Robert Rhyne

2018-01-01 12:00

SHRIEKFEST INTERVIEW

Robert Rhyne

Screenwriter

2015 & 2016 screenwriting finalist & 2017 Best Thriller Feature Screenplay for "Rational Panic"

Robert Rhyne

What is your name, company name, and URL?

Robert Rhyne. www.imdb.com/name/nm5526874.

What is your specialty: filmmaking or screenwriting? If filmmaking, which aspects?

Screenwriting, primarily. And some production.

What are you currently working on?

I'm currently working on a new supernatural/horror feature spec and polishing a thriller spec.

Nice! Who do you consider your mentor and why?

The UCLA Theater, Film and Television (TFT) Screenwriting Program - both the teachers and students.

Why do you think the horror/sci-fi genres have such a large following?

Beneath the gore and the jump-scares, great horror, thrillers, and Sci-Fi movies trigger the survival instinct in all of us. What would you do to survive? How far would you go to save your family? These genres speak to the survival instinct, and allow us to vicariously experience the what if.

What do you love most about this business?

The unpredictability -- you never know what will happen. There's almost a gambling aspect to it.

That is so very true! What do you dislike most about this business?

Perhaps the late Tom Petty said it best: "The waiting is the hardest part."

So true! What career accomplishment are you most proud of?

Several short films I've co-produced have won some Film Festival awards. And a screenplay I wrote, "The Intruder", which just happened to be honored as a Shriekfest finalist in 2016, placed in another contest which published the screenplay as a book now available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

That is wonderful news! Any advice you'd like to give to newbies?

Get professional advice on your screenplays from trusted coverage services or industry mentors. But remember that one man's trash is another man's treasure. Don't just listen to one reader's comments. Make sure several readers echo the same concerns before spending weeks, or months, on a rewrite.

Great advice! It's so subjective at times. Anything else you'd like to say?

Film Fests -- like Shriekfest (the coolest!) -- offer great networking opportunities. Enter and attend. Often.

I agree! Thank you Robert! It was great chatting!