The Art and Commerce of Feature Films

CNTV 499 Special Topics – Summer 2017

Instructor: Sebastian Twardosz ()

Academic Units: 2

Period: 6 Weeks (6 Evenings)

Time: Wednesdaysfrom 6-10:10pm

Location: SCB 104 (Animation Building, First Floor)

Description:

In this six-week symposium, students will participate in an intense dissection of the development to production process and gain an insider’s perspective of how Hollywood really works from both a creative and business standpoint. Instruction will focus on narrative feature filmmaking and will include the following: a very detailed overview of the studio system and independents, script analysis and structure, coverage and story notes, pitching ideas, optioning preexisting material such as books or articles, working with agents and managers, the spec market and writing scripts that sell, managing your career as a filmmaker (writer, director, producer or executive), networking, and generally navigating Hollywood. Students will be expected to read numerous articles, books and screenplays; survey various internet sites, participate actively in the discussion, and start to develop their own project. Guests may include prominent agents and managers, studio and development executives, produced and working writers. You will learn how to get ahead and strategies for developing your career or project. Detailed, frank and illustrated with true stories.

Online:

All required reading assignments and viewing links will be sent directly to each student’s email address. The subject heading will always begin with “Insiders…”

For additional articles and links, please “Like” our Facebook page below…

Instructor:

Sebastian Twardosz has been very fortunate to work with leading companies in both film and television for the past twenty years. He is currently a partner in Circus Road Films which advises and represents emerging filmmakers. Clients have produced films which premiered at all of the major film festivals including Sundance and Toronto and which were released by most of the leading distributors in all media. He is also the host of The Insiders which is a web series about the business of Hollywood. Previously, he was a senior acquisitions executive for Allumination FilmWorks (a division of Content Media Corp.) which specialized in the domestic distribution and foreign sales of independently produced feature films. Before that, Sebastian was the head of development for a Paramount-based production company called Craftsman Films which developed numerous studio projects, including early drafts of the feature film reinvention of the Star Trek franchise. For three years, he worked in comedy and drama development at Touchstone Television, the tv production division of the Walt Disney Company and ABC, where he staffed on six produced pilots. He also worked on numerous pilots and on-air tv series for Imagine Entertainment. His first production job was from 1995-1999 for Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner’s Paramount-based company where he started as an assistant and was promoted to executive, actively participating in the making of Mission Impossible 1-2 and Without Limits. Sebastian started in the business as an agent's assistant in the motion picture department at ICM. He graduated from the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 1993. His short film, Silent Rain, received a Student Academy Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as well as the Student Emmy. Most recently, he co-produced the independent featuresA Different Sunstarring Chin Han as well asSmall Town Saturday Nightstarring John Hawkes, Chris Pine and Octavia Spencer. Speaking engagements have included: American Film Market (AFM), Chapman University, Pepperdine University, National Public Radio (NPR), Writers Guild of America (WGA), and numerous film festivals and screenplay conferences such as Albuquerque, Catalina, CENFLO, Dubuque, Durango, Fayetteville, Santa Fe, and Screenplay Expo.

Grading:

15%Class Participation

35%Weekly and Final Journal

50%Pitching, Treatment or Business Plan

Please review the course calendar (next page) for assignments, reading, and due dates.

Class participation refers to being a part of the discussion, asking questions, making comments, and your general involvement in our discourse.

Although attendance is not a percentage of your grade, missing one class is acceptable but two classes will automatically change an A to an B for instance. Three missed classes will change an A to C and so on. Every night is packed with information and most nights feature one or more guest speakers who are going out of their way and taking their time to offer us their perspective and guidance.

Course Calendar

Day 1

INTRODUCTION & THE STUDIO WORLD

Overview & Goals: Student Introductions, Expectations, Syllabus, Assignments

The Landscape: Majors & Indies, Buyers & Sellers

The Players: Studio Execs, Producers, Agents & Managers, Musical Chairs

Please read and view as preparation in advance of this class:

The Day the Movies DiedArticle

Lynda Obst–State of the BusinessVideo

Hollywood is Completely BrokenArticle

For Movie Producers a Golden Age Fades Away Article

Why Hollywood as We Know It is Already Over Article

Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Please email this assignment to .

Submit a journal which summarizes your thoughts on what you’ve learned in each day of the class, what you learned from the guest speakers, your thoughts on the assignments, and your overall impressions of our discourse. Minimum of 1 page per week. You may select a single topic for the page as a short essay or discuss a variety based on the topics we have covered during the week.

Day 2

THE STUDIO WORLD

The Properties: Scripts, Pitches, Pre-Existing Material

Producers: Types, Skill Sets, Credits

Spec Sales: The Process, Strategies, The Writer’s Journey, What Sells, State of the Industry, The Deal

Please read and view as preparation in advance of this class:

Facts on Pacts 2017 Attachment

Franklin Leonard–The Black ListVideo

The Hollywood List Everyone Wants to Be On Article

Evan Daugherty–Selling a SpecVideo

Rothenberger & Benedikt–The Nicholl Fellowship & Selling a SpecVideo

The Spec Book List (follow link to download or see attachments)

When the Spec Script was King Article

Hollywood Spec Scripts Making a Comeback Article

How to Get a Literary AgentArticle

How to Become a Screenwriter Article

How to Copyright & Protect Your IdeasArticle

How to Write a Screenplay or Tell a Better Story Online Presentation

Guest Speaker: TBA

Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Day 3

THE STUDIO WORLD

Directing I: Shorts & Web Series

Development Hell: Lifestyle, Coverage & Notes, Terminology, Submissions, Idea to Script, Packaging

Please read and view as preparation in advance of this class:

How “Lights Out” went from Short to Feature Article

See How 6 Proof of Concept Shorts Spawned Features Article

IWill Not Read Your Fucking Script Article

The ABCs of Producing Article

Facts on Pacts 2017Attachment

Coverage Guidelines & Template Attachment

Story Notes Guidelines Attachment

Story Notes Sample Attachment

San Question Giants Treatment Attachment

Katzenberg’s Crystal Ball Attachment

Katzenberg Memo Attachment

Option Agreement Attachment

Submission Letter for FNG Attachment

Submission Release Agreement Attachment

Guest Speaker: TBA

Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Day 4

THE STUDIO WORLD

Pitching: Formats, Tips, The Meeting

Breaking & Entering: Screenwriting Competitions, Conferences & Seminars, Schools, Festivals, Viral, Writing Groups, Trades, Websites, Suggested Reading

Please read and view as preparation in advance of this class:

Ron Meyer: UCLA’s School of Theatre Film & Television CommencementVideo

Ron Meyer: You Don’t Have to be an Asshole to SucceedVideo

Ron Meyer: UCLA’s School of Theatre Film & Television Commencement Article

Michael Ovitz with Marc Andreessen–CAAVideo

Wasted: Jay Maloney @ CAA Article

The Young & the Ovitzless Article

How Super Agents Mike Ovitz & Ron Meyer Divorced CAA Article

New Hollywood Agency WarsArticle

Ari & Patrick Unleashed Article

Patrick Whitesell–WMEVideo

YouTube Talent Manager Shapes the Internet’s Hottest Stars Article

Greg Beal–The Nicholl FellowshipVideo

A Massive List of GrantsArticle

Why Everybody Should Work in Hollywood Article

10 Rules for Succeeding in Hollywood Article

Top 10 Mistakes I Made at CAA Article

Top 10 Screenwriting Contests Article

Hollywood’s Big-Money YouTube Hit Factory Article

Guest Speaker: TBA

Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Day 5

INDEPENDENT FILM

The Landscape: Buyers & Sellers, Domestic & Foreign Sales, Film Festivals & Film Markets

Self-Lighting: What When Why, Sundance Effect (Directing II), Genres, Financing, Investors, Business Plans, The Waterfall, First Hires, Production Legal

Distribution: Strategies, The Deal

Marketing: Strategies, Publicity & Advertising, The Spend

Please read and view as preparation in advance of this class:

Trevor Groth–SundanceVideo

Marc Hofstatter–IndieGoGo Video

America’s Next WalMart: The Indie Film Industry Article

Who Needs an Auteur? Article

Directors from Sundance on What Happened Next Article

Hours Before Business Plan Attachment

Being Here Business Plan Attachment

Guest Speaker: TBA

Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Day 6

DEVELOPMENT DAY I

Select one of the following for your Final which is Due today. Please email your assignments to .

Practice Pitches: Pitch an idea for a feature film to the class. An industry-caliber pitch usually goes from 10-20 minutes. Please refer to your notes from our class on how to pitch.

Treatment/Pilot Outline: Submit a treatment for your feature-length film. The treatment should be approximately 5-10 pages. Please refer to the sample treatment (San Quentin Giants).

Business Plan: Submit a business plan for an independently financed film. Please refer to the sample plan (Hours Before) and to Bankroll (see list of suggested readings).

Guest Speaker: TBA

Final Weekly Journal is Due Tomorrow

Please email this assignment to .

Submit a journal which summarizes your thoughts on what you’ve learned in each day of the class, what you learned from the guest speakers, your thoughts on the assignments, and your overall impressions of our discourse. Minimum of 1 page per week. You may select a single topic for the page as a short essay or discuss a variety based on the topics we have covered during the week.

This Final Journal should include all of your weekly entries and should be a minimum of 6 pages in length. Thank you.

Bibliography and Suggested Readings (not required):

  • Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman
  • The Agency: William Morris and the Hidden History of Show Business by Frank Rose
  • Ask the Pros: Screenwriting by Howard Meibach
  • Bankroll: A New Approach to Financing Feature Films by Tom Malloy
  • The Big Deal by Thom Taylor
  • Brothers Emanuel by Ezekiel Emanuel
  • The Business of Media Distribution by Jeff Ulin and Chris Simpson
  • Comics and Sequential Art by Will Eisner
  • Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull
  • Crush It by Gary Vaynerchuk
  • Easy Riders, Raging Bulls by Peter Biskind
  • Film Festival Secrets by Christopher Holland
  • From Reel to Deal by Dov S-S Simens
  • Global Hollywood by Toby Miller…
  • Good in a Room by Stephanie Palmer
  • Googled: The End of the World as We Know It by Ken Auletta
  • Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
  • Hollywood Assistants Handbook by Peter Nowalk and Hillary Stam
  • How to Write Movies for Fun & Profit by Thomas Lennon
  • I Liked It, Didn’t Love It by Monika Skerbelis & Rona Edwards
  • Keys to the Kingdom by Kim Masters
  • The Kid Stays in the Picture by Robert Evans
  • The Little Stuff Matters Most by Bernie Brillstein
  • The Mailroom by David Rensin
  • Marketing to Moviegoers by Robert Marich
  • The Men Who Would Be King: An Almost Epic Tale of Dreamworks by Nicole Laporte
  • The Operator: David Geffen Builds, Buys & Sells the New Hollywood by Thomas R. King
  • Ovitz by Robert Slater
  • A Passion to Win by Sumner Redstone
  • Powerhouse: The Untold Story of Hollywood’s CAA by James Andrew Miller
  • Save the Cat: The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need by Blake Snyder
  • Screenplay by Sid Field
  • Showrunners: The Art of Running a TV Show by Tara Bennett
  • Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon
  • Story by Robert McKee
  • Think Outside the Box Office by Jon Reiss
  • Ultimate Guide to Video Game Writing & Design by Flint Dille and John Zuur Platten
  • Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud
  • The Visual Story: Seeing the Structure of Film, TV and New Media by Bruce Block
  • The Writers Journey by Christopher Vogler
  • You’re Lucky You’re Funny by Phil Rosenthal

Statement on Academic Conduct and Support Systems

Academic Conduct:

Plagiarism – presenting someone else’s ideas as your own, either verbatim or recast in your own words – is a serious academic offense with serious consequences. Please familiarize yourself with the discussion of plagiarism in SCampus in Part B, Section 11, “Behavior Violating University Standards” Other forms of academic dishonesty are equally unacceptable. See additional information in SCampus and university policies on scientific misconduct,

Discrimination, sexual assault, intimate partner violence, stalking, and harassment are prohibited by the university. You are encouraged to report all incidents to the Office of Equity and Diversity/Title IX Office and/or to the Department of Public Safety This is important for the health and safety of the whole USC community. Faculty and staff must report any information regarding an incident to the Title IX Coordinator who will provide outreach and information to the affected party. The sexual assault resource center webpage fully describes reporting options. Relationship and Sexual Violence Services provides 24/7 confidential support.

Support Systems:

A number of USC’s schools provide support for students who need help with scholarly writing. Check with your advisor or program staff to find out more. Students whose primary language is not English should check with the American Language Institute which sponsors courses and workshops specifically for international graduate students. The Office of Disability Services and Programs provides certification for students with disabilities and helps arrange the relevant accommodations. If an officially declared emergency makes travel to campus infeasible, USC Emergency Information provide safety and other updates, including ways in which instruction will be continued by means of Blackboard, teleconferencing, and other technology.

Disruptive Student Behavior:

Behavior that persistently or grossly interferes with classroom activities is considered disruptive behavior and may be subject to disciplinary action. Such behavior inhibits other students' ability to learn and an instructor's ability to teach. A student responsible for disruptive behavior may be required to leave class pending discussion and resolution of the problem and may be reported to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs for disciplinary action.

PLEASE NOTE:

FOOD AND DRINKS (OTHER THAN WATER) ARE NOT PERMITTED IN ANY INSTRUCTIONAL SPACES IN THE CINEMATIC ARTS COMPLEX

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