shows on DISH TV channels.

There are a number of well known and trusted documentary film makers who regularly make these documentaries for satellite TV subscribers. You will simply love watching these shows. If you want to watch these documentary films time and again then you can record these shows with the help of DISH HD DVR. Today gaining information has become so easy that you do not have to visit DVD parlors to buy or rent DVDs. You can get to watch all your favorite shows, movies and documentaries programs right at the comforts of your home. You simply have to switch on your television sets and watch these programs. All you have to do is sit in front of the satellite TV and watch these documentary films, which are rich in content and unique in style. Now watch these documentaries in DISH HD mode and stay informed and get entertained simultaneously.

In earlier days people used to go through hundreds of books as well as encyclopedia to find necessary information about a particular subject. Even through internet, where you need to browse through number of websites to find information about a particular subject. But now thanks to DISH Network, you only need to browse through DISH channels to find information on wide range of subjects. The documentary programs encompass wide range of subjects like History, Geography, Culture, Nature, Science, Society, Technology and others. Many DISH Network channels offer you documentaries on wide array of subjects, which you will love to watch.

Through these DISH TV documentaries you can gather immense knowledge about latest inventions, strange culture around the world, life of famous celebrities, civilization and some of the worlds amazing personalities. These documentaries will let you have some wonderful time watching them on satellite TV. Now you can enrich your knowledge base by watching some of the best documentaries on DISH Network channels.

Graphic Designing And Animation As Career Courses

Graphic designing and animation are one of the most highly paid and promising careers running currently in the market. There are number of educational and career options available in the market for graphic designing and animation. You can choose to earn a degree or diploma from these courses but the basis fundamental required is creativity and artistic bend of mind. A good imagination power would always help you to succeed in graphic designing and animation

An animator has to give life to his ideas by creating a series of drawing. Graphic designers are responsible for creating visual solutions. Being a graphic designer or animator you need to work closely with your team mates and co ordinate with them as per the requirement of your organization. A good communication and presentation skill would always help you to make a mark in graphic designing and animation.

Now graphic designing and animation are being used in every field of entertainment. Films are highly influenced by 3D, the cartoon films for children are in great demand in the market. The film makers are seeking for good graphic designers and animators who can work with them as per the requirement of their film project. These graphic designers and animators are being paid very well and have a brilliant career ahead.

In the world of computer and technology graphic designers and animators are responsible to develop characters, background and storyline in various games and their market is expanding at a fast pace. There are plenty of jobs available after you finish graphic designing and animation. The basic qualification required for the courses is intermediate with minimum of 45% but it would be an advantage for you if you are innovative and full of fresh ideas.

There are certain prestigious universities which provide full fledged degree or diploma in graphic designing and animation but they follow a tight selection process. You can acquire more information about these universities from the Internet.

You can also work independently as an animator and graphic designer. People from entertainment business (advertisement agencies, movies, newspaper, TV shows) are looking for animators who can work for them even sitting at home. You can earn quick bucks with in the comfort of your house. Likewise graphic designers have number of opportunities waiting for them. They can also work with newspaper, magazine, print media, multi media companies, I.T. companies etc.

The two basic responsibilities of an animators and graphic designer are as follows;

1. They have to interact and interview with clients to know the specification required for the project.

2. Work closely with the creative team member to draw and animate various characters with in the project or script.

Vikas Bhalla Music Album Akhiyan On Nyootv

Akhiyan is an unreleased love ballad by Vikas Bhalla. It is a beautiful soulful folk number from the soils of Punjab which has Vikas at his melodious best, with his own interpretation of the haunting melody. This single is being released by Times Music and can be viewed exclusively on NyooTV.com, which promotes all music releases by Times Music.

Vikas Bhalla is an Indian actor and singer. He made his acting debut as a lead actor with the film Sauda in 1995, opposite yesteryears actress Neelam, which sank without a trace. After this, he tried his hand at several other films. Unable to create a place as a lead actor, he continued with his acting spell with supporting roles. He shifted his focus to the small screen with serials like Apne Paraye and Shanno Ki Shaadi, which was a very successful show. He also featured in a few other popular shows like, Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin and Karishma The Miracle of Destiny

After his stint with acting, Bhalla moved to singing. Being a trained Hindustani classical singer, he released albums like, Awaara, Dhuan, Mehak Teri and Saajish. His Indi-pop debut album Dhuaan comprising the track ‘Hai Dhuaan Hai Dhuaan’ held high esteem by remaining on the charts even one year after release. Mehek teri was a romantic album, which he released next. He also sung two songs for the film, Marigold which was an international production and had music by the musical trio, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.

Actors turning singers has been a long standing trend in tinsel town. Even in Hollywood, actors from Jennifer Aniston, to John Travolta to Jim Carrey, have all done it! It has been no different back home here in Bollywood. We have had many B-town stars who have tried their hand at singing for their films. Some of them include, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Arbaaz Khan, and the latest to join the bandwagon is Akshay Kumar for his upcoming film, Khatta Meetha.

Actors turning singers has been a long standing trend in tinsel town. Even in Hollywood, actors from Jennifer Aniston, to John Travolta to Jim Carrey, have all done it! It has been no different back home here in Bollywood. Viewers can check out this tuneful track by Vikas Bhalla online at NyooTV.com, which is one site where viewers can watch trailers of Indian movies online. NyooTV – India’s first Online Social TV brings a whole new world of entertainment with its innovative technology, rendering a viewing experience unmatched in quality. Viewers can watch Indian movies online and get continuous updates about the latest Bollywood movie online by following NyooTV through social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter. Members of these social networking sites can watch Hindi movies, latest Bollywood movies, new Bollywood movies trailers, latest Bollywood clips and events by simply logging into their accounts through NyooTV and get entertained with these high quality videos. Once logged in, viewers can also chat and discuss, with their friends on the network, about the video they are viewing

The Success Of Sandra Bullock’s Acting Career

In Arlington, Virginia, the renowned Sandra Bullock was brought into this world in the year 1964. Early years of her life was spent in Nuremberg and was capable to participate in the children’s choir while she was only twelve years old. After that age, she had travelled into different European countries. During those times, she had a chance to study vocalization and ballet.

Washington-Lee High School is where Sandra Bullock has her secondary education. During her stay in that school, she was able to participate in many other theater productions. After a few years, she tried her acting career in Manhattan. She became a coat checker, bartender and cocktail waiter while she was in that place. Although she tried her luck in many auditions, there were no affirmative results.

After some time, Sandra Bullock started her acting classes in New York. She participated in various films production. In a play No Time Flat, she was included in the casting. And this play became her opening as the director was amazed by her acting ability and talent. At that time, the director unlocked the door in the television scene and offered a role in The Six Million Dollar Man.

After her New York career, she went to Los Angeles. Here Sandra Bullock started to appear in different film. At first she was accommodating all the small roles given to her. She also accepted roles offered by the independent film until a window opened to her in a movie Working Girls of NBC. Then she also took part in the movies Fire on the Amazon, Love Potion No. 9 and The thing Called Love. In addition, she starred the movie Demolition Man together with two astonishing actors, Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes. Soon after that, her movie followed by Speed where she became one of the well- rejoiced actor.

Sandra Bullok also performed in some other successful films, such as While You Were Sleeping. For this part, she substituted Demi Moore and this role brought her some great reviews too. The next Sandra Bullok’s movie is Miss Congeniality that was soon followed by Speed 2: Cruise Control and Miss Congeniality 2. For her performances in Speed 2 and Miss Congeniality 2, she was reworded with no more than $28.5 million.

Sandra Bullock also created the movie Armed and Fabulous. And in 2002, Ral Juli Award for Excellence was awarded to her for her exceptional performance. She participated in some television show like the Academy Amy. Then afterward, she created the movie Two Weeks Notice and Divine Secret of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood.

In the year 2004, she played a supporting role in the movie Crash. Critics recognize her performance in this movie as the best. After four years, she played a role in The Lake House together with Keanu Reeves. And it was in this year that Sandra Bullock made the movie Infamous.

In 2007, Sandra Bullok starred in Premonition, together with Julia McMahon. The movie Proposal allows us to discover the most successful role of her career. In the same year, Sandra Bullok recorded the highest opening ever, with the film The Blind Side, role that brought her the Golden Globes Award, the Screen Actors Guilt Award and Academy Awards. All About Steve also brought her two “Razzies” Awards and an “Oscar”.

How To Collect Hollywood Memorabilia.

We all have our favourite film or television series that we never tire of watching. There is something special about films made in Hollywood that fascinates and intrigues us as viewers. There have been so many good films to come out of Hollywood that the Hollywood memorabilia industry is big business. Anything can count as Hollywood memorabilia from film props to movie posters, and lots of people chose to buy and sell memorabilia as part of a fun hobby.

If youve ever wanted to own props from the Star Wars movies or the script from Spielbergs latest film then collecting Hollywood memorabilia could be for you. Nowadays there are lots of places to look for rare and interesting pieces, but you need to make sure that what you are buying is authentic. Finding authentic pieces and buying them for a fair price can be very tricky. There are reliable sellers out there but you need to know what to look for.

It can be hard to know a reputable seller from one that is not. You should look out for auction houses and galleries who have not only been around a long time, but have given speciality collections by celebrities themselves. Two of the best auction houses specialising in Hollywood memorabilia that come recommended are Profiles in History and Juliens Auctions.

Dont be afraid to ask questions. Things you should find out include how long the company has been going for, the history of the item and what sort of certificate of authenticity comes with the item. As a rule of thumb a business that has been around for more than 10 years is not likely to be going anywhere and is a safe bet. It is essential to find out the history of the piece as this could help you to work out if it is authentic or not. Finally, a certificate of authenticity is a must when purchasing memorabilia and without it you can safely assume it is a fake.

You might need to do a bit of detective work when you get your memorabilia. In most cases, costumes and props will have labels or markings on them. Costumes often have the Western Costume Company label sewn in to them. If you see these labels then you can rest easy that the memorabilia is authentic. With regards to props, the items often have studio stamps and/or production markings for specific scenes on them. Finding these small details can help identify an authentic from a fake.

If you follow these simple guidelines then will save yourself falling victim to fake items of memorabilia. Hollywood memorabilia is a great way of making a connection to the past and celebrating the glowing past that the film industry has had in Hollywood. If you are looking for more pieces of Hollywood memorabilia to add to your collection then why not visit Genuine Memorabilias site and browse through the extensive catalogue. For more information click here.

Movies On Dvd — War Of The Worlds (2005)

There have been several adaptations of H.G. Wells’ classic “War of the Worlds”. On Sunday, October 30th 1938, Orson Welles’ famous Halloween radio broadcast managed to scare many listeners into believing that the Martians had actually invaded our planet. In 1953 a film adaptation starring Gene Barry had good special effects for its day, but the “scare” factor wasn’t particularly high.

In 2005, Steven Spielberg tried again with his version of War of the Worlds.

The 2005 version of War of the Worlds stars Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning, Miranda Otto, Justin Chatwin, and Tim Robbins.

The movie starts off in New York and travels its way up towards Boston as opposed to H.G. Wells’ London and southern England. But what’s important to note is that Spielberg managed to capture the feel of the original work, and the scare factor from Orson Welles’ radio broadcast.

He did it by making it personal – personal to an individual family.

Tom Cruise stars as Ray Ferrier, an arrogant and self-centered dock worker. He is divorced and has two children from the union. Rachel (Fanning) is an intelligent and precocious 10 year old, and Robby (Chatwin) is a rebellious teenager who is also highly antagonistic towards his father.

Ray’s pregnant ex-wife (Otto), along with her new husband ask Ray to take care of the kids while they make a trip up to Boston to visit her parents. It doesn’t take Ray long to re-antagonize Robby, after which he informs Rachel that he is going to take a nap and that she should order food as he doesn’t seem to have any in the house.

On awakening, Ray is informed by Rachel that Robby has “borrowed” his car. Infuriated, he storms outside to see his neighbors and passers-buy looking up at the sky.

There’s a storm coming in. But it’s unlike any storm anyone had ever seen. He calls for Rachel so that she can witness with him this unexpected and “cool” event.

But the wind is blowing away from the storm instead of coming from it. And there are repetitive lightning strikes – all seemingly at the same spot off in the near distance.

By now somewhat frightened, Ray and Rachel retire inside and hide under the kitchen table hoping for the end of the storm. Finally the storm does end, but now the power is out.

His mobile phone doesn’t work either, and neither does his wristwatch.

Telling Rachel to stay inside, Ray ventures outside to investigate and encounters the returning Robby – on foot.

Robby tells him that all of the cars had stopped running and that he knows where the lightning strikes were concentrated – all on one little spot in the pavement that created just one small hole.

As it’s not very far away, Ray rushes over to see for himself. When he arrives on the scene, a small crowd has already gathered.

But now rumblings are beginning to be heard from underneath. The pavement begins to crack, then crumble. Cars are flung outward from the expanding hole in the ground. The crowd is caught between fear and fascination as a huge web-footed tentacle shoots out from the opening, followed closely by another.

Now a machine emerges from the ruins in the middle of the street and rises up from the ground supported by three tentacle type legs. The machine has what appears to be a large “eye” in front. Two stubby “arms’ flank the sides. It now towers over the buildings in the area.

For a long moment, the crowd eyes the “Tripod” machine in horrible fascination, then the Tripod suddenly opens fire on them from its two arms with some kind of ray gun. On contact with humans, the ray literally explodes them into a white ash-type substance.

Panicked, the crowd tries to run away from the scene, the Tripod picking them off one by one while destroying buildings as it advances.

Ray, covered with the ash remains of one of the victims, manages to escape back to his house where he tells Rachel and Robby that they are leaving.

The kids are naturally confused and skeptical regarding Ray’s behavior, but they can see that he has been badly frightened – and this frightens them in turn.

They manage to find a working RV at a repair shop, and drive off just as the Tripod comes into the area blowing everything up and killing people.

As it turns out, there are a whole bunch of tripods. And they are all bent on destroying everything in their path.

They also feed on human blood.

For Ray Ferrier, it now becomes a struggle for survival. Everything he knows is now all wrong. His previous self-centered existence has been shattered. He must now figure out how to keep his family together and alive in the midst of sudden war and the deterioration of society caused by an alien invasion.

Tom Cruise does a fine job portraying Ray Ferrier as a man in transition from an arrogantly assured self-centered jerk to a nurturing father. Dakota Fanning plays Rachel as intelligent and precocious yet vulnerable. Justin Chatwin plays Robby as being torn between the hostility towards his father, his natural protectiveness towards his sister, and his almost maniacal desire to “get back” at the Tripods. Tim Robbins makes his appearance about two-thirds into the film as a man who has been broken by events into a psychotic with plans of his own on how to deal with the Tripods. Morgan Freeman handles the narration for this film and does his usual great job.

The camera work in this film has a grainy home-movie feel to it (a lot like the Omaha Beach scene in “Saving Private Ryan”) that brings an extra element of realism to the viewing experience.

The special effects are spectacular, but the Tripods are not a constant presence. They are on-camera sparingly at just the right times to accentuate the horror of events. We also get to briefly meet the creatures themselves.

This is a film about one man’s redemption and about how a family tries to cope with sudden extraordinary events.

“War of the Worlds” is well worth seeing again and again.

need help writing a script about the prodigal son?

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