Successful Scriptwriting

Successful Scriptwriting

Author: Jurgen Wolff

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2011-05-30

Total Pages: 389

ISBN-13: 1599634821

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SUCCESSFUL SCRIPTWRITING Let's start with "The End." The credits roll - we see "Screenplay by ..." and there's your name. The show's a hit! It's Emmy/Oscar night, and you're seated up front. The nominations are revealed; your name is called. Your acceptance speech is memorable, an inspiration to the new writers "breaking in." Variety says your "future looks very bright." Hooray for Hollywood! But how did you get here? With talent, determination, and the help of this comprehensive guide, you'll have the wherewithal to move your dream from your mind onto the page and to succeed in this fiercely competitive, highly selective field. Starting with a basic course in scriptwriting, Jurgen Wolff and Kerry Cox teach you the fundamental skills of writing the feature film script, from original idea to finished screenplay. Then you'll learn how to apply your new-found skills to every type of television and film script: movies-of-the week, episodic television, situation comedies and soap operas. You'll also find helpful insight from the greats in the business, like Colin Higgins (Harold and Maude, Foul Play, 9 to 5), Larry Gelbart (Oh, God!, Tootsie, "M*A*S*H"), William Bickley ("Perfect Strangers," "Happy Days"), and Steven Bochco ("Doogie Howser, M.D.," "L.A. Law"). And you'll find answers to these essential questions: • What fundamental skills and essential ingredients do I need to write a feature film script? • By what criteria do producers and studios evaluate scripts or ideas presented to them? • When should I write an outline or a treatment for my script, and what are the formats? • How do I go about protecting my work? • Is there a cut-and-dried technique for pitching my ideas? Every part of this book reflects the needs and realities of today's TV and film industry, providing you with insight as well as practical knowledge. With this book as your guide, you can start at the beginning and follow a well-defined path to successful scriptwriting.


Writing a Great Movie

Writing a Great Movie

Author: Jeff Kitchen

Publisher: Billboard Books

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 386

ISBN-13: 9780823069781

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Let’s cut to the chase:Writing a Great Movieis a practical nuts-and-bolts manual to dramatic writing for film. This hands-on course in screenwriting shows how to create, develop, and construct an original screenplay from scratch using seven essential tools for the screenwriter—(1) Dilemma, Crisis, Decision and Action, and Resolution; (2) Theme; (3) the 36 Dramatic Situations; (4) the Enneagram; (5) Research and Brainstorming; (6) the Central Proposition; and (7) Sequence, Proposition, and Plot—which break the writing process down into approachable steps and produce great results. Author Jeff Kitchen—a working screenwriter, renowned dramaturge, and teacher at the University of Southern California’s graduate film school—shares the insider secrets he has developed over years of writing and teaching.Writing a Great Movieis the complete guide to creating compelling screenplays that will sell. • State-of-the-art screenwriting theory and technique from a master • Author named one of today's top screenwriting teachers inCreative Screenwritingmagazine • Great for writers at every level, beginner to established


The Art of Screenwriting

The Art of Screenwriting

Author: William Packard

Publisher: Da Capo Press

Published: 2001-08-07

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9781560253228

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Writing for the stage and screen presents artistic challenges to aspiring dramatists everywhere. Through practical, proven methods, playwright and poet William Packard leads readers past personal and professional obstacles to success. This book carefully explains the mechanics of plot, conflict, structure, form, character, dialogue, film editing, and treatment. It covers the commercial side of screenwriting with sections on marketing, agents, contracts, copyright, and collaboration. The elements of technique and story are emphasized as well as script mechanics, resulting in one of the most intelligent and useful how-to books on writing for the screen.


Save the Cat!

Save the Cat!

Author: Blake Snyder

Publisher:

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781615931712

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This ultimate insider's guide reveals the secrets that none dare admit, told by a show biz veteran who's proven that you can sell your script if you can save the cat!


Alternative Scriptwriting

Alternative Scriptwriting

Author: Ken Dancyger

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2013-10-28

Total Pages: 487

ISBN-13: 113605362X

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Learn the rules of scriptwriting, and then how to successfully break them.Unlike other screenwriting books, this unique guide pushes you to challenge yourself and break free of tired, formulaic writing--bending or breaking the rules of storytelling as we know them. Like the best-selling previous editions, seasoned authors Dancyger and Rush explore alternative approaches to the traditional three-act story structure, going beyond teaching you "how to tell a story" by teaching you how to write against conventional formulas to produce original, exciting material. The pages are filled with an international range of contemporary and classic cinema examples to inspire and instruct. New to this edition. New chapter on the newly popular genres of feature documentary, long-form television serials, non-linear stories, satire, fable, and docudrama. New chapter on multiple-threaded long form, serial television scripts. New chapter on genre and a new chapter on how genre’s very form is flexible to a narrative. New chapter on character development. New case studies, including an in-depth case study of the dark side of the fable, focusing on The Wizard of Oz and Pan’s Labyrinth.


The Nutshell Technique

The Nutshell Technique

Author: Jill Chamberlain

Publisher: University of Texas Press

Published: 2016-03-01

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 1477303731

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Veteran script consultant Jill Chamberlain discovered in her work that an astounding 99 percent of first-time screenwriters don’t know how to tell a story. These writers may know how to format a script, write snappy dialogue, and set a scene. They may have interesting characters and perhaps some clever plot devices. But, invariably, while they may have the kernel of a good idea for a screenplay, they fail to tell a story. What the 99 percent do instead is present a situation. In order to explain the difference, Chamberlain created the Nutshell Technique, a method whereby writers identify eight dynamic, interconnected elements that are required to successfully tell a story. Now, for the first time, Chamberlain presents her unique method in book form with The Nutshell Technique: Crack the Secret of Successful Screenwriting. Using easy-to-follow diagrams (“nutshells”), she thoroughly explains how the Nutshell Technique can make or break a film script. Chamberlain takes readers step-by-step through thirty classic and contemporary movies, showing how such dissimilar screenplays as Casablanca, Chinatown, Pulp Fiction, The Usual Suspects, Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, Silver Linings Playbook, and Argo all have the same system working behind the scenes, and she teaches readers exactly how to apply these principles to their own screenwriting. Learn the Nutshell Technique, and you’ll discover how to turn a mere situation into a truly compelling screenplay story.


Poking a Dead Frog

Poking a Dead Frog

Author: Mike Sacks

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2014-06-24

Total Pages: 475

ISBN-13: 0143123785

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A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NAMED A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY NPR Amy Poehler, Mel Brooks, Adam McKay, George Saunders, Bill Hader, Patton Oswalt, and many more take us deep inside the mysterious world of comedy in this fascinating, laugh-out-loud-funny book. Packed with behind-the-scenes stories—from a day in the writers’ room at The Onion to why a sketch does or doesn’t make it onto Saturday Night Live to how the BBC nearly erased the entire first season of Monty Python’s Flying Circus—Poking a Dead Frog is a must-read for comedy buffs, writers and pop culture junkies alike.


The TV Writer's Workbook

The TV Writer's Workbook

Author: Ellen Sandler

Publisher: Delta

Published: 2008-11-26

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0307492214

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Why is TV writing different from any other kind of writing? How will writing a spec script open doors? What do I have to do to get a job writing for TV? Writing for television is a business. And, like any business, there are proven strategies for success. In this unique hands-on guide, television writer and producer Ellen Sandler shares the trade secrets she learned while writing for hit shows like Everybody Loves Raymond and Coach. She offers concrete advice on everything from finding a story to getting hired on a current series. Filled with easy-to-implement exercises and practical wisdom, this ingenious how-to handbook outlines the steps for becoming a professional TV writer, starting with a winning script. Sandler explains the difference between “selling” and “telling,” form and formula, theme and plot. Discover: • A technique for breaking down a show style so you’re as close to being in the writing room as you can get without actually having a job there • The 3 elements for that essential Concept Line that you must have in order to create a story with passion and consequence • Mining the 7 Deadly Sins for fresh and original story lines • Sample scripts from hit shows • In-depth graphs, script breakdown charts, vital checkpoints along the way, and much, much more!


Writing Television Sitcoms

Writing Television Sitcoms

Author: Evan S. Smith

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 310

ISBN-13: 9780399525339

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Describes the writing method called premise-driven comedy, examines how comedy affects character development and story structure, discusses guidelines on script layouts, and offers advice on establishing a career


Scriptwriting for Web Series

Scriptwriting for Web Series

Author: Marie Drennan

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-05-15

Total Pages: 211

ISBN-13: 1351237837

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Scriptwriting for Web Series: Writing for the Digital Age offers aspiring writers a comprehensive how-to guide to scriptwriting for web series in the digital age. Containing in-depth advice on writing both short- and long-form webisodes as part of a series, as well as standalone pieces, it goes beyond the screenwriting process to discuss production, promotion and copyright in order to offer a well-rounded guide to creating and distributing a successful web series. Written in a friendly, readable and jargon-free style by an experienced scriptwriting professor and two award-winning web series creators, it offers invaluable professional insights, as well as examples from successful series, sample scripts and interviews with key series creators, writers and industry professionals.