Hollywood gets a new monster,the data cruncher

The same kind of numbers analysis that has reshaped areas like politics and online marketing is increasingly being used by the entertainment industry.

Now,the slicing and dicing is seeping into one of the last corners of Hollywood where creativity still holds sway: the screenplay.

A chain-smoking former statistics professor named Vinny Bruzzesethe reigning mad scientist of Hollywood, in the words of one studio customerhas started to aggressively pitch a service he calls script new evaluation. For as much as 20,000 per script,Bruzzese compares the story structure of a draft script with those of released movies,looking for clues to box-office success. His company,Worldwide Motion Picture Group,also digs into a database of focus group results for similar films and surveys 1,500 potential moviegoers.

Bowling scenes tend to pop up in films that fizzle,Bruzzese,39,said. Therefore it is statistically unwise to include one in your script. A cursed superhero never sells as well as a guardian superhero, he added.

His recommendations might range from minor tightening to substantial rewrites: More people would relate to this character if she had a sympathetic sidekick,for instance.

But many top screenwriters reject Bruzzeses statistical intrusion into their craft.

This is my worst nightmare, says Ol Parker,a writer whose film credits include The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.

But a lot of producers,studio executives and major film financiers disagree. Already they have quietly hired Bruzzeses company to analyse about 100 scripts,including an early treatment for Oz the Great and Powerful,which has taken in 484.8 million worldwide.

As the stakes of making movies become ever higher,Hollywood leans ever harder on research to minimise guesswork. Bruzzese emphasises that his reports rely on statistics and surveys,but before evaluating a script,he meets with the writers to understand the creative vision.

But Bruzzese is also unapologetic about his focus on financial outcomes. I understand that writing is an art, he says. But the earlier you get in research,the more successful movies you will make.

Doors are opening for Bruzzese nonetheless,in part because he is such a character. Bruzzese,a movie enthusiast with an encyclopedic memory of screenplays,also speaks bluntly,a rarity in Hollywood.

All screenwriters think their babies are beautiful, he says.

Im here to tell it like it is: Some babies are ugly.