What a great weekend!
This past Saturday and Sunday, I was on hand at the Save the Cat! booth at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at UCLA, along with one of my business partners, BJ Markel, and our brilliant script analyst, Jose Silerio — and I was overwhelmed by how many people stopped by to say “hi!”
Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need is the # 1 bestselling book on screenwriting on Amazon, and coming in at #4 is the sequel, Save the Cat! Goes to the Movies. We are outselling every other book on screenwriting and storytelling, and I am the only author with two books in the Top Ten on any given day.
All thanks to you!
You are the one who reads and loves Save the Cat! and passes it on to a friend! You are the one who, like so many people I met this weekend, didn’t “get it” until you read Cat! — and now have been freed to write with greater focus and success!
And I got a chance to meet a lot of you this weekend, and to catch up with old friends who stopped by, too.
More photos etc. will be shown in this Wednesday’s News section. (Just so you know, I post a blog every Monday and Thursday, and we post a News article every Wednesday, so be sure to keep checking in for fresh stuff all week!)
Sharing booth space with us was Anne Lower of Final Draft and our pals at the Writers Store including Dana, Mario, Sam, John and the rest of their top-notch team.
We also saw Signe Olynyk, founder of Great American Pitchfest (where I will be speaking in June), and Julie Gray of The Script Department, who tells me that the contest to “meet with Blake Snyder” is overwhelmed with entries — I am looking forward to getting together with the winner.
I also got to meet Paula Berinstein whose interview with me on her site, Writers Show, continues to be my favorite. We will be doing more with Paula soon.
One of the topics that comes up when film fans get together is obscure movie trivia. (Yes, you can still come to me and ask what movie Jackie Gleason and Tom Hanks were in and I will be able to tell you! I can also tell you what scene and episode of Gilligan’s Island we are watching if you hum the incidental music– yes, it’s a curse, not a gift!)
But the other subject that raised heated debate is the question: What are the three most important movies of the past 40 years? Not best, or most artistic, but important in terms of how they changed the industry?
After batting it around, our choice came down to this:
1. Jaws. In essence, this is the movie that started the “blockbuster” trend that is still with us. Believe it or not, the “huge” opening Jaws had was in just over 1000 theaters, miniscule by today’s standard, but at the time, a paradigm shift that became the basis of the business model we still follow.
2. Pulp Fiction. The clarion cry of the independent movie that bloomed in the ’90s and made stars not just of director Quentin Tarantino, but Miramax and the Weinstein brothers who bet big and won.
3. The Blair Witch Project. Not a great movie by any stretch (and where is that girl and her flaring nostrils?), but it was the first Internet-driven hit that also said: a film doesn’t have to look good to make $100 million at the box office.
Agree or disagree? If you were in on this topic, what three films would you deem the “Most Important.”
And next year, I hope to see all of you at the Save the Cat! booth at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books (where I will be signing copies of book #3, Save the Cat! Strikes Back), so we can have this discussion in person!
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I think picking Jaws is a pretty solid choice, and I’ve debated around whether or not I would include Star Wars. Star Wars seems like it really introduced the money making potential of movies with merchandise and everything else fans can get their hands on.
Now in terms of Blair witch, I would drop that. I don’t think it had a huge influence on the industry, as there hasn’t been THAT many movies similar to it to come after. I would make a greater case for something like Grey Gardens or the first Stones documentary – as I think the documentary makers have been more instrumental in the whole hand held look. I don’t know which documentary to attribute this to, but you see films today which take a more documentary approach, such as JFK, by injecting a piece of real footage into the film. Good Night and Good luck does that a lot as well.
Hi Blake,
Again, not a great movie, but I think “Little Miss Sunhine” might fall into your list, since it has none of the kitschy gadgets that make blockbusters but worked anyway.
I’d like to see a list of highly underrated films too that should have made it but didn’t. I’d include “Heart & Souls” in that list as well as “Resurrection.”
Doug Miller
Blake,
Great list!
It’s analogous to one I debate with my friedn about the music industry — pre 2000.
I’ve promulgated that AC/DC’s “Back in Black”,’ GNR’s Appetite for Destruction,” and Nirvana’s “Nevermind” are three album’s — I’m dating myself, that really influenced the music industry and the sound of new bands in their respecvive era’s.
What about “The Godfather I & II?”
How did their theatre runs and opening weekends compare with Jaws?
Also, I would include John Hughes’ “Breakfast Club,” in a top 5.
While the film wasn’t a blockbuster, it definitely was the spark for the plethora of teen comedies that succeeeded it.
JR
It’s hard to argue with Jaws. That’s a no brainer.
Pulp Fiction I’m okay with.
I’m not sure about The Blair Witch Project. Yes, it was an amazing run, but did it really change things? I don’t remember a slew of copycats after that. One could say Scream was more influential than BWP. (Although I’m not sure Scream is one of the top 3 important movies either.)
Here’s some more food for thought:
Toy Story. The first entirely computer animated movie ever.
Chinatown. Hugely influential. The tragic ending was a bit of a shocker to Hollywood at the time.
Godfather 2. The greatest sequel ever.
I’m so glad you didn’t pick “The Wizard of Oz,” Blake. ‘Cuz I bet any number of people would have just to honor it.
Agree with Jaws, no question. I can see where Pulp Fiction came from but think there’s better. And Blair Witch I’d leave out.
So mine are:
JAWS.
STAR WARS. Agree with Andrew that this started the merchandising boom (and tie-ins) that a blockbuster can’t live without nowadays.
And then a toss-up between JURASSIC PARK, that showed what CGI could do on a grand scale (sure there were other CGI like Terminator 2, but JP cemented the use of CGI as standard), and TOY STORY, that changed the face of animation.
I agree with all three. Blair Witch introduced digital filmmaking to Cinema. El Mariachi should be mentioned alongside Pulp Fiction. Perhaps we should nominate the five most influential films.
Nr 4: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was the first Foreign Film to reach Blockbuster status.
Nr 5: I don’t know. Perhaps Juno.
Nr 5: Who Framed Roger Rabbit? The first feature to combine live action with animation, I think?
Agree with what a lot of you have already said.
Here’s my list:
1. Star Wars (Jaws may have created the blockbuster, but Star Wars took it to a whole new level (and still would have even if Jaws had never been made, the idea was so “out there” no one could have predicted the success it achieved) and created the tie-in model that still exists today. It’s so iconic, and represents one of the best examples of the power and the thrill of the visual medium called movies.
2. Toy Story (paved the way for the digitally animated movie, replacing 2D animation as the most successful (financially anyway) form of animation, and looks like there’s no going back.
3. Bowling For Columbine (although Moore’s other film “Roger and Me” also proved that documentaries could be successful at the box office, the amount of documentaries opening or showing at the multiplex since its success has paved the way for a slew of documentaries being produced in the mainstream, and many dealing with unflinching criticisms of big corporations or the abuse of government, more than at any other time in history).
Consolation prize: Die Hard (set the standard by which we measure action movies, and I’m sure it’s still used as a reference in pitch meetings even today!)
1. Jaws. Agreed.
2. Star Wars. I respect Pulp Fiction, but I’m not sure it’s in the top three. Star Wars not only affected generations to come unlike any movie prior, it birthed Industrial, Light, & Magic and a new paradigm for merchandising. Numerous business models alone associated with the film justify it being in the top three.
3. Honestly, I don’t know if there’s an obvious choice for number three. A few people made a good arguement for Toy Story. But I must point out a few things. When people credit Who Framed Roger Rabbit? as the first movie to combine live action and animation, they are forgetting about Pete’s Dragon. Also, The Blair Witch Project doesn’t get enough credit for paving the way for viral marketing. It started a significant trend that we see with film like Cloverfield. (Not to mention possibly the first box office hit payed entirely on a couple of credit cards!)
Regarding animation and live action, Mary Poppins did that in the 60’s.
I agree with Jaws and Star Wars. The third is difficult, but I would go with 2001: A Space Odyssey – which shattered the three act structure. Furthermore, most of the special effects used in 2001 were also used in Star Wars.
As to computer animation and visual effects, wasn’t Young Sherlock Holmes the first movie to use that kind of effects? If so, it should also be in the list.
I would have to add The Matrix to the list because it showed the power of building a realistic CGI set and seamlessly integrating that with shots of live actors.
Before The Matrix the CGI backgrounds were just flat backdrops. A camera filmed an actor from a static position and they acted against a green screen. Even the better quality backdrops lacked depth.
With The Matrix, they’ve added movement and camera angles to the equation. They made a stunningly realistic CGI world then added the freedom to move around in that world.
I agree with Jaws, and Pulp Fiction (think of how it paved the way for auteurs such as Rodriguez and Smith). I don’t pick Blair Witch for number three. I think My Big Fat Greek Wedding had more of a huge impact on how independent films are marketed. I know it doesn’t have the cool frisson of Internet relevance, but it perfected the model of releasing a movie in four theaters, letting word of mouth build, going to three cities, letting demand build, etc. to mega-boxoffice status. This staged release has been successfully replicated many, many times and is now the standard operating procedure for indy films. (This is why “Little Miss Sunshine” is not a pioneer), whereas Blair Witch’s use of “Internet viral marketing” has been UNsuccessfully replicated many times (check the box office results for “Snakes on a Plane” — and the notorious absence of Blair Witch’s creators from any other box office success).
If that’s not the right answer, then Toy Story would be my next vote. The first blockbuster all-CGI movie, launching a trend so strong that the venerable Disney shut down their conventional animation studios.
What a fun topic! Those are my opinions.. what’s yours?
I want to revise my first comment, my 3rd movie would be Sherman’s March. Although it wasn’t my favorite movie, I think it really opened up the idea of showing true life (e.g. reality tv), and did something rarely done before its time.
1. “Bonnie and Clyde.” OK, it’s not in the last 40 years, it’s 41. But: The film that brought violence and antiheroes to the American screen.
2. “Apocalypse Now.” Brought a whole new generational viewpoint. Proved that political films can be commercially successful. Pioneering techniques in production, direction, (re)storytelling, cinematography, editing.
3. “Animal House.” I’m guessing there were movies about idiots doing disgusting things for fun before this but I can only seem to remember the many ones that came after.
Had to add that this conversation’s search for an original mix of live and animated actors ought to date back to “Anchors Aweigh” in 1945. It featured Gene Kelly (live) dancing with Jerry Mouse (animated).
“Roger Rabbit” is a bit late on the scene and also not particularly influential as we haven’t seen a swarm of imitators. Which is a good thing, in my opinion. It’s hard to imagine live/animated being too entertaining too many more times.