The Screenwriter's Problem Solver

The Screenwriter's Problem Solver

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Delta

Published: 2009-09-02

Total Pages: 386

ISBN-13: 0307570053

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All writing is rewriting. But what do you change, and how do you change it? All screenplays have problems. They happened to Die Hard: With a Vengeance and Broken Arrow-and didn't get fixed, leaving the films flawed. They nearly shelved Platoon-until Oliver Stone rewrote the first ten pages and created a classic. They happen to every screenwriter. But good writers see their problems as a springboard to creativity. Now bestselling author Syd Field, who works on over 1,000 screenplays a year, tells you step-by-step how to identify and fix common screenwriting problems, providing the professional secrets that make movies brilliant-secrets that can make your screenplay one headed for success...or even Cannes. Learn how to: •Understand what makes great stories work •Make your screenplay work in the first ten pages, using Thelma & Louise and Dances With Wolves as models •Use a "dream assignment" to let your creative self break free overnight •Make action build character, the way Quentin Tarantino does •Recover when you hit the "wall"-and overcome writer's block forever


The Essential Screenplay (3-Book Bundle)

The Essential Screenplay (3-Book Bundle)

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Bantam

Published: 2018-04-24

Total Pages: 965

ISBN-13: 1101969598

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Hollywood’s script guru teaches you how to write a screenplay in the ultimate three-volume guide to writing for film, featuring “the ‘bible’ of screenwriting” (The New York Times), Screenplay—now celebrating forty years of screenwriting success! This blockbuster ebook bundle includes: SCREENPLAY: FOUNDATIONS OF SCREENWRITING • THE SCREENWRITER’S WORKBOOK • THE SCREENWRITER’S PROBLEM SOLVER Syd Field was “the most sought-after screenwriting teacher in the world” according to The Hollywood Reporter. His pioneering insights into structure, concept, and character launched innumerable careers. Now in one handy collection, his invaluable expertise is available to aspiring writers and working professionals alike. The Essential Screenplay contains Syd Field’s Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting, the industry standard for script development; The Screenwriter’s Workbook, a hands-on workshop full of practical exercises for creating successful screenplays; and The Screenwriter’s Problem Solver, a guide to identifying and fixing problems in your latest draft. Throughout, you’ll learn: • why the first ten pages of your script are crucially important • how to visually “grab” the reader from page one • what makes great stories work • the basics of writing dialogue • the essentials of creating great characters • how to adapt a novel, a play, or an article for the screen • the three ways to claim legal ownership of your work • tips for allowing your creative self to break free when you hit the “wall” • how to overcome writer’s block forever Featuring expert analysis of popular films including Pulp Fiction, Thelma & Louise, and the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Essential Screenplay will transform your initial idea into a screenplay that’s destined for success—and maybe even Cannes. Praise for Syd Field “The most sought-after screenwriting teacher in the world.”—The Hollywood Reporter “Syd Field is the preeminent analyzer in the study of American screenplays.”—James L. Brooks, Academy Award–winning writer, director, producer


Four Screenplays

Four Screenplays

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Delta

Published: 2009-09-30

Total Pages: 338

ISBN-13: 0307569527

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Yes, you can write a great screenplay. Let Syd Field show you how. “I based Like Water for Chocolate on what I learned in Syd's books. Before, I always felt structure imprisoned me, but what I learned was structure really freed me to focus on the story.”—Laura Esquivel Technology is transforming the art and craft of screenwriting. How does the writer find new ways to tell a story with pictures, to create a truly outstanding film? Syd Field shows what works, why, and how in four extraordinary films: Thelma & Louise, Terminator 2: Judgement Day, The Silence of the Lambs, and Dances with Wolves. Learn how: Callie Khouri, in her first movie script, Thelma & Louise, rewrote the rules for good road movies and played against type to create a new American classic. James Cameron, writer/director of Terminator 2: Judgement Day, created a sequel integrating spectacular special effects and a story line that transformed the Terminator, the quintessential killing machine, into a sympathetic character. This is how an action film is written. Ted Tally adapted Thomas Harris's chilling 350-page novel, The Silence of the Lambs, into a riveting 120-page script—a lesson in the art and craft of adapting novels into film. Michael Blake, author of Dances with Wolves, achieved every writer's dream as he translated his novel into an uncompromising film. Learn how he used transformation as a spiritual dynamic in this work of mythic sweep. Informative and utterly engrossing, Four Screenplays belongs in every writer's library, next to Syn Field's highly acclaimed companion volumes, Screenplay, The Screenwriter's Workbook, and Selling a Screenplay. “If I were writing screenplays . . . I would carry Syd Field around in my back pocket wherever I went.”—Steven Bochco, writer/producer/director, L.A. Law, Hill Street Blues


The Definitive Guide To Screenwriting

The Definitive Guide To Screenwriting

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Random House

Published: 2008-09-04

Total Pages: 402

ISBN-13: 140902413X

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Published for the first time in the UK, Syd Field, acclaimed writer and director, tells you step-by-step how to identify and fix common screenwriting problems, providing the professional secrets that make films brilliant - secrets that can make your screenplay a success. He provides easily understood guidelines for writing a screenplay, from concept to finished product. The art of film-writing is made accessible to novices and helps practiced writers improve their scripts, as the author pinpoints stylistic and structural elements such as characterisation and plot. Tips and techniques on what to do after your screenplay has been completed and much more are all here. There are also practical examples from films which Syd Field has collaborated on such as Lord of the Rings, American Beauty and The Pianist. Written for all levels of screenwriters, this is an indispensable reference book for anyone who wants to make money as a great screenwriter.


Screenplay

Screenplay

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: M J F Books

Published: 1994

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781567312393

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Providing examples from well-known movies, Field explains the structural and stylistic elements as well as writing techniques basic to the creation of a successful film script.


Selling a Screenplay

Selling a Screenplay

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Delta

Published: 1989-11-01

Total Pages: 305

ISBN-13: 0440502446

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This ultimate insider’s guide to selling a screenplay shows you how to crack open today’s movie and television markets. “An informative, engaging look at the inside of the dream factory. This is a terrific aid for screenwriters who are trying to gain insight into the Hollywood system.”—David Kirkpatrick, producer, former head of Paramount Pictures Everybody has a story to tell. Everybody wants to write the great American screenplay. But what do you do after it’s written? How do you sell it? Studio honchos. Development Executives. Independent Producers. What do they want? Do you need an agent or manager to get it into production? Selling a screenplay can mean earning $250,000 or more, so competition is fierce. In Selling a Screenplay, Hollywood’s script guru Syd Field gives you an insider’s look at the movie and TV industry, packed with essential tips from the pros. He includes key details and information, including sections that: • Break Down the Business of Screenwriting • Explain What the Buyer Looks For • Show You What to Do to Get in the Door • Tackle the Pitching Process • Provide Personal Insights from Famous Screenwriters Selling a Screenplay is a must-have guide for every screenwriter, filled with frank real-life advice from Hollywood’s most powerful deal makers and most celebrated screenwriters. They all started somewhere.


Screenwriting is Rewriting

Screenwriting is Rewriting

Author: Jack Epps, Jr.

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2016-01-28

Total Pages: 361

ISBN-13: 1628927380

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If there is one skill that separates the professional screenwriter from the amateur, it is the ability to rewrite successfully. From Jack Epps, Jr., the screenwriter of Top Gun, Dick Tracy, and The Secret of My Success, comes a comprehensive guide that explores the many layers of rewriting. In Screenwriting is Rewriting, Epps provides a practical and tested approach to organizing notes, creating a game plan, and executing a series of focused passes that address the story, character, theme, structure, and plot issues. Included are sample notes, game plans, and beat sheets from Epps' work on films such as Sister Act and Turner and Hooch. Also featured are exclusive interviews with Academy Award® winning screenwriters Robert Towne (Chinatown) and Frank Pierson (Dog Day Afternoon), along with Academy Award® nominee Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich).


The Complete Idiot's Guide to Screenwriting

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Screenwriting

Author: Skip Press

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2000-11-09

Total Pages: 451

ISBN-13: 1101199032

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This guide is for anyone who has ever thought of screenwriting. Written by someone who has "been there, done that," and lived to tell the tale, it reveals the most popular genres, explains how stories need to be structured for feature films and TV movies, offers the freshest look at workshops and online classes, and disusses how to set up a step–by–step path to success.


Going to the Movies

Going to the Movies

Author: Syd Field

Publisher: Delta

Published: 2009-09-16

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 0307569578

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Featuring insights ... analysis ... great films and filmmakers from “the most-sought-after screenwriting teacher in the world” (The Hollywood Reporter). A life in film. An extraordinary career. An unforgettable story — from noted lecturer, teacher, and bestselling author Syd Field. What makes a great movie great? ... An actor legendary? ... A screenplay extraordinary or just ordinary? Syd Field has spent a lifetime seeking answers to these questions. His bestselling books on the art and craft of screenwriting have become the film industry’s gold standard. Now Syd Field tells his own remarkable story, sharing the insight and experience gleaned from an extraordinary career. Using classic movies from the past and present — from Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane to Andy and Larry Wachowski’s The Matrix — Field provides a guided tour of the basic elements common to all great films. Learn what makes La Grande Illusion a groundbreaking, timeless classic ... how Casablanca teaches one of the most important elements of creating memorable characters for the screen ... why Pulp Fiction might be one of the most influential films of our time. Discover the legendary filmmakers, films, and stars who shaped Field’s understanding of the medium.... Meet Jean Renoir, the great French director who steered his young Berkeley protégé away from medicine into film.... Watch a dazzling young Francis Ford Coppola as he directs his thesis film at UCLA.... Spend an amazing summer with Sam Peckinpah as he shares the screenwriting techniques behind his classic western The Wild Bunch. Rich in anecdote and insight, Going to the Movies will both entertain and inform, deepening every moviegoer’s appreciation of the magic behind the silver 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!