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What's in a Title: Everything!




When director David R. Ellis considered changing the title of “Snakes on a Plane” to “Pacific Air Flight 121”, star Samuel L. Jackson threatened to leave the film. “Snakes on a Plane, man!” Jackson said in his August, 2005 Collider interview, “That’s the only reason I took the job: I read the title.”

Clearly, the title alone was enough for Jackson, which is saying a lot, but when the title also generates a ton of pre-release interest on the Internet, it’s like hitting a grand slam before even stepping foot on the field. “Snakes on a Plane” is perhaps the best movie title of all time in this regard. Jackson knew he wasn’t going to snag an Academy award for his performance as FBI agent Neville Flynn, but he knew the film’s title would create a fan base. “You either want to see that, or you don’t.” He was right. A great title can be everything.

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Writing a feature film script has a very specific structure, with acts, sequences, plot points, scenes, etc. And all of these elements follow a defined form, in which our cinematic story must be told - a visual story between 90 and 120 pages. That’s not a lot of pages. Therefore, we must be acutely concerned with screenplay management, a.k.a. script economy. Sure, you’re telling a story, but you don’t have time to discover your way. You must know it. And you must be prudent as you go: start your story as late as you can, begin each scene at the last possible moment,…

Five Plot Point Breakdowns

Rushmore (1998)

Screenplay Five Plot Point Breakdowns
Screenplay Genre: Comedy / Drama Movie Time: 93 minutes 1. INCITING INCIDENT Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) is a student at the private high school Rushmore. Although he is considered one of the worst students according to the school's headmaster Dr. Guggenheim (Brian Cox), he is the king of extracurricular activities. Max's world is changed when a new teacher, Rosemary Cross (Olivia Williams), catches his interest. He decides to ingratiate himself with her by leading a petition to make Latin a required course. (00:15:44)

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