Scriptwriting Basics

Subject Overview

Students will be introduced to the basic tools and format for script writing. They will learn the basics of story structure and story beats. Students will read scenes from scripts and compare scenes with the finished product to gain an understanding of how scripts translate to screen. They are also given the opportunity to plot out a scene and write it, putting theory into practice.

BYOD:Students will need access to scriptwriting software on their computers–either Celtx (a free download) or Final Draft.

Duration

• Contact Hours: 3 hours per week
• Total Hours: 30
• Duration: 10 weeks

Story beats – Short summaries of the moments

BSF Curriculum

 

Aims

1. Analyse a script format and identify script formatting and layout tools in order to read a script with ease and flow.
2. Examine various scripts and compare them to the final film product.
3. Explore the basics of a three act structure: beginning, middle, and end; translation to inciting incident, conflict and resolution.
4. Explore beat sheets and what story beats are as well as examine how plot points progress a story
5. Identify and use script formatting tools to practice writing scripts in the correct format

Prerequisites

No prerequisite knowledge required