The The NSW Writers' Centre

Greg Waters – On Screenwriting

April, 2010

Greg Waters is a freelance writer and script editor. He has script edited TV series Double The Fist Series Two, Two Twisted and feature films The Final Winter and Accidents Happen. He is script editing a number of films being developed with the support of Screen Australia. He has written for Fireflies, The Alice and Out of the Blue and worked on the development of several upcoming TV series. He is currently writing for My Place produced by Penny Chapman for ABC TV. His short films have won local and international awards. He has developed three feature films Tuna, Popo’s Garden and Sleeping Dogs with the support of AFC. He is a former political adviser and a graduate of AFTRS.

What was it like working on My Place?

My Place continues to be one of my very best experiences in film or television. It is a classic children’s book and the quality of the writing team and the passion and talent of every creative contributor convinces me that it will be a classic of children’s television for years to come.

One of the great joys is that the producer, Penny Chapman, values and supports writing. We were allowed to own our episodes from the very first brainstorming meeting right through to post-production. That is a rare privilege in TV and it gives each episode an authentic voice. I have watched the series again and again and I am moved every time.

What’s the difference between scriptwriting and script editing?

Writers have no choice but to suspend their internal censor just to get a draft onto the page. However, as a film or television script moves closer to production, it becomes a document that a producer, director, designer, DOP, actors, etc must work with. A good script editor helps a writer tell their story in a way that can make it to the screen.

Unlike a novel or a poem, a script is not the finished work. It is a blueprint that a whole team will use to create the artwork (or not) that the audience sees. Scriptwriting should be brave and imaginative and surprising. And knowing that a supportive script editor will be there to ask the right questions helps writers be courageous.

How did you get started writing for film and TV?

I did evening courses while working full-time. Then I took time off, wrote a feature script and used it to apply for AFTRS. I wrote a TV series bible and two episodes as part of my masters and sent it to the two producers I wanted to work with. Both of them gave me jobs.

What advice do you have for writers trying to break into scriptwriting?

First write your script. Make it personal and passionate. Write something you care about. It’s almost certain it won’t get produced, but that doesn’t matter. You learn to write by writing and your first script will at least indicate to you and any potential producer whether there is a spark there worth cultivating. An exciting script, even an imperfect one, is the best way in to a professional career.

Are you still in contact with any former students?

Some of my former students went on to enrol in AFTRS. Others have done attachments on shows where I’ve been in the script department. There are a couple of really interesting concepts that came up during my courses and I send the occasional email to those creators encouraging them to get the scripts written.

I’m convinced that very soon I’ll be emailing one particular writer I mentored, hoping she remembers me fondly and begging her for work.

How much time do you spend on writing a day? What’s your routine?

I rent an office space with other film and TV makers. I work normal office hours. I break for lunch. If there are films or TV that I need to see for professional reasons I watch during office hours and try not to feel guilty about it. When I’m on a deadline I brew a pot of coffee and work however long it takes to get the script done.

What’s a technique you use to generate ideas?

Ideas are ridiculously common. You can have ten great ideas in a minute. What’s important is to sit down with a pen and piece of paper and work out whether the idea can sustain a story. Then work out whether it is a story that can sustain your interest for the five or ten years it may take to make it.

The first thing you ever wrote …

In infants school I wrote a story about a picnic and the teacher made me read it at assembly. It turned me off writing for about thirty years and off performing forever.