A dream comes true

The last post below reads Friday September 6, 2013.

Today is April 4, 2014.

I'd say about 9 drafts later including a total page 1 rewrite...

NARCOSIS is out on the town.

I can't even believe it myself. This whole process is so surreal. I've been pushing against this wall for 4 years and even though I've been on the outskirts working at NR these past few years...

A SCRIPT I WROTE IS BEING CIRCULATED... WHAT!!??

I'll follow up this post with more details once this whole process is over. Hopefully someone will like it enough to think they can make it into a movie, I'll get a paycheck for my efforts, and can move onto the next one. I just wanted to throw this out into the world on this lonely little blog of mine. I promise if I become an official screenwriter soon, this will be a weekly affair.

If you want to read Narcosis-- contact my manager Adam Marshall @Caliber Media!

-Cjevy

Narcosis

Here's the gist--

NARCOSIS: After their boat is pulled to the bottom of the ocean by a vengeful entity, a Father, his terminal son and a deranged dive captain must find their way back to the surface while suffering from nitrogen narcosis and a boat that is steadily filling with water. “The Descent” meets “Jacob’s Ladder” on the ocean floor.

And if you belong to the Blacklist: https://blcklst.com/members/scripts/view/10945

I'm not really too keen on the blacklist so far, I haven't received my rating yet from a reader but, it's been up for a week and got zero views. I think my logline is strong. Script is strong. But there's just simply not enough people actively trolling the site to make it worth any $$. After I get my rating, odds are I will pull it. But who knows.

Onto the next script!

-Cjevy

The Art of the Query Letter

So yeah, I have a blog? Been almost a year since I transgressed into this dear lost but not forgotten tundra that is Trying to Write Some Horror. But I've been very busy. Working at a movie studio, writing my own stories and home life have me securely tied down, but not today. Today I want to try and reach out to as many of my fellow writers as possible with a few helpful hints regarding querying reps and production companies.

Now in full disclosure I have yet to sign a rep, whether that be an agent or manager or guardian angel. But I've got open doors at several of prominent managers and all five major talent agencies, so hopefully it's only a matter of time before I can cross over to the other side.

The Query. A blind email to a person you do not know asking them to give you an hour or more of their personal time to sit down and give you a chance. Why should they say yes? Time is money. Time is limited. Time is precious. You are writing me out of the blue asking for my time?

Now as someone who both receives queries and sends them I want to pass on a few tips on how to get to yes. Because not only does YES give you a glimmer of hope for the hours and days you have put into essentially 100 pieces of worthless paper, YES gives those pieces of paper validity. Validity for your ideas and validity for your work.

THE LETTER:

Intro paragraph: Dear _____, (actual name)- not "production executive", or "agent" or to "whom this may concern", take the time to specify each letter to each specific person. You want my time? You need to show you took the time to know who the fuck I am. Followed by a brief, introduction and what you are submitting to me. Enter, Enter, then--

The Logline: Title in bold, one to two sentences on what the story is, the concept, the characters and essentially why should I glance at page one. The logline is your lifeline. Give it to as many people as possible and see if they give you the slightest inkling that they would watch that movie. Pay someone to write your logline for you if you have to. But keep it brief and to the point. I normally skip everything your have written up to the logline. If I cannot find your logline; DELETE. If your logline does not sound original? DELETE. If your logline has spelling or grammatical errors? DELETE.

The point is to keep them reading and interested.

Next a brief summation as to who you are and why should I respond to this query. Interesting occupation? Film School? Screenwriting Awards? Something to validate your awesome logline. To get to a yes.

And that's it folks, nothing more nothing less.

COMMON MISTAKES THAT BOTHER ME:

- Spelling, Grammar, obvious copy and paste sections that are of a different font or size. I realize that if you do not speak English or if English is not your first language this may be hard, but its also an immediate delete. Pay someone to do this for you. Because if the two paragraphs you are writing do not make sense the hundred pages you send me most definitely wont.

- Writing too much. I get 300+ emails a day, give or take. You have a brief window to woo me into a yes. When the email pops up in the bottom right hand corner, if I can spot a mistake already, auto-delete. If I open the email and see that you have sent me a four page memo, it doesn't matter I'm probably not going to divinci code the thing to find your logline.

- Subject Line. This one is tricky. Just putting "Query" in there certainly does let me know what it is, but if I open an email and see an interesting title, you get my attention immediately. When I'm sending out queries to put the title here. You're looking for attention right? Start off by getting some.

 - Asking if I accept submissions or queries. The answer is no. If you're writing me an email asking if I will accept your submission the answer is always no. Why waste your time sending out these emails? And secondly, why would I respond? My company has a very strict no unsolicited submissions policy. And so does every agency, studio, production co, etc. Yet, somehow these scripts get through the cracks every once in a while... I wonder if a good letter/logline has to do with that?

- Submitting a query to a production company/studio and asking for representation. Either you don't know enough about the business or you are too lazy to change your query for me. DELETE.

- Do not use constantcontact or another subscription based blast email websites. Those go directly into my spam account, I see a bunch of queries in there every morning when I check my email and those are immediately dumped.

- Last tip... Time of Day. Think about this one... You want to get someone when they are at their computer, so they can see an email pop up and click on it. Unless you are querying someone in NYC think about PST times. I've found the best times to send out queries is between 11AM-1230PM, and 3-5PM. People need time to settle down into their offices. Drink a cup of coffee. Go to a meeting. Then you've got them at their computers. Probably looking for an excuse to surf the web instead of do work.

I'm sure there are many more tips and tricks you can use, but my lunch hour is over and I wanted to get these tips out of my head for anyone out there wanting to check them out. Feel free to hit me up on twitter if you have any questions or concerns

Best,

CJevy




 

My Top Ten Horror Scenes of all time

It's Halloween, so I must post something, this is a horror blog isn't it? So I sat down and came up with MY personal top ten favorite scenes from horror movies. Again, these are my ten favorite scenes... Not some Bravo list or some douche on yahoo writing an article just to write one. You may disagree or agree, it's your opinion... And hey why not click on an ad when you get to the bottom, google will pay me a dollar for literally 2 seconds of your time... And in descending order and hopefully matching videos...

#10. Wax Fight!!

Of course the first scene I try to insert, I can only find the trailer for... So I love the movie Waxwork, it's imaginative with multiple storylines but best of all chock-full of 80's cheese. The finale is a huge melee between the best of your Universal era of monsters and a small town. Anyway you need to check this one out on Netflix when you get a chance...

#9. Blowing Bubbles



The best scene in the original Nightmare, just barely beating out the opening with Tina and the weird lambs running around... This is the first scene in the movie that really grabs the audience saying that you are not safe, no matter where you fall asleep. Freddy is waiting...

#8. Freebird

I love this movie. Most people probably do not. There is nothing particularly scary or overly gross about it... but there is just something about taking your sick twisted antagonists and switching them around and making them seem like the good guys after the midpoint, then swinging your hero into a bloody-thirsty maniac that gets my movie induced brain flowing. And I heart Skynyrd.







#7. Why I screen my calls

The first movie I really became obsessed with as a kid was Scream. I knew every word. Still do. Plan on watching it tonight as a matter of fact. To be able to divulge into the world of satire and still make a movie actually thrilling and moderately scary, Bravo Kevin Williamson/Wes Craven. Bravo. I still believe that the actual character of Ghostface is not what made scream scary, just the implication that someone is watching you, watch a movie is really what I find disturbing.

#6. I wonder what could be behind this giant door? Well I'll just slowly walk up to i---

 Intro, Leatherface. Not my favorite horror icon, but I love this scene. You get the feeling,"hey this house is pretty creepy, if I were him I probably wouldn't be walking around in there." Then whooosh, a giant steel door flies open and there's Leatherface. Whack! drops him with a muted thud of a mauling meat tenderising Hammer. One of the better horror intro's if I must say so myself.

 

#5. Pazuzu

I could not find my actual favorite clip where the demon appears behind her for a split second, but the infamous headspin will do. I've actually done a good amount of research into this backstory and found it quite amazing. The real story was about a boy in western Maryland and William Peter Blatty transcribed the Priest's journal into a novel, then adapted his novel or the film. There were only rumored to be 2 copies of the journal, and Blatty only had his on loan for a few hours. He does not say how he came across the book, only that he could not copy directly what he read. Maybe he sold something precious of his to obtain this book, and the success that followed...

 

#4. The Box

Couldn't find the exact clip I wanted, but the scene where Kirsty is in the hospital and unlocks the box for the first time is just amazing. We already know what happens when you open it, but she doesn't. This gives the audience that little bit of an advantage but that is what makes this such a great scene. The television turns on to the image of a flower blooming. Subtle imagery? The walls split and they appear. Our first interaction with the Cenobites since the opening sequence. It really raises the bar for the film and makes us want to see more of them, especially since they willingly let her go... hoe often does that happen in horror films?

 

#3. Trapped in the Closet... (not R.Kelly's masterpiece)

The ending to the classic Halloween. I like to try and think if that was myself would I do the exact same thing as JLC in this scene. I would probably jump off the balcony. Maybe... But shit, if your trapped in the closet and you can make an eyeball shiv out of a fallen hanger, that's just good thinking on your feet. And writing on John Carpenter's side as well. Great scene.

 

#2. LIGHT OF MY LIFE!!!

OOOhhhh the frustrations of being a writer. I sympathize with you Jack Torrance... to an extent. This scene in Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece ranks second on my list mainly because of the acting here. Wow, just wow. I read somewhere that this scene took 140+ takes to get into the can. Probably why Shelly Long looks so tired, but Jack keeps the foot on the gas the whole time. There's a great making of the Shining floating around the internet as well worth checking out, pretty much documenting Kubrick writing pages and making the whole thing up as he goes, calling Stephen King in the middle of the night and asking him questions.

 

#1. The speech of all speeches...

This is why I am in this business. Whether or not you see Jaws as a horror film, that's your opinion. I do. This is my favorite scene of all time. Period. Jaws is always in my 5 disc DVD player and when I need some inspiration, I will jut put this scene on by itself. Little movie background, they actually spent 2 days shooting this scene... The first day Robert Shaw wanted to do it drunk. Spielberg said yes. It didn't work. Day 2, this happened. The set-up, delivery, the words themselves all perfect. One thing I can take away from this to improve my own writing is that I love when characters can tell stories within stories about themselves. And they deliver a purpose, is when it really counts. What do you take from Quint in this scene?? He has dedicated his life to hunting sharks after that traumatic experience. What does that say about his character? He will never stop. Bigger boat? Fuck you Chief. This is my boat. His ass is mine. And this stubbornness is what will be his ultimate demise. All of that can be deduced from this story. His past, present, and future.

 

I hope you enjoyed MY list of favorite horror scenes... what are some of yours??

 

- Cjevy

 

Follow me on twitter @cjevy, and click on an ad for me!!

 

Goals

So yeah, it is a new goal for the second half of this year and going forward to post something, anything on this blog at least once a week. Horror related. Movie related. Writing related... ANYTHING. As far as myself I have moved up the chain somehwat in my dayjob to at least a somebody but with that my free time has suffered along with my writing time.

This needs to change.

I am currently writing a treatment for an up and coming producer for an idea he pitched me. We met with an interested director but honestly if this story turns out the way I want it to, well shit, I want to direct it.... maybe. Just thinking that is pretty scary in itself.

Anyway, it is just about that time of the year. You know what I'm talking about... When the blu-rays go on sale and finally... sweet jeebus, finally we get some decent horror flowing into our lives. So far this year V/H/S and Sinister seem to be the winners. A review of VHS will be coming soon on here, once I get the time and the opportunity to watch it as it is currently on demand.

Revenge Films and their lack of B-Story

We all know what a B-story is even if we never really pay any attention to them. It's usually a love arc that develops between the main character and his attractor around the 25-30 minute mark of the movie and keeps them driving toward their goal in the third act when the A and B plot lines will converge. For example Billy Madison meets Veronica when he hits the 3rd grade mark around a half hour in... blah blah... and they break up... and they are back together when he wins the big competition. Boom. B-story.

While watching Man on Fire last night for the first time I couldn't help but thinking where is the b-story? Is he going to hook up with the Mom eventually? Is there another plotline that I am not following here? Nope. No B-story. Why is this?

One of the benefits of working at a production company is that I get to meet and converse with some of the industries best writers while they wait for their meetings. They have no idea who I am or that I am an aspiring writer, but the majority of writers are genuinely happy to be recognized for their work. Writers never get any love from regular people not in the business or trying to write. Anyway, I was fortunate enough to have a 15 minute long conversation with Robert Mark Kamen (Taken, Karate Kid)  about his film Taken. Which was fucking amazing because he was such a nice guy and wanted to hear all about my journey to Hollywood as well. But one thing really stuck out to me during our conversation... and I quote... "What made Taken special is that there is truly no B-story, and we did that on purpose". I even fired back with, "what about that former operative he was friends with and came to find out he was working with the kidnappers?". Shut down. He explained there is not enough for a b-story. That is merely two scenes, when they meet and when Liam punishes him for what he has done. Mr. Kamen said that he wanted Taken to be squarely a revenge film. A father seeking his daughter and his journey to find her. That's it. No more no less.

Now take that theory and apply it to other revenge films you have seen. Kill Bill for example, She wants to kill Bill and the other Deadly Vipers that beat her to the point of losing her baby. There is the possibility of a b-story when she finds out BB is still alive, but since this does not happen until the third act reveal it is getting filed under "twist". How about Last House on the Left? A father sees his child near death floating in the lake by his home. She manages to point out who did this, and just like that it is on...

I think my theory falls into the pretenses that these Revenge films do not NEED a B-story because the goal of the protagonist is that important the audience would be distracted and/or upset if our protagonist did anything else BUT strive for revenge. If Liam Neeson met a beautiful stranger while hunting the bad french guys, wouldn't you be upset? Liam what the fuck are you doing with this lady, your daughter is about to get sold to some fat muslim tycoon? Know what I mean?

Anyway I just thought I would like to point out this little tidbit I noticed and the fact that it came straight from an A-list writer as well. If you can prove me wrong, please do.

-Cjevy

Oh yeah and click that little ad underneath this post. I get a freaking dollar every time someone clicks it!!

The Faithful

So in the midst of working 9-12 hour days, I have managed to finish up 3 projects so far this year. I stated that 2012 was going to be my year and I am trying my damned hardest. So far I've adapted "Beat the Reaper" for an hour long pilot (which NR owns the rights to), written a full length horror original, "The Faithful" and just threw down a sitcom pilot, "The DMV". I can not honestly say that these are 100% done or that I am totally happy with them at this point but thats alot of words down on pages. I've thrown DMV and Faithful into a few contests and am waiting to see how they do before I go back and start from scratch. I think they can both definitely work, and I'm not tooting my own horn or giving away my story on here but I'm hoping I can get them into the hands of people who can do something with them. But anyways I just figured I would dust off this blog a little and post an update into the process. I really need to get back to writing useful posts not just blah blah ME, blah I'm doing ____ now... but when I have time ,  I'll look into it

- Cjevy

All Time Favorite Movies

So I've been thinking about this recently... What are my absolute all time favorite movies? Top 5? Top 10 even... Is there any horror in here? I mean I write horror stories, I have this blog I hardly pay any attention to yet has been seen by over 10 thousand people and I wonder... what are my absolute favs?

SO I am sitting on the floor in front of my dvd library and heres what it is starting to look like--

1. Kill Bill ( '04, '05)- I don't care how you feel about this movie but everything that is this film is me. Revenge. Intricate story. Martial Arts. Pai Mei... and of course QT.

2. Wall Street (1987)- The ultimate villain set in the hayday of stock market madness and the beginning of outlandish corporate greed. Back when I was a "trainee" at the joke of a firm I drove an hour and a half to get to for a month, all I could think about was this movie 24/7. Dollar bills on top of dollar bills. I also have a ton of love for this film's little brother Boiler Room but not quite top 10, maybe 25.

3. Tombstone (1993)- Motherfucking Tombstone. The most quoteable non-comedy put onto 35mm if you ask me. Kurt Russell just epitomizes everything that I would hope your protagonist is. And this movie just reminds me of my family...

4. Inglorious Basterds (2009)- The Basterds. The perfect screenplay. Literally the first twenty pages are one scene but that scene is just breathtaking. We know everything we need to about the tone and our antagonist. By the way, it is rare that we are introduced to the bad guy before the good guy in a non-horror film don't cha think?

5. Pulp Fiction (1994)- What can I say... QT is god and I will worship him at the altar that is my 47" LG 240hz mini theatre until I die.

6. Boogie Nights (1997)- Best character driven drama I can think of. Who can forget William H Macy barging into that party and blowing his brains out indicating that the 80s would be the perfect 2b act, the hardest part of a screenplay.

7. Casino (1995) - I have always been a fan of the gangster/Scorcese films but I think this one is my favorite of the bunch. Three hours of non stop "fuck this" and "fuck that"... can't beat it.

8. Halloween (1979)- The classic. I don't know how many times Ive seen this. Maybe 100 times? I used to have a double VHS boxed set and the tapes were orange and me and my boy Chris Hogue used to watch this every weekend. The tapes were fucking orange! Ah the good ol days.

9. The Shining (1980)- Another classic. I think I have enjoyed this film more as I have gotten older than I used to as a kid. It was too slow for me back when but now I really appreciate every tense beat and every other strange occurrence (furry BJ) that makes this film terrifying.

10. Anchorman/ Dumb and Dumber (2004, 1994)- A tie for the basement spot. Both classics everyone has seen but I could not look past either one... How did the hell did they know I got gas? These guys must be pros...

Bonus- The Devil's Rejects- There is just something about this fucked up dilusion from Rob Zombie that I attached myself to. The thing is I could literally skip the first half and be contempt with watching the move... Business is business baby. 

Back in this bitch...

Wow so eight months since my last post. I really have to stop doing that, but anyway I am knee deep in my next horror script. I think I have settled on calling it "The Faithful". Sounds creepy right? Anyway here is the logline and hopefully will start getting it out to folks as soon as I can.

The Faithful: A small group must transport the recently executed body of a cult leader through an underground tunnel because his followers have laid siege to the jail. Also in the style of found footage.

That is not the best logline but there are really too many parts to this story and trying to condense it all into one sentence is just blah. Anyway, more updates to come as I wrap it up, and I will also try to write some new articles...

btw, seeing the stats on this blog has me blown away a little... over 10k hits. what?? So def more postings in the near future.

-Cjevy

Mondo Posters

So, my latest obsession has been with the Alamo Drafthouse and their bi-weekly releasing of their custom posters. I stumbled onto this great find because I was fortunate enough to check out a screening of "Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair" down at the New Beverly theater in Hollywood. And Mr. Tarantino himself had commissioned the Drafthouse and more importantly one of their most talented artists, Tyler Stout to draw something for the event. The result was beyond belief and quickly spread throughout the internet.

Mondo Posters, http://www.mondotees.com/ , has since been an object of my obsession. They announce their sales via twitter and at a random time in the morning, ususally about a half hour after I get into work, and are usually sold out within 3-5 minutes. So yea, you've got that small window to make your purchase or pay double/triple on ebay.

Here are some of my personal favorites... yes they are bad ass, and yes I want all of them...

Update from Beyond the Grave

Wow, so the last time I've updated this thing was May? Where has the time gone? Well, not its July... I've finally got a gig at a mid-major production studio and have been working diligently. I have been attempting to write 2 seperate projects at once. Pretty crazy/stupid right? The first is titled "Scarsdale" and is a thriller about a husband who awakens from a drunken evening to find his wife (seperated but not divorced) dead in the back yard. This idea was not my own, but submitted for the Insiders screenwriting compeition at the writers store. This contest sounds pretty awesome, you write 15 pages, they pick a top then and you get a writing coach for 3 months to help you finish the script. Winners get guanteed meetings with Benderspink as well as a sit down lunch with Robert Mark Kamen (Fifth Element, Taken, The Transporter). So I've got that to look forward to... and I am also working on my next spec... again not a horror script. BOOOOO, but my idea is very promising, very funny, and very commercial so hopefully I can find my way into an agency/management company with this bad boy.

On a side note, where is all the horror movies? Last thing I saw was Scream 4 and I fell asleep while watching it... I was a half bottle of Captain Morgan deep but still... come on

I will try to keep posting on this thing if anyone out there reads it..

PRODUCTION HOUSE

So, I am officially throwing my hat into the comedy ring with my first television pilot, "Production House".  I know what you are thinking... television? But honestly I really feel that I want to start my career in TV and move into film. There are also more opportunities to work in this business in television. Just hopefully the studios realize that as many dumb ass reality shows they keep putting on people are naturally drawn to scripted programming. People want to be able to fantasize about living through elaborate characters. And most of all there are not enough good comedies on TV. Period.

The Office is done. They are going to attempt a season without the star but we all know how that ends up. Anyone remember the last season of Scrubs? Nope. 30 Rock is on its way out because Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin are going to be chasing that next level soon. Always Sunny is going into a 7th season. And yes it is still the funniest show on TV, last season was just eh compared to 4+5. The League, is very funny and very promising, hopefully will keep on truckin'. Workaholics, a new show from Comedy Central is on still. It has times of hilarity with some bright and flashy dialogue, but something just hits me that they are trying to hard to be like everything else. Besides cartoons, that's really it folks. The higher ups should start to notice the lack of ORIGINAL material and hopefully they will take a look-see at my wacky show.

-Cjevy

Love/Hate

I stole this from Kurt Sutter's (Sons of Anarchy) blog. A list of ten things I love and hate that everyone probably does not know about me.

I hate people telling me what to do
I hate people that force their opinions onto you
I hate fake people
I hate politics in America
I hate mediocrity
I hate being my own biggest critic
I hate not knowing what to do
I hate depending on other people to get stuff done
I hate getting older
I hate wasting time

I love being in love
I love competition
I love learning about anything
I love to sleep
I love a good tequila
I love finishing a project
I love anything 80's
I love originality
I love being myself around people
I love the people surrounding myself

Elm Street House

Look what I happened to stumble upon in Hollywood... one of the most iconic setpieces in horror movie history. 1428 Genessee Avenue. The owner has taken great care of it and has kept the house just like it was in the film. Anyway, just figured I would throw that up there because I was excited to see it, and MK thought I was a total dork for stopping the car and taking a picture, but it was worth it.

Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair

So the day has finally come... I got to experience Kill Bill the way it was originally supposed to have been experienced, as one 4 hour piece of raw cinema. So first off, I loved it... Kill Bill is my favorite movie of all time... yup number 1. Wall Street is number 2. I don't know if I could actually count off the rest of my top ten but Kill Bill reigns supreme as of now.

So, first off I would love to thank MK for sitting through the 4.5 hours of the film even though I know she is not that big of a fan. Me on the other hand was in heaven. There was not too much that was different from the original, but I still enjoyed seeing it in the theatre again. From what I remember, the animated sequence was longer, the crazy 88 fight sequence is in full color and longer, the finale of KB one with the chick in the trunk is different... but otherwise the continuity is still the same. Just a few brief moments that suggest difference.

The movie hardly differs from what you probably have at home. The "whole bloody affair" doesn't really mean shit, just that i loved seeing the film on the big screen with all the loudness and excitement that you would not have seen without being in a theatre. Either way, this shit is epic... Kill Bill is still my favorite movie of ALL TIME... yup, ALL TIME.... and I can only hope to get my hands on a copy of the Tyler Stout posters...

Insidious Is...

Wow so it has been a little over a month since my last post about making it to Cali, and I guess you could say the next task would be making it IN Cali. It's tougher than a year old piece of jerky that has been trapped under the seat of a three hundred pound truck driver out here. Jobs are few and fast. But I mean, I have to get lucky one of these days right? I'm leaning toward Biker gang or Assassin if things don't perk up. HA j/k.

So I have been busy writing lots of short stories and more recently an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, my favorite show. The episode is tentatively titled "The Gang has a Gambling Problem".  My first adventure into the realm of comedy. I am personally happy with it so far. I'd be more happy if I could somehow get it into the hands of an agent or manager or showrunner. But hey, its just another sample, and I guess it will stay that way.

Anyway this past week a new PG-13 (yuck) release into the horror world hit the streets... INSIDIOUS. First off, I read the script before I went into the theater. I wish I hadn't, but I honestly probably would not have went otherwise. The script was lean and mean. A modern take on Poltergeist almost to a tee if you ask me. The biggest difference between the two is that we actually get to head into the "further" in Insidious where as Poltergeist is just the bright ass closet. The imagery... holy shit the imagery in Insidious is the true lifeblood that pumps through this film. For such a low budget (1million) you really could not ask for more. The "red-faced demon" was truly terrifying in the first and second acts of the film. Without giving anything away from the movie, the third act was good at first but a letdown of a "final" fight between the protags and the demon. The problem was that they did not set up a way to defeat him earlier in the script. Lin Shaye is amazing as the psychic, very similar to Poltergeist again, but she really puts in a great performance. Insidious is a film you must check out in the theater because it will just not be the same at home. The score will scare the bejeezus out of you more than once alone.

Overall, the film is truly a salute to Hitchcock and old school horror films. Their really is no need for blood and gore or even the language associated with a typical horror film, since our protags are a family battling an evil force. It makes alot of sense and I salute James Wan and Leigh Wadell on thier latest venture.

9/10

The trailer-- INSIDIOUS

-Cjevy

My Journey Thus Far

So the time has come. I am officially in Hollywood now. Working not yet. But one step at a time, right? It has been an exciting week. The drive was an absolute experience that I suggest everyone do at least once. The journey took a total of four days but I probably could have made it in three.

Day one, Orlando to Orange, Texas. Definitely the worst and hardest leg of the tour. It rained for seven out of the thirteen hours I drove that day. The best state had to of been Louisiana. You pretty much drive through the bijou and on a long tumultuous bridge for at least a half hour. Pretty cool. I listened to Stephen King's "On Writing" for 8 out of the 13 hours that day. It was really just nice to hear how the Legend himself works and operates. He writes and/or reads for 5-6 hours a day, no more, no less, no matter what. Christmas, Thanksgiving, his own Birthday. If he has an idea he does not let it escape his brain until it is on paper and I can not agree with him more. Drugs, alcohol, even getting hit by a fucking car could not stop the abominable force that is Stephen King.

Anyway, day 2 was a game changer. Feeling glum and not up to it, the Badlands of Texas changed my outlook on the journey, maybe even on life. The speed limit is 80. Let me repeat that, the speed limit is 80. I blew past a state trooper on the highway going 87 and did not get the cherries in the rearview. Ha. But just cruisin' through that desert with nothing but some good tunes and my own thoughts was a mind blowing experience. The twelve hours it took me to get to El Paso seemed to blow by just like the tumbleweeds.

Day 3, El Paso to Phoenix was a short trek but a memorable one. First off El Paso is pretty weird. On the highway you can literally look into Mexico and see how different it is than the US. Mudhuts, slums, all right on the other side of the expressway. New Mexico on the other hand is a cross between desert and grasslands. Tall, yellow, grass lines the 10W but only for about 150 miles. Til you hit Arizona. The bold and beautiful Arizona. No shit, I have never seen sights so beautiful and so intimidating in my entire life. Tall canyons, red rocks, lonely highway. I stopped in Tombstone, pretty much just to say that I did. I wanted a cowboy hat, but they didn't have any at the generic gas station closest to the highway. The final leg from Phoenix to LA was probably the most exciting. Probably nerves, but I just have been waiting to get to the land of opportunity for so long that I was just so relieved to be here.

I officially arrived. LA. Hollywood. On my fourth day here I got to go to the FOX studios lot. My gracious host happens to be an important force at New Regency Studios, based at Fox, who got me on the lot. As we pulled into the garage, BAM right to my left. Dr. House. Fucking Hugh Laurie is pulling out of the Galaxy garage at Fox, directly in front of the Die Hard, Nakatomi Towers, in his Maybach Mercedes eyeballing the shit out of me because I stared at him while he was trying to pull out. Wow. Where the hell am I? Anyway, I got to eat lunch at Moe's Tavern. Then I had a sit down with the President of Production at New Regency Films. One of the most informative and important twenty minutes of my life/career. It felt like a job interview at first, but then not at all. We talked about how he got into the business. How his connections helped him get to the top and how he wanted to help me but he also has everyone in his family asking for help as well. He did however give me the greenlight to submit scripts to his studio. And I mean could anyone really ask for anything more, from being in LA for less than a week? People slave and write for years and never see the inside of a studio lot. I am truly blessed for everyone that has helped me get this far and I will fight to get as far as humanly possible.

So I am currently re-writing Tissue(s) for submission because it is a fantastic premise, but I just did not write it correctly the first time around. Too much prose. Paper thin characters. An unlikeable Protagonist.  I am determined to change these things during this next week. For I will re-write the script from scratch, keeping the meat and cutting the fat. Wish me luck. And again, thanks to everyone who has helped me get this far, especially my dearest fiance, MK. It is for us that I am trying so hard, but it as also been hardest on her. She's my everything.

So that has been the last week or so of my life. I will keep writing on here if anyone is interested about trying to make it in the Businesses of all Businesses.

-Cjevy

WoW so it's been awhile

The holiday season has come and gone and I have neglected my little pet project here for far too long. I am continuing the learning process I have developed and have been plotting the structure and characters for my next literary adventure. A comedy.

Let me say that comedy is harder to write than horror. And I love Horror. I guess I am a little off my rocker but Horror is just easier to write for me. It comes naturally. I have soaked in thousands of hours of viewing scary movies and I just know how to construct them. I am giving myself 2 weeks until I have to start writing otherwise I am moving onto a new project.... Anyway I will make a real post this week and continue the previous topics about what truly scares us.

Cjevy

What really attracts us to horror??

While researching some different aspects for my 3rd screenplay, (still trying to decide between comedy, biopic or horror) I have been doing some serious thinking about just what is it that attracts us to horror films; or what it is about them that scares us. Terror is defined as an intense, sharp or overmastering fear. I believe that the true films that stand out in our genre are films that terrorize, horrify, and have the ability to gross you out at least twice during each film.

I found a very interesting article in the Journal of Media Psychology that breaks up horror films into seven different psychological theories of accomplishment.
   - Psychodynamic
   - Catharsis
   - Excitation Transfer
   - Curiosity/ Fascination
   - Sensation Seeking
   - Dispositional Alignment
   - Gender Role Socialization
   - Societal Concern

Each of these attributes when combined correctly influence our decisions on viewing certain horror films over others and in a greater general consensus more successful than others.

Psychodynamic or psychoanalysis is the use of symbolism and other general figures to impact the viewer on several different levels simultaneously. It is important that we view archetypes or primordial images that reside in our collective unconscious as dangerous and fearful. In other words we are genetically programmed to be afraid of the unknown; to be afraid of sharks, aliens, snakes, spiders and more generally the darkness. Many films use this underlying force to excite and strike fear into their audience but few do so in such a way that create a truly terrifying experience. I believe Jaws to be the true champion of this universal theme.

Catharsis is the opportunity to purge oneself of certain negative emotions. By viewing horror films people can get away from the doldrums of everyday life by experiencing fear and utilizing their imaginations to escape. There have been numerous studies on people of the effects of viewing violent media and content and the subsequent acts of aggression that could be triggered by exposure to such images, most of which show a negative correlation, yet we continue to watch horror and action films. I have seen hundreds of horror films and haven't killed anyone. Yet certain themes do seem to resonate in the subconscious and by viewing such acts of violence, and the watcher of such films can purge the negative emotions toward society by mentally exhausting one's self through film... But hey, that's just my two cents.

Excitation Transfer is a variation on the overall views on catharsis and the surrounding emotions. It has been proven that the viewers of horror films can be psychologically aroused and intrigued by the simple viewing of a terrifying movie. People become excited, and during the stressful scenes of a rather effective film, the viewer will experience a wide variety of emotions and physiological effects. Heart rates rise, breathing can accelerate and in extreme cases the brain will actually emit endorphins when the stress of the plot-line is resolved. This is hard to believe, but if a movie really freaks you out.. your brain will reward you when the antagonist is killed at the end.

Horror films can have positive side effects like curiosity/ fascination, which is often triggered by an exploitation of of societal norms and everyday experiences. This effect is especially pronounced when certain "rules" are broken throughout the course of a film and the characters are punished for their actions. We all know that the slutty girl is going to get the ax and the pothead will not make it into the third act. It has been proven that people respond favorably when these type characters, whom are the norm violators, are butchered. When you break it down, it is a little hard to believe that some high school student really deserves to be stabbed with a fire-poker just for smoking some herb, but in the eyes of outstanding society... they deserve it...???

Now I believe I probably fall into the next category of sensation seeking. As far back as I remember I somewhat enjoyed being totally freaked out as a kid after watching scary movies. The move that got to me the worst probably was Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare. Yea yea, I know... it's not scary whatsoever, but for some reason it really got to me. My family had a cheater PPV box growing up, which I blame for my fascination with movies, but it also gave my the opportunity for multiple viewings of the same movie. When Freddy's Dead came out I was so excited to finally see the film... then I don't think I slept for like three days. But I kept watching the movie whenever it was on. I was a thrill seeking little dude and just couldn't get enough of it even back then. I wish I could resurrect that feeling nowadays but hopefully one of my screenplays will affect America's up and coming youth.

Dispositional alignment is the overall judgement of certain scenes the audience is likely to adopt. People are less likely to give a shit if the girl who sleeps with the jock gets a machete to the face than they would be if an innocent 6 year old boy got it instead. The viewer will actually adapt a positive view of the violence toward the slutty girl and not toward the child, which could make or break an entire film.

Gender Role socialization, just the fact that a psychologist had to point this out and I didn't even think of it makes me laugh. Guys like to watch horror films with girls because they get scared and try to clutch onto them. Girls like it when guys are the master or their domain and show no fear whatsoever. Horror films provide this atmosphere for everyone to enjoy. It is a shame that the lame ass MPAA is slapping R and NC-17 ratings on everything causing half of the largest demographic for horror, 14-34, not to be included. I believe that this does in fact have a significant impact on the financial success of certain films.

You also never really think about it, but horror films seem to mimic the hot button issues of the times. The early creature features of the 1950's reflect a timid society in the shadow of the nuclear era, the slasher's of the 1980's reflect the fear of authority figures and the subtle essence of cold war totalitarianism. An effective horror film will have this subtext and be able to relate to the subtle issues plaguing modern societies.

All in all this blog post is a mere reflection of just how the themes and contexts of our favorite films can be broken down and generalized into a successful venture into the fear and the unknown. My next post will analyze the allure of popular horror cinema and their effectiveness in establishing terror...

Tension, relevance, and unrealism.

-Cjevy

Just what kind of Zombie are you facing??