ROBERT BRIDGE
Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
Isle of Wight, UK 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? I don’t write novels or short stories. I wanted to focus a story on a dim man (and I don’t mean dim as in low light, I mean dim as in his dad had to go to his high school and bribe the teachers so he’d graduate) and how he deals with a mid-life crisis and then throw an unexpected pregnancy into the mix. How does a man who ruined a promising football career and doesn’t know he hasn’t got a uterus manage navigate the trials and tribulations of becoming a first-time father at 50? That was the seed and it blossomed from there. 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 script came very quickly. I wrote the first draft in six weeks, then toyed around with the characters and the structure before sending it out for review and I received a Consider from the analyst and worked more on the next draft before sending it to Wiki. I love the outline process. It’s the fun part of writing for me. I can only write before work, so I usually sit down and write between 8 and 10 in the morning, but in my free time the characters are always buzzing my brain even at work, or watching TV, or out for a walk. Walking is the best way to solve writing problems for me. What is your ultimate ambition as a writer? I’m always looking for ways to better my craft, but I’d like to see my work on screen. To have a produced piece of work that I can share with the world because there must be thousands of people in the world who share my sense of humour and we all need a good laugh. Was your entry at The Wiki Screenplay Contest a full script or “the first ten pages”? Why did you make that choice? It was the full script. I only send the full script so I can receive the notes and make the next draft better. A script is always changing and it’s good to get a new set of eyes on the material to see if the reader understands what you were trying to say. What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show...and why? I watch Shawshank every Christmas. That’s my Christmas movie. It’s the only movie about male friendship that stands the test of time. I have numerous other favourites, too many to name here, and depending on the genre of my next script I will watch similar films and TV shows, but I always go back to Shawshank if I need a boost. What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have? Get to the end. Write to the end of your script. Don’t tinker about with the first 10 or 20 pages and keep rewriting them. Finish the whole script then you know what you have. What’s working and what isn’t, then go work on the next one and in a month’s time go back and re-read your first draft. It’s bad, but you have something to work with and build on. When you know you cannot do anymore send it out for analysis and get a professional to give you notes. What else are you working on that the world needs to know about? I was a Nicholls Fellowship quarter-finalist in 2024 and a Page Awards Finalist in 2024, so I’m working to make those scripts the best they can be. I’m also working on two rom-coms SAGITTARIUS CHAMBERS: WEDDING SLEUTH & THE SECOND LOVE OF MY LIFE. I’ve just finished the new draft of my sci-fi 2199 and tinkered with my western CHARON’S DIVIDE. I finally finished my British set Christmas comedy SWEEP, my horror DON’T GO IN, and have ideas percolating for three new scripts. |
