If you’ve got a great idea for a story, don’t leave it to gather dust in a forgotten corner of your imagination. Led by award-winning screenwriter Steve Attridge, this one-day course provides you with a strong introduction to some of the essential elements of a writing a good screenplay – from formatting a script for film or TV, to creating relatable characters, quotable dialogue and watercooler-worthy plots.
Steve will show you how to draft a script that tells a solid story, and meets the demands of the TV and movie industries. Ideal for novice scriptwriters, but packed with enough specialist knowledge to be of use to more experienced professionals, this course is the essential guide to getting work out of your head, onto the page and into the hands of the right people in the industry.
This course is for you if...
- You’re an inexperienced writer keen to break into film or television
- You have a strong idea for a screenplay but want to know more about layout, structure and development of characters and ideas
- You’re an author or journalist looking to adapt an existing original work for the screen
- You’ve previously done some screenwriting and want to learn how to improve your work
PLEASE NOTE: Attendees who would like a more intensive guide to writing for television may be interested in Steve Attridge’s two-day course, How to write a script for TV, which offers more in-depth insights into the TV industry.
Course description
This engaging one-day course covers the key points of writing an attention-grabbing script, with illustrative clips and detailed handouts to ensure strong learning retention. By the end of the course, attendees will have a much better knowledge of script conventions in TV and film, as well as an understanding of how to develop ideas and write their own script. Topics covered on the day include:
- Understanding the medium: the fundamental differences between film and TV writing – which best suits you?
- What to do before writing: how to brainstorm ideas for a story, and the world it takes place in
- Layout and technical tips for writing and submitting scripts
- Simple tools for creating strong characters, and charting a hero’s journey
- A guide to basic plots, including how to interweave subplots and where to find further inspiration
- Visualising techniques, and how they shape the writing process
- Making a scene: emotional set-up and pay-off within scenes, and how to structure clusters of scenes to make a script
- Genres and scriptwriting: how they change the landscape of audience and appeal
- Q&A and discussion with Steve Attridge
Tutor profile
Steve Attridge’s work includes 17 books, a dozen TV series and seven feature films, as well as documentary dramas, TV films, stage plays and poetry. He also acts and directs – last year he performed his own show at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Awards include an RTS for Best TV Drama Series, two BAFTA nominations, an Eric Gregory Award and two Writers Guild Awards. His latest novel, The Natural Law, came straight in at number one in the Kindle Singles Bestsellers. He has also written a recently published history of the Boer War. Steve writes for both adults and children. In another life he worked as a performance poet. Find out more about Steve on his website.
Details
Date: Tuesday 10 March 2015
Times: 10am-4pm
Location: The Guardian, Kings Place, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU
Price: £249 (includes VAT, booking fee, lunch and refreshments)
Event capacity: 18
To contact us, click here. Terms and conditions can be found here.
Returns policy
Tickets may be refunded if you contact us at least 14 days before the course start date. Please see our terms and conditions for more information on our refund policy.
