One of the hardest parts about being a writer is finding material to write about.Sometimes the best place to look is in the past. Many screen writers earn their living by adapting other works of fiction and writing sequels.
A few weeks ago a friend told me that he was writing a sequel to a public domain film. This was something that I had never considered before. Sure I was well aware of the fact that many writers have profited greatly from the fact that the movie Night of The Living Dead is Public Domain. It established rules and situations that have been copied over and over again. The show The Walking Dead could not exist if Romero had not failed to copyright his film properly.
Public domain means that the property is free from the public to use in any way that they see fit. You can rewrite a public domain film and not have to pay for the rights to do so. You can write a sequel to a public domain film and do not have to ask permission. There are hundreds of well know films that are now in the public domain and thousands of foreign films. You can do a google search on these films and make a list of the ones that you believed were entertaining. Perhaps you can see a way to continue the story or used the characters in new and exciting situations.
Why would you want to do this?
You would want to do this because the already established character is easier to work with than one that you are trying to bring to life. These characters and situations sometimes make the work easier. The next thing that you can look into is Fan Films. They do not pay, but sometimes writing is for the love of the game. If you love an existing character or movie or tv series then you can expand that existing universe. There are Star Wars and Batman and Dr.Who and House and The Matrix. You can write the episode of that series that you love or a sequel to that movie. The good thing about the fan film universe is that it is easy to find those who are also fans. Fans who would love to make a short or feature based upon their favorite movie or tv show. This is a way to get your work produced. To hear your dialogue actually being spoken by an actor.
You don’t believe that fan films can be very good?
Some of them are amazing.
These are areas for a writer to find material. Try it and you may be surprised at how easy these characters will be to write for. Thank you for visiting, please take a moment to stumble us on stumbleupon and to share this post with a friend.
A few weeks ago a friend told me that he was writing a sequel to a public domain film. This was something that I had never considered before. Sure I was well aware of the fact that many writers have profited greatly from the fact that the movie Night of The Living Dead is Public Domain. It established rules and situations that have been copied over and over again. The show The Walking Dead could not exist if Romero had not failed to copyright his film properly.
Public domain means that the property is free from the public to use in any way that they see fit. You can rewrite a public domain film and not have to pay for the rights to do so. You can write a sequel to a public domain film and do not have to ask permission. There are hundreds of well know films that are now in the public domain and thousands of foreign films. You can do a google search on these films and make a list of the ones that you believed were entertaining. Perhaps you can see a way to continue the story or used the characters in new and exciting situations.
Why would you want to do this?
You would want to do this because the already established character is easier to work with than one that you are trying to bring to life. These characters and situations sometimes make the work easier. The next thing that you can look into is Fan Films. They do not pay, but sometimes writing is for the love of the game. If you love an existing character or movie or tv series then you can expand that existing universe. There are Star Wars and Batman and Dr.Who and House and The Matrix. You can write the episode of that series that you love or a sequel to that movie. The good thing about the fan film universe is that it is easy to find those who are also fans. Fans who would love to make a short or feature based upon their favorite movie or tv show. This is a way to get your work produced. To hear your dialogue actually being spoken by an actor.
You don’t believe that fan films can be very good?
Some of them are amazing.
These are areas for a writer to find material. Try it and you may be surprised at how easy these characters will be to write for. Thank you for visiting, please take a moment to stumble us on stumbleupon and to share this post with a friend.
