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He's Not Here To Save The World
Story-line from IMDb: What if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he proved to be something far more sinister?
Director: David Yarovesky. Producers: James Gunn and Kenneth Huana. Starring: Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, and Matt Jones.
Mr. Brian Gunn and Mr. Mark Gunn are both screenwriters and producers (with the exception of Brian Gunn, who is also acted, while Mark Gunn worked on soundtracks).Together, they worked on such projects as 2gether, Bring it on Again, and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. Now, Brightburn is their latest feature film and just by the trailer alone you can tell this movie will be brilliant. So, take this time to get to know these superb screenwriters and the genesis of Brightburn.
1. How did you guys come up with Brightburn?
One day at work the two of us got to talking about this tradition - from Moses all the way up to modern-day superheroes - of people finding infants out in the wild somewhere, and raising them as their own. In the classic telling of these tales, the infants grow up to be noble and heroic. We started to wonder: what if they grew up to be sinister instead? Hence Brightburn was born.
2. Who came up with the title Brightburn? Were there other titles you guys have in mind?
Truth be told we came up with a zillion different titles before we settled on Brightburn. Early on the film was called RECKONING, which is sort of a limp title. Then we changed it to the kid’s name - which at the time was XANDER. Then it changed again a few times before we settled on BRIGHTBURN (one of our fine producers, Simon Hatt, came up with the title).
3. What was the most difficult thing about writing the screenplay of Brightburn?
There was a key subplot in the movie that we had to rethink and rewrite. We probably went through dozens of ideas and drafts before we landed on the right take.
4. What was the most surprising thing you guys learned when writing Brightburn?
We did a couple test screenings for the movie, and the feedback we got from the audience members was almost always very thoughtful and engaged. Sometimes people like to write off moviegoers as young and stupid, but we think audiences are much much smarter than people typically give them credit.
5. What was your writing schedule when you guys wrote Brightburn?
We wrote the first draft on spec in a few weeks, while writing another script for which we were getting paid. Then we went back and did many rewrites - producer and director drafts, actor drafts, budget drafts, etc., etc.
6. What writers inspired you guys to become screenwriters?
Mostly guys from the ‘70s and ‘80s like Bo Goldman, Robert Towne, Robert Getchell, along with lots of others.
7. On average, how many draft scripts do you find yourself writing until you are happy and satisfied with your work?
There’s wild variation project to project. And tricky to count b/c most of the time we may rewrite some scenes dozens of times and other scenes not much at all. But for a project that gets to production let’s say on average 10 full drafts.
8. What piece of advice do you guys have for screenwriters starting out?
Write write write write write. It’s a cliche, but it’s the best way to learn. Like Beckett said, “Try again. Fail again. Fail better."
9. What is your favorite line from one of your screenplays?
We honestly have no idea.
10. Have you guys ever considered writing a short story, novella, or novel?
Yes. There are a few big world-building ideas we’ve had for TV that we think may be better suited for a novel. But novels require so much time and dedication (we’d be learning as we go) that it’s unlikely we’d find time to do it outside of our screenwriting work.
11. Which fictional character (besides yours) would you like to sit down and chat with?
Quint from Jaws. The man could tell some tales.
12. Did any of your writing experience help you guys, in any way, with Brightburn?
Not sure we understand the question. Our writing experience helped a ton.
13. Were you guys ever on set for the making of Brightburn? If so, could you tell me what scene you were present at?
Yes, we were in Atlanta for the shoot for a couple days. We saw a scene in a principal’s office, along with a few others that we can’t mention b/c of spoilers and all!
14. How were you two able to get Mr. David Yarovesky involved with the project? What are your overall thoughts about him directing Brightburn?
Dave is an old friend of both ours and James. It was great having someone who we trusted so much and who seemed to ‘get’ the project from the beginning.
15. What are your thoughts on Elizabeth Banks and David Denman playing Mrs. Breyer and Mr. Breyer respectively?
They’re both phenomenal. Elizabeth is able to combine steeliness with warmth in a way that’s essential for the character (and rare for an actor). And David has a great haunted quality that never feels remotely forced or phony. We’re so lucky to have them.
16. If a self-published author is seeking a screenwriter, how would one get you guys to read his or her story to see if it would make a compelling movie?
Most likely reach out to our agent. He’s pretty good about passing along promising material to us and filtering out the rest.
17. What would it take for you guys to be interested in translating a self-published story into a screenplay?
Depends on the story, but we’re not really in the business of translating material like that.
18. Could you guys give a sneak peek about your next project Journey 3: From the Earth to the Moon?
We wrote Journey 3 years ago. Who knows what’s going to happen with it. It seems Dwayne Johnson has moved on to other franchises, but again, who knows.
19. Last question, who would you guys get to play as you in the movie of your life?
The other day someone compared Brian to Michael Gross, the dad from Family Ties. So how about him? And for Mark, let’s maintain the theme and go with Michael J. Fox.
There's no doubt Brightburn will be an amazing experience in theaters. You should definitely check it out when it comes out Friday, May 24th 2019. I truly appreciate Mr. Brian Gunn and Mr. Mark Gunn for getting off their busy schedule to answer my questions. To get the Brightburn experience just visit the website by clicking here: https://www.brightburn.movie/ Thank you for visiting my blog and I hope you are having a fantastic day so far. Take care.
Story-line from IMDb: What if a child from another world crash-landed on Earth, but instead of becoming a hero to mankind, he proved to be something far more sinister?
Director: David Yarovesky. Producers: James Gunn and Kenneth Huana. Starring: Elizabeth Banks, David Denman, and Matt Jones.
Mr. Brian Gunn and Mr. Mark Gunn are both screenwriters and producers (with the exception of Brian Gunn, who is also acted, while Mark Gunn worked on soundtracks).Together, they worked on such projects as 2gether, Bring it on Again, and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. Now, Brightburn is their latest feature film and just by the trailer alone you can tell this movie will be brilliant. So, take this time to get to know these superb screenwriters and the genesis of Brightburn.
1. How did you guys come up with Brightburn?
One day at work the two of us got to talking about this tradition - from Moses all the way up to modern-day superheroes - of people finding infants out in the wild somewhere, and raising them as their own. In the classic telling of these tales, the infants grow up to be noble and heroic. We started to wonder: what if they grew up to be sinister instead? Hence Brightburn was born.
2. Who came up with the title Brightburn? Were there other titles you guys have in mind?
Truth be told we came up with a zillion different titles before we settled on Brightburn. Early on the film was called RECKONING, which is sort of a limp title. Then we changed it to the kid’s name - which at the time was XANDER. Then it changed again a few times before we settled on BRIGHTBURN (one of our fine producers, Simon Hatt, came up with the title).
3. What was the most difficult thing about writing the screenplay of Brightburn?
There was a key subplot in the movie that we had to rethink and rewrite. We probably went through dozens of ideas and drafts before we landed on the right take.
4. What was the most surprising thing you guys learned when writing Brightburn?
We did a couple test screenings for the movie, and the feedback we got from the audience members was almost always very thoughtful and engaged. Sometimes people like to write off moviegoers as young and stupid, but we think audiences are much much smarter than people typically give them credit.
5. What was your writing schedule when you guys wrote Brightburn?
We wrote the first draft on spec in a few weeks, while writing another script for which we were getting paid. Then we went back and did many rewrites - producer and director drafts, actor drafts, budget drafts, etc., etc.
6. What writers inspired you guys to become screenwriters?
Mostly guys from the ‘70s and ‘80s like Bo Goldman, Robert Towne, Robert Getchell, along with lots of others.
7. On average, how many draft scripts do you find yourself writing until you are happy and satisfied with your work?
There’s wild variation project to project. And tricky to count b/c most of the time we may rewrite some scenes dozens of times and other scenes not much at all. But for a project that gets to production let’s say on average 10 full drafts.
8. What piece of advice do you guys have for screenwriters starting out?
Write write write write write. It’s a cliche, but it’s the best way to learn. Like Beckett said, “Try again. Fail again. Fail better."
9. What is your favorite line from one of your screenplays?
We honestly have no idea.
10. Have you guys ever considered writing a short story, novella, or novel?
Yes. There are a few big world-building ideas we’ve had for TV that we think may be better suited for a novel. But novels require so much time and dedication (we’d be learning as we go) that it’s unlikely we’d find time to do it outside of our screenwriting work.
11. Which fictional character (besides yours) would you like to sit down and chat with?
Quint from Jaws. The man could tell some tales.
12. Did any of your writing experience help you guys, in any way, with Brightburn?
Not sure we understand the question. Our writing experience helped a ton.
13. Were you guys ever on set for the making of Brightburn? If so, could you tell me what scene you were present at?
Yes, we were in Atlanta for the shoot for a couple days. We saw a scene in a principal’s office, along with a few others that we can’t mention b/c of spoilers and all!
14. How were you two able to get Mr. David Yarovesky involved with the project? What are your overall thoughts about him directing Brightburn?
Dave is an old friend of both ours and James. It was great having someone who we trusted so much and who seemed to ‘get’ the project from the beginning.
15. What are your thoughts on Elizabeth Banks and David Denman playing Mrs. Breyer and Mr. Breyer respectively?
They’re both phenomenal. Elizabeth is able to combine steeliness with warmth in a way that’s essential for the character (and rare for an actor). And David has a great haunted quality that never feels remotely forced or phony. We’re so lucky to have them.
16. If a self-published author is seeking a screenwriter, how would one get you guys to read his or her story to see if it would make a compelling movie?
Most likely reach out to our agent. He’s pretty good about passing along promising material to us and filtering out the rest.
17. What would it take for you guys to be interested in translating a self-published story into a screenplay?
Depends on the story, but we’re not really in the business of translating material like that.
18. Could you guys give a sneak peek about your next project Journey 3: From the Earth to the Moon?
We wrote Journey 3 years ago. Who knows what’s going to happen with it. It seems Dwayne Johnson has moved on to other franchises, but again, who knows.
19. Last question, who would you guys get to play as you in the movie of your life?
The other day someone compared Brian to Michael Gross, the dad from Family Ties. So how about him? And for Mark, let’s maintain the theme and go with Michael J. Fox.
There's no doubt Brightburn will be an amazing experience in theaters. You should definitely check it out when it comes out Friday, May 24th 2019. I truly appreciate Mr. Brian Gunn and Mr. Mark Gunn for getting off their busy schedule to answer my questions. To get the Brightburn experience just visit the website by clicking here: https://www.brightburn.movie/ Thank you for visiting my blog and I hope you are having a fantastic day so far. Take care.
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