Film Courage: Mark, I believe you’ve said previously that every director must also be
a writer.
So does that mean that every director should rewrite (in some sense) the screenplay of
the movie that they are directing?
Mark W. Travis: Oh…what a great question.
But there are two questions.
You always hit me with two questions [laughs].
First of all, every director…I’m going to do every director should be a writer.
Yes!
Every director should write.
Whether they write well or not is not important.
I think every director should understand the writing process.
That’s why we do Write Your Life.
But also the screenwriting process which is different and to understand and appreciate
the challenges I’m trying to get a story into what I call the 2-Hour Haiku.
You know, it’s like reducing it down to…well, we can talk about that later.
But in terms of the director rewriting.
No!
Rewriting a script?
It’s not the director’s job to rewrite.
It is the director’s job to work with a writer.
I’m a very passionate protector of the writer and I think if the writer has brought a script
to a point where a director is interested in doing it, then they should keep working
with the writer.
I don’t understand this getting rid of writers or bringing in other people to rewrite.
I do understand the collaboration of a director and writer working and then eventually with
the actors and everybody else staying involved.
When I’ve done films the writer stays all the way through the making of the film, all
the way through production and post-production.
They are part of the storytelling team.
I have my job.
They have their job.
I like having the writer on the set.
I’m shooting something…there was one film I was doing which we we’re having trouble
with the a scene.
I remember this…the two writers were there…it was a writing team.
And we couldn't get it to work and I told them…I said “I am going to improvise the
scene.
Hold on.”
And they went “Okay.”
And I went back to the actors and I took them through a quick process and then we started
to improvise the scene and I remember the writer going “Yes!
You’ve got it!”
No.
The fact that the writers said “Yes!
That’s where we’re going,” I felt great.
It wasn’t me rewriting the scene.
It wasn’t even the actors rewriting the scene.
The writers were there.
I’m trying to serve their initial vision of the film, combined with mine, combined
with the actors trying to reach the characters.
So I don’t like the idea (although it happens a lot in Europe, which you may know) and I’ve
run it by a lot of friends because I teach a lot in Europe (especially in Germany).
And a lot of friends who are very, very successful writers there and it’s a constant problem.
They will write a script (say for television) and a director comes on and the director does
a rewrite.
The first thing they do is rewrite it.
I directed a little bit in Germany and at one point was going to direct something and
the production company sent me the script and said “When are we going to get your
director’s script?” and I said “What do you mean?”
I’m reading the script and am saying “Yes, I want to do this.
What do you mean the director’s script?
What they meant was: we expect you to rewrite it.
So this was the producers expecting the director to rewrite the script that they had bought
and they wanted to produce.
And I said “No.
I am not going to rewrite it.
I’m going to work with a writer.”
So I don’t encourage directors to think they have to rewrite it.
I’ve seen too many times (especially in Europe) directors rewriting and reworking
a script and it was really clear what they were doing, unconsciously (I think) or maybe
consciously.
They were creating a script that they knew how to direct.
And by doing that they reduced it or shifted it from the initial intention rather than
trying to serve the script that was there initially, they altered it to something that
they could handle.
Film Courage: And then the story lost its essence because…
Mark W. Travis: Lost this one very important project which a friend of mine had written
and she had a powerful script and it was changed so dramatically into the style of film that
the director felt comfortable in doing.
He had been hired to do a film that he wasn’t really comfortable with, so he changed into
something…and it changed totally.
It lost (to me) the essence of what was there originally.
It turned out fine in the end but it was a whole different story.
It wasn’t what was there originally.
Question for the Viewers: What are your thoughts on a director rewriting a script?