GARY PARKER (Screenwriter, Director, screenwriter)

GARY PARKER

Screenwriter | Director

Website: https://www.pscp.tv/nprscottsimon/1yNxaWqVVPDGj

Biography

Story, of course, is the key to success. I know story. After writing and editing hundreds of nonfiction stories during my print career, I spent five years at Discovery Networks (in its documentary heyday) as resident script doctor. My job: boost profits by boosting ratings. I did. Most filmmakers are stronger with a camera than a pen. Some of the rough cuts that crossed my desk just needed a polish. Most needed surgery. I didn’t give drive-by notes; I waded in and fixed the problems, and with the filmmaker’s endorsement to boot. Then my work was judged by an unforgiving standard: the Nielsens. I not only hit the target, I typically surpassed it -- sometimes astronomically. Not … one … flop.

Drama directors start with a story, then shoot. In documentaries, I’m typically forced to create the story after we shoot. I start with thousands of raw shots, facts, and sound bites. Shot by shot and line by line, I winnow that chaos to crack the code of structure. Structure is the key to story: where to start, where to end, and how to arrange what comes between. I make thousands of choices about words and pictures, sound and music, guided solely by my gut. As writer-director John Sayles says, I’m “thinking in pictures.” I have more experience as a film writer than most directors, and more experience as a filmmaker than most writers – and more hours as a script and film doctor than maybe anyone. I’ve turned all that experience to drama: adaptation.

I sometimes adapt fiction but largely stick to the bankable genre of inspiring true stories. Among my scripts: a true NASA drama to rival Apollo 13; a true POW thriller to rival The Great Escape; a true Cold War drama to rival John le Carre; a real-life Rain Man based on Daniel Tammet’s acclaimed memoir Born on a Blue Day; the greatest submarine adventure ever – a mission that changed history; the Hidden Figures of the U.S. military; a pilot based on James Kaplan’s definitive biography of the original American idol -- Sinatra; a rom-com that taps the lucrative, global audience of Downton Abbey. And more. In development: a limited series drawn from history that makes Game of Thrones look like child’s play; a real-life Master and Commander saga with a teenage hero; a civil rights mystery to outshine Selma; a House of Cards-esque diplomatic thriller; and dozens more movies and series.

The difference between a documentary and a drama is who’s in front of the camera. The challenge remains the same: entertain the viewer and reward the investor. I do. What story can I tell for you?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-parker-bb08905/

The difference between a documentary and a drama is who’s in front of the camera. The challenge remains the same: entertain the viewer and reward the investor. I do. What story can I tell for you?

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-parker-bb08905/

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Projects (20)

Feature

Biography .
Drama .
Faith-based

0 Recommendation

0 Award

Watch Video

Available

Feature

Biography .
Dramedy .
Historical

0 Recommendation

0 Award

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Available

Feature

Action .
Drama .
Historical

0 Recommendation

0 Award

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Available

Feature

Drama .
Family .
Historical

0 Recommendation

1 Award

Watch Video

Available

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Education

University of Virginia

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

GARY PARKER

Screenwriter | Director

Website: https://www.pscp.tv/nprscottsimon/1yNxaWqVVPDGj

Biography

I have a Midas touch for adaptation: turning good books into Emmy- and Oscar-caliber scripts. That talent springs from my career in documentaries, albeit a career in the shadows: I may be the most experienced screenwriter and filmmaker you never heard of. I’ve worked as an Emmy-winning writer-producer for PBS, Nat Geo, Discovery, History, Animal Planet, Smithsonian, and major production companies on five continents. I've made the hardest films – serious documentaries for a mass audience – in the impatient arena of television. More than 400 films (IMDb lists a fraction) and not one flop. A hard record to match. (See my interview with NPR’s Scott Simon on LinkedIn; link at the bottom.) Story, of course, is the key to success. I know story. After writing and editing hundreds of nonfiction stories during my print career, I spent five years at Discovery Networks (in its documentary heyday) as resident script doctor. My job: boost profits by boosting ratings. I did. Most filmmakers are stronger with a camera than a pen. Some of the rough cuts that crossed my desk just needed a polish. Most needed surgery. I didn’t give drive-by notes; I waded in and fixed the problems, and with the filmmaker’s endorsement to boot. Then my work was judged by an unforgiving standard: the Nielsens. I not only hit the target, I typically surpassed it -- sometimes astronomically. Not … one … flop. Drama directors start with a story, then shoot. In documentaries, I’m typically forced to create the story after we shoot. I start with thousands of raw shots, facts, and sound bites. Shot by shot and line by line, I winnow that chaos to crack the code of structure. Structure is the key to story: where to start, where to end, and how to arrange what comes between. I make thousands of choices about words and pictures, sound and music, guided solely by my gut. As writer-director John Sayles says, I’m “thinking in pictures.” I have more experience as a film writer than most directors, and more experience as a filmmaker than most writers – and more hours as a script and film doctor than maybe anyone. I’ve turned all that experience to drama: adaptation. I sometimes adapt fiction but largely stick to the bankable genre of inspiring true stories. Among my scripts: a true NASA drama to rival Apollo 13; a true POW thriller to rival The Great Escape; a true Cold War drama to rival John le Carre; a real-life Rain Man based on Daniel Tammet’s acclaimed memoir Born on a Blue Day; the greatest submarine adventure ever – a mission that changed history; the Hidden Figures of the U.S. military; a pilot based on James Kaplan’s definitive biography of the original American idol -- Sinatra; a rom-com that taps the lucrative, global audience of Downton Abbey. And more. In development: a limited series drawn from history that makes Game of Thrones look like child’s play; a real-life Master and Commander saga with a teenage hero; a civil rights mystery to outshine Selma; a House of Cards-esque diplomatic thriller; and dozens more movies and series. The difference between a documentary and a drama is who’s in front of the camera. The challenge remains the same: entertain the viewer and reward the investor. I do. What story can I tell for you? https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-parker-bb08905/

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