Guido Segal, Screenwriter, Journalist, Film Critic, Instructor: Many times I thought I
did my best writing and no one connected with it and other times I had a deadline
and I wrote it very fast I thought Oh my God this is embarrassing! And people loved it
Film Courage: You have read like hundreds of screenplays
correct when you've interned at these production companies?
Guido: Probably yeah.
Film Courage: What did that teach you about writing and what came across your desk?
Guido: It's the best advice I could give any writer, if you don't learn how to write,
read scripts, read bad scripts which is what you'll mostly do, read good scripts as well. But
there's no better way to write than reading scripts. See how different people use the language
in the format. Some people are more verbose, some people are very sparse in
descriptions, some people are really great. Scripts are not literature,
they're not. They have to be engaging but they're not novels. If you can be very
concise and can convey the idea in a snappy way in one sentence, those scripts really work
of course. Some people have a great prose but there's not a great story there. It's so difficult
because it's a conjuncture of great story, great characters, great use of subtext right
there are many many scripts are marred by the characters just stating everything how they feel
and sometimes you got to do that but using subtext good use of subtext
it's very it's always appreciated because we most of the time people are not we don't go
through life saying everything we feel or think actually in order to avoid conflict we tend not to
right especially us to talk about couples couples don't say everything to each other otherwise they
would break up or get divorced right away so you make a scene about something else anyway reading
scripts helps you understand the format and any doubts you might have about format like how do
I structure a phone conversation well scripts that do that teach you use of language how to be
precise and concise how to start scenes and end them some people will just surprise you every once
in a while try to read great scripts by recognized writers as well the the script for Unforgiven
Clint Eastwood's movie is and that's a novel I wouldn't use it as example it's an amazing script
it's just the script itself is epic I remember the script for Nightcrawler
is an amazing script the movie I don't I'm not that crazy about but the script itself
there's a use of fonts in the script that was really original it changes the size and type
of font just to give you an impression of la at night and the neon signs and the descriptions in
it are perfect that's night crawler is a perfect script to analyze at least so read read reading
bad scripts when you're into an intern in a production company and you read bad scripts
it's it boosts up your your your confidence because you tell yourself I can do so much better
than this and this script not to talk bad about anyone but I'm saying this script made it this far
especially I remember once I was shocked reading a script that was terrible written in five minutes
and it had typos very important just check check grammar and spelling typos are really distracting
and everyone will tell you this it shows it's not everyone makes mistakes it's just typos show that
you don't care you didn't care enough to check and you can even use software to check that so
reading scripts just it helps you tune your mind into what it is writing a script do you think most
new writers are overly hard on themselves or they have the opposite where they think it's brilliant
I think most writers are really hard on themselves of course you'll meet a few people I will say
they're brilliant A) I don't know if they actually believe it and B) if they actually believe that
oh my god they're I don't envy them because they're going to hit their head against the
wall at some point I'm not saying people can't be brilliant of course they're
and they're they're natural born storytellers I’ve met a few
it's just that I don't I don't think it's a good idea to go through life thinking you're brilliant
sooner or later it's going to hurt it forever all of us but it hurts too to think you're not
brilliant and in fact you're the opposite so I think we it's it'll be good to avoid extremes
like at some point the older I get and I'm not really that old but the older I get I realize
what helps and what doesn't help it's what's useful is it useful to think I'm brilliant
no is it useful to think I'm an idiot no is it useful to think that this is the best like I'm
doing the best I can and that it's probably going to be good enough because this is what I can offer
and if they don't like it it's because maybe I wasn't the right person for the project
maybe and of course I say this very calmly now and then I'm writing the script and I
will say to myself like oh my god this is awful like I wish I could do better
and I will or I will also tell myself this is my best writing and then you know what's funny
many times I thought I did my best writing and no one connected with it and other times I had
a deadline and I wrote it very fast I thought oh my god this is embarrassing and people loved it so
whatever opinion you have of yourself I wouldn't I would try not to take yourself too seriously
in general in life I like that so you avoid extremes because it also applies to dealing
with other people too oh no I'm very extreme I'm saying what I wish I did I try to I try to be
mindful about it I don't always succeed sure sure we all want to sort of live in the gray
but yeah ideally if I could choose I would choose to be aware as aware as I can as in the moment as
I can and this has nothing to do with writing by the way this is life I feel like there's so many
labels that I put on myself and then everyone puts on one another and and and you're meant to
categorize yourself and especially like what do you write oh I write period dramas like
well that's not true that's what I'm doing now I don't think that's what I'm going to do forever
and it doesn't help I know they they need to be able to label you so that they can hire you and
that so I'm not trying to start a revolution like I am who I am but if you have to label yourself to
get a job do it but internally I try not to label myself I try to be a better writer every day I try
to expand my interest and my scope and if someday I can write a rom-com why not I don't know.