Black List 2008

mario_c · Dec 12, 2008

100 of the loglines to watch this year, and concepts that have made the big deals and broken the hell out of the slush pile:

http://mysterymanonfilm.blogspot.com/2008/12/are-you-on-black-list.html

This is indeed, an annual tradition, and alumni of the Black List range from Juno to Burn After Reading. What do you think?

Last year's entrants:

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/black-list-2007-1-danny-strongs-recount/

icerose · Dec 13, 2008

Out of curiosity, what woudl you do if you saw one of your own loglines on there? Or is it the ones that have already been produced that make that list?

yolt13 · Dec 13, 2008

Can't say I'm overly impressed by many of the loglines listed. I can only assume that the scripts in question are better than their loglines.

mario_c · Dec 13, 2008

icerose said:
Out of curiosity, what woudl you do if you saw one of your own loglines on there? Or is it the ones that have already been produced that make that list?

I'm certain all the scripts here are at least optioned, if not sold. Low Dwellers for example made headlines as a $650k against $1 million sale - for an author hot out of film school, selling insurance in PA. Amazing Adventures of a Monogamous Duck is another huge sale in the same range for a brand new writer, this time in NYC. There's also Tarantino, Gary Coleman et al to round out the list - point is these are scripts that generate a powerful buzz in agencys and prodco halls of power, so it's a hard list to get on.
If I made the list, I'd be partying like it's 1999. This is a very good sign that your career has taken off.

icerose · Dec 14, 2008

mario_c said:
I'm certain all the scripts here are at least optioned, if not sold. Low Dwellers for example made headlines as a $650k against $1 million sale - for an author hot out of film school, selling insurance in PA. Amazing Adventures of a Monogamous Duck is another huge sale in the same range for a brand new writer, this time in NYC. There's also Tarantino, Gary Coleman et al to round out the list - point is these are scripts that generate a powerful buzz in agencys and prodco halls of power, so it's a hard list to get on.
If I made the list, I'd be partying like it's 1999. This is a very good sign that your career has taken off.

Ah okay so these aren't scripts bouncing around without a home, these are ones that have been picked up by studios. Gotcha. And I agree there, though I wouldn't be partying, I'd be paying off medical debt and looking for a house!

Kristy101081 · Dec 14, 2008

I'm with Yolt, those are some of the most boring log lines I've read.

mario_c · Dec 14, 2008

And one more thing

These are voted on by the agents as well. A consensus has to be in place. See the 07 list for which scripts place highest, and for how many you actually went to see the subsequent year.

The '08 voting results are here. Yeah, it's never a science, is it?

ETA: I'm reading the #1 placing script, The Beaver. Those of you not impressed by the loglines, I agree - I didn't expect much from this spec, but in fact it's dark and emotionally involving, with it's share of laughs. It's particularly strong in characterization - dysfunctional family headed by a suicidal father, who is a failed CEO. It gets you inside the point of view of it's shady title character, while shifting the tone every few pages. It's closer in tone to Little Miss Sunshine (Carell's breakthrough role, natch) or American Beauty than the goofball frat school of comedies the log evokes. This will make a great movie if they do it right.
PM if you want to read it. Actually the author of the OP link will send these scripts too if you ask nicely...

JulieJames · Dec 14, 2008

not only are they not interesting some of them don't make sense

A COUPLE OF DICKS by Mark Cullen & Robb Cullen
“Two veteran LAPD detectives attempt to track down a stolen, mint-condition, 1952 baseball card that one of the daughter’s upcoming wedding.”

Are these the REAL log lines or just what someone thinks up??

Enzo · Dec 14, 2008

My impression too.
Several of them looked like potential silly comedies, but certainly nothing I would want to see turned into a movie.

nmstevens · Dec 15, 2008

mario_c said:
100 of the loglines to watch this year, and concepts that have made the big deals and broken the hell out of the slush pile:

http://mysterymanonfilm.blogspot.com/2008/12/are-you-on-black-list.html

This is indeed, an annual tradition, and alumni of the Black List range from Juno to Burn After Reading. What do you think?

Last year's entrants:

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/black-list-2007-1-danny-strongs-recount/

Well, it's clear that a great many of these scripts weren't in any slush pile.

"Glorious Bastards" is a Quentin Tarantino project based on an existing Italian WW II war movie.

Johnny Quest, obviously, is based on the old Hanna Barbera cartoon series.

And a bunch of others, just as obviously, were scripts that were studio-developed projects. Whether the scripts were good, bad, or otherwise -- they were assignments and were developed by producers who had underlying properties and didn't have to worry about selling them on the basis of loglines.

NMS

Plot Device · Dec 15, 2008

Question: why is it called a "Black List"?? Aren't black lists supposed to be ..... bad???

Am I missing a joke somewhere?

yolt13 · Dec 15, 2008

nmstevens said:
Well, it's clear that a great many of these scripts weren't in any slush pile.

"Glorious Bastards" is a Quentin Tarantino project based on an existing Italian WW II war movie.

Johnny Quest, obviously, is based on the old Hanna Barbera cartoon series.

And a bunch of others, just as obviously, were scripts that were studio-developed projects. Whether the scripts were good, bad, or otherwise -- they were assignments and were developed by producers who had underlying properties and didn't have to worry about selling them on the basis of loglines.

NMS

Excellent point. In fact, the Tarantino film (actually entitled INGLORIOUS BASTARDS) has been in development for a long time - primarily because Tarantino himself has been too busy with other projects to make it.

Whatever the list's real purpose, it's a pity for us that it isn't a bit more helpful to aspiring writers. Using the real loglines that initially attracted the attention of agents/producers and confining the list to scripts that wouldn't have gotten past the initial coverage stage would have made it a far more useful indicator of what sells and what doesn't.

Plot Device · Dec 15, 2008

Maybe a "coward's list" might be appropriate. A list of those scripts that execs see some real spark to, but there's just one or two aspects that make them downright afraid to come out with labeling it a "consider."

Like Brick.

Joe270 · Dec 15, 2008

So much for sweating out the greatest logline ever.

Not one of those impressed me, and I got through about half the list.

mario_c · Dec 15, 2008

NMS, I did clarify in my next post these aren't all first timers. Shoulda been more clear in the OP, sorry. Tarantino has worked on Inglorious Bastards for over a decade, and the buzz was tremendous when this script leaked some months ago. Just a feeding frenzy over a spec with no franchise - that's how good it is to be him.
Anyway..

Plot Device said:
Question: why is it called a "Black List"?? Aren't black lists supposed to be ..... bad???

Am I missing a joke somewhere?

Here I come with the link! In a nutshell:

He's uncomfortable, for good reason, with people assuming that he named his project the Black List simply because he's African-American. The truth is that he had a couple of different inspirations. Yes, he wanted to subvert the cultural metaphor that black equals bad (''I wanted to stick my finger in the eye of that idea''); but he also wanted to take a swipe at the infamous McCarthy-inspired blacklist, which killed the careers of screenwriters suspected of being Communists (''What if there was a blacklist that people wanted to be on?'').

Hillgate · Dec 16, 2008

mario_c said:
NMS, I did clarify in my next post these aren't all first timers. Shoulda been more clear in the OP, sorry. Tarantino has worked on Inglorious Bastards for over a decade, and the buzz was tremendous when this script leaked some months ago. Just a feeding frenzy over a spec with no franchise - that's how good it is to be him.
Anyway..

Here I come with the link! In a nutshell:

He's uncomfortable, for good reason, with people assuming that he named his project the Black List simply because he's African-American. The truth is that he had a couple of different inspirations. Yes, he wanted to subvert the cultural metaphor that black equals bad (''I wanted to stick my finger in the eye of that idea''); but he also wanted to take a swipe at the infamous McCarthy-inspired blacklist, which killed the careers of screenwriters suspected of being Communists (''What if there was a blacklist that people wanted to be on?'').

But then WHY does he want to challenge the cultural metaphor that black=bad if it has nothing to do with him being African-American? I don't understand why he's so uncomfortable about this. Good for him: he should be proud, but his thesis doesn't have general application. In some cases black is good.

If a company is 'in the black' it's making money and if it's 'in the red' it's in trouble. Black = good, red = bad, although I doubt there are many Native Americans up in arms about this because it is not a slight to anyone NA, surely??? To black-list or black-ball someone means something in English, and I know I'm thick but I found the Blacklist nomenclature simply confusing as opposed to anything else and also in danger of being misinterpreted by those on it as a sort of post-ironic critique.

It's too early for red wine, so I'll just have to make do with cigarettes.

Joe Calabrese · Dec 16, 2008

I have just about all of the scripts as pdfs on the Blacklist. Read most too. Some real gems in there.

Of those at the top of the list, I have to say that Beaver, Butter and F***Buddies and Big Hole, were very good and (at the time of the list having been released) available for buyers. ie. needs money and/or distribution deal to get greenlit.

A good percentage of the scripts on the list are available. They may have been optioned by a producer or just repped by an agent but still need a studio deal.

Joe Calabrese · Dec 18, 2008

Just an FYI.

THE FIRST “AVAILABLE” SCRIPT ON THE LIST HAS SOLD!

THE HOW TO GUIDE FOR SAVING THE WORLD
Written by: BenDavid Grabinski

MGM BUYER / BARRY SONNENFELD TO DIRECT.

This is from a newbie writer with no produced credits. Way to go! Hope for us yet!

Congrats BenDavid!

Ucla_sb · Dec 19, 2008

I heard the Roundtable script was great. Haven't read it myself tho.

I have now read the Roundtable script and it is indeed great! It's funny how an established writer does not have to follow the normal "rules" of spec writing and still has no problems getting noticed. It's very minor but breaks the "story wall" by speaking to the reader. Great script tho i can see why its gotten the attention it has.

Black List 2008

mario_c

Your thoughts are not real...

icerose

Lost in School Work

yolt13

mario_c

Your thoughts are not real...

icerose

Lost in School Work

Kristy101081

mario_c

Your thoughts are not real...

JulieJames

boldly going nowhere...

Enzo

nmstevens

What happened?

Plot Device

A woman said to write like a man.

yolt13

Plot Device

A woman said to write like a man.

Joe270

mario_c

Your thoughts are not real...

Hillgate

On location

Joe Calabrese

Joe Calabrese

Ucla_sb