#screenwriting program

Happy National Screenwriters Day! What better way to celebrate than by taking the next step in writing that awesome script and signing up for a class taught by an award winning writer!

Nick Rose had his heart set on attending a summer program in NYC, but was encouraged by his grandfather to attend Relativity School's open house in Los Angeles. During the open house, Nick says he learned about the "collaboration side of the program, in which we would be working side by side other actors, directors, producers, and even dancers. So this was a great networking opportunity, as well as a fantastic learning experience." Hearing from the administrators and faculty about what a summer at Relativity would include, Nick was nearly sold.

However, it was ultimately Julie Wions, another student he met at the open house, that really helped him make up his mind on attending the program. "Julie was so bubbly and nice, and I could see that she was super talented. I thought to myself, 'If this is how all of the students are going to be, we are going to make some excellent work,' and we certainly did."

Nick is now back after three weeks studying screenwriting at Relativity School and is completely thrilled that he chose to spend his summer in LA...

How was Relativity School?

I had a great experience at Relativity, it was really immersive and totally practical. All of the classes were awesome, so picking a favorite is kind of like picking my favorite Tarantino film; they were all fantastic in different ways. But I guess if I must pick, my favorite class was writer's improv with Lucas. There was only three of us in that class so it was really intimate, and Lucas has a truly epic teaching style. We basically learned how to get in the minds of our characters, and overcome writer's block. It was really interesting, and really quite helpful for my writing.

What was the biggest challenge for you to overcome?

The second biggest challenge for me, was working with actors. It's very difficult (for me, at least) to transfer the idea that I have in my head, into the head of an actor. As a writer, this was the biggest issue in directing for me, although I did eventually overcome this, and put together a few interesting videos.

The biggest challenge I faced was giving up control of my creative vision to the editors in post-production. I was terribly afraid that they would lose the main idea in my final film, because we seemed to have clearly different visions during production. However, both ideas came together in the end, resulting in a good short.

What comes next?

I'm trying to get an agent so that I can get my work out there. This program gave me the enthusiasm and excitement to get up off my lazy butt and write something good. Right now, I'm working on a bunch of stuff: I'm trying to do a short starring a couple of the actors from the Relativity program. I'm also working on a pilot for a television series, and a feature based on one of the films I created during the program.

What recommendations would you give to other students hoping to attend Relativity School?