To all would-be screenplay writers
I'm pretty sure the conversation I had on ICQ today was a secret message from the powers that be that said Dude, finish your screenplay... dammit. That's definitely something I gotta do.
Before I post this conversation, I do NOT claim to be an expert on screenplay writing, but I have studied the proper methods of getting one together. If you are new to the craft, get Syd Field's video (along with final draft if you can afford it). It is the BEST how-to on screenplays I have seen and Syd's methods DO WORK.
That being said, here's what happened. I've changed the guy's name I chatted with to "that guy". The following you will see is completely unedited.
One more thing. I'm pretty sure the advice I gave this guy is accurate, although I'm not positive. I was just trying to help him get in the right direction.
that guy:
hay can I ask you some thing
me:
if it's a polite question, yes
that guy:
its about film making
me:
sure
that guy:
ok where to start I wont to be a film maker and I wonted to know
that guy:
how do you start you screen play
that guy:
I mean
me:
are you referring to the idea of a screenplay or how to write it
that guy:
not the format I know all that stuff I mean where and how do u put it on the paper
that guy:
like
that guy:
ok I have this moive in my head
that guy:
but I dont know where to start
me:
the basics are like this
me:
this is from syd field's workshop http://www.finaldraft.com/products/sydvideo.php4 by the way
me:
you start with the end
--
This is my personal way of getting a screenplay done. My first idea is usually how it ends. I build the rest of it after that.
--
that guy:
ok
me:
meaning you know first how it ends
me:
then you develop the beginning and the middle
me:
the middle is the hardest part
me:
in classic screenplay structure, this is how it pans out:
me:
beginning, plot point 1, middle, plot point 2, end
me:
beginning introduces characters
me:
plot point one is where the story actually starts
me:
middle is "filler" more or less
me:
plot point 2 is the "twist" and the beginning of the ned
me:
the end is the resolution (guy gets girls, lives happily ever after, etc)
that guy:
ah right ok got u
me:
average movie is 120 minutes in length
me:
so,
that guy:
thats why im geting stuck
me:
each page is one minute of screen time
me:
the beginning should be around 15 pages long
me:
plot point 1 should be 20 to 40 pages
me:
middle is another 30 or 40
me:
and so on and so forth
me:
the plot points are your keys to the story
me:
that video i referenced will help you out a lot
that guy:
on the characters how much time should I spend on linking every one in the story ok the story is about this kid who has this gift for racing but
--
I could already see that this guy was getting too hung up on character development and didn't have his story done. It's also my personal belief that character development should come after your story. No story = too many disconnected ideas without structure.
--
me:
in this order, this is how it goes:
me:
get the story done first
me:
what i do is this:
me:
starting the screenplay with no story is wrong
me:
so,
me:
you write out a short story, maybe around 20 to 30 pages long
me:
then you start the screenplay based on your story
me:
your short story (which no one ever sees) is the "guide" for you
me:
it makes the actual screenplay 10 times easier to write
me:
when the story is done, then you work on character development
me:
trust me, when the story is actually finished, everything falls into place
that guy:
the father wont have any thing to do with it couse the grandfather who was a F1 racer back in the 60,s was all most killed in a bad crash and there is a riff between the father and the grandfather becouse he was never home hes was all over the world racing
me:
that sounds like part of a backstory
me:
to the main plot
me:
which would be plot point 2
--
I was guessing here as to what part of the story he was talking about. It sounded like something that should be near the tail. In actuality after reading this, this would be something right before plot point 2.
--
that guy:
so
that guy:
there is a fight bewteen the two over the boy who just wonts to race gocarts
that guy:
and the father will not have him race ever now
--
At this point he was flying all over the place with characters and wasn't concenrating on the story at all.
--
me:
if you're getting stuck on the character development, you need to go back to the story and fix it first
me:
meaning, Beginning, Middle, End
me:
summarize
me:
if you get too deep into it without the structure you'll run into a wall
that guy:
the son gos to spend the summer with the grandfather on his farm where he finds out about the new race track in town there
that guy:
thats what I mean
that guy:
i start and im all over the place
me:
try this:
me:
can you summarize your entire movie into two sentences, such as:
me:
"A man loses his son, swears revenge against his killer, and kills him."
--
That's one sentence, but you get the idea.
--
me:
that's a summary
me:
very basic, but that's what one looks like
that guy:
hehehe im gonig blank
--
Hence the problem with getting the screenplay going. If you can't summarize you've haven't got anything.
--
me:
can you say what the end of the movie is? the resolution?
that guy:
his wis the big race of the top cart racers in the us
that guy:
wins
me:
now you develop -how- he got to that point
me:
did the main character have to prove himself to anyone?
me:
was there a love interest involved?
that guy:
its the act 2 thats killing me
me:
instead of doing act 1, 2 and 3
me:
do it as beginning, plot point 1, middle, plot point 2, end
me:
spreading it out makes it much easier
that guy:
ah
that guy:
ok I see
--
I assumed when he said he knew all about the formatting, he knew what plot points were. It seems he didn't. So I explained it the best I could.
--
me:
like i said, beginning is nothing but the introduction of characters
me:
plot point 1 is where the story actually starts
me:
middle is an extension of plot point 1
me:
plot point 2 is the turning point leading to the resolution
me:
the end is the resolution
that guy:
its a bad and evil kind of story
me:
nothing wrong with that
that guy:
sorry good and evil
that guy:
the kid has to race with what he has
me:
to put the story into structure perspective
me:
plot point 2 could be "the big race"
me:
it's the part of the story that leads it to its end
that guy:
I have to tie the son with the rich kid that has every thing
me:
that's the beginning - introduction of characters
me:
all characters in the movie are brought in within the first 20 to 30 minutes
me:
story is what you need to focus on
me:
all the character stuff is in the beginning
me:
the rest is all story
that guy:
ok sorry to bug u I just wonted to ask some one that has done this
me:
no prob
that guy:
ok later bye
me:
bye
This guy gave up; he didn't know what I was talking about.
If you're writing a screenplay, the first and foremost thing you have to have DONE is your story. Story is always first and there's no way around that. If your story is hung up in a bunch of disconnected ideas, you will run into a brick wall - just like this guy did.
It is a bad idea to just start writing lines of dialogue without knowing where to go next. The reason you see so many screenplays that say "Based on the book of..." is because the screenplay writer had a book in front of him. He knew the beginning, middle and end. It was all laid out. All he had to do was tell it in pictures. For your own ideas, you need to follow suit. Write a short story, then write it out in pictures. In addition, know where you're going. The formula of beginning, plot point 1, middle, plot point 2, end does really work. Syd explains it a lot better than I can. 😉 Get his video.
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