Writers Guild of America

Q & A w/Travis Seppala, produced screenwriter

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Since friend-of-the-blog Travis Seppala’s last appearance here, he’s been a very prolific and productive screenwriter. He wrote the script for CAPTIVE, which came out earlier this year, and ELEVATOR GAME, which is out today (Sept 15).

CAPTIVE

A group of stoners break into a house for a weekend party, but realize all is not well after finding a mysterious stranger held captive in the basement.

What’s the story behind this one? Was it an original spec of yours, were you hired by the producer to put it together, were you brought in to clean up, etc.?

CAPTIVE was an original script I sold to Pollen Path Entertainment. 

How many drafts did you go through?

Prior to optioning the script, I’d written either three or four drafts. Then during the pre-production and production process, I ended up writing several more (I don’t know the exact number). We were literally still writing new drafts of certain scenes while the project was being filmed! Plus there are drafts I had no hand in – the original director had done their own passes, and the final director of the film did some dialogue rewrites and ADR.

How was it working with the producers?

It worked out well. They had a pretty clear vision of things they needed to accomplish with this film and were good about clearly communicating those needs. I’d worked with these guys previously when they bought my short script BUNKER which has screened around the world!

How involved were you with the production? Did you get to be on set?

I never went to set, but I did get flown out to New Mexico on a location scout. That was fun and I felt like a “bigwig”! Ultimately, they ended up using a different location that I never got to visit, but it was still an interesting experience. 

I was pretty involved throughout the production process, though. As I mentioned above, I was doing rewrites for the project even during filming. 

Also, I got to be included on the table read with the actors so I could hear how dialogue sounded and could tweak accordingly. So that was a great experience as well! 

Were there any significant changes to the script in the finished film, or is it pretty much “as is” regarding your draft?

Lots of changes! Some minor, some major. For instance, in the original scripts the characters were all teenagers. The producers felt it’d be easier to cast people in their 20s/30s (ie adults). Some of the kills in the script never made it to the movie due to time and budget constraints. And an entire plot thread was added to make the lead female a bigger more badass role. Luckily, I got a hand in most of these rewrites. 

Any plans for more projects with the producers?

Not at this time. The producers are considering a contained thriller I recently wrote, but I obviously don’t know how that’s going to go just yet. I’ve also suggested writing something specifically catered to their needs and resources (locations they can get, ets), but no word yet there. We’ll see how it goes! I know we’ve also discussed a sequel to CAPTIVE, but obviously that depends on how well the first one does — although I’ve definitely got ideas on what I’d like to do if a sequel becomes a possibility.

Where can we watch it?

CAPTIVE is a Tubi Original! So it can be seen on Tubi (a free streaming app). I know that in some countries where Tubi doesn’t exist, the movie is streaming on Apple and/or Amazon and I’ve heard another streamer might be picking it up overseas, but I’m afraid I don’t know all the details. So the best bet is if you have Tubi, watch it there! If you’re reading this interview from a place that Tubi doesn’t exist, do a search for the movie on Apple and Amazon!

ELEVATOR GAME

(via IMDB) Supernatural horror, based on the eponymous online phenomenon, a ritual conducted in an elevator, in which players attempt to travel to another dimension using a set of rules that can be found online.

That’s pretty vague and tells nothing about the story. A better logline here would be, “A group of teenager Youtubers play The Elevator Game as part of their channel, but the group quickly becomes torn apart by secrets and the haunting Fifth Floor Woman when the game turns out to be real.”

What’s the story behind this one? Was it an original spec of yours, were you hired by the producer to put it together, were you brought in to clean up, etc.?

ELEVATOR GAME is an original script I sold to Fearworks Inc. (although it was originally titled ELEVATOR TO ANOTHER WORLD). 

How many drafts did you go through?

Prior to optioning the script to Fearworks, I’d written three drafts. Once they started bringing other people into the picture (distributors, directors, etc), I wrote another three drafts and two polishes. Plus there were drafts I had no hand in such as one of the directors who was only on the project for a brief time did a draft, and of course the final draft that director Rebekah McKendry and her husband David worked on that actually got filmed.

How was it working with the producers?

There were way more people involved on this project than there was mentioned above for CAPTIVE. Producers, distributors, etc. Despite there being “more cooks in the kitchen”, I’d say that overall the process went surprisingly smoothly. There were times when people bumped heads on certain ideas, but with that many creatives all in one room (or Zoom, as it were), that’s bound to be the case.

How involved were you with the production? Did you get to be on set?

I never went to set for this one either, and didn’t have much involvement along the way. My job was to do rewrites with the director… at least at first. As anyone who follows the trades might know, originally Michael Goi was going to direct. I feel like we made a great draft together. But then he sadly left the project when Netflix made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. A couple other directors came and went – some due to personal life issues, others due to creative differences. Some of those I worked with on drafts, others not so much. Rebekah (McKendry) got brought on finally to direct and I not only had zero involvement once she was brought on but I have never even met her other than a few Facebook posts. 

It’s interesting to see how much input some productions want from the original writer versus how some would rather you just stay on your side of the fence.

Were there any significant changes to the script in the finished film, or is it pretty much “as is” regarding your draft?

The final movie is significantly different from any of  the drafts I wrote, while still holding on to most of the same plotlines and characters. 

As I mentioned above, the director and her husband reworked the majority of the film. For instance, in my various drafts, a lot of the script took place in a high school. But they weren’t able to get a school for filming! So they had to come up with the locations they could get and rewrite the story around that… which means a lot of my sequences and an entire b-plot had to vanish. 

A lot of my ideas survive in the final project, but it’s told in a very different way.

Any plans for more projects with the producers?

Maybe. The producers currently have an option on another of my horror scripts… but with the various strikes happening right now, that project’s future is unclear. 

Where can we watch it?

ELEVATOR GAME debuts as a Shudder Original as of today (September 15) in North America, Australia, and a couple other places. I’m told it’ll also be on AMC+. Also, in some countries – such as the Philippines – the movie actually came out in movie theaters back in July! I know there are other countries the movie will be coming out as much of the budget was funded from pre-sales, but I’ve not been told where it’ll be streaming in countries without Shudder/AMC and where it’ll hit theaters. 

With these two films under your belt, what’s next?

As mentioned, Fearworks has one of my horror scripts. 

I’ve also got a military drama under option to another company as well. 

However, everything is so up in the air right now with both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA on strike! I’ve had meetings get cancelled and postponed because of the strikes. I’ve had two projects die because of the strikes – one was an original thriller script I was selling, and 1 was a sci-fi script that I was being hired to write. With the strikes happening, my agent will not pitch me and/or my scripts around town — even though I’m not yet a WGA member, doing so could potentially be seen as scabbing (both for me and my agent)… so erring on the side of caution.

Here’s hoping deals get struck soon for the guilds so everyone (even those of us who aren’t in any unions yet) can get back to work and doing business!

Last time you said your favorite kind of pie was shoo-fly pie, but haven’t had it in a very long time. Have you managed to find/enjoy any since then?

A couple years ago, a fellow screenwriter was kind enough to make me a shoo-fly pie! It was a little piece of heaven! Well, more like it was a pie of several pieces of heaven! I’m very sad I still can’t find a pie shop in the Los Angeles area that makes shoo-fly pie! There are so many pie shops! And so many flavors! But sadly no for molasses.

No words

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’nuff said.

#paythewriters

#wgastrong

#sagaftrastrong

A small ramification of the writers strike

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I was afraid of this.

The intent was to post the Maximum Z Summer ’23 Script Showcase in 2 weeks, with an abundance of film and TV scripts for the enjoyment of all.

More than a few scripts have been sent in, but there has also been a significant number of writers contacting me saying “Normally, I’d do this in a second, but because of the writers’ strike…”

And you can probably fill in the rest.

Much as I would love to proceed with the Showcase, the last thing I want to do is make anybody feel uncomfortable about it or feel like they’re putting their potential future involvement with the WGA at risk. Myself included.

So even though it breaks my heart to do so, the Summer Showcase is on hold until further notice.

I won’t cancel it outright since there’s no idea when the strike could end.

If it does end in the near future, then I’ll weigh the options of opening it up again. If it runs longer than anticipated, the Showcase will most likely return later this year with the Autumn/Winter edition; looking at December 1st.

If you’ve already sent in your script, let me know if you want it kept on file for next time, or plan to resubmit it (or another script) at the appropriate time.

Like many other pre-WGA writers, I’m hoping to eventually be part of the organization, so I stand in solidarity with what they’re trying to accomplish. If that means not being able to do the Showcase, it’s a small price to pay.

(Illustration by James Yang)

It is what it is

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They say failure is the best teacher, and boy did I learn my lesson these past few weeks.

As you might be aware, a lot of the past few months were all about the animated fantasy-comedy spec. Many drafts, revisions, and polishes have taken place. My primary objective was to have what I hoped was a quality script that might have a chance with some of the big contests.

I felt it was ready, so I sent it in, along with to a few smaller contests – just to see how it might fare.

Its track record now stands at 0-2 for those smaller ones, one of which focused on fantasy (and sci-fi). If the script couldn’t even make the quarterfinals in that, it definitely doesn’t bode well for the more high-profile contests that get thousands upon thousands of entries.

Also adding to this sad-but-likely conclusion was getting some notes back after the script had been entered in said contests. The notes were brutally honest about what worked and what didn’t.

Simply put – there were problems that I hadn’t addressed, and it just wasn’t ready.

Thus another rewrite took place, with this year’s contests already being written off. It’ll be quite surprising if anything positive happens with any of those.

I don’t think I was jumping the gun in entering it in the contests. Was I more confident than I should have been? Maybe, but I still think it’s a solid piece of work – especially after this latest rewrite.

There’s still one more set of notes on the way, so there will most likely be another draft, and I’m seriously considering getting some professional feedback for that one a few months down the road.

It bothers me that this year’s contests already seem to be wasted, but I accept that this is how it worked out and I’m pretty good about getting back up on the proverbial horse. The positive spin/silver lining is that this gives me more time to prepare for next year.

Once all the work on this script is finished – which hopefully won’t take too long, I’ll return to the rewrite of the sci-fi adventure – and based on this experience, will dedicate more time to making sure it’s REALLY ready to send out.

Heeding my own advice and encouragement to other writers, I will keep pushing forward.

-As of this writing, the WGA strike is still going on.

To quote Harlan Ellison: pay the writer

#WGAStrong

A win is a win is a win

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This is a tale of two writers.

Both have recently achieved success, but of very drastic varying degrees.

The first writer has had some tremendous accomplishments over the past few weeks. Their work has placed very highly in some prestigious contests, resulting in sales, professional writing assignments, membership in the Writer’s Guild, and representation with a management company of significant importance.

The other writer had a script do well in a small contest, and had some nice things said about their writing during an online forum chat.

At first glance, the first writer definitely had the better results. Who’d complain about all of that? This is what we’re all working towards, right? That’s like a dream checklist with every box checked off. No doubt ones such as “script produced”, “film/TV show produced and released”, and “box office/ratings hit” still remain, but this is the initial phase.

Even the writer admitted they’re a bit overwhelmed by all of it.

Meanwhile, for the other writer, the contest win is nice, and while it may not be “makes the industry take notice”-level, it still fills them with a certain sense of pride. They sent their script out, hoping for something good, and that’s what happened.

Regarding the online forum chat, the moderator has raved in the past about the professional-level quality of the first writer’s material, so for the other writer to also receive similar praise was pretty uplifting and encouraging. Truth be told, it was just about the first page of a script, but why quibble?

While the first writer’s journey to success seems to be coming to fruition right before our eyes, the other writer continues to sit at their laptop, diligently plugging away and working on scripts that will hopefully garner some attention from reps and producers.

Also important – the other writer is thrilled for everything the first writer has accomplished. They’ve earned it. There might be a smidge of jealousy, but that’s expected, and the other writer can use that as motivation to do better.

The moral of the story is twofold:

First – be proud of anything you accomplish with your writing, no matter how big or small it might seem. This isn’t an easy thing we’re doing, so try to enjoy the journey and celebrate the high points whenever possible. Don’t hesitate to toot your own horn – within acceptable limits, of course.

And second – everybody’s path to success is going to be wildly different from everybody else’s. What works for one person might not work for another. It’s up to you to find your own path and keep pushing forward on it. It might take you longer than you want to reach that finish line, but it definitely feels worth it when you get there.