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One of the world’s most popular screenwriting books , Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat has brought clarity and a sense of direction to thousands of screenwriters, who were looking for the logical extension of Syd Field’s work. If you’re not familiar with it the book delivered a structural roadmap to writers: not quite join-the-dots,
One of the world’s most popular screenwriting books , Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat has brought clarity and a sense of direction to thousands of screenwriters, who were looking for the logical extension of Syd Field’s work. If you’re not familiar with it the book delivered a structural roadmap to writers: not quite join-the-dots,
Period drama “Period drama” is a slippery term. Typically, it means a project set in a time period that’s older than recent memory. (While STRANGER THINGS is set in the period of the 1980s, it’s unlikely anyone would refer to it as a “period piece”.) But where to begin when facing
One of the world’s most popular screenwriting books , Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat has brought clarity and a sense of direction to thousands of screenwriters, who were looking for the logical extension of Syd Field’s work. If you’re not familiar with it the book delivered a structural roadmap to writers: not
15 Great Ryan Coogler Quotes Ryan Coogler’s career path is the envy of many aspiring filmmakers. Off of the success of a festival-acclaimed indie drama, FRUITVALE STATION, he brought his own personal touch to back-to-back blockbuster hits CREED and BLACK PANTHER. If he has any filmmaking tips to share,
The Insider Interviews series started in 2010 as a set of recorded interviews, featuring the likes of Tom Hiddleston, Gareth Unwin, who produced THE KING’S SPEECH, Ben Wheatley and Hossein Amini, the Oscar-nominated writer of DRIVE and THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY. You can watch these here. The Insider Interviews now exist
COURSE REVIEW: SCORES Lessons: 8.1 Workbooks: 8.2 Community & Interactivity: 6.4 Value: 8.0 OVERALL VERDICT: Thumbs Up! Pros and Cons Pros: Actor-director background creates a unique perspective Strong focus on how writers and directors collaborate Extra class materials and looks behind the scenes provide good context Cons: The
BACK TO THE FUTURE Video Essay Not content with dominating blockbuster filmmaking as a director, the ’80s saw Steven Spielberg become a producing powerhouse. He brought his Amblin touch to the generation-defining likes of GREMLINS, POLTERGEIST, THE GOONIES and also BACK TO THE FUTURE. After several box office failures,
Martin Scorsese Masterclass Review Scores: Lessons: 8.3/10 Workbooks: 8.1/10 Community: 6.5/10 Value: 8.1/10 OVERALL VERDICT: Thumbs Up! Course Pros and Cons… Pros: Scorsese’s expertise and eloquence make him a natural interview subject and teacher Video lessons cover every aspect of directing and of developing your own
PADDINGTON 2 video essay PADDINGTON was that rare, quintessentially British film that found success around the globe. So there was little surprise when the studio confirmed PADDINGTON 2. Paul King returned to direct. David Heyman (of HARRY POTTER fame) returned to produce, through Heyday Films and StudioCanal UK. Paul King
THE SOCIAL NETWORK They’re making a film about Facebook? Commentators greeted news of the project with scepticism. But with a tight script from Aaron Sorkin (THE WEST WING) and clinical direction from David Fincher (GONE GIRL), THE SOCIAL NETWORK has proved to be one of the modern era’s best –
CRAZY RICH ASIANS Video Essay CRAZY RICH ASIANS is the smash hit that proves that, contrary to recent reports, the rom-com isn’t dead. Rachel (Constance Wu) is an economics professor in New York. When her boyfriend Nick (Henry Golding) asks her to join him in Singapore for his friend’s wedding,
THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE is a Netflix miniseries loosely adapted from the book by Shirley Jackson. It was created by horror maestro Mike Flanagan (OCULUS, GERALD’S GAME), who also directed every episode. It revolves around the Crain family who, as children, lived in a haunted
Follow my blog with Bloglovin Screenplay Font – Does It Matter? This article will explain what the industry-standard screenplay font is. As well as explaining what it is, we’ll look at the reasons why this is font holds the title of the industry-standard font for screenwriters and filmmakers alike. Additionally, we’ll explore
15 Great Alfred Hitchcock Quotes The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock was a genius who needs no introduction. He cut his teeth in the UK with early thriller masterpieces like THE 39 STEPS, but the move to Hollywood brought bigger budgets and more prestige. REAR WINDOW, VERTIGO, NORTH BY NORTHWEST
CATASTROPHE CATASTROPHE is a Channel 4 and Amazon Prime show. It’s created by, written by, and stars American comedian Rob Delaney and Irish writer-actress Sharon Horgan. It was nominated for a Peabody Award and Delaney and Horgan won a BAFTA for Best Writer: Comedy. The first episode of CATASTROPHE opens
DRIVE Video Essay The crime drama DRIVE, with a screenplay by Hossein Amini adapted from a James Sallis novel, established Ryan Gosling as a bona fide star. Made on an indie budget, it went on to become a hit with audiences and critics worldwide and for a few years the
Gus Fring BREAKING BAD, created by Vince Gilligan, introduced us to many great characters. Antihero Walter White (Brian Cranston), the cancer-diagnosed high school teacher who turns to making meth. Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), his young sidekick, who was originally intended to die early on but proved a favourite. Hank Schrader
LA CONFIDENTIAL LA CONFIDENTIAL put a modern spin on the hard-boiled noir, reinvigorating the genre and leading to an Oscar win for Brian Helgeland and Curtis Hanson for Best Adapted Screenplay. The world they create on screen is partly familiar – Hollywood of the 1950s. But the story mostly takes
Before editing was created and perfected as its own art form, every film was in real time. (Although this isn’t entirely true: before sound, films were shown at whatever speed the projectionist decided.) However now, even though editing opens up so many possibilites, the real time screenplay is still popular.
On the Special Edition DVD/Blu-Ray for THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, Jodie Foster is interviewed as part of a retrospective. In the interview, Foster explains that a structurally insignificant scene (the one where “Multiple” Miggs can’t contain his excitement, after Clarice’s first meeting with Hannibal Lecter) is in fact very
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neil), the palaeontologist hero of Steven Spielberg‘s dinosaur horror-adventure blockbuster JURASSIC PARK.
What is a Point of No Return? The “point of no return” is essentially when the plot leaves the character with no choice but to go forwards. Perhaps the easiest way to imagine a point of no return is as an island from which a character can’t escape. The setting
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Danny Ocean (George Clooney), the mastermind of a complex casino heist in Steven Soderbergh‘s OCEAN’S ELEVEN.
Obsessing About One Script Reader Here at Industrial Scripts, we get it all the time. You can almost hear the echoing footsteps of the query, before it arrives: “Can I have the same script reader as before?” It’s actually serendipitous this should be asked so frequently of late, because we’ve
Understanding Screenplay Atmosphere Screenplay atmosphere is difficult. At the bottom of the poster for THEY CAME TOGETHER, a spoof of rom-coms, there’s a disclaimer: Please note: New York City plays such a central role in this story, it is almost like another character in the movie. Although intended as a compliment,
The second act is all about escalating stakes. Absolute urgency. There’s a gap in the classic three act structure as extolled by many screenwriting books and teachers. The problem is the second act, which is usually the bulk of the story. Depending on your terminology of choice, you’ll likely find
2018 was a great and diverse year for cinema. Everything from BLACK PANTHER by Ryan Coogler to Disney’s long anticipated INCREDIBLES 2. In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount
Finding the perfect ending is difficult, even for professional writers and big-budget films. The resolution after the climax provides closure for the audience and characters. Sometimes termed the “denouement,” this scene is just as important as the climax itself. It’s the part of the story that resolves any remaining subplots. The script
Already one of the key, iconic actresses of the American indie scene, appearing in the likes of FRANCES HA, MISTRESS AMERICA and 20TH CENTURY WOMEN, Greta Gerwig made her solo directing debut with LADY BIRD, a warm and moving story of a mother-daughter relationship in 2002 Sacramento. It was nominated
Jordan Peele, one half of the sketch comedy duo KEY & PEELE, burst onto the cinema scene with the highly acclaimed and successful “social thriller” GET OUT, which he wrote and directed. At the 90th Academy Awards, it was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on FBI special agent Bill Tench (Holt McCallany) from MINDHUNTER. Bill Tench and MINDHUNTER MINDHUNTER is a
An odd trend in cinema surfaced in the 1990s and continued into the 2000s. A spate of teen films relocated the plots of William Shakespeare plays to high schools. O updated Othello to make the main character a basketball player rather than a military general. 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU found
A genre hybrid, a cross between two or more genres, can be a boon. It’s giving the audience something familiar, tapping into genre conventions, but also fresh. However, it can also confuse audiences (and marketers!). Genres tend to have their own audiences and trying to appeal across them can alienate
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the hero of the original STAR WARS trilogy. Luke Skywalker and
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Rebecca Bunch (Rachel Bloom), the title character from The CW musical dramedy show CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND.
Screenwriter and director Dee Rees’ debut feature film PARIAH was met with positive critical acclaim and since then, her Emmy Award-winning HBO series BESSIE and her feature film MUDBOUND have impressed both audiences and critics alike. Here are 15 of the best Dee Rees quotes to inspire all screenwriters and filmmakers….
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Theo Faron (Clive Owen), the weary and reluctant hero of Alfonso Cuarón’s prescient dystopian thriller CHILDREN
Writing great dialogue is difficult, but one way to get a step closer is through the use of subtext. Subtext, literally what is below the text, is the deeper implication behind the surface meaning. Dialogue is not the same as real speech. Dialogue is inevitably heightened, even if it’s simply a
There’s a great quote from F. Hauser and R. Reich that states: “In all the best material, the outcome is inevitable and inherent in the opening moment and every moment inbetween”. Think how fated Daniel Plainview’s rise to power and fall into corruption feels throughout THERE WILL BE BLOOD or
With the dominance of superhero and tentpole films, sometimes it seems like there’s no place in cinema for everyday heroes. Most audiences don’t want their reality simply reflected back to them. However, there are still degrees between these extremes. It’s still possible to engage an audience by showing everyday heroes on screen. As
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal), the thief-turned-cameraman in NIGHTCRAWLER. Lou Bloom and NIGHTCRAWLER NIGHTCRAWLER is a
History is, to gently mutilate a great quote, often stranger than fiction, which is what makes it such a great basis for fiction. Of course, mining history for a solid TV script isn’t as simple as shoving a good story into a period setting. So what makes for a good
‘Where do you get your ideas from?’ It’s the question that gets a ripple of groans at any Q&A session, and an answer comprising a shrug and escorting the asker into a waiting van. ‘Where did you get that idea from?’ That’s a different story. Often the initial ideas that
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz), the SS Colonel villain of Quentin Tarantino’s INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS. Hans Landa
DEAD MAN’S SHOES (2004) DEAD MAN’S SHOES follows Richard (Paddy Considine), a soldier who returns to his home town to get revenge on the men who abused his mentally-challenged brother Anthony (Toby Kebbell). The script was written by director Shane Meadows and Considine, with additional material by Paul Fraser. After
THE INSIDER INTERVIEWS: MATT ORTON The Insider Interviews series started in 2010 as a set of recorded interviews, featuring the likes of Tom Hiddleston, Gareth Unwin, who produced THE KING’S SPEECH, Ben Wheatley and Hossein Amini, the Oscar-nominated writer of DRIVE and THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY. You can watch
There’s a famous piece of screenwriting advice that “if you want to send messages, use Western Union.” Now it might go, “if you want to send messages, Tweet about it.” The implication is that such idealised notions about art improving the world don’t belong in show business (emphasis on the
In our Genius Character Reveals series we examine scenes and moments where a film or TV show reveals a tremendous amount of character information in a compressed amount of screen time. This instalment focuses on Baby (Ansel Elgort), the eponymous protagonist of BABY DRIVER. Baby and BABY DRIVER With similarities
Cinematic Scenes of People, Arguing and/or Laughing It sounds like a dull writing exercise. Put your characters in a room and see what happens, arguing or laughing. But here are 10 great, cinematic scenes that prove being stuck in one room doesn’t have to mean being stuck in a boring
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