MICHAEL MONTEIRO
Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
I originally hail from New York but now reside in “Sin City” Las Vegas, Nevada 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? As a retired Navy veteran, I was inspired to write My Yoga Mat as a short script due to my physical disabilities. The Veterans Administration has been taking a more holistic approach to healing veterans, and yoga has been successful in treating veterans with various health issues. Many veterans have even become excellent yoga teachers both to other veterans and active duty military members. 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? After writing and rewriting a few drafts, I finally completed My Yoga Mat in approximately five months. I have to outline my stories first, and I usually write a treatment to go along with it. I’m "old-school,” so I still put pen to paper in a notebook. I’ve been using Final Draft for a few years now, and occasionally I will use the index card feature and add my notes for easy reference when I’m writing. What is your ultimate ambition as a writer? My main ambition right now is to sign with an agent. I think with representation it could be very helpful for me in getting my foot in the door in the entertainment industry. I have a few screenplays under my belt now, and I would love to pitch a couple of my military genre screenplays. Was your entry at The Wiki Screenplay Contest a full script or “the first ten pages”? Why did you make that choice? Actually, I have an original outline for My Yoga Mat and have it mapped for a feature screenplay. But I decided that it would be better and would take me less time to write a short script for a total of thirty pages. Needless to say, I am definitely psyched to return to writing the feature. What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show...and why? Wow. That’s a hard one. I love movies and can watch the good ones over and over again. That’s one reason I have a huge collection. I guess if I have to choose one all-time favorite, I would have to say The Godfather. It’s one of the greatest movies ever made; a pure classic. The opening scene, which is considered one of the best ever made, sets it apart from other films of the same genre. Gordon Willis used black and shadow to create layers that were previously impossible in color film. It’s just great writing that captures the essence of what’s to follow. What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have? Read plenty of screenplays, then when you're done, read some more. There are several sites where you can download just about any movie script you can think of. Visit the Nicholl Fellowship site; they always post winning screenplays that you can download as well. Make sure your screenplay is ready. After I finish my first draft, I always leave it alone for a couple of weeks and then come back to it; you’ll be surprised at how many typos, grammatical, and punctuation errors you will come across. It’s not a polished script unless you make the necessary corrections. It’s your final draft, so make it stand out. Most importantly, if you’re not passionate about your script, then there’s something missing, and chances are, it won’t be good. What else are you working on that the world needs to know about? Currently, I’m rewriting a feature screenplay entitled Soul Food Saigon. Inspired by true events, it’s the story of an African American soldier who struggles with racism within his platoon and makes a daring decision to abandon the Army to open a restaurant with his Vietnamese girlfriend in Saigon City. I’m also working on another short script called Lessons Unbound that tells a story about a determined African American history teacher who defies a statewide ban on Critical Race Theory in classrooms, risking his career and safety to teach students the full, untold history of America. |
