Monday, April 27, 1998
Notable film school grad turns back to classroom
FILM: Successful screenwriter David Koepp uses Hollywood
experience to teach aspiring students
By Mason Stockstill
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
A lone velociraptor stands poised, ready to attack.
Encased in a glass box, this model raptor is the only overt
piece of memorabilia from one of his own films that he displays in
his office. And David Koepp refuses to have his picture taken with
it.
"I’ve had my picture taken with dinosaurs too many times,"
Koepp, the screenwriter for the blockbusters "Jurassic Park" and
"The Lost World: Jurassic Park," explains.
Koepp, 34, is the latest UCLA screenwriting alum (class of ’90)
to make it big in Hollywood and then return to teach the art.
"I went into screenwriting because I couldn’t make it as an
actor," jokes the writer as he relaxes in his office suite’s dining
area, listening to Portishead.
Originally from Wisconsin, Koepp was enrolled in the playwriting
program at the University of Wisconsin when a professor suggested a
change of pace.
"All the plays I wrote had about 37 scenes in them," he says.
"So a professor suggested that I enroll in a screenwriting program
at a film school."
Koepp’s experience at UCLA and pre-professional screenwriting
career can apparently be summed up in one short sentence.
"I wrote all the time, at school, at home, at night, at work,
when my boss was out of town," he says.
One of those scripts Koepp was constantly working on was called
"Bad Influence." Soon after graduating from UCLA, Koepp sold the
script, which got his foot in the door in Hollywood. He must have
done something right since then, because a dozen scripts later,
he’s still going strong.
"I’ve had a good percentage of screenplays produced," Koepp
notes. "Though I can’t think of a time when I wasn’t disappointed
with a script. I like my stuff, but if you don’t have a critical
eye, then you end up writing something that’s not your best
work."
His latest film, called "Snake Eyes," is due out in theaters
Aug. 7. It’s a mystery/suspense centering around an assassination
at a boxing match in Atlantic City. The film stars Nicolas Cage and
Gary Sinise, and is directed by Brian De Palma.
"The film takes place in real time," Koepp explains. "There’s a
cop who’s interviewing different witnesses to the same event, so
you get to see the same incident from different perspectives."
Koepp serves as one of the producers on "Snake Eyes." This isn’t
the first time the writer has had a dual role on one of his films;
he also wrote and directed "The Trigger Effect" in 1996.
"Any screenwriter who says that they have no intention of
directing is lying," Koepp says. "It’s very tempting to direct
because then you’re the one in charge of the interpretation."
It’s easy to understand how Koepp could reach this conclusion,
since he admits that it is often "boring" being on the set with
nothing to do.
"You end up doing a lot of unnecessary rewriting" when the
screenwriter is on the set," he says.
Having worked with an almost unfair number of A-list directors
(including De Palma, Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis), Koepp
concedes that most of the films made from his scripts turned out
better than they would have if he had been in the director’s chair.
Still, that desire to interpret the story every step of the way is
powerful; Koepp is slated to direct another film this fall.
"Directing is the last legal dictatorship," he says. "While
there are still a lot of arguments on the set, you tend to win them
a lot more (when directing)."
Because of the preponderance of visual-effects movies lately,
Koepp says that the role of the screenwriter is taking on less and
less importance in Hollywood.
"The screenwriter is seen now as a necessary evil by a lot of
people in the business," he says. "Everyone is trying to get a
‘big’ film, and the importance of the script is downplayed. This
makes the writer’s job extremely difficult."
Koepp’s teaching gig this quarter is a result of a few guest
stints at the University Extension screenwriting program.
"Teaching is great for me because I’m formulating my thoughts as
I’m going," he says. "It helps me to have to put into words some
things that I do anyway. You really learn a lot, from students, and
from yourself."
PATRICK LAM
David Koepp, a fan of Alfred Hitchcock, has written several
famous movies including "Jurassic Park," "The Shadow" and "Trigger
Effect."