Notices / Strengths & Weaknesses

Here's details of this year's Working Title's Action! Scheme, a great intern opportunity :

"Working Title invites outstanding individuals seeking a career in film to apply for 3 one-year positions at our London office. We are looking for hard working and resourceful candidates, able to demonstrate the ambition and drive necessary to make the most of this unique opportunity. Successful applicants will have basic office experience, appropriate to entry level opportunities, and be able to express themselves with excellent verbal and written communication skills."

For the full details, visit the website. Closing date is Feb 20th, 2009. Well worth a punt if you're fairly young and new to the industry, or just want to get ahead starting from the bottom up. Good luck!

Elsewhere, Julian Fellowes is doing a talk at the Lighthouse in Brighton next Wednesday, for those interested and able to attend.

Talent Focus: Julian Fellowes
Wednesday 14 January 2009
Lighthouse, 28 Kensington Street, Brighton
6.00pm - Doors
7.00pm - Start of Event
Entry - £5/£4 concs
Spaces are limited. To book in advance please contact Emma 01273 647197 Monday–Friday 10am–6pm or emma @ lighthouse.org.uk

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PotDoll tagged me with the 'strengths & weaknesses' meme, which is a particularly tricky one, like that moment in an interview where you try to sputter what you're good at while fuzzing around another positive attribute but trying to make it sound like a 'weakness'. So, what do I think I'm good at as a writer, and where I need to improve? Well, I like to think I'm good at character and structure. I'm also good in the room: digging out ideas and brainstorming 'till the cows come home. And I can bash out plot fairly quickly. I'm a fast writer, or so I'm told.

Where do I need to improve? All areas really, including the stuff I think I'm good at. Really want to push my work to a polished and consistent standard (so that you'll ALWAYS enjoy reading one of my scripts, even if it's not your thing or you're going to pass), and when I watch a good TV show or feature film, I realise that the bar is rising all the time (but this serves as inspiration, too). I'm not sure about my dialogue sometimes but that's only 'cos I worry if a line is necessary, or funny, or loaded enough, or could be replaced with a shrug, or whatever. Dialogue is the easiest to add and remove, so I'm always happy to play around. You can revise a scene enough times so that it becomes needle-sharp with what the characters are saying but dialogue riffs can be fun, too, so it all depends.

Overall, fairly happy with my present standard of writing. All the usual insecurities and doubts will always be there but I can see a real difference over the years - my writing shifting, improving, maturing - and paid commissions always help to keep your eye on the ball as you see how you respond to external deadlines and demands.

Who hasn't been tagged? That's everyone, then? M'kay.