Me and You and Memento and Fargo : How Independent Screenplays Work

Within the last twenty-five years, an enormous burst of creative production has emerged from American "independent" filmmakers. From "Stranger than Paradise" (1984) and "Slacker" (1991) to Gus Van Sant's "Elephant" (2003) and Miranda July's "Me and You and Everyone We Know" (2005), indie cinema has become part of mainstream American culture. But what makes these films independent? Is it simply a matter of budget and production values? Or are there aesthetic qualities which set them apart from ordinary Hollywood entertainment? "Me and You and Memento and Fargo" argues that the American independent feature film from the 1980s to the present has developed a distinct approach to filmmaking, centering on new and different conceptions of cinematic storytelling. The film script is the heart of the creative originality to be found in the independent movement. Even directors noted for idiosyncratic visual style or the handling of performers typically originate their material and write their own scripts. By studying the principles underlying the independent screenplay, we gain a direct sense of the originality of this new trend in American cinema. There are many screenwriting manuals and guidebooks on the market, but they pose many problems for the aspiring independent filmmaker. First, they all rely on formulas believed to generate salable Hollywood films. For instance, most writers, including Syd Field ("Screenplay"), Richard Walter ("Screenwriting"), and Linda Seger ("Making a Good Script Great"), present a "three-act paradigm" as gospel and proceed to lay down very stringent rules for characterization, plotting, the timing of climaxes and so on. Some writers, notably Field and Seger, even go so far as to demand that the screenwriter present a dramatic turning point within specific pages. Even advice books that appear to be more open about such rules (e.g. Robert McKee's "Story") turn out to be just as inflexible in their advice. But the screenwriting manuals tend to ignor