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Scriptapalooza Interviews TV Competition Winners

Scriptapalooza interviews their TV Competion winners in the 1-Hour, Sitcom, Pilot, and Reality categories.

1 Hour Category 1st Place winner - Dexter - Kay Tuxford

How did you come up with your story idea?

Well, first I had to pick a show I wanted to write a spec for, so I spent a few weeks going through seasons of shows that I liked or I had heard of, but hadn't gotten to watch yet. Dexter was a new show I picked up, but I watched the full first season over a weekend and I was completely hooked. There are a lot of hints of what is yet to come in Dexter, so I let my imagination run away with it. I knew my favorite episodes are when Doakes and Dexter butt heads, so I knew they had to work on a case together. Also, I really wanted to play with Dexter's relationship with Rita becuase Dexter is getting into a stage with her in the show where he might need to commit more to keep his relationship looking normal.

How long did it take you to write it?

I'm really into outlining scenes before I write them, so I probably spent about a month on the outline alone. Then writing it took another month. Since then, I've also put in some time here and there revising.

Is this the first script that you have written?

It's my first TV script. I have been writing features and short film scripts for a while. I think what kept me from writing TV scripts for so long is not having the same basic ground rules for feature writing. Every show is different and sometimes it's even hard to get a copy of a the show's script to learn from. Luckily, I was able to get a copy of a Dexter script about halfway through my writing, which really helped me understand the show better.

Why did you enter Scriptapalooza TV?

Scriptapalooza is well known and I thought it would be a great start to see how I might do in a competition. Plus, I knew I needed to get into the habit of having deadlines and getting a script to a completed and professional state. I chose to submit my Dexter spec script becuase I felt it was the most polished and it had gotten a strong positive response from friends and mentors.

If you could write for any TV show, which would it be?

If they were one hour dramas, I'd love to write for Dexter or Weeds. And if it were a comedy, I'd love to write for 30 Rock or How I Met Your Mother.

Pilot Category 1st Place winner - Tabloid - Skip Berry & Judith Vale Newton

How did you come up with your story idea?

Skip: Judy and I are both former reporters for a metropolitan daily newspaper. Over coffee one day, we discovered that we were each working on a TV series idea based in the newspaper worldhers in an alternative newsweekly, mine in a mainstream daily. After talking it over, we agreed to merge our ideas and create a series called TABLOID, which revolves around the professional and personal lives of a group of people who work at a newsweekly in Chicago.

Judy: After editing and writing for two tabloids, I felt this world would be a good springboard for the introduction of riveting characters and challenging plot-lines. An alternative newsweekly would also offer us a chance to mix in a little social commentary. Our story arcs are, as they say, ripped from the headlines.

How long did it take you to write it?

Skip: The initial draft took probably six months or so, since it was the first TV series pilot either of us had ever written. I had written several feature screenplays, but never a TV script, so I had to learn how to adapt what I knew about screenwriting to a new formatand Judy, who had never written a script of any kind, had to learn how to do so. Once we finished the first draft, we revised it several times, finally coming up with the version we submitted to the Scriptapalooza contest after about a year of work.

Judy: We met each Friday to work together, writing separately the rest of the time because we had to contend with our day jobs as a newspaper reporter (Skip) and an attorney (Judy).

Is this the first script that you have written?

Skip:No. I had written several feature screenplays, but it was the first TV series pilot I had written.

Judy: Yes. I had written six books, but never a TV script until this one. After we finished this script and a series proposal that lays out the development of the next several episodes, we went on to conceive and develop two more drama series. Different from TABLOID, each has its own proposal and pilot script.

Why did you enter Scriptapalooza TV?

The Scriptapalooza screenplay competition has a good reputation, so we figured the TV competition would probably be equally valuable to us. We wanted to put one of our pilots up against others to see how well we are doing as aspiring TV writers.

If you could write for any TV show, which would it be?

Skip: I am a fan of shows that feature intelligent writing, inventive story-telling and great actingHouse and Pushing Daisies, for example. Writing for either show would be challenging and rewarding.Judy: Shows that spin around the goings-on of ensemble casts have always held the most interest for me. This season, I'm particularly intrigued with House and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicle.

Sitcom Category 1st Place winner - The Office - Amy Coombs

How did you come up with your story idea?

I was actually racking my brain for a good idea for a pilot spec, but ideas for "The Office" kept coming up in my head. The main story line came to me when I was trying to think of the funniest thing I could pair Michael with - old people. And how would we get old people in the office? Invite them over for "Grandparents Day."

How long did it take you to write it?

Probably between a month and a month and half. My friends and I created a writing workshop group that met every so often, which helped push me to get it done.

Is this the first script that you have written?

No. I've written a "How I Met Your Mother," "Scrubs," "Desperate Housewives" and a feature length movie.

Why did you enter Scriptapalooza TV?

About a year ago one of my professors from college suggested that I enter it. I sent in my "Scrubs," which made it to the Quarterfinals. That gave me a "Wow, I can really do this" attitude because I knew I could write better than that. If one of my mediocre scripts made it to the Quarterfinals, how far could one of my good ones go? I wrote my "Office" specifically for this contest to see how well I could do and if I could get attention from agents.

If you could write for any TV show, which would it be?

Either "How I Met Your Mother" or "The Office."

Reality Category 1st Place Winner - Valet Girls - Beth Salmon & Milo Plasil

How did you come up with your story idea?

Our inspiration for our reality show concept was really the gestalt of marrying pure marketing interests, that is, finding subject matter that would attract the widest possible audience and major commercial sponsors with stuff that we thought would be totally fun to watch, i.e., beautiful women, expensive cars, celebrities and the whole transcendent wackiness of the LA/Hollywood/Las Vegas scene.

How long did it take you to write it?

15 minutes. Keep in mind: All we needed to enter the reality TV category was a concept brief for our show, which was just one page long.

Is this the first script that you have written?

No. We've written a few. Some are full features. One TV show pilot actually was one of the top 5 semi-finalists in the 2006 Scriptapalooza TV contest. Two of Beth's scriptsa feature-length script and a 10-minute shortwere bought & produced. Why did you enter Scriptapalooza TV?

Scriptapalooza can be a good vehicle to present new works to agents/producers.

If you could write for any TV show, which would it be?

Any show with a sundry assortment of sci-fi creatures, psychics, supernatural phenomena, serial killers and/or hit men is right up our alley, especially when they hybridize film genres, such as horror with comedy. We sure wish X-Files was still in production. But we also like Lost and Burn Notice. We could also get into writing for history channel since we have an unusual expertise in world history.

Updated: 09/05/2008

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