BAFTA Winner Aaron Sorkin Never Meet Mark Zuckerberg!

Online, February 14, 2011 (Newswire.com) - Hey Everyone,

Okay, I was blown away when I read this. I mean really. I've always been a fan of Aaron Sorkin's amazing work, especially with dialogue like in The West Wing, but I was just dumbfounded when I read this. How could he have won this BAFTA and never met him? Read below for the full skinny

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With no access to Zuckerberg, Sorkin had to rely on sworn statements given in depositions by all the parties involved along with other sources.

He also collaborated with author Ben Mezrich, whose book about the affair - The Accidental Billionaires - was written at the same time as his screenplay.

"I've never met or spoken to Mark," the West Wing creator says. "[But] he's been a terrific sport about it.

"The day the movie opened in the US, he shut down the Facebook offices, bought out an entire theatre and took his staff over to see it.

"Mark needed this movie like a hole in the head," Sorkin continues. "I think the way he handled it is to be admired."

Yet Sorkin says that even if Zuckerberg came to him with his version of events, he would not write an alternate "what really happened" film.

"What really happened was that two separate law suits were brought against Mark Zuckerberg," the 49-year-old says: "It's a story with themes as old as storytelling itself... set against a very modern backdrop"Aaron Sorkin

"The defendants and witnesses all swore an oath and came out telling three different versions of the story.

"I didn't pick one and decide it was the truth. I liked there were three different - and often at times conflicting - versions of the story.

"I didn't add anything to spice it up at all. Everything you see is something that somebody testified happened."

In order to pack all the information in, the screenplay was about 40 pages longer than the industry average.

Yet it did not translate to an extra 40 minutes on screen, thanks to the fast-paced dialogue Sorkin penned.

"I like dialogue," he says. "It sounds like music. What the words sound like are as important to me as what the words mean."

Sorkin is considered favourite to take home an Oscar for his screenplay. Speaking a month ahead of the ceremony, though, he is modest about his chances of winning.

"It's bad luck to prepare an acceptance speech, so I don't," he says.

"It's not hard for me to remember the people I want to thank or who are important to me.

"So if something terrific happens and my name is called it won't be difficult."

Sorkin set up a Facebook account while researching the film. But he shut it down soon after and has not returned.

"The movie isn't really about Facebook," he tells the BBC News website. "It's a story with themes as old as storytelling itself.

"Friendship, loyalty, betrayal, power, class and jealousy - just set against a very modern backdrop."

source: bbc.co.uk

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Brandon again.

I guess, in a situation like this, it's better drama if you DON'T have the cooperation of your main subject.

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Later,

Brandon
www.HollywoodScreenwritingSecrets.com