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Jim

I am here for Friends and Networking

About Me

I recently produced Hard Scrambled, a feature film starring Kurtwood Smith (That 70’s Show, Robocop) and Richard Edson (Do the Right Thing, Stranger than Paradise). It had its world premiere in March, 2006 at Cinequest Film Festival and recently won Best Dramatic Feature at Garden State Film Festival.I directed and co-produced the feature film March which stars Cynda Williams (One False Move). Chris Potter of the Ann Arbor News gave the film 4 out of 4 stars and wrote, “March is in fact an astonishing and deeply disturbing meditation on the tangled conflicts of the human heart…remarkable first film.”My screenplay Dysfunction Junction won a Platinum Remi Award (top honor) at the 2006 Worldfest-Houston Film Festival. My then-regular column was singled out by the LA Times as “hilarious” when they chose Creative Screenwriting as the best screenwriting magazine.I am the former Director of Development for the producer of Allison Anders’ Gas-Food-Lodging and was ranked as the fifth best script consultant in the country (www.jamespmercurio.com). As a teacher, I have shepherded over 600 short films. I directed the original 41 DVDs of the Screenwriting Expo Seminar Series and the Hard Scrambled bonus material. Check out one of the education modules here somewhere.I played in my first ever World Series of Poker event this year and cashed. I busted Kathy Liebert in the first orbit. I also occassionally write about poker for All In Magazine and I have regular column with The Southern California Gaming Guide.

My Interests

I'd like to meet:

People who don't lie.

My Blog

Where I am Going

AM moving off of Myspace for the most part.To keep in touch....Sign up for my monthly newsletter at A-listscreenwriting.comHEre is the first issuehttp://www.championscreenwriting.com/newsletters/craft. ..
Posted by on Sat, 29 Aug 2009 19:57:00 GMT

It’s all right, it’s all right, it’s all right, yeah...

Check out this video: My Lucky Day
Posted by on Tue, 02 Dec 2008 02:38:00 GMT

Zen in the Art of the Final Polish

If I am going to solicit for my classes on my blog, I might as well give put up some actual content too.  The first part of this has appeared at RougeWave and in the current Coverage I...
Posted by on Wed, 29 Oct 2008 21:03:00 GMT

Jims November Workshops...WILL FILL UP QUICK

Jim Mercurio is holding a small private structure workshop (Killer Endings and Theme) on Saturday, November 22, and a scene workshop on Sunday, November 23 in Venice Beach. The classes ...
Posted by on Wed, 29 Oct 2008 13:26:00 GMT

Some Cool News

I got a phone call last week from the company of an A-list Hollywood Person. Can't say who but this person has more than a billion dollars in box office.  They wanted to interrupt my East Co...
Posted by on Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:16:00 GMT

My Dads E-cookbook is on sale at solidebooks.com

  Carb-counting, calorie-crunching and low-fat substitutes? Not in this book. Unlike those celebrity chef yahoos you see on TV, Papa Joe gives you no fluff. Only the substance. If you love eatin...
Posted by on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 21:02:00 GMT

Killer Screenwriting Suprise Guest & Chance to Win Seat

KILLER SCREENWRITING  THREE SURPRISES AND A DEADLINE!        SPECIAL GUEST IN LA & 2 WAYS TO TAKE THE WORKSHOP FOR FREE! Kurtwood Smith, star of That 70's Show ...
Posted by on Thu, 29 May 2008 13:28:00 GMT

Allison Anders Interview from a while back

She is so cool.   Good filmmaker, great writer.   AN INTERVIEW WITH ALLISON ANDERS by James P. Mercurio GETTING STARTED What are some of the movies and filmmakers that made you fall in lov...
Posted by on Mon, 11 Feb 2008 20:47:00 GMT

IN DEFENSE OF DEFENSE MECHANISMS

I found some old articles on my old computer.  I was a much worse writer then, but there is some fun content.  I may get insecure and delete these in a couple of days.  But enjoy. ...
Posted by on Mon, 11 Feb 2008 20:31:00 GMT

Ramblings on Theme (Some Dead Poet’s Society)

 Here are some posts I did on Done Deal (Scriptsales.com) about theme.  They don't hang together as one coherent piece, but there are a few meaty chunks here.  Reread McKee's chapt...
Posted by on Sat, 24 Nov 2007 15:24:00 GMT