Joker dominated 2019. Upon its release, it topped the box office and attracted an unprecedented amount of attention from press and public alike. Joker’s ending is without a doubt one of the main reasons why: it’s a third act filled with unforgettable moments and tantalizing twists. What makes the Joker ending so instantly iconic? The… Continue reading Joker Ending Explained — How to Make a Satisfying Finale
Edgar Wright has made some of the most acclaimed and beloved films of the 2000s, with the Cornetto trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, The World’s End), and a few other favorites like Baby Driver. Nestled in-between is Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a box office bomb but adored cult film based on the… Continue reading Scott Pilgrim vs. the World — Script PDF Download and Analysis
Montages can be an incredibly useful filmmaking tool if utilized correctly. They can condense time, intertwine storylines, and be used for comedic or dramatic effect. Some montages are completely visual with no dialogue. Others may utilize voiceover from a narrator or dialogue for the film’s narrative. If your montage is the latter, stick around to… Continue reading How to Write a Voice Over Montage in Screenplay Format
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax is a classic children’s book that doubles as a cautionary environmentalist tale for adults. In 2012, The Lorax was adapted by Illumination Entertainment into a feature film. We’re going to break down the film version of The Lorax by looking at its script. We’re also going to dissect what made The… Continue reading The Lorax Script PDF Download: Characters & Quotes
Film is primarily a visual medium. Filmmakers have various tools to create meaning through visual elements, one of which is the visual metaphor. Visual metaphors are often subtle, but are incredibly important for filmmakers in communicating and resonating with an audience. What is a visual metaphor? How and why do filmmakers use them? We’ll break… Continue reading What is a Visual Metaphor — Definition & Examples in Art & Film
Describing sensory experiences through the medium of writing and text can be difficult. By enlisting the use of imagery, writers are able to vividly describe experiences, actions, characters, and places through written language. What is imagery exactly. How is imagery in poetry and literature used? In this article, we’ll take a look at the imagery… Continue reading What is Imagery — Definition & Examples in Literature & Poetry
Have you ever felt at a loss for words to describe what you are feeling or the point you are making? Odds are you’ve probably turned to using hyperbole. Hyperbole is used throughout common conversations, speech, rhetoric, film, and literature. What is a hyperbole? Why is it so commonly used and what is it effective… Continue reading What is a Hyperbole — Definition & Examples for Writers
Writing contests are great ways to build your portfolio, and hone your writing skills. For emerging writers especially, the price to pay is usually quite small, while the rewards range from getting published to receiving thousands. Not a bad trade-off. The only reasonable downside is all the extra work…for well…all the extra rejection. Ah, I’m only… Continue reading Short Story Contests Worth Your Time — Prizes, Fees, Deadlines
The first scene in your film is arguably the most important one. You need to give the audience a sense of what’s going to happen as well as set the tone. After all, you don’t want your comedy to start off with a grim, overly dramatic scene. This is where a prologue can come in… Continue reading What is a Prologue? Definition, Examples in Film and Literature
Every writer works from a place of passion. The ideas, concepts, stories or experiences that you pull from when you write can be crystal clear to you, but communicating those ideas to a larger audience may pose a challenge. One of the best tools for communicating abstract ideas in an engaging way is the extended… Continue reading What is an Extended Metaphor — Definition and Examples
Making a short film can seem like an indomitable task. Most writers and directors struggle to get their productions off the ground, often because they lack the resources to get started. No need to worry though, we’re going to show you step-by-step how to make a short film with video guides and all the software… Continue reading How to Make a Short Film — 12 Steps from Idea to Finished Film
Blade Runner 2049 breathed new life into Ridley Scott’s world of replicants and blade runners due to its great performances, steady direction, and bold cinematography. But all of the visual splendor that we see in the final cut, was once just words on a page. The Blade Runner 2049 script set the stage for a… Continue reading Blade Runner 2049 Script PDF — Download and Analysis
If you’ve ever read a detective story before, you’ve probably heard the term “deductive reasoning,” but what is deductive reasoning and what makes it different from inductive reasoning? We’re going to answer those questions by looking at some deductive reasoning examples from Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Sherlock. By the end, you’ll know… Continue reading What is Deductive Reasoning? Definition and Examples
The Social Network is one of the all-time best, dialogue-driven scripts. It’s revered by both film-makers and film-instructors for its tight actions, clever quotes, and realistic characters. Let’s dive into The Social Network script to see what makes it so great. Continue reading The Social Network Script: Characters, Quotes, and PDF Download
Human beings have been telling stories for as long as we have roamed this Earth. Storytelling has gone from oral tradition to a natural part of the cinematic landscape. And in-between it all, we have learned how to end a story. Throughout our years telling stories, we have learned that there are ultimately four ways… Continue reading How to End a Story — Different Types of Story Endings Explained
Writing dual protagonists is generally frowned upon, unless you’re one of the select few who can break the rules, like Quentin Tarantino (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) or the late William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid). Critics argue that writers, especially amateur ones, can get lost in the logistics attempting to craft… Continue reading How to Write A Compelling Script with Dual Protagonists
Motifs are a great way to imbue a project with extra layers of meaning and substance. Through the use of intentionally placed visual or audio cues, a filmmaker can make any character, object, location, or sound into something much more than the sum of their parts. They become ideas representative of a greater theme and… Continue reading Breaking Bad Symbolism — The Right Way to Use Symbols
Originality. Yes, there’s structure, pacing, character, a million things to worry about… but beyond everything, a screenplay NEEDS to be original. Originality can come in many forms. You can have an original idea, original structure, original dialogue, or in the case of the Training Day script… one of the most original characters we’ve ever seen. Let’s… Continue reading Training Day Script PDF Download: Quotes, Plot, and Characters
Films based on book adaptations earn a stunning 53% more at the worldwide box office. But just how does a story go from Barnes & Noble shelves to international silver screens? In this article, we’ll break down the murky middle and take you through the creative process of how to write an adaptation. We’ll put… Continue reading How to Write an Adaptation — Script Development Explained
Bards rejoice, it’s time to get lyrical — everybody else, we’re here to review the mystery of iambic pentameter. At one point or another, we’ve all asked the question: what is iambic pentameter? If you’ve found the answer to be elusive, that’s because iambic pentameter is a relic of rhythm’s past… or is it? We’re going… Continue reading What is Iambic Pentameter? Definition and Examples
Christopher Nolan’s Tenet screenplay is one of the most dense screenplays ever written, but fear not: we’re going to explain the Tenet screenplay by analyzing its key story beats and subversive narrative techniques. By the end, we’ll have a newfound knowledge of The Protagonist, reverse entropy, and the word tenet. Buckle up, we’re in for… Continue reading Tenet Script PDF Download: Plot, Characters, and Analysis
What is a character arc and why are they so important in storytelling? A character arc is an essential part of writing a fully-fledged character. As much as we like seeing goals being achieved, it is the internal, positive change in characters that we really gravitate towards. We’re going to answer those questions with a… Continue reading What is a Character Arc — Definition & Types of Character Arcs
Inception is one of the most thought-provoking and confounding films ever made – and there’s a lot we can learn from its 145+ page script. We’re going to break down the Inception script by looking at its characters, fight scenes and ending. By the end, you’ll know why Inception is a prime example of Christopher… Continue reading Inception Script PDF Download: Plot, Quotes, and Characters
There are a lot of intricacies in scripts that present challenges to even the most veteran of screenwriters. The process of writing a script is difficult enough but the vocabulary, abbreviations, and defintions related to the job can be a bit elusive. But don’t worry, we’re going to cover a variety of screenwriting terms that… Continue reading Screenwriting Terms — Abbreviations, Definitions & Vocab
Only one non-English-speaking movie has won Best Picture at the Academy Awards, and that film is Parasite. In 2019, every film enthusiast was talking about Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece, and the dark comedy was soon a dark horse going into every awards show. It may have only come out less than two years ago, but it’s… Continue reading Parasite Screenplay PDF Download: Plot, Characters and Ending
