10 Essential Documentaries That Every Aspiring Screenwriter Needs To See

6. Dreams On Spec (2007)

key_art_dreams_on_spec Here's a documentary that will probably sound intriguing to almost anybody, but will likely have dedicated screenwriting types saying: "Why the heck haven't I seen the thing?" Dreams On Spec follows three aspiring screenwriters as they each try to get their speculative scripts up and bought in Hollywood. And the three characters that the documentary follows couldn't be more different from one another, which was certainly a wise decision, given that anybody can sit down and try to write a screenplay. There's David, who already has three scripts circulating around town and likes hanging at the beach; Joe, a family man trying to write the great American screenplay; and Deb, an African-American who's just scraping by whilst working on her spec and hopes to break new ground. Now and again, we're treated to interviews with the likes of James L. Brooks, Carrie Fisher (one of Hollywood's most successful "script doctors"), Ed Solomon and Gary Ross, all of whom genuinely dispense some worthwhile advice on screenwriting and their careers thus far. Not the best documentary in the world, but certainly worth your time.
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