American Gem 2006 Short Screenplay Competition - AUTOMATA

Interview

FilmMakers Magazine: What inspired you to write?

Lawrence Whiteside: I used to write about characters who had girlfriends, before I’d ever kissed a girl. The girlfriends were compilations of Hollywood personalities, and what I’d hope they’d be like. I knew I was doing good work when I ended up having a crush on my own character. When I wanted to keep writing her to keep her alive. And that’s what I still hope for every time I sit down to do the work.

FilmMakers Magazine: How did you prepare yourself to write your first script? 

Lawrence Whiteside: That was a long time ago. I don’t know. I must’ve copied Tarantino a million times, or Woody Allen, or Andy Kevin Walker. I would get inspired and sit down to create what I thought was something original but it ended up being derivative and half-baked. This happened more often than not for the first decade I was at it.

FilmMakers Magazine: Is this your first script and how long did it take you to write AUTOMATA?

Lawrence Whiteside: No, it’s not my first script. But then again it’s hard to say which number this is because sometimes I don’t exactly finish what I’ve started. It took a couple months, from concept to completion. But the draft that went to the competition probably involved four miserable long days. A lot of sitting and waiting, a lot of laying down and closing my eyes and a lot of stalling before the “A-ha!” moments that moved me into the next scene, came to save me.

FilmMakers Magazine: Do you have a set routine, place and time management for writing? 

Lawrence Whiteside: I hear that never works. I’d like to make screenwriting a real 9 to 5 job. But I’m not getting paid for any of it so feeding my belly usually takes precedent. I’ve noticed I’m a night writer, which may lead to darker subject matter. I’m an insomniac and a workaholic, which helps me work more. Sadly, I’m also lazy and a perfectionist and easily distracted by the simpler pleasures in life, like beer and women. So it’s a wonder anything ever gets done on spec.

FilmMakers Magazine: Do you believe screenplay contests are important for aspiring screenwriters and why?

Lawrence Whiteside: I believe it’s pretty much the only way (besides nepotism) to get noticed in Hollywood. I thing there should be more short screenplay contests because of the long turn over times in full-lengths. I could personally enter a short competition every few months. There’s really a lost art to the short script. It’s not the first act of a longer work and it’s not simply a cute start and a twist at the end. It’s a medium for expressing the ideas a writer might not want to spend years of their life working on. It’s an exercise in how quick you can get a laugh, or a tear, or a scream. How many pages it takes to make people care.

FilmMakers Magazine: What influenced you to enter the American Gem Short Script Competition?

Lawrence Whiteside: It was a helpful deadline in the otherwise wide-open endless nebula of the working adult. It was one of only two short competitions I found last May and I wanted to see what I was made of when pitted against the rest of the writers looking for a place in this industry. It made me feel productive in my work.

FilmMakers Magazine: What script would you urge aspiring writers to read and why?

Lawrence Whiteside: Charlie Kaufman’s stuff is great, as is Andrew Nicol, Neil La Butte or the Cohen Brother’s. But as far as a single script, the most enjoyable script I’ve ever read was Tim Burton’s Batman by Sam Hamm. It’s the kind of thing to absolutely get an aspiring writer into the fun and the dialogue as well as how a story builds scene to scene. But don’t take my word for it. I’m not old enough to know what I’m talking about.

FilmMakers Magazine: Beside screenwriting what are you passionate about and why?

Lawrence Whiteside: I’m very passionate about the alternatives to capitalism and the opportunities in anarchist collectives. I’ve in my own small way created a brotherhood of filmmakers who share equipment and resources to help each other create meaningful independent cinema. I’m working on establishing a method using emerging technology by which my filmmakers can distribute the finished product and collect revenue. It was right on the tip of everyone’s tongue. I just gave it a name. Cinema Set Free.

FilmMakers Magazine: Who is your favorite Screenwriter and Why?

Lawrence Whiteside: Working today, I’d have to say Charlie Kaufman exhibits the greatest capacity to consistently amaze me from piece to piece. Of all time, I’d say Igmar Bergman was able, in his heyday, to create the most complex characters and situations out of the most commonplace subjects: a family, a woman’s mind, a marriage. Everything that Bergman made is at the very least worth a look but the scene work and the using of startling unique visuals is second to none.

FilmMakers Magazine: Name the director you would love to work with and why?

Lawrence Whiteside:  I would personally love to work with Terrance Malick. Sure he’s unyielding and eccentric, not to mention the fact that he writes all his own stuff. But to be a fly on Malick’s wall or get a sense of his thought process. He sounds like he’s writing prayers when you read or watch his work. And his mastery of the forces of nature is unmatched. The man cues the sun.

FilmMakers Magazine: Name the actor you would love to work with and why?

Lawrence Whiteside: I have a lot of favorite actors, artists who’ve enriched my life. Michael Keaton could seriously use a comeback. Joe Pesci and William Hurt need more work. But the most truthful actor working in Hollywood today would have to be Phillip Seymour Hoffman who’s real talent is creating meaningful supporting characters with minimal screen time. I’ve never seen a more disciplined use of an actor’s Id since Brando took his pants off.

FilmMakers Magazine: Any tips and things learned along the way to pass on to others?

Lawrence Whiteside: I’m not a teacher... I would say art school is not worth it, but I don’t know where I’d be without those years of devotion and feedback. The only thing I’ve learned in 15 years of writing is the ability to cut myself some slack when I can’t do it. I’m not a structured person. And I can’t do 5 pages a day. The only thing I ever remembered about writing was how to tell if you love it. If you’re still at it years and years after it became a struggle, you love it. There’s no other reason to hang onto a relationship that hurts and frustrates and leaves you so empty so many nights a year, except for dumb blind love.

FilmMakers Magazine: What's next for you?

Lawrence Whiteside: I’ve just moved to Washington State, which means new opportunities and new resources. Making friends, building my community to start production of a slew of short films and writing a feature about a woman I knew a couple years ago. I’ll probably go back to New York in the winter to film a short about a renter’s strike in Brooklyn.

FilmMakers Magazine: Where will you be five years from now?

Lawrence Whiteside: I can’t imagine. Five years ago I was excited about graduating college and working in production. Now I’m excited about never working in production again and funding my own projects however I can. I hope to be able to finally call myself a paid writer in that time. I hope to not be blocked quite so often and maybe have a couple more features in the done drawer. Those are the humble estimates. I’m working on the delusions of grandeur.