Événement

The Craft of the Screenplay

THE CRAFT OF THE SCREENPLAY
A Master Class

Saturday June 25, 2011
Writers Guild of America
7000 W. Third Street, Los Angeles, CA 90048

10:00 am: MASTER CLASS WITH NICHOLAS MEYER - WHAT MAKES A GOOD STORY?
What are the elements that make for a good story? How can one tell if a story has sufficient "legs" to take it all the way? What can you add to or subtract from your story to make it more compelling?

11:30 12:00 noon: Break

12:00 noon: MASTER CLASS WITH TED ELLIOTT, JOHN LEE HANCOCK, AND DEREK HAAS - SCREENPLAY STRUCTURE
Beginnings, middles and ends. Setups and payoffs. What are the building blocks that you'll need to make your story work on screen? How can you raise the dramatic stakes? What are some of the tricks you can use to keep the audience engaged?

1:30 pm Lunch break

2:30 pm: MASTER CLASS WITH JOHN AUGUST MANAGING EXPECTATIONS
Screenwriters control everything on the page -- what characters do and say, which way the plot twists -- but they can't control what readers expect. Readers (and filmgoers) arrive with preconceptions of the genre, of the characters, of What Should Happen Next. Can smart screenwriters anticipate these expectations? How can they use this knowledge to their benefit, saving pages and plotlines?

4:00 4:30: Break

4:30 pm: PANEL: INSIDE THE MARKETPLACE
What do you need to know about getting your screenplay into the right hands? Where should you start? What are some pitfalls to avoid? Should you write to the marketplace or follow your passion? Are there things it's useful to know about production realities, or doesn't that matter?
Panelists: Leslie Dixon, Elizabeth Hunter, Marc Platt (producer), JP Evans (Agent, CAA), John Burnham (Agent, ICM), Laurence Mark (producer). Moderator: Jay Kogen

6:00 pm 7:00 pm Wine and Cheese Reception in Shavelson-Webb Library