The Oscar 2011 Best Screenplay Winners Are…
The Oscar 2011 Best Screenplay Winners Are…
For Adapted Screenplay, The Social Network, screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, who respectfully thanked author Ben Mezrick whose book he adapted.
For Original Screenplay, The King’s Speech, by screenwriter David Seidler who started off his speech this way: “My father always said to me I would be a late bloomer. I believe I am the oldest person to win this particlular award; I hope that record is broken quickly and often.”
Both well deserved wins for great scripts, clever dialog, and emotive stories; congratulations writers!
Read more: Oscars 2011: The Faces of Hollywood’s Best Screenplay Nominees from the 2010 Movies
Oscars 2011: The Faces of Hollywood’s Best Screenplay Nominees from the 2010 Movies
83rd Annual Academy Awards Oscars
February 27th, 2011
and the nominees are…
…winners underlined
Best Picture: Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, The Kids Are All Right, The King’s Speech, 127 Hours, The Social Network, Toy Story 3, True Grit, Winter’s Bone
Actor in a Leading Role: Javier Bardem, Jeff Bridges, Jesse Eisenberg, Colin Firth, James Franco
Actress in a Leading Role: Annette Bening, Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Lawrence, Natalie Portman, Michelle Williams
Directing: Black Swan, The Fighter, The King’s Speech directed by Tom Hooper, The Social Network, True Grit
What are actors without words?
What are directors without an idea?
What are producers without scripts?
What is Hollywood without writers?
While the paparazzi are not stopping traffic trying to get snapshots of screenwriters picking their noses at red lights, screenwriters deserve some recognition, appreciation, and love.
This year, lets take a look at the nominated best screenplay writers and gossip about them!
Haha. Just kidding.
Seriously though, let’s put writers in the spotlight and let them bask in the glory for a moment.
The first category is for Adapted Screenplay, which means the writer worked with another source material, such as a book or a short story.
The second category is for Original Screenplay, which means the writer came up with his or her own unique creative idea, not using any other large source material.
Read each movie’s pitch. Would you put $100,000,000 and all your best actors in support of these story ideas?
THE NOMINEES FOR WRITING BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY ARE…
127 Hours
Screenplay by Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy
The Pitch:
When climber Aron Ralston fails to leave word of his plans as he sets off on a solitary outing, he finds himself without hope of rescue after a fall leaves his arm pinned by a boulder. With only the limited food and resources he has with him, Aron must find a way to survive and to free himself from his deadly trap.
Who are the Writers?
American Aron Ralston wrote the book “Between a Rock and a Hard Place” based on his own experience. Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy wrote the screenplay adaptation from the book. Danny Boyle has a remarkable list of director credits, such as Slumdog Millionaire, 28 Days Later, and Trainspotting. He likes to make movies that have “vivacity” and are “life-affirming.” Beaufoy has a healthy list of writing credits, one of which includes The Full Monty. Both writers get to take their Oscars back to England if they win.
The Social Network
Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin
The Pitch:
Harvard undergraduate Mark Zuckerberg develops a computer program that will eventually become the phenomenally successful social networking site, Facebook. Yet Zuckerberg’s lack of social skills in the world outside of the virtual realm in which he excels, leaves him with a trail of broken relationships and questionable ethical choices.
Who are the Writers?
Ben Mezrich attended Harvard and wrote the book called “The Accidental Billionaires,” which became The Social Network movie. Aaron Sorkin wrote the adapted screenplay from that book.
Toy Story 3
Screenplay by Michael Arndt. Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich
The Pitch:
As Andy prepares to leave for college, his toys face an uncertain future now that the little boy who played with them is growing up. Their problems seem to be solved when they are donated to a local day care center, but the reality of their new life proves to be quite different from what they had expected.
Who are the Writers?
Screenwriter Michael Arndt also wrote Little Miss Sunshine. What you may not know is that animated movies have way more writers than those being credited. So let’s just say a big thank you to the many unnamed writers for Toy Story 3 and all its funny prequels.
True Grit
Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
The Pitch
When Mattie Ross’s father is murdered and his killer, Chaney, seems likely to remain unfound, the determined 14-year-old hires the meanest lawman she can find to pursue him: a hard-drinking U.S. Marshal named Rooster Cogburn. Accompanied by a Texas Ranger with his own agenda, the pair sets off into the Indian territories on Chaney’s trail.
Who are the Writers?
Charles Portis wrote the novel that Joel & Ethan Coen adapted for screen. The Coen Brothers rock this world with their many awesome movies like No Country for Old Men, The Big Lebowski, Fargo, and Raising Arizona, only to name a few.
Winter’s Bone
Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini
The Pitch:
With her father absent and her mother suffering from crippling depression, 17-year-old Ree Dolly struggles to provide for her family in the poverty-stricken rural Ozarks. When she learns that her father has disappeared while on bail after offering the family home as collateral, Ree sets out to find him before the court can seize the property.
Who are the Writers?
Daniel Woodrell wrote the novel that Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini adapted for screen. Looks like Granik did some cool independent stuff. Welcome to the boys club ladies!
THE NOMINEES FOR WRITING BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY ARE…
Another Year
Written by Mike Leigh
The Pitch:
A happily married English couple provide continuity and emotional support for their circle of relatives and friends. Over the course of a year, Gerri and Tom offer a warm gathering place for Tom’s brother, Robbie, the unhappily single Mary, and the overweight, hard-drinking Ken.
Who is the Writer?
Mike Leigh has written and directed 18 off-the-beaten-path movies, that is to say, I haven’t seen them. I have heard of Topsy-Turvy. This year’s Oscars shall put England’s Mike Leigh definitively on the Hollywood map.
The Fighter
Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson.
Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson
The Pitch:
Two brothers struggle with personal challenges and the complexity of their own relationship as they pursue a shared dream of greatness in the boxing ring. Up-and-coming fighter Micky Ward is torn between his loyalty to his older brother and manager, Dicky, and his desire to move beyond the chaotic family life that threatens to derail his plans.
Who are the Writers?
There are about as many writers getting credit as actors playing the parts!
Inception
Written by Christopher Nolan
The Pitch:
Dom Cobb is an expert at a particular type of corporate espionage known as extraction, in which he inserts himself into his targets’ dreams, gains their trust, and learns their secrets. One final job may allow him to leave his dangerous profession, but it involves the seemingly impossible task of implanting ideas in his subject rather than extracting them.
Who is the Writer?
Writer and Director Christopher Nolan wrote this awesome mind-bender. From England, like many of the screenwriting nominees, Nolan is a seasoned pro who wrote some other dark movies: The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Memento, and Batman Begins.
The Kids Are All Right
Written by Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
The Pitch:
When the teenage children of a lesbian couple seek out their biological father, his growing presence in their lives threatens the family’s emotional fabric. For moms Nic and Jules, the change exacerbates existing problems in their relationship, while children Joni and Laser gradually begin to see beyond the appealing surface of their newfound parent.
Who are the Writers?
Prior to writing The Kids Are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko wrote Laurel Canyon and Stuart Blumberg wrote The Girl Next Door. Blumberg went to Yale. Cholodenko went to Columbia University. Smarty pants!
The King’s Speech
Screenplay by David Seidler
The Pitch:
Plagued since childhood by a paralyzing stammer, the future King George VI of England has given up hope of finding a cure for his impediment. His concerned wife urges him to seek the help of an iconoclastic Australian speech therapist, Lionel Logue, who insists on a level of familiarity with his new patient that the royal prince is loath to permit.
Who is the Writer?
David Seidler has mostly written TV movies, so The King’s Speech is a great break and accomplishment. Seidler’s edge is that he has been around a while, which I think gives him the ability to add the emotional and psychological depth for which this script is so acclaimed.
NOMINATED FOR BEST PICTURE…
Black Swan is the only Best Picture nominee who is not nominated for Best Screenplay. There can be no Best Picture without a Best Screenplay, so let’s acknowledge the writers of Black Swan: Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, and John J. McLaughlin.
The Pitch:
When Nina, a talented young ballerina, is awarded the prized dual role of the White Swan/Black Swan in a production of “Swan Lake,” her already fragile mental state begins to deteriorate. Fearing that another dancer’s natural affinity for the darker Black Swan character will win her the part, Nina begins a disturbing descent into her own dark side.
Screenwriters Discussion
What was your favorite script and why?
Who do you think will actually win?
What have you learned from this post?
Do English men write better than Americans?
80 Years of Oscar Losers I Love
Jaden’s Picks for the 82nd Academy Awards
Oscar’s Best Screenplay Awards
A Discussion of Unusual Movie Scripts and Marketability
** Nominees and movie “pitch” summary information comes from the Oscars website. Please go to the Oscars website and check ‘em out because it is super interactive and fun this year. Most images come from IMDB.com, but originally from WireImage.com, a great source for Hollywood celebrity photographs.**
Calling All Independent Horror Thriller Sci-Fi Fantasy Filmmakers & Screenwriters !
Shriekfest Film Festival
CALL FOR ENTRIES!
Late entry date July 10
PRICES: Original Songs Early: $5.00 Regular: $10.00, Late: $15.00
Super shorts/Webisodes (10 min/pages & under, including credits) Early: $20.00 Regular: $25.00, Late: $35.00
Regular shorts (11 min/pages-49 min/pages, including credits) Early: $30.00Regular: $35.00, Late: $45.00
Features (50 min/pages & up) Early: $40.00 Regular: $45.00, Late: $55.00.
These same prices apply to the screenplays too.
If you would like 2 pages of script coverage by a script doctor, please add $60.00 to your entry fee.
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If you like this article, here are some other articles you may like:
Interview with Screenwriter Boaz Yakin, Writer/Director/Producer of Death in Love
The Top 10 Best International Film Festivals of 2011
by Jaden
photo credit: Alina Sofia
Filmmakers and screenwriters looking for exposure to Hollywood entertainment movie studio and television industry network executives ought to enter their films into international film festivals.
Although showing films in local and small film venues is a great beginning to get recognition and experience, to breakthrough to Hollywood, you need to be seen by real working Hollywood officials.
These top rated film festivals are the best for launching a Hollywood filmmaking career.
#1 — The 64th Festival de Cannes
Festival dates: May 11-22, 2011
Location: Cannes, France
Deadline to enter: March 11, 2011
Click here to submit your film to Cannes.
#2 — The 36th Annual Toronto International Film Festival
Festival dates: September, 2011
Location: Toronto, Canada
Deadline to enter: To be determined.
Click here for the Toronto International Film Festival.
#3 — The Sundance Film Festival
Festival dates: January 20-30, 2011
Location: Park City, Utah, USA
Deadline to enter: September 3, 2010
Click here to submit your film to Sundance.
# 4 — The American Film Market
Market dates: November 2-9, 2011
Location: Santa Monica, California, USA
Deadline to enter: April through June, 2011
Click here for the American Film Market to exhibit your film.
# 5 — SXSW South by Southwest Music and Film Interactive
Festival dates: March 11 – 20, 2011
Location: Austin, Texas, USA
Deadline to enter: August through December the year prior to the festival year.
# 6 — The 38th Telluride Film Festival
Festival dates: September 2 – 5, 2011
Location: Telluride, Colorado, USA
Deadline to enter: April, 2011
Click here for the Telluride Film Festival.
# 7 — Austin Film Festival
Festival dates: October 20 – 27, 2011
Location: Austin, Texas, USA
Deadline to enter: June 1, 2011
Click here to submit your film or script to the Austin Film Festival.
# 8 — 16th Annual Nantucket Film Festival
Festival dates: June 22 – 26, 2011
Location: New York, USA
Deadline to enter: March 7, 2011
Click here to submit your film or screenplay to Nantucket Film Festival.
# 9 — Tribeca Film Festival
Festival dates: April 20 to May 1, 2011
Location: New York City, New York, USA
Deadline to enter: Year prior to festival year.
Click here for the Tribeca Film Festival.
# 10 — The 68th Berlin International Film Festival
Festival dates: February 10 – 20, 2011
Location: Berlin, Germany
Deadline to enter: November, year prior to festival year.
Click here for the Berlinale Film Festival.
If submission dates have passed for 2011, please mark your calendars so you can prepare your films by next year’s submission dates. Please note that many competitions also have requirements about a range of dates within which your film must have been completed.
For short films under 10 minutes, a great place to show them internationally is on YouTube.com. If you get millions of viewers, there is a good chance Hollywood will take notice of you, and who knows, you might get some offers!
RELATED ARTICLES from 2009:
* 20 Best Film Festivals to Enter Your Film or Script *
* Top 8 Screenplay Contests of 2009 and the Scams *
Please contribute additional FILM FESTIVALS INFORMATION or YOUR PERSONAL FILM FESTIVAL EXPERIENCES to the comments section for this article (not via email to me). Thank you!
