Pool Movie Writing Thread

justnum

justnum

Billiards Improvement Research Projects Associate
Silver Member
In current times would the most accurate representation of a pool player be a communist oppressed athlete trying to survive by traveling the world looking for titles to win and prize money to take home.

A fictional story set in a fictional country. Due to scarcity of jobs or opportunity an individual dedicates countless hours to self development in billiards. The interest is when the unknowning communist arrives to America. American values and friendships create a inner conflict, which plays out over the course of a future serialized column in this thread. Art to follow.

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Sounds pretty cool. One word of caution --- a real pool movie should not be a soap opera. It should, instead, be about the pool specific tensions, relationships and experiences faced by those that aspire to be big winners at pool.
 
sjm said:
Sounds pretty cool. One word of caution --- a real pool movie should not be a soap opera. It should, instead, be about the pool specific tensions, relationships and experiences faced by those that aspire to be big winners at pool.
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Expressing the mathematical nature creatively will definitely be an aspiration for each piece. Thanks
 
The hardworking joe who was a good league player who likes to play friendly sets for a beer loses it all and turns to pool to console himself vowing to be the best and prove a regular guy can make it. Along the way he finds himself having to comprise his values and sense of right and wrong. Finds himself stuck after his backers go broke in the casino and put him into a hail mary game giving of weight he could never win with. He befriends a prominent trick shot artist who was a top pro at one time. The trick shot artist needs an assistant/stand in and tells the guy he will teach him the circuit and share the steady living. The guy, broken and desperate takes the offer and the old trick shot artist works him mercilessly always keeping the schedule so that the guy can't play in tournaments. At one exhibition the owner get to spend a hour shooting with the guy and sees that he is very good and offers to stake him on tour. The trick shot artist shuts this down deceitfully and wrings another few months out of the hero until he figures it out. Guy makes his way back to the pool room and sees that the offer is still good and starts to train. The guy gets real good and starts climbing the ranks. In the finals for the year end rankings he is taken aside by the other player and offered a significant amount if he wins by a certain score. Guy says nah, I win or you win and you will always know that I played every game to win. He finds his peace by keeping his promise to always try to be an excellent human.
 
They call him Slo n Steddy.
He's quite inquisitive, to the point of annoyance.
Cheap as they come, one day he was busted hacking a barbox with soda straws. They took him outside and broke his thumbs.
From that day on, he could never run more than three balls, but boasts of running out 15 playing eight ball. Yeah, his thumbs aren't the only thing twisted up.
 
origin story

origin story draft

small town, small school and small minded community

a child youth is introduced to the community recreational facility for most of the greater area.

in the fictional commie country, children must declare a recreational interest when registering at the community center.

the choices at the rec center are soccer, chess, baseball, track, swimming, billiards and art.

when you declare a rec interest, its a rite of passage, because the next step is to pass a billiard exam to be given competition eligibility.

that exam is a national exam given only once. the first challenge to competing is qualifying to compete.

the personal challenge for the youth is the national exam is given on a blue table, the rec center only has the green table.

(tossing ideas out, then i plan to setup some story boards)

please harshly criticize. its just for fun.
i wont take it personal.
 
HNTFSH said:
If you wanna get this on Netflix the subject has to be wrestling with gender identity too with Color of Money posters all over it's bedroom walls and Scientology propaganda evident in every scene.
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Past pool movies focused on "the action." The gambling, competition, or general personalities.
I agree netflix would want a female heroine would work. Combo Jeanette Lee, Allison Fisher and Siming Chen, a hero that is marketable, socialable, well liked and talented in pool. A character arc is needed, finding a husband and making a living and becoming the greatest pool player from the small commie town. And put a surprise cancer story in there. Would you want to date someone knowing they are terminally ill?

Most inspiring "disney" style sports movies have emphasis on the wonder and interest.

When you were a teenager deciding your interest how did you find your way to the pool table. What kept you interested in it?

I plan to go with the sword in the stone approach, where the hero/heroine just tries it and likes it. After years of practicing in lonely commie town with no pool player in a 500 mile radius, the decision to travel to Pool Country, USA is made. Having an interest in pool over other choices has to be in the story. Why or what makes pool more interesting... I am still developing that idea. The decision to pursue pool as an interest is to find a tribe or a people or a family or community. Small town commie land just doesn't have the mentoring or wisdom the hero/heroine seeks. I need that to be more clear in sequence.


The Commie based hero or heroine has enough money for one trip to America, for the International Pool Expo hosted by Allen Falsdeau.
A major showcase of all the big sponsors and brands as well as a highly regarded pool tournament for young players to showcase their talents.
At that point in the film I can just promote all the newest billiard technology and American pool widgets. Even all the new rules or gambling rules or ways to promote the sport, its not always about competition.


Thanks for the post. There is plenty of content however, I am trying to find a focus for a movie trailer last 1-2 min produced as a storyboard sequence. Most trailers give people an idea of what could happen.

The trailer starts with what does pool mean to a person and ends with what does it mean to be part of the pool community at conventions. It should leave viewers thinking about well who did they put in and who did they make fun of. I am writing this on a pool fan website so, I could imagine everyone knows the "big pool references"

If you cant pick up on International Pool Expo and Allen Falsdeau, then it is a veiled reference to some other time in history. I plan to do that often this way the trailer also promotes the best parts of the sport and some controversial bits.
 
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This is draft 01 of the sequence for choosing billiards as an interest.

Its 44 seconds of keyframes and small minded jokes.

I used grease pencil on blender for the keyframes.
 
The journey begins (draft of visuals needed, i should try thumbnails this time)

the commie hero being from a small town would represent the best of the Brunswick competition equipment and cue styles and cue action from that period. Backstory is an America pro pool player retired and died in that town, the equipment was donated to the rec center. The hero never knew how good the equipment was and never will, it could be a hidden recurring theme.

The first time at a International Billiard Expo the hero is exposed to advances in cue technology starting with gloves, practice break equipment, aiming equipment and educational material. It should be an equipment war between Rasson and Diamond this way all the big sponsors get mentioned. The conflict between the old competition gear and new competition has to shine brightly. smaller side story would be the old vs new in promotion pre covid and post covid.

Still thinking about a strong visual showing a pool table and pool match as an attraction for groups from all over.
cheesy lines like every new player thinks "they have shot" or older players be thinking "not repeating past mistakes"
 
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The first time at a International Billiard Expo the hero is exposed to advances in cue technology starting with gloves, practice break equipment, aiming equipment and educational material. It should be an equipment war between Rasson and Diamond this way all the big sponsors get mentioned. The conflict between the old competition gear and new competition has to shine brightly. smaller side story would be the old

SSorry, your draft is riddles with big ideas that aren't.

citing the above as an example, how does it resent on film?
New technology in gloves?...see how easy the shaft slides now? And it is machine washable!
New tech in tables? The cushion angles are different, so the table plays shorter.

And rasson/ diamond is about as interesting as sprite vs slice. Less interesting as a movie prop.

The best story about pool is greenleaf, probably told from the perspective of his princess wife. And I think pool would be a secondary story there for any real screenwriter.
 
Black-Balled said:
The first time at a International Billiard Expo the hero is exposed to advances in cue technology starting with gloves, practice break equipment, aiming equipment and educational material. It should be an equipment war between Rasson and Diamond this way all the big sponsors get mentioned. The conflict between the old competition gear and new competition has to shine brightly. smaller side story would be the old

SSorry, your draft is riddles with big ideas that aren't.

citing the above as an example, how does it resent on film?
New technology in gloves?...see how easy the shaft slides now? And it is machine washable!
New tech in tables? The cushion angles are different, so the table plays shorter.

And rasson/ diamond is about as interesting as sprite vs slice. Less interesting as a movie prop.

The best story about pool is greenleaf, probably told from the perspective of his princess wife. And I think pool would be a secondary story there for any real screenwriter.
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Your thinking an adult film like TCOM

I am thinking like a childrens film like The Mighty Ducks.

A movie for children to get them interested in pool.

In Unstoppable by Disney an adult walkon takes pads off and magically out performs high level pros.
In D2 the sequel to mighty ducks, several players are recruited for specific skills and physical traits.
In Miracle, a hockey coach uses unorthodox training methods and it results in success.

Follow the disney formula.

The logic of the film is having the equipment leads to success.
As for picking at the details, thats why its called draft.

I am still trying to narrow down the experience you get from the film.

I am adapting a classic story with pool.

I will post some story boards soon.
 
Intro Sequence

planned development: the foreground will change subtly to show a timelapse in age, while the background including equipment and players go from local amateur action to tv table at a major tournament. The purpose of this sequence is to showcase all kinds of pool behavior and characters while letting the main character respond in meaningful ways for later sequences.

working plot: Montage of good times playing pool with people. The montage ends with the players cheering on the main character departing for the first time to compete USA.



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One idea that I really enjoyed was John Painz' "8 for Vegas" which is a mockumentary about an APA pool team. In general, I think there are a lot of ways you can go that would be entertaining but there is no substitute for great talent in writing and directing. In Painz' series, he's obviously making fun of the craziness often seen in APA matches but he also captures the excitement, disappointment, and commodore that we all enjoy on league night. And it feels genuine, which is something I've often felt lacking in many of the B-level pool movies.

 
Emotion for visual direction:
Seeing players at their assigned table during a major tournament is the point of no return. Once tournament play starts it doesn't end until a victory is declared. American players will play by any means necessary to score a victory. The Funswick Free For All Tournament is an open tournament for upcoming players to see if they have what it takes. The champion of the Funswick Free For All tournament wins a seeded place in the International Billiard Expo championship.


backstory development for American players coming up next.
Two-Slice Tony a pizza eating New Yorker
Shiny Shin a balding asian man that wears hats indoors
handlebar Mars, pool promoters son
curly Carl, transgender character

the next sequence should showcase why each player has a reputation at the pool table.

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