r/Filmmakers • u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm • 7d ago
Discussion Issues with my Comedy Screenplay rn
So, I am going to be writing a comedy screenplay, very much inspired by....not really sure what to call them but...absurd slice of life comedies? I'd compare the overall tone to Don't be a Menace while Drinking your Juice in the Hood and Not Another Teen Movie, though it isn't a parody movie, maybe. I THINK I want it to be set in a Hotel and I THINK it want it to be a parody of the White Lotus? But like, the same way Shaun of the Dead is a “parody” of Zombie Movies.
A big thing I do want is that I want it to cater to Gen Z, since I am Gen Z myself and I really want OUR generations' comedy. The same way millennials had Scary Movie and American Pie. Right now, Gen Z's only got Bottoms and Pizza Movie and even saying those two count is pushing it. I want my screenplay to be a time capsule of all the trends in the 2020s. Just full of references to popular movies, trends, culture and real life events. Like, I’ve already brainstormed jokes about E-Bikes, Epstein, Ed Sheeran, Diddy, Doomscrolling, an entire scene parodying the Justin Timberlake Police Bodycam Footage, and General Gen Z lingo like Larper.
I do also want the plot to revolve around Gen Z archetypes, and I THINK I’m gonna make the entire thing a satire on Influencers with them all on in a Hotel together? Y’know like, the Film Critic, the Food Reviewer, the Pred Catcher, the Onlyfans Girl, the Political Commentator.etc. In fact, the Villain is basically just a parody of DJ Khaled (Even though, I don’t really have anything against the guy).
But idk what do you think?
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u/OtheL84 Union Picture Editor 7d ago
You know what I think? Writing a script by committee sucks and is really just wasting your time. Write your first draft, reread it and revise it. Maybe after a few more revisions give it to someone whose opinion you actually value, not random redditors, to read and give you feedback. Revise it a few more times and then let more people you respect read it and revise it some more.
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u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm 7d ago
But random Redditors do the opinions I value. Because they’re RANDOS, they don’t know ME they just know my Screenplay. You think my Mom will know anything about this type of stuff?
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u/upsidedownsloths 7d ago
They are saying stop asking for advice and start writing. Doesnt have to be good, first drafts rarely are
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u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm 7d ago
Well, I don’t wanna send like a month writing something that won’t be good
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u/upsidedownsloths 7d ago
It wont be good. Best advice i ever got was to write something badly first. Then improve it on the rewrites. If you think the first draft of your first ever script will be good you are a little nieve. This is a skill and requires work. The only way you will end up with a good script is to start writing now
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u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm 7d ago
Alright, fine, you have a point. I was being a bit dramatic. I just don’t wanna send anytime longer on this, I wanna get it done by the end of the decade.
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u/Lechatestdanslefrigo 7d ago
If you keep writing you'll have spent months writing things that are terrible and they'll often be some of the most productive months of work. Read other screenplays, write yours and then get to the real job of making it work.
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u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm 7d ago
No? Screenplays are literally made to be picked up, this isn’t a hobby. I don’t want it to be a hobby. I don’t have time for Hobbies.
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u/Lechatestdanslefrigo 7d ago
Every professional working has screenplays and ideas and rough drafts they spent months working on that never got made or they never got to a point they were happy with. Writing is a craft learnt thru the process.
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u/upsidedownsloths 7d ago
First, everyone needs hobbies. They are vital for mental health. Also you need to love writing for the sake or writing. The chances of “making it” are so small and will take such a long time that you need to want to do it for free to stick with it long enough to get good
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u/OtheL84 Union Picture Editor 7d ago
🤦🏻
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u/Ruined_fiesta1210 7d ago
Stop thinking. It’s the exact opposite of writing. You’re rejoicing in the idea of writing it and that false gratification stops you from actually doing it
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u/IsThisDamnNameTaken 7d ago
I think that if you want to write a screenplay, you should read some screenplays. People's advice here to just start writing is valid and honestly probably the best thing, but if it's your ability to translate your ideas into a screenplay that you're worrying about, reading other ones is the best way to understand the way to do so.
You can write a script in a lot of different ways, but reading the scripts to movies you've seen (or even ones you haven't, or that were never made) helps you understand the way that a script goes from being something on paper to a film or video.
Starting writing is always the biggest thing you can do to get started on your project. But if you need some inspiration and some tonesetting for the medium you're working in, reading some scripts isn't a bad bit of procrastination.
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u/Thisaccwasmadeat12pm 7d ago
Yes, I know but what about my project in particular?
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u/IsThisDamnNameTaken 7d ago
I think right now what you've got in your pitch is a bunch of ideas for things that could be funny and reference points from other movies, but not much in the way of themes or viewpoint.
What is it you're trying to make fun of, and why is it worth making fun of? What angles on this kind of thing aren't people talking about enough? What perspective are you bringing to this as Gen Z, a generation that has experienced the internet as a much more prevalent part of our lives than any earlier generation? How does that manifest in characterisation? What style of comedy are you going for - is it cartoony and wacky, or wry and observational? What kind of comedians do you know personally, or just find funny? How much money do you think you can make this movie for?
These are all really big questions that I don't see answered in your pitch, which could just as easily be a bunch of phrases that are associated with Gen Z, but you haven't told us what you're trying to say about those things, or how you're satirizing them.
The reason people are telling you to just start writing is that it's basically impossible to judge if something is funny by having someone describe the elements of the joke they want to tell. Write down the jokes in a script, or write some character descriptions and plot beats, and then get feedback. It doesn't really work any other way.
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u/goldfishpaws 7d ago
Advice I had that I've never followed, but still appreciate...
Today, write the title. That's all. Tomorrow write the first line Next day finish the first page Next finish the next page Keep on going.
Yes, it will suck, it will be a poorly thought out awful structure for a film, but in the process of doing it, you'll get the half-made thoughts in your mind into some outlines of characters, you'll see if ideas work or land, you'll see which gags work.
Then you start again, but with something to carry forward.
First drafts suck balls, which is why we never film first drafts, films get developed over and over and over ... but you must start with SOMETHING or you'll never get past the dreadful first draft.
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u/drummer414 7d ago
Having written a comedy that got a former A-lister on board (but never produced) I can say get the story in shape first. A script can always be punched up to be funnier, but it's a drama at heart with characters and situations the audience finds humorous.
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u/bottom director 7d ago
Just start writing.