by Voyage | Jan 15, 2019 | Blog post, Book to Film, Entertainment Business
We are proud to share that Voyage has reached an incredible inflection point, with deal-flow and successful outcomes for projects from our community sustaining an all-time high! Take a look at some of our recent wins, all of which originated from storytellers within our community: ALIVE DAY Alive Day (Feature) is based on the novel “Six Days to Zeus” by Samuel Hill. Screenplay by Voyage’s own Kathleen McLaughlin – now being produced in partnership with Oscar-nominated Mike Medavoy (BLACK SWAN, ALTERED CARBON) and with Phillip Noyce (SALT, REVENGE, CLEAR & PRESENT DANGER) attached to direct. The story is based on the life of a top Special Operations commander who loses his entire team in a friendly fire incident that leaves his body wrecked, but finds himself facing a court martial and a life back home that is falling apart. Check out the story in the trades here: Variety Magazine Article CHANCE Feature by Michael Daly, starring Matthew Modine (STRANGER THINGS, FULL METAL JACKET) and directed by Voyage’s own John Crye and now in postproduction. The tragic true story of teen suicide, bullying, set in the context of youth baseball. 500 MILES TO NOWHERE Feature by Fred Eason, now being produced in partnership with Shaun Redick (BLACKKKLANSMAN, GET OUT). In the 1880’s, Bass Reeves, the country’s first black U.S. Marshal, goes after dangerous outlaws who attempt to hide out in Indian Territory. ON FLEEK TV reality show by Alyx Baranow in partnership with Voyage producer Whitney Beatty, now being produced. Nicole Jackson (star of BLACK INK) moves to Austin for the summer to help get her microblading salon off the...
by Voyage | Feb 13, 2018 | Book to Film, Entertainment Business
BREAK THROUGH BY BREAKING THE ROUTINE BY: ROB BOWMAN Culture shock. That’s what it was. The phenomenon that many people had less than eloquently described to me over the years had taken a hold of me.Finally, it was my turn. It didn’t disappoint. I was in the back of a tuk-tuk with my sister as we squared off with Delhi’s rush hour traffic. Sensory overload was in full effect. I watched as lanes of traffic transformed into a current of chaos. I heard car horns and new languages volley interchangeably. I felt my comfort zone contract to the point where the hair on my skin was foreign. As for smell, I’ll let your imagination fill that in. Needless to say, my mind was racing. I was overwhelmed. But not in the way I was used to. This was different. It was a spark… And that’s because of what my brain was actually doing. By travelling someplace far away from my norm, both geographically and culturally, I was literally sparking different synapses in my brain by immersing myself in new sights, sounds, smells, languages, tastes, and sensations. To put it simply, I was re-wiring my brain by doing one simple thing: traveling. Now, traveling has been linked to many different health benefits (lower stress levels, stronger immune system, healthier heart), but one thing you may not be familiar with is traveling’s effect on creativity. In general, creativity is related to neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to form and reorganize synaptic connections. By experiencing new environments and cultures, unused neural networks within the brain fire and respond allowing you to broaden how you think. This, along with creating new habits,...
by Voyage | Nov 7, 2017 | Blog post, Book to Film
A LOOK AT THE ‘DO SOMETHING PRINCIPLE’ & SELF- MOTIVATING By nature, writing is a solitary exercise. Most of us don’t sit in an office full of other writers to bounce our ideas off of. Similarly, there’s no boss to get on our case about making those edits to our screenplay or completing our next chapter. So in order to move a project forward, we have to motivate ourselves to get it done. But sometimes self-motivation can feel like the most daunting task in the world—like an un-climbable mountain… But what if there was a way to eliminate the necessity to self-motivate to achieve a goal? What if there was a way to alter the way we think about the relationship between motivation and action? Consider this… Action isn’t just the effect of motivation, but also the cause. What if, instead of identifying motivation as the cause of our actions, we thought of our actions as the cause of motivation? Think of it this way: action is always within reach. It is always possible to do something. Even if that something is writing a few crappy pages, you can take the action of writing and harness your reaction to it as a way to begin motivating yourself. Plus, you will often find that you’re actually inspired by the act of writing itself and are able to turn those crappy pages into your next masterpiece (and even if it’s not a masterpiece, it’s something!) The mere action of writing will inspire new thoughts and ideas. But that new insight will never come if you simply sit around and contemplate it....
by Voyage | Oct 10, 2017 | Book to Film, The Expert Network
3 TIPS FOR BOOSTING CREATIVITY IN 10 MINUTES OR LESS As creators we have all experienced the dreaded Writer’s Block in one-way or another. Whether you’ve caught the bug for a few hours or several days, you know just how debilitating it can be. So next time you’re feeling less-than-creative, blast your writers block with one of these three tips we love to use at Voyage. 1. Meditate Meditation is a wonderful way to clear your mind, which comes in handy when writer’s block strikes. Taking 10 minutes to yourself away from your creative project, technology, and other people can work wonders for the brain. And the best part is, there is no ‘right’ way to meditate! Sitting quietly in a cozy corner of your office for 10 minutes with your electronic devices silenced and out of sight, or counting your breaths for a couple of minutes are great ways to unplug. We love the app Headspace at the Voyage Office and use it to meditate every morning as a team. There’s an awesome 10-day free trial that gives all levels of users wonderful guidance for how reset and find clarity. Each guided meditation is 10 minutes and is a great way to start your day! 2. Do some wacky creative writing When you’ve been working with the same story and characters for months or years, it’s pretty easy to get bogged down by the details. To counteract that obstacle, put down your project and write something totally different. You still get to flex your writing muscles and by focusing on a new story, you will get your creative...
by Voyage | Jul 7, 2017 | Book to Film, Entertainment Business
4 Steps To Finally Writing Your Book So here you are with a great idea for a book. Maybe it’s your own story, a story based on true events, or simply an awesome idea. You may have even been sitting on this story for months or years. Well it’s time to finally do something about it… But where do you start? I’m glad you asked 🙂 Whether you’re working on your tenth book or your first, use these steps to get that story out of your head and on paper. Decide what the book is about You may be thinking to yourself, “Yeah, obviously.” But you’d be surprised at how difficult this step can actually be. Let’s say you have a compelling life story—but you have so much material (your whole life!) to draw from that it can be overwhelming. It’s important to boil down the main plot points early on in the writing process so as not to get bogged down in the details. It’s also a good idea to decide on the goal length of your book at this stage too. That way, you can more easily outline the book ahead of time (and not end up with a 100,000 word epic-novel based on that one week you spent abroad in college). Set a daily word count goal We’re all busy. We all have things going on that could stop us from writing. But if now is the right time for you, you need to make time for it. Make it part of your daily routine, like brushing your teeth or walking the dog. Even if...
by Voyage | Jul 2, 2017 | Book to Film, Entertainment Business
Getting Lucky in Hollywood It’s no secret that Hollywood producers and directors are always on the hunt for the next best movie concept. What’s not so obvious is where they’re looking to find these ideas for their next Blockbuster sweep. Drumroll please…they’re looking at books (even self-published or unpublished ones)! Now, you may be thinking to yourself, “Voyage Media is talking crazy.” But I promise you we’re not! Think about it. A book is already a fully baked idea, complete with an established plotline and solid characters and a built-in audience, whereas a screenplay may be unknown and in various stages of development. Hollywood execs are all about immediate gratification when it comes to looking for their next project because, let’s face it, it’s all about the money. So from a buyer’s perspective, a book holds more weight than a screenplay because it’s more economically viable for them in that moment. Take for instance the self-published book turned Academy award nominated Hollywood adaptation The Martian. Its author Andy Weir found wild success practically overnight after releasing the book chapter-by-chapter online, and then on Amazon’s self-publishing arm where it caught the attention of a producer…and the rest is history. As the movie has begun to gain traction, so has the book, and vice versa. This is another reason Hollywood producers love a book adaptation…the book and the movie provide built-in cross-promotion. They feed off of each other which means more $$$ for everyone involved. After word got out that The Martian was being made into a movie, the book debuted on the New York Times best-seller list at No. 12 in March...
