Misdeed by Pia
Read by Macblade Productions : She and He Voice Overs

After a horrible accident a young man asks forgiveness from his girlfriend while nature closes in.

Short, Horror, Drama
Rated R for language and unsafe driving

Read the script (5 pages pdf format). Listen to the script:
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{note: This audio recording is released under a Creative Commons, attribution, noncommercial, no derivatives 3.0 license. You can share the audio recording in its entirety, but you can’t change it or sell it. }

Thanks to Donovan and Daily Script read the september 12, 2000 draft of Collateral. This is the final draft before the Michael Mann rewrites. THanks to Kirsty for the heads up on the Now and THen script found over on Movie Memorabilia. Lastly, thanks to ‘g’ and Daily Script read Mickey Levy’s Rails & Ties. Those can be found on the movie scripts page.

Golden Globe and Spirit Award nominated scripts and scripts in Oscar contention now each have their own page. – Don

Thanks to the Whiskey Loose Tongue for the heads up on a couple of 2008 Spirit Award Nominated Scripts – Rocket Science and Starting Out in the Evening. Below find the listing of Best First Screenplay and Best Screenplay (all in PDF format). The winners will be announced February 23, 2008.

Best First Screenplay

Jeffrey Blitz for Rocket Science – hosted by Rocket Science

Zoe Cassavetes for Broken English

Diablo Cody for Juno – hosted by Fox Searchlight

Kelly Masterson – Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead

John Orloff for A Mighty Heart – hosted by Vantage Guilds 2007

Best Screenplay

Ronald Harwood for The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le papillon) – hosted by Miramax Films

Tamara Jenkins for The Savages – hosted by Fox Searchlight

Fred Parnes & Andrew Wagner for Starting Out in the Evening – hosted by Starting Out in the Evening

Adrienne Shelly for Waitress – hosted by Fox Searchlight

Mike White – Year of the Dog

Better Days Episode 05.5 ‘ The Intruder’
by Robert G. Newcomer
based on the Series by Steven Cameron

What would happen if Jason, Barbara and Kenny and Danielle were taken hostage in the basement by a madman in a Powerpuff Girls mask?

Short Series – Comedy
Rated R (for language)

Read the script (22 pages – rtf format). Discuss the script. Listen to the script:

[display_podcast]

{note: This audio recording is released under a Creative Commons, attribution, noncommercial, no derivatives 3.0 license. You can share the audio recording in its entirety, but you can’t change it or sell it. }

Actually, it is the SimplyScripts mid-winter message, but I’ve got this thing for alliteration.

First off, I’d like to thanks those anonymous individuals for their very generous donations to the site over the last couple of months. I do wish you would identify yourselves when you donate so that I can send a personal email thanking you. I hate those, “thanks everybody” messages that come out periodically (like this one). This site is a labor of love and those donations really help to offset the bandwidth and hosting costs associated with running this site.

I’d also very much like to thank those of you who pass on links to scripts on the ‘net. Recently, there have been a whole slew of new scripts up, posted by the studios. While several studios have contacted me directly, many haven’t and it is those ‘heads up’ from you folks out there in the ether that allows everyone to enjoy scripts on the ‘net.

At the risk of offending someone for being left out, I’d like to thank Jack for alerting me to my numerous typographical and grammatical errors that creep onto the site. Thanks to Sandy for the moral support and running a really cool site. Thanks to Berge and Mike Sampson at JoBlo.com for continuing to allow me to ride their coat tails.

Thanks to the SimplyScripts Discussion Board moderators: Wesley, Mike, Nixon (aka “Z”), George and especially the esteemed Dr. Newcomer aka “bert”. Not only do I benefit from their sage advice on how to run things, they also keep the boards civil and tidy.

Thanks to the discussion board members who keep the discussion lively and interesting, particularly Pia, Greg, Tyler (soon to be an Eagle Scout), Helio (published author), Flyboy, Andy, Hertic, Cindy, Zombie Sean, Phil and the list literally goes on and on and on (apologies if I’ve left you out).

Another big thanks goes out to the folks who submit their scripts to the unproduced scripts page. Thank you for the uncountable hours of enjoyment I’ve gotten from reading your work. Thank you for your bravery to display your work for all to read and comment on. I hope you find use of the constructive criticism you get and can blow off the nonconstructive criticism.

Lastly, this holiday season, rather than encourage you, dear readers, to donate money to the large number of worthy causes, I’m asking each and every one of you to read to a child. That’s it. Read to a child. Find a book and a small child and read. Extra points if you use funny voices. Read it to them. Read it with them. Have them read to you. If they can’t stay still, read it at them (and stop at the best part and watch them beg you to continue). Thanks!

Merry Christmas. – Don

Thanks to Donovan and Daily Script read this early draft of Cliffhanger. Thanks to Will and Daily Script read Casey Robinson’s 1953 draft of The Egyptian. Lastly, thanks to Vern for the heads up on this treatment of what Superman III could have been thanks to the excellent and comprehensive Superman Cinema. Those scripts you can check out over on the Movie Scripts page.

I’ve updated both award sites with the latest findings on the ‘net. Note that while there is a link to Charlie Wilson’s War over on the Golden Globe nominated screenplays page, the pdf just reads, “This Screenplay Not Yet Available”. I’m sure the screenplay will appear on or shortly after December 26th when the nominations ballots for the Oscars and the final ballots for the Golden Globes are mailed out.

I’ve gotten a lot of emails from folks asking why the studios are putting scripts online? Why so many now? It’s about money – saving money and, of course making money. Instead of sending out bound copies of scripts to all the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and Hollywood Foreign Press members, it is easier to just send a postcard with a link to the screenplay or a site that has the screenplay. Another side benefit to this is that not only do academy members have easy access to the scripts, so do you, the general public that blogs and comments online about the scripts you’ve read, generating the much needed buzz the studios need to have their work noticed and nominated. A nomination, or better yet, a win brings people to theatres and gets them to open their wallets to buy the dvds. – Don

Due to a coding error, I inadvertently considered the Movie Scripts as ‘excellent’ and ‘comprehensive’, however, I mean to indicate that Superman Cinema was an excellent and comprehensive Superman site. Apologies. – Don

More scripts up for Oscar consideration! Thanks to Jack and Anonymous and Sandy for the heads up on these. There is Michael Clayton, The Brave One, Jesse James and The Bucket List from Warner Bros. There is Sweeny Todd, Beowulf, Shrek the Third, Freedom Writers, Bee Movie, Zodiac (Chronicles) and Things We Lost in the Fire from Paramount. These are zipped and in pdf format. I’d recommend right clicking and using save as. – Don

Update!Thanks Anonymous for the heads up on Things We Lost in the Fire

Thanks to D and Vern and David for the heads up on more scripts up for Best Screenplay (adapted or original) consideration.

We have the screenplays for Atonement, Eastern Promises, Se, Jie (Lust, Caution), Reservation Road, Talk To Me from Focus features and Rataouille from Walt Disney Studio Awards.

Last year, in the run up to the Oscars, only a handful of nominated screenplays were online. Only Warner Bros and Picture House studios put up their own scripts on studio sites. The winners for best adapted screenplay and best original screenplay last year just so happened to be the two scripts that were available online prior to the voting.

I’ve updated the 2007 Oscar contenders for best Original Screenplay and best Adaptated Screenplay page where I have links to all the scripts that have thus far been made available by the studios online in Oscar contention. Please note, the screenplays are PDF files and you may want to ?right click? and ?save file as? to download them to your computer before you try to open them.

Update!The Golden Globe Nominations are out and there are a few more scripts online.

Nominations for Best Screenplay for Motion Picture are:

* Diablo Cody for JUNO (pdf file hosted by Fox Searchlight – Thanks Martin for the heads up.

* Ethan Coen and Joel Coen for NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (pdf file hosted by Miramax Films)

* Christopher Hampton for ATONEMENT (zip/pdf file hosted by Focus Features – Thanks D for the heads up.

* Ronald Hardwood for THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY (pdf file hosted by Miramax Films)

* Aaron Sorkin for CHARLIE WILSON’S WAR

Only two four of the five nominated scripts are online for reading. I suspect that Charlie Wilson’s War will be up shortly after the theatrical release on Friday. – Don