Is Hollywood really out of ideas? (Hint: It’s not What, but How)

Many times, movie pitches sound like dumb ideas. They’re making a movie out of that Disneyworld “Pirates of the Caribbean” ride? Oh, man that’s thin. That will never fly.

I also have to admit that when I first heard that they were going to make a Facebook movie, I did not think it was going to be good. I am happy to report that ‘The Social Network’ is actually a good movie. It also reinforces the idea that movies are about the how, not the what.

Every year, I see articles about how Hollywood is out of ideas, and how we are about to be subjected to a series of sequels and remakes. However, I often find myself pleasantly surprised by sequels and remakes. And new movies in old franchises keep getting made because people go see these movies.

For example, “The Dark Knight” could be seen as both a sequel and a remake. The existing brand — Batman — reduces financial risk for the backers (we’re pretty sure that some people will pay money to watch a Batman movie) and the creative team (who are the characters? what kinds of things will they do? what will the audience expect? where do we have room to break some rules, shatter some expectations?).

I am drawn to the way the Dark Knight movies breathe new life into the Batman framework, shattering creative formulae which have been in place for decades with that creative property. Yet it’s still recognizably and very successfully Batman.

This is because movies are about how you tell the story, much more than what story you tell. Because of the visual nature of the storytelling, the director is in more control of the overall experience than anyone else — especially the writer. This is why directors get more credit for a film’s success than screenwriters.

One of the uses of ‘26 Screenplays’ is to help directors and producers reduce, though not exactly the same way an established brand does it. By using one of my screenplays, the team has a point of departure to explore the different “hows” that they see in the story.

I was thinking about this during an email exchange with someone who was interested in purchasing the book. The prospective buyer wanted a guarantee that no one else would make a movie using the script he chose to film. He did not want to be seen as copying someone else. (I do have other screenplays which offer that kind of exclusivity. They are available for sale. They also cost more than $1.)

But if Tim Burton, Woody Allen, and Terry Gilliam all had the same script, their creative processes would take them in wildly different directions. Each film would be a unique product of a different filmmaking team, business plan, budget, and creative vision.

Even though you may use the same story or plot as someone else, your film is yours and yours alone.