Nov 27, 2016

Storytelling unit - Screenwriter Sam Esmail


Sam Esmail is an American screenwriter, film and television producer.
He had his feature-length directional debut was in 2014 with 'Comet' which was released by IFC (Independent Film Channel) and has later been working as the writer for 'Mockingbird' and creator, executive producer and head writer of the technological thriller television series 'Mr. Robot'.

Sam is of Egyptian heritage but born in New Jersey. In a  BBC interview, he explained how his heritage influences his work, "I tend to write about alienated figures who can't connect with others and who are kind of distant from American culture. It's not something I'm consciously doing, but it's something that happens to be infused inside me because of my experience growing up in America."

Sam originally planned Mr.Robot to be a feature film but decided to turn it into a television series when the project got too long and unwieldy.
"It was weird because I didn't really change anything when I turned it into a series. When I saw it as a film I knew where I was going, I knew my ending. It wasn't before I got to page 90 and was still halfway through Act 1 that I decided that this would be a series and not a feature.

'Mr. Robot' follows Elliot Alderson who works as a part of a hacking group society trying to take  down the evil corporation named E-corp. To make the series as realistic as possible Sam decided to consult with actual hackers, some of whom have criminal records. He would ask them what they would do if they were to hack certain stuff, how they would do it at what sort of challenges they would hit along the way.



In the video Sam talks about the series, what inspired him, how the main character Elliot is a thinly-veiled version of himself and how they, when filming, used different off-kilter angles to represent the way Elliot use the world.

Sam has been nominated for then awards for Mr. Robot and has won 6 of them, including 2015 American Film Institute Awards in the category 'Television programs of the year' and 73rd Golden Globe Awards for 'Best Television Series - Drama'.

I decided to research Sam Esmail and his works as I find it admirable all he has achieved so far only being in the industry for a few years and because I really enjoy his work, especially Mr. Robot.
I took a great deal of inspiration from it for own short film 'ASHORE', both character wise (the lonely person who doesn't really like other people, doesn't feel that he fits in with the society, etc) and dialogue wise.





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