The important of influences in the screenwriting process.

1.  Assistant Professor
 Screenwriter/Producer
 Keith Giglio
kegiglio@syr.edu
AMATEURS CREATE
PROFESSIONALS STEAL

2. What's the Tone?

3. Film is the the language

4. UNIQUELY FAMILIAR

6.  We all have our influences. Early in my career,
it was said I was very influenced by Peckinpah;
now they tend to say I’m more of a Hawksian,
but whatever. Sam was tremendously
influenced by Kurosawa, and Kurosawa was
tremendously influenced by Ford, Ford was
tremendously influenced by DW Griffith, and
Griffith was tremendously influenced by the
novels of Dickens. Now, I don’t mean to insert
myself in this lineage, I just mean everybody’s
holding everyone else’s hands and everyone’s
sitting on everyone else’s shoulders. —Walter
Hill: a life in the fast lane

7. Shane Black

8.  As the world plunges into chaos, a drunkard
loner – who does not want to get involved – is
lured back into the fight by the woman from
his past.
Name the Movie

10. • Not just for the idea
The Importance of
Influences

14. Does lack of Influences =
Lack of originality?

15. Speilberg Lucas
conference

16. HOW DO WE TEACH OUR
STUDENTS TO STEAL....
…and not get caught

17. Getting caught =
Bad Tarantinto

18. • Students should study the writer, not just what is written.
• Podcasts. Interviews.
• There is no muse
• Start being a writer
• The Well
DEMYSTIFY THE
WRITING

19.  Student must break down FIVE MOVIES that
are similar to what they are writing
REVERSE ENGINEER

20. REQUIRED READING

21. Modeling

22. REWRITE OPENING OF
FAVORITE MOVIE

23. MAKE IT THEIR OWN –
He did!

24.  P.S. Many parts of this presentation were stolen
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