The Power of The Dark Side

Creating Great Villains and Dangerous Situations 
by Pamela Jaye Smith

Book Review
By Ann Baldwin


Pamela Jaye Smith has earned a respected reputation as a speaker, consultant, writer, award-winning producer/director, and the founder of MYTHWORKS with over 30 years of experience on features, TV series, commercials, documentaries, corporate and military films. Her credits and clients include Paramount, Disney, Microsoft, Universal, GM, the FBI, and the U.S. Army. In her book, The Power of The Dark Side: Creating Great Villains and Dangerous Situations (Michael Wiese Productions 2008), you’ll gain a deeper understanding of what the dark side is, who gets lured into it and why, what it’s purpose is, and how to deal with it in your stories.

Every great protagonist, heroine, or hero is only as good as the antagonist, villain, or obstacle that gets in their way to accomplishing their goals, which they must confront and overcome. As writers, it’s our job to take our protagonists into the dark (unknown) and shed light on the subject for the audience, so they can learn what to do or not do in the same or a similar situation. As Pamela says, “Storytellers are valuable ~ they can be a mirror or a movie screen for the rest of humanity, who have a curiosity for variety and adventure but often not the inclination, time, or courage to go there themselves"; like the popular 1970’s commercial for Life cereal, where the two brothers are reluctant to try the new cereal saying to each other “I’m not gonna try it – you try it” then they look at their younger brother and say, “I know, let’s get Mikey.”

Whether your protagonist is up against a bad dad, tyrant, or mad scientist or large group like an organized religion, a secret society, or a shadow government, there are many ways to defend against them like laughter, education, and exposure. The dark side exists in comedies, cartoons, children’s stories, romance, drama, action/adventure, documentaries, historical fiction, commercials, and the obvious, horror stories. Pamela uses hundreds of film and character examples including Harry Potter, Conspiracy Theory, and Freedom Writers to Cruella De Vil, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, and Darth Vader.

The dark side of life is like the negative of a photograph, it appears dark and solid on the outside, but once you hold it up to the light, it becomes transparent and allows you to see right through it. For all writers who want to create believable, bad-to-the-bone, or worthy opponents for their heroines or heroes to conquer, The Power of The Dark Side is the best choice and has the largest and most comprehensive reference list of dark forces imaginable.

To learn more about Pamela Jaye Smith you can visit her at http://www.mythworks.net and purchase a copy of The Power of The Dark Side at Michael Wiese Productions, Amazon, The Writers Store, or Barnes & Noble.

Cinematic Storytelling

The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every Filmmaker Must Know
By Jennifer van Sijll

Book Review
By Ann Baldwin


Jennifer van Sijll has an MFA from USC’s Department of Cinema-Television, teaches screenwriting at San Francisco State and UC Berkeley, and worked as a script analyst for Universal Pictures. She consults on film and television projects in Los Angeles and San Francisco. In her book, Cinematic Storytelling: The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every Filmmaker Must Know (Michael Wiese Productions 2005), she opens new doors and windows of opportunity for more creativity in our screenwriting, by revealing the abundant resources available to us through film techniques.

You can add subtle layers of meaning to your scripts through film techniques such as sound effects, props, scene transitions, lighting, camera motion, and editing; Jennifer shows you how to incorporate them into your screenwriting and uses examples and illustrations from over 100 films including Out Of Africa, The Conversation, Klute, ET, Citizen Kane, and The Sixth Sense.

She will teach you how to think and write more visually and gives you the ultimate supply of tools for conquering the “Show, Don’t Tell” rule of screenwriting. You’ll gain a better understanding of how to convey your message to your audience without relying on dialog.

Jennifer’s unique approach connects a bridge between screenwriting and film production, allowing for a more united and successful collaboration of film artists. Cinematic Storytelling is highly recommended for all writers who want to master the art of screenwriting and be more in-demand.

To learn more about Jennifer van Sijll you can visit her at http://www.cinematicstorytelling.com and purchase a copy of Cinematic Storytelling at Michael Wiese Productions, Amazon, The Writers Store, and Barnes & Noble.

The Coffee Break Screenwriter

Writing Your Script Ten Minutes At A Time
By Pilar Alessandra

Book Review
By Ann Baldwin


Pilar Alessandra is the director of the Los Angeles-based writing program On The Page and a highly sought-after speaker and script consultant. She’s worked as Senior Story Analyst for DreamWorks and Radar Pictures, trained writers at ABC/Disney and MTV/Nickelodeon and presented classes at The Great American Pitchfest. Her students and clients have sold to Warner Brothers, Sony and more. In her newest book, The Coffee Break Screenwriter: Writing Your Script Ten Minutes At A Time (Michael Wiese Productions 2010), she takes you on an interactive journey into the multi-dimensional, image-moving world of screenwriting, where you gain a firm grasp of time, laser-focused thought, an abundance of accomplishments, and self-confidence, by practicing Pilar’s approach to completing your scripts.

Whether we’re facing a hectic schedule, 120 blank pages, or a deadline for a final draft, the pressure on our creative right-brain can be overwhelming and cause procrastination, brain freeze (aka writer’s block), or mind racing; Pilar reveals her secret strategies for overcoming these obstacles.

As writers, we encounter a tornado of words, ideas, images, and scenes whirling through our mind, while creating a story; it can sound like an auctioneer in a bidding war or look like a bunch of wild scatterbrains on a high-speed chase in a maze or feel like the Tasmanian Devil in a rage of emotions. Pilar helps you to pause, gather, and organize your thoughts by getting them on the page.

Screenwriters are time travelers, jetting back and forth between this world and the ones we create in our stories; we often experience jet-lag and get lost in time. It’s easy to get distracted by all the visions, sounds, and activity around us, where we lose track of time and direction toward our goal; Pilar’s method is like a compass and watch that keeps you moving forward and on time with your writing.

She guides you through the screenwriting process in ten-minute sessions using her simple techniques, which focus on one element at a time from structure, characters, dialog, and rewriting to pitching, marketing, and networking. She uses over 140 films and TV shows as examples from Big, The Sixth Sense, Slumdog Millionaire, and The Departed to Monk, Breaking Bad, and CSI.

You’ll experience the creative aspect of writing in the moment (the present), as she shows you how to write here and now about everything there and then; it’s a balance of being in two different places at the same time. I highly recommend The Coffee Break Screenwriter for all writers who want to master their time in writing and writing in time.

To learn more about Pilar Alessandra you can visit her at www.onthepage.tv/ and purchase a copy of The Coffee Break Screenwriter at Michael Wiese Productions, Amazon, The Writers Store, or Barnes & Noble.