1. Watching Film, Writing Film
Introducing the Screenwriting Craft
with
Greg Nielsen

2. Genre
• Genre refers to various film types
• A motion pictures such as a thriller, romance, musical, drama
or comedy that plays on the expectations of the audience
regarding familiar plot structure, characters, and setting.

3. Genre
 Genre Conventions are
specific settings, roles,
events and values that
define individual genres
and their sub-genres.

4. Genre Conventions
 Crime Drama must have
a crime.
 A Love Story must have
romance.
 A Comedy must be
funny.
 A Social Drama must
identify problems in
society.

5. Mastery of Genre
 Study Your Genre
 Watch Your Genre
 Read Scripts from Your Genre
 Ask: What are the conventions of time, place, character and
action?

7. Watching Film, Writing Film
Introducing the Screenwriting Craft

8. Plot Points
 The Inciting Incident
 Progressive Complications
 Crisis
 Climax
 Resolution
Robert Towne,
Screenwriter of
Chinatown

9. Inciting Incident
 Turns the Protagonist’s Life Upside Down
 Happens to or Caused by the Protagonist
 It Must Take Place on Screen

10. Progressive Complications
 Easy at First
 Raise the Stakes
 Seems Impossible
 Tests the Hero
 Forces of Antagonism

11. Crisis
 All Seems Lost
 The Hero May Not Get What He Wants
 It Must Be on Screen
 The Hero Must Make a Decision (Dilemma)
 It’s the End of the Line
 Face to Face with the Forces of Antagonism

12. Climax
 Major Reversal Full of Meaning
 It Moves the Audience
 The Ending Is Unexpected and Satisfying

13. Resolution
 A Slow Curtain
 Resolve Subplots
 Satisfies Curiosity
 Courtesy
 Leave with Dignity

15. Watching Film, Writing Film
Introducing the Screenwriting Craft

16. Characters
 Protagonist
 Antagonist
 Character Arc
 Character Dimension
 Character vs Characterization

17. Protagonist
 Must Empathize
 A Conscious Desire
 An Unconscious Desire
 Able to Pursue Desire

18. Antagonist
 Embodies the Forces
of Antagonism
 Appears Invincible
 Powerful & Complex
 Opposes the Will
and Desire of
Protagonist

19. Character Arc
Story by
Stephen King
 Transformation
 Negative to Positive
 Positive to Negative
Written and
 Change thru Choice Directed by
Frank Darabont

20. Character Dimension
 At Least Four Dimensions
 Dimensions Mean Contradictions
 Protagonist Is the Most Dimensional

21. Character vs Characterization
 Characterization = traits: sex, dress, age,
education, occupation, etc.
 Character = Revealed by Choices Under
Pressure.

23. Watching Film, Writing Film
Introducing the Screenwriting Craft

24. Story Structure
Alfred
Hitchcock,
 Beat Director of
North by
 Scene (Story Event) Northwest
 Sequence
 Act The Alfred
Hitchcock
 Story Collection

25. Beat
Action
Reaction
Reaction to the Reaction

26. Scene (story event)
 A Value Change
 + to -, - to +
 - to more -
 + to more +
 Meaningful Change
 Achieved thru Conflict

27. Sequence
A Series of Scenes
Usually Two to Five Scenes
A Major Change

28. Act
 A Major Reversal
 Climactic Scene
 More Powerful
 Hero’s Life Changed
For Better or Worse

29. Story
“A story is a series of acts that build to a last
act climax or story climax which brings about
absolute and irreversible change.”
Robert McKee

31. Watching Film, Writing Film
Introducing the Screenwriting Craft

32. Story Endings
 Value
 Theme
 Final Action
 Point / Counterpoint
 Up / Down / Ironic Endings

33. Story Value
 Look at the final
action of the story.
 Then look at the
beginning of the
story.
 Ask: What has
changed?

34. Story Theme
 Value Plus Action
Equals Theme
 Example: Crime
Pays or Crime
Doesn’t Pay
 Theme Arises
Organically Out the
Last Act Climax

35. Final Action
 Must Excite the
Audience
 Must Move the
Audience
 Must Feel Complete
 Must Be Satisfying
Run ForrestRun
Run Forrest Run

36. Point / Counterpoint
 Resonate with
Theme
 Contradict Theme
 Play Point Against
Counterpoint
 Builds Intensity to
Final Act Climax

37. Up / Down / Ironic Endings
 Up: Optimistic, Hopeful, Dreams Come True
 Down: Pessimistic, Cynical, Misfortune
 Ironic: Optimism/Idealism and Pessimism/
Cynicism Merge

38. Life is like a box of chocolate
TheEnd

39. Acknowledgements
 Robert McKee, author of Story.
http://www.mckeestory.com/
 Richard Krevolin, author of Screenwriting from
the Soul & professor USC.
http://www.profk.com/bio.html
 Joseph Campbell: The Hero’s Journey.
www.netflix.com
streaming 1 hour introduction

40. Presented At:
 Truckee Meadows Community College
 Pepperdine University
 University of Nevada, Reno
 University of Costa Rica