Why am I hungry at 6am? That's odd!

VillageBoi: Yeah Semid, you've said it straight up as it is.



You know what? I think it is rightly being judged by a world standard criteria... there should never be anything else to judge any of our films by. Let's bring in the era of no more excuses ever again... afterall 'the world' will not judge a Nigerian medical doctor by a babalawo standard just because he is from Africa. Nigerians are amongst the top medical practitioners in the world.
Our filmmakers must step up or step off the grid. Period!

Exactly! When I hear people say things like...'the movie is okay by nigerian standard or by african standard' I'm like wtf! Its either you are qualified to be judged by a worldwide standard or you have no standard at all......and that's it. I support 'no more excuses' motion.

There's one particular éxcuse I hate the most: 'no government support'. I've not seen anywhere that the government distributes money to filmmakers. They are supposed to look for sponsors (which are not even scarce in nigeria), Are they?

Im always late! I'll come back later to read.
Thank God im following Speedy

ijebabe: Im always late! I'll come back later to read.
Thank God im following Speedy

carry your amebo away ooo

Wetin concine this thread with amebo?

Just been going thru comments. Have not yet seen Ije...but will ASAP. On Nollywood movies...I agree with what Villageboi is saying all along...story is king. About 8 years ago Nollywood movies were red hot abroad with their very poor visuals and even poorer fluctuating sound. The stories and locations...yes...locations...were like a breath of fresh air. To me of late the emphasis is placed on visuals and sound and to mimic Hollywood. They need to good stories and better script writers or Nollywood would continue to make one step forward and two steps backwards.In terms of budget...I would encourage everyone to see Villageboi short film Une Clope....which to the casual eyes is no different from a Hollywood film.Abeg...am not Villageboi PR person and don't know Villageboi from hmmm...speedyboi!

^^^^^^^
We are all saying the same thing. Story is the king. But like what you pointed out, nollywood has never lacked good story.

Ije is a good story....but the plot wasn't properly developed. Plot makes story worthwhile.



IMO, Hollywood movies don't have any genuine or sensible story. Most of the stories are recycled like a thousand times. But the plot around the stories make the stories splendid and worthwhile.

Hey I'm not disapproving your point of 'story is Kong', I'm trying to complement your point.
I agree story is king, but 'the plot makes the story King'.

Just like story=king, plot=parliament of chiefs and citizens. The king will always take the glory, but some other people are the ones working tirelessly to make his kingship what it is.

ijebabe: Wetin concine this thread with amebo?

Your motive for any thread is never pure... (˘̯˘ )( ˘˘̯)

speedyboi:
There's one particular éxcuse I hate the most: 'no government support'. I've not seen anywhere that the government distributes money to filmmakers. They are supposed to look for sponsors (which are not even scarce in nigeria), Aren't they?

Na true you talk, Nigeria has a ton of people that have money to burn but they need to be convinced to drop coins in the industry.

True story this - I was having a convo in a hotel here with a 'big-boy' na so one 'Nollywood A-lister' babe and her friend come join us. E no reach 15mins na so another 'money-miss-road' big-boy land... he didn't even know the A-listers name but as soon as he was introduced to her his next line was "Mbaby, let's go to Harrods and spend a few thousands to buy you a little something". That was my film convo with the babe done! Anyway shaa I'm currently writinbg a script specifically for her, as the star, & when it's done (if she is interested) I'll ask her to also produce. Let her convince all these millionaire/billionaire boys she knows to drop coins as Exec Producers. I got to try nah... highest she go punch me for eye!

Originalsly: I would encourage everyone to see Villageboi short film Une Clope....which to the casual eyes is no different from a Hollywood film.Abeg...am not Villageboi PR person and don't know Villageboi from hmmm...speedyboi!

Without a shadow of doubt I need to hire you as my PR! You're a very correct person, nice one

VillageBoi:

Na true you talk, Nigeria has a ton of people that have money to burn but they need to be convinced to drop coins in the industry.

True story this - I was having a convo in a hotel here with a 'big-boy' na so one 'Nollywood A-lister' babe and her friend come join us. E no reach 15mins na so another 'money-miss-road' big-boy land... he didn't even know the A-listers name but as soon as he was introduced to her his next line was "Mbaby, let's go to Harrods and spend a few thousands to buy you a little something". That was my film convo with the babe done! Anyway shaa I'm currently writinbg a script specifically for her, as the star, & when it's done (if she is interested) I'll ask her to also produce. Let her convince all these millionaire/billionaire boys she knows to drop coins as Exec Producers. I got to try nah... highest she go punch me for eye!

I can't wait to have you as one of nollywood's revolutionary film maker! I've been meaning to tell you to also take your place in the industry....glad to know you are looking in that direction

speedyboi:

I can't wait to have you as one of nollywood's revolutionary film maker! I've been meaning to tell you to also take your place in the industry....glad to know you are looking in that direction

Hopefully it will happen. Working hard towards that goal!

@villageboi and speedyboi. I have a 150 page film script i would be producing this year. I'd love u guys to go through and give ur usual constructive critique.

Gifted_hands: @villageboi and speedyboi. I have a 150 page film script i would be producing this year. I'd love u guys to go through and give ur usual constructive critique.

Hello Gifted Hands. I appreciate you thinking we half know what we're talking about *gulps*. First of all 150 pages is far, far, far too long. You need to work on the script and get it to a 90-100pg length, also, if it is pure dialogue heavy then you need to cut it down even more.

I'd suggest you open a tread and put up the first 10-15 pages (only) of any other script you have and we'd be able to see straight away what your writing is like.

U mean 150 pages is too long for a feature film? I guess i would ve to expurgate like 40-50 scenes(i pray d story wnt be colorless & pointless after this)
Besides, i did not use any scriptware format, i used microsoft word and each page is in Courier 12 font. Is this ok?
This is my first written script, i dnt ve any other i can place here as u demanded. Hw abt i send the first 10 pages to ur mailbox?

[quote author=Gifted_hands]U mean 150 pages is too long for a feature film? I guess i would ve to expurgate like 40-50 PAGES

Gifted_hands: U mean 150 pages is too long for a feature film? I guess i would ve to expurgate like 40-50 scenes(i pray d story wnt be colorless & pointless after this)
Besides, i did not use any scriptware format, i used microsoft word and each page is in Courier 12 font. Is this ok?
This is my first written script, i dnt ve any other i can place here as u demanded. Hw abt i send the first 10 pages to ur mailbox?

Generally 150 pages is too long for a feature film... keyword being 'generally'. 1 page of script is more or less equivalent to 1 minute on the screen. Some may debate it but I doubt there is any story that can't really be told in 90-100 page length... check DVDs you have and see what the 'runtime' says... of course the page number thing is not an exact science or mathematical equation but a good start.

Ask yourself "Where and why is it too long." Do people talk and talk for ages before making their point? Is 'everything' explained in the dialogue which is 'Telling' instead of showing; it is a visual medium afterall.

Think about this... how would you convince a cinema to take your 2.5hr when they can show a rival, much shorter, 90min film more times during the day which will make more money for them? Think of it this way... let's say a cinema has a 12hr day and each film they show has a 30min turn-around so a 90 min film = 2hrs and your film becomes 3 hrs - it can only be shown 4 times in that period while the other film can be shown 6 times. If I were a cinema chain I would never ever touch your film... unless you are as well-known as James Cameron, Peter Jackson, Tarantino and the likes with a very, very solid proven track record. We all like to say "I'm an artist" but once you step into feature filmmaking it is a cut-throat 'business' first and foremost.

Download yourself Celtx which is a free scriptwriting software - https://www.celtx.com/index.html

I would say keep on working on your craft. It will take a one in a trillion miracle that the first script you write will be 'very' good. Search the site, I'm sure there are a few threads that have a few pages that people have posted and others have commented. I really am probably the last person you want to read your script... what I said to the people in the threads below is me on a very good day... I normally write far worse things

- https://www.nairaland.com/931068/1st-hollywood-spec-screenplay

- https://www.nairaland.com/1030052/short-drama-script-pls-criticise

And, as I said, sometimes I am very, very rude at the start - https://www.nairaland.com/1076549/adam-n-evelyn-film-script

So ask yourself... do you really want me to read the first 10 pages of your first-time new writing? If you can take the heat then feel free to fire it off lol. I'm just kidding, you've been polite... send it for a few tips.
Hopefully you have written what is the new 'Slumdog Millionaire' or 'City of God' - you will notice I mention those films in a lot of threads because I feel they are the sort of films Nigeria should be focusing on making. Lower budget great stories... leave action and spectacle to the people that have the money, skill and talent to do just that ie Hollywood.

^^^^^^Villageboi! *sighs* that last post of yours though......I don't know.


@gifted_hands, I also think 150 pages is quite much. Just that IMO, I think å 120 pages' script can make a 90 to 100 mins film, depending on the way its written.
At the same time, if the 150 pages are superb that its not dragging anything with the plot and everything intact, its fine. Besides, during post production, there's sure gonna be deletion of irrelevant and unnecessary scenes or scenes that are repetitive interms of 'point'(which is Most probably the reason for the bulky script). Dialogues will also be edited so its cool. At the end, I think everything should fall into place.

However, Villageboi's point hold's more water in this context. Why? For no other reason than the fact that he is the professional filmmaker, while i am just interested in the arts


As per your request of reviewing your script, its not a problem. But if I would be going through everything, it would take me a year! . Just 20 pages is enough to let me into the film (if the script is tight ) If its a fair åttempt (even if bad), I can assure you that I'm good in criticizing constructively. At the same time, if the script is just so so so below par, I will tear-it-apart with my mouth . Cheers

Nigerian films are fast improving in cinematographic quality and story. A revolution is taking place. Now with cinemas rising up film makers are being challenged to good works. Technical stuffs that seemed impossible in the past are now child's play.

Check and rate this latest from nollywood. It shows us where we are headed:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGVKRBDCZuw

speedyboi: Just that IMO, I think å 120 pages' script can make a 90 to 100 mins film, depending on the way its written.
At the same time, if the 150 pages are superb that its not dragging anything with the plot and everything intact, its fine.

I will return to this post but let me very quickly address this bit -

From experience the 1 pg to 1 min rule is off. In a lot of cases it is always longer. Every script we did at Uni turned out to be a much longer film than the page count. And my current stuff is as follows

Sweet Sixteen - 8-page script = almost an 11 min film
Une Clope - 4.5pg script = 6.5 min film
I also have a ONE page script right now that is probably going to be a 7-10 min film just because it has zero dialogue... an experiment I hope to film later.

An idea just popped into my head. Download the script of many Hollywood films (check page count) then look at the DVD runtime in minutes. (I quickly just checked my 'Life Of Pi' - studio release screenplay and it is 75 pages - the film is 2hrs long!!)
The person that over-writes is Tarantino - Django studio release script is 170 pages - the film is 180 mins (3hrs) but remeber Tarantino says he always cut out loads in the edit... maybe the film would have been 4.5hrs long.

speedyboi: ^^^^^^Villageboi! *sighs* that last post of yours though......I don't know.

Oh dear is my last post that bad? I did not mean to be!

speedyboi: Besides, during post production, there's sure gonna be deletion of irrelevant and unnecessary scenes or scenes that are repetitive interms of 'point'(which is Most probably the reason for the bulky script). Dialogues will also be edited so its cool. At the end, I think everything should fall into place.

Most of the cutting down, as you have rightly said, is the repetitions. Tightening up the dialogue is tricky depending on how it was 'acted' - with the right beats in place it can be done. Additionally, they always shoot a ton more footage - various angles, alternative scenes, blah, blah. Feature films can easily end up with a hundred hours of footage to turn into 100 mins. Is it not David Fincher that famously does 100 takes of a single scene?

speedyboi: However, Villageboi's point hold's more water in this context. Why? For no other reason than the fact that he is the professional filmmaker, while i am just interested in the arts

Bro you have kind words and give me far too much credit. I've made 'shorts' & I've DOP'd on some Naija features so I am presently a wannabe filmmaker. Hopefully I get to make 'direct' good features someday... then you can call me a professional filmmaker.

My children, come and eat. All this writing makes one dizzy

ijebabe: My children, come and eat. All this writing makes one dizzy

Goodmorning nne, how are you? Pls make you no dizzy o; sit down and rest your wee cotton socks. Wetin you cook for us?

Thank u@villageboi, my story has much descriptn but i can't realy tell if d dialogue is heavy. I'll send u the first 10pages, pls drop ur e-mail while i get myself busy working to beat down the length, as for the link, i will download d software in no time.
@speedyboi, thank u 4 ur contribution. I've only succeeded in removing 5pages for now,I will send u the first 15pages and hope u won't be disappointed. kindly drop ur e-mail too.

VillageBoi:

Goodmorning nne, how are you? Pls make you no dizzy o; sit down and rest your wee cotton socks. Wetin you cook for us?

Who said anything about me being dizzy, its you boys o.
I made Efo riro & iyan ati egusi

semid4lyfe: Just passing by. . . .

You didn't edit your post fast enough

ijebabe:
Who said anything about me being dizzy, its you boys o.
I made Efo riro & iyan ati egusi

Heeeeeey see me see wahala... I don die! Shuo, so instead wey you for write "Shidrens, I was once a shidrens and nown I ham an hadult and knoweth how to cook berra thing simply because I chopped cane from my mum, so therestfore I ham sending you a eEfo eRiro & eIyan ati eEgusi... you no send anything electronically just dey talk say "Siddon there, nice mede-mede dey inside my iPot" - see good food posers o!

Gifted_hands: Thank u@villageboi, my story has much descriptn but i can't realy tell if d dialogue is heavy. I'll send u the first 10pages, pls drop ur e-mail while i get myself busy working to beat down the length, as for the link, i will download d software in no time.
@speedyboi, thank u 4 ur contribution. I've only succeeded in removing 5pages for now,I will send u the first 15pages and hope u won't be disappointed. kindly drop ur e-mail too.

Hiya, you are very welcome. I didn't mean if the dialogue itself is heavy but if the script is 'dialogue heavy' for example obe comes across 5 or 10 pages of just dialogue that might have only 3 or 4 lines of 'action'.
Do send the first 15 pages. my email addy is aneleonwuka@btinternet.com

VillageBoi:
From experience the 1 pg to 1 min rule is off. In a lot of cases it is always longer. Every script we did at Uni turned out to be a much longer film than the page count.

Gifted_hands: Thank u@villageboi, my story has much descriptn but i can't realy tell if d dialogue is heavy

@Villageboi, this ^ is the reason why I said 'depending on the way it is written', since she said categorically that she didn't use any software.
For example, I got chances to glance through some scripts, trust me some nigerian writers can finish half of the director's job in the script. You see lots of descriptions, eye movements & communication, types of music scores for the scene and so much more. Infact, description of moods and set can take up a page or more. Lol....at the same time, some script can be so simple, but tight. I get your point though, but I say; check how she writes first!

Gifted_hands: drop ur e-mail too.

I will PM you, cos I can't drop My mail here as its my official mail.

ijebabe: My children, come and eat. All this writing makes one dizzy

Thanks but Iyan makes me heavy. I prefer Semovita with Gbegiri Soup.