Steven R. Berry
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Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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?
During my years of high school, the Vietnam Conflict was beginning to become prevalent in the news and on television. With the images of the fighting being screened on television, it quickly became obvious that the US government would be sending soldiers to the region. I was fortunate not to have to go because of my student deferment status. The thing that stood out to me during that period was the physical and emotional toll on my friends that had participated in the fighting, “over there.”

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?
Originally, I wrote this script as a stage play during a ten-week writing workshop headed up by the late Charles Fuller (A Soldier’s Story) at the Frank Silvera’s Writers Workshop in New York city sometime during the 80’s. At that time, Fuller advised me to turn it into a screenplay. I wasn’t into writing screenplays at that time. In 1989, I received a grant from the Pennsylvania Playwrights Connection to further develop the script, which I did. After that, life interfered with my writing activities. I didn’t return to the script until years later after becoming involved with photography and filmmaking. I would say this newer version of the story took me approximately a year and a half, writing periodically. I prefer to outline my story using index cards.

What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
I’d like to see my scripts produced and I become a successful working script writer.

Which film or television writers inspire you? Why?
Quentin Tarantino, Spike Lee, and the Coen brothers. It’s so many others. And they all bring different viewpoints to the craft. I like Tarantino’s use of dialogue and his creative use of story structure. Spike Lee has a way of entertaining as he explores controversial subjects and the African-American experience. And the Coen brothers have a unique way of telling stories with eccentric characters and convoluted plots.

What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show?
That’s hard to answer. But if I had to choose one, I would have to say Jean-Luc Godard’s, Breathless. That was the movie that changed my way of thinking about film.

What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
Stay persistent. Keep writing even when you feel discouraged. Fight through it because in the end you will through the tough times. Have others read your script to get their opinions. And most of all have professionals critique it for their advice.

What else are you working on that the world needs to know about?
I just finished a dramatic screenplay about a fictitious 1960’s jazz musician during the Civil Rights movement.

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