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Screenwriting for the 21st Century is available from:
> www.ritchiebooks.co.uk
> amazon.com
> amazon.ca
> amazon.co.uk
> Pat Silver-Lasky
> Bookstores
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KEEP A FILE OF YOUR IDEAS
Write them down, review and add to them from time to time. Save articles about an event, a happening, a person, a crime, a natural disaster - anything with an interesting twist or setting that captures your imagination. Your file might give you the basis of an idea around which you could (even years later) build a story.
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LOOK FOR UNUSUAL HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS
All drama needs a structural design - and conflict is at heart of any story telling. Look for characters whose desires are in opposition in order to discover where the conflict lies.
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FIND THE CONFLICT
A scene is about two (or more) people who want different things. It can be as small as two characters with different beliefs and attitudes. Love triangles are an aspect of sexual politics and always involve conflict. It's all about human behaviour under stress.
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COMPRESS THE TIME ELEMENT
Drama means compressing the ordinary life of your protagonist into a heightened reality with a driving pace. Putting the protagonist and the plot under some urgency makes a story more immediate and suspenseful. It escalates the audience's excitement.
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WHAT QUALITIES MUST A WRITER HAVE?
Be a constant observer of life.
Have an open mind.
Be non-judgmental but have a strong sense of values.
Have insight and perception into what motivates people to do what they do.
See, don't Say, should be your guideline in bringing a story to the screen.
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WHERE DOES THE ACTION BEGIN?
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The storyline is the plot and it begins with the Initial Turning Point - the kick-off event that changes the pattern of the protagonist's life and sets him on his difficult journey. The 'event' should throw the protagonist's world out of balance causing a major reversal and forcing him to make choices and take action.
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REVEALING YOUR CHARACTERS
Our understanding of the characters must grow as each new scene unfolds. No matter how large the canvas - for example, World War II, a macrocosm of history - your created world must be contained in a microcosm focused through your protagonist. Through his/her eyes we must understand the wider world.
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FOCUS ON YOUR STAR
Having decided on your protagonist and his quest, don't let a minor character take over the action and take away the spotlight. Don't give him all the good lines in a scene. You'll lose your protagonist - and the star you want to play him.
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DON'T BE OBVIOUS
In a moment of crisis the Protagonist must believe that his/her decision hazardous or death-defying, will make the situation better. Since the audience have seen a lot of movies, they will anticipate - maybe even outguess what he/she might do. It is your job to keep them guessing.
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RESEARCH MEANS ASKING QUESTIONS
What, who, when, where, why, how? The questions never change. The answers do. Remember that there aren't many 'whys' without 'because's. Know your created world thoroughly.
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| These tips and more can be found in Pat's book: Screenwriting for the 21st Century
Available from:
Worldwide:
Pat Silver-Lasky
www.ritchiebooks.co.uk
In the U.S. at amazon.com, in Canada at amazon.ca
Available in the U.K. at amazon.co.uk
Also available in bookstores in the U.K., U.S. and Canada
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