Geoffrey D. Calhoun

The Successful Screenwriter Monthly Contest Winners for January 2023 Screenwriting Competition.

The winners are announced for The Successful Screenwriter: Monthly Contest (October 2022)

It was 5 pm and I just got off a long flight and barely had enough time to change into my “nice” clothes. I rush to the first big film festival I was ever nominated for an award in. That’s when the Fest Director runs up to me and says, “they are waiting to interview

If you listened to to my recent interview with Geoffrey on Ep22 of The Successful Screenwriter Podcast, you’ll see that we had an absolute blast. It was one of the most fun interviews I’ve recorded where I blew off a lot of steam and got a lot off my chest and when listening back to

Kubrick is truly a mastermind of cinema. He shared screenwriting credits on most of his films and is known as one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. His films and screenplays tended toward book adaptations which covered a wide range of genres from scifi to drama. He is known for his gritty realism, dark

Christopher Nolan is a groundbreaking filmmaker. He has been known to write screenplays with his brother Jonathan. He explores such themes in his films as morality, personal identity, and even time itself. He has used nontraditional narrative structure in his films such as with Memento and Inception. He has been listed as one of the

Quentin Tarantino has a distinct style which has lead him to become one of the defining filmmakers of his generation. He has been known to use a mix of graphic violence paired with dark humor which takes his audience on an emotional rollercoaster. He has been listed as one of the top 10o most influential

David S. Goyer can be accredited with kicking off the superhero film craze with his screenplay for Blade in 1998 which became hugely successful. He didn’t stop there though. He further went on to craft the screenplays for Godzilla, The Unborn, and The Dark Knight Trilogy, He has branched out into television with such hits

‘Tis the season to kick up your feet and watch a classic Christmas movie. One staple of the season is It’s a Wonderful Life. As I started watching the Jimmy Stewart perennial, I noticed how much the screenwriters fully used the first 12 minutes of the movie to establish characters that continually feedback into the

Storytelling is as old as fire, perhaps older. No matter the medium, there is always a way to weave drama, suspense, comedy, and character into it. As screenwriters, we’re accustomed to weaving these elements into our features, pilots, and shorts. There is one storytelling medium that’s been on the rise in past decades. Video Games

I’ll just preface this by saying I’m really enjoying “The Falcon & the Winter Soldier”, even more so than “Wandavision”, which started off slowly, built up really well, and then crapped the bed in its finale. I love the chemistry between Sam and Bucky, and Zemo has been a welcome addition (shades of Supernatural, with

by Alainna MacPherson Numbers and statistics aren’t necessary to feel the lack of diversity in the film and television industry. The world has been woke over the last 365 days on how much movies and shows are whitewashed or misrepresented. I was one of those people who brushed off the problem when it first was

*SPOILERS* The latest episode is called “Truth”, and it effectively sheds light on many of the main and supporting characters and their personal histories, while weaving in the themes of heroism and its cost on both the hero and those who look up to them. Starting with John Walker, we see a man hailed as

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Will the Zoom writers rooms continue after the world returns to “normal?” With the vaccine nearly in full swing and studios returning to filming with a plethora of safety measures, the next biggest question in the film industry is whether or not writers rooms will return to in-person once things go back to “normal?” The

Writing isn’t an easy field to break into. Anyone with a keyboard can throw words on a page and call it writing. Those of us who went to school for our craft may have found some success. However, most of us are still looking for that big break into the field. You aren’t going to

The first time I heard about Clubhouse, I had a hard time understanding the concept of what it was. An app that was by invite only, exclusively for iPhone users, that allowed you to talk to other people like zoom, but without video. If that doesn’t confuse you, then you must not be as old

Writer’s block, some believe it exists and some don’t. No matter your side of the page, for the next few minutes of reading this, suspend all disbelief you may have about it and just stay open. Welcome to the neuroscience of screenwriting, where you’ll learn a simple and effective stress relief approach that clears the

Jake & Jack barely had a budget. Only $600. That’s it. There are fewer than 20 people as credited crew members (the average film list of credits on a feature film averages about 600). And they spent every weekend over the course of five months shooting their first feature film. With passion and determination though,

Harley Wallen didn’t always want to be in the movie and TV business. Growing up in Sweden, he found martial arts to be his first passion. “That was my original art,” Wallen says adding that he was also a breakdancer on a TV show in Sweden similar to a cabaret/Donny Osmond-type show. From there, he

Erin Rodman has 2 movies coming out in the next 3 months, here’s her process & perspective on screenwriting Erin Rodman’s story is the epitome of what happens when hard work and passion pays off. Her new movie Advice to Love By premieres on October 16th, and the sequel to last year’s The Christmas House

Every year, millions of households turn their television to the Hallmark Channel and watch the saccharine, sentimental films that are as predictable as they are romantic. It’s comfort food. It’s family fair. It’s a tradition. For the filmmakers who churned out the 41 Hallmark Christmas films premiering this year, it’s a challenge to create a