Script writing: This will guide you in writing the best film scripts

1. 21st May, 2007
“Scripting to Win”
by
Femi Odugbemi

2. “Scripting to Win”
Creative Writing is power.
You create your own world and
in that world
you are God.

3. Outline
! Introduction –
! Inspiration vs Application
! Masterkeys to Winning Scripts
! Genres
! DNA of Winning Scripts – “The 7 Steps”
! The Idea
! The Plot
! Motivation
! Characterization
! Dialogue
! Continuity
! Resolution

4. Inspiration vs Application
Writing is one of the arts, but it is also a craft …
! Inspiration is good, but not always reliable.
! Application is a more reliable tool
because it can lead to habit,and habit is what
keeps you writing… Application carries you
through the hard work of planning. It is what will
persuade you to get it right, do it properly, and lay a strong
foundation for your work.

5. Masterkeys to Winning Scripts
RESEARCH…is the most valuable
application tool for winning scripts. Research
tools are everywhere: Encyclopedias, the
Internet, TV, Movie, Radio, atlases, museums,
libraries and living experts.
! Always take the simplest and most direct form of
research – your own experience.

6. Masterkeys to Winning Scripts
CURIOSITY…is a vital tool for any
writer. Why? What if? Who
would? Use curiosity to spark
ideas and develop plots. Questions
and answers can come from your own
mind and imagination.

7. Masterkeys to Winning Scripts
Ideas are everywhere.
Some are brilliant, some are
good. Some are OK...
More than a few are very bad…

8. Masterkeys to Winning Scripts
Ideas also Breed.
Each time you plot a story, you reject several
possibilities. If you decide to make your hero an
architect instead of a lawyer, you still have a
lawyer hero up your sleeve.
Every idea has a dozen shadows - the choices you
rejected at the time.

9. 21st May, 2007
The DNA of
Scripting to WIN

10. Take 1
Learn proper script formatting.
There are tons of software like Final Draft or
Scriptware that will give you the correct script
writing format. One of the biggest clues to a reader
that a script will be lousy is that it simply doesn’t adhere to
Proper formatting.

11. Take 2
Have something to say.
Summarize the essence of your tale in a single
sentence, a premise that draws a parallel between
cause and effect. It helps to have a strong Point of
View. Make the premise specific and hang all the
action on it.

12. Take 3
Drama is conflict.
You need to have strong opposing
forces to maximize dramatic
tension.

13. Take 4
Begin with a BANG!
…most of your audiences have short
attention span, you need to begin
with a strong dramatic opening.
Suspense is everything…the plot
should unfold with a certain mystery
as the viewer is drawn deeper into
the story, eagerly awaiting the
outcome.

14. Take 5
Know your Characters.
Plot flows from the charactersnot the other
way around. Dialogue should come from who your
people are. Read all your dialogue out loud. Make
sure that your characters speak the way people talk.

15. Take 6
Use the 3-Act structure.
Most successful plots can be summarized:
Act 1 – Introduction/Establishment
Act 2 – Conflict
Act 3 – Resolution
An important development in the story should happen in the
plot every 10 pages. If the standard gauge is 1minute per
page
it means every ten minutes there is a twist to the story.

16. Take 7
Be VISUAL…
You can communicate mood and
texture best with pictures rather
than words. It is true what they say –
“a picture is worth a thousand words.”

17. Genres
! Action Adventure
! Mystery
! Tragedy
! Romance
! Detective
! Historical Non-fiction
! Fantasy and Science fiction

18. Idea = Heart
! FOCUS on the IDEA.
The Heart of any story is its “Synopsis.”
! Write it down in ONE simple paragraph describing
one central conflict or crisis.
…in that central conflict lies the Heart of the plot.

19. ! A plot is the story.The bare
bones of what happens. It is the
series of incidents and
situations that gives your idea its shape.
It is, above all, the answer to a very basic
question: HOW? The “Treatment” is
the plot…
The Plot

20. ! CHARACTER-DRIVEN PLOTS
These plots are completely character driven. This means that
character dynamics rather than incidents drive the plot. Put two
opposing characters in place then stand back. What you get is
fireworks, and a character driven plot.
! SITUATION- DRIVEN PLOTS
These are plots when a combination of scenarios and situation
drive the plot of the story. Here the characters react to the
unfolding drama of their evolving context and either fight it or
change with it.
Types of Plot

21. Adds some depth to your story.
Subplots usually give the
emotional, social, or relationship
context. Also these new conflicts
can add flavor to an otherwise one-
dimensional story.
SUB-PLOTS

22. Motivation
! With the exception of the criminally insane, most people have
a ‘reason’ for their opinions, beliefs and behaviours.
! Perhaps their opinions are based on experience,
feelings, prejudice or cultural tradition, or childhood
associations.
!Motivation is the “Why” for
whatever is happening in the plot or in the behaviour or
speech of a character.

23. Motivation
! …one major flashpoint of winning scripts are
3-dimensionalor rounded characters.
! A 3-dimensional character has a back-
story or a past. He or she is the product of family
and life experiences and choices.
! Which is why a character bible is always important

24. The CHARACTERS
! The characters of a story are just as important as
theme and plot. The audience need to understand
what's going on, and what might
happen later. They achieve this, in part, by
"reading" the characters.
! Just as in real life, we can tell a lot by "reading"
atmosphere and body language.

25. Point of View (POV)
The PROTAGONIST
! Every storyteller must steer the experience of the story
from a “point-of-view.”
! Your protagonist is the main, viewpoint character of
your story. Protagonists vary, but genre specifics make
some more likely than others.

26. ! HEROIC PROTAGONIST
The Protagonist is a larger than life character who rises above
great challenges, internally or externally to triumph. Usually it’s
a good against evil conflict and our hero lives by a moral code
common to the story’s audience.
! NON-HEROIC PROTAGONIST
The non-heroic protagonist can be anything from an
ordinary Joe to a victim or a very flawed personality or an anti-
hero. These warts-and-all characters are fascinating to create,
and they can seem very real. A non-Heroic protagonist will be a
character who makes wickedness seem charming or appealing,
or at least excusable.
!Types of Protagonists

27. Who’s Point of View (POV) is it??
The ANTAGONIST
! The way you depict a villain depends on the genre and the villain's
part in the story. Some villains, usually known as "Antagonists",
simply have goals that don't match the protagonist's.
! It is almost always better to try to show a villain or antagonist in
context. For example, a harsh parent might be motivated by the
desire to keep his child out of danger or trouble, while a harsh
teacher may fear for her job. Political antagonists obviously mean
well from their own perspective. And what about the "other woman"
in a romance? She wants the hero just as the heroine does. How
does her desire differ from the heroine's?

28. The DIALOGUE
! DIALOGUE must REVEAL Information.
Dialogue that reveals information appears in place of exposition. For example;
here is the same information, presented first as narrative exposition, then as
dialogue and finally as what is called inner dialogue.
! DIALOGUE IS A GOOD WAY OF REVEALING
CHARACTER.
Manner of delivery, word choice, sentence structure and length of sentence all
help to illuminate character and background. Age and historical period can also be
displayed in dialogue.
! DIFFERENTIATE VOICES…
If you have several characters in your writing, you will need to consider giving
them different modes of speech. Each should speak in a distinctive
voice.
Characters might speak with an accent, or betray their origin with a slightly
unusual word choice.

29. Resolution
! What elevates a script from commonplace to sublime is the ending.
! Audiences long for an ending that makes them squeal, “Wow, I
would have never guessed!” But with 20/20 hindsight,
the audience can clearly see the clues and the outcome makes
sense. In choosing an ending, you will again think about the mood
and genre of the plot.
! You might also consider your theme.
! A triumphant ending?
! A futile ending?
! An ironic ending?
! A peaceful ending?

30. Resolution
!Whatever you
decide, always end
it with a Twist!!!

31. Thank you