I once read that the initial idea for what became CS Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia was the singular vision of a faun with an umbrella beside a lamppost.  That one vision begged to be explained and so Lewis created a world in which that little moment could take place.  If that is the case, then episode 5 of Remnants is my Tumnus.

A few years ago, a sequence played out in my head.  I wasn’t sure what the sequence meant, but I knew it was the perfect way to start my next film script.  A boy is woken up one morning by his mother who says she’s being arrested by the police and if he doesn’t act quickly, they’re going to arrest him and his sister too. The boy leaps out of bed, grabs his sister, and the two hide as the police rummage through their house.  The police don’t find them, leave, and only then does the boy and his sister come out of hiding.  They are seen, however, by their next door neighbor, Frank.

That’s all I had.  I didn’t know who the boy was, who his sister was, why their mother was being arrested or where the story was going to go from there.  But from that seed, a story began to sprout.  It grew forwards and backwards.  Back story took root, fleshing out the world they lived in.  Characters, their actions, and their reactions branched upward and outward and I soon found myself completely immersed in the world that would become Remnants.

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Tags: behind the scenes | Evan Johnson | Pre-Production | Production | Writing 101

Some time between purchasing our house and moving into it, my wife (hencforth referred to as “Kelly”) surprised me by turning one of the walls of my office into a chalkboard. She did it out of the kindness of her heart. She looked at me, said, “I have an idea,” and the next day I had a chalkboard. She had to sand the wall smooth and before covering it with chalkboard paint, but in the end, I had a wall I could write on and not get in trouble for (something I’ve wanted since the age of 2).

I use the chalkboard to sort out ideas. If I have something that I’m not sure about, I write it on the wall. Sometimes giving an idea a tangible presence is all that it takes to prove its worth; some ideas boldly stand out against the dark wall, others just whimper there, waiting to be erased.

I use the chalkboard to keep my timelines straight. Season 1 of Remnants, for example, takes place over the course of about 8 days. It’s nice to be able to see that. It’s nice to be able to step back and look at the timeline of events. Being able to see that helps me keep the story rooted in reality — how fast should this story take place? How much time is needed to get from Point A to Point B? Can I rearrange the events a little bit and fill in the some of the gaps to give the overall story a better flow? (more…)

Tags: Justin | Justin North | Kelly | Scott | Season 2 | Writing Process

I am assembling the Writers’ Room.

The idea is this: Create a writing group not unlike Lewis and Tolkien’s Inklings. But instead of just reading and critiquing each other’s writings, I would like for us to make each other’s writings.

The project at hand is Remnants. I would like for you to come on as a writer for Season 2. I had an outline for it, but after viewing the episodes of Season 1, I would like to chuck that outline out the window and (more or less) start over from scratch (but let’s not throw the baby out with the bath water, there were some good ideas in there).

Together we would flesh out the world of Remnants, write the outlines for each of the episodes and then we would divvy up the episodes, each of us writing a certain allotment.

After Season 2 was/is completed, we could either move on to Season 3 or to other projects. If you have a series idea, pitch it to the group and we can see what we can make of it. If you have a short film idea, a music video idea, or maybe a story that could be told in three five minute chunks, pitch it to the group and then we, together, make that happen.

That is my dream for the Libertas Picture Company. We keep doing what we love through blood, sweat, and tears until someone wises up pays us to do what we love.

So, what say you?

Tags: Libertas Picture Company | Writers' room

Can’t sleep.

Can’t sleep and don’t know why. Have Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” stuck in my head and don’t know why.

I’ve been thinking about Remnants a lot lately — the big picture, I mean. Season 2 will complete the story began in Season 1 and while the big picture story will continue rolling forward, Season 3 will be a very different web series than Season 1 and 2. What I mean by that is that in Season 1 we’re introduced to the Fisher family and through them we learn of Libertas. In Season 2 we actually get to meet Libertas and we generally wrap up the Fisher family story. Season 3 will be all about Libertas and will be all-out war. The involvement the Fishers have with the war is up to them and I’m going to discuss that with the actors playing the Fishers.

I have plans for the Fishers and want them in the entire series. I want to see the war through their eyes, but I understand that since Remnants is not a paying gig, a great multitude of things take a higher priority.

And today I had an idea for Season 4. It would start with a game-changer that I’m not entirely willing to reveal at this moment but it’s not entirely dissimilar to the start of Season 2 of LOST. That was the beginning of the insanity. Sure, there were questions all throughout Season 1, but there was no Desmond! I’m pretty willing to post whatever on this blog, but there are somethings I’m not going to reveal just yet.

Don’t worry, faithful reader. You’ll know first. Before anyone else, I’ll clue you in.

Tags: insomnia | Libertas | Remnants | Rick Astley

I very much like the idea of doing “specials,” little short stories that would take place between the seasons of Remnants. I very admittedly got the idea from Doctor Who, a fantastic show that has had a history of doing Christmas specials (as well as other national and bank holidays). Sometimes the shows set-up the next season or introduce a new character that will come back later. Other times they’re just fun one-shot stories.

Remnants is a pretty serious, dramatic thriller of a show. It might be nice to have little moments in between the seasons that contribute to the overall story but are generally lighter in tone — dare I say “fun?”

I’ve already written the first one, a three-part love story involving messengers (in the tradition of Pheidippides). Now it’s all about finding the right time to shoot it.

Tags: Doctor Who | Pheidippides | Remnants | Special

I’ve only seen the rough edits of two episodes and already I’ve begun outlining Season 2 — okay, that’s an understatement. Last night, I completed the outline for Season 2. It’s subject to change and it will most certainly be fleshed out, but it’s there, on cyber paper, ready to go.

It’s such an interesting thing plotting out a second series of adventures for characters you’ve already played with. Season 1 is by no means a complete story, yet I spent so much time crafting Season 1 that it feels like I’ve already told Derek and Annie’s story and it’s time for me to find new characters to explore and new stories to tell. So now I get to sit down, reassess the characters, the journey they went on, and get to plot out the next part of their journey. (more…)

Tags: Derek Fisher | Evan Johnson | Hero | Outline | Remnants | Season 2

In either in a behind-the-scenes featurette or in the director’s commentary for El Mariachi, Robert Rodriguez talks about how he was able to cobble together his first film. There was a time when he didn’t have a special effects studio in his garage. There was a time when all he had was the dream of being a filmmaker. And so, to make his dream a reality, he wrote a list of everything he had access to, whether it be film equipment, props, locations, or costumes. He made a list of everything he had free access to. Then he wrote a script that incorporated those things.

The idea being, of course, that if he could save money by using the things he already had, he could spend what little money he had on the things he didn’t have but absolutely needed. If memory serves correctly, he spent what little money he had on film stock. It is, in my opinion, a stroke of genius. (more…)

Tags: budget | Remnants | Robert Rodriguez | Writing 101