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All movies are derivative.

All this masturbation about originality is just that: masturbation.

I've been on a movie watching kick for the last couple months and I've been identifying structure types / plot types and they're all pretty much the same. What makes them interesting is what's being discussed.

I'll give you three movies:

1.) Adventures in Babysitting [1987]

2.) O' Brother Where Art Thou? [2000]

3.) Joe Dirt [1991]

Each of those movies is essentially Homer's Odyssey retold with wildly different details.

Here are another three movies:

A.) Looper [2012]

B.) Terminator 2 [1992]

C.) Casablanca [1939]

All of those end with self sacrifice for the greater good.

Variations on theme. If you want to write a bank heist I say do it. I can name a shit ton of heist movies. Some of my favorite movies are heist movies (Ronin, No Country For Old Men, ). Remember: the heist is only one aspect of the move. It's merely the plot. Who are these people? What are their values? What values are in conflict? Which values triumph and why? These are infinitely more entertaining and engaging than any old "original plot."

I've seen attempts at "original plots" and you know what? They tend to suck. The emphasis on 'originality' is the worst narcissism. Do not fall for it. There's nothing wrong with doing things you like. Write it. And write one you'd want to watch. Originality be damned: "Good artists borrow - great artists steal."

Also, look into story structure. I've found that mythology has been a huge influence on me. I'm very much a Jungian man so the overlap made it easy for me. I'm reading a book by John Truby called 'The 22 Steps of Plot" or something like that. It's the best book on movie structure I've read so far. I think he's a bit vague and I flatly disagree with him in some areas, but I'm finishing it because I'm still earning new things. He cribs a lot of Joseph Campbell. That's worth noting. Read Joseph Campbell and you'll see what the fuss is about.

Also; one of my favorite conspiracy theorists liked Joseph Campbell.

His name was Bill Cooper. And Bil Cooper also talks a lot about Luciferianism and its symbology. This is an amazing and rich symbol set that I use very often. I've become an arm-chair Egyptologist because of it (the current short story I'm working on is directly inspired by an Egyptian myth). Look into what Bill had to say about Luciferianism - it'll open up whole new fields of thought.

http://youtu.be/Ie50peFKpdg

One thing I've been thinking a lot about is how novels might just make a come back. If there's a technology crash then people will still want their entertainment - and novels don't require batteries or power plants. Something to consider.

Don't worry about filming the movie. Just write one. If it's shit that sucks. You'll write another. One day at a time. One idea at a time. You don't climb Mount Fuji in an afternoon. You don't build Rome in a day. Be patient with yourself and don't beat yourself up (others will do that for you). I went from a hack idea to something worth filming. It's been taking longer than I'd like, but I'm a step closer and I'll be even closer still by the end of the week. Baby steps.

Look into plot structure and do a few tests of ideas. Fool around with how ideas would play in a movie. You wouldn't believe how many ideas I've generated that I'll probably never get around to writing (maybe I should start writing them . . .). The point is, have fun and try not to take it too seriously. If you think about success or failure you'll never do anything because you'll be afraid to fail. But if you're just having fun and don't mind success or failure then it's not so bad. Then when you fuck up it's just a learning experience. You get to continue having fun and you'll even be a little better at it.

You sound like you have a self confidence issue. I can relate. I still have that problem. I compensate by pretending that I don't when I feel it creeping up. Usually I forget that I have a self confidence problem fairly quickly and then resume whatever it was I was doing.

In the case of your writing just learn. Read. Read about plot structure and watch movies and apply these ideas to the movies. Skip Syd Field and skip Robert McKee. Those guys are borderline retarded. They're dogmatic douches. I say this as one who has read them. Don't waste your time on them. Another one to read is this one abut the Sequence Approach to movie writing. I hear it's good and I'll be picking up a copy later this year (tight budget).

http://www.amazon.com/Screenwriting-Sequence-Approach-Paul-Gulino/dp/0826415687

Keep positive.

There are people who will support you and there are people who would watch what you make. I know this from personal experience. You're not going to do it over night so be patient with yourself. Baby steps.