Thelonious (Theo) Friedman is a screenwriter born and raised in Portland, OR. Currently living in LA, he has a diverse range of experience including criminal justice, sports, sports media, and the film & television industry.
Tired of scrolling through Netflix? Feeling lonely? Searching for ‘the one’? No matter what prompted you to Google “best romantic comedies,” by the time you leave, two things are certain: you’ll be inspired to make your own list of favorites and you’ll open up that ice cream tub and turn on the TV. So, without… Continue reading Best Romantic Comedies of All Time, Ranked for Romantics
Looking to make a sci-fi epic? Need to shoot a weatherman spoof? Wanna spice up your Zoom calls? Don’t worry, no matter why you want to know how to use a green screen, we got you covered. We’ll talk about set-up, lighting, editing, all that stuff. Forget the key to the city, once you know… Continue reading How to Use a Green Screen — Setup, Lighting and Creative Uses
Whether you searched them out yourself, or whether someone recommended you “work on structure,” all writers have come across a screenplay structure in their day. Some swear by it, others liken it to creative cancer. The truth is, whether you like them or not, there is value in understanding what the formulas are and how they… Continue reading Screenplay Structure Examples — A Guide for Screenwriters
If you’ve worked in an office, you know… the business card means everything. In a world dominated by cell phones, tech, and social media, the business card closes the deal. No one knows this more than Patrick Bateman. Of all the business cards in history, one card reigns supreme — Paul Allen’s card from the… Continue reading American Psycho Business Card Scene — Complete Breakdown
In psychology, there’s something called the serial position effect. It means people tend to remember what comes first and last, not what occurs in the middle. Filmmakers know this phenomenon all too well. Combine that with today’s stream-ability and countless options… and the opening to a film is as important as ever. Today, we study the best… Continue reading 25 Best Opening Scenes in Movies & What Makes Them Great
Whether debating on your first lens or looking for creative inspiration. Whether shooting video or photography. Whether on a micro or multi-million dollar budget, if you’re in the camera business you’ll need to answer the question – what is a 35mm lens good for? Don’t worry. This article is all about the 35mm lens. How they’re… Continue reading What is a 35mm Lens Good For? 4 Reasons You Need One
Originality. Yes, there’s structure, pacing, character, a million things to worry about… but beyond everything, a screenplay NEEDS to be original. Originality can come in many forms. You can have an original idea, original structure, original dialogue, or in the case of the Training Day script… one of the most original characters we’ve ever seen. Let’s… Continue reading Training Day Script PDF Download: Quotes, Plot, and Characters
You’ve written a script. You’ve polished it, re-written it, performed a table read, re-written it again, you’re sick of the thing. It’s time to let this thing hit the market. But what is the market? How much is a script worth? Is it a feature or TV? How much more do you get for hour-long vs… Continue reading WGA Minimums — Writers Guild Pay Rates Explained
Do you want to learn to write like Tarantino? Learn how to make 3 decades of fresh, original movies? Well, I can’t guarantee that, but there’s no better place to start than by reading a Tarantino script. Today, we study his Oscar-winning Django Unchained script, the storyline, characters, and what makes it distinctly Tarantino. The… Continue reading Django Unchained Script PDF Download: Plot, Quotes & Analysis
Working on your script? Feeling lonely? Trying to get out of the friend zone? You came to the right place. Today we break down the Oscar-nominated When Harry Met Sally script, and it’s a good one. From long monologues to sharp ping-pong dialogue, pure disdain to pure desire, let’s see how screenwriter Nora Ephron yo-yos… Continue reading When Harry Met Sally Script PDF Download & Character Analysis
When creating a filmmaking project, costs add up quickly. Whether paying for cast, camera equipment, PA’s, or countless other expenses, you wanna save anywhere you can. So how about music? Today, we break down copyright free music. We talk about what it is, how to use it, and copyright free vs “royalty-free.” We’ll get you… Continue reading How Copyright Free Music Works and Where to Find It
DING DING DING! You found it, the best place to find the best ding sound effect download. Need that perfect ding noise to set the toaster off and distract the bad guy? An iPhone ding sound to ruin a romantic moment? An annoying seatbelt sound to ramp up the tension in an argument? Don’t worry, no matter… Continue reading Ding Sound Effect Download — Royalty-Free SFX Library Sounds
Believe it or not, there was a time in Hollywood when all studios wanted was a spec script. The next big thing. More Shane Black movies. Before Hollywood became the land of superheroes, reboots, and remakes, it was the land of original IP. Welcome to the ‘80s and ‘90s, when writers would write, directors would… Continue reading Shane Black Movies & Screenwriting Explained [PDF Downloads]
There seem to be three primary ways people learn screenwriting these days: film school, screenwriting books or the Scriptnotes podcast with John August and Craig Mazin. In most cases, probably a combination of all three. Film school has an obvious downside, it costs about $100,000. Ask any screenwriter about screenwriting books and you’ve clearly hit… Continue reading John August — A Name Every Screenwriter Should Know
Insert Content Template or Symbol Ever watch a sci-fi movie and wonder how they filmed it? Are there secret movie studios on the Moon? Mars? Westeros? Unfortunately not, the answer is far less gratifying. Instead of Mars, it was probably filmed in a warehouse. However, luckily for us, chroma keying is cheaper and a lot… Continue reading What is a Green Screen Used For and How Do They Work?
Whether looking to edit your first video or thinking about switching, something prompted you to stumble upon Davinci Resolve 16, and what a stumble it was. We’ll get into the ins-and-outs, the ups-and-downs, the whys-and-why-nots, talk about Adobe Premiere Pro, all that. First, take a moment, pat yourself on the back. As of clicking this… Continue reading Davinci Resolve 16 — Prices, Features, and How it Compares
It’s well documented that Hollywood is a tough industry to crack. Whether an aspiring writer, producer, or director… you’ll often start in a job that’s neither writing, producing, or directing. And as you spend countless hours on Linkedin or Indeed searching for jobs, you may see posts for script reader jobs, script coverage jobs, or… Continue reading How to Become a Script Reader — Duties, Salary, and Resources
What makes a great music score? Does it need to dominate the soundtrack or can go unnoticed in the background? Should a contemporary movie always use modern music or is it blasphemy for a period piece to include pop songs? Whether you have answers to these questions or not, there’s no denying the power of… Continue reading 23 Best Movie Scores of All Time — Filmmaker Playlist
Never-ending. Eternal. Infinite. People speak in hyperbole quite often but, in real life, everything does come to an end. Everything, that is, except The Shepard Tone, which may be the one thing that truly doesn’t stop. This audio illusion is more than just a novelty, however, and filmmakers like Christopher Nolan have embraced it in… Continue reading What is The Shepard Tone? The Audio Illusion Explained with Examples
You just watched Inception, more specifically, you just watched the ending of Inception, maybe not for the first time. Naturally, you’re gonna have some questions. Wait, what? That top started to fall right? Why were his kids wearing the same outfits? Could that have really been a dream? Don’t worry, we’ll parse through all the… Continue reading Inception Ending Explained — Dream vs Reality vs Nolan
