Makin' it

Monday night I went to a screening at UCLA of a movie called Anvil! The Story of Anvil. If you haven't seen it and it comes to a theater near you, cough up the money and go. Trust me, you will not be disappointed.

Anvil is a metal band from the 80s, like Whitesnake or Bon Jovi or Metallica. And they're still around. They've been together for thirty-some years and although they haven't had their big break yet, they aren't giving up.

I went into the screening as a skeptic. I hadn't heard about the movie until the week before when I found out I was required to go for class and then subsequently read about it in Newsweek and Entertainment Weekly. It's a documentary and I'm in film school, learning how to write screenplays, works of fiction. What was the point I thought?

I quickly found out the point. For one thing I learned how a movie that appears to be about a metal band can actually be about best friends. And for me, as a screenwriter, I think that's a really important lessons. A movie can never just be about a band. It has to be about people, about relationships, about something more. And Anvil was.

I also got a good reminder about perseverance. These two guys, the lead singer/guitar player and drummer, made a pact at age 14 to play music together forever. And they've never given up even though they're now in their 50s. They have families and crappy jobs but they're still going on tours, cutting records, trying to sell their sound to labels. They still believe in the dream. And to me, that was pretty inspiring.

This week I sent in an application to the Sundance Screenwriters Lab that takes place every January. In the packet I had to include a letter about myself, my project and why I should take part in their lab. I started off by explaining that I've been writing screenplays for about 10 years now. I wrote the line and then stopped and had to do the math. Has it really been 10 years? Yep. I started writing my first screenplay back on my first laptop computer sitting at the table in the living room of Brewer House on Olivet College's campus. 10 years ago. Mind you, back then I didn't have a clue about structure or formatting or anything. But I was writing a movie. And when I think about that, I think about Anvil and how they're still going some 30 years later. I guess I should keep at it.

A few weeks ago I started cold calling production companies to see if they'd read my logline. Several people said they would but I haven't had any replies yet. I know it's my first try. I know most people, hardly anyone, sells their first script. Or their second, or their third. So I'll keep trying. But that movie made me think. It made me realize that sometimes, it's just about keeping up. It's about pushing on and making sure you're doing it for the right reasons. The guys of Anvil are so passionate about their music that they got me rooting for them, a girl who has no interest in metal. I think that's pretty cool.

So this week I'm going to write on. I'm going to keep practicing because I know I want to be in the NBA (according to one of the guest lecturers I've heard this year professional screenwriting is like the NBA). And I know I can do it. And I know that it may take a while longer. What's a few more years? Anvil's still trying and who am I to let a couple of 50 year olds with long hair and bald spots outdo me?