by Ashley Scott Meyers This is the third episode in the three part series I did with screenwriter John Jarrell. In this episode we cover a lot of ground, from nuts and bolts screenwriting tips and advice to more philosophical issues that screenwriters face. You can listen to the audio portion of the podcast by... Continue Reading →
Road Trip: 4 Roads For Your Protagonist to Take
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) This summer we’re seeing the resurgence of the road trip movie -- not that it’s ever really disappeared. We’re traveling Fury Road with Mad Max. We’re hitting the open road and heading back to Wally World in Vacation. Even ladies like Reese Witherspoon and Sofia Vergara have taken to the road in... Continue Reading →
Stripping Down: 4 Things Your Protagonist Must Shed to Succeed
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Guiding a character through a journey is a process of negotiating their inner desires and outer goals. While many films are constructed around the idea of a character that will gain one key thing over the course of the story, we sometimes forget that well-rounded characters will also lose some things along... Continue Reading →
Impossible Goals, Impossible Obstacles
Editors Note: This article was originally posted on the ScriptFest Blog. It is reproduced here with permission. By Signe Olynyk (@Screenwriter12) CAUTION – SPOILERS AHEAD (For the movies Life of Pi, Blackhawk Down, Despicable Me, and Wild) Adrift in a raft with a hungry tiger. Surviving in a downed helicopter in the middle of a... Continue Reading →
Spec or Pilot? Are the Odds Better in Film or TV?
by Fiona Wheeler Every screenwriter, no matter what stage in their career, has only a limited amount of time and energy they can devote to their original projects. Staff writers eat, sleep, and breathe the current show. Screenwriters working in features are juggling all the rewrite jobs they can handle. Those with other full-time work... Continue Reading →
4 Horror Archetypes That Work in Any Genre
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Unless you work in the genre, screenwriters often ignore horror films. This can be to our own demise, as there are many powerful themes, tropes, and archetypes used in these films that transcend stories of horror and suspense. Here are some of the archetypes found in horror scripts that can be used... Continue Reading →
Be Mean to Your Characters: 3 Ways to Create Conflict
by John Bucher (@johnkbucher) Most writers like to think they’re nice people. But is it possible you might be too nice? Have you ever tried to see how mean you can be to your characters? Engaging storytellers quickly learn that becoming diabolical toward their protagonist can be an effective tool for keeping their stories enchanting.... Continue Reading →
The 6 Most Common Logline Mistakes
by Angela Bourassa We’re in the midst of our fourth monthly Logline Competition, and I feel like I’ve already seen just about every type of logline imaginable. There have been some amazing submissions – high concept ideas presented with clear sentence structure and compelling language – but there have been a lot more submissions riddled with... Continue Reading →
Tony Gilroy’s 10 Tips for Writing a Blockbuster
Tony Gilroy is one of the most respected screenwriters working today. He's the writer behind all of the Bourne movies (scripts for Identity, Supremacy, and Ultimatum), Armageddon, The Devil's Advocate... he even wrote that awesome early 90s ice skating movie, The Cutting Edge. Needless to say, Tony knows how to write a blockbuster. He recently... Continue Reading →
The One Big Screenwriting Rule (and Why You Keep Breaking It)
Friend of the site Erik Bork has written a great new article on the first rule of screenwriting: Show, don't tell. Erik writes, At first, it might seem obvious. Film and television are visual media. You always want to give the audience something to watch. It’s boring to hear characters “speak information” to each other. It’s... Continue Reading →