Sample Sequences
A series of linked sequences, written to illustrate the analysis in Sequences: How They Work. [Moment 1] and so on within the text are references to that analysis. [...]
Write for the Story, not the Production Manager
Introducing standard script formatting too early undercuts clear cinematic storytelling. You don't need formatting software. You need a pen and paper, ideas, and a clear idea of what the audience [...]
Subjective Storytelling: Five EXAMPLES
Five worked through EXAMPLES of Subjective Storytelling. PSYCHO (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960) One of the most influential examples of its use occurs in Hitchcock’s film Psycho, [...]
Write for the Screen, not the Mouth
Screenwriting is writing for the screen, not the mouths of the actors. Learn to write in the language of cinema, not the language of Shakespeare. [...]
We Read Bodies, Not Minds
We read bodies, not minds. Don’t rely on dialogue to express psychological truth; add empathy and projection to your toolbox. Why dialogue is the last [...]
Give That POV a Sandwich
One of the cleanest and most common ways of encouraging the audience to project their feelings onto a character is called a Point of View Sandwich. The Kuleshov [...]
Subjective Storytelling and Audience Connection
Cinema creates character psychology collaboratively. The filmmakers supply the dots, and invite the audience to draw the lines. We both contribute, so we share ownership. The difference [...]
The Politics of Script Development
Write cinema, not radio with pictures. Cinema is built on sequences, not scenes The basic unit of cinema is sequences built of shots, sounds, and [...]
Sequences: How They Work
Make your story more cinematic by thinking and writing in sequences, not scenes. These notes refer to the document Sample Sequences, which was written to illustrate various aspects [...]
Sequences: How They Work, part 2
More about how sequences work, referring to Sample Sequences. Behind, Beside or Ahead By sequence X we are well into the story, and as you’d expect, we [...]
