The Washington times., 1915-02-06
Expert Gives Advice
AS to HO7v Not to
Write Picture
Scenarios.

Aside from the popular interest
In the motion pictures themselves.
nothing seems to center the atten-t
more than the writing of photo
play scenarios. Every other man
or woman one meets seems to be
inspired with the ambition to
write scenarios. and the inquiries
that come to The Times. as we'll as.
to the officers of the producing
companies. indicate q general lack
Of information as to Just how to
80 about 1t. The advice Of Epes
Winthrop Sargent. William Lord
Wright. Emmett Campbell Hall.
and other successful photoplay-
wrights. Is like the advice OF
Punch to the man who wanted to
get married-"Don't" That Is,
don't. unless the person desiring
TO embark in the business is will
Ing to give 1t the same amount Of
attention and care that would be
given any other business.
These experts are also inclined
to believe that a study of photo
plays Is the only real way to pre-
pare for the business Of writing
them--thc study Of photoplays and
the methods OF the actors and act
resses playing them. They are all
very much opposed to the so.caIled
correspondence schools for photo
playwriehts that guarantee ac-
ceDtancc Of all photoplays written
by their pupils. There undoubted-
ly are some schools that give real
tN hn II lxl
picture plays. But the large ma
1ority Of them dc not. according to
the eXrerts. William Lord Wright
is emphatic on the subject. He Ia
the motion picture editor of the
dramatic Mirror. and recently
published the following bit of ad-
VICE to amateur script writer's:
Mail order correspondence schools,
which profess to teach the art OF
writing pictureplays. are being In.
Nesusated by Uncle Sam. This ac-
lion on the part of the Government
is being taken in response to the de-
mands or motion picture trade
papers and film editors. The edi-
tors assert that they are receiving
thousands of impossible stories, the
writer's thereof being graduates of
so-called colleges. Institutes and
bureaus. Advertisements have been
widely circulated by magazines, and
these advertisements of the schools
claim that anybody can write pic
tureplays, and that 'tr,H dollars
weekly Is easily earned by dashing
or plots in spare moments.
lhese advertisements are mis-
leading. to put it mildly. Certain
or these schools may give the pupil
an IDEA CT the necessary technique,
but no correspondence school FRO
lessor can impart salable ideas to
his patrons. II the professor stumbles
upon good Idea he will hurry to
market with it and realize that
40. which Is held out as sIo<i
tempting bait 10 the other fellow.
The fact is, that ideas and not so
much technique are demanded by
the pictureplay editors.
On the editorial stan OF every
motion picture manufacturing con-
cern there are men and women who
are skilled In putting good. original
ideas into proper scenario form. A
scenario technically perfect but con-
tanning no unusual idea, is worth
less for the motion pictures. but a
scenario. crudely constructed but in
which is hidden an idea of some
thing dinerent. will be purchased by
almost any editor. 1t Is the idea that
counts-the technique Is secondary.
many OF the magazines and IL
mstrated weeklies, upon complaint
OF the motion picture manufacturers,
have agreed to eliminate the picture
rlsy writing college advertisements
Film editors say the best college is
the motion picture theater where
the animated screen can be studied,
not so much as source OF enter
tainment, but to give the ambitious
author an idea of proper conStruc-
tiOn. This Is a free and a valua BILE
Zip to all the would-be pictureplay
writer's"