Not everyone enjoys a globe-hopping lifestyle a la Indiana Jones and 007, or endures the emotional peaks and valleys of a Scarlett O'Hara or Blanche Dubois. But most of us do come of age sooner or later, which makes it easy to relate to the pivotal events involved in growing up. First crush. Dawn of sex drive. Loss of virginity. Breakup with sweetheart. Senior prom. Graduation day. Going off to college.

In like vein, we're all familiar with the issues confronting adolescents. Forging an identity. Fitting in. Handling peer pressure. Bonds/bounds of friendship. Erosion of childhood illusions. Bridging the generation gap. Leaving the nest.

"Threshold: Scripting a Coming-of-Age" offers film buffs and prospective screenwriters insights into the essential elements. Chapter 1 develops the four cornerstones of all scripts irrespective of genre. Chapter 2 covers the genre's distinctive features. Chapter 3 analyzes one classic coming-of-age in depth: "River's Edge." Inspired by actual events, the 1987 film confronts its seventeen-year-old protagonist with a daunting threshold rarely encountered by mature adults.

The book debuts three feature-film screenplays: "Homies"; "What Up Dawg"; "What Are Brothers For?" The respective protagonists--13, 19, 21--face age-appropriate challenges involving peer pressure, authority figures, and post-graduation blues.

"The Thriller: Scripting Seat-Gripping Suspense" plumbs nine-score thrillers for recurring features that build nape-prickling, heart-pounding suspense. Fodder for analysis embraces domestic and foreign fare, classic and contemporary, ranging from "Ghost, Speed, Seven, Psycho, " and "The Silence of the Lambs" to "La Femme Nikita" and "Yogen Premonition]."

Text eschews a connecting-the-dots, painting-by-numbers approach, in belief that formulas drain the lifeblood of creativity and inevitably spawn a ho-hum product. That said, the eight factors culled from the covered films constitute useful tools in the screenwriter's arsenal.

Perhaps the best groundwork for a thriller is infiltrating the ATF/FBI/IRA, or a brigade of arms-running mercenaries. Short of that, watching films and reading scripts will work wonders. In that spirit, the book debuts three feature-film scripts for critical scrutiny: mystery thriller "Stateline"; police thriller "Cashing Out"; supernatural thriller "Birthmarks."

"Contemporizing the Classics: Poe, Shakespeare, Doyle" is a how-to on the art and craft of transforming a classic into a feature-film screenplay with a modern storyline.

The introduction probes an issue that weaves throughout: role of artistic license in balancing fidelity to the original versus dramatic needs of the script.

Contemporization of a classic being the most flagrant form of dramatic license, the introduction presents three guidelines for a considered exercise thereof.

Each part debuts a feature-film script that resets a classic work(s) in the present.

Part One offers a contemporary visualization of Macbeth, in the process turning an Elizabethan tragedy into a dramatic comedy.

Part Two applies the guidelines to several renowned works by Edgar Allan Poe.

Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Hound of the Baskervilles" having frequently screened as a period piece, Part Three gives the hound a twenty-first century twist.

After a shooting in London goes hideously wrong, two hitmen, Ray and Ken, are sent to hide out in the strange, Gothic, medieval town of Bruges, Belgium, by their volatile and dangerous boss, Harry Waters. While awaiting instructions from him as to what to do next, the pair attempt to deal both with their feelings over the botched killing and their differing attitudes towards this curious, otherworldly place they've been dumped in ('Bruges is a shithole.' 'Bruges is not a shithole'), until the call from Harry finally comes through, and all three men are enmeshed in a spiral of bloody violence that few will get out of alive. This jet-black comedy marks the feature-film debut of writer/director Martin McDonagh, award-winning author of such plays as The Beauty Queen of Leenane, The Lieutenant of Inishmore and The Pillowman, and the film Six Shooter, which won the Academy Award for the Best Live-Action Short Film. The film stars Colin Farrell as Ray, Brendan Gleeson as Ken, and Ralph Fiennes as Harry. In Bruges was the opening night film at the Sundance Film Festival.

Two major new screenplays by the award-winning Stephen Poliakoff made for the BBC and HBO Films and due to be broadcast in November 2007. A stellar cast led by Michael Gambon and Dame Maggie Smith feature in these exquisite, major new films that are linked by a grand house and memories of the past. In Joe's Palace, the first of two screenplays, Stephen Poliakoff explores the relationship between a reclusive billionaire (played by Michael Gambon), and the teenage boy he employs to take care of a grand house. This is a lavishly shot contemporary film about loneliness and loss. In Capturing Mary, the companion film for BBC2 set in the same exquisite empty house, Poliakoff takes his characters into a dark and terrifying exploration of the past and its power to capture and destroy a person's life. Dame Maggie Smith plays the lead role. Included also is A Real Summer, a glorious companion drama to Capturing Mary charting the development of an unexpected friendship between a young aristocratic woman and Mary before she enters the dangerous world of Mr Graham's house.

"There's just one hunk of funny anecdote after another, quotes from everyone who ever mattered in the movie biz, and the thing is jam-packed with screenwriterly advice. Plus it's hilariously funny, ribald, sexy and brilliant."--Liz Smith
In "The Devil's Guide to Hollywood," bestselling author and legendary bad-boy screenwriter Joe Eszterhas tells everything he knows about the industry, its players and screenwriting itself--from the first blank sheet of paper in the Olivetti to the size of the credit on the one-sheet.
Often practical and always entertaining, "The Devil's Guide to Hollywood" distills everything one of Hollywood's most accomplished screenwriters knows about the business, from writing advice to negotiation tricks, from the wisdom of past players to the feuds of current ones. Eszterhas has selected his personal pantheon of the most loved and loathed players in the business and treats the reader to a treasure trove of stories, quotes and wisdom from those luminaries, who include William Goldman (loathes) and Zsa Zsa Gabor (loves).
"The Devil's Guide to Hollywood" could only have been written by someone who loves the business as much as Eszterhas does--but who also has its number.
"Eszterhas delivers a dishy, catty mix of reminiscences and Hollywood trivia...his forte is skewering sycophants and phonies in this opinionated showcase of the underside of Hollywood life."--"Publishers Weekly"

On a typical suburban street in a typical suburban town, there is an ordinary family living the American dream. But look closer. Lester Burnham's wife, Carolyn, regards him with contempt, his daughter, Jane, thinks he's a loser, and his boss is positioning him for the ax.

Captivated by Jane's sultry high school friend Angela, Lester decides to make a few changes in his mere existence--changes that are less mid-life crisis than a life reclaimed.The freer he gets, the happier he gets, which is even more maddening to his wife and daughter. Complicating matters, Lester finds an unexpected ally in Ricky, the teenage son of the new next-door neighbors, who sees life through a camera lens that has lately focused on Jane Burnham.

In pursuit of his new vision of the American dream, Lester is about to learn that the ultimate freedom comes at the ultimate price.

The 1999 winner of five Academy Awards(R), including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, American Beauty boasts an accomplished cast led by two-time Academy Award(R) Best Actor winner Kevin Spacey (The Usual Suspects) and Oscar(R) nominee Annette Bening (The Grifters).The ensemble cast also includes Thora Birch (Ghost World), Wes Bentley (The Claim), Mena Suvari (American Pie), Peter Gallagher (Mr. Deeds), Allison Janney (NBC's The West Wing), Scott Bakula (NBC's Quantum Leap), Sam Robards (A.I.: Artificial Intelligence), and Chris Cooper (Adaptation).

American Beauty marks the feature film directorial debut of award-winning theater director Sam Mendes (The Blue Room, Cabaret). The film is produced by Dan Jinks (Nothing to Lose) and Bruce Cohen (The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas) from an original screenplay by Alan Ball (HBO's Six Feet Under). Stan Wlodkowski (One Hour Photo) and Alan Ball are the co-producers.

The first step toward having your script succeed in Hollywood is by having a correctly formatted screenplay. Quite simply, "Formatting Your Screenplay" is the one book you need for learning this vital skill. In this unique manual, author and screenwriting teacher Rick Reichman walks you through all the major elements of an authentic author's script and gives you strategies for using each element to maximum effect. He also packs sound advice on: .Rewriting the Script .Differences between an "Author's Script" and a "Production Script" .How to cover, bind, and mail off a finished script .Writing for both film and television Buy this book, use this book, and reference this book often. Over 13,000 people have done that already, and now it's your turn to learn just what separates the "it's okay" script from the "we have a deal" screenplay.

This book carries you into a deep human spirit into one human soul. It gives you a deep look at human life; in its past, present, and future. This book is a good screenplay. It helps you to find yourself, in life, and to let you know who you are as a human soul. The Eighth Heaven will demonstrate that to you, the book will also tell you that the aliens have a great power of energy and a great sense of direction; in the human soul, as well as life and it demonstrates which way the worlds should go in the human deepest soul. It tells you how the heart can take on an evil soul; how your good soul can change into evil. The beast, called Eve, a.k.a. Lucifer is an evil spirit. We all have some Eve in us, but if we let evil spirits turn our hearts, minds, and souls into animals, then we have lost our human soul. This book also talks about how the land lords and the masters come down on Earth from the eighth heaven to help Adam kill Eve. After six thousand years, and after the death of Christ, Adam is to build up good human souls on Earth. We all have some animal instinct. Sometimes, that instinct can take over our entire bodies, including our minds and souls. If we do not learn how to control that animal within us, the animal will be in control. We will no longer have control over our souls, minds, or bodies. The book also talks about how the god's angel is in control in the eighth heaven. The gods have the power to change our souls back to good. The god's angels, masters, and lords have a duty to carry out with their power, whether it is earth, wind, fire, or water. They have that power in God's world today.

The War of Heru and Set: The Struggle of Good and Evil for Control of the World and The Human Soul This volume contains a novelized version of the Asarian Resurrection myth that is based on the actual scriptures presented in the Book Asarian Religion (old name -Resurrecting Osiris). This volume is prepared in the form of a screenplay and can be easily adapted to be used as a stage play. Spiritual seeking is a mythic journey that has many emotional highs and lows, ecstasies and depressions, victories and frustrations. This is the War of Life that is played out in the myth as the struggle of Heru and Set and those are mythic characters that represent the human Higher and Lower self. How to understand the war and emerge victorious in the journey o life? The ultimate victory and fulfillment can be experienced, which is not changeable or lost in time. The purpose of myth is to convey the wisdom of life through the story of divinities who show the way to overcome the challenges and foibles of life. In this volume the feelings and emotions of the characters of the myth have been highlighted to show the deeply rich texture of the Ancient Egyptian myth. This myth contains deep spiritual teachings and insights into the nature of self, of God and the mysteries of life and the means to discover the true meaning of life and thereby achieve the true purpose of life. To become victorious in the battle of life means to become the King (or Queen) of Egypt.Have you seen movies like The Lion King, Hamlet, The Odyssey, or The Little Buddha? These have been some of the most popular movies in modern times. The Sema Institute of Yoga is dedicated to researching and presenting the wisdom and culture of ancientAfrica. The Script is designed to be produced as a motion picture but may be addapted for the theater as well.

Action, action, yet more action. No action film worthy of genre would be caught dead without its fair share of red-hot lead and no-holds-barred fisticuffs, high-octane pursuits and gravity-defying gymnastics. Then again, nonstop action soon wears thin absent a rooting interest in Last Man Standing. First Woman to Cross Finish Line. Rooting interest inheres not in overt action, no matter how artfully choreographed or breathtakingly executed. Rather, rooting interest comes from empathy for the protagonist and, more precisely, from the dramatic action embodied by the protagonist's struggle to accomplish a worthy goal opposed by a formidable foe. Action is a double-edged blade, overt action being a necessary but insufficient condition to sustain viewer interest, which soars and ebbs to extent that dramatic action intersects with-injects meaningfulness into-gunplay and fistfest, acrobatics and pyrotechnics. Lights Camera Action spotlights the essential elements of action comedy, action romance, and action adventure. which a screenwriter must weave together in order for an action script to hum and shimmer, pulsate and zing.

They're everywhere. Their name is like a talisman that opens all doors and bends all wills. The man who can pronounce that name is master everywhere -- Gentlemen of the night In 1830 London, the Marquis de Rio Santo, leader of the criminal empire known as the Gentlemen of the Night, schemes to free Ireland by plunging England into chaos. Our soldiers believe in the existence of a supernatural being, a fantastic cavalier, dressed in the uniform of a French dragoon, who hides his face behind a black mask. In Spain during the Peninsular War of 1808, Don Cesar de Cabanil becomes the mysterious Captain Phantom to fight for justice and protect the innocents in his war-torn country. Paul Feval's greatest claim to fame is, undoubtedly, having been one of the founding fathers of modern heroic fiction. He developed the concepts of criminal masterminds in The Black Coats and its predecessor, Gentlemen of the Night (1843) and anticipated masked swashbucklers like Zorro with The White Wolf and Captain Phantom (1862).

"The Savvy Screenwriter "demystifies the film industry and reveals what aspiring screenwriters really want and need to know. From finding and working with agents, to insights about story analysts and movie executives, to understanding option agreements, to providing samples for queries, synopses, treatments, loglines, and outlines, to pitching, Susan Kouguell knows what works and what doesn't, and gives practical advice on getting your screenplay sold.

A screenplay is a Work of Art. As such, it is subject to artistic manipulation in form and content to achieve an artistic reaction. The essence of Screenplay Writing is Compression. It tries to "Say the Most" with the "Least." It does not have the luxury of novelistic grandiosity in its ability to explore "Mind Set"; nor does it have the luxury of stage play verbosity in its ability to explore the beauty of language. But it can, and should, deal in eternal truths and yet also "Tickle" the Imagination. So this Trilogy is presented, in effect, as a Screenplay Novel. As with all literary art, the goal is a Compelling Story, Beautifully told. The Writer is a grateful native of, and a practicing attorney in, New York City.

"Batman Begins," directed by the award-winning Christopher Nolan ("Memento," "Insomnia"), unveils the untold origins of the Dark Knight's emergence as a force for good in Gotham City. In the wake of his parents' murder, disillusioned industrial heir Bruce Wayne travels the world seeking the means to fight injustice and turn fear against those who prey on the fearful. He returns to Gotham City and unveils his alter ego: Batman, a masked crusader who uses his strength, intellect, and an array of high-tech deceptions to fight the sinister forces that threaten the city. 
As Bruce Wayne/Batman, Christian Bale heads an all-star cast that also includes Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman, Tom Wilkinson, Rutger Hauer and Morgan Freeman. Visionary director Christopher Nolan has delivered the Batman we've been waiting for - a dark legend brought to life in a way never before imagined on the big screen. 
This volume contains the complete screenplay of "Batman Begins" by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer, together with storyboards for the picture drawn by Martin Asbury and James Cornish, and an exclusive interview with Christopher Nolan in which he reveals his cinematic vision of The Dark Knight.

Based on the novel by Rex Pickett, Sideways follows Miles (Giamatti) and Jack (Church) on their trip through the Santa Barbara wine country, the week before Jack's wedding. Trouble ensues with wine and women (played by Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh) and the duo comes to some profound realizations as they come to terms with maturity. The Newmarket Shooting Script book includes the complete screenplay, original pieces written exclusively for the book by novelist Rex Pickett and Rolling Stone film critic Peter Travers, and a study guide prepared by the screenwriters.

A TRIO OF TERRIFYING TALES FROM THAT LAND "OF SHADOW AND SUBSTANCE." Meet a little girl's doll who says charming things like, "My name is Talky Tina and I'm going to kill you."Say hello to Martin Senescu of Ferguson's Museum, where the wax figures of notorious murderers seem a little too real.And shake hands with movie star Pamela Morris, who gives new meaning to the phrase "eternally young." These classic scripts, two of which have never been published, are The Twilight Zone at its shivery best! WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY CHRISTOPHER CONLON AND AN AFTERWORD BY GEORGE CLAYTON JOHNSON

""Stuff happens . . . And it's untidy, and freedom's untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things.""
Such was Donald Rumsfeld's response on April 11, 2003, following the infamous looting and pillaging of Baghdad. In David Hare's powerful new play chronicling the extraordinary process leading to the American invasion of Iraq, this statement provides entree into the melee of diplomacy, political power, and terrorist vendetta still making headlines around the world. Using direct quotes meticulously culled from interviews and public appearances, combined with the playwright's nuanced reimagining of what went on behind closed doors, Hare has fashioned a historical narrative and human drama that presents the Iraqi conflict in all of its
haphazard notoriety. "Stuff Happens" uses a uniquely evenhanded approach to a deeply contested invasion--seen from the perspective of international leaders and journalists, as well as Iraqi refugees--and raises a series of provocative questions regarding the most heartfelt and manipulative machinations of domestic and international politik.

The Tony Award-winning drama deals with a psychiatrist's exploration of the psyche of a troubled seventeen-year-old boy who senselessly and systematically blinds six horses.

From "The New York Trilogy" to" The Book of Illusions," Paul Auster's novels have earned him a reputation as "one of American's most spectacularly inventive writers." Here, published together for the first time, are the screenplays of the three films he made in the 1990s.
"Smoke "(starring Harvey Keitel, William Hurt, Forest Whitaker, and Stockard Channing) tells the story of a novelist, a cigar store manager, and a black teenager who unexpectedly cross paths and end up changing each other's lives in indelible ways.
Set in contemporary Brooklyn, "Smoke "directly inspired "Blue in the Face," a largely improvised comedy shot in a total of six days. A film unlike any other it stars Harvey Keitel, with featured performances by Roseanne, Lily Tomlin, Lou Reed, and Michael J. Fox.
"Lulu on the Bridge" (Auster's solo directorial debut, again starring Harvey Keitel, with Mira Sorvino, Willem Dafoe, and Vanessa Redgrave) opens with the accidental shooting of jazz musician Izzy Maurer during a performance in a New York club. Izzy is then led on a journey into the strange and sometimes frightening labyrinth of his soul. Both thriller and fairy tale, Lulu on the Bridge is above all a story about the redemptive powers of love.

The screenplay of Poliakoff's award-winning BBC drama about the forgotten son of King George V and Queen Mary The Lost Prince follows the life and times of Prince John, the forgotten youngest son of King George V and Queen Mary, who was born in 1905. Although remembered as a charming boy, he was diagnosed as epileptic and suffering from learning difficulties similar to autism and shut away at the age of twelve at the in Wood Farm near Sandringham to prevent the family from public embarrassment. He died there when he was just thirteen. Dramatising the historical facts, Poliakoff portrays with extraordinary sensitivity, a child's experience of the Royal Family in the late Edwardian period and during the First World War. Set against a backdrop of unprecedented upheaval in Britain, The Lost Prince tells the very human story of a unique family and an extraordinary boy. Published to tie in with the BBC's production, broadcast in two feature-length instalments in January 2003, The Lost Prince stars Michael Gambon, Miranda Richardson, Gina McKee, Tom Hollander, John Sessions, Billy Nighy and Bibi Andersson.

The First Time I Got Paid for It is a one-of-a-kind collection of essays by more than fifty leading film and television writers, with a foreword by screenwriting legend William Goldman. Linked by the theme of a writer's "first time",usually the first time he got paid for his work, but sometimes veering off into other, more unconventional, "first times",these always entertaining (and sometimes hilarious) pieces share what it takes to succeed, what it takes to write well, and other aspects of maintaining creativity and integrity while striving for a career in Hollywood. Richard LaGravanese ( The Fisher King , The Horse Whisperer , Living Out Loud ) confesses that his first paid writing job was crafting phone-sex scripts. Nicholas Kazan ( Reversal of Fortune , Matilda ) explains why, in Hollywood, an oral "yes" often turns out to be a written "no." Peter Casey writes about the unparalleled pitch meeting for the award-winning series Frasier . Virtually every big-name writer in Hollywood has contributed to this collection, making it essential research material for anyone trying to make it in the entertainment industry, and a perfect read for movie and television buffs everywhere.