The Complete Idiot''''s Guide to Screenwriting - Skip Press

Screenwriting by Skip Press A Pearson Education Company 201 West 103rd Street Indianapolis, IN 46290 To my family: Debbie, Haley, and Holly, the people who enable me to endure the silliness of Hollywood Copyright  2001 by Skip Press All rights reserved No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher No patent liability is assumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of information contained herein For information, address Alpha Books, 201 West 103rd Street, Indianapolis, IN 46290 THE COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO and Design are registered trademarks of Pearson Education, Inc International Standard Book Number: 0-02-863944-8 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: Available upon request 03 02 01 Interpretation of the printing code: The rightmost number of the first series of numbers is the year of the book’s printing; the rightmost number of the second series of numbers is the number of the book’s printing For example, a printing code of 01-1 shows that the first printing occurred in 2001 Printed in the United States of America Note: This publication contains the opinions and ideas of its author It is intended to provide helpful and informative material on the subject matter covered It is sold with the understanding that the author and publisher are not engaged in rendering professional services in the book If the reader requires personal assistance or advice, a competent professional should be consulted The author and publisher specifically disclaim any responsibility for any liability, loss, or risk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents of this book Publisher Marie Butler-Knight Product Manager Phil Kitchel Managing Editor Cari Luna Senior Acquisitions Editor Randy Ladenheim-Gil Development Editor Nancy D Warner Senior Production Editor Christy Wagner Copy Editor Krista Hansing Illustrator Jody Schaeffer Cover Designers Mike Freeland Kevin Spear Book Designers Scott Cook and Amy Adams of DesignLab Indexer Amy Lawrence Layout/Proofreading Mary Hunt Gloria Schurick Contents at a Glance Part 1: The Evolution of Storytelling History Lessons Make Better Writers Why an understanding of the history of drama enables you to be a much better screenwriter That Fellow Shakespeare How the writings of William Shakespeare have relevance today and can help you succeed in screenwriting 15 Birth of the Movies An overview of how filmmaking began, both in the United States and around the world, and how it relates to Hollywood screenwriting today 25 From Scenario to Screenplay The evolution of film writing from the beginning of the medium through the Golden Age of Hollywood 37 From the Big Screen to the Computer Screen How screenwriting changed, from World War II and through the Age of Television, to today’s digital world 47 Part 2: What to Write 57 Sources for Movie Ideas That Will Sell How to exploit the resources used by successful screenwriters to derive saleable movie stories 59 Movies Are Not Books or Plays How the basics of screenwriting differ greatly from the writing of novels, stage plays, and other forms 71 What Your Audience Really Wants to See What sex, violence, genres, and audiences actually mean to screenwriters around the world 83 Defining Your Movie The meanings of basic screenwriting elements: the premise, outline, synopsis, treatment, high concept, and log line 97 10 What’s Hot, What’s Not, and What’s in Your Heart How to factor in generational tastes, societal cycles, demographics, and your heart in writing your screenplay 109 11 Your Screenwriting Schedule and Why It Is Essential Putting together a writing schedule that works, without going crazy or losing your friends 121 Part 3: How to Write Your Screenplay 133 12 Preparing Your Outline and Reordering Scenes Building the perfect blueprint to write a screenplay 135 13 The All-Important First Ten Pages How to create an opening for your screenplay that will help it get read all the way through 147 14 The Structure of Hollywood Movies All the essential elements of a successful screenplay, discussed at length 159 15 Writing the Feature Film The basic blueprint of a well-written screenplay, with each part explained in both theory and practicality 173 16 The Screenplay, Step by Step All the structural elements of a finely crafted screenplay 187 17 The Rewrite Is the Secret The reworking of a first-draft screenplay into a saleable property, explained in detail 201 18 Polish Makes Perfect A full explanation of the process of screenplay revisions in Hollywood and tools for bettering your work 213 Part 4: Post-Script Possibilities 225 19 What a Reading Can Show You How to use the theatrical tradition in Hollywood to better your screenplay via a staged reading 227 20 Why the Screenplay Is Merely a Blueprint How and why screenplays undergo changes in Hollywood due to budget and casting considerations 239 21 The Real Role of the Screenwriter What happens after a script is purchased, and how the role of the screenwriter in Hollywood is changing 251 22 Writing for Television Thoughts on the seven-act structure of the movie for television, and other TV writing considerations 263 23 Short Films and the Digital Age How MTV and the presentation of short films on the Internet are changing screenwriting 275 Part 5: It’s All in the Details 285 24 Sweating the Small Stuff Why you use two brads, not three, to bind a Hollywood script, and other insider details 287 25 Fixing Amateur Technical Mistakes How to avoid the use of screenwriting clichés that might get you branded as an amateur 297 26 The Mentor Merry-Go-Round The inside scoop on where to find helpful screenwriting information, and where you might waste your time 309 27 The Truth About Selling Scripts From the query letter to the Hollywood “gatekeeper”-how to most effectively market your work 321 28 Plotting Your Screenwriting Career A frank discussion of how Hollywood really works; what it takes to make the transition from aspiring screenwriter to working professional 333 Index 345 Contents Part 1: The Evolution of Storytelling History Lessons Make Better Writers Don’t Miss the Myths: The Hero with a Thousand Faces The Greeks Made the Rules Aristotle and the Three-Act Structure Romans, Christians, and Italians Classic Stories Are Immortal Story and the Mind Hegel, Freud, Sex, and Stanislavski Carl Jung and the Symbolic World Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth 11 That Fellow Shakespeare 15 Shakespeare in Love 16 Using Shakespeare 16 Shakespeare’s Secret 17 Pages from History 18 The Screenplay’s the Thing 19 Shakespeare’s Continuing Influence 20 Stealing from Shakespeare 21 Shakespeare’s Log Lines 21 Birth of the Movies 25 The Worldwide Storytelling Tradition 26 Influences of the Great Playwrights 26 Authors from Centuries Past: The Great Storytellers 28 European Originals: The Brothers Lumiere and Other Lights 32 Thomas Edison and the Monopoly That Didn’t Work 33 A Place Called Hollywood: How Tinseltown Was Born 34 From Scenario to Screenplay 37 The Scenarists: How Screenwriting Began 38 Women Writers Ruled: Frances Marion and the Scenario Queens 39 What the Transition to Sound Did 41 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Hollywood, the World, and Migrating Writers 43 How Genres Evolved: What’s a Screwball Comedy, Anyway? 45 The Impact of 1939, Possibly Hollywood’s Greatest Year 45 From the Big Screen to the Computer Screen 47 Movies After World War II; the Whole World Changed 48 How Television Transformed Hollywood 50 I Love Lucy: The Power Shifter 50 The Birth of the Antihero and the Death of Feel Good 51 Hollywood Genres Don’t Change, but the Outlet Does 53 A Hollywood World in the Digital Age 55 Part 2: What to Write Sources for Movie Ideas That Will Sell 57 59 Reading the Newspaper Like a Screenwriter 60 Recycling Old Movies 61 True Stories: How to Secure the Rights and Where to Sell Them 62 How to Know If You’re Original Idea Is Truly Original 64 Movies to TV and Back Again to Movies 66 Anything Males Eighteen to Thirty-Four Like 67 Movies Are Not Books or Plays 71 Why You Don’t Write a Screenplay Like a Stage Play 72 What a Book Can Do That a Movie Cannot 77 The Differences in Television and Movie Scripts 79 Elements to Remember When Writing a Movie 80 What Your Audience Really Wants to See 83 Sex and Violence Sell: What That Really Means 84 Helping Your Viewer Escape from Reality 86 Pick a Genre and Pick Success 88 Writing for the Worldwide Audience 93 The Kids Have It: Write with Children in Mind and Win 94 viii Contents Defining Your Movie 97 First, a Premise 98 If You Want to Send a Message, Use E-Mail 101 Outlines, Synopses, and Treatments 103 High Concepts and Mixed Ideas 105 The Log Line: The All-Important Twenty-Five Words or Less 106 10 What’s Hot, What’s Not, and What’s in Your Heart 109 Tastes Change with Generations 110 What Goes Around Comes Back Around 111 Different Strokes for Different Blokes: What They Like, Around the World 112 Predicting the Future by Demographics 114 Write What You Want to See on the Screen 118 11 Your Screenwriting Schedule and Why It Is Essential 121 Getting It Done by Three-Page Scenes 121 Setting Up a Schedule That Works 124 Taking Your Schedule Seriously 126 The Day You Become a Screenwriter 130 Part 3: How to Write Your Screenplay 12 Preparing Your Outline and Reordering Scenes 133 135 Sorting Out Your Premise 136 Comparing Your Log Line to Other Movies 137 The “Master Mind” Method 138 The Beauty of the × Card 139 Outlining by Three-Minute Scenes 140 One-Sheets, Synopses, and Treatments 142 Building the Perfect Blueprint 144 ix The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Italians, Jolson, Al, 41 Jung, Carl, 9, 11 archetypes, 10 On the Nature of Dreams, 10-11 Psychological Types, 10 Lucas, George, 54-55 Lumiere, Auguste and Louis, 32 Institut Lumiere Web site, 32 Lumiere Cinematograph, 32 Mer, La (Sea, The), 32 Shift Ends at the Lumiere Factory in Lyon, The, 32 Melies, Georges, 32-33 Motion Picture Patents Company, 34-35 Pathe, Charles Pathe film company, 33 post–WW II changes, 47-48, 50 antimonopoly Paramount Case ruling, 50 censorship, 49, 52-53 House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), 49 Hughes, Howard, 49 roles of women and minorities, 48-49 Roach, Hal, 42 Romans, scenarists, 38-39 science fiction, 53-54 Verne, Jules, 31-32 Wells, H G., 31 screwball comedies, 45 352 Selig, William, 34 Sennett, Mack, 42 Shakespeare log lines, 21-23 motion picture influences, 15-23 sound in film, 41-43 Spielberg, Steven, 54-55 Stanislavski, Konstantin Method style of acting, Moscow Art Theater, story and the mind, storytelling, 26 television I Love Lucy, 50-51 impact on Hollywood, 50, 52-53 Walsh, Raoul, 42 women screenwriters, 39 Loos, Anita, 40 Marion, Frances, 40 Web site, 40 Weber, Lois, 40 writers’ migration to Hollywood, 43-45 hitting the beats, 141-142 Hollywood 1939 (Hollywood’s greatest year), 45-46 ageism, 294-296 Film Festival, 315-316 Web site, 237 history of Hollywood sign, 38 origination, 35 Hollywood 101, the Film Industry: How to Succeed in Hollywood Without Connections (Levy), 261 Hollywood Production Code, 49, 52-53 Home Projecting Kinetoscope, 34 horror genre, 91 House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), 49 How to Grow a Novel (Stein), 219 HUAC (House UnAmerican Activities Committee), 49 Huckleberry Finn (Twain), 30 Hughes, Howard, 49 Hugo, Victor Hunchback of Notre Dame, The, 28, 31 Les Miserables, 28 Hunchback of Notre Dame, The (Hugo), 28, 31 Hypocrites, 40 I I Love Lucy, 50-51 IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees), 78 Ibsen, Henrik Doll’s House, A, 27 Hedda Gabler, 27 ideas, movie ancient stories, 18 appealing to the male 18-34 population, 67-69 books limitations, 77-79 newspapers, 60 old movies, 61 real-life historical events Shakespeare’s technique, 18 Index remakes of TV shows created from movies, 66-67 true stories, 62 Industry R&D, Inc., 62-63 legal tips, 62 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg Web site, 62 securing the rights, 63-64 selling the screenplay, 62-63 verifying originality, 64-65 copyrights, 65 trademarks, 65 iFilm.com, 278 Iliad, The, iMac DV software package, 283 in development, 61 inciting incidents, 148-149, 174-175 evaluating, 175 examples, 174 independent genre, 91 Industry R&D, Inc., 62-63 initial concepts, 187-188 Institut Lumiere Web site, 32 International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), 78 Internet animations, 277-280 Aardman Animation, 277 exposure tactics, 278 screenwriting services, 317-318 selling scripts, 329-330 short film downloads, 277-280 AtomFilms, 277 exposure tactics, 278 iFilm.com, 278 Internet Movie Database, 17 Invisible Man, The (Wells), 31 Irving, Washington, Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The, 30 Italian influences, Ivanhoe (Scott), 29 J Jason and the Argonauts, Jolson, Al, 41 Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth, 163 Joseph Campbell Foundation Web site, 162 Journey to the Center of the Earth (Verne), 31 Julius Caesar log lines, 23 Jung, Carl, 9-11 archetypes, 10 On the Nature of Dreams, 10-11 Psychological Types, 10 K Katahn, T.L., Reading for a Living: How to be a Professional Story Analyst for Film and Television, 103 Keys to Success (Hill), 138 Kinetograph motion picture camera, 33 Kinetoscope motion picture viewer, 33 King John log lines, 22 Kipling, Rudyard, 31 Kosberg, Robert “Pitch King” Web site, 62 L leave-behinds, 104 legal tips (writing about true stories), 62 Business and Legal Forms for Authors and SelfPublishers (Crawford), 62 Writer Got Screwed (but didn’t have to): A Guide to the Legal and Business Practices of Writing for the Entertainment Industry, The (Wharton), 62 Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The (Irving), 30 length acts, 176, 184 1:2:1 ratio, 175 scenes, 204-206 editing tips, 205-206 scripts, 176, 184 genre variance, 174-175 speeches, 204-206 editing tips, 205-206 Leonard Maltin’s Movie and Video Guide 2000 (Maltin), 137 Les Miserables (Hugo), 28 letters, query, 322, 325 example, 324 following up, 325 guidelines, 322-323 353 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Levy, Frederick, Hollywood 101, the Film Industry: How to Succeed in Hollywood Without Connections, 261 lines log comparing to other movies, 137-138 developing, 106-108 tag, 79 Little Women (Alcott), 30 log lines, 105-106 comparing your log line to other movies, 137-138 developing, 106-108 Shakespeare, 21-23 As You Like It , 23 Hamlet, 23 Julius Caesar, 23 King John, 22 Love’s Labour Lost, 22 Merchant of Venice, The, 23 Merry Wives of Windsor, The, 23 Midsummer Night’s Dream, A, 22 Richard III, 22 Taming of the Shrew, The, 22 Two Gentlemen of Verona, The, 22 Venus and Adonis, 22 long forms, 271-272 Loos, Anita, 40 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, 40 San Francisco, 40 Saratoga, 40 Love’s Labour Lost log lines, 22 Lucas, George, 54-55 354 Lumiere, Auguste and Louis, 32 Institut Lumiere Web site, 32 Lumiere Cinematograph, 32 Mer, La (Sea, The), 32 Shift Ends at the Lumiere Factory in Lyon, The, 32 lysis (Jung’s dream phases), 11 M Macbeth, 18 Making a Good Script Great, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition (Seger), 210 Maltin, Leonard, Leonard Maltin’s Movie and Video Guide 2000, 137 Marion, Frances, 40 Anna Christie , 40 Big House, The, 40 Champ, The, 40 Off with Their Heads! A Serio-Comic Tale of Hollywood, 40 Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, 40 Wind, The, 40 Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, 40 Massello, Robert, Friend in the Business: Honest Advice for Anyone Trying to Break into Television Writing, A, 271 “Master Mind” method, 138-139 master scene scripts, 195 Matures, 117 MBA (Minimum Basic Agreement), 207, 209-210 McKee, Robert “Classic Five-Part Narrative Structure,” 167 Web site, 167 Melies, Georges, 32-33 Melville, Herman, Moby Dick, 30 mentors, selection criteria, 310-312 Mer, La (Sea, The) (Lumiere, Auguste and Louis), 32 Merchant of Venice, The log lines, 23 Merry Wives of Windsor, The log lines, 23 messages, 101-103 Method style of acting, midpoint changes, 168-170, 176, 182-183 Midsummer Night’s Dream, A log lines, 22 Mikado, The (Gilbert), 28 Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), 207, 209-210 miniseries, television, 271-272 mistakes, amateur eating scenes, 300-302 flashbacks, 298-299 inappropriate elements, 303-305 phone conversations, 300 voiceovers, 302-303 Moby Dick (Melville), 30 Moliere, Tartuffe, 26 montages, 41 Moscow Art Theater, Motion Picture Patents Company, 34-35 Index Movie Bytes Web site, 238, 249 movie ideas ancient stories, 18 appealing to the male 18 to 34 population, 67-69 books limitations, 77-79 newspapers, 60 old movies, 61 real-life historical events Shakespeare’s technique, 18 remakes of TV shows created from movies, 66-67 true stories, 62 Industry R&D, Inc., 62-63 legal tips, 62 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg Web site, 62 securing the rights, 63-64 selling the screenplay, 62-63 verifying originality, 64-65 copyrights, 65 trademarks, 65 MTV, affect of short films on screenwriting, 276-277 musical genre, 91 mystery genre, 91 mythology, 6-7 myths, structure Campbell, 11-12, 162, 164 Hero with a Thousand Faces, The (Campbell), Wizard of Oz, The, 162-163 N narrators, script readings, 231 nature cycles, 114-118 Cycles in Humans and Nature (Burns), 118 Foundation for the Study of Cycles, 117-118 Foundation Chart Book, 118 networks, television, 270-271 newspapers, reading as a source for movie ideas, 60 Nibblebox Web site, 283 O Odyssey, The, Oedipus Rex, 5, Off with Their Heads! A Serio-Comic Tale of Hollywood, 40 old movies, remaking, 61 On the Nature of Dreams (Jung), 10-11 one-baby syndrome, 202 one-sheet synopses, 142-144 Open Life: Joseph Campbell in Conservation with Michael Toms, An, 163 opening scenes, 151-156 As Good as It Gets, 155-156 Chinatown, 153-154 digital age effects, 156-157 exercise, 157 Shakespeare in Love, 154-155 Sixth Sense, The, 155 Witness, 154 Wizard of Oz, The, 151-153 option deals, 60 organizations FirstStage development organization, 234 Sherwood Oaks Experimental College, 313-314 UCLA Extension Writers Program, 314 Writers Guild of America (WGA), 314-315 originality, verifying, 64-65 copyrights, 65 trademarks, 65 out for coverage, 72 outdoors genre, 91 outlines, 103-104 three-minute scenes, 140-142 P paradigms, screenwriting (Field, Syd), 164-166 Paramount Case ruling, 50 Pathe, Charles, Pathe film company, 33 pay or play deals, 264 persistence, 295-296 Peter Pan (Barrie), 28 Philosophy of History, The (Hegel), phone conversations, 300 Pirates of Penzance, The (Gilbert), 28 pitch cards, 140 playwrights Barrie, James Matthew Peter Pan, 28 355 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich, 27 attention to detail, 27 Cherry Orchard, The, 27 Seagull, The, 27 Uncle Vanya, 27 Gilbert, W S H.M.S Pinafore, 28 Mikado, The, 28 Pirates of Penzance, The, 28 Hugo, Victor Hunchback of Notre Dame, The, 28 Les Miserables, 28 Ibsen, Henrik Doll’s House, A, 27 Hedda Gabler, 27 Moliere Tartuffe, 26 motion picture influences, 26-28 Pushkin, Alexander Boris Godunov, 27 Wolfgang von Goethe, Johann, Faust, 27 plots, developing, 139-140 Poe, Edgar Allan, Raven, The, 30 Poetics (Aristotle), 5-6, 160-162 polishes checklist for polishing scenes, 221-222 knowing when the script is ready, 222-223 tools, 218-222 versus rewrites, Writers Guild of America Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), 207-210 Porter, Edwin S., 34 356 premises developing, 98-101, 136 log line comparisons, 137-138 Master Mind method, 138-139 versus themes, 100 preproduction, 240 producers, 246-248, 255-259 property, 19 protagonists (Jung’s dream phases), 10 Psychological Types (Jung), 10 purchased scripts, 218, 220-222 post-purchase events, 255-259 reading process, 246-248 Pushkin, Alexander, Boris Godunov, 27 Q query letters, 322, 325 example, 324 following up, 325 guidelines, 322-323 queues, TV, 268-270 quirky perqs, 293-294 R rating codes, 54 Raven, The (Poe), 30 readers, 104, 150-151 coverages, 103 Reading for a Living: How to be a Professional Story Analyst for Film and Television (Katahn), 103 recommendations, 103 spec screenplays, 103 work volume, 150-151 Reading for a Living: How to be a Professional Story Analyst for Film and Television (Katahn), 103 reading scripts, Web sites, 71 readings actor involvement, 227-229 locating actors, 229-231 evaluation tools, 235 FirstStage development organization, 234 locations bookstores, 230 theaters, 230-231 narrators, 231 organizing, 231-236 purchased scripts reading process, 246-248 reality, escaping, 86-88 Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, 40 recommendations, readers’, 103 releases, 107 repeating trends, 111-112 researching Shakespearean plays (Internet Movie Database), 17 resources, 312 audiotapes, Dialogue for Writers (Stein), 219 books Alternative Scriptwriting: Writing Beyond the Rules (Dancyger and Rush), 167 Index Art of Dramatic Writing, The (Egri), 99 Business and Legal Forms for Authors and Self-Publishers (Crawford), 62 converting to screenplays, 77-79 Dramatist’s Toolkit, The (Sweet), 220 Elements of Screenwriting: A Guide for Film and Television Writing, The (Blacker), 98 Friend in the Business: Honest Advice for Anyone Trying to Break into Television Writing, A (Massello), 271 Hero with a Thousand Faces, The (Campbell), 163 Hero’s Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work, The, 163 Hollywood 101, the Film Industry: How to Succeed in Hollywood Without Connections (Levy), 261 How to Grow a Novel (Stein), 219 Keys to Success (Hill), 138 Leonard Maltin’s Movie and Video Guide 2000 (Maltin), 137 Making a Good Script Great, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition (Seger), 210 Off with Their Heads! A Serio-Comic Tale of Hollywood, 40 Open Life: Joseph Campbell in Conservation with Michael Toms, An, 163 Reading for a Living: How to be a Professional Story Analyst for Film and Television (Katahn), 103 Script Is Finished, Now What Do I Do?, The (Callan), 342 Stein on Writing (Stein), 219 TV Writer.Com Book of Television Writing, The (Brody), 271 Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, 40 Writer Got Screwed (but didn’t have to): A Guide to the Legal and Business Practices of Writing for the Entertainment Industry, The (Wharton), 62 Writer’s Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors, and Screenwriters’ Agents, The, 168, 187, 341 career development, 341-342 Internet Movie Database, 17 organizations FirstStage development organization, 234 Sherwood Oaks Experimental College, 313-314 UCLA Extension Writers Program, 314 Writers Guild of America (WGA), 314-315 rewriting scripts, 211 software programs, 187 U.S Copyright Office Web site, 28 videos, Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth, 163 Web sites “All About Trademarks” Web page, 65 AtomFilms, 277 Austin Film Festival, 316 Baby Boomers, 114 cowboy-Western entertainment, 52 demographics, 114 downloadable scripts, 71 Dramatica Pro software program, 167 filmfestivals, 316 Filmtracker, 150, 318 Final Draft company, 165 Foundation for the Study of Cycles, 117 Hollywood Film Festival, 237, 315 Institut Lumiere, 32 357 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Internet Movie Database, 17 Joseph Campbell Foundation, 162 McKee, Robert, 167 Movie Bytes, 238, 249 Nibblebox, 283 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg, 62 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) National office, 269 ScreenTalk, 248 Script-o-rama, 248 Scriptshack, 248 Scriptshop, 248 Selling to Hollywood, 237 ShawGuides, Inc., 236 Sherwood Oaks Experimental College, 313 Slanguage dictionary, 42 Sound Images company, 237 Sweet, Jeffrey, 220 TheWritersStore, 249 Truby, John, 167 TV writer Larry Brody, 271 U.S Copyright Office, 28, 65 UCLA Extension Writers Program, 314 Usenet newsgroup misc.writing screenplays, 287 Videomaker, 260 women screenwriters, 40 358 Wordplay, 189 WritePro, 219 Writers Guild of America (WGA), 139, 187 result (Jung’s dream phases), 11 rewrites, 221 resources for better rewriting, 210-211 Making a Good Script Great, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition (Seger), 210 Writers Guild of America online Mentor program, 211 versus polishes, Writers Guild of America Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), 207, 209-210 Richard III log lines, 22 rites of passage genre, 90 Roach, Hal, 42 roles, screenwriters, 251-252 adapting to Hollywood changes, 259-261 transforming from screenwriter to writer/director or producer, 260-261 versus directors, 254-255 Roman influences, romance genre, 92 romantic comedy genre, 92 Rush, Jeff, Alternative Scriptwriting: Writing Beyond the Rules, 167 S San Francisco, 40 Saratoga, 40 Scarlet Letter, The (Hawthorne), 30 scenarists, 38-39 scenes arranging, 139-140 length, 121-124, 204-206 editing tips, 205-206 opening, 151-156 As Good as It Gets, 155-156 Chinatown, 153-154 digital age effects, 156-157 exercise, 157 Shakespeare in Love, 154-155 Sixth Sense, The, 155 Witness, 154 Wizard of Oz, The, 151-153 outlining by threeminute increments, 140-142 polishing, 221-222 tools, 218, 220-222 structure, 173-174 schedules, writing establishing, 124-126 maintaining, 126, 128-129 penalties and rewards, 128-129 screenwriter’s log, 127 schools, film, 318 American Film Institute, 312, 318 University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), 318 Index University of Southern California (USC), 318 science fiction, 31, 53-54 genre, 92 history Verne, Jules, 31-32 Wells, H G., 31 Scott, Sir Walter, Ivanhoe, 29 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) national office Web site, 269 screen credits determination factors, 215-218 uncredited writing, 213-215 Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting, A Step-byStep Guide from Concept to Finished Script (Field), 164-166 screenplays, 174, 210 See also scripts Act One, 176 example, 176-179 inciting incidents, 174-175 Act Three, 183-184 Act Two revising, 181-182 significance, 180-181 Spielberg’s Second Acts, 182 blueprints, 144-145 capitalization guidelines, 178 contests locating, 238 converting books limitations, 77-79 credits determination factors, 215-218 uncredited writing, 213-215 denouements, 176, 184 dialogue, 218-222 subtext, 220 Field’s paradigm, 164-166 first drafts, 202, 204 common problems, 202-203 one-baby syndrome, 202 formatting guidelines, 190-199 inciting incidents, 174-175 evaluating, 175 examples, 174 initial concepts, 187-188 length, 121-124 log lines, 105-106 developing, 106-108 midpoint changes, 176, 182-183 one-sheet synopses, 142-144 Walking After Midnight example, 142-143 opening scenes, 151-152, 154, 156 As Good as It Gets, 155-156 Chinatown, 153-154 digital age effects, 156-157 exercise, 157 Shakespeare in Love, 154-155 Sixth Sense, The, 155 Witness, 154 Wizard of Oz, The, 151-153 outlines, 103-104 three-minute scenes, 140-142 persistence, 295-296 plot development, arranging scenes, 139-140 premises developing, 98-101, 136 log line comparisons, 137-138 Master Mind method, 138-139 versus themes, 100 scenes, length, 204-206 sending messages, 101-103 structure 1:2:1 ratio, 175 alternative approaches, 166-168 myth, 11-12, 162, 164 scenes, 173-174 three-act, 160-162 synopses, 103-104 treatments, 103-104, 143-144, 189 format, 189 Internet resources, 189 twelve-step design, 168-170 versus stage plays, 72-73, 76-77 versus television scripts, 79-80 who should read your work, 207-208 writing etiquette, 288-293 general guidelines, 80-81 Hemingway Trick, 199 “What if?” approach, 100 writing for the cineplex patron, 252-253 359 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting ScreenTalk Web site, 248 screenwriters logs, 127 roles, 251-252 adapting to Hollywood changes, 259-261 transforming from screenwriter to writer/director or producer, 260-261 versus directors, 254-255 screwball comedies, 45 Script Is Finished, Now What Do I Do?, The (Callan), 342 script readers, 104, 150-151 coverages, 103 recommendations, 103 spec screenplays, 103 work volume, 150-151 Script-o-rama Web site, 248 scripts See also screenplays changes actors’ influences, 244-246 budget-related, 242-244 post-purchase events, 255-259 readings actor involvement, 227-231 evaluation tools, 235 FirstStage development organization, 234 locations, 230 narrators, 231 organizing, 231-236 reading process of purchased scripts, 246-248 360 resources, 248-249 Movie Bytes Web site, 249 ScreenTalk Web site, 248 Script-o-rama Web site, 248 Scriptshack Web site, 248 Scriptshop Web site, 248 TheWritersStore Web site, 249 Web sites for downloadable scripts, 71 rewriting resources for better rewrites, 210 selling dealing with development personnel, 328-329 e-mail tactics, 326-328 in-person contacts, 330-331 Internet avenues, 329-330 query letters, 322-325 telephone contacts, 325-326 television versus movies, 79-80 tools dialogue specialists, 218-222 purchased scripts, 218-222 who should read your work, 207-208 Scriptshack Web site, 248 Scriptshop Web site, 248 Seagull, The (Chekhov), 27 Seger, Linda, Making a Good Script Great, Revised and Expanded 2nd Edition, 210 Selig, William, 34 selling scripts dealing with development personnel, 328-329 e-mail tactics, 326-328 in-person contacts, 330-331 Internet avenues, 329-330 query letters, 322-325 telephone contacts, 325-326 Selling to Hollywood Web site, 237 Sennett, Mack, 42 seven-act structure, 264-268 sex, 84-86 Shakespeare adapting real-life historical events (Macbeth), 18 appeal secrets, 17-18 log lines, 21-23 As You Like It, 23 Hamlet, 23 Julius Caesar, 23 King John, 22 Love’s Labour Lost, 22 Merchant of Venice, The, 23 Merry Wives of Windsor, The, 23 Midsummer Night’s Dream, A, 22 Richard III, 22 Taming of the Shrew, The, 22 Index Two Gentlemen of Verona, The, 22 Venus and Adonis, 22 motion picture influences, 15-16, 19-21 Shakespeare in Love, 16-17, 23 researching plays Internet Movie Database, 17 Shakespeare in Love, 16-17, 23, 154-155 ShawGuides, Inc., Web site, 236 Shelley, Mary, Frankenstein, 29 Sherwood Oaks Experimental College, 313-314 Shift Ends at the Lumiere Factory in Lyon, The (Lumiere, Auguste, and Louis), 32 short films affect on screenwriting, 276-277 filming your own scripts, 282-284 Nibblebox company, 283 software, 283 format, 280-282 Internet downloads, 277-280 AtomFilms, 277 exposure tactics, 278 iFilm.com, 278 MTV, 276-277 sides, 233 simple is elegant approach, 290-292 situation comedies, 50-51 Sixth Sense, The, 155 Slanguage dictionary Web site, 42 software programs, 187, 259-260 solution (Jung’s dream phases), 11 Sophocles, Oedipus Rex, 4-5, sound (impact on film history), 41-43 Sound Images company Web site, 237 sources (movie ideas) ancient stories, 18 appealing to the male 18 to 34 population, 67-69 books, limitations, 77-79 newspapers, 60 old movies, 61 real-life historical events, Shakespeare’s technique, 18 remakes of TV shows created from movies, 66-67 true stories, 62 Industry R&D, Inc., 62-63 legal tips, 62 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg Web site, 62 securing the rights, 63-64 selling the screenplay, 62-63 verifying originality, 64-65 copyrights, 65 trademarks, 65 spec screenplays, 103 speeches editing tips, 205-206 length, 204-206 Spielberg, Steven, 54-55 stage plays versus screenplays, 72-77 Stanislavski, Konstantin Method style of acting, Moscow Art Theater, statement of place (Jung’s dream phases), 10 Stein, Sol, 219-220 Dialogue for Writers audiotape, 219 How to Grow a Novel, 219 Stein on Writing, 219 Stevenson, Robert Louis, Treasure Island, 31 Stoker, Bram, Dracula, 29 storyboards, 280 storytelling, 26 structure See also formats scenes, 173-174 screenplays, 174 1:2:1 ratio, 175 Act One, 176-179 Act Three, 183-184 Act Two, 180-182 alternative approaches, 166-168 capitalization guidelines, 178 denouements, 176, 184 formatting guidelines, 190-199 inciting incidents, 174-175 initial concepts, 187-188 midpoint changes, 176, 182-183 myth structure, 11-12, 162-164 three-act structure, 5-6, 160-162 television movies seven-act structure, 264-268 361 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting styles acting, screenwriting versus stage plays, 72-73, 76-77 subtext, 220 success, measuring, 130-131 Sweet, Jeffrey Dramatist’s Toolkit, The, 220 Web site, 220 synopses, 103-104, 142-144 synthesis, T tag lines, 79 tags, 176, 184 Taming of the Shrew, The log lines, 22 Tartuffe (Moliere), 26 television I Love Lucy, 50-51 impact on Hollywood, 50, 52-53 scripts, versus screenplays, 79-80 writing for television, 263-264 Friend in the Business: Honest Advice for Anyone Trying to Break into Television Writing, A (Massello), 271 miniseries, 271-272 movies, 264-268, 270-271 TV queues, 268-270 TV Writer.Com Book of Television Writing, The (Brody), 271 362 theater groups dramaturges, 230-231 script readings, 229-230 themes, 100 thesis, Thespis, TheWritersStore Web site, 249 Three Musketeers, The (Dumas), 31 three-act structure, 5-6, 160-162 three-camera filming technique, 51 three-minute scenes, 140-142 three-page scenes, 121-124 thriller genre, 92 Time Machine, The (Wells), 31 tools dialogue specialists, 218, 220-222 purchased scripts, 218, 220-222 trademarks, 65 Treasure Island (Stevenson), 31 treatments, 103-104, 143-144, 189 format, 189 Internet resources, 189 trends, repeating, 111-112 Truby, John Web site, 167 true stories as movie ideas, 62 Industry R&D, Inc., 62 legal tips, 62 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg Web site, 62 securing the rights, 63-64 selling the screenplay, 62-63 TV queues, 79, 268-270 TV Writer.Com Book of Television Writing, The (Brody), 271 Twain, Mark, Huckleberry Finn, 30 twelve-step screenplay design, 168-170 Two Gentlemen of Verona, The log lines, 22 U U.S Copyright Office Web site, 28 UCLA Extension Writers Program, 314 Uncle Vanya (Chekhov), 27 “unity of opposites” (Egri, Lajos), 175 University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) film school, 318 University of Southern California (USC) film school, 318 Usenet newsgroup misc.writing.screenplays Web site, 287 V vampires, 29 Venus and Adonis log lines, 22 Verne, Jules 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, 32 Journey to the Center of the Earth, 31 videoing, 260 Videomaker Web site, 260 violence, 84-86 Vitagraph, 34 Index Vogler, Christopher, Writer’s Journey, The, 12 voiceovers, 302-303 Vom Wesen der Traume, See On the Nature of Dreams (Jung), 10-11 W–Z Walking After Midnight (one-sheet synopses example), 142-143 Walsh, Raoul, 42 war genre, 92 War of the Worlds, The (Wells), 31 Web sites All About Trademarks Web page, 65 AtomFilms, 277 Austin Film Festival, 316 Baby Boomers, 114 cowboy-Western entertainment, 52 demographics, 114 downloadable scripts, 71 Dramatica Pro software program, 167 filmfestivals, 316 films in development, 61 Filmtracker, 150, 318 Final Draft company, 165 Foundation for the Study of Cycles, 117 Hollywood Film Festival, 237, 315 Institut Lumiere, 32 Internet Movie Database, 17 Joseph Campbell Foundation, 162 McKee, Robert, 167 Movie Bytes, 238, 249 Nibblebox, 283 Robert “Pitch King” Kosberg, 62 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) National office, 269 ScreenTalk, 248 Script-o-rama, 248 Scriptshack, 248 Scriptshop, 248 Selling to Hollywood, 237 ShawGuides, Inc., 236 Sherwood Oaks Experimental College, 313 Slanguage dictionary, 42 Sound Images company, 237 Sweet, Jeffrey, 220 TheWritersStore, 249 Truby, John, 167 TV writer Larry Brody, 271 U.S Copyright Office, 28, 65 UCLA Extension Writers Program, 314 Usenet newsgroup misc.writing screenplays, 287 Videomaker, 260 women screenwriters, 40 Wordplay, 189 WritePro, 219 Writers Guild of America (WGA), 139, 187 Weber, Lois, Hypocrites, 40 Wells, H G Invisible Man, The, 31 Time Machine, The, 31 War of the Worlds, The, 31 Western genre, 92 WGA (Writers Guild of America) agent list, 338-340 Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), 207-210 online Mentor’s program, 211 screen credit determination factors, 215-218 Web site, 187 “Words into Pictures” event, 237, 314-315 Wharton, Brooke A., Writer Got Screwed (but didn’t have to): A Guide to the Legal and Business Practices of Writing for the Entertainment Industry, The, 62 “What if?” approach, 100 wildlife genre, 91 Wind, The, 40 Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, 40 Witness, 154 Wizard of Oz, The, 151-153, 162-163 Wolfgang von Goethe, Johann, Faust, 27 women screenwriters, 39 Loos, Anita, 40 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, 40 San Francisco, 40 Saratoga, 40 363 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Screenwriting Marion, Frances, 40 Anna Christie, 40 Big House, The, 40 Champ, The, 40 Off with Their Heads! A Serio-Comic Tale of Hollywood, 40 Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, 40 Wind, The, 40 Without Lying Down: Frances Marion and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood, 40 Web site, 40 Weber, Lois, 40 Hypocrites, 40 Wordplay Web site, 189 “Words into Pictures” WGA event, 237, 314-315 World War II, post-war changes, 48, 50 antimonopoly Paramount Case ruling, 50 censorship, 49, 52-53 House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), 49 Hughes, Howard, 49 roles of women and minorities, 48-49 WritePro Web site, 219 Writer Got Screwed (but didn’t have to): A Guide to the Legal and Business Practices of Writing for the Entertainment Industry, The (Wharton), 62 Writer’s Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors, and Screenwriters’ Agents, 168, 187, 341 364 Writer’s Journey, The (Vogler), 12 Writers Boot Camp, 128 writers conferences, 236-238 Aspen Writers’ Foundation, 236 Hollywood Film Festival, 237 locating ShawGuides, Inc Web site, 236 Selling to Hollywood, 237 Writers Guild of America’s “Words into Pictures” event, 237 Writers Guild of America (WGA) agent list, 338-340 Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), 207-210 online Mentor’s program, 211 screen credit determination factors, 215-218 Web site, 139 “Words into Pictures” event, 237, 314-315 writing audience appeal children, 94-96 demographics and cycles of nature, 114-118 escaping reality, 86-88 generational taste changes, 110-111 genre selection, 88-93 repeating trends, 111-112 sex and violence, 84-86 worldwide audiences, 93 worldwide tastes, 112-114 blueprints, 144-145 books before movies, 272-273 converting books to screenplays, limitations, 77-79 log lines, 105-108 one-sheet synopses, 142-144 Walking After Midnight example, 142-143 opening scenes, 151-152, 154, 156 As Good as It Gets, 155-156 Chinatown, 153-154 digital age effects, 156-157 exercise, 157 Shakespeare in Love, 154-155 Sixth Sense, The, 155 Witness, 154 Wizard of Oz, The, 151-153 outlines, 103-104 three-minute scenes, 140-142 personal tastes, 118-119 plot development, arranging scenes, 139-140 premises, 98-101, 136 log line comparisons, 137-138 Master Mind method, 138-139 versus themes, 100 scenes length, 204-206 structure, 173-174 Index schedules establishing, 124-126 maintaining, 126, 128-129 penalties and rewards, 128-129 screenwriter’s log, 127 screenplays, 174 1:2:1 ratio, 175 Act One, 176-179 Act Three, 183-184 Act Two, 180-182 alternative structures, 166-168 capitalization guidelines, 178 denouements, 176, 184 dialogue, 218-222 etiquette, 288-290 Field’s paradigm, 164-166 first drafts, 202-204 fonts, 292-293 formatting guidelines, 190-199 guidelines, 80-81 Hemingway Trick, 199 inciting incidents, 174-175 initial concepts, 187-188 midpoint changes, 176, 182-183 myth structure, 162, 164 persistence, 295-296 sending messages, 101-103 simple is elegant approach, 290-292 three-act structure, 160-162 twelve-step design, 168-170 versus stage plays, 72-77 versus television scripts, 79-80 “What if?” approach, 100 writing for the cineplex patron, 252-253 synopses, 103-104 television material, 263-264 Friend in the Business: Honest Advice for Anyone Trying to Break into Television Writing, A (Massello), 271 miniseries, 271-272 movies, 264-268, 270-271 TV queues, 268-270 TV Writer.Com Book of Television Writing, The (Brody), 271 three-page scenes, 121-124 treatments, 103-104, 143-144, 189 format, 189 Internet resources, 189 365 Arts & Sciences Business & Personal Finance Computers & the Internet Family & Home Hobbies & Crafts Language Reference Health & Fitness Personal Enrichment Sports & Recreation Teens IDIOTSGUIDES.COM Introducing a new and different Web site Millions of people love to learn through The Complete Idiot’s Guide ® books Discover the same pleasure online in idiotsguides.com–part of The Learning Network Idiotsguides.com is a new and different Web site, where you can: Explore and download more than 150 fascinating and useful mini-guides–FREE! 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