Interview - Screenwriter Blake Clifton
Blake Clifton is the writer of Action screenplay contest winning script, ECHOER.
Logline: On a ravaged, war-torn planet light-years from home, a fierce Imperial prisoner, forced to survive as a battlefield scavenger, is sent behind enemy lines to uncover assets for the Emperor's war machine. But when she discovers a secret that could alter the galaxy's fate, she must navigate a treacherous web of betrayal and desire—where every choice could change her destiny forever.
After the competition win, we spoke with Blake Clifton about the story and the journey to this win.
How did you first become interested in a career in screenwriting?
Honestly, it's difficult to pinpoint when I first became interested in screenwriting. Like many people, I've loved films since I was a child. For me, movies have always been my refuge; a safe haven that allows me to escape the darkness of my own life and visit a realm that is more vibrant and alive than the 'real' world. Even if it's only for a couple of hours, feeling such intense emotions or a sense of wonder while watching a movie energizes me in a way that nothing else does. Films allow me to feel the pulse of life in such a concentrated form, I can't help but begin to imagine the possibilities of new worlds, new realms, and new realities. The intensity of that experience forces me to surrender myself completely, and once that happens, it's a small step to grabbing my laptop, opening up a screenwriting program, and letting my thoughts flow onto the page. That initial spark of inspiration is what drives me, and everything that follows—structure, revision, and refinement—is simply the practice that hones that vision into a compelling narrative.
Who or what inspired you to write this particular story?
I think my inspiration for writing Echoer is probably the culmination of a life spent mesmerized and in awe of the film making techniques, stories, and sensibilities of 1980's sci-fi/dark fantasy films. I love the stories that were told then and how they were told. Filmmakers were interested in creating something otherworldly yet alive. You can see this, feel this, in every frame. Directors didn't have the crutch of a green screen or cgi to fall back on. They had to make choices on the day in order to achieve their vision, and because of that, everyone on set, from the actors to the crew, to the producers, were able to share in that vision and interact with it. The use of practical effects and puppets elicit real reactions, real emotions from actors in a way that green screen and CGI will never be capable of. CGI and green screen, unfortunately, create an 'uncanny valley' response in an actor's performance because they're acting across from something that doesn't exist. And the audience knows it. We may have gotten 'used' to it, but deep down we all know and it lessens our attachment to the story.
With Echoer, I wanted to strip away everything I think is wrong with genre films of the last 30 years. I wanted to take it back to the basics; a movie about interesting characters in interesting circumstances with real flaws and real consequences. I wanted to tear down the framework that has hobbled an entire industry for decades and make room once again for the filmmaking sensibilities that created the greatest generation of visionary films in the hundred year history of cinema.
What movies or filmmakers would you consider your greatest influences as a screenwriter?
There are far too many filmmakers to list: Classic Ridley Scott comes to mind. John McTiernan at his height. John Milius. There are so many more. But in terms of specific films, I think there are two in particular, aside from the vast catalogue of 80's masterpieces that I fell in love with.
The first being the 1997 film Gattaca. A late 90's film might seem an odd choice given my previous answers, but I have long been obsessed with this film, and not for its overt message. Gattaca is the first film I saw where I became aware of our society's soon to be obsession with retro-futurism. There is a haunted quality about Gattaca that nearly overwhelms me. From the production design, to the soundtrack, and even the wardrobe, everything about Gattaca has a melancholy quality to it. The character's themselves are haunted at every level; not just their past, but their future as well. It's a magnificent film that is properly constrained with minimal cast, minimal visual fx, and minimal locations. That constraint, despite being made in an era where CGI was being overused at every turn, produced one of the most beautiful overall films I've ever seen.
The second film will again seem like an odd choice. The 2004 Japanese film Casshern is a movie that has haunted me since I first watched it. Based on an anime from the 1970's, Casshern is largely a mess of overly used Green screen backdrops/sets as well as completely hollow CGI scenes supported by a disconnected, meandering story an hour too long. However, the end sequence is one of the most beautiful flashback sequences I've ever seen. Somehow, a film that feels so empty and hollow due to the overreliance on VFX suddenly crystalizes into a story with a depth of soul and sadness unmatched by any film to this day-- and it's because it suddenly shifts from fake sets and effects to real places and emotions. I've never seen a story shift so suddenly, so starkly, so poignantly because of something so simple. I think about the final few minutes of that movie nearly every day, both for what it was and what it could have been. Had Casshern simply been properly constrained by real sets, real effects, and real decision making, it could have been a film people talked about 20 years later instead of a film hardly anyone knows exists.
How much planning and outlining went into your process of writing this script?
There was a ton of planning that went into my process, but not a ton of outlining. That may not make sense, but let me explain. I haven't watched a new genre movie I've loved and been obsessed with in many, many years. Entertained, sure, but not loved. I knew I wanted to write something that filled that void. So I began planning. I identified the elements of filmmaking that I loved and stripped away everything else that didn't serve it or the story. I wanted to make a minimalist film that didn't feel anemic or restricted, but purified into its base elements that set out to achieve exactly what it intends and nothing more. No bloat. No fat. I was strict with each element I wanted in the film. Once I did that, the story and characters started speaking to me and I let them take the wheel. Outlining became almost unnecessary at that point because I had created such a strict framework for the story that there was really only one option from scene to scene that wouldn't betray the spirit of Echoer.
What advice would you give to aspiring screenwriters who are working their first script?
Write what you love. Write what you know. Write messy and fix it later. Don't constantly double back mid-draft to add or change something. Note it and move on. Let the world and the characters guide you to the end then clean up the mess you left behind.
Congrats to Blake Clifton on his competition win!