LARRY K ELMORE
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 PictureLarry K Elmore
 ​Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
Lyons, Colorado 80540

Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story and why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel?
Everyone has an origin story, this just happens to be mine. While I was in Turkish prison, I wrote my girlfriend in Florida very detailed letters of the entire experience. At the time, I was a USAF Photographer stationed in Turkey during the Vietnam War. These letters have been sitting in a box for over 50 years being carted from house to house as I moved. I chose to write a screenplay simply because I’m a filmmaker, not a novelist. It was time.

How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN?
The first draft of the screenplay probably took me about three weeks to write. But, before I could even begin to write I had to organize and scan the letters, run the letters through an OCR program, edit each of the letters to correct errors, then craft a timeline and blueprint fort he complete experience. There were 27 letters in total. Once I had the blueprint, I began to write. I had text print outs of all of the letters next to me during the entire process.

What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
Like all screenwriters I suspect, I’d love to have my work make it to the big screen and the little one too. And, win a few major screenwriting awards along the way.

Was your entry at The Wiki Screenplay Contest a full script or “the first ten pages”? Why did you make that choice?
Full script with Notes. Always. As an emerging screenwriter living in the hinterlands outside of LA, I have learned to depend on the notes that I’ve received from the Wiki and other contests to refine not only my screenplays, but my skill in crafting great stories. Screenwriting is such a solitary experience that if it wasn’t for festivals like Where Hollywood Hides sponsors, I’d lost and unappreciated in the mountains of Colorado outside Boulder.

What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show...and why?
I grew up in Encino in the ‘50s. When I wasn’t playing baseball, swimming competitively, or body surfing, I was watching classic films. At that time, only a few areas had more than three TV stations. I considered myself very lucky. Favorite Film: White Christmas - I learned comedic timing, generosity, ensemble casting, physical humor, buddy dialog (both male and female), what happens when you only hear part of a conversation, emotional conflict, what happens when you make a snap decision based upon faulty information, how to pull on the heart strings, and much more. Favorite TV Show: Star Trek (The Original) - While I love the pantheon of films and TV shows spawned by the franchise, it’s still the first series that began it all. I was 16 when it debuted and I never missed an episode. It played on Friday nights and conflicted directly with football games at Reseda High. I would make it to the game after half time.

What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
Write everyday. If you’re going to be successful, you need to write. Don’t be afraid to submit your screenplays or TV pilots to festivals and contests. Always request NOTES. There are great people aligned with festivals that know more than you do about the craft of screenwriting. Festival and Contests are your avenue to becoming a better screenwriter. And, maybe you’ll be filling out an interview form like this someday.

What else are you working on that the world needs to know about?
Right now, I’ve writing a feature screenplay called “Operation Pedro Pan, An American Story”. I’ll be submitting it in August to the Wiki. It’s a personal story, not unlike Letters Home, but it chronicles the Peter Pan Airlift from Cuba of the fourteen thousand children that were airlifted out of the Cuba after Castro took over. It’s personal because my maternal grand mother emigrated from Cuba after the Spanish American War when she married my grandfather. One of the kids in the airlift was my cousin. We’re the same age. She’s a successful business woman and lives in Long Beach now. I decided to write this film now because of the hatred and fear of emigrants. We all came from somewhere else, unless you’re a native American. It’s time to released the fear. I’m also working on a dystopian sci-fi action adventure called “The 45th Parallel, A Reckoning”, which was just recognized as a Semi-Finalist in the Wiki. It chronicles what life will be like on our planet in the year 2055 if we don’t make some serious changes to our energy use of fossil fuels. Ultimately, it’s a story of the resilience of humanity and the affect one person can have on society.