All Pennwriters Courses are conducted in a “live” presentation format utilizing the Zoom platform. If a conflict arises based on the required meeting times, please contact the instructor and Online Courses Coordinator to find a possible solution. ALL sessions will be recorded. This class will meet from 7PM to 9PM on the following Tuesdays: April 4, 11, 18, and 25.
Course Information:
FORMAT:
- Weekly video lessons with supplemental worksheets, links, etc.
- Weekly activities to explore and experiment with the medium’s techniques
- Weekly Zoom sessions for lectures, workshopping, and Q&A
DESCRIPTION:
Learn by doing! Participants will learn story, structure, and writing techniques for a full-length screenplay while crafting a working outline. Opening sequences will be scripted and workshopped in the last week of the course. We’ll explore how to utilize the medium to express characterization through subtext, economizing plot structure, formatting, and how script stylization and technique affect the reader’s experience. A recently released film (and its screenplay) will be used as a case study to enable our discussions to have common ground. Links to free and discounted screenwriting software will be included.
RECOMMENDED READING:
- CODA – Screenplay (link to PDF will be provided)
- THE HOLLYWOOD STANDARD by Christopher Riley (Script format reference book)
- SAMPLE SCENES as provided by instructor
WEEK ONE: DECONSTRUCTING FILM STRUCTURE
- MYTHIC STRUCTURE in Screenwriting and how motifs, themes, and iconic imagery elevate a screenplay
- THE EIGHT-STAGE CINEMATIC STORY: Character-driven screenwriting
- CREATING A SCREENPLAY OUTLINE aka TREATMENT: Story, plot, setting, character, theme, conflict, crisis, climax, resolution
COMMENCE STORY OUTLINE: Examples and instructions provided
WRITING ACTIVITY: Apply the Eight Stages to CODA
OPEN Q&A ZOOM SESSION
WEEK TWO: CREATING CINEMATIC CHARACTERS
- Beyond Archetypes:CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT TECHNIQUES
- HOW TO INTRODUCE a character
- SHOWING vs telling. Character development, exposition, confrontation, and subtext
CONTINUE STORY OUTLINE: Examples and instructions provided
WRITING ACTIVITY: Describe your protagonist through action
OPEN Q&A ZOOM SESSION
WEEK THREE: HOOKS, SEQUENCES, and FORMATTING
- THE HOOK – Jumping in with both feet in your opening pages
- THE SEQUENCE – Creating focuses & themes
- THE MECHANICS OF SCREENWRITING with formatting & software tutorials
COMPLETE STORY OUTLINE: Critiques provided by instructor up to 10 pages
WRITING ACTIVITY: Create a bullet point action list for your first sequence
OPEN Q&A ZOOM SESSION
WEEK FOUR: THE VISUAL LANGUAGE OF SCREENWRITING
- 26 ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS IN A SCREENPLAY’S OPENING PAGES
- 16 STEPS TO BETTER DESCRIPTION
- THE BUSINESS OF SCREENWRITING – A demystified look at breaking in
SCRIPT YOUR OPENING SEQUENCE - Examples and instructions provided
LIVE ZOOM SCRIPT WORKSHOP
OPEN Q&A ZOOM SESSION
OBJECTIVES/BENEFITS/TAKEAWAYS:
- To understand the process of developing a story for the visual medium
- To understand full-length screenplay structure and form
- To understand the importance of character in regards to plot development.
- To be able to use visual and aural elements in crafting a screenplay.
- To be able to use screenwriting software.
- To understand the elements of screenwriting.
About the Instructor:
Screenwriter and author Diana Dru Botsford's screenwriting credits include "Rascals" for Star Trek: TNG, the award-winning SF web series, Epilogue, and the cult favorite animated series, Spiral Zone. Ms. Botsford's TV/Film work includes projects such as Terminator 2, Dusk 'Til Dawn, and Nightmare on Elm Street VI. She founded the critically acclaimed Missouri State University screenwriting program in 2005, her students going on to win national and international awards. Botsford has won numerous teaching awards including the State of Missouri Online Teacher award and she was a finalist for the U.S. Professor of the Year. She continues to teach online for MSU in addition to one-on-one consulting for aspiring screenwriters across the globe. Botsford graduated from the Seton Hill Writing Popular Fiction program in 2006 and has written multiple original novels and short stories for the Stargate SG-1 franchise. Her current projects include television pilot in development with a streaming network, the short story “Everything & Nothing” for the upcoming IAMTW anthology, Double Trouble, and an original science fiction novel that will be ready for publication in the fall of 2023.
Email & Links:
contact email: mailto:dianabotsford@gmail.com
web page: dianabotsford.com
Instagram: @digitalred93