If you’ve never had the pleasure of watching Get Shorty, I recommend a viewing. It’s one of Travolta’s wisest post Pulp Fiction moves, which is owed, in large part, to Scott Frank’s adaptation of the Elmore Leonard novel (RIP, EL). Frank adapted another Leonard gem, Soderbergh’s Out of Sight, was one of the writers on Spielberg’s Minority Report, and shares credit with Mark Bomback on this summer’s The Wolverine, to name a few. BAFTA Guru posted a twenty-five minute video of Scott in their The Screenwriters’ Lecture Series, full of stories and advice from one the industry’s top screenwriters.

SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS

By far, my favorite moment of the lecture is Frank’s satirical commentary on the state of the industry for young writers. If you work hard and have a little luck come your way, you might be fortunate enough to live the life. From there, it’s just a simple roll of the dice whether you’re Brody or Quint. [Read more…]