Screenwriting Lessons And Dialogue Tips - Frank Dietz [FULL INTERVIEW]

Screenwriter Frank Dietz is a former Disney animator. In this Film Courage video interview Frank references his time on the comedy movie I Hate Kids (2019), written by Frank and Todd Traina and directed by John Asher. The film stars Tom Everett Scott, Marisa Tomei, Tituss Burgess, Rhea Seehorn, Rachel Boston, Julie Ann Emery and Arden Myrin. In 2020 Frank joined the Creepshow (2019) television series as a writer for season 2 (among his many other credits).
1) 0:00 - Growing Up As An Artist Can Be Lonely
2) 14:32 - If You Want To Break Into Hollywood You Have To Make Mistakes
3) 26:56 - I Was Close To Quitting Hollywood Until This Happened
4) 37:07 - An Artist Knows Immediately If They Should Take The Job
5) 41:10 - Last Days Of Disney Hand Drawn Animation
6) 1:09:02 - This Will Help You Write Better Dialogue
7) 1:15:32 - Screenwriters Have To Be Aware Of Film Set Protocols
8) 1:24:47 - Trying To Write A Perfect First Draft Is A Waste Of Time
9) 1:36:03 - Screenwriting Is Not Just About Writing Screenplays
10) 1:52:29 - Dialogue Tips: It Has To Be Clear Who Is Saying What
11) 2:00:24 - Best Part Of Creating A Story Is Writing Sarcasm
12) 2:03:38 - Working For Disney Animation, What It's Really Like
13) 2:23:37 - 95% Of The Screenplays You Write Won't Get Made
14) 2:41:35 - Biggest Misconception People Have About A Screenwriting Career
15) 2:49:00 - Hardest Part Of Adapting A Novel Into A Screenplay
16) 2:59:11 - Is It Time To Remake King Kong Again?
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[@graceespiritu5400]

I grew up watching hand-drawn cartoons and it's a beautiful and magical part of my life. Lion King, especially, touched my heart. Finding Nemo also made me cry. Some artists now are combining CG and hand-drawn/painted animation like Arcane and it is a Masterpiece.! I think, what matters most is the story that touches lives ,old school or advanced art. Art is art and all artists invest their soul in their creation. Evolution/change will eventually happen but no one can take away what Disney contributed in the imagination of kids before. Embrace change but never forgetting that special magic touch in hand drawn art.😊

[@bwzarchive708]

>Growing up as an artist can be lonely Thank you

[@nandep2149]

2:58:28 "The right person has to read it at the right time." Put that on the top 5 requirements to get a story made. 😉

[@dawnkikong637]

I love this guy. I'll bet his fun, positive attitude and his wonderful laugh had something to do with all of his "rare" opportunities. Of course he must be pretty talented, too. Great interview! This is my second listen.

[@dayakdocumentary1923]

Thank for sharing. Very interesting

[@ricomcclinton2982]

Great episodes. I can totally relate to this guy🤣🤣

[@Thenoobestgirl]

The "I CAN'T DRAAAAW!" is such a mood 😂

[@YM-ow1jx]

The only way to learn screenwriting is to write screenplays.

[@Thenoobestgirl]

Yes but no. The only way is to write screenplays but also educate yourself on writing screenplays at the same time... Which is why this channel exists.

[@YM-ow1jx]

@@Thenoobestgirl all you need to learn is format. The rest can only be learned from doing.

[@Thenoobestgirl]

A 3 hour interview??? To what do we owe this pleasure? :)

[@nandep2149]

1:54:25 "Slapsticky like 'Fawlty Towers'" 🙂 1:59:50 "One of the funniest shows ever made" (12 episodes). 🙂 Agreed, 'Fawlty Towers' was one of the great shows from the UK. Also: 'Still Game', 'Fresh Fields/French Fields', 'May to December', 'Rosemary & Thyme' (mystery comedy), and several others. They had some fantastic writers and cast. The dialogue seemed to check most of the boxes. Didn't think I'd watch 3 hours of this video (I did skip over a bit here & there). But it's interesting and all are appreciated. The 2nd half of this interview is especially helpful for me. Thank you. 🙂

[@eddiebear34]

I'm a professional artist on the side as well as having a regular job. I always wanted to be an actor and had a half arsed attempt at chasing after it. Now in my mid 40s I've decided to start trying to write screenplays. I find myself saying "why didn't they have them do this, or that here. Why didn't they do that for an extra twist. Why didn't they do this here to add extra drama and hardship to the protagonist". So I've decided to take the plunge and try. This channel has been an extra push for me. Especially hearing guys like this with similar artistic mindset. Can't help having a fair bit of life experience before trying... I hope.

[@horst-guentherfiedler3449]

Oh, the Aurora monsters. „Glows in the dark!“ Had some of theme ...

[@nandep2149]

1:10:20 Screenwriters should take an acting class. It will help you write better lines. 1:11:25 "In my head, I try to assign a voice for each character" 1:12:45 Writer - act it out, see if it works; dialogue that would be true to the character and not be too expositional; if it doesnt work, change the character's voice.

[@sandnerdaniel]

Great interview. The issue with Lion King was not CG, but writing and art direction.

[@marcdraco2189]

Bone Tomahawk and Glengarry, Glen Ross are two of my favourite dialogue heavy/driven films. Mammet though is one of the masters of deep, long speeches. And yes, I know he didn't write Bone Tomahawk.

[@weavatronobservatory]

35:22 Hmm.. I think someone did make that movie and named it Birdman with Michael Keaton.

[@dustyhills8911]

"..apparently Southern is the easiest accent to learn..." Is it though? Because I see tons of bad Southern accents on movies and TV. And the first mistake is calling it a "Southern accent" when in reality there are several variations of accent and dialect throughout the South. For instance, a Virginian accent is very different from the Georgia/Tennessee/Alabama, the Carolinas have their own variances, and Texas is different from all the rest. Just a thought, from someone who is not Southern, but lived and traveled there a lot.

[@dustyhills8911]

Love the start of this interview though, because I spent most of my childhood drawing. I also liked to "play" alone, reenacting my favorite shows and movies in our house. My mom witnessed many Star Wars duels, Batman fights, TMNT fights, and military battles in our living room, hallway and bedrooms throughout my days away from school.

[@bruce3242]

Well, I guess people call it a southern accent for convenience sake, same thing with the Brits, their are a crazy amount of variations, but people normally just say "English accent" and to be fair.... Some southern accents do just sound over the top, or fake, but are actually 100% accurate, same thing with the Brits.

[@nandep2149]

2:49:20 Keep characters true as they were defined in the story.

[@subhashnisarta3347]

Film courage screen writing lessons -- I am happy with you very sincerely 💗☺️ because of too much time to rethinking during my film 📽️🎥 writing process 🤠 and I think all courage going to you 🤠🤔🙂🗣️💡📷🙂🎥 that's my own feelings for you 💕☺️🆕😘🗣️😘😘 So many times ago all the aspect you said was in my mind but due to my life and internal problems it is gone from my memory but no problem I have been excercise with all about elements you said is reprogramming again So when I wanted to do multi-purpose work which is I have mentioned should be activate in my opinion many film making a sketch before taking a shot so I can do it because of as an artist that type of visionar can create through the sketch and I have done 👍✅✔️ it in some of my own portraits are playing a mouth organ so both of the skills are visible and it is a great memory for me and it is not only for portrait but visualizer all the scene in drawing and painting 🖌️🎨🎭🎨 My special subject is advertising design and I have made a campaign of product and the products before going to the market we have to create symbol magazine ads newspaper ads show card ♦️♠️ raper design lable design hording design and short film 🤣🎥 of the product packages designe making a comic 💪💦 of a product leaf lat of (booklet) the product So I am thinking about it no matter it may taken time 🤠😂⏩ but for me it is most important to me#film courage

[@arzabael]

34:11 😂😂😂! ❤

[@jakobw135]

Why does the script have to adapt to the actor and not the other way around? After all isn't it the actor's job to bring life to the script in only a way that he knows how to do? You illustrated that point using Peter Cushing as an example.

[@Ibbyreviews]

Film Courage... you have been the most essential part in helping me pursue my passion for creating content. So much that I've written a screenplay for a short film and will be directing it this July!! The film is called To Save America. Cannot wait for everyone to see it!! Follow me on insta if you guys wanna check it out!! IG: IbbyTheWriter_ Much love from Toronto💙