Are you trying to write your first screenplay but don’t know how to give your screenplay flair? Or perhaps, you’re a budding screenwriter looking for some new techniques to elevate your …
Often there are terms in screenwriting that do what they say on the tin. The bookend technique fulfils this mantra. It’s a plot device used to sandwich a story like …
What is a MacGuffin? A MacGuffin is a type of plot device that is essential to driving the plot but not necessarily important within the story as a whole. Story …
Most will remember Hamlet’s famous speech, the one example of a soliloquy that has been painfully etched into many students’ memories – “to be or not to be”. And conveniently …
What is a Deus ex machina? It sounds like something technological and complex. But it’s actually quite simple. Well, have you ever just been watching a film totally invested, your …
The Art of Symbolism Symbolism is a device used across literature, art and film. But arguably, film is one of the art forms where symbolism can have the most powerful …
Dream Sequences: Avoiding the Lazy Screenwriter’s Crutch It was all a dream! First the audience gasps. Then they sigh and roll their eyes. Through overuse and poor execution, dream sequences …
Chekhov’s gun is a term that – in its simplest form – bestows purpose upon any object, character or situation within a narrative, on which the writer explicitly chooses to …
15 Brilliant Flashback Examples That Show How to Best Use It It’s almost hard to think of a modern film that doesn’t have a flashback example somewhere within it. Of …
15 Cunning Red Herring Examples in TV and Film Surprise is one of the most important elements in movies and tv. Knowing how to write a killer plot twist …
16 Powerful Plot Devices To Use in Your Screenplay It’s a term that gets thrown around a lot but what exactly is a plot device? A plot device is …