Statistically, you have a good setup, but you don’t enter your second act with… a) a protagonist who needs something very important b) a force bent on preventing them c) a series of visual conflicts between them that d) culminates in a final, larger conflict that determines the winner
Read moreReading your old scripts
What is an escalation and why is it important?
Escalations are developments in the script that make things scarier and more difficult for the protagonist. An “Oh, shit.” moment. It is important because it is the only thing that sustains interest in the story. Escalations give second acts form and momentum. Escalations aren’t near misses. They happen, and they become the protagonist’s immediate problem…
Read moreSequences 101, 5:44 (Source: https://www.youtube.com/)
Read moreWhy is annerocious so damn holistic about spec scripts?
Thank you for asking. The single biggest issue with spec scripts is that they come from outside the writer. The number one thing a script should include is the writer. The writer should have a grasp of the fundamentals, which are simple to learn, and a fresh take on the material, but at the end…
Read morethescriptlab: Screenplay Themes: Three Points Read this, please.
Read moreUse screenplay structure to give your story form rather than to create story Anon (via gideonsway) Story comes first.
Read moreSo what AM I allowed to do in my script?
Readers want a surprising, unusual opening image that presents information about the story in a visual way. HOW DO I DO THAT? Look at opening images from movies you’re enthusiastic about. What invites you in? What makes you curious about the people and the place? What do you notice about the beginning now that you’ve…
Read moreHOW TO FIT BACKSTORY INTO YOUR FIRST ACT
It can wait. It’s a much better choice to present something as a mystery than it is to explain it in dialogue.
Read moreDon’t aim for every screenwriting paradigm in your early drafts. Aim for macrostructure and then refine Anonymous (via gideonsway) Carve this in stone. Or tattoo it on the back of your hand.
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