Hi! Very new to this and I have so many questions. There is one I think about a lot though. When writers have a few scripts under their belt what's the sort of craft development that you start to see? Better stories, better execution? Thanks!
Screenwriting : Development of the craft by Richard Wells
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Writers may start to understand their readers' perspective more and more as they write more and are therefore read by others more. Hopefully, this leads to a writer being able to write in a way that is not only clear and compelling to the writer himself, but also clear and compelling to his reader.
Interesting guys. Thanks! I wonder if you start to notice more subtlety in plotting decisions and overall story? My concern is always that my scenes don't fully service the true story or theme of my work, and are simply a dramatic moment that leads to another dramatic moment.
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as you write more , you will develop your "BS" detector, your brain will eliminate scenes, characters, dialogue. focus on big moments . the 'little' side scenes & characters will be edit out in rewrites. Jump on a student or indie production, and sit in an editorial Room. Great experience to follow a project from page to post-production.
How about writing with confidence? From reading feature screenplays I've noticed that many just have that feeling that the writer was completely confident in their work. Starting off with the subject they were writing about, the script boldly exclaims "I know this world and I'm going to take you into it", scene descriptions and action sequences that appear to break rules but the writer doesn't mind because "it works", introducing strong, vivid (and memorable) characters, and even the subtleties like interesting props that serve to enrich the story and the characters. Lastly, maybe most importantly, developing a gift for truly showing and not telling. For one example, take an opening sequence like the one found in "Enough Said", where in 2 pages, with minimal dialog, we get a clear picture of who Eva is, her situation in life, why she's probably less than satisfied and an impression of her relationship with her daughter.
Hi Richard, just my 2 cents: "I wonder if you start to notice more subtlety in plotting decisions and overall story?" I have not devoted any study of whether or not that is a trend as writers mature. "My concern is always that my scenes don't fully service the true story or theme of my work..." Within a "Hollywood" context (which may not be YOUR context, you could be in the "DIY"/indie film space), typically, "servicing the true story" is not the priority. Typically, finding the most cinematic, well-dramatized version of the story is a bigger priority for the studio. Typically, a studio is not going to say "take out that great race scene because it didn't really happen that way in real life" or "make the war hero's death less shocking because that's not how it happened in real life." Typically, the studio wants to find the most cinematic, well-dramatized, audience-friendly version so the movie/show plays well. That said, HBO Films is a notable example of a company that does not allow much creative license at all. That want the true story. But they want movies that are "big events." For example, YOU DON'T KNOW JACK is the true story of Jack Kevorkian and CONFIRMATION is the true story of Anita Hill. Both were on the world stage, with hours of news footage and reams of press devoted to them. And great controversy that the general public was well-aware of. Household names.
Food for thought there! Really unexpected stuff too. The note on confidence is really inspiring as well. Many thanks!