Script Consultant Institute

Derek Rydall is one of the top creative people in this business. His insight on story and knowledge of structure consistently amazes me. Creative, conscious, and insightful, Derek (and the rest of the staff at Scriptwriter Central) is an attribute and a gift to any project,”

Matt Seigel, Producer, WideAwake Films, "Big Brother (Fox),” “Pop (New Regency),” “Life Coach (Fox),” “Soul Mates (Sony),” “Holiday Club (Fox),” “Destiny (New Regency)

I've sold over 1/2 million dollars worth of scripts, have had projects produced, and one of the key factors in accomplishing that has been getting great feedback on my work – before it goes out. I don't believ e w ithout Derek's help, and that of his team at Scriptwriter Central, many of my projects would have gotten as far as they did. Bottom line, I believe in investing in my work – and Mr. Rydall and his staff are always my first choice!

Allan Katz, CAA writer, “Diamonds,” “El Mostro,” “Senior Vasquez & the Holy Donut,” “Desert Storm.”

Derek Rydall is one of the top creative people in this business. His insight on story and knowledge of structure consistently amazes me. Creative, conscious, and insightful, Derek is an attribute and a gift to any project he touches,

Matt Seigel, Producer, WideAwake Films, "Big Brother (Fox),” “Pop (New Regency),” “Life Coach (Fox),” “Soul Mates (Sony),” “Holiday Club (Fox),” “Destiny (New Regency)”

As a script consultant, Derek Rydall was instrumental in keeping the ideas flowing, while maintaining a strong sense of what we needed in order to make our project a commercial success.  His writing process challenges, excites and leads stories in ways I never dreamt possible! Thanks to Derek, we were able to attract the creative team and talent to bring my career to the next level!

Daniel Rangel , Producer-writer-actor, "Lawful Descent", "Losing Lenny", "False Evidence Appearing Real", "The Final Lesson,”Luis Valdez's “Zoot Suit/La Bamba” and Peter Gilbert's “Hoop Dreams/Prefontaine”

Working with Derek is a synergistic experience tantamount to a fission reaction.  We can generate more material than we have time to harness—the true mark of an explosively creative process.  He has a keen ability to analyze material, whether on the page or pouring from your head, and an intuitive knack for asking the hard questions that lead to the right solutions. Whenever you need a little diagnosing, prescribing, or just plain scribing, I highly recommend getting a second opinion from this script doc.

Bill Lae, writer-director-producer: “SuperGuy: Behind the Cape” Mockumentary and TV series, “The Couch Critics” Movie Review / Comedy Show, “BigScreamTV,” “Merlin” TV series, “ “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and “Outer Limits.”

Derek is one of the most passionate, creative writers I've worked with. His ability to take a thread of an idea and spin story gold is amazing! If you want a professional, artistic, and commercial take on your material, this is the place to bring your script!

Lisa Gooding, Head of Development, Capital Arts, Rob Zombie's, “THE DEVILS REJECTS,” Don Roos', “HAPPY ENDINGS” Universal's “AMERICAN PIE: BAND CAMP,” Queen Latifah's “THE COOKOUT” “ Paramount's “THE PRINCE & ME 1&2.”

I've used Derek's consultation services several times over the years.  He has an obvious knowledge of the craft, and his personal attention always exceeds my expectations.  Unlike many consultants, Derek makes a sincere effort to connect with what I want to create instead of trying to steer me into a genre or style he personally prefers.  And sure it's business, but I also consider Derek a friend.

Roscoe Plikerd, Screenwriter, Newark , Ohio.

Derek Rydall's script doctoring was instrumental in taking our script NO TURNING BACK to the level were it could get produced. He was not only great in bringing focus to our story to make it more compelling, but also in developing dialogue that gave a clear and distinctive voice to each one of the main characters. I'm certain that without Derek's help NO TURNING BACK would have never ended up winning 21 international awards and getting worldwide distribution.”

Jesus Nebot Filmmaker/actor

Derek Rydall is a wonderful midwife. When you are laboring to deliver that baby -- I mean script -- he is the one you want by your side, helping and encouraging you every step of the way.

Ellen Switkes , Writer, Actress

Derek Rydall is a great writer!  As an independent producer, I read many scripts - most of which are dismal, at best.  It's refreshing to read material that's not only original, but entertaining and often enthralling.  In fact, I like Derek's writing so much that I am actively involved pursuing some of them as a producer.  I am blessed to have doors open to some very powerful people at major studios, therefore I must be very selective in the scripts that I submit.  There have been some very close calls on Derek's scripts and I soon hope to set up at least one of them.

Derek has a great way of story-telling and creating characters that are likeable and complex.  Whenever he has a new script, I anxiously plow through it.  Derek is going to be huge in the industry and we'll all be saying, "I knew him when".  Hopefully it will b e w ith a project that he and I have completed

Pamela Dearing , Producer.

I had the pleasure of co-facilitating a creativ e w orkshop for actors, directors, and writers with Derek Rydall. While my focus was on acting,) I watched in awe as Derek worked with th e w riters. Derek has the ability to see past the obvious and mine for the gold. I'v e w atched time and again as Derek brought forth material from writers that was not apparent and that th e w riters were unaware they had. His particular skill at analyzing a problem and devising a solution is quite amazing. And, to top it off, he creates a nurturing environment wher e w riters seem to flourish. I cannot recommend him too strongly to anyon e w ishing to hone their writing skills or polish a screenplay or play.

Elkanah Burns, Lawyer, Toluca Lake , CA

As a script analyst, Derek Rydall combines a thorough grasp of story elements, screenplay structure and format with up-to-the-minute knowledge of market trends. He knows that every good screenplay is a unique animal expressing the author's singular voice, so he works to peel away the layers of dialogue, action and visuals until he discovers the underlying theme and the best strategies for delivering it in the author's own voice.

Uriah Carr , Actor-Writer, N. Hollywood , CA

The best teachers teach not from theory but from practice, and Derek Rydall is such a teacher. Listening to his comments, it was clear to me that he has put a great deal of time and study into his understanding of the art and craft of screenwriting, and h e w as absolutely genuine--and generous--in his desire to help me benefit from his years of experience as a writer, an actor and a human being. Most of all, Derek is passionate about writing, and wants others to be just as passionate about it as he is. Writers at all levels will benefit significantly, as I did, from Derek's specific, insightful--and I'll say it again--passionate instruction.

Johnny Cho , Writer, Marketer, Culver City , CA

Derek worked as a script consultant and advisor with me on several projects to polish up scripts.  He did work in both the horror and comedy genres and I found h e w as equally adept at both.  Derek has a canny ability to see the story not the genre.  In my experience, I found Derek to be an extremely creative and gifted consultant.  He has a great ability to bring the quality of the dialogue up several notches so that the characters become fully realized, unique and three dimensional.  Derek brings the dialogue in lin e w ith the arc the characters.  H e w as also able to cut to the core of the structure and find the real heart of the screenplay.   For thos e w ho want their projects to get the attention of industry professionals Derek is the man to see.  He got my scripts to the next level.

Jim O'Hern, Writer, Lawyer, New York , NY

Derek Rydall revamped and polished my screenplay “EINSTEIN.” He did an excellent job by making it much more lively and interesting. Especially, he greatly improved the beginning, or the hook, for the screenplay.

Walter C. Mih, writer, engineer, Washington State

When I give my script to someone to read, what I want ideally is a laser beam: someon e w ho can pinpoint exactly and specifically what works in my script and what doesn't--and why. Derek Rydall is precisely that kind of script analyst. Being a prolific and experienced writer himself, he knows firsthand the territory of the screenwriting landscape, and has guided me through many of the pitfalls and perils that kept my bad writing from being good, and my good writing from being great.

Johnny Cho , Writer, marketer, Culver City , CA

Derek Rydall understands the heart and soul of screenwriting. He combines his experience as an actor, his craft as a writer, his knowledge of structure and his love of storytelling to make up a solid foundation for his skillful coaching. Probably the most powerful element of his teaching, however, is something more subtle and profound that all of these skills combined. Derek has an intuitive ability to locate the emotional essence of a story and to help illuminate the spiritual significance of the character's arc. Derek knows that if you find the heart and soul, the story will reveal itself.

Ed Munter. Award-Winning Composer, Writer, Producer

 Derek Rydall is coach of the screenwriter coach. His many years of experience have taken him through all phases of script development and all aspects of coaching. He has written several screenplays, coached many writer and has advised many coaches. His knowledge of the craft, his skill as a coach and his excellent people skills make him an excellent resource for coaches who are looking for inside tips, development executives seeking guidance for a specific project and studio executives seeking product analysis. Derek is the go-to-guy for script development support.

Ed Munter. Award-Winning Composer, Writer, Producer

As a writing teacher, Derek Rydall directs the author toward his/her fullest self-realization in language via his knowledge of the creativ e w riting process. Brainstorming story ideas and creative visualization of scenes are two techniques that he used to guide me towards a deeper expression of my own voice.

Uriah Carr , Actor/writer, North Hollywood , CA

Derek's love of narrative inspires writers to let their stories tell themselves.

Kimberly King-Burns , TV/Stage writer/actor, Bahamas Film Commission.

Derek recognized and finely delineated story and form weaknesses, offering hints, by example, for strengthening the storyline, building and introducing characters, and constructing proper script structure. What I found most helpful were his examples, and, especially, his explanation of ‘structure'. Though effective with his own explanation, Derek suggested, as augmentation to his explanation, reading books on script structure, explaining “….for the writer to be able to see what material is superfluous, what material is essential, and where the gaps exist. Since reading Mr. Rydall's Report of my spec script, I have initiated, with much enthusiasm, a comprehensive rewrite of the structure and characters of my spec script, have just completed an eleven page Treatment on a new script, and have reorganized my thoughts on the resumption of yet another script-in-progress which I've delayed for nearly two years!

Robert A. De Christofaro, Jr., Screenwriter.

It doesn't take many words to express my joy of working with and knowing Derek Rydall. Derek has surely over the years helped to broaden my horizon and captured my visions and ideas on paper. His heart is as genuine as his talent.

Jeff Etheridge

Derek works with beginning and advanced storytellers to help them get out of their own way, to finesse their narrative with bold and original choices.

Kimberly King-Burns , TV/Stage writer/actor, Bahamas Film Commission.