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Craft |
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YOU ALREADY KNOW You’ve been watching movies and TV all your life. So you already know many of the basic principles of dramatic writing. You also know what you enjoy and admire in films. Story Rescue helps apply your intuitive knowledge to the ages-old principles of dramatic writing.
THE STORY IS ALWAYS BEING TOLD One of the most common mistakes aspiring screenwriters make is not telling the story. This means that as the action unfolds, many writers allow their story to falter, slow down and become dull. Solving this problem is simply a matter of sticking to one basic rule: “ALWAYS BE TELLING THE STORY.” Every good movie does this. But it’s another matter to learn how it’s done.
7 BASIC PRINCIPLES When we write a story—whether it’s prose or even fact-based—we observe some basic principles of story telling. These are the pillars of drama and have been since the earliest theatre back in ancient Greece. These 7 Basic Principles have been collected and distilled from a few others I have studied including Robert McKee, Syd Field and my colleague at NYU, professor Paul Thompson.
Great Scripts for Great Actors A Good Story = A Good Lie Audiences Need to Worry Moving Through Time The Big Change Authenticity Irony
Using these 7 Basic Principles, this process gives your story solidity, clarity and emotional impact. These are the qualities that attract performers and other professionals to your script.
NOT “FORMULA”—–CRAFT! Unfortunately, dramatic writing is not like cabinetry. There is no absolute formula. However, as in cabinetry, there are fundamental principles of craft that we can follow in order to create a dramatic story; a story that does what it needs to do—excite and engage the audience. This audience also includes actors, directors and producers.
ART v. COMMERCE Believe it or not, your script can be artistic AND commercial. Somehow, a myth has developed that these two qualities are in opposition. Some of the most commercially successful scripts are also the most artistic. This runs the full spectrum from “Dumb & Dumber” to “Chinatown” to “Breaking the Waves” to “The Sopranos” and long running sitcoms like “Friends.”
Good stories are simply GOOD and appeal to a wide audience.
Sounds easy, but this is where the hard work begins.
After years of writing and teaching I have come upon an approach that I feel works for many writers, including me. It has also served me well as a screenwriting teacher since 1999 with hundreds of students. |
