Leave it to Troy Lanier and Clay Nichols, two St. Stephen's faculty-guys teaching teens here in the filmmaking epicenter we call the Third Coast to write the definitive how-to book for Linklater and Rodriguez wannabes. This book does about the best job we've seen of reverse-engineering the filmmaking process from the first "a-ha!" of inspiration on the script page to the last sigh of satisfaction as the credits roll in a darkened theatre. Each step is rendered fun and, best yet, doable – without sucking the wind out of the sails of the teen-auteur who's always felt sure his debut film would be along the lines of, say, a Citizen Kane remake.
