I like to think of myself as an artist which makes it difficult for me to place my vision onto another's script. It's not necessary that I dislike their work but more I see a different way to make it come to life. I now have permission from James and his blessing to do whatever I need to. He would like to read my version and then decide how he wishes to be credited. James's script is very train of thought and his dialogue is realistic. His idea works very well for us; it centres around students, is set in a student house and contains no props that are out of our reach. All I need to do is restructure the narrative, pull back the locations and action, heighten the drama, trim the dialogue, drop several unessential characters and then bring all this together into a tight and concise but still interesting story.
I read the Tom Hanks film Cast Away took five years and 250 rewrites from the first draft to locked script. Time is against me but by hopefully keeping an open mind and collaborative spirit the film I'm imagining in my head will evolve from James's original concept...
Phillips idea that I disregarded when writing The Uses of Others has come back to comfort me. In Writing Short Scripts he argues "Most stories based on people and events that have not been part of the writer's life fail." Well I can honestly say the essence of James's idea is very much part of my life. And very enjoyable it is too!