GUEST COLUMN: An Ultimate Guide to Write Movie Scripts

by Jessica Fender

Writing a movie script may sound like a super-easy and fun thing to do. You’ve got an idea in your mind so, how hard can it be? But, talent and great ideas aren’t sufficient for writing a great movie script. It’s certainly an obligatory precondition, but it takes more than being super-creative and imaginative. Apart from that, you need to know how to develop the storyline and cover all the elements of writing a great movie script. That’s why we’ve put together this guide with all the steps you need to make. We’ll teach you what you need to do and what order to follow when creating brilliant movie scripts. Let’s take a closer look!

2021, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanJanuary 12, 2021Comment

GUEST CRITIC #53: Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social Media, Foreign Film, 2021Don ShanahanJanuary 8, 2021Comment

GUEST CRITIC #52: The Players Club

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social Media, Foreign Film, 2021Don ShanahanJanuary 3, 2021Comment

SPECIAL: Winners of the fifth annual Chicago Indie Critics Awards

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, directed by George C. Wolfe and adapted from August Wilson’s stage play, dominated this year’s CIC Awards, winning seven of its nine nominations. Topmost, the Netflix original film was named the Best Studio Film in a tie with another offering from the streaming leader, Best Director winner Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom also won awards for adapted screenplay, lead actor, lead actress, ensemble cast, costume design, and makeup.

2020, CIC, Column, EVENT, LIST, SPECIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanJanuary 2, 2021 Comment

COLUMN: New Year's Resolutions for the Movie Industry for 2021

Plenty of regular everyday people make New Year’s Resolutions, but I think bigger entities, namely movie makers and movie moguls, need to make them too. Annually, including this tenth edition, I have fun taking the movie industry to task for things they need to change. I have no false internet courage to be a Twitter troll. As always, some resolutions come true while others get mentioned and reiterated every year. Boy, was this a turd of a year for the movies, eh? There’s so much to say about so little that transpired with a predominantly locked-down marketplace.

Column, Editorial, LIST, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2021Don ShanahanJanuary 1, 2021Comment

SPECIAL: Nominations for the fifth annual Chicago Indie Critics Awards

Leading all films with an impressive nine nominations is Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom helmed by Best Director nominee George C. Wolfe and starring acting nominees Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis. Following next with seven nominations each was David Fincher’s Mank and Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7, both also hailing from Netflix. In all, 45 different films are represented with nominations for the 2020 CIC Awards.

2020, CIC, Column, EVENT, LIST, SPECIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 28, 2020Comment

GUEST CRITIC #51: Y Ti Mama Tambien

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2020, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social Media, Foreign FilmDon ShanahanDecember 27, 2020Comment

GUEST CRITIC #50: Us

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2020, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 27, 2020Comment

INFOGRAPHIC: The True Cost of Iconic Holiday Movie Moments

The creative folks at CreditRepair.com designed this visual on iconic holiday movie moments and what they'd cost in real life + financial lessons anyone can learn from! They analyzed scenes from classic holiday movies (think Home Alone, Elf, and The Grinch) and found out how much they'd cost if they actually took place! Aside from satisfying curiosity, they tied the results back to important financial lessons we can take from these lovable characters and serve as important reminders of what really matters during the holiday season.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, Infographic, LIST, SPECIAL, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 18, 2020Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Feelin' Film" podcast for "Contact"

The Feelin’ Film podcast hosted by Aaron White and Patrick Hicks cordially asked me to join in a deep and thoughtful review and conversation of 1997’s monumental Robert Zemeckis film Contact. It’s been a big personal favorite of mine for a long time and one I advertise and endorse heavily in social circles. The three of us muse on the implications and themes that come with the movie’s pendulum of unity and conflict between science and faith. Enjoy!

GUEST CRITIC #49: The Trial of the Chicago 7

by Lafronda Stumn

As busy I get from time to time, I find that I can't see every movie under the sun, leaving my friends and colleagues to fill in the blanks for me. As poetically as I think I wax about movies on this website as a wannabe critic, there are other experts out there. Sometimes, it inspires me to see the movie too and get back to being my circle's go-to movie guy. Sometimes, they save me $9 and you 800+ words of blathering. In a new review series, I'm opening my site to friend submissions for guest movie reviews.

2020, GUEST CRITIC, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Social MediaDon ShanahanDecember 12, 2020The Green MileComment

INFOGRAPHIC: Top 30 Raunchiest Mainstream Movies Revealed

Sex sells! In 2020 alone, searches for “sexy films” have increased by 52% worldwide, proving that even in troubled times, and with less films being made, there’s still an appetite for cheap thrills and torrid trysts. MattressNextDay examined 28,841 films from IMDb containing a range of sex related keywords to find out the top mainstream films containing the most sex related content, how much they’re raking in and how the sex is depicted. Our worldwide results show that sex is prolific and provocative across all genres, even horrors and comedies.