Summer Movies--#14

Well, it’s not summer anymore, is it? Though here in France summer often lingers into September, and if you’re in LA summer is… well… all year long it seems.

But for most of us, as summer is waning, I think it’s time to close down our exploration of summer films. This doesn’t mean you have to stop writing that summer film. After all, the best time to write a film about summer could be in the dead of winter with the snow drifts piled high making it hard for you to even get out of the house [I grew up in Iowa and remember this well]. But for now, let’s end the summer film extravaganza we’ve been on for 3 months with a real gem that won the Academy Award for its writer, Michael Arndt, Little Miss Sunshine [2006].

Michael and I were on stage talking about screenwriting at a writer’s conference in Hawaii a couple of years after his film came out. He’d been working as an assistant to actor Matthew Broderick for many years and writing screenplays in his spare time. Little Miss Sunshine was his 9^th screenplay—and the first one to sell and make his reputation.

So often, when you see a writer break through, you don’t know about the 10 years of writing that came BEFORE that breakthrough. And that’s the case with Michael. When Little Miss Sunshine was such a huge hit, his agents said, “Show us the other 8—we can sell them all now.” But to Michael’s credit, he said no. He told me he wasn’t a good enough writer then. All those screenplays were kind of like training wheels—as they are for all of us. You have to learn how to balance everything involved in writing a screenplay and that usually takes a few tries.

If you haven’t seen Little Miss Sunshine, here’s a clip to give you an idea of what all the fuss is about when people talk about it with big smiles on their faces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ7BZTMLImA

What made this film such a hit with audiences and critics alike? I think it can be summed up in one word: originality. How so? Well, it’s a family film, but there’s not one cliché or expected twist in it—every time you turn around one of the members of this family is doing or saying something weird or outrageous or silly. This family is as quirky as they come, sure, but it’s also a family of non-traditional quirky people. All of their quirks come from their unique character traits which are SO individual.

In addition to being a family film, it’s a road trip film—but again, without the clichés. Much of this comes from the depth of these characters—the writer got inside them and showcased these wildly original, imperfect people. And it also comes from the dialogue—which is funny, touching and always fitting to the character and the situation.

So when you write that summer film, you couldn’t do better than to use Little Miss Sunshine as your inspiration.

And now, the summer sun is setting and we’re onto a new day… See you next week!

Copyright © Diane Lake

04Oct20

Email Diane a question to Diane@DianeLake.com