Danny Rubin is a legendary screen writer, most notably known for Groundhog Day (starring Bill Murray) and now blogger. Today, I interview Danny about his personal brand and his career progression.
After many years writing for professional theater companies as well as scripting industrial films and children’s television, Danny began writing screenplays. His screen credits include “Hear No Evil,” “S.F.W.,” and “Groundhog Day,” for which he received the British Academy Award for Best Screenplay and the Critics’ Circle Award for Screenwriter of the Year, as well as honors from the Writers Guild of America and the American Film Institute.
After being a screen writer, what drew you into the web 2.0 world with your “Blogus Groundhogus” blog?
As a screenwriter and coincidentally also as a person I like to spend periods of time engaging passionately with the world and then periods of time in quieter, stiller places. The last time I decided to emerge and get busy in public was last fall. I didn’t have a physical place to go to do that, but I had to poke my head out somewhere and the web was the best way for me to enter the world without having to actually go anywhere.
The Blogus satisfied many of my agendas at the time I was going public. I had done a radio essay for NPR where I talked about screenwriting and character, and I realized that I had a lot of thoughts and opinions about the relationships between screenwriting and aspects of human life, starting with my own. I wasn’t much of an essayist but figured that if I started writing semi-regularly maybe I’d develop a style. The Blogus offered me a place to do this – and with the public looking over my shoulder I felt I might be further motivated to stick with it. Also my style is naturally informal, and fits well with the informality of the discourse on the internet.
I also wanted to bounce some of these thoughts about writing off of real people, maybe find out if anybody out there shared my interests or wanted to kick things around.
And finally, I knew there was a huge interest in Groundhog Day – not just the insider’s movie trivia interest or even the screenwriter’s tip-sheet interest – but an interest in the way the movie was able to transform the way people thought about their own lives. It seemed like a good idea to use people’s interest in all things Groundhogological to draw them into the discussion, while giving me a focus for my observations on screenwriting.
I truly believe that the number one reason to blog, is to freely and openly connect with everyone else. Judging from your blog, it seems like you want to be asked questions in an open manner. What led you to do an open-door policy?
A lot of the time I don’t even know what I’m thinking until I have a question to form my thoughts around, so I welcome questions. Besides, entering the world for me mean being part of a community. I have that lecturer-type rhythm where I throw something out there and then become a moderator of the ensuing discussion.
How as “Groundhog Day” the pinnacle of your career and how has it elevated your personal brand?
Many people see Groundhog Day as a writer’s movie, a perception much aided by the generous credit I’ve been given by both Harold Ramis and Bill Murray in their various public appearances. My brand – my public identity – is therefore very tightly associated with that movie, and as the movie elevates in standing as the years go by, I get to elevate, too. I’m honestly the luckiest person on earth.
Those in the movie industry are perhaps more familiar than the general public with the many screenplays I’ve written over the years, and I believe those screenplays all share certain qualities with the Ghog screenplay.
That helps reenforce my brand as well, as the writer of a certain kind of screenplay.
How do you view writing a blog is different than a script. Do you think you would ever write a script, post by post on your blog?
Even though most of the movie Casablanca was essentially written this way – one scene at a time, often the night before shooting, as if written post by post – my current process wouldn’t work that way. On the other hand, perhaps someday I could give it a try. Interesting….
What is your next move and the future of the Danny Rubin brand?
This fall I will begin a five year adventure teaching screenwriting at Harvard University. In taking that gig I wasn’t trying to do anything brand-wise-speaking, although I suspect I may have failed.
