David Warren
Screenplay Winner
"Man of Another Age"

Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
 
Ridgefield, Connecticut.
 
Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story and why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel?
 
My mother’s family lived in Paris during the 1950s. Her father (my grandfather) was an antique dealer. His business partner had a teenage son who was shot by the Nazis in the street after they caught him waving a French flag. It was a story that stuck with me for years and I finally wrote a script around it. I love the movies, the art of film, and I believe that writing a feature length screenplay is one of a modern artist’s greatest intellectual challenges. I’m so grateful that others have responded so positively to my efforts. Thank you, thank you, a thousand times, thank you.
 
How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN?
 
I spent four years researching my characters and the world they lived in from 1928 to 1940. The things I learned, the history, I could have spent another four years researching my subjects if I had the time.  I used index cards, outlines, and every method I could find to organize my story. But despite all the tools, it still took me another eight years to get the story where it is today.
 
What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
 
I would like to get this script and other scripts produced, and to win the awards and prizes that come with the best writing in film and television. I have had great success on Madison Avenue over the past few decades – my first mentors in the business were some of the original Mad Men and I have gotten to play the real-life role of Don Draper (minus the booze and adultery) for many years. The life the ad business afforded me was, is amazing. I’ve learned so much and grown so much over the years and still have a long way to go. I spent less time in network television but loved every minute of it and worked on some of the most popular shows in TV history. My ultimate ambition is to succeed at all three endeavors, plus maybe novel writing if the opportunity presents itself.
 
Which film or television writers inspire you? Why?
 
Although I have yet to write a science fiction script, I think Gene Roddenberry did more to paint a view of a future that was inspiring, dramatic, and ultimately optimistic. There is no drug on earth that can turn my outlook around like an original Star Trek episode. Stanley Kubrick also inspires me. His view of humanity was darker and more ominous than Rodenberry but buried deep in his amazing body of work one can also find a glimmer of hope and a sense that the universe is far more complicated and wonderous than we can see with our eyes or grasp with our minds.
 
What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show?
 
The Godfather/Godfather Part II has the best character arc of any feature film I have ever seen. Casablanca is my favorite love story. Unforgiven is my favorite western. And Young Frankenstein is my favorite comedy.
 
What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
 
Don’t ever give up. Keep working on your script. Never assume that it is ever done. And listen carefully to feedback – as painful as it might be. If you can accept criticism without taking it personally you will be successful.
 
What else are you working on that the world needs to know about?
 
I have a number of scripts that I am working on at the same time – all in many different genres. They compete for my time. The ones that continue to interest me are the ones that get the most attention.    

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