Boxing Dreams

By Laura P. Valtorta

The filming of the boxing documentary is indescribable. It’s living one of my dreams. I can’t sleep very well because I’m always planning the next step.

Aside from SCWW workshops, creative writing is solipsistic. I write by myself, counting on an unseen audience to catch my messages. But does the audience even exist?

With filming, I’m using questions and answers, faces, clothing, hairstyles, sound, lighting, action, and background to communicate ideas. I must collaborate with the director and production crew. Also the boxers.

Collaboration in art is something completely new to me. I look at the production crew and think that I’m depending on them, but I also have to convince them. This project, for me, is brilliant and important, but what will the other producers think? What about Milo (not his real name)?

Milo sat in on the first production meeting. I could tell he was skeptical. Whereas Cliff, the director, and I talked up the project, Milo sat at the table silently for thirty minutes, taking notes, with a frown on his face.

“He’s thinking like a producer,” Cliff told me later. “All he hears is that we start shooting on Tuesday.”

Among us, Milo was the only one who had boxing experience.

The filming started out smoothly. We interviewed boxers and their families at the gym. The background was noisy, but that’s what Cliff wanted. I felt excited about it. I could tell Milo was still skeptical. The sound would need some heavy engineering.

“Our emphasis might be on the next big boxer that comes out of here,” Cliff said.

“Our emphasis should be on Mr. Stanick,” I said. “He’s the heart of this gym.”

On the second day of shooting, Mr. Stanick’s interview came third, after a young boxer and a promoter. The boxer was good looking but young. The promoter was nervous. Both made some useful statements and revealed a good bit about the boxing industry.

Finally, Mr. Stanick sat in the chair. I had a million questions for him, but I managed to pick the important ones. Mr. Stanick described his own 50-year history as a boxer/ trainer/ manager/ gym owner, his passion for the sport, and his devastation when one of his boxers got hurt. The crew listened and posed additional questions.

At the end, Cliff said, “Mr. Stanick, we’ll be taping several more sessions with you.”

Milo had a smile on his face. He said, “Now THAT was a good interview.”

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, American Version

By Laura P. Valtorta


Lisbeth Salander does not care what the world thinks of her, nor would she ever fix coffee or breakfast for anyone. She is the hero of Stieg Larsson’s bestselling novel, Man som hatar Kvinnor (Men who Hate Women). The American screenwriter, Steven Zaillian, fails to realize this, while the Swedish screenwriters of the 2009 film, Nikolia Arcie and Rasmussen Heisterberg, got it right on target.

Everyone should read all three books and see all three Swedish movies before they watch the American imitation.

The American film hands too much power to Michael, Lisbeth’s counterpoint. It was LIsbeth who solved the mystery of the bible verses in the book, not Michael. The American film turns that around.

The American director, David Fincher, also takes away one of Lisbeth’s key scenes. When Michael comes looking for Lisbeth, who has been hacking into his computer, he confronts her in her tiny, messy apartment sleeping with her longtime lover, Miriam. In the Swedish version (and in the book), Lisbeth stands there staring hard at the intruder. She does not care what Michael sees, and she allows him to drink spoiled coffee, which he spits out into the sink. The American story has Lisbeth ashamed of her lover and practically cowering, as Michael chases Miriam out. The Swedish Lisbeth would never allow that.

The real Lisbeth would never make breakfast for Michael, either, but strangely, that happens in the American film after they make love for the first time. In the Swedish film, Michael makes the breakfast and Lisbeth wolfs it down.

The worst indignity of this American imitation film is when Lisbeth asks permission to execute the murderer. In the book, Lisbeth allows him to die, but Michael chastises her for it afterwards.

Great acting saves the American film, despite the misogynistic screenplay and bad directing. Thanks to Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig, this film is worth watching. Even Robin Wright is fun to hate. Lisbeth’s costumes are excellent as well.

Blue People, Billions and Basic Writing

By Kimberly Johnson

I didn’t pay the $7.50 at the ticket window last Saturday. That’s right; I’m the only one who didn’t see Avatar. You know, the flick with the blue people flying on dinosaur-looking creatures. The flick that made billions of dollars.

To borrow a phrase from Drew Barrymore’s date night film: I’m just not that into it—science fiction, that is. My history with science fiction is checkered, spotty at best. I did munch popcorn to the Star Wars trilogy. I smiled through E.T. I curled up on the couch to Close Encounters on DVD.

Again, not a fan of space, the final frontier.

I didn’t pay the $7.50 at the ticket window last Saturday. That’s right. I blew it. After watching James Cameron’s insightful interview with PBS talk show host Tavis Smiley, I realized that blue people and quality writing equals big bucks. The Smiley-Cameron exchange revealed the director’s vision on creativity, the use of computerized imagery and the writing process. I also realized Cameron is a prolific screenwriter with box office notables such as The Terminator, Rambo: First Blood Part II and True Lies under his belt.

I did pay the matinee price to see those films.

That interview got me thinking… Cameron must be a darn good writer.
I drove to the public library and checked out three screenwriting books. (There is an iceberg and leading man in my future.) Hal Ackerman’s, Write Screenplays That Sell, is a keeper. Ackerman states that you don’t need to take a screenwriting course to write professionally. Did I tell you he is a former screenwriter and film instructor? Well, his former UCLA film students give him high praise for his simple, yet effective techniques to write and to format scripts.

So, I rolled the dice and decided to skim the book.

Then, I decided to read it.

Finally, I decided to incorporate some of his ideas into my writing. (I liked Ackerman’s take on character descriptions--- Keep the language fresh and vivid. Never leave your reader wanting less.) Overall, Ackerman wants the reader to develop strong writing skills. He does a good job on providing the nuts and bolts. For example, Ackerman believes that “dialogue must function as a part of a character’s efforts to accomplish his or her immediate objective”. He offers helpful hints such as:
• It’s never a character’s objective to give information to the audience.
• Characters ought not to be complicit with the writer’s intentions for them.
• A character’s objective is not to tell the story or to supply biographical information, back story, mood or psychological diagnosis.

I didn’t pay the $7.50 at the ticket window last Saturday. That’s right. I didn’t blow it. I used my library card to check out a reference guide to improve my writing—and to find some blue people.

Virtual Pitch Fest

by Laura Valtorta

People who have a finished screenplay should try out Virtual Pitch Fest. It's a way to send your pitches (2-3 paragraphs about the screenplay) to producers in Hollywood and New York. Having done this for about 4 months, I can testify that it works, and it's legitimate. The writer chooses her target producers, agents, or managers from a list describing who they are and what they want to read. I advise writers to buy the Hollywood Creative Directory to double check who these people are. In about 3-5 days the writer gets a response. "No, thanks," or "Yes, email me the screenplay right away!" From about 30 pitches I have sent in, 12 or so asked to read the entire screenplay. Each pitch costs about $10. This pitching is fun and it's fast, and it beats flying to LA to make your pitches. Well, maybe not.