Uncover the Untold Secrets of Screenwriting with Jack Epps in This Exclusive Go Into The Story Interview
Scott: It’s interesting that Francis Ford Coppola was asked about this and he said, “I always try to reduce the theme down to one word like The Godfather was succession and The Conversation was privacy.” That’s important for writers and it sounds like you’re the same mindset like Top Gun — no man is an island. That’s a touchstone at every single point along the way.
Jack: Absolutely, and it’s essential. In my first rewrite class, I ask students, “Tell me what your movie is about.” They’ll go into this long explanation of what their movie is about and I stop them. “No, let’s tell me what it’s about in one word.” They struggle and struggle to put it into a single word. Now, they’ve already written an entire screenplay but can’t really put their finger on what it’s about. That’s a problem. If I know it that one word — redemption, regret, betrayal — then I know what I’m writing about and it will keep me from straying.
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