I've suffered from a severe lack of motivation lately. I've not had any inclination to do any writing for a while. I blamed being frustrated by struggling to choose a script idea for my MA coursework.
I've picked one now. Mostly by a process of elimination. I had a number of ideas but as always, most of them seem similar to things that have already been done, or are being done. The "winner" is a teen alien invasion comedy. Untitled as of yet. It's about a group of kids who a re working the night shift at a fast food restaurant when an accident causes an alien spaceship to crash land, releasing a nasty parasite which attaches itself to the hapless populace (what the hall are haps?), turning them into enraged cannibals (kind of like zombies - but not) who gorge themselves on unaffected humans (or hell a stray cat will do), as their stomachs swell with the growing litter of parasites inside them before they explode sending viscera and more parasites in all directions.
My heroes are the last people on earth you would want to be stuck with in an apocalypse. Mankind's last hope aren't our last hope because they're the cream of the crop, chosen for a daring mission, they're the last people you'd ask.
The theme is generally about finding good qualities in places you wouldn't normally look. About misjudging people. People can surprise you. These losers and underachievers are finally forced to step up and make something of themselves (hmm remind you of anyone?).
There are a couple of elements I'm still unsure about. I had a big part of their survival hinging on pot. The parasites won't attach themselves because these kids are all stoned (via a mishap with a big bag of weed and the air conditioning). Now, I'm not a pot smoker. I don't drink, smoke or do any drugs - and I'm a vegan (if you're interested!). I thought this kind of added something thematically. It's not as if I like stoners myself so it makes the characters, even in the writers eyes, the worst people to survive the apocalypse and they have to prove themselves, not just to the audience, but to me!
I could see the story goals being about trying to find another supply of weed to help them survive the alien invasion. You know I can see that working. I thought maybe the only vehicle they could get hold of would be the one used by the local special school. Good for a cheap very un-PC laugh.
But still... stoners. A stoner comedy. Yeark!
I also have an eclectic bunch of alien bounty hunters who will, in parallel, be kicking ass and taking no names. It was this group that really instigated the initial desire to do this. I could see a group of 4 aliens done as puppets, not CGI, driving a huge open top jeep I was gonna call "The Killtruck". Now, they seem pretty superfluous.
To me, they were a much funner version of the bounty hunters from CRITTERS (which was one of the influences for this film, also NIGHT OF THE CREEPS, SLITHER, ALIENS, PRINCE OF DARKNESS, ARACHNOPHOBIA - and pretty much any 80s mini monster movie!).
I suppose though, I only have a treatment to deliver for next term. I mean, I'm supposed to be working on this for all of next year so I'll probably include them and then over the next year debate with my tutors over what value they bring to the story.
Time will tell.
In the meantime I'm diving straight into another script. This one is heavily influenced by PREDATOR , ALIEN and THE DESCENT. It's about a group of mercenaries who are accompanying a scientist on a field test of a new piece of kit which uses echo location to map cave systems. They're in Afghanistan and they think they're trying to establish if a cave links to another network of caves on the other side of the mountain.
Very soon things go wrong. If it all went according to plan it'd be a crap movie. They're attacked by Taliban fighters, trapped inside the cave and then the bodies start to go missing. Something is in there with them, stealing the corpses.
Halfway through the cave they come across an old Soviet research station. That's their way out but it's also the creatures (because - sorry to spoil it for you - there's a whole family, a brood) home.
The idea is that the creature is an alien. It's because of these creatures and their technology that the Soviets really invaded Afghanistan back in the day. That's also why our guys are there. Although they don't know it the field test is a smokescreen. The mercs are working for a PMC who have come across a piece of intel that they decided not to share with the government, rather get their hands on the stuff for themselves. Only, they didn't know there was a family of lizardy aliens still living there.
This is the first time I've really tried to write a movie on a budget. I've been really thinking of how I can do this on the cheap. Using sound and other things to suggest the presence of the alien without having to show it. Thinking about where stock footage of planes taking off etc can be inserted to make it look like a bigger budget was used, but then keeping all of the actors indoors.
I've got the beginning taking place aboard a Hercules. I'm sure there must be one sitting in a flight museum or with no engines in a scrapyard that a bunch of guys can sit in and pretend they're being flown over Afghanistan, right? What about the Afghan caves? I took a look at some pictures and compared them to Crank Caverns in St Helens. No one will know the difference (once the graffiti has been cleared off) and also there's the Russian base. That could be filmed in the basements or service tunnels of so many buildings. The "behind the scenes" part of the Mersey tunnel maybe.
There's a few tricks I want to use to show the alien without showing the alien. Like the motion detectors from ALIEN and ALIENS. How about JAWS? They made a whole sequence where the guys were chasing a bunch of yellow barrels on the water. Even the godawful JAW 4 had the great idea where the shark had a heart monitor but it was short range so anytime the shark got close they could hear its heart beating. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. Shine a bright light in someones face, have said someone look up, look amazed... you've got yourself a UFO!
One thing I would hope to avoid with it though is a lot of that green night vision stuff. I'd hope whoever made it (who knows, could be me) would use lights to illuminate the action so the alien could be further hidden in shadow.
So I'm unashamedly writing a tough guy action movie. The guys all rip the piss out of each other on the plane. It's a really funny opening. I find if characters are funny it seems the audience likes them more. Then I'm going to kill half the cast as soon as possible. That'll really get you on your toes, wondering who will make it.
I'm quite enjoying coming up with names for the characters. Lots of nicknames that define their personalities. I usually struggle over the names. This way of doing it doesn't really feel any easier but is a lot more enjoyable. Like calling a guy Rodney because his real name is Dave. It's an ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES JOKE if you didn't get it. I actually decided not to use that one.
I'm being a lot more forthcoming with details in my blog than I used to be. I keep reading things from other writers and bloggers who say its pointless because no one ever actually rips anyone else off and you never know who's reading, giving a few more details might get you a query.
I'm thinking of getting in touch with the Wirral International Film Festival people. Try and get involved as a volunteer. It'd be good to build some contacts, get involved and just to bloody do something! I had thought it was on over the summer, it'd really give me something to do - activity is a good motivator after all - but its not on until the winter. Maybe I'll do it anyway.
In other news I'm on a diet. My years of inactivity and love of biscuits has put me at my heaviest ever. I'm not really fat or anything, I have a bit of a belly but I keep seeing photos of me taken at the clubnight I work at (Revolution at Liverpool's O2 Academy!) and I look a right fat fuck. Honestly, I don't look that bad in the flesh! Anyhow, I dieted a few years ago and got to the point where I was losing over a pound a day. So I know I can do it. Eat lots of apples, drink lots of green tea and all my meals are either brown rice (really that's it - bot of soya sauce), home made soups (bouillon/vegetable stock with lentils, onion, carrots or tomato - whatever is in the house) and porridge made with water and no added sugar. Also having high fibre cereal (with soya milk) and the odd few hob nobs - they make me poo! It's a miserable diet. Really depressing but it works. I think its having an effect already. I didn't weigh myself before I started but I did take a few pictures of myself. I'm not going to show you the befores until I have the afters!
Back to work
