I lived in Southern California for almost three years. While I was there, I couldn’t help but want to do something “Hollywood.” Not being the acting type, I signed up for the Screenwriting program at UCLA. Little did I know that 1) screenwriting is super hard, 2) being an academic type with an MBA isn’t the best background for being a screenwriter, and 3) I would learn some valuable lessons about marketing in this unexpected place.
I took 2 classes in the program and had a love/hate relationship with the experience. I loved being in a class where people worked in the industry. I loved that one of my teachers was one of the writers on Toy Story 2 and could tell fun stories about movie stuff and stars he knew. I loved driving on Sunset Blvd. to get there and walking around the UCLA campus. I loved reading the scripts and watching the movies, seeing how things came together.
So what about the hate part? Well…. I was very, very bad at the actual screenwriting. Not only was I bad, I was horrible, and the instructor had no problem telling me exactly how horrible I was. He wasn’t gentle; there was no letting me down easy. On some of my assignments, he could go on for 20-30 minutes on what I was doing wrong. Tough to hear, even tougher when some of these rants were in front of the class.
What was I doing wrong? I was all about the “tell” and not about the “show.” When it comes to movies, you never say things like “look, that car is on fire” or “that building just blew up” or “that guy just broke my heart.” You have to show the audience these things. Talk is cheap. White space on the page is king. The action on the screen is more important than what the actors are saying.
All of this holds true in marketing too. Whether you are doing a TV commercial or an ad for a magazine, you are better off trying to “show” rather than “tell.” You only have a few short seconds to get someone’s attention, don’t waste it. The old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words is true. Never tell a potential customer about your product if you can show him/her instead.
As for my interest in movies and screenwriting, it’s still there. One of these days, I will figure it out and get it right. Failure is a good teacher. So keep an eye out for a smile and a wave from the red carpet.
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