Turning a Book into a Movie

Turning a Book into a Movie

Michael Murray, FilmmakerMagazine.com

When some authors got together to discuss turning a book into a movie, it was clear that there was a wide range of experiences, from the great experience of Rachel Cohn, to some warnings from Buzz Bissinger. Cohn’s experience was perhaps the most positive. She summed it up as “It’s like a two-hour advertisement for your book.” She added, “we loved the writer, we loved the director, we loved the producer, we loved the cast. It was really a charmed experience for us.”

All agreed that turning a book into a script is not easy, and that the important part is capturing the spirit of the book. “Even though the plot changed a lot as they turned it into a movie, they captured the essence of it beautifully,” said Cohen. When asked whether a good adaptation is a loyal adaptation or a transcription, Andre Dubus said, “I’m all for giving filmmakers their creative due. As long as you’re loyal to the spirit.”

ADAPTATIONS

Writing a screenplay is not like writing a book. “I don’t think authors should write the scripts of their books,” said Bissinger. “Let’s face it, the form of a book is different from the form of a film.”

The movie Friday Night Lights was delayed for several years because the producer wanted to find the right director. “We waited and waited and he did get the right director,” said Bissinger. “And when I watch it I get goose bumps. Were there differences? There were tremendous differences. Do they bother me? No. […] it was faithful to the spirit of the book, which is all I cared about.” Flynn said that the script of the movie of his book – written by another writer – was beautiful and something he couldn’t have done.”

Chris van Allsburg said that "Any artist or author who sells their rights to filmmakers – unless they're extraordinarily naïve about the process – has to understand that they'll lose control. You can't keep control of the project, because you aren't the captain anymore. You're just someone who provided somebody else an idea. You have influence, and even the influence you have is really contingent on the willingness of the filmmakers to hear you out."

CONCLUSION

Daniel Handler was clearly conflicted about his own experience. On the one hand, as he said, the movie was a huge advertisement for the book, and one of the challenges of writing for young readers is getting them to open a book. He added, “If writers were in charge of films, the scripts would be better but the movies probably would be worse.” Dubus said that “it does bring new readers to your book. For me it falls under ‘all good.'”