Want to write animated movies?
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“You can’t just say, ‘Well, I’m not really inspired by an idea yet, so I’m just gonna hang out and see what hits me. Maybe I’ll write a scene and see where it takes me.’”
“I don’t know any writers, who are successful, who approach writing that way at all. You have to approach writing like it’s a full-time job.” Adam Rifkin Tales from the Script
One of the things I see a lot of in amateur screenplays, and in my own writing, if I'm honest, and it's a big thing, is a lack of character goals. There aren't any goals for the main character or characters to achieve. This leads to a story without any defined and clear direction. And generally the scenes that play out within the context of that story tend to meander and not actually go anywhere. Giving the main character a goal to achieve will help structure the story that you want to tell, it will help drive the story forward and give it a sense of direction. Character flaws and goals can generally be broken down into two categories. Firstly, there's the INTERNAL struggle that the character is going through. The internal struggle that the main character is going through usually revolves around some kind of personality trait. This personality trait is the character's flaw, it's their achille's heel that's stopping them from moving forward in their life. This character flaw could be caused by a whole number of things.
This major event (something bad happened to them) caused them to take on this negative personality trait. They're finding it difficult to get over what happened to them. They might not even be aware of this personality trait (flaw) that they have until it's pointed out to them or something happens (usually something bad) to them that brings it to their attention. This is their INTERNAL struggle. This internal struggle that manifests itself in the main character as a flaw could take the form of any number of personality traits.
There are so many to choose from. The list is endless. Go to character flaws Over the course of a story, the main character learns to overcome this negative aspect of their personality and hopefully by the end of the story they will be the opposite of how they were at the beginning. If they were irresponsible at the start, they have now learned to become responsible. If they were selfish, they have now learned to be more giving by the end of the story. They have learned something about themselves, their personality has arced over the course of the story. They may not even be aware that they have changed. But as the reader/audience member, we have seen this change occur. Secondly, there's the EXTERNAL struggles that characters find themselves in which are usually much easier to see.
Generally, and this is just my own point of view. Dependent on the genre, certain films require that characters are flawed, otherwise those movies just aren't going to work. These are usually character driven pieces, and certainly not your tent-pole summer blockbusters. Generally in these types of movies I just want to be entertained, as long as the story makes sense and the characters don't behave in a stupid manner. When it comes to a character driven story, I want to see a lot of depth to characters. This is when I want to see characters change over the course of a movie, and the more characters that have some kind of character arc, the better. This is when I want to feel something and possibly even relate to the characters and their struggles in some way. I want to feel their pain and anguish that they go through over the course of the story. This is when I want to be emotionally invested in the characters and the story and situations they find themselves in. And of course, I still want to be entertained with a story that makes sense. N.B.
Make sure there are obstacles that get in the way of your characters achieving their goals. Hopefully this will create conflict for your character(s) to overcome. This is just my take on how I approach my writing. Movies to check out:
There are loads more. Ian Rankin
Nobody sets out to fuck up your movie. It’s not like the director or the stars wake up in the morning and say, “Let’s screw up this scene. How can I really cause Bill Goldman pain?” It’s just that they’re terrified. I wrote a line once that caught on out there in Hollywood: “Nobody knows anything.” And they don’t. If we knew what we were doing, every movie would be wonderful. If actors knew what they were doing, every performance would be just swell. It’s a crapshoot. It just is. There’s no answer. I wish there were.
WILLIAM GOLDMAN Looks like Disney have found the screenwriters for the upcoming Star Wars movies.
Michael Arndt -- Episode 7 Lawrence Kasdan -- Episode 8 Simon Kinberg -- Episode 9 Glad to see Lawrence Kasdan back in the game. It's also great to see they're planning on releasing the new episodes two years apart from each other. Three years apart is pushing it, especially these days. And anything longer than that, is just plain ludicrous. Hopefully they'll get Steven Spielberg on board in some capacity. Looking forward to watching them. Let's hope they stay true to the original Star Wars universe and mythology. Go to Den of Geek. That's a big question. And a big ask. Who could do the Star Wars universe and the mythology that surrounds it real justice? Now that the big man himself, George Lucas has passed on the mantle. I grew up for the most part on the original trilogy. They're the films that got me into movies in the first place. They set a benchmark for others to follow. There are few films that can rival them. This would be a role with great privilege, but it comes with a lot of responsibility to take on as well. Because, if you get it wrong. You'll be in a whole heap of trouble. Whoever Disney decide to get on board for these projects. They will need to do some thorough research into what the writer/writers can bring to the table.
Picking someone just because they happen to be the writer who's in with the crowd in my mind would be the wrong way to go. They must know the Star Wars universe inside out and they must have passion. Real passion to want to make it work on all levels. A fly by night approach isn't going to cut it. The writer/writers will need to show that they care and want to do justice to what's gone before. The five writers who I think should be considered for the role: There are possibly a few others that could be brought to the table. But as a writer who gets offered this role. You're going to need to show that you really care and are in love with the source material. Old and new. And there's a lot of Star Wars material out there. Lots and lots of source material, new and old to work from. Disney have their work cut out and they are going to have to take this into consideration when they interview writers for these projects. I certainly don't envy the decision makers. I forgot about Peter Jackson. Although he is busy with The Hobbit. But he'd do a great job with story and directing. A very passionate film maker.
May the Force be with you.
Make your way over to Go Into The Story by Scott Meyers.
Six screenplays worth reading. Watch the movies as well. Check out the article over at Script. Worth a read. Great articles to read. Where to start?
There are no hard and fast rules to this. But if I had to do it again. This is probably a route I would consider taking.
If you have all this, that's great. Now you need to structure everything into a story and put it into screenplay format. But you've never done this before. You have no idea where to start. Before you get started: Read 20 produced screenplays. Ones that are in the same genre as the one you want to write. If you want to write a horror. Read horror. If you want to write a comedy, read comedies. Then watch the movies and see how things translate from the page onto the screen. Have a look at how they do it. When do things happen to the main characters? At what point does the main character's life change? When does the protagonist leave their comfort zone? These are the types of things you need to be looking for. After you've done this. Reread the screenplay.
Now you need to join a peer review site where you can read amateur screenplays. Out of all the ones on the web, my favorite one is Trigger Street Labs. Lots of information. And the best thing. It's all free. You need to start reviewing screenplays. If you've never done this before. It can take a bit of getting used to. Especially if you don't actually know what you're looking for because you're just starting out yourself. So before you do your first review of a screenplay. You need to go to the forum and check out how the spotlighted reviewers do their reviews. Find out how they review and evaluate a screenplay.
This is one of the best ways to learn how to structure a screenplay. You now need to start reviewing and giving feedback. It doesn't matter what genre you get. You're here to read and give an honest evaluation of the screenplays you read. Before you even consider even writing that first screenplay. You will need to read and evaluate around 20-30 screenplays to start. You'll find that the more amateur screenplays you read , the better your feedback will get. You'll start noticing things and trends that will help when you come to writing and structuring the story of that first screenplay. While you're doing this, you should be coming up with plenty of ideas for your screenplay. The more you have, the easier it will be to structure your story. Once you've done this. You need to start structuring your story. ACT 1 Setting up your main characters. What does your main character want and need? What are their internal and external goals? ACT 2 Probably the toughest of the acts to write. What's the main plot? What are the secondary plots? Does the main plot cross the secondary plot? This is where you get the ups and downs of the story. ACT 3 Does the guy win the girl? Does the good guy defeat the bad guy? Usually the ending is the opposite of the start? Not all the time. But usually it's the opposite. The above is pretty simplistic. But it gives you a rough idea as to what should happen. I wouldn't buy any books at this stage either. You pretty much want to write this on your own, under your own steam with no one else's influence. You now need to write it. Give yourself a deadline. Twelve weeks should be enough. Especially if you've planned and outlined it well. Once you've written it. You need to put it away for a couple of weeks. While it's sitting in a drawer. Come up with other ideas for other projects. After two weeks, come back to it and go through it. Rewrite scenes if you need to. Change dialogue etc. Now you need to upload that sucker onto Trigger Street Labs and get some feedback. This can be quite daunting and you need to grow a thick skin. Because some reviews will get under your skin. But remember, this is for a good cause. This is to improve your story in the long run. While reviews are coming in. You should continue reviewing. You'll probably want around 10 to 20 reviews. Make sure you print off the reviews before taking down your screenplay. Put it away for a week and come back to it and the reviews with an open mind and fresh eyes. As writers, we can get too close to our work. Look for common areas and problems that have been brought up. Perhaps ACT 1 is too slow. Maybe you have a couple of characters that could be combined into one. Maybe you need to cut pages because it's too long. Ideally 85 – 115 pages or less. Then the rewriting starts after this. Good Luck. A few notes I made during the session with Simon Beaufoy at the London Screenwriters' Festival 2012.
Sometimes it's good to write what you know. It can be equally as good to write about what you don't know. In order to have a clear vision of the world you want to create. You need to do the RESEARCH. No need to add specific music to a screenplay. Being able to take notes and understand problem areas within a screenplay. BE OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS! LISTEN. Keep REFINING & TIGHTENING YOUR WORK. Layer your scenes -- Make them rich. What do I need my CHARACTERS to do within the context of the STORY? What would they do in the situation and circumstances they find themselves in? Character ACTIONS & CHOICES must be believable. TRUST YOUR VOICE and the IDEAS in your HEAD. Notes taken from Luke Ryan's session at London Screenwriters' Festival 2012
Most Important Things Know and understand who you're pitching and querying to.
Writers earn a living by writing.
As a writer you should be easy to work with. And have excellent ideas for projects. PURPOSE OF PITCH To make the person you're pitching to say: "I have to READ/BUY that!" Using as few words as possible. CONFLICT most important component of STORY. Testing HERO. CONCEPT and PREMISE Concept = BIG IDEA Premise = The way into the BIG IDEA. Ideally the story needs to be:
LOGLINES A Good logline: Captures the most interesting ideas in the story within one or two sentences. Gives us a clear idea of character, tone and stakes. Two vital parts The BUT and the MUST. GIVES US A A (CHARACTER) sets out to (ACHIEVE A GOAL), but (RUNS INTO AN UNEXPECTED & SOMETIMES IRONIC OBSTACLE) and must (GROW IN A WAY TO TRIUMPH OR FACE CERTAIN DOOM). Is this something other people want to see? Is this something I can write the hell out of? QUERYING -- Managers -- Agents -- Producers ALWAYS REMEMBER TO WORK THE ASSISTANTS Find out who writes like/similar to you? Actually do a proper letter rather than email.
Nice article over at ScriptShadow.
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Welcome to Russell’s website. A storyteller who enjoys writing screenplays for movies. Even though the process is hard. It keeps his imagination working overtime.
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