3 - 2 - 1 | Screenwriting Thursday: Humility, ROI, Dialogue

Life has been good! It’s been a busy couple of weeks!

I went out to a few networking things recently and was pleasantly surprised to hear about all the indie features people are putting together.

That, paired with all this buzz over OBSESSION (made for only $750k!?) with a massive ROI and a number of other lower budget original features gracing our theater screens has my spirits up. (Have I already mentioned HOKUM was a great time?) Worth knowing though: Focus Features actually bought Obsession back in the fall of ‘25 for 15 million so there’s still a ways to go for the studio to earn back their investment.

PLUS Entertainment Strategy Guy just released a big data set confirming what I’ve been saying for the last 2 years: Theatrical is far from dead and it’s poised to be the next big frontier. Where else in this industry is there essentially no cap on your rate of return???

Anyways, on with the show.

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3 IDEAS FROM ME

I.

This is a relational industry. You can be the most talented and hardworking person out there, but if you’re full of yourself, unwilling to take feedback and treat people like you’re the next best thing since sliced bread and they’re lucky to even be in your presence, you will hit a wall in your career. People ‘less talented’ will succeed simply because they know how to play nice with others.

Filmmaking is not an individual endeavor. It is a team sport. Be humble. Be good to work with.

II.

A lot of people don’t seem to realize that Box Office return minus budget does not equal profit. The distributer takes half. So a feature needs to earn 2x it’s budget in addition to whatever funds were spent on advertising before we get into any sort of ROI.

III.

Every line of dialogue performs at least one of three jobs: it carries exposition, expresses character, or takes verbal action. Doing only one is enough. Doing two is strong. Doing all three at once is excellent.

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2 QUOTES FROM OTHERS

I.

Steve Jobs probably wasn’t thinking about screenwriting when he said this, but it’s true and relevant in a multitude of different ways. Especially if you’re mid-draft. Don’t try to edit over much until you get to the end.

"You can't connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards."

II.

Combat historian and U.S. Army officer S. L. A. Marshall:

“No matter how lowly his rank, any man who controls himself contributes to the control of others. . . . Fear is contagious but courage is not less so.”

Sourced from Ryan Holiday’s book: Courage Is Calling: Fortune Favors the Brave

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1 QUESTION FOR YOU

What do you want? Really?

If you don’t know, no one can help you get it.

Until next week,
Kate Gaulke

p.s. Adjust your settings