I am going to UCLA Film Schoo. My Professor wrote episodes of Amen, as well as Small Wonder, Who's the Boss, and Perfect Strangers.

No kidding? That is impressive. I had thought you were going to the Extension for their Certificate Program.

The TFT is a lot more competitive - they don't just take anyone off the street. The scripts you're not showing us must be quite a lot better.

Chitlik's been around awhile. He knows his way around a sitcom. I'm sure he'll be a great advisor - you're lucky to have him.

Yeah I am in the Certificate Program. I was one of 40 interviewed for the MFA (they accept 25 students in all), but they only chose like 7 or so (maybe less), while the other 18 or more came from the Certificate Program = Already experienced writers that are well-known to UCLA facutly already.


Yeah, I started out on Sitcoms online at Gimme A Break Online, and wrote nonsense scripts when I was 15 in 1998, but now I know how to write episodes that would be as long as the actual 30 minute/ 60 minute shows. The fanfic I do online is just fun and creative, but I don't put 100 % into it, but I have good ideas, I must say :)


I love Television, much more than Film, but the program is all for film, but professors have been in television before, so that's good. I am glad I got a professor who wrote shows I am familliar with (I loved Amen, and I loved Small Wonder, while Who's the Boss and Perfect Strangers are more popular, but I am not 100 % in love with those shows as I was with the other 2).

You have to be careful, Mark. If you tell someone you're in the UCLA Film School, and they find out later you're just taking the Cert, you're going to burn bridges. The Extension is not a UCLA degree program. It's not honest.

A lot of this business is just luck, and that means making a good personal impression on people. Once you have scripts, you need to network, you need to make people read them. A lot of decent screenwriters out there don't get work because they're either too shy, or because too many people just don't like them. The competition is tremendous.

Honestly, it doesn't matter that you liked Chitlik's shows. You're not going to impress him by kissing his ass (sometimes, ass-kissing is a vital skill, workshops are one of the few places where it's a negative). You're going to impress him by working hard in his group and improving your scripts from draft to draft, without complaint.

Yeah, I get what you are saying. I say that a lot "I am going to film school", but when I say it it seems true because it is UCLA and it's on the Film area, but then I keep thinking about "you are not considered a full time student" and all that other stuff connected with the program. I think it's better to say "I'm in the certificate screenwriting program at UCLA" instead of saying "I go to Film School", because it would only work if I was in the Master's.


Yeah, those shows are some of the best, but I know it's not going to be about loving his shows that's gonna make it an easy ride. I am just excited to meet someone who wrote shows that I liked. I am more concerned with getting my work done and getting it done the best that I can.



Plus this is for Film and not TV, but the professors can help those who want to get into Television as well. I am glad I have a teacher whose work I am familliar with. A lot of professors wrote shows I never even saw before. That's why, if he mentions certain characters on his shows, I will not be lost, and will know what he is talking about, if he refers to them in class or something.

In some cases, knowing the shows could be a detriment.

One technique many writing teachers employ is to give the group a page or two of dialogue. Examples may well be from shows they've written.

The lesson won't be "identify the character," it will be to learn the techniques writers use to give their characters unique voices. So familiarity with a character might mask that ability.

I know it's tempting to shout out, "oh, I remember that show," but it's irrelevant. You won't get lost if you don't know the show. This isn't a History of Obscure Sitcoms Certificate.

Yeah I am in the Certificate Program.

I love Television, much more than Film, but the program is all for film, but professors have been in television before, so that's good. I am glad I got a professor who wrote shows I am familliar with (I loved Amen, and I loved Small Wonder, while Who's the Boss and Perfect Strangers are more popular, but I am not 100 % in love with those shows as I was with the other 2).


I hear you. I am the same way with Television. I love to write scripts.