People who claim that writing a marketable screenplay is only for the very talented or the very experienced are wrong. Anyone can write a screenplay, but writing one that will sell takes a good deal of patience and a solid grasp of the elements that make up a good screenplay.
Remember That You're Writing for the Screen
A good screenwriter realizes first and foremost that writing for the screen is very different from writing a short story or a novel. In screenwriting, less is better – avoid writing elaborate descriptions of characters or long chunks of dialogue. The average screenplay is between 95 and 125 pages long, and every single page needs to keep the audience captivated. Remember that one page of a screenplay roughly equals one minute of screen-time.
A Good Screenplay is Cinematic and Dramatic
All good screenplays are visual and visceral – what the audience sees and how they feel is something you must keep in mind when writing any page of your screenplay. The best movies are those where you don't want to leave your seat because you are completely glued to what is happening on the screen.
Consequently, every scene in a screenplay must either expand character or move the story forward, and a screenwriter should always strive to give information visually, rather than convey it through dialogue or other audio. In a movie, the images are always the most important.
Introduce Conflict and Establish Obstacles
An experienced screenwriter once said, “Hollywood doesn’t buy screenplays, they buy emotions.” The audience doesn’t want to see the village of happy people; they want to see the struggles and triumphs of characters. Most Hollywood classics feature a protagonist and a goal. In your screenplay, put obstacles in front of the goal – something must always be at stake for your protagonist. While the story doesn’t have to be complicated, it does need to draw in the audience and make them care about your characters.
Create Memorable Characters
When introducing a character, give their name, age, a brief and economical description. Avoid numbering your characters (i.e. Cop #1, 2); instead try describing characters using energies. A compelling character often goes through many changes throughout the course of the story. For example, Michael Corleone from The Godfather goes from being a passive, non-confrontational member of the family to being a man who is willing to sacrifice everything in order to keep his family safe.
Keep the story simple but make the characters complex. A Hollywood movie usually features an antagonist, often a foil for the protagonist and another obstacle that he or she must overcome. Don't overload your audience with superficial characters; having one well-developed antagonist is much better than having multiple antagonists whose motivations and back-stories aren’t made clear.
Write Compelling Dialogue
If possible, try to reveal character through action rather than dialogue – remember, in a movie, images are integral to conveying information. However, when you must write dialogue, choose words that explode in the brain. How people talk in movies is often very different from how they talk in real life – don’t be afraid to use words that sound dynamic and cause conflict among different characters. How characters talk should reveal who they are.
Keep These Important Page Numbers in Mind
- Page 1 contains the opening image and should set the vibe and tone of the movie
- The inciting incident, the event that launches your story forward, should be inthe first 10 pages
- Page 17 is the point of no return for the protagonist and signals the first act break
- Page 30 is the usually the end of act one and reflects the first act break
- Page 60 is the Tent Pole, where the protagonist goes from being passive to active in his or her own destiny
- Page 75 contains the second false epiphany, when the audience is tricked into believing that all is well before all hell breaks loose
- Page 90 is the Big Gloom, where everything that can go wrong, does go wrong
- Page 109 is where you should try to get out on an emotional high
The Basics Do Matter
When all is said and done, screenwriting is still a creative process, meaning that rules and restrictions can, and often are, ignored. However, it is important to keep these basic guidelines in mind when crafting your screenplay. Screenplays that contain an engaging plot, complex characters, and good visual details usually make for a more interesting read than those that do not, meaning that they have a much better chance of eventually hitting the big screen.
Shirley Mak - Born in New York City and raised in the Bay Area, Shirley Mak is currently living and working in her hometown, Union City. She graduated ...
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