Screenwriting Your Way To Hollywood

Summary: Throughout filmmaking history screenwriters have used many methods to achieve success in Hollywood. Nora Ephron (When Harry Met Sally, 1989) easily gained access to Hollywood as the daughter of stage and screenwriting team Henry and Phoebe Ephron. Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkovich, 1999) juggled many jobs and wrote for the T.V. series, "Get a Life," before catching the attention of producer Steve Golin. Alan Ball (American Beauty 1999) chose a different path; he first wor...

Throughout filmmaking history screenwriters have used many methods to achieve success in Hollywood. Nora Ephron (When Harry Met Sally, 1989) easily gained access to Hollywood as the daughter of stage and screenwriting team Henry and Phoebe Ephron. Charlie Kaufman (Being John Malkovich, 1999) juggled many jobs and wrote for the T.V. series, "Get a Life," before catching the attention of producer Steve Golin. Alan Ball (American Beauty 1999) chose a different path; he first worked as a theater producer and writer. Producers Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner invited him to Hollywood because they both saw the debut of Ball's hit play, "Five Women Wearing the Same Dress" at the Manhattan Class Company Theater. While Hollywood screenwriters have their own success stories, they also share strong work ethics and know how to foster vital business connections. This article examines how current Hollywood screenwriters Dan Bucatinsky and Tim McCanlies learned from their predecessors' habits and how they jumpstarted their writing careers. Dan Bucatinsky is a talented and disciplined writer who broke into the Hollywood scene in 2001 with his romantic comedy, "All Over the Guy." A 1987 graduate of Vassar College, Dan took advantage of his education and worked diligently to learn his craft and develop a unique style. His time spent writing countless papers, stories, and scripts in college attributed to his screenwriting excellence. When he returned to Vassar in 2004 to advise aspiring screenwriters Dan emphasized the importance of writing everyday. "Even when I draw a blank, even when I don't feel like working, even when nothing I put down on paper is any good