Bring the Funny

<p>A sharp, funny book about comedy screenwriting from a successful screenwriter that uses recent – as in <i>this century</i> – movies you've actually seen as examples. </p><p>Greg DePaul (Screenwriter, <i>Bride Wars</i>, <i>Saving Silverman</i>) has sold scripts to Miramax, Fox, Disney, New Line, Sony, MGM and Village Roadshow. He's worked with comedy stars like Jack Black, Kate Hudson, Jason Biggs and Amanda Peet. </p><p>Now Greg takes everything he knows about writing comedy and breaking into the biz, tosses it into a blender and serves up this tasty, fat-free smoothie of a book that’s easy to read, brutally honest, and straight from the heart ... of Hollywood.</p><p><i>Bring the Funny</i> is chock full o' tricks, strategies and insider terms used by successful comedy screenwriters, including:</p><p>Comic Justice Wrylies Genre-Bending Shadow Characters</p><p>The BDR's The Two-Hander The Conceit Comedic Escalation</p><p>Gapping A.I.C. Fish Outta Water The Idea Factory</p><p>Really Important Comedy Screenwriting Rules Number 99 and 100 </p><p>If you're looking to write funnier and better screenplays, you <i>want</i> this book. But if you're ready to pack up your car, drive out to L.A., and dive into a career as a comedy screenwriter, you <i>need</i> this book. Now. </p><p>Buy it, jam it into your pocket, and hit the gas. Greg's got your back.</p> <p>1. The Funny</p><p>a) What is the Funny? (An age-old question. Try my age-old answer.)</p><p>b) Do I have the Funny? (I hope so.)</p><p>c) Can I order it online? (No! It’s like the force. Look within.) </p><p>d) <i>Pop quiz! </i></p><p>2. Everything Matters </p><p>a) Prepare yourself (Sit down at your computer, roll up your sleeves and get ready <i>not</i> to write.) </p><p>b) Follow your heroes (The all-stars of comedy screenwriting) c) Mind your mentors (Well, me, for one) </p><p>d) Live the page (How to walk, talk, and blow your nose like a comedy screenwriter) </p><p>e) <i>Pop quiz!</i> </p><p>3. Get on Your Horse </p><p>a) What is a screenplay? (You <i>think</i> you know.) </p><p>b) A.I.C. (Pardon my French!) </p><p>c) Writing hat </p><p>e) Editing hat </p><p>f) Ass hat (Again, my French!) </p><p>g) The long haul of the feature screenwriter (Pack a lunch.) </p><p>h) Season to taste (the Michael Arndt example) </p><p>i) <i>Pop quiz!</i> </p><p>Act 2: You vs. the Page</p><p>4. Funny Peeps </p><p>a) Character (The undefinable element you must define) </p><p>b) Writing Inside-Out (starting with character) </p><p>c) Writing Outside-In (ending with character) </p><p>d) Relate-ability ("Hey, that idiot onscreen is <i>me</i>!") </p><p>e) Your character stable (where live the confidante, the antagonist, the mentor ...) </p><p>f) <i>Pop quiz!</i> </p><p>5. The Big Idea </p><p>a) Act 2 is all. (Everything else is small.)<br>b) High concept (This stuff comes from God. Or cocaine. Or both.) </p><p>c) Low concept (AKA "Execution Dependent") </p><p>d) Genre-bending (where X meets Y) </p><p>e) Fish outta water (and flopping on the deck.) </p><p>f) Comic Justice (Healing the world one script at a time.) </p><p>g) The idea factory (Build it and they will come.) </p><p>h) <i>Pop quiz! </i> </p><p>6. The String of Pearls</p><p>a) The DWR’s (Dramatic Writing Rules. Ignore them at your peril.) </p><p>b) The Conceit (You get one big gulp at the beginning.) </p><p>c) Escalation (A DWR that’s so important it needs its own section.) </p><p>d) Farce (It’s everywhere. Ya just gotta <i>see</i> it.) </p><p>e) Plotting (Get out your index cards ...) </p><p>f) Sub-plotting (and cut them into little pieces.)</p><p>g) Gapping (What <i>not</i> to write.) </p><p>h) Really Important Comedy Screenwriting Rule #99 (which trumps all other rules.)</p><p>h) <i>Pop quiz! </i></p><p>7. The Pearls Themselves </p><p>a) What is a scene? (Again, you think you know.)</p><p>b) Master Scenes ("Supper’s ready!") </p><p>c) Scenes a Faire (They’re obligatory for a reason.) </p><p>d) Act Outs (AKA Buttons)</p><p>e) Subtext (Much discussed, much misunderstood) </p><p>f) Setpieces (Leave them in flames.) </p><p>h) <i>Pop quiz!</i></p><p>Act 3: You vs. the World</p><p>8. The Biz </p><p>a) The comedy-industrial complex (what’s being made <i>now</i>) </p><p>b) Pitching (Who needs it, who doesn’t, how to do it, why not to)</p><p>b) Agents (in Latin they are known as <i>Tenpercenticus Exploiticus</i>) </p><p>c) Managers (AKA agents who want to be producers) </p><p>d) Producers (What do they actually <i>do</i>?) </p><p>e) Everybody else (There <i>is</i> anybody else?) </p><p>f) <i>Pop quiz! </i></p><p>9. The Life </p><p>a) Sacrifice (You wanna be famous? Get out a knife and lay your son on a rock.)</p><p>b) Collaboration (And you became a writer to get <i>away</i> from people!)</p><p>c) Other screenwriters (Yes, they exist.) </p><p>d) <i>Pop quiz!</i> </p>