- o Investigate the advice given to support new writers.
SCREEN ONLINE – WRITING SHORT FILMS by PHIL PARKER:
INTRODUCTION
The tour seeks to answer 6 key questions about writing a good short film screenplay. Who is the protagonist? What is the active question, which is the basis of the action in film? Who or what opposes the protagonist? From whose point of view is the audience being shown the story? What is the theme? What is the style of the film?
PROTAGONIST 1
Finding the central character of the narrative is critical to any story-driven narrative. The character could dominate the narrative (“Springing Lenin”), but they may not tell the story (“Zinky Boys Go Underground”).
The second question can also be phrased as, “What does the protagonist want?”. However, this may limit options when starting out. The answer to this question can take many forms. The key is to decide on an event that will form the basis of the climax. This may be focusing on a single defining moment in the central character’s life (“Yellow”), or the moments leading up to a key defining moment (“The Cutter”). Some stories require more narrative time, but still focus on a key moment (“Springing Lenin”).
PROTAGONIST 2
Knowing why a character cannot deal with a situation, or is forced to do something different is critical to developing an engaging, story-driven narrative. Antagonism can take many forms. Multiple antagonists can be used and is critical in narrative over ten minutes. However, it is wise to focus on just one antagonist in narratives less than ten minutes to avoid the feeling of too much being packed in.
POINT OF VIEW & THEME
The question, “Whose point of view is the audience being shown the story from?” is key in a short film’s development. This is due to the need to address the scale of exposition, and background information, plus character’s motivations, in a very small narrative space.
“What is the theme?” is one of the most difficult questions to answer at the beginning of a project. It may be easy to say what the subject is, but the underlying theme, which unites all the characters and the central emotional core is harder. Knowing the theme is critical to giving the film a dramatic unity. However, this is not normally found until at least a draft screenplay is written.
STYLE & TONE
Style and tone is another central aspect when developing a short film. Due to a lack of narrative time, tonal shifts and the building to an emotional climax slowly, is difficult. Though naturalism dominates the shorts, other approaches are possible (“Yellow”). Although the style is critical to providing a visual narrative, it is tone that critically engages with the audience’s emotions.
BBC – WRITNG FOR SHORT FILM:
A short film can be anything from thirty seconds to thirty minutes in length. However, remember the longer the short the more expensive it will be to produce.
Shorts can be about anything, so the only limit beyond production costs is imagination. Every short should be a unique vision.
Film is about telling stories in pictures, so show, don’t tell.
The best shorts are often a moment that is played out, but that has a story at its heart. Possibly a conflict that has to be resolved or where there is an important decision a character has to make.
Think about how the film will play out to the audience. What will the audience know and when will they know it? What questions will they have which need answering?
Initial impact is crucial. Is the audience emotionally engaged? Is the story original? Is there a sense of verisimilitude?
Avoid clichés. Write about what you know and feel passionate about rather than something from other films.
One potential pitfall for writers can be directing their own scripts. If you are not a natural filmmaker, go to festivals; meet people you can collaborate with.
Watch as many short films as possible. Know what is already out there, and how it makes the audience think and feel.
NETRIBUTION FILM NETWORK – HOW TO SCRIPT WRITE:
The writer of the article believes that writing a short film is a tricky thing to get right, but the process of doing it is invaluable. Generally a short is considered as anything less than 45 minutes. However, cinema and television programmers are very unlikely to show anything over ten minutes in length. To tell a story and create a character in ten minutes is not easy. You cannot afford to take time building a narrative and complex, multi-layered storylines are not going to work. A short has to be simple and direct. A simple story well told with good characterisation and memorable dialogue is going to be far more beneficial. Nevertheless, you should still try and experiment; people want to see something different. Short films give you a wonderful opportunity to experiment with narrative that features rarely offer you. Try and give your scripts a real sense of energy.
It is better to focus on a few characters, as you have to get across large amounts of character information in a short space of time. Dialogue is extremely important, as every word counts. If a line isn’t saying something about your character then change it so that it does. Don’t use endless amounts of swearing in a desperate attempt to shock your audience.
Short films are almost always low budget. Try to limit the amount of locations used.
The writer finishes by saying, one of the best ways of learning how to avoid the pitfalls of short film writing is to watch other people’s shorts. But as with most things in life the best way to get better at something is to practice.
SCRIPT FACTORY:
“Script Factory” is a company that has been in business since 1996. They have become one of Europe’s leading filmmakers’ organisations. The aim is to find and develop new screenwriting talent, support the people who work with screenwriters, and present live filmmaking events.
The company offers TRAINING for writers and people that work with writers, EVENTS where the best creative filmmakers take the stage to inspire audiences, PERFORMED READINGS to showcase new writing to the industry, DEVELOPMENT tools for writers, including script feedback.
Script Factory also has a membership scheme, which offers exclusive events and discounts.
