Ron Nyswaner (read his full bio below), who was nominated for an Academy Award for writing the screenplay for Philadelphia, showed his Peabody Award winning film Soldier's Girl, and
a Q&A session followed. Ron's first book, "Blue Days, Black Nights: A Memoir"
was available for purchase at the event, and he signed copies.
Ron also hosted a writer's workshop earlier in the day in the Cathedral of
Learning, which Pitt in Hollywood's faculty advisor Carl Kurlander moderated.
Ron's advice from the workshop:
"A great writer has something to write about." Ron talked about a writer's
responsibility to talk about the world at large.
"An artist should
be able to defend their work."
"Ideas are not a sellable product."
Ron insisted that you must have a well
written screenplay, not just an idea.
When writing, "think...is that the
movie that I want to see?" Ron warned that you should be careful when
listening to suggestions from others...that you should remember why
you started writing the story in the first place.
"Have lots of material."
Ron advised against simply rearranging your writing within the same
document. "Start over...copy, paste is dangerous."
Ron's writing process involves extensive research and groundwork, such as
interviews, chronology, character essays,
outlines, etc.
Ron advised not to get caught up with the business aspects of the industry
while writing. He suggested writing from the heart...if you do this, "The business will take
care of itself."
Ron explained his role on the set of his films: "You have to defend your work on set
for the right reasons." Also, he talked of the importance of being respectful of
the director's relationship with the actor on set.
Pitt in Hollywood Co-sponsored the workshop, screening, talk and Q&A with Pitt's Film Studies Program and
English Writing Department.
Ron Nyswaner Bio:
University of Pittsburgh graduate Ron Nyswaner is the author of the
acclaimed films, MRS. SOFFEL, SOLDIER'S GIRL, and PHILADELPHIA (among
others) and recently published his first book, BLUE DAYS, BLACK NIGHTS, A
MEMOIR. Nyswaner's work is based on true-life stories (including his own)
although he believes that effective "nonfiction" comes from an active
imagination, and a dramatist's craft, shaping the "facts" into a compelling
narrative with provocative themes. Nyswaner's movies address
contemporary social and political issues. SOLDIER'S GIRL examines the
murder of Pfc. Barry Winchell while critiquing the U.S. military's "Don't
Ask, Don't Tell" policy toward homosexual soldiers. The Showtime Network
film premiered at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, received a Peabody
Award, three Golden Globe nominations, an Emmy nomination, a Television
Critics Association nomination, a Gotham Award, and was named by the
American Film Institute as one of the ten outstanding television events of
the year. The groundbreaking film, PHILADELPHIA, the first major
studio film to confront AIDS and homophobia, won two Academy Awards and
garnered for Nyswaner nominations for the Golden Globe, Writers' Guild,
BAFTA and Academy Awards. MRS. SOFFEL, set in Pittsburgh, in 1901,
features Diane Keaton as an oppressed turn-of-the-century woman who helps a
convicted murderer (Mel Gibson) escape from the Allegheny County Jail.
Nyswaner's first film, the low-budget hit, SMITHEREENS, was the first
American, independent film to premiere in Main Competition at the Cannes
Film Festival. Nyswaner wrote and directed THE PRINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA, set
in the Pittsburgh area and is a co-producer of STAR MAPS, which premiered
at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival. Nyswaner's stage play, OBLIVION
POSTPONED, received regional and off-Broadway productions. His first
book, BLUE DAYS, BLACK NIGHTS, published in October, 2004, was called
"hilarious and uncompromising" by The New York Times and is a finalist for
a Lambda Literary Award. His film, THE PAINTED VEIL, is heading
toward production in 2005 with Naomi Watts, Edward Norton and director John
Curran. His adaptation of the non-fiction book, A TRIAL BY JURY, is being
produced by Sam Raimi and Rob Tappert. He is writing a pilot for Showtime
called WELCOME TO PARADISE. He is a founding member of the Actors &
Writers Theater Company in upstate New York, serves on the board of the
Woodstock Film Festival and as an advisor for the Sundance Institute. He
was honored with many awards for his activism on behalf of people with
HIV/AIDS, including a Ryan White Youth Service Award.
