What Will Colby Write Next?

you voted for it, so, drumroll please...

Here we go! The results are in! The people have spoken and I have benevolently chosen to adhere to the will of the people and write the movie YOU voted for…

But before I reveal what the people have chosen, a little bit about what I have been reminded of after sharing my ideas in this very early stage.

Don’t do it!

For those of you who might be new here, last week I shared two new ideas I’ve been noodling on and asked for you the readers to vote for which one I should write, and then try to direct, and then try to sell, with the promise that all the while I would discuss the trials and tribulations of making a movie here, on the newsletter!

Well, Trial #1 has occurred. And I have some thoughts for you on how to avoid this mistake that I have made.

DO NOT SHARE YOUR SPARK OF AN IDEA BEFORE IT IS A ROARING FIRE!

I’ve made the mistake before, many times, and yet, I keep doing it! There’s a reason people use the word “spark” when talking about ideas. They are ephemeral. When something’s brand new, it bursts onto the scene with a flash of light and we go “ooh sparkly!” and it can be very tempting to want to share that little spark with our friends, family, loved ones, managers, agents, friendly readers, you name it, for some guidance or reassurance… “Do you like this? Is this a good spark? Should I make it into a fire? What kind of fire should I make it into?”

However, if you were trying to kindle a spark into a big fire, the last thing you would do is invite the entire village over to talk to you about what kind of fire they think this spark should be. Instead, you would lean in close, and just try to breathe a little bit of life into it. Then, once it was alive, really alive, and the wind created by people talking wasn’t something that would threaten to blow it out, you’d begin to invite everyone to huddle around.

Fortunately, I have written a lot of movies. And with that comes a little bit more tolerance for the buffeting winds of opinion. But I could tell that with every conversation with a friend about the two ideas — and I had a lot! and they were really fun! and I’m really grateful to everyone who did reach out! — I was in fact being swayed, potentially off course. So much of the creative process, to me, is about quieting the external world, finding stillness, and allowing something deep and subconscious to begin to slowly peek its way out of its shell in order to communicate. And for me, that process gets a little bit trickier when in conversation with other people. It has been genuinely very nice to hear from so many people (especially from my PAID SUBSCRIBERS!) what they like about these movie ideas, but I could absolutely tell that hearing everyone’s thoughts had the potential to drown out my own.

That’s just me! You might be someone who really needs to talk it out. And if you are, more power to you! Do you.

But, if you find yourself working on things and losing the spark, I’d suggest that you examine whether you have accidentally been sharing the spark with others a little bit too early. Historically, the thing that has most turned me off of figuring out a creative project has been hearing too many voices too soon, to the point that I get a bit lost and can no longer hear whatever that deep internal voice is.

That did not happen this time though! I could feel the familiarity of it, but I do think I know what I want to do. And what I want to do is… what you all overwhelmingly voted for, which is… drumroll please…

drumroll please…

STONER GHOST ROAD TRIP MOVIE!

👻 🍁 💨 🚗

wahooo!

Why?

Well, for one thing, I promised. I said I’d write and direct what people voted for, and I famously respect the will of the people. Also, the more I thought about these ideas for movies, the more I realized I had a lot of ideas for fun things to do with a shitty teenage stoner ghost. Not that I couldn’t find ways to capitalize on what’s cool about No Contact (and I still think there are cool things about it). But so much of what we are trying to follow in the creative process, especially early in the creative process is flow.

I find writing to mainly be about finding ways to channel energy, and there’s a quality to it that really feels like inertia. Objects in motion remain in motion, objects at rest remain at rest. The more you can capitalize on your own motion — ie, ideas that just keep coming — the easier it will be to keep things moving along.

I also noticed in talking about the two ideas, that I would light up describing the Ghost Road Trip in a way that I wouldn’t quite do talking about No Contact. Of course, one is a light-hearted romp and the other is a horror film about familial estrangement, but… it feels wise to tune into what is lighting me up and go for it. If you want to see this light come on for yourself, I have video evidence on TikTok. Yes, I started a TikTok. The new Hollyweird is all about experimenting, and It just feels crazy to me to be missing out on “the world’s most popular app” simply because I hate a) seeing myself and b) hearing myself. So if you do not have that particular pet peeve, and you’re into direct to camera video, gimme a follow there.

What’s next? How will I write this movie?

Well, if you are a Paid Subscriber (hint hint) you’ve already gotten a sneak peek of a big part of my process, which is: making a list! I’ve made a big list on Letterboxd (the only good social media, imo) compiling films that feel related to what I want this movie to be. At first usually those lists are made up of direct comps — anywhere from 4-10 films that feel like they have the right vibe/structure/tone — and I will watch or rewatch some of those, but I will usually keep adding movies and eventually the list becomes unruly and I stop doing research.

At the same time, I’ll start thinking! Proactively thinking. “What could happen in this kind of movie???” I will share more on my strange strategy for coming up with movie plots soon, but for now, thanks for your votes of confidence, and thanks for trying out this crazy experiment with me.

If you know any writers or indie filmmakers or indie film fans out there who might be interested in coming along for the ride, please do share the newsletter. It continues to grow and I continue to be excited to have you all along for the journey!

Paid Subscribers — I’ll be starting another paid subscribers only thread in the chat to discuss what you even want to know about the brainstorm / idea phase, so keep an eye out for that. And keep an eye out for an extra email this Monday (I promise not to abuse your inboxes) inviting you to September’s monthly Hollyweird Hang.