The Latest | myPDFscripts

Concerning MediaFire and the Current Lack of Scripts…

So, you may have noticed a serious lack of scripts on the site recently. In fact, there are none currently. Don’t worry, though, that will change very soon… but probably in a way that will greatly disappoint many of you. First, let’s tackle what happened with MediaFire and all the scripts. In short, it’s all my fault. Yes, I’m owning up to my own mistake here. I fucked up. The short version is when the Twentieth Century Fox DMCA notice hit my inbox, I decided that rather than change the text of each script entry on the site to read something like “Script removed at the request of Twentieth Century Fox,” that I would instead just delete the entire script

Concerning the Twentieth Century Fox Legal Demands

You know the drill: I took the website offline on January 31st after I received a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) notice from Twentieth Century Fox regarding 152 scripts. They caught me at a bad time as I was extremely busy with other projects and working on location with a feature film. At any rate, I’ve removed all 152 scripts. It’s whatever. Here’s what I removed: Note: List doesn’t include the multiple drafts. 1. (500) Days of Summer
2. 127 Hours
3. 27 Dresses
4. A-Team, The
5. Alien
6. Aliens
7. Alien³
8. Alien: Resurrection
9. All About Eve
10. Avatar
11. AVP: Alien vs Predator
12. Battle for the Planet of the Apes
13. Beneath the Planet of

Get the Official myPDFscripts T-Shirt!

Hey, guys. Sheridan here, and I’m really super-excited to announce that I’m currently taking pre-orders for the first ever Official myPDFscripts T-Shirt! That’s right, now you can tell the world (or maybe just your screenwriting friends) how much you love myPDFscripts by wearing this silk screened, American Apparel 4.3 oz. 100% fine ring-spun combed cotton jersey! Oh yeah, did I mention they’re silk screened? Just like real shirts. No dodgy fade-after-one-wash-laser-printing here. I accept nothing less than the absolute best quality for these shirts. How much, you say? They’re only $25 with free shipping to absolutely anywhere in the world! Yep, free shipping. So, what do I mean when I say I’m currently only taking pre-orders? That means that

Concerning the Universal Pictures Legal Demands

To bring you up to speed: I took the website offline on November 11th after I received a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) notice from Universal Pictures regarding 101 scripts (99 after a thorough analysis). They caught me at a bad time as I was extremely busy with other projects and working on some local films. After having a chance to take stock of what I had posted on the site, that list ballooned to 139 scripts with multiple drafts, so, obviously, this lil’ do-si-do wasn’t going to be as quick and easy as the Warner Bros. pother. At any rate, I’ve removed all 139 scripts. Yes, it pained me. Why? Just look at the list: Note: This list

We’re Going to the Nashville Screenwriters Conference!

Hey, all. Sheridan here. So, have you cleared your schedule and made plans to attend the 13th Annual Nashville Screenwriters Conference? I sure hope so because, if not, you’re going to be missing out on a whole lot of awesome-ness. Last year, I couldn’t make it because of the day job, but this year I’ll be attending (for the very first time!) along with J.C., who was lucky enough to attend last year’s conference. Since this is my first year attending, and you may be attending for the first time yourself, I decided to do a little of my own research, ask some questions, and put together this post that covers the need-to-know essentials. Let’s get started! Who? The

Concerning the Warner Bros. Legal Demands

When I took the site offline earlier this week to comply with the legal demands of Warner Bros. there were a lot of questions hurled my way, so I will attempt to answer most of them here along with some added commentary. Take Them Down. Take Them All Down. As I’ve said before, it’s no fun to check your inbox to find a Cease & Desist or DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) request from a studio, but given what I offer on this site it’s par for the course, so to speak. Concerning scripts and script reviews, I’ve received enough C&D/DMCA requests that I’m aware of the standard protocol that accompanies them. Each is worded slightly different, but the general

Submit Your Amateur Scripts!

Please read the following guidelines in their entirety before submitting your script. Your script WILL NOT be listed if you do not successfully meet all of our conditions and requirements. Why? Because we’re going to exercise a little quality control from the outset. Remember, we like scripts that look like scripts. So, if you would like us to consider your script for addition to the Amateur Scripts category of our site, then there are 4 steps you will need to complete. Step 1: Prepare your script. Features Only We are only accepting feature-length scripts for now. We may allow short film scripts in the future. Create Your PDF We will only accept scripts in PDF format. No exceptions. This step

UPDATED: In search of POINT BLANK by Alexander Jacobs, Pt. 1

By now, anyone that visits this site and has read Writer’s Style: Walter Hill knows I’m searching for Alexander Jacobs’ draft of Point Blank. It is, indeed, my single most sought-after script at the moment (with Jacobs’ draft of The Seven-Ups running a close second). There are, currently, two tangible drafts that I’m aware of, neither of which seem to be the draft I’m searching for. So, to better aid in its search, I’m going to give you the details I’ve gathered in the hopes that, if you know what I know, maybe together we can locate the whereabouts of this holy grail. Just like a real, live Indiana Jones crusade! Draft #1 The first draft that I became

Writer’s Style: Walter Hill

In light of the recent copyright hoopla, I’d like to preface this article by stating this: the article that you’re about to read is why I do what I do; it’s the reason this website exists. My intention isn’t to violate anyone’s rights, it’s to simply educate myself and others. Without this site, and the many, many people that utilize it, I would never have stumbled across the Hard Times screenplay. A script that I can say has single-handedly and radically altered my approach to screenwriting as much as Alexander Jacobs’ Point Blank altered Walter Hill’s. I can only hope that you are — or soon will be — as fascinated and enamored with his style as I am. As

Concerning the $15 Million Script-Trading Lawsuit, Pt. 3: The Don Murphy Edition

The original post I made quoting Don Murphy’s e-mails to me and the subsequent correspondence between us has been removed from this page. Why? Yesterday, at his request, I called Angry Films and spoke to Don regarding the matter of copyright, Splice, and some other screenplays for approximately twenty minutes. First, he’s actually not a bad guy on the phone. He did try to interrupt me several times, but, ultimately, he did allow me to finish my points of the discussion. I emphasized my desire to have a polite and courteous conversation and by the end our call he was exactly that, for which I was appreciative. He apologized for calling me a pussy, for which I was also

Concerning the $15 Million Script-Trading Lawsuit, Pt. 2

Hey, all. Sheridan here, again. You should grab another cup of coffee (or a refill) because it’s going to get even more difficult this time around, and after having the chance to read the initial Complaint filed by 20th Century Fox, it’s going to get quite scary. If you haven’t already read my original post concerning all of this, then you can do that here: http://www.mypdfscripts.com/thelatest/concerning-the-15-million-script-trading-lawsuit You should also read screenwriter Max Adams’ post concerning this case here: http://celluloidblonde.wordpress.com/2010/11/27/pj-mcilvaine-goliath/. I was criticized yesterday for not knowing all of the facts concerning this case. Something to which I openly admitted. I didn’t know, but I wanted to know, so I tossed what I did know into the wild and sure

UPDATED: Concerning the $15 Million Script-Trading Lawsuit

Hey, all. Sheridan here. You should probably grab a cup of coffee and settle in because I’m about to discuss some difficult and tricky subject matter. Please Note: I am NOT aware of all of the facts concerning this issue, but I felt that I should address it due to the volume of inquiries I was receiving about the future of this website. For those of you who aren’t currently aware, this appeared online this morning: A Long Island screenwriter was slapped with a $15 million federal lawsuit for posting 20th Century Fox movie scripts on the Internet — including a major comic-book flick still in the works, court papers say.
Patricia McIlvaine, of Mount Sinai, said she maintains a

The 2010 Seven Scripts Time Capsule

Recently, I was reading about the National Film Registry, which many of you may know is the United States National Film Preservation Board‘s selection of films for preservation in the Library of Congress. Every year since 1989, they have chosen up to 25 “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant films,” showcasing the range and diversity of American film heritage to increase awareness for its preservation. All of their preservation business got me to thinking about the preservation of scripts, which then led me to thinking about what scripts other people would choose to preserve if given the opportunity, which then led me to the thought, “Hey! Why not ask them?” And that in turn led me to wonder

UPDATED: Tired of using SendSpace to Download Scripts?

For those of you who have been with us since the very beginning, you know the single greatest obstacle this site faced was bandwith. To curb that issue, we decided to host the scripts via SendSpace so that the bulk of the downloading bandwith was absorbed off-site by a third party. How clever of us. But with a pro there is a con and, by far, the largest complaint I get from script readers is being sent to SendSpace to download the scripts. Some people don’t get it, they get confused, they purchase SendSpace Pro accounts when they don’t need to, and some people storm off in frustration without ever downloading the script they want. While others of you use

Nashville Screenwriters Conference: Writing Alone or With a Partner

Pictured left to right: Malcolm Spellman, Jeff Lowell, John Lee Hancock, Rita Hsiao, Phil Hay, and Craig Mazin. Hey all, J.C. again with another article covering the Nashville Screenwriters Conference. This article is about the “Writing Alone or With a Partner: How to Make it Work” panel. It was moderated by Craig Mazin with guests Jeff Lowell, Malcolm Spellman, Phil Hay, Rita Hsiao, and John Lee Hancock. There was a lot of great content during this panel. I tried to hit the main points that would be of interest to young writers that aren’t sure about writing with a partner or not. Mazin was quick to say during introductions that the theRobotard8000© wasn’t getting anything

Nashville Screenwriters Conference: Who the Hell is Going to Buy My Script?

Hey all, J.C. here again with Round Two of my coverage and thoughts from the Nashville Screenwriters Conference. The second panel I will be discussing is the panel Derek Haas hosted with guests Jeff Lowell, Malcolm Spellman, and Tim Talbott. The panel was titled, “Who the Hell is Going to Buy My Script?” And subtitled, “What the Studio World, Indie World, and Television World are looking for from Spec Writers.” I don’t think either of those topics were hit dead-on, but there was still some interesting and fun discussions with each of these guys. The panel opened with Haas introducing each of his panelists. I was quite happy with the loud ovation that Balls Out got when he mentioned it.

Nashville Screenwriters Conference: War Stories

Pictured left to right: Scott Frank, Richard LaGravanese, Phil Robinson, Lawrence Kasdan, and Ted Griffin. Hey all, J.C. here. This is the first in a series of articles covering the 2010 Nashville Screenwriters Conference. I was lucky enough to cover the event and throughout the event I noticed a few things. One major observation is that a lot of the aspiring screenwriters had the exact same questions for the panelists. So, throughout these blogs I will try to answer some of those questions in hopes that the writers will not be asked the same five f*****g questions over and over next year. Seriously, it was amazing how when each panel opened up to Q&A people would ask the same

Writer’s Style: An Introduction

Howdy. Sheridan here. I’ve decided to take a crack at (what I hope will be) a new and continuing column of the site. No promises on how often I’ll actually get around to a new post, but hopefully I’ll be able to con some guests into helping me out by spotlighting their own screenwriting favorites. So what’s this all about, then? Well, I’ve often thought about and, especially, as of late, have become increasingly interested in writing style. As I pore through the many screenplays that I currently have – organizing, reading, and reading, and reading, etc. – it’s hard not to realize the effect a writer’s style can have on a screenplay and the film overall. I know some

Updates and Mailing Address

I apologize for the downtime last week, but it was entirely necessary in order to iron out some of the bugs we were experiencing with the new server. For the most part, it seems the rough waters have now smoothed and things are, once again, back to normal with the site. But don’t be too surprised if there’s a hiccup or two within the next couple days. You never know what’s going to happen when I get a burst of creative energy and start tweaking code as there are a few design-related changes I’m still in the process of making. Also, recently, and increasingly, I’ve been asked about the submission of tangible scripts for me to scan because some of

The site is a little buggy…

Hey everyone, the site is a little buggy as we just migrated to a new server, so some functionality may be limited (i.e. the contact page, etc.) and should slowly be resolved throughout today and tomorrow as I work out the kinks. If you happen to find any broken links or pages, please leave a comment on this page instead of e-mailing me, so that all of the issues are condensed into one place. It’ll make tracking these problems easier for me. Thanks.

Changes, Upgrades, & Random Thoughts…

Hello all. Sheridan here. It’s been a while since I last posted an update of this sort. It’s something I hope to do more of in the future to help keep you a little more up to date on the changes and upgrades that are happening around here on a fairly regular basis. How’s the pulse?

David Lemon’s Seven Scripts You Gotta Read!

During our CUT TO: Interview (which you seriously need to read if you haven’t already!), I asked David Lemon if he could recommend seven scripts that he thought people should read and possibly detail why someone should read those chosen scripts. I also stressed that this shouldn’t be thought of as a “best of” list, but rather, which scripts he thought would most help aspiring writers better understand the process and craft of screenwriting. The following are the scripts he chose and why. Seven scripts. Seven days. Check ‘em out and dare to become a better writer in a week. 1. The Apartment For me, this is just one of the most touching and beautifully structured scripts ever written. It’s

The 2009 Brit List

The 2009 Brit List, a list of the most liked and recommended unproduced screenplays in the UK and Irish film communities, has started circulating in London with Ruby Films’ Good Luck Anthony Belcher written by George Kay coming out on top. Over 40 industry players across all levels of seniority and sectors took part in the voting which is conducted confidentially and over 150 unproduced screenplays were nominated. To qualify, a screenplay had to be unproduced at time of the list’s circulation, be written by a writer who is non-US by birth, have at least two votes and have not featured on previous Brit Lists. The list was created in 2007 to mirror the influential US Black List which had

Larry Gelbart (1928-2009)

Larry Gelbart, the American comedy writer who died on September 11 aged 81, developed the hit television series M*A*S*H and co-authored the long-running Broadway and West End farce A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum as well as the Oscar-nominated screenplay for the film Tootsie (1982). Hailed as arguably the most successful sitcom in American television history, unflinchingly portrayed the grisly realities of a US Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) during the Korean War of the early 1950s, offset by the gallows humour of the medical team and assorted nurses. Gelbart developed M*A*S*H, which aired in Britain between 1973 and 1984, from Robert Altman’s film of the same name (1970). This in turn had been adapted

Welcome to the party, pal!

If you’re visiting the site for the first time – welcome! I hope you find this site useful. If you’d like to know a little more about this site and what is that I’m up to, exactly, then check out this post and our about page. And if you have any questions, check out our FAQ. If your question isn’t answered there or you’d like to request a script, then contact me. I may not reply immediately, but I will reply. Promise. Moving on, I’d like to thank Stefan Blitz at Forces of Geek! for the mention on his site late last month. And if you have a moment to spare, mosey on over and check his site

We’re Back!

We’re back with a new name, a new look, some new features, and most importantly, new scripts! Okay, well… we’re working on the scripts. We figured rather than launch with a plethora ‘o scripts (and risk imploding like we did with the three previous site attempts) that we’d just take this version nice ‘n easy for a while. So, let’s go over what’s new here: Wait, you’re really back?! Yep. Sheridan here, and as most of you know, the Darabont draft of Indiana Jones 4 was the ultimate undoing of the original pdfscreenplays. After I took the site offline I posted a brief message that contained the following quote: “Keep on beginning and failing. Each time you fail, start all