Screenwriting

Sometimes it's better to take a lot of time on a project, Meriem Bouziani. Something I do when I keep thinking of ideas is save them in a file to work on later, and sometimes I make a short outline for the idea to get it out of my head, then I make the outline longer later on when I'm ready to work on the project.

Thanks, Ehsan Rahimpour. Shutter Island and Bourne Identity are incredible! I still need to see Collateral.

Yes, exactly — that’s what I do as well.

I am focusing on The Silent PFC War, while also taking notes on every new idea that comes my way.

And I also develop titles for them.

Titles are the anchors I use to remember my ideas

I’ve noticed that ideas without titles are far more likely to be forgotten Maurice Vaughan

Maurice, I've got a comedy-Western ("Kitten on the Keys") and an action-crime-comedy ("Got Any More Bullets, Sister?")...but I'm more likely to (and I like to) mix comedy with drama.

I like the Comedy Western mix, Jim Boston. I haven't heard about a lot of them.

Hope the pitching goes great, Fares M! You could pitch your script to executives, managers, etc. through Stage 32's Pitch Sessions (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/pitch-sessions). The Pitch Sessions are mainly to get feedback on pitches, but members have gotten managers, signed shopping agreements, etc. through the sessions (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/success-stories).

And you could post your pilot script on your profile. Producers search profiles for projects. That and networking are how I sold four short scripts to a producer. Click the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and select “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu. Scroll down to “Loglines” and click “Add/edit loglines” to the right of “Loglines.” You can also post your script on your profile this way: www.stage32.com/loglines (near the top where it says “Add a Logline”)

thank's maurice ;)

You're welcome, Fares M. I'm a Stage 32 Lounge Moderator. If you ever have any questions about Stage 32, let me or another Lounge Moderator know. We have badges on our pictures. Or you could email support@stage32.com.

And it's Stage 32’s policy that members have a proper first and last name or a pen name on their accounts. A lot of Stage 32 members are reluctant to accept network requests from profiles that don’t have proper names, and they’ll report the accounts as spam, which will cause the accounts to get removed.

thank you very much for your message and for your help.

No worries on my end regarding my name: my name is Fares, so everything is in order. Thanks as well for the information about connection requests and the risk of being reported as spam — I’ll be careful.

Have a great day, and I look forward to connecting on Stage 32!

You're welcome, Fares M. I suggest adding your last name. Have a great day too! I hope you find success on here!

These sessions are always welcome. I missed this one but just another reason why Stage 32 is awesome.

How would one go about getting a reboot script seen by the right people?

Emilia Maria Agents are different internationally than in Hollywood. Here, traditionally you will find a manager first, then an agent once the money starts rolling in. The exception is if you have a film premiere at a festival like Sundance, or a script that takes off like lightning for some reason.

Julie Lamont Depends on the reboot, but most often the studios will have OWA (open writing assignments) for reboots and will go out to a handful of writers with big credits or who they're fans of.

Jon Hersh Well, I'm hoping for the latter, hah! Thanks so much, it's definitely more difficult here for any sort of representation. But will keep my eyes peeled, thanks again.

Great points and tips, Fares M. I rewrite as I work on the first draft, but the first draft is mainly about getting the draft done.

So keep working the way you do. Take the time to build your own certainty, to strengthen what you want to say, and to feel proud of your story. After that, convincing others almost becomes a consequence, not a battle.

Thanks, Eric McKeever. Do you save leftovers?

Maurice Vaughan It's usually a character for me. I find they don't fit into the world of one script so they end up becoming the main character in another (Haha!)

I'll have to try that, Eric McKeever. Thanks!

Yes. I do the same. It helps a lot and saves the time as well.

It does save time, Priya Mistry. Thanks for pointing that out. I have a feature script outline template that I use. It saves time too.

Congratulations, Tony Yancey II for your winning screenplay!

You were right up there James Tuverson ! Congrats to you as well!

Congrats Tony!

congratulations Tony Yancey.

Congratulations, Tony Yancey! I entered this contest too, but didn’t make it far. I’m genuinely happy for your first place and I believe your story deserves to be seen. Congrats again and cheers on the win!

Thanks, Meriem Bouziani. I hope you're achieving your goals too. I got a lot done during November Write Club. I plan on making a post about it this weekend or Monday.

Thank you very much Maurice Vaughan

You're welcome, Meriem Bouziani. Have a great weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone - here's to a "Creative Christmas!"

Happy Thanksgiving, Steve Dini! Hope you have a Creative Christmas!

Thanks for sharing this, Ehsan Rahimpour. I love writing the Climax. It's the funnest part of a script. Sometimes I'm not 100% sure about the opening scene or ending when I start the script, but I make sure I know the Climax before starting the script.

You're welcome, Maurice Vaughan. That’s such a great approach. The climax is where all the tension and payoff meet, it’s pure storytelling magic.

Thanks, Ehsan Rahimpour. Some things change in the Climax by time I write it though, like characters I didn't plan to be in the scene help the protagonist fight the monster.

John Fife I think McKee’s sharp insight names the conflict’s general vector — in a passive protagonist, that conflict is fundamentally turned inward, a pattern more common in modern characters, with the inner conflict running from beginning to end.

Banafsheh Esmailzadeh Yeah, that’s true. In the end, we’re all just writing about our real lives.

Pretty much Ehsan Rahimpour. I like to challenge myself but within reason. I’m primarily the kind of person who believes in playing the hand you’re dealt (whether it’s your fault or not), so my characters tend to deal with things that happen to them alongside making things happen. Both are important to me so I can’t always relate to pure external conflict.

Maybe we can Banafsheh Esmailzadeh, expand it like this: In contemporary times, this dual situation almost always prevails, and our art is a way of playing between the two.

Thread reminds me too, a passive or active protagonist can be their own worst enemy & antagonist not another human, ghost, monster, society or bad environment etc. I write active protagonists who arc to become Pro active by being forced into a crucible during set up or midway. Even if they don’t “physically” act, their “psychological” choices determine their outcomes. Films with totally passive protagonists, often have an element of tragedy. Comedies however, often have a protagonist who refuses to change, completely unaware of their flaws or does not challenge the status quo of world around them.

Hey John - if it's any consolation, I pitched 2 weeks ago, and still haven't heard back hah! The wait is killing me, but it is what it is!

For me, a win is when an executive asks to read my screenplay. Then I know the pitch really worked despite the score and I get feedback on what really counts, the screenplay itself.

So many planets need to align for a studio to take on a project. It almost needs to be no brainer with prior success, all the rights, funding, politics and most importantly, need for a project.

In the meantime well done for getting your foot in the door and getting to pitch! I'm still working on that step.

@John It may be too expensive to make.

Movement in every shot -Kurosawa.

Look for rich backgrounds in great directing. Although I am only a beginning director, I tried in SETESH 2025 (youtube) to make each shot have so many unusual backgrounds in depth that you could watch it 1000 times and never catch every object in each location. The new netflix on President Garfield has wonderful and deep background panoramas so you could see it 1000 times and never catch everything.

Absolutely. Every time I hear bad dialogue, I think, I can do better. And every time I hear great dialogue, I think, I hope I’ll be that good someday.

It only gets worse but you wouldn't change it! A great way to develop your screenwriting is to explore parts of films that give you strong emotional responses, then explore how the filmmaker and screenwriter achieved this. Screenplayed.com has videos that show a rolling script next to the corresponding scene in the final movie so you can see how the scene translated from the page to the screen.

Actually movies inspire me when I write my own scripts.

I consciously revisit many films to analyze their structure, so I can better understand what approach might serve my own writing.

There are many different narrative paths or structural frameworks a writer can adopt, but I gravitate toward a puzzle-like structure.

I often begin with a catastrophic disruption, then let the events unfold forward while integrating strategic flashbacks that gradually reveal what led to the disaster.

I dissect films & TV shows constantly but don’t actually consciously plan to. It just happens. My friends stop me shouting at the screen, when I notice plot weaknesses or too many coincidences.

Thank you very much Aparna Pasalkar it’s absolutely a global emergency.

You're welcome Marie and if you need any help/assistance with global content for this subject do let me know

Love the true spark in the middle of the night. One never knows when inspiration will hit, usually at the most unlikely, unguarded times. Congratulations on your breakthrough.

Thank you so much Aparna Pasalkar

That’s true Jack Binder . I actually dismissed it the first time but knew better the second time .