Of late I have been wondering and thinking about television shows and movies. We have long acknowledged actors for their role in these stories. Actors usually take center stage in our society, people want to be like them, we are eager (as a society) to read interviews, gossip, and biographies about them. We buy posters of them, we follow their careers with interest, and we join fan clubs. It is no doubt actors are much praised in our society. Lately I have been wondering why a certain segment of the staff/crew of these shows never seem to get any attention, and this has led me to many questions and much thought.
The credits for any TV show or movie are extensive. They include all kinds of people, most of whom I have no idea what they do. There are some that I know play an important role, and at least one is getting some recognition. Directors, producers, and writers all play important roles in the making of TV shows, though I confess I have no idea what a producer does. Directors have been getting more acclaim of late, people are taking note of movies that are fun to watch, and crews are giving credit to the director (The Joint has a good piece about the duties of a director). There is one group of people I have yet to hear or see get much in the way of fame, and those are the writers.
It goes without saying that writers have a large hand in the story of any given show. I have never even seen an interview with a writer of one of these shows so I do not know how much detail, how much work, and how much freedom they have, but I imagine it varies from show to show, like most things in life vary from job to job. I am reminded of something Wil Wheaton mentioned in reference to writers. While at a convention Wil shared with the crowd that some of his really stupid lines were not his fault at all, but rather the writers made him say it, even though he pleaded for them to change it (link). This has made me think writers might deserve some credit (or blame) in the eye of the public. This is not coming from a guy who aspires to be a writer (of fiction) and wants to see more credit given to hobby. I am no screenwriter, and I don’t think I even want to try it. However, when I see a really good story unfold, I am happy to see the actors pull it off right, but then I try to remind myself that the actors probably did not write the story, they probably had very little to do with its development.
This has led me to want to acknowledge writers (really the people responsible for the creativity) more. Apart from movies made from books (see my rant) we really do not hear about the people responsible for the story about to unfold before our eyes. I want to find out more about how the screenwriting process works. I want to know how much credit writers deserve, how much involvement they have in the creative process, and how much of it is "stamping out license plates" (to borrow a phrase from Neal Stephenson). I want to give credit where credit is due, and those stories which display great imagination deserve much acclaim, in my opinion.