Film Courage: This question is from viewer Nolan Putnam “What is the most helpful habit
you’ve created (in regards to screenwriting) that’s allowed you to become a professional?
Erik Bork, Screenwriter/Author: That’s a great question, is there one habit that has
been the most helpful?
Probably we’ve talked about most of them, probably the most important perspective has
been to see it as something I am always learning, I’m always growing and that that’s okay.
It’s not like I’m supposed to know it all and be perfect at it and the things that
I write are going to be great automatically and others are going to love them.
To see it more as it’s an ongoing quest of kind of a self-development, self-education,
I’m learning with everything that I write what works better and not as good so it’s
like this journey of development that you sort of like are going to enjoy the journey
as opposed to I have to get to a certain place which it’s easy to feel that way because
the world works that way where I have to get the agent, I have to get the sale, I have
to get something produced, I have to raise my money and make my movie.
Like there are all these goals that we might have in the world and a lot of times they
are out of our control and if you focus only on those goals like what I can get, what I
can achieve instead of what can I express?
How can I just do what I decide I want to do which is be a writer and keep learning
and growing and find some satisfaction in that journey.
Because when you turn it into there have to be these quantifiable results in terms of
money or others reactions, whatever.
Then you’re putting your power in this thing that may or may not ever happen, you can’t
for sure make happen no matter what you do.
So I think that attitude might seem counterproductive because Well to be successful (professional)
you want to focus on the professional goals, right?
Well you do to some extent you are open to feedback and you are educating yourself.
I didn’t say just go in a hole and do what you want to do and never…and shut the outside
world out.
I’m saying engage with the world with feedback, with education, with trying to understand
and get better so it’s growth but making it a positive growth for yourself is about
making me better and making my writing better, not making my results better.
Because when you focus on how do I give more, how do I write something that is really going
to impact people more, how do I that?
How do I figure out how to do it?
How do I get better at it, you are then about giving to other people and you will achieve
success I believe more when you succeed at giving more.
You get more automatically as opposed to how do I get the success, how do I get the breaks,
how do I get the right person to read it, how do I get people to like it?
It’s more how do I create something so wonderful that people will just automatically like it,
I’m not even concerning myself with that.
So it’s like taking the power into your own hands and being about how you can improve
your stuff, your self as a writer, having that approach I think is a stronger healthier
approach that is going to lead to success more then you do it the other way.
Film Courage: That’s amazing because especially to if you do live here in Los Angeles (I know
you said you don’t necessarily have to but it definitely helps) you are bombarded every
second with reminders whether it’s billboards or someone going by you, somebody else that’s
is higher up on the proverbial food chain and it’s thrown in our face.
It’s really wonderful to think of the unplugging from that because this is almost the anti-culture
here.
Was this something that was almost part of your make-up or you had to learn this?
Erik: Oh no, I had to learn.
Again it’s like an everyday practice (that thing again), an everyday practice of I’m
being about the purity of expression of growth and learning and improving as opposed to as
opposed to how do I get the results that I want from others.
Because we don’t naturally do it that way, we have to sort of like decide that’s how
I’m going to approach this instead.
Film Courage: And also to in the last few years (and not to get too morbid) but we’ve
seen people who have achieved tremendous success obviously not be happy and then you have to
ask yourself well why am I doing this?
And it has to be (and as follow your bliss bumper sticker on the back as it sounds) it
has to be about that because we do see these people who have achieved these amazing results
and the end result for them showed that it wasn’t enough.
Erik: I do think it really is about making the daily practice/journey/writing whatever
enjoyable.
Being at peace and enjoying what you’re doing each day, finding a way to make it that
way so the journey is a positive journey and not be so caught up in the destination because
if you enjoy what you’re doing you’re going to do it more, you are going to do it
better, you are going to want to learn more.
But it comes from a certain level of confidence and trust that what you are doing is worthwhile
and if you measure that in only money or career statistics you may never get there and you
may always be insecure about that.
The people who want to write, there is usually more of a compassion, more of a purity of
I just want to do this for some reason.
So if you can really hold to that as opposed to what the results are is what matters so
much you would probably have a better time doing it, you will be happier, you’ll be
more productive and prolific and the results usually actually follow from that.
Film Courage: Before you chose your major for film and television what was your goal
or major before this?
Erik: What I first started college, I experimented with being an English major and thinking about
writing fiction, poetry.
I experimented with being a music major briefly but I pretty quickly took some introductory
film classes and I realized that this was the medium that I wanted to try to write for.
Film Courage: And you’ve said that [film] festivals really aren’t about the laurels
(I heard you say this in another interview).
I think that’s actually beautifully put.
Erik: I don’t think I said it but that’s probably true.
Film Courage: Okay, let’s say you didn’t say it but this goes back to what we’re
talking about, the end result is not what it should be about.
And I know it’s easy to theorize that and say these things and then you have to live
in a reality that is life and you’re competing with people all the time and that’s something
that happens in pre-school and it happens in adult hood but to really have something
that we get from it that is more than an accolade.
Do you think that is what keeps you going in terms of why you do it?
Erik: I’m not sure what keeps me going to be honest.
I think like I keep going like most writers because that’s just what I do.
It’s what I’ve decided I do.
It’s what I want to do and I’m engaged with the challenge of getting better and writing
things that really fulfill why I wanted to be a writer.
They are the kind of things that I love that I wanted to create more of in the world.
And I guess part of that is to get it out in the world I’m going to need other people
to help me do that and finance it or whatever.
But it’s kind of like I haven’t achieved yet what I wanted to achieve even though I’ve
worked on some big things and won awards and made a living as a writer and stuff, there’s
a lot of kind of projects that I always got into this because I wanted to do, that I still
want to do those.
So I think there is just a desire to create and express that never seems to really go
away and so it’s just a chosen field.
It keeps me going because it’s just the path that I’m on and have chosen and have
no reason to un-choose .
Film Courage: I can say the same for Film Courage.
It would be great to have videos get this [certain] amount of views but at the end of
the day it has to be about conversations (like today’s conversation) and that’s worth
it for us.
That’s why we do this for.
So even though I’m not a screenwriter, there has to be something else besides hoping Erik’s
video gets millions of views.
It has to be that the process was enjoyable which it has been.
Erik: Thank you.
For me as well.
Film Courage: This is a great way to end.