Why Screenwriting?

After discovering I enjoy writing, an Executive Producer, friend of mine mentioned if I ever had an idea for a movie he would help me get it produced.  So, what the heck, I grabbed a notebook, a pen and came up with a rather lame, half-baked idea for a TV series.

TIP: Sometimes good ideas need to simmer.

After sharing the idea with my friend he said, "Okay, send me a Treatment".  I could tell he was not moved by the idea. I continued, "So, what's a Treatment?". After he explained what a Treatment was, I replied, “Oh, so a Treatment is like a synopsis of the story?”

That was the first time I realized that Actors and Actresses didn't just make up what they said on the fly. Looking back, I mighta called that small revelation an 'ah ha-moment', but instead I let the idea of writing a script simmer...for years.

Then one holiday season, my Brother-In-Law, Darryl and I were chit-chatting in front of the TV and he and his wife Shon mentioned two movies I absolutely HAD to see:  Blue Hill Avenue and Gladiator. Watching those two movies changed my life forever.

Blue Hill Avenue is a story about four childhood friends and their quest as big-time drug dealers in Boston. The movie stars one of my favorite-LOOKING Actors, Allen Payne and earned Best Director Category in the 2001 Urbanworld Film Festival.

I don't consider myself a big fan of Crime movies although I must admit, I have seen my share, like New Jack City, Sugar Hill, The Usual Suspects and Reservoir Dogs to name a few. And everyone has seen The Godfather. My favorite was Part I.

Chance are, if you enjoyed The Usual Suspects and Reservoir Dogs then you might find Blue Hill Avenue entertaining. I honestly can not remember the number of times I have actually seen Blue Hill Avenue or its different scenes but believe me, it was a lot!

I do recollect, that after watching the movie Blue Hill Avenue the first time on DVD, I had to go back and watch it again because Tristan, Allen Payne's character, referenced a detail from their childhood I didn't recall so I had to watch it again.

What was not to love about The Gladiator?  Ridley Scott and his team did an awesome job recreating the world in which the movie took place, which made everything believable from beginning to end.

I enjoyed watching the Behind The Scene piece of The Gladiator and absolutely fell in love with the Score (i.e. the music). I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I wanted my first script to mirror Gladiator as much as possible.


My goal is to invite the audience into a world as similar to the real thing as humanly possible. And of course I dreamed of Ridley Scott directing my first script because he is excellent at capturing the essence of 'the world' of the movie.