This is a transcript of SYS Podcast Episode 427 – Directing A Day To Die, one of Bruce Willis’ last movies .
Welcome to Episode 427 of the Selling Your Screenplay Podcast. I’m Ashley Scott Meyers, screenwriter and blogger with sellingyourscreenplay.com. Today I’m interviewing Wes Miller. He is a Lawyer turned Filmmaker, really smart guy who just quit being a lawyer to pursue becoming a Writer-Director. And now he has written and directed and produced more than half a dozen feature films. We talked about his move from being a lawyer to a filmmaker, how he was able to make that transition smoothly. And then we talked about his newest film A Day to Die starring Bruce Willis, Frank Grillo, and Kevin Dillon, so stay tuned for that interview.
SYS’s six-figure screenplay contest is open for submissions just go to www.sellingyourscreenplay.com/contest. Our regular deadline is May 31st. If your script is ready, definitely submit now to save money. We’re looking for low-budget shorts and features. I’m defining low budget is less than six figures. In other words, less than 1 million US dollars. We’ve got lots of industry judges reading scripts in the later rounds, we’re giving away 1000s in cash and prizes. This year, we have a short film script category 30 pages or less. So, if you have a low-budget short script, by all means submit that as well. I’ve got a number of industry judges that are looking for short scripts. If you want to submit to the contest again, just go to sellingyourscreenplay.com/contest. Also, this year, we are running an in-person Film Festival in tandem with our screenplay contest. It’s for low-budget films, again, produced for less than 1 million US dollars. We have a features and a shorts category. And again, lots of industry judges are going to be looking at the movies in the later rounds. The festival is going to take place in Hollywood, California from October 7th to October 9th. If you have a finished film and would like to submit to the festival, you can go to www.sellingyourscreenplay.com/festival. And you’ll also see a link to submit to film freeway on that landing page. We’re actually taking all of our submissions through Film freeway just for really a variety of logistical reasons, it’s just much easier to collect them in the film freeway. So, if you use film freeway or your on Film Freeway, you can definitely find us in there as well. If you find this episode valuable, please help me out by giving me a review in iTunes or leaving a comment on YouTube or retweeting the podcast on Twitter or liking or sharing it on Facebook. These social media shares really do help spread word about the podcast. So, they’re very much appreciated. So now let’s get into the main segment. Today I am interviewing writer, director and producer Wes Miller. Here is the interview.
Ashley: Welcome, Wes, to the Selling Your Screenplay Podcast. I really appreciate you coming on the show with me today.
Wes: Hey, thanks for having me, Ashley.
Ashley: So, to start out, maybe tell us a little bit about your background? Where do you grow up and how did you get interested in the entertainment business?
Wes: Yeah, I grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. I’ve always loved film, you know, ever since I was a little kid. I had like the little pixel 2000, black and white reporter record on the tapes. We used to make, you know, films in the neighborhood with all the kids and stuff, man and then, wound up, you know, playing football, went to college, and then found my way to law school. You know, long story, I really wanted to go into film world, but my colleges film program was full. So, I did pre law and kind of fell in love with the law at the time. And so yeah, and then just kind of dug in and went to law school man, and you know about practice for about eight years or so and realized, man, this just wasn’t the final column for my life, man. And then just started really, you know, working and reading and honestly, like your podcast has always been like a resource in the transition, man. So back in 13-14 when I was like, you know, dibbling a little bit and was like, should I or should I not? Yeah, and then in 2015, man, when I want to make the full-time switch.
Ashley: Okay, good. And so, let’s talk about that a little bit. Undergraduate, I was an accounting major. So, when I got a school, I said; Oh, I’m going to go to Hollywood and be a screenwriter. I definitely got some strange looks. You even took it a step further. I mean, it’s not just you know, the time, there’s money, there’s a whole career. So, let’s talk about that transition. How did you know it was the right time to leave? And how did you, you know, you must have gotten some blowback from parents, friends, family, just thinking that maybe this is a crazy move to try just talk about that a little bit. Maybe?
Wes: Yeah, so the thing was, is like so around I think it’d be like 2012 I started. So essentially, really what happened was is I was looking for something to do I was like, I know this isn’t it, I know the law isn’t it and then the DSLR revolution came and then you know, the Canon 5Ds, that first generation then the Canon came out with like the T3Is, and that was kind of like my first camera. And so that’s when I kind of picked up a camera and just started like, staging scenes and shooting, you know, and I shot a couple of little shorts. And then what happened was is like 2013, a Producer who is now an Emmy winning Producer/Director picked up my first screenplay off of a website, I think it was Simply Scripts. And, you know, it wasn’t a lot of money or anything, but he brought me out. And I got to watch the process of like, you know, of everything, I just watched the whole process of casting and shooting, and, you know, I was there on set, and I just really, really fell in love with everything. And then also learn, like, if you want something you write to come out to be like you want it to be, then you also have to be the director of it. And so yeah, man. And then so I just really, you know, started learning and, you know, studying and really learning writing. And like I said, like, I didn’t do film school. So, like the website, no film school, your podcast, John Goldsmith’s Q&A, I just kind of like, began to immerse myself in different creators and just like, what are their past? What have they done? And then I don’t know, man, like, we’re on 2015, I was getting enough good feedback on the scripts that I was doing that I was like; Okay, you got a talent at it. But you’re going to have to dedicate yourself and really work hard to do it. And you only live once, man. So, it’s kind of like, you know, once I realized there was a path forward, and then I was actually was pretty good at it, and realized those crafting have to work at it, because the laws of jealous mistress, and I will say the same thing about filmmaking, like, you know, learn a full new craft, like in mid-career. So yeah, man, so I made the switch and like, summer of 2015. So, the practice, that gave me a little bit of income to kind of hold me off, you know, help out a little bit. And then, you know, wife was amazing as well to be able to help in that regard. And I will say, man, you know, candidly, so my mom was like; Excuse me, you want to do what? I’m sorry, what? So yeah, she was unhappy. But most of my friends and family were real supportive of it. Because they had seen that out how I was doing little things. They’re like; Oh, okay, it actually is pretty good. But then I think the hardest thing for me was probably the emotional side, the emotional switch. Because you know, when you become a lawyer, you go through this transition in law school of becoming a lawyer, thinking like a lawyer and your identity becomes wrapped up into who you are as a lawyer. And then when you lose that identity, and you’re like… I’m not going to say nobody, but you’re like, you’re not like I’m a lawyer anymore, even though you’re still technically a lawyer, but you’re not practicing. But you’re not quite yet. I use the term real filmmaker, I mean, like, full fledge filmmaker, you’re doing more than a sparring because you’re making stuff, but you haven’t really hit the point where you can “make a living” at it. And you’re and found your identity at it, found your voice at it. So that was like a nice little wilderness period that was probably took me like, three to four years that you just kind of walk through the wilderness as you’re growing. And then often would remind myself, like; look, it took college, it took law school, seven years to become a lawyer, like, it’s not unreasonable to say you need five to seven years to become a filmmaker four times five or seven years, if you’re going part time and to take that much longer. Because every minute you’re not writing or not shooting or not studying. It’s just work not being done. So. Yeah, it was a very difficult transition, bro.
Ashley: Yeah, it sounds like it, I’m sure. So, at this point, you’ve done a couple of shorts, it sounds like you had sold this feature, and had another one sort of in the works option. Did you have an Agent Manager? Had you started to sort of pursue some of those avenues?
Wes: No, and I still don’t yet. Pretty much everything that I’ve done has pretty much… up until recently, everything that I’ve done has been like, me and a couple of guys, a couple of friends where we just go hard. And we just produce it ourselves and teaming up with good financial partners who can see the stuff through, but no, man, and I haven’t really sought out managers agents yet. I think it’s partly because I want to make sure I’m an asset when I reach out to them. I feel like I’m at the point where I would feel like an asset to like a manager or an agent. But maybe in the next you know, 6 to 12 months, I’ll start reaching out and I’ve had some recommendations thrown my way but yeah, man, I just want to make sure that my craft was ready on the directing level and writing level before I just started reaching out to managers and agents.
Ashley: Yeah, yeah, sure. So, let’s dig into your latest film A Day to Die starring Bruce Willis, Frank Grillo, Kevin Dillon and a bunch of other really great actors, you really put a great cast together for this one. Maybe to start out, you can just give us a quick pitch or logline. What is this film all about?
Wes: Yeah, the short version is it’s about a group of soldiers who have to band back together when one of their soldier buddy’s wife is kidnapped after he shoots the underling of the local drug kingpin, who’s played by Leon, and then he has to get $2 million in 12 hours or risk losing his wife.
Ashley: Yeah. So, let’s dig into this a little bit. So, you’re a director on this project, not necessarily a writer. So how did you get involved with the screenplay? How did you find it? How did you sort of come across your desk?
Wes: Yeah, so a friend of mine sent it to me. And he knew I was at the point where, you have to ask yourself like, what kind of filmmaker do I want to be like, what is it I want to do. And, you know, I’ve come to the realization that I’m a filmmaker who likes to make socially relevant action films, right. And then as a filmmaker, you have to position yourself to have some value in the foreign market. So, I was looking for an action piece that I could infuse some of myself and help elevate, and also have cool action that would also translate across the world. So, my friend sent it to me, and it was pretty good, it was decent. But it was really just a straight A and B type of thing. And so, I really wanted to work to add a few layers into it. So, I did a little rewrite, you know, I wouldn’t credit as a writer-writer, because I just kind of took the structure that was there and just added a few characters and a couple of plot points here and there and twist. But that was it, man, it was just like, friends sent it to me, and I was like, alright, we can work from this, I know what the challenge is, let me see if I can rise to the challenge and exceed it.
Ashley: So, and I wonder this is sort of your more practical lawyer brain talking, but there does seem to be sort of a practical aspect where, because this is what we always hear, especially in the low-budget realm, doing action films, you know, they do play around the world. So how did you sort of come to that conclusion or sort of learn about that stuff. As far as like, you didn’t go make your, you know, going to camp some very personal story about growing up in Memphis, Tennessee, which I’m sure can be a great movie, but not necessarily the most commercial movie. And so, you have a sort of a commercial bent, but maybe you could tell us about that. How did you sort of learn about that? And what is sort of your thinking on commercial and artistic because I hear exactly what you’re saying, too, and you’re trying to do something commercial, but you’re also trying to put in something that you feel as socially relevant to yourself and just artistically important to yourself?
Wes: Yeah, I mean, the reality is, I think the first part of that is, I made a couple of earlier films, River Runs Red and Hell on the Border, and made some good relationships with like, some really strong sales agents and some different producers, and at the end of the day, like, when you are getting these films finance or working to get in finance, if you have a drama, and unless it’s like super A-list actors, it is like hard, hard, hard to get it financed. I mean, the market is risk adverse, unless you have a lot of equity investors who are willing to take certain risks, which are really hard to find. And so, you have to, and the reality is, this is how the studio’s make their movies. I mean, it’s just on a smaller level, you just you have to understand, like what the elements are needed to make films. People love action movies. And so like, they wouldn’t be financial or popular if people weren’t watching them. It also translates, action translates across all demographics, all worlds, all countries. So that’s why it really helps in a foreign market. And I do think like, I think for me, it was just I asked myself, like; look, you know, do you really want a lot of people watching your material or do you just want to just make small dramas? And I was like; No, I really want people to watch. And I look at people like, you know, the Antoine Fuqua was Michael bass, the F Gary grace, they make really, you know, good action movies, they have really big budget. So, my thought was this with this one, I was like; look, let me show producers and financiers and even you know, hopefully some studios that like; look, what you know, this guy’s a would have put together in on a super small budget. And it’s like, all right. Like, he’s alright, like he can do it. So yeah, it was just like a lot of thoughts and you know, you have to think about if you would want to do this for a career, you have to think about your career trajectory. And I used to play football and like, I wouldn’t go play defensive end when I play cornerback, you know, I play quarterback and I’m be the best quarterback I can and it’s just like, look, I love action films. I love saying something. Those are not mutually exclusive. And you can definitely infuse yourself and to commercial fair, and means you can keep doing it over and over again.
Ashley: Yeah, yeah, for sure. So, what are some of those conversations with these sales agents and producers look like? And I just like real nuts and bolts, the I mean, you know, I’ve had those conversations where they say, okay, you got to have an action scene on an action movie, every 10 pages, and especially low budget, you know, there’s always it’s expensive to do action. So, a lot of times you end up in a low budget action movie, it’s not actually it doesn’t really qualify as an action movie. But maybe there’s some other things that these guys are telling you. And maybe you can tell us some of those tips for writers listening that maybe want to write a low budget action movie.
Wes: I’ve heard that like, set out in the world before, but I’ve never had a financier or producer come back and say; Hey, make this more action every 10 pages. Honestly, at this, what I’m really learning is all about story, like bottom line. Because at the end of the day, no matter how good the script is these days, if you don’t have a cast attached to support the budget, it’s nearly impossible to get done. I mean, like in the finance world, again, if you have equity people in behind you, then that’s; man, I would love that. But when you don’t, and you have to work within the financing system, then like you have to have talent, you have to have cash, you have to have names. And the reality is again, like even in the studios like they do their little boards and with their popularity overseas when they’re casting. Again, as I said it’s a different budget level. But they are casting names and their material, because they want to do it. And now again, you have the exceptions, like the A24s who do smaller budgets, stuff that take artistic risks, but that door is so narrow, and for me, I don’t want my career to be dependent upon that. But yeah, could I write something? Do I have something like stories like setting Memphis like, you know, talking about my childhood? Absolutely. Are they there one day to maybe if I get that opportunity? Yes, but I’m not going to sit back and not work on my craft and not continue to get better. While we try to get that one done. And again, man, like, you know, honestly, like shooting action with the squad on the ground, it’s fun. And to your other point, yeah, it’s tough to shoot action on more contained budgets, I would say that technology has levelled that playing field, but you still need your stunt coordinators, you need your armors, you need your special effects team, because we did all our stuff practical, 99.9 of everything in our field was practical. So, you still need those. So, it does raise the cost to do it safely and do it right. But that means you have to go get that talent to kind of support raising that that budget up a little bit.
Ashley: Yeah. And are there some specific things that you’ve learned that you get a lot of bang for your buck, you know, certain action things? And I’m curious, like you just said it was 99% practical stuff that would have been the opposite of what I intuitively would have thought, you know, I would have thought in this day and age, doing CGI would have been the cheaper way to do it. But are there some things that maybe are not so intuitive that writers can write into their scripts that can be done cheaply and still really, you know, pack a lot of action?
Wes: Yeah, I would say you know, I think of course, hand to hand combat is always is always good. And it’s hard to just narrow down. Let’s see, so hand to hand combat you can do, without it been terrible with a couple of stunt doubles and you have a good fight coordinator. Some breakaways. Like you can make it really good. If you have a smallish gunfire scene you could get away with doing that with CGI, but like we have full on assault rifles and like extended gunfire and I feel like if you go CGI with that, you lose a lot of the intensity and the visceral nature of like the shooting and stuff. So, you really need that. You know, definitely chases foot chases in that, again, with starting doubles. Yeah, it’s hard. And I will go back to this man, I will go back to what I’ve really come to realize is again, it’s about the story. Because that story is what’s going to draw in those bigger actors. And I would say, like start, just stay true to the story in the screenplay. If you get that actor on, and you realize; hey, we have to pull back and cuts and stuff, we did have to, you know, cut a couple of sequences because like, it was really ambitious, then you bring it back down, but always for the read, always focus on the story and making the action feel as full as possible. And then you do have to be prepared. If we can’t do this was an option that gives us the same feeling kind of scenario.
Ashley: Gotcha, gotcha. I’m curious, just not necessarily anything to do with screenwriting. But how did you learn to shoot action? What were some of your shorts very actiony, when you’re doing these short films? Did you study like, how did you actually learn how to shoot action scenes?
Wes: Yeah, so they were not. They were more dramas. So, you know, that’s when I was still trying to find myself a little bit. So doing a couple of dramas. And I think like, you know, so I met a… so, on the first one that I did was a movie called A Tone like, super, super low budget. And it was the challenge, the way I learned is just by doing it, so the challenge was like, Alright, here’s a contained faith-based action film, in a church. And we had a couple of few fights, a lot of gunfire, nothing like crazy. But it was actually in it did pretty well for us. And then what happened was, is I met a guy who was like, up and coming at the time, this was like six years ago, named Greg Remontoir, who was an amazing stunt coordinator, second unit guy. And, you know, we just kind of dug in, he had worked on the Marvel shows, and we just kind of dug in and like, just went in at it. And it was just, it was a really… so, I learned a lot of the techniques that they use on a Marvel-movies he brought over to with us, and did that and now he just like, he was the FBI coordinator, and nobody, he’s bullet train, he was like the second or director that’s coming out, like, so he’s like, a real up and coming talent. But just really again, like, getting with people. Like he was just like a full team member, man, it was just like a homeboy, man. And so that’s it, man and just learn and I ask questions, pick up cameras, and I like to shoot myself. So, I get in there with the camera, and we should.
Ashley: Gotcha, gotcha. So, you keep going back to the cast. So, let’s talk about that a little bit. In terms of the raising of the money of this film, obviously, Bruce Willis, probably the biggest star in your movie. Talk about that a little bit? What did come first? Did you have to get Bruce Willis attached first, and then you’re able to raise the money? Or did you have to raise some money? And then get Bruce Willis attached?
Wes: No, the kind of the way it works is like, again, like because of a couple of earlier films I have a relationship with a few, you know, sales agents. I mean, they know that I can finish a film that I can deliver a film and one that they can sell. And that’s really a huge part of the battle. Because when I first started, I couldn’t even get anybody to take my calls, man, it was tough. I mean, it still is tough, but it was tough for. So, in this regard, you basically send the script over to the sales agent, they’d be like; alright, this is something we did, I’ll dig it. And then I let me know who your cast is. So, we go out and get our cast. And then let’s say we bring them name A, B, and C, they like; alright, with these names, this is what we can sell it for, this is the minimum guarantee, we can give you shooting your tax state for X amount of dollars, then you know how much money how to make the movie with, if that’s not enough, you got to recast or get, you know, different names. And it’s not really for recasting because you can’t do that to talent. You can’t just be like get them on the hook and be like, oh, we don’t need you anymore. That’s not it. So don’t misunderstand that. It’s more, if there’s talent that is accessible, that you have relationships with, or has expressed a strong interest in the material, then you like; hey, this guy’s interested, if I’m able to lock it in, what are we able to do? And so that’s the thing and for us, so on this one, I had a relationship with Frank Grillo after our last movie, great dude. And so, like he was on board with this and what happened was we were going to shoot this and 2020 right before COVID hit, we were going to shoot.
Ashley: Is Frank Grillo as the lead?
Wes: No, he was going to have the same role as… he it’s kind of a lead but no, it’s the same role. He’s like, you know, the captain of the squad. So, it’s really an ensemble piece. I think Kevin Dillon is more of the driver as far as that goes. And then with Leon, they’re both like, you know, I would put them one or two. That kind of scenario. So Frank was on board, and we had a friend of mine, Gianni Capote was on board. From earlier, we’ve worked together a few times great actor. And then, you know, with those guys, though, the budget was going to be at a certain level that would have made it difficult for me to even get close to the vision that I had. So we were, you know, we came back, we’re like; alright, you know, because now COVID costs you have to factor in, so budget goes up. And so then, you know, we were working to add that one other name that will really help the film have the financing, to the point where I knew I could like, okay, like, look, I don’t have $10 million. And I need more than $1 to even come close. But you know, with technology, and the cameras are used and the shooting style. I know I can give us something that feels big. But you know, we need at least a minimum of x. And I don’t know what that number was now. But it just, we needed we needed one more name. And then I had a friend who was also in the movie, Alexander Cain who played Steve, who also had a relationship with Bruce’s team. And he basically vouch for me, I interviewed with the team, I use interview loosely. I mean, I met with him, you know, I mean, like… And so, they were cool. They were cool with me. And, you know, Bruce signed on, and after that, it was just really like, you know, letting the financing close up and make the movie.
Ashley: So how long was this whole process from when you first sort of got the script, did your rewrite to actually getting in finance? Obviously, you got closed down, because a COVID sort of set you back? But how many years was this project?
Wes: It was probably two years, man. From the time because I think Frank committed in like December of 19? Yes, I probably would have started working on it like summer of 19 to get it kind of in a place where I felt comfortable, even sending it to Frank. And then we got the shut-down 2020. And then we want to shoot in 2021.
Ashley: Gotcha, gotcha. So just sort of wrapping things up. Just what advice would you have for someone, if someone comes to you and says; Hey, I’m fresh out of college or fresh out of law school and I want to go in and become a screenwriter, what advice would you have for them?
Wes: Write. I mean, honestly, study and write. If you have the ability to work a small job, or if you have a spouse that supportive or however, like I would probably make sure though that like, A) I really enjoy it and B) I have a real talent at it. And the only way you know that is if you write something and you shoot it, and then you write something, you shoot, and you do that two or three times. And if you’re getting better, and you love it, then you might want to go ahead and make that call. If you’re doing good, and you’re not getting better, then sometimes you just have to face the tough realities, like; hey, you know, this might not be the career path for me, even though I enjoy doing it, you know, maybe it’s producing, maybe slotting as a producer, maybe it’s directing, maybe it’s aiding, you know, maybe its production supervisor, production manager, there’s so many different important pieces of the puzzle and making film and I know, we all want our words out there. But you know, you got to have an honest assessment of; hey, all right, I’m actually good at this or I’m getting enough positive feedback from industry people that I should do it. But honestly, man, find great stories and write, find great stories and write.
Ashley: Yeah, sound advice for sure. Is there anything you’ve seen recently that you think was really great? Especially something maybe that screenwriters should check out? You know, Hulu, HBO Netflix, anything out there you’ve been watching that you thought was really good?
Wes: Yeah, you know, I think I would say two things. Somebody that I’ve always I’ve looked up to who broke out like right as I was making the switch into the careers like Taylor Sheridan, you know, I’ve read everything not everything he’s done I haven’t had a chance to read like some of these TV series. But you know, I’ll take if you watch Mayor of Kingstown on Paramount plus and then watch 1883 and maybe try to find a couple of screenplays. I think watching how he works in two different genres and the focus on characters and one is a very much a slow burn and one is a lot more tense and tighter. It’s a really give a good contrast as to where you can and possibly should or could be one day as a writer and as a showrunner. He’s really good, has a good voice. And now I read about his process not too long ago. You know, he’s not a big outliner, he pretty much gets in and writes in and lets it take you know where it goes, which is, you know, a lot different than a lot of people. So, I think both of those will be a good case study and also enjoyable watch.
Ashley: Okay, perfect. Perfect. Yeah. Good recommendations. How can people see A Day to Die? Do you know what the release schedule is going to be like?
Wes: Yeah, so it dropped on Friday, March 4th. And now it’s, I know it’s in select theatres, maybe to like Wednesday or Thursday. And then all VOD platforms. You know, it’s already there now. So, by the time you’re watching it, go check it out. It’s a lot of fun. We really worked hard on it, just really wanted to make a cool little action film and hopefully it’s a nice springboard for other things.
Ashley: Yeah, perfect. Perfect. We would definitely check it out. What’s the best way for people to keep up with what you’re doing? Twitter, Facebook, a blog, anything you’re comfortable sharing our roundup for the show notes.
Wes: Yeah, mainly Instagram. I’m really bad at social media. I’m trying to get better. This release has made me, forced me to post a lot. And so, I’m going to try to keep it up. But IamWesMiller is the handle that Instagram.
Ashley: Okay, perfect. Perfect. Wes, let’s I really appreciate you coming on talking with you today. Good luck with this film and good luck with all your future projects as well.
Wes: Thanks, man. And keep up the good work, man. Listening to a lot of your guests actually gave me a lot of the courage to make that switch man. So, you may not hear it a lot. But it’s making a difference.
Ashley: Well, I really appreciate that. Wes. That’s great to hear. So, thank you very much.
Wes: All right, my man. Thanks.
Ashley: Well, thank you. Bye.
SYS’s from concept to completion, screenwriting course, is now available, just go to www.sellingyourscreenplay.com/screenwritingcourse, it will take you through every part of writing a screenplay, coming up with a concept, outlining, writing the opening pages, the first act, second act, third act and then rewriting and then there’s even a module at the end on marketing your screenplay once it’s polished and ready to be sent out. We’re offering this course in two different versions, the first version, you get the course, plus, you get three analyses from an SYS’s reader, you’ll get one analysis on your outline, and then you’ll get two analyses on your first draft of your screenplay. This is just our introductory price, you’re getting three full analyses, which is actually the same price as our three-pack analysis bundle. So, you’re essentially getting the course for free when you buy the three analyses that come with it. And to be clear, you’re getting our full analysis with this package. The other version doesn’t have the analysis, so you’ll have to find some friends or colleagues who will do the feedback portion of the course with you. I’m letting SYS select members do this version of the course for free. So, if you’re a member of SYS select, you already have access to it. You also might consider that as an option. If you join SYS select, you will get the course as part of that membership too.
A big piece of this course is accountability. Once you start the course, you’ll get an email every Sunday with that week’s assignment. And if you don’t complete it, we’ll follow up with another reminder the next week, it’s easy to pause the course if you need to take some time off, but as long as you’re enrolled, you’ll continue to get reminders for each section until it’s completed. The objective of the course is to get you through it in six-months so that you have a completed polished screenplay ready to be sent out. So, if you have an idea for a screenplay, and you’re having a hard time getting it done, this course might be exactly what you need. If this sounds like something you’d like to learn more about, just go to www.sellingyourscreenplay.com/screenwritingcourse. It’s all one word, all lowercase. I will of course a link to the course in the show notes and I will put a link to the course on the homepage up in the right-hand sidebar.
On the next episode of the podcast, I’m going to be interviewing to Tarik Saleh, who just directed an action thriller called The Contractor starring Chris Pine. It’s another fascinating episode. Tarik started out in documentaries and eventually started doing narrative film. So, he talks about the transition, and how doing documentary films helped make him a better narrative filmmaker, so keep an eye out for that episode next week. Just one last note that I thought was amusing. Wes was obviously very gracious to say that my podcast helped him that’s very gratifying. Obviously, that’s a big part of why I do this. But it is not lost on me. If I’m helping to convince people to give up successful careers as lawyers to be filmmakers. I might need to seriously reconsider what I am doing. Anyway, that’s the show. Thank you for listening.