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Sarah: BAFTA Rocliffe Blog 03

25 October 2012

Writing, re-writing, and having a uterus

If I think of all my favourite sitcom moments, often they’re pretty silly. The scene with all the rabbits in Father Ted, Manny’s Dave Syndrome attack in Black Books… The desert island Mighty Boosh episode where Howard and Vince both fall in love with wooden spoons dressed up as people…

But obviously you have to believe in the general set up first before you can have fun with all the silliness. So that’s the main thing that the nice people who’ve read my script have been telling me – make the whole thing a bit more believable. I’m trying to do that.

I’ve been massively lucky to get really thoughtful notes on my script. It’s definitely changing quite a bit. Hopefully in a good way, like a baby growing, not in a bad way, like, I don’t know, a baby growing a tail.

My first draft had an ending that was a little bit mentally ill. The main character ended up on a cruise ship, surrounded by nuns, and another character being mobbed by a crowd of children satanically shouting the word “Gorilla”. The next draft didn’t involve these things. An instant improvement!

Usually I write scripts with my writing partner Kate. We email the script back and forth, rewriting each other’s work. Then, at the end, we edit out the badgers. (I don’t know why our scripts always involve so many accidental badgers. They just sneak in there, we cull them).

Writing alone is… slower. I’m still in the middle of re-writing my script now.

But in a few hours I’m off to the NYTVF, to find out what they’re up to over there, see lots of comedy pilots, and to showcase The Slush Pile. With actual actors and a director and music and everything! Obviously, I’m a bit excited about that.

I’m also excited that Jenni Konner (from Girls) is the guest at our showcase. I’m going to be restraining myself from raving to her madly about Girls. A whole show about genuine, complex relationships between female characters that are actually like people from real life? Crazy times.

What with Tiny Fey, Amy Poehler, Girls, Bridesmaids… I feel it’s an exciting time to be a person with a uterus, writing comedy. And loads of the best female comedy is coming out of New York. So I’m excited about soaking all that up. And if the New Yorkers like my script that would be quite nice too.

Right. Off to pack.


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