Why D.Girl?
My Approach
First of all...it's your story. I'm here for you. I've found that every script and every writer truly is different. I can't say the same about agents, but let's not go there.
I'm not going make you work within my system. Frankly, I don't have a "system". I wouldn't like to be reduced to an equation and I'm guessing you don't either.
But I know movies. I love them. I want to have like ten thousand of their babies. I've studied them my whole life. Artistically. Historically. Thematically. Structurally. I know how they're constructed like the back of my hand.
Working with you on your script, I use all of my experience to do this, pulling from not just film history and script analysis, but theatre, literature, art, cultural events, philosophy, psychology, and the sciences.
Both Sides
I'm also an actor. When I was very young, I realized that while I was working on a character, at the same time, I could see how a script was made, and visualized moving the parts around like Tom Cruise moves stuff around that big virtual board thing in Minority Report. I want that board.
Later, I studied film, theatre, and acting (and alot of other things) at the exceptional California Institute of the Arts. One of the best courses there was Script Analysis taught by the amazing Robert Benedetti, who showed us that understanding the entire script - specifically, intimately - is the most important step in creating a role, as a character only exists to serve the story. Pretty inspiring.
This fantastic education - together with my experience as an actor in dozens of film, television, and theatrical productions over the years - has given me an incredible font of knowledge, both studied and practical. I know what works from both sides of the screen. I know what it takes to make a character come to life, the sound of great dialogue, what kind of roles attract the best actors, and how to build an emotionally satisfying narrative. And above all, I bring a serious love of the cinema with me.
In Your Hands
Years ago, I was a reader for major studios and production companies. It can be heartbreaking, reading a script for a studio, knowing that if only you could go back and talk to the writer directly, before they sent out their script, you could have told them even just a few things that could have exponentially increased their chances of their script being actually considered.
Now, instead of helping studios say inane things like "liked it; didn't love it", I help the writer to make their script the most effective it can be, while it's still in their hands.
Along with my consultancy, I also work as a private development person for various producers and filmmakers, help lead seminars for scientists on how to be better storytellers, reading countless scripts every year including those that are being considered for purchase or in production, and I screen several films a week. I am never bored.
Osmosis
Film has been my life’s obsession. I breathe, eat, and drink movies. They have been my constant companions for as long as I can remember.
Woody Allen said, “It enters through a different opening in your body. For instance, in order to be a jazz musician, you have to listen and listen to a lot of jazz. That’s an act of love. You don’t think, I’m listening to study it. You just listen because you love it. And you love it, and love it…and gradually you learn. You really learn everything valuable through osmosis. It’s the same way with play-writing, or movie-directing, or acting. You either love reading or watching films or plays or listening to music. And in some way over the years, without making any attempt, it gets into your blood, into the fibre of your body.”
Understanding film is an art that can be taught and studied, but most importantly, it must be felt. On an intuitive level, I know what makes a good script great. Yours can be great.