How does the writing process work for you?
I’m kind of weird in that I don’t start writing physically until I’ve finished writing it in my head. I can’t think of anything more awful than sitting at the keyboard not knowing what to write next.
I play the movie through my head, over and over, keeping each scene, each line, in mind...going one way, then the other, rabbit-trailing and trying different approaches, until one day it’s all just there, and I have to run to the keyboard to get it all down while it’s still white-hot. So the writing part is actually the quickest part; it’s all the brain work up until that moment that takes forever.
How does the filming process work after you complete the script? How big a say do you get in alterations and how difficult is it to let go of your work?
Having been a producer, and on a few occasions a director, I understand that you have to let go and allow the script to take on its own life through diverse hands. Happily, in this case, they shot the first draft, so there were no alterations.
What do you think of the final film?
I’m very, very pleased. It does what I wanted it to do, to honour her courage, and in that and the beauty of how it was filmed, I’m eminently pleased.
Away from Changeling how did you get into script writing I read that you were a former journalist is that correct?
Yes, prior to working in television I was a reporter for the LA Times, the LA Herald Examiner, TIME Inc, and other publications. I then started selling scripts to TV and ended up working on shows like Murder She Wrote, Twilight Zone, Babylon 5, and others. One thing just sort of led to the next.
You are best known for your work on Babylon 5 how did you find the transition into feature films?
Surprisingly painless. It’s been nothing but fun.
How does writing for a TV show and writing a feature film script differ, or are similar?
They’re not terribly different, in that you’re trying to tell a story about a person, and be true to that person’s sensibilities and history. If there’s any point of distinction, it’s that you have more time in film to get it right, as opposed to television, where you’re constantly running to stay ahead of production.
Finally what's next for you?
Writing Lensman for Ron Howard, Forbidden Planet for Joel Silver, adapting World War Z for Marc Forster and They Marched into Sunlight for Paul Greengrass. My rewrite of Ninja Assassin for the Wachowskis will be out this summer.
Changeling is out now on DVD
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw