The scene is the building block of the whole screenwriting industry, and yet it is often overlooked. This class will teach writers the foundations of a good scene. Lecture topics will include writing visually, using character action rather than situations to drive plot, how to operate on both a textual and subtextual level inside a scene, the ins and outs of great dialogue, the conundrum of exposition, and the importance of psychological specificity. We’ll supplement these discussions by viewing short examples of both good and bad scenes from film and TV. We’ll also read out loud examples of both good and bad scenes from existing scripts to understand how scripts translate onto the screen. Students will also practice the techniques in each class through writing exercises and group discussion on their generated material. The goal of the course is for participants to develop a working knowledge of this most basic of screenwriting skills—how to write a good scene—that can be applied to both feature-length scripts and television pilots. Beyond writing for film and TV, participants will discover that the topics of this course apply to all storytelling as well. 

In this workshop, we will generate new writing through guided exercises and prompts; offer feedback/first impressions on writing you produce in our week.