THE/10/DAY SCREENPLAY How to Write a Blockbuster Screenplay in Just 10 Days - EXPANDED EDITION by Jonathan A. Browne
Copyright © 2008 by Shamrock New Media, Inc. NOTICE: You may not copy, redistribute, publish, retransmit, transfer, share, modify or create derivative works, or in any way commercially exploit, any content contained in the publication, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
PART ONE: Full-Speed Screenwriting …………….…..……................. 5 Can You Really Write a Screenplay in 10 Days? …..……………... 6 The Benefits of Fast Screenwriting ………………………………...9 It’s Time to Stop Dreaming and Start Writing! ……….…………... 10 Seeing is Believing ………………………………………………... 12 You Have More than One Shot …..………………………………... 14 To Outline or Not to Outline ……….…………………….………... 15 How to Use This Book ………………...…………………………... 17
PART TWO: Before We Start the 10-Day Course ………….................. 18 The Five Requirements ………...………………...………………... 19 The Five Movies …………………………………………………... 20 The Idea ………………………………….………………………... 22 Internal Conflict ………………….………………………………... 26 The Two Key Questions ……….....……………...………………... 30 Subplots …………………….……………………………………... 31 The “Tentative” Ending ………………….………………………... 33 The Characters …………..……….………………………………... 34
PART THREE: The 10-Day Course …………………...…….................. 35 Our Plan of Attack ……………………………….………………... 36 Introducing the Nine Essential Chapters of Drama ……...………... 37 Just Do It! ………..…………….…………………………………...39 Day 1: Character Development …………………..………………... 40 Day 2: Writing Chapter One ……….……………………….……... 47 Day 3: Writing Chapter Two ……………………….……………... 50 Day 4: Writing Chapter Three …………………………...………... 54 Day 5: Writing Chapter Four ………..…………….…………..…... 56
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Day 6: Writing Chapter Five ……………………..………………...58 Day 7: Writing Chapter Six ………..……………………….……... 61 Day 8: Writing Chapter Seven ………..……..…….…………..…... 63 Day 9: Writing Chapter Eight ………………..…..………………... 65 Day 10: Writing Chapter Nine ………..…………………….……... 68
Your Script Is Done, Now What? ……………………...……....….…….. 72 Appendix 1: If You Absolutely MUST Outline ………………….…….. 75 Appendix 2: Writer’s Resources ………………….…………………….. 79
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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PART ONE: Full-Speed Screenwriting
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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Can You Really Write a Screenplay in 10 Days?
The goal of this system is simply this: 10 days from now, you will have written a blockbuster screenplay. Period.
Now that we’re all on the same page, I’d like to address the question I hear most often: “Can I really write a blockbuster screenplay in just 10 days? After all, most instructors I know say it takes months or even years to write a great movie.”
Allow me to first offer a short and sweet answer to your question: Yes, you can.
You can write a great screenplay in 10 days and in the pages that follow, I’m going to show you exactly how to do it.
Simply follow this program and in 10 days, you’ll have a finished script capable of blowing your readers away and launching your screenwriting career!
The idea that writing a screenplay takes six months to a year is just preposterous.
Now, do some writers take 12 months or longer to complete their scripts? Of course. But, most writers I know would never even entertain the idea of taking so long to complete a script. In fact, some of the most successful screenplays ever written were completed in just a few days.
Sylvester Stallone was living in utter poverty when he saw an unknown boxer last nearly 15 rounds with Muhammad Ali. The idea for Rocky was born. Stallone wrote the script in just three days and the rest, as they say, is
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Hollywood history as the movie became one of the most successful of all time and made Stallone an international superstar.
Kevin Williamson was house-sitting one night when he and a friend started reminiscing on the phone about old slasher movies. The conversation led to Williamson getting himself spooked, all alone in this big house. It spawned the idea for what would become the opening scene in Scream with a stalker quizzing his victims on horror movies of the past. Williamson wrote Scream in just four days. The script created a hot bidding war and made Williamson one of the highest-paid screenwriters in Hollywood. When the movie was made, it rejuvenated the teen horror genre and became one of the surprise hits of the 1990s.
And then there’s Joe Eszterhas. He came up with the idea of a beautiful crime novelist becoming the suspect in the case of her boyfriend’s murder. Eszterhas sat down, with no clue how the story would end, and wrote Basic Instinct in just 10 days. When he was finished, he shipped the script to his agent and in just three days, he had sold it for $3 million. That means Eszterhas went from having a simple idea to having $3 million in the bank in just 13 days!
Arthur Miller wrote the play Death of a Salesman in just a day and a half. It became one of the most successful plays of all time and won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
It’s worth noting that in the case of both Scream and Basic Instinct, those first drafts written were nearly exactly what ended up on the big screen. In other words, the first draft ended up being the final draft.
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So let me ask you, if writing a great screenplay doesn’t have to take six months, wouldn’t you prefer to finish your script in just days instead of months? Because you’re reading this guide, I think I know your preference.
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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The Benefits of Fast Screenwriting
The next question I so often hear is, “Why should I write a movie in just 10 days?” This is a logical query. After all, just because something can be done faster doesn’t always mean it should be done faster.
The truth is that spending TOO MUCH time on a script is actually one of the worst mistakes a screenwriter can make!
It leads to boring, dull, and
unoriginal scripts.
Scott Rosenberg, the hugely successful writer of Con Air, High Fidelity, Beautiful Girls, Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead, and many other top-selling screenplays, has often pointed out the necessity of being able to write quickly.
“I have friends who take six to eight months to write a script, and I think it’s stupid,” Rosenberg said. “You're talking about 120 pages with a lot of white in them. How can it take you six months to write that? It should be vomited out as fast as you can manage to get it out.”
The danger with taking too long to write a script is that writers often secondguess and tweak every little scene, idea, character, and line until the screenplay loses all spontaneity and heart. The result is that these screenplays read like 99% of all the other screenplays out there - which certainly won’t get your script noticed or sold!
The bottom line is this: not only can it be annoying and demoralizing to hit a dead end after working on a script for months on end, but allowing yourself to spend too much time on a script actually makes your script worse, not better.
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It’s Time to Stop Dreaming and Start Writing!
The single biggest problem most screenwriters have is that they spend way too much time “planning” the perfect script. They waste months, if not years, doing this. Ultimately, it’s nothing more than excessive procrastination and it dooms 99.99% of all screenwriters before they ever get started.
When you’ve got an idea for a movie and some great characters, it’s time to sit down and start writing!
Another bad excuse I often hear for procrastinating is when a writer says he or she is waiting to get “in the zone” before they start writing. This is actually code for, “I just don’t feel like writing,” which is code for, “I’m too lazy to write,” which is code for, “Although I may tell people I want to be a screenwriter, deep down I know that I’m just too lazy to do it!”
This may sound harsh, but it’s the truth.
As they say, in this business, there are no failures, only quitters. And when you procrastinate endlessly with either the “planning” excuse or the “in the zone” excuse, you’re essentially quitting before you ever give yourself the chance to succeed.
There’s a clear difference between dreaming and writing. When you’ve got the dream, it’s time to sit yourself down and WRITE THE MOVIE!
The 10-Day Screenplay system will force you to get your movie down on the page; all you have to do is follow the step-by-step process laid out in this guide.
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You see, The 10-Day Screenplay system utilizes one of the most powerful tools a writer has: the deadline.
Steven DeSouza, the screenwriter of mega-hits like Die Hard and 48 Hours, offers this advice, “Deadlines are the greatest motivator I know; how could they not be?”
Tom Schulman (What About Bob) agrees: “I can always think of a million good reasons why I shouldn’t start a project on a given day, so I’ll give myself a deadline. It’s the only thing that really pushes me over.”
No matter how successful and accomplished a writer may be, procrastination is the writer’s ultimate enemy.
However, deadlines are the ultimate
procrastination slayer and by following this program, you’ll be given a new deadline each day. In 10 days, you’ll be finished with your script!
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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Seeing is Believing
The fast-paced writing method we’ll be using will also keep your script exciting. As mentioned earlier, most wannabe screenwriters are clueless as to how dull and unoriginal their scripts really are. This is because they tinker with them until they end up reading like every other boring script out there.
By following this rapid-fire system, you’ll notice that your creative energy will stay in overdrive and your movie will be spontaneous and “real” throughout.
Jeffrey Boam (The Lost Boys, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Lethal Weapon 2) says, “The biggest and most helpful rule I have is, when I’m bored, the screenplay is boring. And it’s going to be boring for an audience.”
This advice seems to fly in the face of that offered by those famous “structure gurus” who teach screenwriters to spend countless hours conforming their moves to rigid rules.
Callie Khouri (Thelma & Louise, Something to Talk About, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood) goes a step further saying, “I picked up the Syd Field book and looked through it, and I thought, this is just way too structured, I could never write like that. I’m just going to tell this story. I know what makes a good movie. I know what I want to see.”
Amateur writers have a tendency to get obsessed about detailed outlines and the structure rules espoused by today’s latest screenwriting guru. Avoid this temptation. You know what kind of movies you like. You know what makes a good story. It’s time to break through the rigid chains that may be bottling up your creativity and just start writing the script!
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This means seeing your script unfold just as your audience will see the movie play out. Joe Eszterhas has pointed out that a great screenplay, like a great novel, reads quickly. He says, “Most studio executives I’ve met think that if it takes them longer than 45 minutes to read a script, then the script isn’t very good.”
This is an important point to keep in mind.
Many successful
screenwriters have discovered that the key to having a script read fast is making sure that you write it fast.
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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You Have More than One Shot
Another important tool for freeing up your creativity is remembering that you have more than one shot at writing your script. Nobody says that your first draft has to be your final draft. You can always come back and add new twists later. There is no reason to feel the pressure of writing a perfect script the first time through.
Andrew Marlowe (Air Force One) says, “When I start to watch the movie in my head like a giddy fan, then I know I have something.” But he also adds, “I try to write my first draft really quickly. I write the first draft with flaws and warts and zits. But you don’t show that to anybody. That’s just the document for you to edit. That’s the slab of marble you’re going to chisel.”
The point is, don’t sweat the small details when you’re writing the first draft. You can always go back in and change something later if you don’t like it. But first, you have to GET IT DOWN ON PAPER!
Often times, you may find that your first draft really does end up being your final draft, but if you start writing with the expectation that this initial draft has to be perfect, you’ll rarely get past page one.
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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To Outline or Not to Outline
All this leads us into the next logical question, “Does The 10-Day Screenplay system require outlining?”
The answer is no. In fact, I go out of my way to discourage writers from outlining.
I understand that this stance doesn’t sound like the conventional wisdom you’re used to hearing. But I urge you, for a moment, to take a close look at the people who have encouraged you to outline in the past. Most likely, they were either writing professors or seminar “gurus.”
I believe that most of these individuals encourage you to outline because they’re expertise (if you want to call it that) is in analyzing scripts “after the fact.” Their focus is on evaluating stories after they are created and they normally lack the perspective of going through the actual creative process. Therefore, they want students to do outlines so that they can decide whether they are “right” or “wrong” before the script is actually started. This is not the way creative people actually work.
I’ve found that outlining usually stifles creativity. It causes the writer to try and plug in stale characters into their plots instead of allowing their characters to come first and dictate the story as it happens.
This constricts the
characters’ voices and their actions and results in a lifeless script.
Joe Eszterhas agrees. He states bluntly, “Don’t do an outline for yourself. It will lock the character in step too much and not give them enough room to plot the course of their own actions in the script. Give them the freedom to tell you what it is they want to do or say.”
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Perhaps this is why some of the most successful writers of our time choose not to outline.
Stephen King, Quentin Tarantino, Elmore Leonard, Donald
Westlake, David Benioff, Shane Black…the list could go on and on. The point is, contrary to what instructors with no experience actually writing may have told you, it’s often a very bad idea to outline your story before you dive in.
This doesn’t mean that you should have no idea at all where your script is heading when you start. In fact, later in this guide you’ll be introduced to the Nine Essential Chapters of Drama, which will ensure your conflict continuously rises throughout your script. But these nine chapters shouldn’t be seen as a detailed turn-by-turn road map for your script. Instead, see them as more of a compass that will simply make sure you’re headed in the right direction.
To be fair, I will admit that some truly outstanding writers DO outline. Some of these writers swear that outlining is essential. I’m not going to argue with their results and try to tell them that their writing process is all wrong. There’s no one right way to write and if a person absolutely must have an outline to write a good story, who am I to argue with them?
All I ask is that before you’re convinced that you have to have an outline to write your screenplay, please try to follow The 10-Day Screenplay system without an outline first. I have good reason to believe that you will find it a much more enjoyable experience and it will result in a much better finished product.
[…Having said all that, if you’re one of those writers who absolutely positively can NOT start writing without an outline, I encourage you to keep the outline as brief as possible and I’ve included an outlining method in the appendix of this guide.]
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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How to Use This Book
It is almost time to begin your journey. But before we move on, I’d like to offer one more suggestion for getting the most out of this guide:
Don’t view this as your typical book to curl up with at the end of a long day and read while you fall asleep. This is meant to be an action guide, which means you need to take ACTION as you’re reading it. See it not as another screenwriting book, but as a home-study course that must be completed on time.
And remember: there are no failures in this business, only quitters.
The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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PART TWO: Before We Start the 10-Day Course
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The Five Requirements
Before we get started with The 10-Day Screenplay course, you need to have five things in mind:
1) You need to have a great idea for your screenplay. This will be the movie’s External Conflict, which we’ll be explaining shortly.
2) You need to define your hero’s Internal Conflict, which also will be explained shortly.
3) You need to be thinking of any subplots that might enhance your movie’s External and/or Internal conflicts.
4) You need to have a “tentative” ending in mind.
5) You need to make sure you have compelling and original characters for your movie.
We’ll go through a simply process to ensure we have all five of these requirements in this section of The 10-Day Screenplay.
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The Five Movies
Now is a good time to address the five movies we’ll be using for examples throughout this course.
Instead of citing dozens of different movies for
unique scenes and concepts, I think it’s much more appropriate to use a few movies for ALL of our examples.
If you haven’t seen or don’t remember these five movies, it will be extremely helpful if you go back and watch these movies before moving forward with this course.
These five movies were chosen because they were all incredibly successful, they span five different genres and several decades, they each were made relatively cheaply (that is, they didn’t rely on huge budgets to attract attention), and they didn’t rely on “star power” to be successful (for the most part, the stars in these movies were not big stars before these movies were made.).
The movies are: •
Rocky – Drama
A drama that was made for $1 million and grossed $225 million. It made Sylvester Stallone an international superstar and spawned a franchise of six movies that grossed more than $1.1 billion. The movie won the 1976 Academy Award for Best Picture and is typically viewed as the greatest “sports” drama of all time. •
Home Alone – Family Comedy
A “fish out of water” family comedy that was made for $18 million and grossed $478 million. It began a franchise of three movies, which grossed nearly $1 billion. To this day, it is the most successful “Christmas movie” The 10-Day Screenplay by Jonathan A. Browne Copyright © 2008 Shamrock New Media, Inc.
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of all time (an important feat considering that there is always high demand for Holiday movies each year). •
There’s Something About Mary – Romantic Comedy
This romantic comedy made both Cameron Diaz and Ben Stiller hugely famous superstars. Made for $23 million, the movie grossed $370 million and is the No. 5 highest-grossing romantic comedy ever made. •
Die Hard – Action
This action movie created an entire subgenre known as “Die Hard in a…” Made for $28 million, it grossed $139 million and led to three sequels. The four-film franchise grossed more than $1.1 billion. The movie also made Bruce Willis one of the hottest stars of his day and created a new generation of “everyman” action stars (as opposed to the Sylvester Stallone/Arnold Schwarzenegger “surreal” action stars that were popular at the time Die Hard was made). •
Scream – Horror
This was the horror movie that came out of nowhere in 1996 and awoke the dead genre of teen thrillers. Made for $14 million, the movie grossed $173 million and launched a three-movie franchise that made more than $500 million.
For ease of understanding the concepts we’re about to present, these are the only five movies we’ll be referring to from here on out. You will find that hundreds of other movies could have been used in place of these five to serve as examples for what you are about to learn.
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The Idea
Your movie begins and ends with its main idea. Even though characters are what truly make a movie great, if the main idea for your movie isn’t compelling, you’ll be grounded before you ever begin.
When we refer to a movie’s main idea, we’re actually referring to the External Conflict, which serves as the main plot of the movie. The External Conflict immediately raises the movie’s main question that must be answered; will the hero achieve the goal set forth by the External Conflict?
While there will also be an Internal Conflict and perhaps several subplots in every great movie, the External Conflict is the driving force behind your story.
When people ask you what Rocky is about, you don’t tell them, “It’s about a timid and insecure boxer/loan shark collector who falls in love with a shy girl and develops some much-needed self confidence and ultimately comes to believe in himself.”
Sure, the movie is about all those things (and those Internal issues are what makes most people actually identify with the film so much), but if someone asked you what Rocky was about, you’d tell them, “It’s about a mediocre club boxer who gets a random shot at the heavyweight championship of the world.”
That is what Rocky is about. That is the movie’s idea, its External Conflict. The question that must be answered: Will Rocky Balboa find a way to beat the heavyweight champ?
For Home Alone, the main idea is: An eight-year-old boy gets accidentally left home alone during Christmas while burglars attempt to break into his house.
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The question that must be answered: Will Kevin survive being at home alone when the burglars try to break in?
For There’s Something About Mary, the main idea is: A guy wants to find his long-lost love, but must hire a shady private investigator to find her. The question that must be answered: Will Ted be able to rekindle his old flame with Mary without her knowing he hired a creepy P.I. to track her down?
For Die Hard, the main idea is: Ruthless thieves take a group of people hostage in a skyscraper and an off-duty cop must stop them. The question that must be answered: Will John be able to save the hostages?
For Scream, the main idea is: a killer is on the loose in a small town while he stalks a teenage girl with tactics made famous in past horror movies. The question that must be answered: Will Sydney survive the killer’s attempts to murder her?
Now it’s your turn. What is the main idea for your movie? Your idea needs to be original and compelling. Sounds simple enough, but it’s obviously easier said than done.
To make sure your idea is a winner, you can put it through the following fivequestion idea test. With your idea in mind, simply answer the following five yes-or-no questions:
1) Is your idea similar to anything you’ve ever seen before?
If you answer yes, find ways to make your idea unique. In the case of Die Hard, there have been dozens of action movies revolving around a group of bad guys taking innocent people hostage. What made Die Hard so unique was the setting. The movie takes place in a huge skyscraper and
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our hero must climb through vents, leap off of roofs, and jump through elevator shafts to save the hostages.
2) Is your idea big enough for the big screen?
When we’re talking about a “big” idea, we’re talking about something that will take some time – approximately two hours – to explore. If Home Alone was simply about a kid being left at home over Christmas, it’s more likely a 30-minute sit-com episode. There may be a few funny things that happen to this child and to the family that left him, but it would get very old after any more than that half-hour. Instead, Home Alone adds the element of burglars targeting the house where Kevin is home by himself. All the while, Kevin’s family is trying to get back to him after realizing he’s been left at home. Suddenly, we’ve got a real movie.
3) Does your movie idea instantly present your main character with a recognizable goal?
You don’t want to have your movie’s main idea end up being just a prelude to your central question or central goal. For instance, if Rocky had fought for the heavyweight championship halfway through the movie and then carried on with his courting of Adrian, then the main idea of the movie would no longer be about whether he could somehow beat the heavyweight champ. Instead, it would be about whether a club boxer was able to find love. Certainly, the Adrian love story is a big part of Rocky and certainly it is a subplot that made the movie much more than a typical sports drama, but the movie’s compelling and original main idea is about the mediocre boxer getting a shot at the heavyweight championship. Make sure you don’t use the movie’s main idea to lead into a different central question or central goal. On the same note, be very clear about what the main plot of your movie is and what your subplots are.
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4) Is your movie idea first and foremost about an External Conflict and NOT an Internal Conflict?
As you will see shortly, the Internal Conflict is hugely important to the success of your movie, but you need to make sure the movie’s main idea is about an External Conflict. This means it needs to be something we can really see played out as someone watching from the outside. It’s often extremely difficult to make a great movie based on some of the great novels that have been written. This is because many great novels take us deep within the character’s mind and we follow the character’s Internal Conflict in a way that is very hard to do in a two-hour movie. You need to make certain that your main idea revolves around an External Conflict, a conflict that is visual.
5) And finally, if you heard about this movie, would you be jumping out of your chair in anxious anticipation to go see it?
The point here is obvious: make sure you’re writing about something you would love to see. Make sure you’re creating the movie that you’ve always wanted to see. Don’t think about anyone else first; think about yourself and your own interests. Trying to create a great movie based on what you think would be popular to others is not a smart starting point. Instead, come up with an idea that you would love to see played out on the big screen.
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Internal Conflict
Now that we know our External Conflict (the movie’s main idea) and it passes our five-question idea test, it’s time to start thinking about the Internal Conflict.
The Internal Conflict is the “inside” change your character must go through during the course of the movie. Many screenwriters make the mistake of disregarding a compelling Internal Conflict, but it’s this Internal Conflict that is the difference between a decent idea for a movie and a hugely successful blockbuster.
The Internal Conflict is what really connects our audience with our characters and gives them a fulfilling experience when they leave the theater. You can have an outstanding idea and the greatest stunts and visual effects ever filmed, but if your audience does not relate to an Internal Conflict in your movie, it is sure to disappoint.
An Internal Conflict is all about an internal flaw that our character must overcome to become a better and more fulfilled person by the end of our story. (Or, in the case of tragedies, our hero fails to overcome his flaw and ruins his life, thus teaching the audience a lesson they can believe in.)
Not only does this internal flaw need to be overcome for the hero to become a better person, but it also must be overcome for the hero to achieve the goal necessitated by the External Conflict in the most rewarding way possible.
Let’s take a look at the Internal Conflict in our five movies: •
Rocky – Rocky overcomes complacency (flaw) and takes a real shot at life, ultimately proving that he is “somebody.”
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•
Home Alone – Kevin overcomes his immaturity (flaw) to defend his home and also learn the value of family.
•
There’s Something About Mary – Ted overcomes his insecurity (flaw) and wins over his lost love when he’s finally confident enough to be completely honest with her.
•
Die Hard – John overcomes his selfishness (flaw) and saves the hostages while also winning back his wife.
•
Scream – Sydney overcomes her timidity (flaw) and realizes that what happened in the past to her mother won’t happen to her if she doesn’t let it (this gives her the confidence to be aggressive and fight off the killer who is after her).
In evaluating your Internal Conflict, make sure it falls into at least one of or all of the three Internal Conflict models that make a great movie. Defeating the three flaws showcased here will always have universal appeal, they’re things everyone likes to see overcome. The best movies are those in which every member of the audience can relate to the characters on a very personal level. Using these three models guarantees an instant connection.
1) Kissing Your Past Goodbye
This is when your hero has made a major mistake in his past, which is eating away at him and affecting his life in a major way. The regret or guilt he feels is keeping him from reaching his full potential in life.
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It could also be something that happened to our hero in the past. Maybe it wasn’t his fault or something he did or didn’t do, but something embarrassing (There’s Something About Mary) or horrifying (Scream) that has happened to this person in the past.
2) Growing Up
When we talk about “growing up” or “coming of age,” what we’re really talking about is overcoming our biggest fears in life. This involves our lack of self-confidence, lack of ambition, lack of personal will-power, lack of integrity. What causes these dreadful lacks? Fear. Fear of failure, fear of uncertainty, and fear of being truthful and open.
Facing and
overcoming these fears is ultimately about growing up.
Rocky is a classic “growing up” movie as Rocky must overcome his complacency in life – his fear of taking a real shot at life no matter what the risks are – before he’s able to prove himself in the ring against Apollo Creed and find true love outside the ring with Adrian.
3) Sacrificing
We love to see characters overcome selfishness and put others before them. Along these same lines, we love to see our lone-wolf hero learn to work with and rely on others for help. Selfishness is a major flaw that audiences always love to see defeated.
Die Hard serves as an excellent example of self-sacrifice. John finally realizes how selfish he has been and overcomes this flaw before heroically saving the hostages (including his wife) from the bad guys.
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Note that each of these three Internal Conflict models can, and often do, overlap with one another. But you must make certain your Internal Conflict covers at least one of these three models. It truly can take your script from mundane and ordinary to blockbuster success.
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The Two Key Questions
By this point, you should have two key questions raised for your movie:
1) External Conflict: Will our hero achieve his goal?
2) Internal Conflict: Will our hero overcome his inner flaw?
If you’re not asking yourself these two questions yet, brainstorm your movie’s concept until you’re clearly raising these questions.
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Subplots
Subplots are the minor storylines that intertwine with your movie’s major story line. They are an excellent tool for enhancing your movie’s External and Internal Conflicts.
However, a big problem many writers have is letting several subplots take over their movie without really advancing either the External or Internal Conflict of the movie. These types of movies often become ensemble movies and while there are extremely rare exceptions of such movies being made and being successful, they should definitely be avoided by the screenwriter trying to launch his career.
Let me hammer this home: every single subplot you choose to include in your movie needs to – in some way – advance either the External Conflict or Internal Conflict of the story. The best subplots should actually advance both the External and Internal Conflict at the same time.
When done correctly, subplots have the power to take your movie from good to great. When done incorrectly, they can drag down the entire script and bore the audience.
The love story subplot in Rocky enhances the Internal Conflict of the movie. Not only does Rocky learn to overcome complacency in his boxing career, but he also becomes more outgoing in his quest to find love with Adrian.
In Die Hard, the Internal Conflict is selfishness and John learns how selfish he has been in regards to his wife’s career. At the same time, John’s wife is one of the hostages, making her a major component in the External Conflict as well as the Internal Conflict of the movie.
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In Home Alone, the subplot of Kevin’s mother trying to get back home not only plays up the value of family (which Kevin must realize as he overcomes his immaturity), but it also enhances the External Conflict, raising the question of whether Kevin’s family will make it home before the burglars break into Kevin’s home.
In There’s Something About Mary, the subplot dealing with Healy and Tucker is key to the External Conflict as they too are trying to win over Mary.
In Scream, the subplot of Sydney and Billy’s relationship collides head-on with both the External and Internal Conflicts when Sydney is able to overcome her timidity and open up to Billy in a loving way, just before finding out Billy is one of the killers and really overcoming her timidity by fighting back and killing Billy and Stu.
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The “Tentative” Ending
Before you start writing your movie, you also need to have a general idea of how you think it will end. Will Rocky beat Apollo Creed? Will Sydney survive the maniac killer? Will Ted win over Mary?
The tentative ending is essentially an answer to your two key questions.
But, while you should have a pretty good idea of how you think you’re movie will end, DON’T BE AFRAID TO CHANGE YOUR MIND when you’re writing your script.
As you’re writing, you may find that the ending that feels right for your characters is no longer what you had originally planned.
In Stallone’s original plan for Rocky, it was a much darker movie and the ending was set to have Rocky throw the fight with Apollo Creed. But as Stallone spent time with the character of Rocky, he became a character that would never in a million years throw a fight. Can you imagine what a different story Rocky would have been had Stallone stuck to his original plan for the ending?
You want to have some idea of how your story will end up, but don’t be afraid to change the course and let you characters dictate how it all ends up.
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The Characters
And speaking of characters, by now you should have a pretty good idea of the types of characters you will need for your movie. Obviously, examining possibilities for the Internal Conflict of you movie has already helped you flesh out your main character. Likewise, subplot ideas have probably caused you to give more thought to your minor characters as well.
On Day 1 of the 10-day course, we’ll be doing some major character development to ensure that you have gripping characters in your movie.
But before we dive in, you need to have a pretty good idea of who your main characters are, especially your protagonist (main character or hero) and antagonist (the bad guy – remember, there is always someone who wants to see your hero fail and the antagonist needs to be that main someone).
Once you have your main characters in mind, it’s time to get started on the 10day course…
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PART THREE: The 10-Day Course
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Our Plan of Attack
It is now time to start writing your screenplay. If you follow this program as it is presented here, you will have a finished script just 10 days from now.
Our 10-day journey will begin with character development on Day 1. After that, we’ll be completing one of the Nine Essential Chapters of Drama each day.
Which brings us, of course, to an explanation of what those nine
chapters are…
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Introducing the Nine Essential Chapters of Drama
After years of extensive research into what makes a great movie great, I have found that 99% of all great movies include nine sequential chapters. From the audience’s perspective, these chapters create a fulfilling dramatic experience. From the writer’s perspective, each of these chapters presents you with clear goals that need to be accomplished.
I want to reiterate that this is not a by-the-numbers kind of structural road map.
Instead, these chapters will become your tools for completing a
fulfilling movie experience for the audience (just like the tools used for character development, Internal Conflicts, etc.).
As stated earlier, this should be seen as a compass rather than turn-by-turn instructions for your journey. It’s here to make sure your movie is heading in the right direction, not to dictate exactly what must happen scene-by-scene.
On average, the nine chapters break down like this: •
Chapter 1: Introduction to the Hero’s World – pages 1-15
•
Chapter 2: Catalyst I, Avoidance, Catalyst II – pages 16-30
•
Chapter 3: The Hero’s Journey Begins – page 31-40
•
Chapter 4: The Hero Looking Good – pages 41-50
•
Chapter 5: The Midpoint – pages 51-60
•
Chapter 6: Things Get Tougher and Tougher – pages 61-80
•
Chapter 7: Worst Case Scenario – pages 81-85
•
Chapter 8: The Comeback – pages 86-95
•
Chapter 9: The Finale – pages 96-110
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Please note that these page counts/minute counts are average estimates for the typical movie. They should NOT be strictly adhered to. You will find that these page counts can and will vary a great deal from movie to movie. The point to realize is that each chapter MUST occur, not necessarily that each chapter must run the length described above.
For instance, Chapter 5 in Die Hard lasts 19 minutes while Chapter 5 in Rocky lasts just 5 minutes. Chapter 8 in Rocky lasts 10 minutes while Chapter 8 in There’s Something About Mary lasts just 3 minutes. Chapter 9 in Home Alone lasts 24 minutes while Chapter 9 in Scream lasts just 5 minutes. And these types of comparisons could go on and on.
There will be differences between every movie in how long each chapter lasts. The page counts above, however, do represent the averages for a successful movie.
While the titles of each chapter are fairly explanatory, we’ll be going through each chapter in more detail on the days that we write them.
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Just Do It!
One final message before we get started: JUST DO IT!
Once you start this course, make sure you sit down each and every day and follow the plan. Remember, these are deadlines that you must meet.
Obviously, life can throw things at us from time to time that knock us off course and I fully understand that. Therefore, if you absolutely positively do not have enough time to finish the daily goals presented in this program, I must insist that you at least do something each and every day until you have completed the entire program and your script.
Even if it’s just 10 minutes of writing, DO SOMETHING EVERY DAY once you get started. Think of it this way, even if you’re only able to complete one-third of each day’s task, you’ll still have a finished screenplay in just one month.
What you absolutely must not do is take a day off at any time during the process. I’ve seen it way too often, once you take one day off from working on your script, you’re not afraid to take two days or three days or four days off and then you start thinking you need to come up with a new script idea entirely. Don’t let this happen to you!
Once you start, don’t stop until you’re finished!
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Day 1: Character Development
Class is now in session and our first day will focus on what I feel separates great scripts from the piles and piles of garbage written each year: characters!
An original and compelling idea for your movie is essential, but even the best ideas will flop if the movie lacks great characters.
Dull characters are normally created by writers who get so caught up in their plots and their big ideas that they end up plugging in stale, lifeless characters to play out their story.
Think of some of the worst movies you’ve ever seen and I can virtually guarantee that you failed to connect with the characters that were driving the story. Those are movies that get made based on ideas alone, but end up flopping because they don’t include characters that audiences connect with.
So what makes a great character? More than anything else, it’s someone who seems real.
Someone who has flaws, like real people.
Someone who
contradicts themselves, like real people. Someone who has a unique voice, like real people. Someone we can identify with, like real people.
These are characters that we can understand. We can understand why they act the way they do based on their circumstances (and note here that even if we don’t approve of or enjoy what the person does, we need to still be able to identify with why he or she may be doing what they are doing).
Think about what makes Rocky Balboa one of the most enduring characters in motion picture history. First off, he’s the ultimate contradiction. On the surface, he’s a brutish boxer who fights at rowdy clubs by night and collects for the local loan shark gangster by day. But when we get to know him, we
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see that this is a guy who lives his life like a beat dog, afraid to ruffle any feathers or take any real shots at a better life. We also see that he’s got a great heart: he won’t hurt the people he collects from even if he’s been told to, he tries to give street kids helpful advice even if they have no respect for him, etc.
Then, there’s the identification factor. Sylvester Stallone has said that he believes Rocky is such a beloved character because most people are afraid to take their best shot at life, and here’s a guy who did. We can all identify with Rocky’s complacency early in the movie and then wanting to prove that he really isn’t the bum people seem to think he is.
And finally, Rocky had a very unique voice.
Yes, his accent is now
internationally known, but we’re talking about more than his accent. Let’s face it; this guy isn’t the brightest person.
He’s uneducated with poor
grammar and a punchy delivery. People write him off as soon as they hear him speak. Rocky is someone most people could easily have passed on the streets and thought nothing of, assuming that someone like this couldn’t possibly have anything of substance to say. But if we really listen to what Rocky has to say, we hear someone who speaks from the heart. He’s naïve to the harsh realities of the world and expects people to do what’s right even though he has plenty of first-hand experience to prove that that isn’t the case in life.
This quick examination of Rocky Balboa barely scratches the surface, but we see a lot of depth here. We see a complex character with a unique voice. We feel like we know him and we identify with him on many levels.
And again, understand that this must be true with our “bad guy” characters as well. We obviously like and admire Rocky, but we need to also understand why our “bad guys” behave the way they do. We need to feel their evil and
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assume they must have had lots of evil done to them throughout life (even if we don’t necessarily learn this for a fact in our movie).
To create great characters, we must get to know them on a deep and intimate level. As writers, we have to put ourselves in their shoes and see the world the way they see it. This is the only way to write from the heart. We must understand the motive for their actions. We need to hear their voices and know why they say the things they do.
Once we get to know our characters on a very deep level, you’ll find that they begin to dictate your story. This is when real magic happens for a writer.
To get to know our characters on a deep level, we must be able to answer the 20 Essential Character Questions about our characters. You don’t necessarily have to do this for every single character in your movie (although I highly recommend that you do), but at a bare minimum, this needs to be done for your three most important characters:
1) The Protagonist. This is our main character or hero, the person our story is about first and foremost. Every great movie has one main character, even buddy movies and ensembles.
2) The Antagonist. This doesn’t have to be the typical “bad guy” we see in action and thriller movies, but there is always some character who wants to keep our protagonist from getting what he wants. Someone needs to be doing everything they can to stop our protagonist from achieving his goals.
3) The Love Interest/Buddy.
Every protagonist needs either a love
interest he is pursuing or a best friend or family member who plays an essential role in the protagonist’s journey.
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someone the protagonist wants to save or it may be someone the protagonist needs to learn to work with, listen to, and respect (such as a Mentor or partner). This “buddy” role can be, and often is, both. That is, the love interest in the movie may also be the protagonist’s mentor or partner.
These are the three most important characters of any great movie. Most movies will have many more than just these three important characters. You will often want to add an Antagonist’s Buddy and a Love Interest’s Buddy. Your Antagonist may have a Love Interest and a Buddy. He may have a Love Interest, a Buddy, and a Mentor, etc.
In other words, don’t think for a second that I’m recommending you focus your movie on just three important characters. Instead, my intention is to point out that you must have at least these three roles included in your movie.
It’s now time to address the 20 Essential Character Questions.
It is very
smart to write down your answers to these questions for each of your characters so that you can refer back to them throughout the writing process. You must answer all of the following 20 questions for at least the three main characters in your movie.
[Please note: Throughout this guide, we’ll refer simply to “he” instead of “he or she” for ease of readability. Obviously, the intention is not that your characters be limited to males.]
The 20 Essential Character Questions
1. What was his family life like growing up?
2. Was he well-liked at school?
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3. What was high school and college like for him?
4. What kind of grades did he get?
5. What kind of activities was he involved in growing up?
6. What were his spiritual beliefs growing up and what are they now?
7. What did he want to be when he was growing up and does he still want to be those things?
8. Who was his first love and how did that relationship turn out?
9. What does he think of the concept of “true” love?
10. How does he view the world around him? (Most people aren’t 100% pessimistic or 100% optimistic; try to identify the areas where he’s a cynic and the areas where he’s an optimist.)
11. Does he like his career? What parts does he like and what parts does he dislike?
12. What past world events – good and bad – did he observe that had a major impact on his life and how did they affect his outlook on the world?
13. What past events – good and bad – happened directly to him and affected his life in a major way?
14. What are his viewpoints on money and what kind of financial history does he have?
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15. Where has he lived in the past and where does he live now? Where did he love living and where does he want to live?
16. What are his closest friends like?
17. What character traits does he value most in people?
18. What is his idea of “heaven on earth”?
19. What kinds of entertainment does he enjoy? What kinds of movies and shows does he watch? What kind of music does he listen to? What kinds of books does he read? What kinds of sports does he watch or play? What kind of physical activity is he regularly involved with? What are his favorites in each of these categories?
20. And finally, who are the people he admires most in the world, both current and throughout history?
Notice that you didn’t have to answer questions like: is he trustworthy, is he a person of integrity, does he treat people fairly, is he good-natured or evil, etc. The reason for this is that by answering the above 20 questions, you will clearly be answering those logical questions that define him as a person.
Ultimately, these answers should bring you to the biggest and most important question of all: What is this character’s biggest flaw that he must overcome? That is, what is his Internal Conflict?
Now that we know our characters, it’s time to call it a day – congratulations, put Day 1 in the books!
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However, before we move on, I want to reiterate that I strongly encourage you to answer these 20 questions for every single character in your movie. With each character you do this with, new layers of depth are added and what you may have envisioned as a very minor role could turn out to be one of the most important characters in the movie.
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Day 2: Writing Chapter One
It’s now time to start writing your screenplay. Understand going into Day 2 that this is THE toughest day in the process.
William Froug, the Emmy-award winning writer-producer and founder of the UCLA Film School’s Writing Department, said, “Writing the first sentence is the toughest part of writing a script.”
He’s absolutely correct. That blank screen staring back at you has a way of freezing up even the most creative minds.
The good news is that once you get through this first day of writing, the rest is all downhill.
Don’t forget this crucial piece of advice from Joe Eszterhas: “If you’ve written the first page, the rest is easy. Now you know you can do it, because you’ve already done it once. All you have to do is do it about 110 more times. But you’ve done it. So what’s the big deal?”
Just get through those first few sentences, those first few paragraphs and you’ll be onto Page 2 in just a few minutes. Once you hit Page 2, the exciting super-slide of screenwriting has begun and all you need to do is enjoy the ride.
* * *
Today we’ll be writing Chapter 1: The Introduction to the Hero’s World. This normally runs from Page 1 to Page 15.
The main objective of this first chapter is to introduce the audience to the hero’s world. It needs to be interesting and unique. It needs to pull the reader
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in. What makes this world different from anything else we’ve ever seen before? What makes this world something more interesting than our own?
It’s often said that the first 10 pages of your script are the most important. This is because you’ve got a limited amount of time to grab a reader’s attention. If they’re not interested in what happens next by Page 10, chances are high that they won’t turn to Page 11.
There are five bulletproof ways to grab a reader’s attention right from the start. You need to use most of these techniques, if not all five, in the first 10 pages.
1) Make the world our character operates in completely unique, something we haven’t seen before. There aren’t too many people who can imagine such an embarrassing prom experience as what happened to Ted in the beginning of There’s Something About Mary.
2) Make our character’s world a world we’d love to be in right now. In Home Alone, seeing Kevin’s big family in a big snow-covered house at Christmastime instantly gives us a warm feeling and takes us away from our current environment.
3) Create instant sympathy for the protagonist. Sympathy is a surefire way to get readers asking, “What happens next?” How can we watch the first chapter of Rocky and not feel bad for this guy who gets no respect from anybody and lives in dire conditions on the South side of Philadelphia?
4) Set the stage for this movie in a big and creative way. The opening sequence in Scream lets us know we’re in for a wild and suspenseful ride. The movie opens with the most creative (the quizzing about horror
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movies) and thrilling (the stalking of the teenager who is all alone) sequence of the movie.
5) And finally, this is the most important technique that absolutely must be included in the first chapter of every movie. We must introduce the Internal Conflict and force the reader to ask if the hero will be able to overcome his fatal flaw. In Die Hard, we learn all about John’s selfish and stubborn behavior regarding his wife’s career move to Los Angeles. Chapter 1 of Die Hard ends with John getting into an argument with his wife almost as soon as they see each other. We can’t help but ask, “Can this guy get over his selfishness and just show her some affection and support?”
Our main objective for Chapter 1 is making sure that we see our hero’s biggest underlying flaw. Our hero will be either content with living with his flaw (Rocky Balboa in Rocky) or they will be presumably unaware of how fatal the flaw is (Sydney in Scream).
We also want to make sure we clearly establish the genre of our movie in Chapter 1. The audience needs to know if they’re watching a comedy or a drama or a thriller or a spoof, etc.
Those are our key objectives for Chapter 1. It’s now time to dive in. You should shoot for completing roughly 15 pages today. If it’s a little closer to 10 pages, that’s acceptable, but be careful about letting Chapter 1 go on too long. We’ve got a lot to get to and if your first chapter starts to inch near 20 pages long, you probably need to do some cutting and get strait to the objectives of the chapter.
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Day 3: Writing Chapter Two
Congratulations, you’ve made it to Day 3 and now the real fun begins!
Now that we’ve established our hero’s world in Chapter 1, complete with the Internal Conflict they will struggle with throughout the movie, it’s time to get the main story moving.
Today we’ll be writing Chapter 2: Catalyst I, Avoidance, and Catalyst II. This chapter typically runs 15 pages long and ends near page 30.
I’ve found that for most writers, Chapter 2 is usually the easiest chapter to write. This is because A) the chapter is book-ended by two major events – what we’ll be calling Catalyst I and Catalyst II – and B) because this is the chapter in which we establish the main idea of the movie, the External Conflict, which you’ve already been giving a lot of thought to.
We want to start this chapter with Catalyst I. This is when something big happens to move our story into motion. Something happens that changes our hero’s world in a big way – whether he knows it or not. •
Rocky: Rocky goes to his gym and finds out he’s lost his locker and his trainer, Mickey, thinks he should retire from boxing.
•
Home Alone:
A winter storm knocks off the McAllister family’s
power and they sleep in, which forces them to frantically rush to make their flight. •
There’s Something About Mary:
Ted’s friend, Dom, puts him in
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•
Die Hard: The bad guys arrive at the Nakatomi Building and murder the security guards.
•
Scream: Sydney arrives at school to find the town in a media frenzy (once again) due to the murder of a fellow student and this brings back horrible memories for Sydney regarding her mother’s death one year ago.
But despite this initial Catalyst, our hero tries to avoid the problem presented by this event. During this brief Avoidance period, it’s a good idea to start showing more of the hero’s inner flaw and addressing the Internal Conflict of the movie, which usually means allowing the audience to learn more about the hero and his past.
This is also a great time to start doing a little foreshadowing of things to come.
This brief Avoidance stage ends with a bang when Catalyst II comes along.
Catalyst II is an event bigger than Catalyst I that changes the hero’s world in a much more dramatic way. While the hero could try and avoid the impact of Catalyst I, Catalyst II launches the hero into a journey that can no longer be avoided.
Catalyst II presents the audience with the External Conflict of the movie. It gives the hero his main goal for the movie and forces the audience to ask the question that will need to be answered by the end of the movie: Will the hero achieve his goal?
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•
Rocky: Heavyweight Champion Apollo Creed picks Rocky Balboa’s name out of a book as the unknown fighter he will give a title shot to. Even though Rocky himself doesn’t realize this event has occurred, as the audience, we recognize the huge and unavoidable impact this event will have on Rocky’s life: Will Rocky somehow find a way to beat the heavyweight champ?
•
Home Alone: Kevin is home all by himself and we learn that two burglars, Harry and Marv, have made Kevin’s house their number one break-in target. Here is another situation where Kevin is unaware of this event and how it will affect him, but as the audience, we now understand the External Conflict of the movie: Will Kevin survive being at home alone when the burglars try to break in?
•
There’s Something About Mary: Ted realizes he was lied to by the shady private investigator, Healy, and that Mary is doing very well for herself.
Ted decides to go to Miami himself and find her.
The
question is raised: Will Ted be able to rekindle his old flame with Mary without her knowing he hired a con-artist like Healy to track her down? •
Die Hard: In hiding, John watches the ruthless thieves murder the company’s CEO. He now knows just how dangerous these men are and on top of that, the thieves hear John run away – they now know there’s someone on the loose in the building! The question that must now be answered: Will John be able to save the hostages?
•
Scream: The killer calls Sydney and tries to murder her. She’s now a target! The question: Will Sydney survive the killer’s attempts to murder her?
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By the time Chapter 2 ends, we must now have clearly raised the two key questions of the movie:
-
External Conflict: Will our hero achieve his goal?
-
Internal Conflict: Will our hero overcome his inner flaw?
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Day 4: Writing Chapter Three
We’re now officially into what is referred to as Act Two of our movie. (Act One refers to the beginning, usually the first quarter of the movie; Act Two refers to the longer middle of the movie, usually the middle two quarters of the movie; and Act Three refers to the end of the movie, usually the final quarter of the movie.)
This is when our hero’s journey – the main journey of the movie – officially begins. Therefore, we call this Chapter 3: The Hero’s Journey Begins. This chapter usually runs about 10 pages long and ends near Page 40.
In this chapter, our hero is typically in reaction mode. He’s slowly beginning to contemplate that there’s no way he can avoid this mess, but he’s also not aggressively attacking the situation. He’s usually timid in this chapter and sometimes starts to make progress “learning on the job.” •
Rocky: Rocky goes on a date with Adrian. It’s awkward and Rocky is certainly no pro at this game. He also deals with the potential end of his boxing career (after his trainer told him to think about retiring in Chapter 2), telling Adrian that it’s now just a hobby for him.
•
Home Alone: Kevin scares of the burglars on their first attempt to break into the house by simply turning on the back light and then hiding under the bed. He tries to deal with his fear, but gets scared back again when he runs into “Old Man Marley” outside.
•
There’s Something About Mary:
Healy starts winning over Mary
while Ted gets himself arrested after picking up a strange hitchhiker.
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•
Die Hard: John is trying to think of ways to call the police. He pulls the fire alarm and ends up having to fight the bad guy who finds him.
•
Scream: The cops arrest Billy. Sydney refuses to talk to Billy, unable to trust her longtime boyfriend. She goes to her friend’s house to spend the night in a safer environment. The chapter ends with Sydney finding out that Billy was released from jail after proof that he didn’t make the calls the killer made.
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Day 5: Writing Chapter Four
Now that our hero has entered a new world and begun his journey, it’s time for him to start doing less reacting and instead taking more action.
We call this Chapter 4: The Hero Looking Good. This chapter runs roughly 10 pages and ends near Page 50.
In Chapter 4, our hero starts getting the hang of this new world he’s been thrown into. It reassures the audience and looks like he can handle this new environment after all.
This is typically when the guy starts winning over the girl, the victim looks to be outsmarting the madman, the action hero starts showing off his impressive skills at fighting the bad guys.
Your main objective in this chapter is simply to show that things might not be as bad as the hero originally thought they would be. He starts to build his confidence up.
This chapter will often end with the hero accomplishing his initial goal (not to be confused the major goal of the movie established by the External Conflict). •
Rocky: Rocky starts winning over Adrian and eventually kisses her for the first time. Back at the gym, he’s told that Apollo Creed is looking for him as a sparring partner. For Rocky, he’s on top of the world and things couldn’t be going much better.
•
Home Alone: Kevin recognizes Harry the burglar in his neighborhood and that night sets up an elaborate “fake party” to trick the Harry and
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Marv into thinking that Kevin’s house isn’t empty for the holidays after all. •
There’s Something About Mary: Ted’s luck unknowingly turns for the better as Tucker tells Mary that Healy is a phony. Ted also gets out of jail and his friend Dom joins him on the trip to find Mary.
•
Die Hard: After killing his first bad guy, John gets more aggressive and tries to find out more information about the bad guys. The chapter ends with killing a couple more bad guys and finally getting the police to come to the building, which was his initial goal.
•
Scream: Sydney escapes the killer in the school bathroom. School is called off and a town curfew is enacted, virtually shutting the town down and allowing Sydney to feel a sense of safety.
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Day 6: Writing Chapter Five
Congratulations, you are now more than halfway through this 10-day course! Just five days from now, you will have finished your screenplay.
Today we’ll be writing our middle chapter, appropriately titled: Chapter 5: The Midpoint. This chapter, on average, runs from Page 51 to Page 60, but it’s also not uncommon for this chapter to be a short, five-page scene or sequence.
In Chapter 5, things change in a drastic way. This is when a major twist or reversal occurs. The hero finds this new world he’s in is not what he thought it was and this journey is changing directions or becoming much more difficult than he felt it was.
The stakes must be drastically raised in Chapter 5. This could be when the hero finds out he’s in much more danger than he originally thought. It could be when he finds out the girl he thought he was winning over has a secret she hasn’t told him. It could be an out-of-the blue problem that raises the stakes of the journey for hero. Whatever the event is, something must happen that raises the stakes of the movie in a very big way.
Another common occurrence in Chapter 5 is for the hero to be forced into developing a new goal or plan. After an initial goal is completed in Chapter 4, the hero comes up with a new goal and begins a new plan of attack. Perhaps this is the point where he realizes his initial goal or plan is nowhere near good enough to solve the problems he’s facing.
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•
Rocky: Rocky accepts a shot at the title. He plays the part of the “just happy to be here” club fighter to the public, but admits to Adrian that being made fun of by the media really does bother him.
•
Home Alone: While Kevin is growing up and managing the household chores on his own, he begins to realize how much he misses his family. He’s no longer enjoying the fact that he’s on his own and his goal shifts to wanting his family to come back home.
•
There’s Something About Mary: Ted sees that Healy has conned Mary into a relationship with him, raising the stakes of the situation a great deal (while Ted’s goal is still to win back Mary, he must now compete with Healy and deal with the fact that Healy being in Mary’s life is Ted’s fault). Nonetheless, Ted asks Mary out and she agrees!
•
Die Hard: We learn that the bad guys expected the cops to show up all along and John sees that the cops appear to be outmatched in fighting the firepower the bad guys have. John’s initial goal of getting the cops to arrive wasn’t enough; he recognizes that he has to take matters into his own hands to stop the bad guys.
•
Scream: Sydney realizes that the person who killed her mother may still be on the loose and could be the killer who is after her. The audience learns that the killer’s calls were traced back Sydney’s father’s phone!
TIP: Often, about halfway through, many scripts can start to lag a little in terms of excitement.
There are three great ways to combat this all-too-
common problem.
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The first is to raise the issues at stake in a dramatic way and the second is to force your hero to change goals, both of which we’ve discussed above.
The third way is to create a “ticking clock” for the movie. Chapter 5 is often an ideal spot to start this “ticking clock.”
A “ticking clock” is a perfect tool for establishing a sense of urgency in our movie and it can really accelerate the suspense level in a major way.
A few generic examples include: •
The hero’s love interest plans to elope with her creep of a boyfriend the next day.
•
The innocent man’s execution has been moved up to just 12 hours from now.
•
The bomb in Los Angeles has been set to go off in ten minutes while the only person who can stop it is stuck in miles of traffic, etc.
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Day 7: Writing Chapter Six
We now enter Day 7 and the writing of Chapter 6.
Chapter 6: Things Get Tougher and Tougher is normally the longest chapter of the movie. It normally runs from around Page 60 to Page 80.
As the title of this chapter suggests, this is when things start to look dire for our hero. This is usually when everything that can go wrong, does go wrong. We realize that the hero starting to get the hang of things in Chapter 4 had no idea what he was really getting into and is completely out of his league. He really has no business in the new world and the chances of him succeeding are next to nil.
Typically in Chapter 6, the bad guys start out-smarting and closing in on the hero, the robbers get further away from the cops, the girl starts having second thoughts about the guy, and friends often turn out to be foes.
However, Chapter 6 usually ends with a glimmer of hope.
Something
happens to show us that the hero has a shot at prevailing after all. •
Rocky: After the initial excitement of being offered the opportunity of a lifetime, reality starts to set in. He tells Mickey that he knows he’s going to get his “face kicked in” by Apollo Creed. His morning run goes horribly as he barely makes it up the museum steps. The chapter ends on a good note, however, as Rocky’s punching of the meat is shown on TV and Apollo Creed’s manager is nervous of the punching power he sees – maybe Rocky will have a shot after all…
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•
Home Alone: Chapter 6 for Home Alone is actually just nine minutes long, as opposed to the typical length of closer to 20 minutes. In this quick chapter, Kevin begins to accept the fact that his family may never be coming back. On a positive end to the chapter, Kevin’s mother gets a ride with polka musician Gus Polinski and is now on her way across the country to try and make it home to Kevin.
•
There’s Something About Mary:
Healy and Tucker both try to
sabotage Ted’s big date with Mary. Ted survives the event and he and Mary start happily dating. •
Die Hard: The bad guys kill a member of the party group and they tell John that sooner or later they’ll get to someone he does care about (a good “ticking clock” example) if he doesn’t give them the detonators John took from one of the bad guys he killed. John is eventually found and loses the detonators as he is nearly killed by Hans and several other bad guys…but, on a positive note, John does escape the gun battle still alive.
•
Scream: Sydney goes to a party with her friends, where she believes she’ll be safer, and the killer goes on a killing spree at the party, killing her best friend and her boyfriend, Billy (who she made up with at the party), along with several other innocent bystanders.
Sydney
eventually escapes the killer after a wild chase and ends up back inside the house feeling safe because she now has a gun.
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Day 8: Writing Chapter Seven
After writing what is typically the longest chapter of your movie yesterday, it’s now time to tackle the shortest chapter.
Chapter 7: The Worst Case Scenario usually runs just five pages long, from Page 81 to Page 85.
In this chapter, the worst possible thing imaginable happens to our hero and all hope seems virtually lost. It is at this point that the hero realizes his life is at its lowest point possible and things could not possibly get any worse.
The audience must fully believe at this point in the movie that there is NO WAY the hero can accomplish his goal and overcome the External Conflict.
This chapter always ends with the worst case scenario situation. Often times, this chapter will consist of one single scene or sequence and that, of course, is the worst case scenario being played out. •
Rocky: Rocky’s only friend at the start of the movie, Paulie, comes home and hears Rocky and Adrian talking about him. Paulie explodes and tells Rocky they are no longer friends.
•
Home Alone: Harry and Marv learn that they’ve been tricked by Kevin and that he’s home all alone. Kevin hears that they plan to break into the house at nine o’clock tonight even with Kevin inside!
•
There’s Something About Mary: Mary receives an anonymous letter explaining how Ted hired Healy to find her. Ted admits to Mary that he did hire Healy and they break up.
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•
Die Hard: This chapter actually runs 12 minutes in Die Hard and includes John’s speech to a policeman about how selfish he’s been and to tell his wife he’s sorry. This is John finally recognizing his major flaw and overcoming his Internal Conflict. The chapter ends with Hans realizing that John’s wife is one of the hostages – the worst possible thing that could happen for John.
•
Scream: Sydney finds out that Billy isn’t dead (he had faked it) and that Billy, along with Stu, are actually the killers! On top of that, she finds out that their plan is to frame Sydney’s dad (who’s being held hostage) for all the murders!
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Day 9: Writing Chapter Eight
Just two days to go, it’s time to start wrapping up the movie.
Chapter 8: The Comeback is when Act Three officially begins. It usually runs 10 pages long, ending around Page 95.
Now that the worst case scenario has occurred and all hope seems lost, this is when the hero sucks it up and decides he can’t quit. Failure is not an option!
This is often when the hero comes up with yet another new plan to achieve his goal.
In some cases, this could be where the original goal is actually altered once again (or fir the first time if it wasn’t changed earlier in the movie). For instance, the hero may realize there’s no way he can survive the battle he’s in, but even if he can’t survive it, he can find away to save as many lives as possible while sacrificing his own life.
In this chapter, we typically see our “rally the troops” and “we’re not gonna’ take it anymore” moments.
It’s also essential that if it hasn’t happened yet in the movie, the Internal Conflict must be resolved in this chapter. The hero needs to recognize his flaw and overcome it, thus winning the Internal Conflict and paving the way for victory in the External Conflict.
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•
Rocky: Chapter 8 of Rocky includes the famous training sequence that became such an important part of the Rocky franchise and pop culture. The chapter ends with a classic altered goal situation.
Rocky
recognizes that there’s no way he can beat Apollo Creed, he’s just not in his league. But, he tells Adrian that winning or losing doesn’t matter because if he can just go the distance, if he can just last the full 15 rounds with Creed without being knocked out, “I’m gonna’ know for the first time in my life that I wasn’t just another bum from the neighborhood.” •
Home Alone: Kevin realizes that his family isn’t coming home and that it’s up to him to defend his home and stop being afraid. He sets up booby traps to prepare for the evening’s break-in.
•
There’s Something About Mary: Ted is done being the insecure and timid nice guy.
He confronts Healy and Tucker head on, even
punching Healy. He also finds out that Tucker sabotaged Mary’s past relationship with the only guy she was ready to marry, Brett Favre. Ted says he’s sick at what he’s hearing and can’t believe he’s been part of all this. •
Die Hard: John defeats the toughest bad guy in a brutal fight to make it to the roof just in time to get the hostages off of it before it blows up. However, John’s wife isn’t with the hostages and John learns she’s been taken as Hans’ personal hostage. John needs to catch Hans before he gets away with his wife as his hostage.
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•
Scream: When Billy and Stu start to argue with each other, Sydney sees her chance and escapes. But instead of running off, she decides to turn the tables on the killers and give them a dose of their own medicine. She calls them and antagonizes them just as they had done to their victims.
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Day 10: Writing Chapter Nine
Well here we are, Day 10 of The 10-Day Screenplay course. By the end of this writing session, you’ll have a finished script that achieved all the objectives of the Nine Essential Chapters of Drama and also brought the audience to a fulfilling ending with the hero winning both his External and Internal Conflicts.
Chapter 9: The Finale runs about 15 pages, from Page 95 to Page 110. However, you can go longer or shorter as necessary. Home Alone’s final chapter runs 24 minutes while Scream’s runs just five minutes.
This is the grand finale, when we see our hero rise to the ultimate challenge and achieve beyond his wildest dreams.
It is essential that we now recognize a new and much-improved hero from the person we were introduced to in the beginning of our movie.
This is the point of tremendous satisfaction for our audience: the victim kills the madman, the boy somehow wins over the girl of his dreams, the action hero goes out in a blaze of glory and comes out on top, and the hero realizes dreams really can come true!
Of course, not all movies have to have the proverbial happy ending where the hero’s dreams are achieved. A fulfilling finale could be the moment that our hero realizes that what he wanted all along was with him all along. It could be the moment he realizes that the goal he has been chasing was an unworthy goal. It could be the moment he learns a valuable lesson such as crime never pays or cheaters never win.
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In either case, it needs to be satisfying to the audience. And it will be if you do two things:
1) Make certain that the hero ends this journey a better person than he was when the journey began.
2) Let your character dictate this ending from the heart: don’t force it! You’ve now spent 10 days with your character; you know what feels right. Listen to your character’s voice. The ending that is meant to be may not be the ending you originally had in mind and that’s perfectly acceptable. Your character really came alive during this process, don’t stifle his voice when it matters most.
My experience has shown me that writers sometimes have a tendency to rush through this final chapter. They see the light at the end of the tunnel and they want to get there as quickly as possible. Avoid this urge. Don’t rush through a Chapter 9 that quickly wraps everything up nice and neat. Let the audience really enjoy this moment.
Don’t be afraid to add several “oh no” moments throughout your finale. These are moments when the hero is just about to grab the diamond he’s been after and it slips away. With each of these moments, your hero keeps finding a way to overcome the new problem (and remember that each “oh no” moment needs to look worse than the last). You may also want to add another “ticking clock” that is even more dangerous and suspenseful than any “ticking clock” used earlier in the movie.
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Ultimately, we want to satisfy the audience and let them really enjoy the finale. It’s what we’ve waited two hours to see unfold. Let it unfold in the most satisfying and heartfelt way possible. •
Rocky: Rocky shocks the world and goes the distance with Apollo Creed. Rocky actually loses the fight, but he doesn’t care one bit. All he wanted was to go the distance and hold Adrian in his arms after the fight.
•
Home Alone: A long finale of Kevin leading Harry and Marv through the obstacle course of booby traps he created to save his house. Harry and Marv eventually get arrested after Old Man Marley saves Kevin from them.
We end on Christmas morning when Kevin’s family
returns home. •
There’s Something About Mary: Ted goes out of his way to track down Brett Favre and do “the right thing” by explaining to Mary how Tucker sabotaged their relationship. Ted is willing to give up his love for Mary to do what is right and honorable. Mary surprises Ted by telling him she wants to be with him. The “oh no” comedy moments in this final sequence should be studied closely.
•
Die Hard: In John’s final confrontation with Hans, he tricks Hans and saves his wife. Hans dies by falling out a window 30 stories high and plunging to his death (another note: the more evil the bad guy in an action or horror movie, the more extreme his death usually needs to be). The final showdown between John and Hans features several excellent “oh no” action moments that should also be studied.
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•
Scream: Sydney kills Stu with a television set and then right before she is killed by Billy, her enemy at the start of the movie, reporter Gail Weathers, saves her by shooting Billy. Sydney gets to deliver the final blow as Billy jumps at her one more time before Sydney shoots him dead.
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Your Script is Done, Now What? What do you do now that you’ve completed this course and finished your screenplay? Celebrate of course!
I also think it’s essential at this time to take at least a few days off and let your script sit without thinking about it for awhile.
Once you’ve had time to get the script out of your system and approach it with a fresh perspective, you’ll want to go back and read it through.
You’ll
probably catch typos and grammar errors that can easily be corrected.
You also may find certain areas that need to be tightened up and other areas that should go on a little longer.
Now is also a great time to start thinking about changes that could enhance your movie.
For instance, foreshadowing is something that is sometimes more difficult to think about when you’re actually writing your script. But foreshadowing is an excellent dramatic technique that enhances almost every movie. You may find the need to go back and add some foreshadowing early in the movie that could pay off for the audience later in the movie.
For instance, did a blunt object conveniently end up in your hero’s hand in Chapter 9 when he was fighting off the bad guy? Why not instead add a moment early in the script with your hero receiving some type of gift from a
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loved one that could actually be used as this blunt object? This adds a dramatic punch on so many new levels.
Just remember that while the draft you finished may very well end up being your final draft, it doesn’t have to be. If you feel some key changes would make it a better movie, then go right ahead and make all the changes you want. There’s no failing grade for making changes to the initial draft. In fact, changes are encouraged!
The bottom line is this: you have finished your feature-length screenplay! And if you followed this guide closely, including the idea test questions, the character development techniques, the chapter-by-chapter objectives, and all the other little tips and tools I’ve included in this guide, odds are excellent that you’ve written wrote the kind of screenplay that has the potential to blow readers away and launch your career as a screenwriter.
You should be extremely proud of what you’ve accomplished! It’s time to do some celebrating.
And when you’ve got another idea and you’re ready to start your next blockbuster screenplay, open this guide right back up, follow the course, and 10 days later, you’ll have another script completed.
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P.S. – I love to hear about success stories from my readers and I also love to hear about any questions or recommendations you may have for future updates to this guide. Please don’t hesitate to contact me by sending an email to:
[email protected]
My schedule doesn’t permit me to personally respond to each and every message I receive, but I do read each of them and address them whenever possible.
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Appendix 1: If You Absolutely MUST Outline If you’re unequivocally convinced that you have to complete an outline before you start writing your script, I recommend that you keep your outline as brief as possible.
On the following page is a simple worksheet for your outline. Each blank line in the chapter breakdowns should represent a sequence of important events, such as: “The burglars realize Kevin is home alone and Kevin hears them say that they’ll be back at nine o’clock tonight.” Each line represents roughly three pages (or three minutes) of a script.
Before writing your outline, you should probably spend some time going over the goals of each chapter presented in PART THREE of this guide.
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THE/10/DAY SCREENPLAY - Outline Worksheet -
Movie Title: _____________________________________
External Conflict:
______________________________
_____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ Internal Conflict:
______________________________
_____________________________________________ _____________________________________________
Character Development: (Refer to Day 1 of The 10-Day Screenplay program on pages 40-46.)
Chapter 1: Introduction to the Hero’s World
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
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Chapter 2: Catalyst I, Avoidance, Catalyst II
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 3: The Hero’s Journey Begins
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 4: The Hero Looking Good
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 5: The Midpoint
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
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Chapter 6: Things Get Tougher and Tougher
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 7: Worst Case Scenario
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 8: The Comeback
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
Chapter 9: The Finale – pages 96-110
___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________
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Appendix 2: Writer’s Resources I’d like to close out this guide with a list of essential resources for the screenwriter. While there are literally hundreds of resources I’d recommend, in the interest if time and practicality, I’m limiting this list to what I view as the best of the best.
The Best Screenwriting Books: The Devil’s Guide to Hollywood: The Screenwriter as God by Joe Eszterhas
American Screenwriters: The Insiders’ Look at the Art, the Craft, and the Business of Screenwriting by Karl Schanzer & Thomas Lee Wright
The 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters: Insider Secrets from Hollywood’s Top Writers by Karl Iglesias
Cool Million: How to Become a Million-Dollar Screenwriter by Sheldon Woodbury
Screenwriting Tricks of the Trade by William Froug
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The Screenwriter’s Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script by David Trottier
The Best Place to Find Screenplays Online: Drew’s Script-O-Rama: http://www.script-o-rama.com
The Best Place for Movie News: Variety: http://www.variety.com
The Best Screenwriting Software: Final Draft: http://www.finaldraft.com
The Best Way to Format Your Screenplay without Screenwriting Software: Screenwriting.info: http://www.screenwriting.info/
Or, refer to: The Screenwriter’s Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script by David Trottier
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