For mobile users: 1) 0:45 - Write Something That Only You Can Write 2) 2:20 - The Primary Goal 3) 2:53 - A Mediocre Script 4) 6:01 - Not Enough Story 5) 6:23 - Burning Questions 6) 10:18 - No Curiosity 7) 10:53 - Not Hooking The Reader 8) 12:50 - People Can’t Read Your Script 9) 14:06 - Cliché Character Descriptions 10) 14:27 - Main Character Must Want Something 11) 16:42 - Boring Characters 12) 18:06 - Secrecy & Deception 13) 20:41 - The 4 Goal Rule 14) 22:20 - Know The Characters 15) 24:45 - Characters That Do Not Serve The Story 16) 25:20 - The Heart And Soul Of The Story 17) 27:34 - Skin Jump 18) 32:42 - What The Story Is Not 19) 36:07 - BMOC Tools 20) 38:44 - Small Ideas 21) 40:11 - How To Generate Original Ideas 22) 43:14 - Real Life 23) 51:58 - Writing Your Own Story 24) 52:52 - Four Emotions Of Cinema 25) 54:33 - Imagination & Psychology 26) 56:36 - The Comfort Zone 27) 58:46 - Normal World 28) 1:01:35 - Delaying Conflict 29) 1:04:27 - Compelling Conflict 30) 1:07:31 - Not Enough Conflict 31) 1:09:23 - Levels Of Conflict 32) 1:11:47 - Where Is The Adversary? 33) 1:12:48 - Idiot Plot 34) 1:14:41 - Making A Scene Better 35) 1:18:44 - A Movie Is Not A Lecture 36) 1:19:56 - Assuming It’s On The Page 37) 1:24:27 - Don’t Worry About Being Perfect 38) 1:28:18 - Spend Time With The Best Scripts 39) 1:29:57 - One Way To Test A Screenplay 40) 1:30:58 - Great Movies Change Lives 41) 1:36:28 - How To Know A Script Isn’t Boring 42) 1:40:07 - Final Words
I really want to thank you guys for putting these together. You don't get the attention you deserve and I just really want to express how great these are.
Films become boring when either the story isn't moving forward or it isn't moving forward at a steady pace. Make sure each and every scene you write has a purpose in moving the story along.
If you are interested in the character enough, you'll watch them do something that is revealing about them, sometimes those end up being the best parts of a story.
Films go boring when they are either safe, woke or franchise (a form of TV in the modern day and age of streaming). It is a fact. All classics are based on experience / often based on real life memoirs, quasi biographic inserts, personal statements. These lecturers would never write Trainspotting, none of Scorsese, none of Kubrick, none of Coppola, none of Caspar Noe... Etc etc etc.
This is one of the most incredible things I’ve seen on UA-cam! So amazed by not only the sheer number of perspectives featured, but the quality of each one!!
I keep saying, "Oh that's why _____ movie works so well" This is so incredibly helpful. Thank you so much. I am amazed at the amount of value you guys have in this video.
I echo the many comments here - these videos by Film Courage have become indispensable as a creative. The insight into craft, process, and philosophy has already paid so many dividends in my work. Thank you so much for your fantastic interviewing and selection of guests. ❤
Jurij Fedorov Even if they wrote a movie that 1,000 people watched, that is still hundreds of miles ahead of 90 percent of aspiring screenwriters. Don’t lose perspective
Corey has an interview where he delves into it. Yeah, maybe he should just put "Metropolis" when listing his screenwriting portfolio, but he obviously doesn't mind too much. From listening to the interview, it was like someone talking about their first failed marriage where they learned a lot. Plus, they wrote over a lot of his ideas and *ed it up.
Thank you Film Courage for everything you doing to helping us. And Thank you to all the People in all your videos for sharing their knowledge with us.+++++++++++++++++++++ (Gaining knowledge is the first step to Wisdom. Sharing it, Is the first step to humanity. -Unknown)
Great Video, very comprehensive overview of screenplay writing. I especially liked the lady who said you need thematic focus to draw your story into alignment, it cant just be about anything and everything. I've got enough experience writing stories [written 3 fantasy sagas now] that most of their advice resonates with a lesson in craftsmanship i learned, but there's still the occasional new insight.
"Not enough story." Be nice if these talking heads used clear and simple language to communicate what they're talking about. Lots of vague blah blah blah and strict adherence to formula. If you don't stray from a formula, your work because formulaic - see the credits of these people for evidence. Why is it that there are so many videos and books that give writing advice coming from people who have either written stuff you've never heard of, or absolute trash? It gives me the impression that "writing advice" is the career of choice for failed writers, but I think there might be a simpler answer - these are the writers who are sociable enough to share their insights. Most of the really great writers don't care to blab self-indulgently about their craft until their career is on the rocks. What videos (or books) like this seem to miss is that the formula they identify as the clearest and best way to craft a marketable screenplay isn't a timeless equation to which great writers also adhered with strict fidelity. No, the formula is descriptive, not prescriptive. We know what good writing is because we can look to hits and classics, and say, "this is what good writing looks like; let's do what they did." Ultimately, spending 102 minutes on a youtube video is never going to equal the schooling you get from watching your favourite movie and asking yourself, "What makes this so good?" and "How can I do this my way?" Nobody's gonna answer these questions for you, so get cracking.
That’s the whole point? Is it not? To hear what others call “rules” so you can confidently break them without a sweat. Being ignorant of the formulaic story telling structures of commercial successful stories is the best way to unknowingly repeat said structures and mistake it for originality rather than identifying it as subconscious imitation of movies you once watched (structurally not content-wise). That’s why I love learning about narrative formula. So I can confidently pit it against natural story telling talent (which I hope I have, but could be sorely mistaken 😅).
yeah, how many people who write articles about finance or stock advice are wealthy themselves? almost none. I think the BEST rule is to know your audience- and then secretly pander to them haha
While I agree that watching movies is the best way to absorb filmmaking techniques and style, I still think that watching a video like this can help guide you towards putting the thoughts you have about what you do or don't like about a film into words. People shouldn't take every single rule or tip as gospel, but if any one of these leads to a breakthrough or a better understanding of their own writing, then it might be more worthwhile than just watching a given film.
What's up with the comments,the most we've all written and published has been our comments on UA-cam,yeah myself included. even if they're no house hold name writers, they're actual working writers who's stuff has actually been made wether it was of anything you personally liked. It got made and your a working pro, god can you imagine David Mamet being your head writer and just yelling at the writer team,lol.
Henry Bowler in the first It (2017) drove the plot, in the sequel he did not. His character's only purpose in that movie was to attack the main characters twice but not incapacitate them or slow them down at all, they killed him off easily and never even mentioned what happened to the body.
Might want to consider editing out the lady who talks about the ketchup. First she mentions sitting in a diner, what came to my mind is Reservoir Dogs sitting in a diner pontificating. It’s one of the best movie scenes ever made. Also Seinfeld, one of the best shows ever made and actually did an episode on ketchup.
Yeah but for every Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction, you get fifteen of Things to do in Denver When You're Dead or Boondocks Saints. Most writers are not Quentin Tarantino or Larry David.
You didn't listen to what she said. Reservoir Dogs is not twenty minutes of talking about nothing important. It's 5 minutes of talking about nothing important but within those five minutes you learn about these characters and the conflicts they'll eventually have.
Every page of tarantino does not have ticking clocks. Heck, two of his best scenes have no ticking clocks at all. One is a bunch of guys sitting around talking about Madonna songs and waitresses salary, and the other is two guys in a car talking about Europe. I'm taking all of these advises, but taking fundamentals to the heart can be very limitating in storytelling.
It's an exagerration, you heard of it before? ALso he's mostly correct. You cherry picked two scenes that don't have it. Of course every scene isn't gonna have ticking clocks cos that would be too stressful, but if you look at almost all tarantino films, there is constant guns pointed at each other, suspense etc
Time stamp 1:11:51 point 32: I TOTALLY disagree. I have not made any adversaries so super powerful as to be insurmountable, some times they were even weaker, and people still found themselves riveted to the story from start to finish.
This is a really good video , but you have to decide after watching what works best for you. You can get too much information and suffer overload. I would assume that being tutored by one or maybe two of these people would be ideal.
the guy at 4:10 talking about imitating is so hilarious since he literally copied hotel transylvania with the Addams family which was just okay at best
To hell with the 42 Ways, wait instead for the Official Trailer for the James Patterson Teaches Writing Master Class ad, the one with the ridiculously loud percussion orchestra in the background banging and clanging away with suspense music so loud you can't hear a fucking word of narration - Get your money back James Patterson!
You should really hook people on the first page whether it's a novel, script or comic or whatever else. If a writer can't do that even a little then chances are they can't hold me the next 50-500 pages either.
"Ketch up, what's that about?" That's the problem with rules like these. Ever watched any Tarantino movie? One thing I like about his movies is the dialogue, and he writes dialogue like that, where characters have normal conversations that have nothing to do with the plot and it's actually interesting and brings depth to the characters
With a video that's people talking, this is not a video you should need to watch to understand. You could just listen to the conversation. But... You've added *text* titles for each segment, which you DO NOT SAY OUT LOUD. So if you're just listening, you'll miss what the point of each segment is. In future, please consider the fact that people may be listening, but not watching.
This is both interesting and informative, and I watched the entire thing. But it cracks me up when these experts try and sound high and mighty and then "Writer - Sharknado" pops up.
Then again, as the creator of one of the dumbest franchises in history, he's been paid six times for that one ridiculous idea. We should all be so lucky.
I know that this comment is going to be lost, but this UA-cam channel kicks an absurd amount of ass. They don't have the most subscribers out there, they are probably making little to no money of these videos, and they consistently release engaging videos on engaging topics with a great overall level of quality. This channel is an example of what teachers should strive for. Film Courage is here to teach; not to sell merch, not to critique movies, and not to be recognized as the one of the best screenwriting resources out there. This is EXACTLY why they are one of the best sources out there. Thank you so much for what you do🙏
Hi Dominic, your message has been received. Thank you, we certainly appreciate your kind words about our work. Hope you find stuff here on this channel that helps you be a better creative. Cheers!
"You can just step out into the street and see what's real." This is inaccurate. And it is terrible, potentially irrevocable advice. It takes the dedicated, discipline of looking, listening, watching and analyzing to see what's real, what has value (almost everything), and a concurrent lifetime playing with language and learning how to express it. THAT'S the job. That's why Shakespeare, Joyce, Nabokov, Kubrick, Polanski, Chayefsky, Allen and Welles were who they were and you're who you are. You don't get it. Stop telling younger writers that you do. You're misleading them.
You just ended up explaining what he said. And then you lost it. "See" is beyond a mere "look". And, everything has meaning and purpose. That's seeing beyond just looking.
Nah. There’s no internal conflict in, for instance, Raiders of the Lost Ark or Star Wars. Luke and Indy aren’t conflicted. What’s the internal conflict in The Magnificent Seven or The Longest Day? Not every great story requires angst.
Was about to write this myself. I'm hardly an expert but nothing irritates me more than someone talking about writing like maths or science. There's absolutely a method and structure that works but this idea that there's a formula you have to regurgitate every time is complete shit.
@@franjes9999 I actually think he has a point. You are primed to recognize certain patterns as being stories. You can't force a sentence to be a story, but a good writer may be able to write a story in a single sentence. That is to say, the structure is there but you are not really paying attention to it.
Literally right when she said that, my mind went straight to Seinfeld and how the show lasted for years on that concept. Thanks for commenting this. I feel like a lot of what they say may need to be taken with a grain of salt. Writing isn't like math, where there will always be only one way to do something and that's how it is for life, ya know? Anything artistic changes and adapts as one learns more. But I guess this channel is a good starting point.
Here's your basic story structure: Fade in. We're introduced to the protagonist, we get to see their normal life and identify with them. A challenge arises which will effect the characters life in a profoundly negative way if not dealt with. The protagonist becomes aware of the challenge and its implications and courageously accepts it. In taking on the challenge the protagonist comes up against various difficulties which test the limits of their character. The protagonist realises they have no choice but to deal with the problem so they decide to try again by trying a different course of action or somehow finding a stronger sense of determination and belief. The character meets the problem head on and using all their courage, knowhow, skill and determination either fails or succeeds. We see how the protagonists success or failure has changed their world. Fade out.
Sounds like you're familiar with Dan Harmon's Story Circle: 1. The protagonist 2. Wants something 3. Accepts the challenge 4. Searches for it 5. Finds it 6. Faces the consequences 7. Returns to their familiar situation 8. Having changed.
Writer is a person who has a lot to say in a unique way. It's a person who is passionate about a lot of things. It takes a lot of strength and courage to find your inner voice and put it on paper.
35:10 "nuclear submarine in a bottom of the ocean" That's not a story! "ok ok... A bunch of sharks attack out of the ocean! We call it sharknado!" Now that's a story!
I can’t thank you guys enough for these tips. I’m 16 and writing a screenplay currently, and this gave me hope! I’m about halfway through the script and I think I’ve finally gotten it to a great place with these tips, thank you!
![15 Tips For Writing Better Dialogue [MASTERCLASS]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/yWQxaQ_tJVY/mqdefault.jpg)
![Solve Your Story Structure Problems In 11 Steps - Pat Verducci [FULL INTERVIEW]](/img/n.gif)
For mobile users:
1) 0:45 - Write Something That Only You Can Write
2) 2:20 - The Primary Goal
3) 2:53 - A Mediocre Script
4) 6:01 - Not Enough Story
5) 6:23 - Burning Questions
6) 10:18 - No Curiosity
7) 10:53 - Not Hooking The Reader
8) 12:50 - People Can’t Read Your Script
9) 14:06 - Cliché Character Descriptions
10) 14:27 - Main Character Must Want Something
11) 16:42 - Boring Characters
12) 18:06 - Secrecy & Deception
13) 20:41 - The 4 Goal Rule
14) 22:20 - Know The Characters
15) 24:45 - Characters That Do Not Serve The Story
16) 25:20 - The Heart And Soul Of The Story
17) 27:34 - Skin Jump
18) 32:42 - What The Story Is Not
19) 36:07 - BMOC Tools
20) 38:44 - Small Ideas
21) 40:11 - How To Generate Original Ideas
22) 43:14 - Real Life
23) 51:58 - Writing Your Own Story
24) 52:52 - Four Emotions Of Cinema
25) 54:33 - Imagination & Psychology
26) 56:36 - The Comfort Zone
27) 58:46 - Normal World
28) 1:01:35 - Delaying Conflict
29) 1:04:27 - Compelling Conflict
30) 1:07:31 - Not Enough Conflict
31) 1:09:23 - Levels Of Conflict
32) 1:11:47 - Where Is The Adversary?
33) 1:12:48 - Idiot Plot
34) 1:14:41 - Making A Scene Better
35) 1:18:44 - A Movie Is Not A Lecture
36) 1:19:56 - Assuming It’s On The Page
37) 1:24:27 - Don’t Worry About Being Perfect
38) 1:28:18 - Spend Time With The Best Scripts
39) 1:29:57 - One Way To Test A Screenplay
40) 1:30:58 - Great Movies Change Lives
41) 1:36:28 - How To Know A Script Isn’t Boring
42) 1:40:07 - Final Words
Thank you!
MoleculeXmolecule Thank you very much
Film Courage Thank yoy very much
Thanks darling..
Thank you from all of those who wanted to thank you but didn't want to type.
I truly want to express my gratitude for your effort to benefit amateur screenplay writers like me. Your videos are gold to me. Thank you.
Thank you, So Jeong! We appreciate the feedback and the kind words. Any topics in screenwriting you'd like us to focus on?
@@filmcourage Comedy
I really want to thank you guys for putting these together. You don't get the attention you deserve and I just really want to express how great these are.
PAKKAP facts
from someone who recently found love for
story telling of a different format, Thank you!
Films become boring when either the story isn't moving forward or it isn't moving forward at a steady pace. Make sure each and every scene you write has a purpose in moving the story along.
I had that with lord of the ring and some other film which made millions.
The Walking Dead basically ignores this then.
If you are interested in the character enough, you'll watch them do something that is revealing about them, sometimes those end up being the best parts of a story.
whatever dude
Films go boring when they are either safe, woke or franchise (a form of TV in the modern day and age of streaming).
It is a fact. All classics are based on experience / often based on real life memoirs, quasi biographic inserts, personal statements. These lecturers would never write Trainspotting, none of Scorsese, none of Kubrick, none of Coppola, none of Caspar Noe... Etc etc etc.
This is one of the most incredible things I’ve seen on UA-cam! So amazed by not only the sheer number of perspectives featured, but the quality of each one!!
"ketchup... What's that about?" Thats so Seinfeld
These pretzels are making me thirsty!
geensloth911 you see, you can’t act.
Yes!! I heard it in his voice when she said that lol
Exactly. I can hear Jerry and George bickering over this at the diner.
Pulp Fiction
I keep saying,
"Oh that's why _____ movie works so well" This is so incredibly helpful. Thank you so much. I am amazed at the amount of value you guys have in this video.
P.S. I watched every commercial so you guys could get paid. Thanks again.
37) 1:24:27 - Don’t Worry About Being Perfect
38) 1:28:18 - Be Perfect
Basically every skincare commercial
How dare you waste the time of the writer of Sharknado!
I rage quit screenwriting out of pure jealousy when i saw that movie.
Lmaooo... Seriously. The arrogance from that writer. Lmaooo
😂😂😂
I just had to look up the trailer for the film because I had never heard of it before... what on earth??? lol
@@LeilaBenamor its surprising you havent heard of it, they're six of them
This is amazing content for content creator not for normal audience.. nevermind little views, comments, or whatever. This is amaziing
Thank you Ihdhar! Though this video was just released a few weeks ago. It's still a baby, plenty of time for it to grow.
I echo the many comments here - these videos by Film Courage have become indispensable as a creative. The insight into craft, process, and philosophy has already paid so many dividends in my work. Thank you so much for your fantastic interviewing and selection of guests. ❤
Love to hear this Nick! Our best to you and your work!
This is a great UA-cam channel. It just irritates me a lot that some of these people have not written succesful movies.
Jurij Fedorov
Even if they wrote a movie that 1,000 people watched, that is still hundreds of miles ahead of 90 percent of aspiring screenwriters. Don’t lose perspective
The best teachers teach because they are excellent at delivering the message but not so good at executing it. Dismiss them at your peril.
I'm trying to keep an open mind, but it's hard to take advice from anyone involved in Battlefield Earth.
Corey has an interview where he delves into it. Yeah, maybe he should just put "Metropolis" when listing his screenwriting portfolio, but he obviously doesn't mind too much. From listening to the interview, it was like someone talking about their first failed marriage where they learned a lot. Plus, they wrote over a lot of his ideas and *ed it up.
hahahahaha I really loved that movie, but different strokes aye :)
Thank you Film Courage for everything you doing to helping us. And Thank you to all the People in all your videos for sharing their knowledge with us.+++++++++++++++++++++
(Gaining knowledge is the first step to Wisdom. Sharing it, Is the first step to humanity. -Unknown)
Love that quote! Thank you for taking a moment to share your feedback with us.
You are having the same feelings with me.
Thank you! Very helpful. So many jewels. One of my favorites was the 4 categories of film. WIN, STOP, ESCAPE OR RETRIEVE. Simplified it all :)
Love to see you finding helpful tips and ideas here!
What a gift this video is! I will watch this over and over to immerse myself in its wisdom.
Great Video, very comprehensive overview of screenplay writing. I especially liked the lady who said you need thematic focus to draw your story into alignment, it cant just be about anything and everything. I've got enough experience writing stories [written 3 fantasy sagas now] that most of their advice resonates with a lesson in craftsmanship i learned, but there's still the occasional new insight.
"Not enough story." Be nice if these talking heads used clear and simple language to communicate what they're talking about. Lots of vague blah blah blah and strict adherence to formula. If you don't stray from a formula, your work because formulaic - see the credits of these people for evidence. Why is it that there are so many videos and books that give writing advice coming from people who have either written stuff you've never heard of, or absolute trash? It gives me the impression that "writing advice" is the career of choice for failed writers, but I think there might be a simpler answer - these are the writers who are sociable enough to share their insights. Most of the really great writers don't care to blab self-indulgently about their craft until their career is on the rocks. What videos (or books) like this seem to miss is that the formula they identify as the clearest and best way to craft a marketable screenplay isn't a timeless equation to which great writers also adhered with strict fidelity. No, the formula is descriptive, not prescriptive. We know what good writing is because we can look to hits and classics, and say, "this is what good writing looks like; let's do what they did." Ultimately, spending 102 minutes on a youtube video is never going to equal the schooling you get from watching your favourite movie and asking yourself, "What makes this so good?" and "How can I do this my way?" Nobody's gonna answer these questions for you, so get cracking.
Amen
That’s the whole point? Is it not? To hear what others call “rules” so you can confidently break them without a sweat. Being ignorant of the formulaic story telling structures of commercial successful stories is the best way to unknowingly repeat said structures and mistake it for originality rather than identifying it as subconscious imitation of movies you once watched (structurally not content-wise). That’s why I love learning about narrative formula. So I can confidently pit it against natural story telling talent (which I hope I have, but could be sorely mistaken 😅).
yeah, how many people who write articles about finance or stock advice are wealthy themselves? almost none. I think the BEST rule is to know your audience- and then secretly pander to them haha
Just study Dramatica. Trust me.
While I agree that watching movies is the best way to absorb filmmaking techniques and style, I still think that watching a video like this can help guide you towards putting the thoughts you have about what you do or don't like about a film into words. People shouldn't take every single rule or tip as gospel, but if any one of these leads to a breakthrough or a better understanding of their own writing, then it might be more worthwhile than just watching a given film.
Man, what Jen grisanti says about all the actions of the main character being linked to first choice is sloop brilliantly put :):) awesome job
Karen, this is a great montage. Thanks for putting this together. I really enjoy your work.
Thank you, Ken! Wish I could take credit for the compilation - actually David of FilmCourage put this amazing video together. We're glad you like it!
A big and sincere thank you for this video. I have been following you for years and you've helped so much in my work!
Thanks, for the series of videos! They have been so very helpful!!!
Great to see you find some value here. Thanks for watching.
What's up with the comments,the most we've all written and published has been our comments on UA-cam,yeah myself included. even if they're no house hold name writers, they're actual working writers who's stuff has actually been made wether it was of anything you personally liked. It got made and your a working pro, god can you imagine David Mamet being your head writer and just yelling at the writer team,lol.
I enjoyed Vicki Peterson and Barbara Nicolosi the most, especially the warning about "random musings."
What would Shakespeare think of this advice?
13:25
Says the guy who wrote Sharknado
Karen, this is beyond exceptional. It's invaluable. Thank you.
Thank you so much CK!
Damn right, structure is organic!
For how many boring movies that are out there... It seems there's more than just the screenplay that can make things boring.
I’d like to see a collage of opinions like this from regular movie-goer people.
This is great! Thanks for putting this video together
so thankful i found this channel, gems gems gems
Thank you Vanessa, great to see you finding value here!
Way 43: I cleaned the attic this weekend instead of writing a boring screenplay.
Henry Bowler in the first It (2017) drove the plot, in the sequel he did not. His character's only purpose in that movie was to attack the main characters twice but not incapacitate them or slow them down at all, they killed him off easily and never even mentioned what happened to the body.
And, and, and, but, so, so, and ...
Might want to consider editing out the lady who talks about the ketchup.
First she mentions sitting in a diner, what came to my mind is Reservoir Dogs sitting in a diner pontificating. It’s one of the best movie scenes ever made.
Also Seinfeld, one of the best shows ever made and actually did an episode on ketchup.
Yeah but for every Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction, you get fifteen of Things to do in Denver When You're Dead or Boondocks Saints. Most writers are not Quentin Tarantino or Larry David.
lol
You didn't listen to what she said. Reservoir Dogs is not twenty minutes of talking about nothing important. It's 5 minutes of talking about nothing important but within those five minutes you learn about these characters and the conflicts they'll eventually have.
Please update the chapters of this video to make it fully work with UA-cam's new Chapters feature in the duration scroller bar. Very much appreciated.
38:17 “It’s cheap! And it works like a charm.”
Pretty much the state of cinema today. Now, go out there and write the next Sharknado!
it's so helpful for us ,thank u so much film courage
I love so many of your videos so much and yet this may be my favorite.
Thanks Jacob, sounds like this may be one you return to most often. Hope it helps you with your work. Our best to you.
23) 51:58 - Writing Your Own Story
How can you know if your own story is boring ?
How do you know if it's too close to real life ?
Extremely helpful video. Very interesting insights.
Every page of tarantino does not have ticking clocks. Heck, two of his best scenes have no ticking clocks at all. One is a bunch of guys sitting around talking about Madonna songs and waitresses salary, and the other is two guys in a car talking about Europe.
I'm taking all of these advises, but taking fundamentals to the heart can be very limitating in storytelling.
It's an exagerration, you heard of it before? ALso he's mostly correct. You cherry picked two scenes that don't have it. Of course every scene isn't gonna have ticking clocks cos that would be too stressful, but if you look at almost all tarantino films, there is constant guns pointed at each other, suspense etc
Great stuff!
Thanks Brian
Thank you!
Time stamp 1:11:51 point 32: I TOTALLY disagree.
I have not made any adversaries so super powerful as to be insurmountable, some times they were even weaker, and people still found themselves riveted to the story from start to finish.
points worth remembering every day.
if the pace of your script follows the one of their talk in this video, it is a failure ...
This is a really good video , but you have to decide after watching what works best for you. You can get too much information and suffer overload. I would assume that being tutored by one or maybe two of these people would be ideal.
FINISH . PERIOD . I WILL .
Case in point
Thanks for this
We are happy with this one. We hope it is helpful to you.
I love Robert McKees work
Ty 🤙this vid helping me push forward
Love to hear it. Thank you.
"The producer of my last movie spanked in public"
Coming soon
R rated.
absolutely brilliant.! i listened it about to fall asleep. i was awoke by the time it was done... great stuff
Love to hear that! Who would have thought talking heads could keep someone awake. : )
!:05:00 onwards. His fireplace has almost set the house on fire on either side.
the guy at 4:10 talking about imitating is so hilarious since he literally copied hotel transylvania with the Addams family which was just okay at best
Really good advise!
Kind of a condensed film bible..
This is so insightful
I feel like now i have a mini diploma
Write what you know!
I spent thirty years as a night watchman at a cranberry silo.
Grampa Simpson.
Sharknado??
RE: Passive central characters failing the movie: What about, PARIS, TEXAS. There are exceptions to most or all rules.
To hell with the 42 Ways, wait instead for the Official Trailer for the James Patterson Teaches Writing Master Class ad, the one with the ridiculously loud percussion orchestra in the background banging and clanging away with suspense music so loud you can't hear a fucking word of narration - Get your money back James Patterson!
Repeat 35 for everyone. Scream it in modern filmmakers’ faces
You should really hook people on the first page whether it's a novel, script or comic or whatever else. If a writer can't do that even a little then chances are they can't hold me the next 50-500 pages either.
@ minute 41: I need 20 ways to make myself just sit down and write this damn script!
I would consider this advice more if current day hollywood wasn't so crappy.
1 Way To Avoid Kill Boring UA-camrs - Don't Truck Dump 42 Points in one Video
"Ketch up, what's that about?" That's the problem with rules like these.
Ever watched any Tarantino movie? One thing I like about his movies is the dialogue, and he writes dialogue like that, where characters have normal conversations that have nothing to do with the plot and it's actually interesting and brings depth to the characters
NuCLear... gawd!!!
I love the woman at 32:53 :)
(Bookmark) 30:06
Write what is uniquely yours😭
Ketchup!
Ketchup. What's that about?
With a video that's people talking, this is not a video you should need to watch to understand.
You could just listen to the conversation.
But...
You've added *text* titles for each segment, which you DO NOT SAY OUT LOUD.
So if you're just listening, you'll miss what the point of each segment is.
In future, please consider the fact that people may be listening, but not watching.
What would be your advice for someone trying to break into the business?
Always create your own work. And get on set.
@@filmcourage Thank you. I have my own idea. I've had it since the late 1970s and I first started writing it in the early 1980s.
@@filmcourage Thanks/
I always passed this video. Gave it chance. Regret not watching it sooner.
Ron, thanks for taking the risk. Maybe now was the time.
@@filmcourage Great interviews. I really enjoyed. I already have my book marks.
Adding "you know" to every sentence...?
I wonder if the guy at 7:05 is high on adderal or something. His pupils are absolutely massive
Based on the advice in this video, I would be led to conclude that Hamlet by William Shakespeare is the worst thing that has ever been written.
@9:34 THis man has graham crackers hanging on the wall
I dont agree ...structure of sentences is nothing the main thing CLUNG MY MIND or not!!!
This is both interesting and informative, and I watched the entire thing. But it cracks me up when these experts try and sound high and mighty and then "Writer - Sharknado" pops up.
It just goes to show you how hard it is to write a story people will respond to.
Write something as fun as sharknado was, then.
It's like my pet rock. The guy made a million dollars. Laugh at the gimmick, but it worked
Sharknado was fun to watch. Yes it was cheesy but I thought it was entertaining. The problem was that they didnt know when to stop.
Then again, as the creator of one of the dumbest franchises in history, he's been paid six times for that one ridiculous idea.
We should all be so lucky.
"ketchup... What's that about?" Thats so Seinfeld
After watching this I feel like Im ready to take over Hollywood! *and then immediately went cliche writing*
This worth a few thousand dollars of class $ I don't have. Thank YOU!
My community college screenwriting course cost me 300 bucks.
I know that this comment is going to be lost, but this UA-cam channel kicks an absurd amount of ass. They don't have the most subscribers out there, they are probably making little to no money of these videos, and they consistently release engaging videos on engaging topics with a great overall level of quality. This channel is an example of what teachers should strive for. Film Courage is here to teach; not to sell merch, not to critique movies, and not to be recognized as the one of the best screenwriting resources out there. This is EXACTLY why they are one of the best sources out there. Thank you so much for what you do🙏
Hi Dominic, your message has been received. Thank you, we certainly appreciate your kind words about our work. Hope you find stuff here on this channel that helps you be a better creative. Cheers!
22:23 Jack Perez "know the characters in your own mind.....base the characters on someone you know so you know how they act...." GOLD
"You can just step out into the street and see what's real." This is inaccurate. And it is terrible, potentially irrevocable advice. It takes the dedicated, discipline of looking, listening, watching and analyzing to see what's real, what has value (almost everything), and a concurrent lifetime playing with language and learning how to express it. THAT'S the job. That's why Shakespeare, Joyce, Nabokov, Kubrick, Polanski, Chayefsky, Allen and Welles were who they were and you're who you are. You don't get it. Stop telling younger writers that you do. You're misleading them.
You just ended up explaining what he said. And then you lost it. "See" is beyond a mere "look". And, everything has meaning and purpose. That's seeing beyond just looking.
I'll keep this short. I loved this conversation.
20:43 this is extremely wrong. The inner conflict is is every film and you need it for a half decent story.
Yes! TOTALLY agree!
Nah. There’s no internal conflict in, for instance, Raiders of the Lost Ark or Star Wars. Luke and Indy aren’t conflicted. What’s the internal conflict in The Magnificent Seven or The Longest Day? Not every great story requires angst.
The guy who takes six hours to read a single script actually put me to sleep while he was talking. I would never want to read anything he ever wrote.
Was about to write this myself. I'm hardly an expert but nothing irritates me more than someone talking about writing like maths or science. There's absolutely a method and structure that works but this idea that there's a formula you have to regurgitate every time is complete shit.
@@franjes9999 LOL
@@franjes9999 I actually think he has a point. You are primed to recognize certain patterns as being stories. You can't force a sentence to be a story, but a good writer may be able to write a story in a single sentence. That is to say, the structure is there but you are not really paying attention to it.
Senfield had an entire TV series based on "Ketchup, what's that about?"
Tarantino also loves pondering ketchup.
Literally right when she said that, my mind went straight to Seinfeld and how the show lasted for years on that concept. Thanks for commenting this. I feel like a lot of what they say may need to be taken with a grain of salt. Writing isn't like math, where there will always be only one way to do something and that's how it is for life, ya know? Anything artistic changes and adapts as one learns more. But I guess this channel is a good starting point.
@@alissaharris37 Seinfeld still had conflict though. It was woven in with the "Ketchup". Larry David is actually a MASTER of structure and conflict.
@@alissaharris37 EXACTLY!
32.30 by rule Seinfeld wasn't supposed to make it
My mind went straight to Tarantino when he said that. These writers have a few good ideas, but I think I should follow my own path in writing.
Here's your basic story structure: Fade in. We're introduced to the protagonist, we get to see their normal life and identify with them. A challenge arises which will effect the characters life in a profoundly negative way if not dealt with. The protagonist becomes aware of the challenge and its implications and courageously accepts it. In taking on the challenge the protagonist comes up against various difficulties which test the limits of their character. The protagonist realises they have no choice but to deal with the problem so they decide to try again by trying a different course of action or somehow finding a stronger sense of determination and belief. The character meets the problem head on and using all their courage, knowhow, skill and determination either fails or succeeds. We see how the protagonists success or failure has changed their world. Fade out.
StoryIsEverything thanks I needed this! The short version lol!
Nailed it! Lol
jesus thats basically every blockbuster movie in a nutshell lol
Sounds like Breaking Bad.
Sounds like you're familiar with Dan Harmon's Story Circle:
1. The protagonist
2. Wants something
3. Accepts the challenge
4. Searches for it
5. Finds it
6. Faces the consequences
7. Returns to their familiar situation
8. Having changed.
People don't realize how important the screenwriter is
Writer is a person who has a lot to say in a unique way. It's a person who is passionate about a lot of things. It takes a lot of strength and courage to find your inner voice and put it on paper.
35:10 "nuclear submarine in a bottom of the ocean"
That's not a story!
"ok ok... A bunch of sharks attack out of the ocean! We call it sharknado!"
Now that's a story!
I can’t thank you guys enough for these tips. I’m 16 and writing a screenplay currently, and this gave me hope! I’m about halfway through the script and I think I’ve finally gotten it to a great place with these tips, thank you!
What is your scripts about?