Todd Farmer Comments On Aspiring Friday the 13th Writers
I love Todd Farmer (Writer, Jason X) and his complete honesty in how he discusses the movie industry. He has learned first hand how the business works and he has been burned a few times himself. See Jason X and Halloween 3D for examples. That being said, Todd gets a lot of aspiring writers asking for his opinion on scripts, and apparently still gets people submitting Friday the 13th scripts for his opinion.
Now, I love the fan films that fans make, which is why so many are featured here at the website. However, I completely agree with what Todd Farmer recently had to say on Formspring about a fan that asked him to look at a Friday the 13th script that they had created. Check out his response below and let us know your thoughts. I want to also add that I don’t think that people should stop writing their own stories for the Friday the 13th series, but make sure you have realistic expectations of where that script is going to lead to.
I have a script for a Friday the 13th movie. Would you like to see it?
Me thinks this question is a set up (Billy Joe), but since it is still the most asked question allow me to dip into my arsenal of replies:
No. I will not read your F13 script. And here’s why. It’ll never get made. Nor will your Halloween, Nightmare, Chucky, etc. If you don’t own the rights and if you haven’t been asked/commissioned by the one what does…then don’t write a script based on said material. It won’t get made. You won’t even be able to use it as a writing sample as agents/execs have no interest in reading something they can’t make money on. And they can’t make money on something you stole. And yes, writing a story based on someone else’s owned material is stealing. Sure there are thousands of fan scripts written every month, but how many have you seen in the theatre?
You are smart. You have mad skillz. Create your own killer. Build your own franchise. You wanna be rich and covered in the stink sex and party with the rock stars? Then write what you are hired to write…or create something original. That said, I love you and don’t be stupid.
Brutally honest and what needs to be said to a lot of us Fanboys.
I agree.. cause I’ve done it. I have directed/produced several fan films. I wrote and directed Friday The 13th: The Obsession and I helped produce (and played Jason) in Cold Heart of Crystal Lake and Friday The 13th: The Storm. While Joe (director of Cold Heart and Storm) and I have gotten great fan feedback, none of it ever got us very far in the biz. The Storm is so well shot by Joe, I suppose it does help him on his reel, but no one with F13 has asked him to do anything. If anything the F13 fans backing us have helpd in watching our original work.. so the fans have helped more than the powers that be.
Joe and i are both making bigger budget, original stuff now, but I have to say for the most part the F13 stuff didn’t help us at all, other then build a cult fanbase. It was our original work/scripts that got producers and investors interested in doing more original stuff.
Don’t get me wrong, I love our F13 stuff and it was fun as hell. But you really need to do your own stuff if you want to make films. If your just a fan who only wants to do Jason stuff.. have a blast (much of the stuff Ive seen from fans is better than the remake…lol)
I was thinking about remaking Obsession as a HD webseries, but I have some producers interested in remaking it as a feature with my own killer. Since Jason wasn’t ‘real’ in Obsession, it can be remade with pretty much any killer, Freddy, Jason, Michael, or your own. So thats what I’m going to do.
Jason is a great way to practice for a fan, but do yourself a favor and create your own, and if it breaks out and does well, maybe Paramount/New Line will ask you to make the new F13 in a few years
What also needs to be understood is that no one is going to look at a film seriously unless it’s unique, original and comes from the heart – and most importantly it needs to be GREAT and the only way to make a great film is to 1) have the talent and 2) make an amazing script or film that is not like everything else out there. And expanding the mind, thinking for yourself and questioning everything will help open the mind to new ideas. Listening to people like Bill Hicks and hearing what he had to say about the world and that will help people understand things better and say, “Wow, that actually inspires me to be a better person and contribute something that’s not generic”.
Even though I like coming up with some stories of my own for franchises I love (Friday the 13th, Halloween), I think that coming up with original stories and characters is so much more fun.
I myself have written a couple of original screenplays and have no illusions that I could ever touch the Friday the 13th (or any other) franchise unless approached.
It is my understanding that building a name for yourself within the buisness could eventually lead to those kind of oppurtuniities. Maybe.
I’m a huge fan of the series and would love a crack at Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers, but I’m not holding my breath. I’m sticking with my own ideas…it’s the only way to go if you want to be a screenwriter. Look at Adam Green’s Hatchet, inspired by Friday the 13th. You may not be able to touch Jason, but you can pay homage to him with your own masked psycho.
Hopefully, once I’m registered with the writer’s guild, I can sell some stuff. It is also my understanding that once a studio buys your screenplay, they can do whatever the hell they want with it. They can change the title, hire new writers to come in and destroy it, set it on the shelf to collect dust until they’re desperate…whatever they want, but it’s a risk I think I’m willing to take.
It’s Hollywood, babe…
The REVOLUTION OF HORROR will only come with original ideas. That is the only way. Films like Hatchet, Wrong Turn 2, etc bring generic films that have ideas that are done over and over again. That doesn’t bring anything new to the genre. I am sick and tired of seeing the same old generic monster killer offing victims one by one with horrible dialogue and comedic moments – THAT IS NOT HORROR! That is a JOKE! We need to think outside the box as independent filmmakers and really expand our minds and ideas. I did not learn all of this on my own – I found others who were kind enough to show me that there are ways to create new and original worlds that can be terrifying and horrific, not funny and badly written.
I agree with him. Why waste the time if you don’t own the rights. Plus we need more original horror anyways. I saw The Last Exorcism a week ago and it was really good. Low budget, done correctly and the twist at the end was great. There wasn’t any lousy cgi or jump scares in the movie.
That being said, the movie is only PG-13, which is a surprise. Most good horror movies are rated r.
I think this is spot on. I hate to see potential filmmakers discouraged by Todd’s remarks, but I think his advise is sound.
Screw that guy. People can write whatever they want. Besides, he’s the one making a living off of grave robbing franchises. That guy just seems like a fucking douche. Todd Farmer always writes sex scenes for himself. That’s pretty shallow if ya ask me. I mean, who sits around all the time and writes fan fiction FOR THEMSELVES. I’m willing to bet that half the people that give this goober scripts are his FANS. It’s not like “Todd Farmer” is a household name or anything. This guy is a prick. I want Joe the Plumer to kick Todd the Farmer’s ass (and I hate Joe the plummer). Forget this guy and all other guys named Todd, George Carlin agrees http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oo8CrY_ZfFk
Forget what this goober said, you guys keep making whatever fan scripts you want.
Well said. I have to agree with Todd Farmer on that. When it comes to Hollywood its all about money. There doesnt seem to be much money in horror sequals nowadays, just remakes. Maybe after this remake thing finally plays out, maybe we’ll see a FT13th part 2. Plus I got to say I love Jason X and My Bloody Valentine 3-D. I like how Todd gave himself a role in both films. And the upcoming Drive Angry 3-D looks cool, my best to Todd Farmer.
He just gave the best advice.