Erik Bork has won two Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. Best known as a writer/producer on HBO's Band of Brothers and From the Earth to the Moon, he's sold features to Universal, HBO, TNT, and Playtone. Working alongside executive producers Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, Bork earned his breakthrough by starting as an assistant at Hanks' production company before proving his writing talent via specs. He has since moved into teaching and consulting, and also wrote the 2018 book THE IDEA: The Seven Elements of a Viable Story for Screen, Stage, or Fiction.In a recent long-form interview with Outstanding Screenplays, Bork shares a huge amount of the industry wisdom that took him to the Emmys. Let's dive into some big takeaways! - YouTube www.youtube.com 1. Test Your Idea Before Writing Bork says one of the biggest mistakes writers can make is to race to the script without properly vetting their concept first. As Bork puts it, "What I noticed is when I read someone's script, 99% of the notes I had that were important … about just how well you execute on the page, how well you write scenes and stuff, and characters … the vast majority of what was important were notes I would have had on the idea if they just pitched it to me before they started writing."Writers get excited about structure, beat sheets, and dialogue, but they skip the crucial step of testing whether their core idea actually works.Bork's solution is his "PROBLEM" framework,...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Yesterday