by Simon Wailer
People who are associated with movie industries like Hollywood know how hard it is for a writer to be acknowledged for his/her work and recognised enough for a movie to be made on the script. Aspiring screenplay writers realise the craft and skill that goes into creating an excellent piece of story which makes people genuinely interested in your work. It isn’t easy for a beginner and you will need guidance along with a patient talent to get an excellent piece written. Here are a few parts that a screenplay consists of and how to write each of them:
- Logline– This is a short intro to what your script is all about. This is actually the DNA of your script and you should be able to write the crux of your whole script in a maximum of 50 words. Much like marketers find the most sellable concepts from a movie to promote the movie, you should take a leaf out of their notebooks and write something that would genuinely interest the producer or the director of a movie. It is not that difficult of a task; just see it like a work which will help an interested party understand what your script is about. If you still want help, you can run your ideas by aspiring student filmmakers at ThanksForTheHelp.
- Treatment– A well-written treatment is of paramount importance when it comes to getting a producer interested in your script. The treatment is divided into three parts and is written in a few pages; most producers do not have the time to read the whole script, it all depends on how well your treatment is written. The treatment gives us the characters, how the situations culminate into giving us a story, how that story pans out and how does it end. It should keep the reader engaged in your writing and help him/her envision the whole story in their mind. Writing a good treatment can get tricky and it needs a tinge of creativity to show that the story is authentic and one which people will like. Most screenplay writers will emphasise on maintaining the structure of script. If you are left with your head scratching, you can get help from writing experts like PaperDoers who will guide you with the format and structure of a screenplay.
- Outline Of the Story– As every screenplay out there will advise you to focus on the structure of script, it needs to show the story in a gradual sense of events. Quentin Tarantino showed in Pulp Fiction that a movie does not have to have a chronological sense of events; as confirmed by Jean-Luc Godard, you need a beginning, middle, and an end to show that your story has structure. It will be required to show that your story is not some nonsensical fairy tale but a story that develops brilliantly and is capable of engaging the viewer. It is the base of your script from where you can develop the complexities of your characters. You will have to delve deep to become a writer worth something; try to look at the story from an inner perspective rather than trying to craft a story putting pieces together.
- Setting It On Draft– The first draft can never be perfect; most scripts go through so many changes by the time a movie is made that it resembles the original work only minutely. You shouldn’t put too much pressure on yourself and just get on with it. Most writers create a mental block for themselves overthinking on certain points. A draft is only the first time your creativity is showing on pages, you should not worry what comes out but only get on with doing your best. See how the structure is flowing, how the dialogue is panning out, and if the characters are developing like you hoped them to. If you are having trouble with getting it on paper, use help of online tools like BestOnlineAssignmentHelp and OnlineAssignmentWriting to receive a readable first draft.
- Editing, Reviewing, and Rewriting– When you are unsatisfied with what you have written, try reading the whole thing and let it flow in your head. Is it interesting enough? Will it excite the producer enough to adapt it into a movie? Most writers tend to write at least three drafts, to make sure that the final product resembles the one that they had in their mind. Keep the dialogue to the point, see if the screenplay is not dragging too long, make sure there is gradual development in the story. You will need to review and edit the draft, if you see that you can make the story better. Worst case scenario, you will have to rewrite major portions of it. But, that is only fair. Most writers tend to rewrite a lot before they can come up with a satisfactory piece of writing. It is a stressful enough task to make you pull your hairs out, try seeking help with fellow writers for this. If you want to offload the task of editing, you can send it to English professors on websites like TopAssignmentExperts and get it done as per your preferences.
- Final Draft– After you have the final draft in your hands, take a deep breath and relax. It is only the beginning, and you will need to have second opinions on it before sending it to prospects. First try to read it yourself; after a while the frenzy will die down and you will be able to look at the writing with an impartial sense of view. If need be, you can hire writers to proofread and give their opinion on your draft. There are many writing companies like EssayWriter4u that write drafts for other people and undertake tasks of proofreading. Directors and producers receive thousands of screenplays each month; make sure you stand apart in terms of creativity. You do not get many chances in this industry, you have be sure to make the most of what you have got.
Thanks for this informative guide.