I wrote a screenplay once and sent it to the brother of a co-worker. I was more familiar with writing for the stage. I didn't know anything about screenplay formatting. My co-worker's brother was kind. At the time he had written, directed, and produced several low-budget films. He told me the story was a classic underdog-to-champ tale, but until I learned how to format a screenplay, forget it.
I've since lost the script. I forget what I called it. Something dry and witty, I'm sure. The story follows four friends who form an in-line roller hockey team and battle for a trophy and some money. Along the way, they grow, find girlfriends, and become winners in their own ways.
I never did anything with the script. I left it to rot. A few years later Grind came out. That script followed four friends who wanted to be famous skateboarders. My wife asked if that was my script. It was a running joke because I had once pitched the idea of a movie about a karaoke contest that follows the lives of the contestants. We'd gone to the movies and during the preview of coming attractions, the trailer for Duets played. I stood up, pointed at the screen, and said, 'That's my movie!' Ever since then, she asks if I want to take credit for other films. I had to explain I didn't think someone stole my idea. I explained ideas for stories or scripts present themselves and if we don't act on it, the idea will migrate to someone who will.
'This is why I'm a math teacher,' she said.
The script that started it all for me was a comedy-action-holiday thriller called Santa Claus Goes to Pirate Island. Ninety-one pages using every trope I could except Rudolph because of all the legal wrangling I thought it would create. Santa returns to a corporate board meeting that tells him profits are down. He becomes disillusioned until an emergency call comes in that a child was missed in the 1950s and he needs to go back to deliver a gift to alter a tragic event. He goes back even farther to rescue his brother from drowning, and along the way, he rescues children kidnapped by pirates. A sword fight ensues between Santa and Captain Bones Marsh, only Santa uses a window squeegee based on a popular animated character called Squeegee Rob Khakipants. Everything gets wrapped up with a bow on it just before the next holiday.
I proofread it, missed a ton of mistakes, and sent it to its first film fest via Withoutabox, a website I think has since closed. Several months later, I received an email from the Great Lakes International Film Festival saying the script had been accepted in the festival screenplay category.
This was big. I'd always wanted to just be a writer. I wrote so much in so many styles. Short stories. Novels. Short scripts. Long scripts. Stageplays. Dramatic scenes. Kids books. Moderate success. But this, this was saying something to me about my ability. The acceptance and nomination cracked open a door that had been closed for a long time.
Of course, you open one door and then you see there's another one you need to open. The important thing is the first door was open, right?
We spent the third weekend of September 2005, in Erie, PA, attending the Great Lakes International Film Festival. The entire event took place at the Roadhouse Theatre. I checked in and found out we were issued All-Access, VIP passes because I was a finalist. On the first night, we watched a series of short films. There was one about an abandoned factory in the middle of a forest and whoever went in, relived a memorable moment in their lives. Another film told what I'm sure was the writer's personal struggle of juggling her life as a single mom and her upcoming deployment to Afghanistan; the mother did not want to have to leave her daughter with the mother's abusive father. My wife still talks about it all these years later.
General Electric showed up with an infomercial for a new type of lightbulb. These lightbulbs are everywhere now but they were asking filmmakers what they thought of the lightning changes in their film. Directors, lighting directors, and cinematographers vocally approved as the GE film showed a scene in regular lighting and then with the new bulb. The man and woman from GE looked at us and said, 'You tell us. Which is better?' They were asked if they brought free samples.
The Roadhouse was packed. After each film, there was a very quick talk-back from the directors with the audience. Time just didn't permit more than a few comments or questions. The host/MC did a great job of moving the night along. We were exhausted at the end of the night but it was a good exhaustion. After a brief intermission, a feature film was shown. The movie was The Derby Stallion. It might have been the premiere. We didn't see it as we opted to go to dinner. The film starred Bill Cobbs, most notably from the Night at the Museum movies playing opposite Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney. Also featured in the movie was Zach Efron. Neither of them were in attendance that we knew of, though Efron's star hadn't risen just yet.
The next day there were a couple of premieres of films by local movie makers. The host/MC showed up with a black eye. After a catered lunch for all VIPs, there was an awards ceremony hosted by two Erie, PA news anchors. My script didn't win but it didn't need to. That door that had opened had been enough.
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