Storyteller's Cottage to Host "Script to Screen Summit"

On April 6 & 7, 2019, The Storyteller’s Cottage will host a unique weekend-long retreat for aspiring screenwriters featuring an array of nationally-known directors, producers, consultants and screenwriters. The Script to Screen Summit will draw over one hundred aspiring screenwriters to Simsbury to network with and learn from key figures in the film and television industry.

The weekend will feature keynote speeches, workshops, and panel discussions designed to provide practical information for new screenwriters as they take their first steps into the business.

Workshops and presentations will be held at several historic locations in town, all within walking distance of each other, including Eno Memorial Hall, the Historical Society, the Simsbury Free Library, and more. With the Storyteller’s Cottage at the center, the weekend will present Simsbury in an excellent light, cementing its status as a delightful historic town perfect for a film location.

In between workshops, participants will enjoy a wide range of social activities designed to facilitate networking and show off Simsbury’s appeal, including mystery room games at the Storyteller’s Cottage, a production by the Theater Guild of Simsbury, meals at the new Metro Bis location, a hike to the Heublein Tower, and more. A highlight of the weekend will be a Short Form Screenwriting Contest, where the winner will take home $500 and have his/her script read live at a Table Read at the conclusion of the event.

Registration is open now at www.StorytellersCottage.com/script-to-screen-summit.

Presenters will include:

Ben Houser / ESPN Emmy-winning Director, Producer
Doug Wood / Screenwriter and Feature Developer for Steven Spielberg, Amblin Entertainment, Warner Bros., Turner and Universal Pictures
Barb Doyon / Screenwriter, Producer, Director
John Bucher / Mythologist, Writer, Teacher
Carole Kirchner / Director, CBS Diversity Writers Program & WGA Showrunner Training Program
Colin Theys / Synthetic Cinema Film Director
Andrew Gernhard / Synthetic Cinema Film Producer
Gus Marinak / Screenwriter, Producer, Director
Pamela Perry Goulardt / Produced Screenwriter
Workshop topics will include:

ADAPTING YOUR NOVEL FOR THE SCREEN (Pamela Perry Goulardt): Screenwriters and filmmakers gravitate to stories that are popular with current audiences. From classics to modern bestsellers, books (fiction and non-fiction) are great providers for screenplay adaptations. As in life, learning to adapt can be a difficult process, but can be a key to success for a screenwriter. The goal of an adaptation is to distill the ‘essence’ of the story by finding the truth you want to share, mining it for maximum interest, maintaining the tone of the story, remaining true to the genre, picking up the pace, all while changing exposition into the visual language of cinema.

ARTIST'S PLAYGROUND: EXPLORING CREATIVITY THROUGH IMPROVISATION (Doug Wood): Doug’s custom designed improv workshop enables writers and filmmakers to access their own imaginations, embrace intuition, and a create from a place of freedom and spontaneity. Improv requires the same skills that are necessary for the creative process, including intuition, concentration, being “in the moment”, self-expression, communication and accessing intimate emotions and life experience. Using theater games, sensory exercises and scene work, Doug will show participants that they’re at their best when they silence their left brain (critic) and allow their right brain (free spirit) to have some fun!

CRAFTING THE KEY ANTAGONISTIC FORCE IN YOUR STORY: WICKED STEPMOTHERS, EVIL GENIUSES & A TORNADO FILLED WITH SHARKS (John Bucher): The Antagonist is the opposing force to your hero. He/she drives the story forward and believes he’s in the right. He isn’t just evil for evil’s sake, he’s evil for a good cause -- it might be an evil cause, but he thinks it’s good. Learn how to write a compelling antagonistic character with just enough humanity in them to make your audience think. John Bucher is a renowned strategist, communicator, and cultural mythologist based out of Hollywood, California. Disruptor named him one of the top 25 influencers in Virtual Reality in 2018. He is the author of six books including the best-selling Storytelling for Virtual Reality. John has worked with companies including HBO, DC Comics, The History Channel, A24 Films, The John Maxwell Leadership Foundation and more. Currently, he teaches writing and story courses as part of the Joseph Campbell Writers Room at Studio School in Los Angeles and at the LA Film Studies Center.

FILM PRODUCTION AND THE WRITER’S ROLE (Colin Theys): Screenwriters “provide a blueprint onto which the producer, director, production designer, composer and editor, cast and crew can graft their creative efforts.” Screenwriters work under tight deadlines and strict budgets, so they must be not only flexible with their creative art, but fairly thick-skinned as well. Colin Theys is a Connecticut-based director and producer working with Synthetic Cinema International. A graduate of Wesleyan University, he has directed features for Hallmark, Lifetime, Syfy, Chiller, and for release on DVD. He has also directed romance, comedy, thrillers, horror, and creature features. Colin supervises VFX at SCI.

GETTING AN AGENT TO CALL YOU (Barb Doyon): Barb Doyon is the owner/founder of Extreme Screenwriting, a Los Angeles based screenplay and TV pilot coverage service. In this keynote speech based on her book, she’ll share practical marketing approaches you can use to entice an agent to call you. All of these have been used successfully by screenwriters and Barb herself, and will be particularly helpful if you have won or placed in a contest and still don't have representation, have 3 or more recommended scripts and no agent, have sent out hundreds of queries with little or no response, have attended pitch festivals and agents still aren't interested, have been a screenwriter for 5+ years with no sales/agent, have optioned a screenplay and still can't get an agent or you've been turned away because agents do not read unsolicited material.

INSIDER SECRETS OF THE FILM INDUSTRY (Barb Doyon): Barb will discuss getting past the “gatekeepers”, or the script readers in the industry. While most writers’ dreams end at this obstacle, Barb will share insider secrets to propel your script past the gatekeepers and onto the desks of producers.

THE NECESSITY OF THE UNDERWORLD JOURNEY FOR WRITERS: MYTHS, MONSTERS AND WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY (John Bucher): In Greek mythology, the underworld journey was “an ideal vehicle for the hero to display his exceptional qualities, often involving the rescue of a soul trapped there.” Descents into and ascents out of the underworld are themes incorporated repeatedly into modern film. Why must we put our characters through such a tragic scene? John Bucher is a renowned strategist, communicator, and cultural mythologist based out of Hollywood, California. Disruptor named him one of the top 25 influencers in Virtual Reality in 2018. He is the author of six books including the best-selling Storytelling for Virtual Reality. John has worked with companies including HBO, DC Comics, The History Channel, A24 Films, The John Maxwell Leadership Foundation and more. Currently, he teaches writing and story courses as part of the Joseph Campbell Writers Room at Studio School in Los Angeles and at the LA Film Studies Center.

PRODUCING THE INDEPENDENT FILM (Andrew Gernhard): Learn what it takes to produce an indie film. Andrew Gernhard took his love for fantastical, out-of-the-box storytelling, and turned it into a successful producing career spanning nearly two decades, creating dozens of high concept, yet mainstream accessible films of all genres. He is the founder of Synthetic Cinema International. Synthetic Cinema's brand of fast paced and fun creature features stood out in the crowd, and quickly gained the attention of NBC/Universal's then brand new horror network, Chiller Network. In 2014, Andrew reached out to a former teacher from his high school, turned New York Times Best Selling Author, Wally Lamb, to produce a feature film adaptation of his popular novel Wishin' and Hopin' for the Lifetime Network. The project quickly gained momentum as an all-star cast signed on, including Molly Ringwald, Cheri Oteri , Meatloaf, and Chevy Chase amongst others.

PRODUCING AN INDEPENDENT FILM FOR $2,000 (Gus Marinak): If you really want to make a film, you’ll find a way to make a film. Using the tried and true screenwriting technique of using the smallest possible number locations, renting his equipment, and tapping the acting talents of family and friends, Gus Marinak was able to make a successful horror movie for just $2,000. Gus wrote, directed and produced the film, and will share with you his secrets of how to make a movie on a fixed budget.

TELLING A BETTER STORY (John Bucher): Tune up your screenwriting. John Bucher is a mythologist, writer, and teacher based out of Hollywood, California, and has spoken on 5 continents about how individuals, organizations, cultures, and nations can “tell a better story.” He is the author of six books on storytelling and has consulted and worked with companies including HBO, DC Comics, The History Channel, and A24 Films. He has served as a story consultant and writer for numerous film, television, and Virtual Reality projects. Currently he teaches writing and story courses as part of the Joseph Campbell Writers Room at Studio School in Los Angeles and at the LA Film Studies Center. You can learn more about John at his website, tellingabetterstory.com.

SCREENPLAY CRAFT AND STRUCTURE FOR FILM AND TV (Pamela Perry Goulardt): While feature films and TV have a similar formatting structure, in content they differ dramatically. Feature films follow a classic structure - beginning, middle and end, the main character must arc, and they rely on visual, cinematic storytelling with little exposition. TV relies on visual cinematic language and exposition. TV can be episodic, where the story ends with each episode, or it can have one storyline that runs through an entire season, or potentially 5 or more seasons. Whatever you choose, it must begin with a marketable concept, have a multi-dimensional character(s) with a dilemma, goals and high stakes.

SPORTS AND THE TRUE STORY “Buster Douglas 42 to 1” (Ben Houser): Emmy-award-winning sports filmmaker Ben Houser will discuss the ins and outs of documenting true stories. This workshop will feature his documentary for ESPN’s 30 For 30 show, “42 to 1,” which revisits boxer Buster Douglas' monumental upset of heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in 1990.

SPORTS MATTER “The Number 12 / Logan Schoenhardt and Tom Brady” (Ben Houser): Emmy-award-winning sports filmmaker Ben Houser will discuss the pivotal role sports journalism plays in society. The workshop will feature his 12-minute film for ESPN’s E:60 show, “The Number 12,” which follows the journey of a terminally ill Simsbury boy as he meets his idol, Tom Brady.

THE ULTIMATE CHARACTER WORKSHOP: (John Bucher): Character is key. Think of your favorite story characters, do they have strong opinions, are they unique? Why do you care, fear, or hate them? With John Bucher’s roots in Mythology, he identifies what is bold and risky in characters, he shows you how to build life-like characters that are universal, and relate to global audiences. John can be found at www.tellingabetterstory.com.

WELCOME TO THE FILM INDUSTRY (Barb Doyon): Barb Doyon is the owner/founder of Extreme Screenwriting, a Los Angeles based screenplay and TV pilot coverage service. She began her career in the Walt Disney Studios pressroom and is is an award-winning documentary film writer, producer and author. Producers in the industry count on her for coverage, ghostwriting and adapting novels for TV and film. She believes it all starts with a great script and is dedicated to helping writers improve their work while they learn to navigate the competitive Hollywood marketplace.

WELCOME TO THE TV BUSINESS (Carole Kirschner): Carole is an Entertainment Career Coach, and author of the book Hollywood Game Plan: How to Land a Job in Film, TV and Digital Entertainment. Her career as a senior level creative television executive spans positions at CBS Comedy and as Vice President of Steven Spielberg’s first Amblin Television. During that time, she heard more than 3,000 pitches, bought hundreds of scripts, and was involved in developing dozens of television series. In all, she estimates she has read close to 5,000 scripts. She also was instrumental in developing the curriculum for the WGA Showrunner Training Program.

For more information, call the Storyteller’s Cottage at (860) 877-6099 or visit www.StorytellersCottage.com/Script-to-Screen-Summit