What a difference from the discussion we had yesterday, huh? Here's someone who has taken charge of her own destiny and career and doesn't go around suing people for not hiring her. I was going to say that yesterday; the best thing you can do for your career is to go out and make your own films. Sitting on your ass and complaining isn't gonna get you anywhere.

Teddy, thanks for making that comparison. Makes me think I should do a re-post of the two side-by-side.

Again movies don't owe anybody a living!

Here's a moment of Zen: "If you want to make it happen, you have to make it happen."

"It's maybe the single comment I read or hear more than any other from people in the film business, what they want when they pick up a script and read it: To feel something.

Since the default mode in Hollywood is cynicism, if you can write a script that actually causes a jaded representative, producer or studio exec to have a meaningful emotional response to your story, you will have accomplished something - and more than likely generated interest in you as a writer."

100% agree.

I agree so much in fact, that I believe you can ignore structure, character, plot, really anything -- as long as you can do this.

They may not be mutually exclusive, but really, a true emotional connection someone else has to your script is the only thing that is important.

Or as Milton Berle put it:

“If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door.”

@James: I just saw an interview with Pixar honcho James Lasseter in which he said [paraphrase], "At Pixar, we believe emotion is a huge part of storytelling. And it's not like you can lay it in after the fact. You have to find that emotional foundation up front and build from there." I'll be posting that along with some other Pixar stuff this week.

Is the link embedded in this article because I can't seem to find it. I'll just Google it I guess.

@Alandre: Check out the link in the first line of the OP. It should take you to the NYT article.