Derek Cianfrance: Screenwriter Research

SCREENWRITER RESEARCH

DEREK CIANFRANCE

'Blue Valentine’, ‘The Place Beyond the Pines’, ‘I know this much is true’.

Derek Cianfrance is a Screenwriter/Director from Colorado. He was interested in Filmmaking from a young age and began making films at 13. He went on to study Film Production at University.

Cianfrance on the set of 'I know this much is true'.

Cianfrance has had no formal screenwriting education and says that (Scott Myers. 2013)

“In terms of screenwriting I never took classes, never learned how to write. I became a writer out of necessity. I wanted to tell stories on film. My only guiding principle was to tell things that feel personal, exposing, almost like a diary. That was the only way.”

This reflects the feeling of Cianfrance’s work; his stories often explore the intimacy between people in platonic and romantic relationships and examines themes of family ties and legacy. Often, he creates work that alternates between timelines, or that are bookended by polarising situations. He’ll explore the early days of romance, the initial magic of falling in love, understanding the weight of subtext and harnessing it to it’s full potential. Much in the same way, he understands the nuances of a relationship turned sour, that delicate line between loving and loathing is so well balanced in his work.

Ryan Gosling. Eva Mendes. The place beyond the pines.

In addition to his excellent screenwriting, Cianfrance directs much of his own work and he does so in an incredibly intimate directing style which you can see reflects the nature of his writing. You’ll find idiosyncratic qualities of Characters and situations littered throughout his screenplays. In execution, they translate expertly to the screen. It’s easy to appreciate his keen observational skills and his ability to find drama in ordinary events, he acknowledges the honesty and imperfection of real-life and this is what makes his work feel so authentic. An excerpt from the screenplay from ‘Blue Valentine’ (Cianfrance, D. 2010) reads:

“4th of July independence recital.

Frankie and kids from the kindergarten class sing “yankee doodle dandy.” It isn’t some perfect performance. They are kids. They miss the words, sing out of key.”

Ryan Gosling. Michelle Williams. Blue Valentine

The power of the writing lies in it’s simplicity. In three short sentences, a picture is painted of the scene which is immediately relatable. Cianfrance is excellent at writing in this way, but, perhaps unusually, is also credited for his ability to conjure natural situations in an entirely different way; instead of supplementing the screenplay with additional detail, he’ll hold back on description altogether and let the cameras roll. This helps to create more natural, instinctual performances on screen. In one scene from ‘Blue Valentine’, where the two leads are getting to know each other, Cianfrance loosely instructed his performers (Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams) of the scene they were shooting, but chose to skip rehearsal and filmed the first time that the two of them performed (Cianfrance, D. 2010)

DEAN

No, I’ll play a song and you dance. I

can't really sing... I have to sing stupid, like goofy, in order to sing.

He begins strumming the upbeat chords of The Mills Brother’s “You Always Hurt The Ones You Love.” She begins tap dancing.

(The actors experience this for the first time too. We should witness and experience them falling in love).

For me, much of the appeal of Cianfrance’s work is in his conviction to tell stories that grapple with both the beauty and pain of the existential and his innate ability to convert the ordinary to the extra-ordinary. There are few filmmakers who truly understand these themes, and many less who can also write and direct them with a 'Midas-touch’ quality. 

This, in my opinion, is what makes him an important, although underrated component of modern day cinema. 

Ryan Gosling. Michelle Williams. Blue Valentine

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Scott Myers. (2013). Written interview: Derek Cianfrance. Available: https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/written-interview-derek-cianfrance-826293af474b. Last accessed 29th Nov 2021.

Cianfrance, D. (2010). Blue Valentine Screenplay. Available: https://www.scriptslug.com/assets/scripts/blue-valentine-2010.pdf. Last accessed 29th Nov 2021.