I had never thought of myself as a dramatist, and, for really good technical results, the thought came too late: a man of letters has become too wordy to write economically for the stage.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
The history of screenwriting - of what we do - is more than 100 years old. It's thousands of years old, going back to Sophocles and Euripedes. I believe the only - the only - separation for being a dramatist is reading drama.
I think there are some people who are just kind of born to create drama and then capitalise on it.
The thing with drama is you're allowed to invent people who are maybe slightly better than real people.
The modern economics of the theater is such that we write plays with fewer and fewer characters.
I've never gotten hired for drama because I'm a good improviser. I don't think people who write drama scripts want you playing with them as much.
Now, drama is quite useful at helping us to understand what our position is and, conversely, we might then understand why our theatre is being destroyed.
The wonderful thing about drama school is that it stretches you in a way the industry doesn't.
The economics of being a playwright are abysmal. I like to think of the work I do out in Hollywood as a way to actually make a life in the theater easier.
I don't do drama. I'm a comedian.
I'm a dramatist.