Syd Field - Going to the Movies

PRAISE FOR SYD FIELD

[Syd Field is] the most-sought-after screenwriting teacher in the world.

Hollywood Reporter

Syd Field is the preeminent analyzer in the study of American screenplays.

James L. Brooks, Academy Award-winning writer, director, producer

I based Like Water for Chocolate on what I learned in Syds books. Before, I always felt structure imprisoned me, but what I learned was structure really freed me to focus on the story.

Laura Esquivel, writer, Like Water for Chocolate

If I were writing screenplays I would carry Syd Field around in my back pocket wherever I went.

Steven Bochco, writer/producer/director, NYPD Blue

Syd Fields book[s] have been the Bible and Talmud for a generation of budding screenwriters.

Salon.com

GOING TO THE MOVIES:
A Personal Journey Through Four Decades of Modern Film

The master teacher of screenplay writing reveals himself to be a true Hollywood character. No one sees films quite the way Field does. An original thinker worth appreciating.

Kirkus Reviews

Although cloaked in modesty, his illuminating, consistently entertaining memoir displays enough wit, intelligence and empathy to inspire a host of great films.

Publishers Weekly

Syd Field knows movies inside and out, and this, his most personal book yet, is charming, warmhearted, and very wise. Grab some popcorn, sit back and share some big-screen magic with the master.

Ted Tally, Academy Award-winning screenwriter, The Silence of the Lambs

Fields passion for cinema shines throughout.

Library Journal

Those of us whove wondered why Syd would devote himself to raising the bar for screenwriting now learn whya lifelong and passionate love for movies and filmmaking.

Mark Norman, Academy Award-winning screenwriter, Shakespeare in Love

A fascinating journey through thirty years of moviegoingasking the question we all ask: What makes a movie work? and finding the answers.

Fay Kanin, former president, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Syd Field has spent a lifetime seeking answers to what makes a great movie. Now he shares his own remarkable story about the movies and the legendary filmmakers who inspired his extraordinary career.

Variety

What really makes this book is how well he conducts us on his journey [and] his true love for the movies.

Booklist

Field forges new pathways into understanding the transforming powers of the screenplay. In this insightful testament to film craft, Fields influence on generations of film devotees represents a climate of opinion, respected and imitated. Nothing is more rare.

James Ragan, director, Professional Writing Program, University of Southern California

SCREENPLAY:
The Foundations of Screenwriting

Screenplay is one of the bibles of the film trade and has launched many a would-be screenwriter on the road to Hollywood.

Library Journal

[Syd Field is the] guru of would-be screenwriters. Screenplay is their bestselling bible.

Los Angeles Herald-Examiner

Full of common sense, an uncommon commodity.

Esquire

Quite simply the only manual to be taken seriously by aspiring screenwriters.

Tony Bill, Academy Award-winning producer, director

Impressive His easy-to-follow, step-by-step approaches are comforting and his emphasis on right attitude and motivation is uplifting.

Los Angeles Times Book Review

Great advice for screenwriters I always tell young writers to pick up Screenplay and read it right awaythen either embrace it or rebel against it, but itll certainly get your mind turning in the right ways.

David Koepp, award-winning writer, director,Spider-Man, Secret Window, War of the Worlds

THE SCREENWRITERS WORKBOOK:
Exercises and Step-by-Step Instruction for Creating
a Successful Screenplay

One of the standards in the industry.

Amazon.com

SELLING A SCREENPLAY:
The Screenwriters Guide to Hollywood

A wonderful book that should be in every filmmakers library.

Howard Kazanjian, producer, Raiders of the Lost Ark,Return of the Jedi, Demolition Man

An informative, engaging look at the inside of the dream factory. This is a terrific aid for screenwriters who are trying to gain insight into the Hollywood system.

David Kirkpatrick, producer, former head of Paramount Pictures

FOUR SCREENPLAYS:
Studies in American Screenplay

A book that writers will stand in line for and studio executives will Xerox.

James L. Brooks, Academy Award-winning writer, director, producer

What does it take to write a great script? Youll find the answer here. This is Fields masterpiece and a required purchase for all film collections.

Library Journal

A first-rate analysis of why good screenplays work: a virtual must for aspiring screenwriters.

Linda Obst, producer, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, Sleepless in Seattle

Theory comes alive with this hands-on approach to what makes four great screenplays tick.

Deborah Jelin Newmyer, producer, Executive VP, Amblin Entertainment

THE SCREENWRITERS PROBLEM SOLVER:
How to Recognize, Identify, and Define
Screenwriting Problems

Whatever your problem, screenwriting guru Syd Field can help.

Amazon.com

B OOKS BY S YD F IELD

The Screenwriters Workbook

Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting

Selling a Screenplay: The Screenwriters Guide to Hollywood

Four Screenplays

The Screenwriters Problem Solver: How to Recognize,
Identify, and Define Screenwriting Problems

Going to the Movies: A Personal Journey
Through Four Decades of Modern Film

Going to the Movies A Personal Journey
Through Four Decades of Modern Film

To all the Siddha Masters
who walked the path
and keep the flame burning

and to Aviva,
who helped show me the way