Writing For Film + TV Program

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

TERM 1

Short Scripts

Considered a gateway into and a calling card of the industry, short films are the perfect medium for writers to grasp the process of translating a script to screen. You will write a short script by using your knowledge of story and character to distill a simple or complex idea into something suitable for a shorter work. Once you have developed a logline and have a solid blueprint in place, you will take your script through several drafts to strengthen it. The class will workshop projects at each stage to give you a clear direction for each rewrite.

Screenwriting Essentials

Every screenwriter must first understand the basic building blocks of the screenplay. This introductory course covers foundational topics such as character, three-act structure, dialogue, theme, and genre. You will complete several writing exercises that cover the fundamentals of storytelling and screenwriting before developing your own loglines, outlines, and pitches. Each week will end with a screening of an existing film and an analysis of the film’s use of storytelling, structure, and screenwriting tools.

Comedy Writing

Are you naturally funny? You don’t have to be if you understand the rules of comedy. As you learn the rules and expand your comedic toolkit, you will identify and develop your own style of humour through in-class workshops and writing exercises. You will write desk jokes seen on late night television talk shows and complete this course by writing your very own comedy sketch.

Film Genre

This course explores the history, development, and purpose of genre in film through a wide range of genres including comedy, drama, horror, sci-fi, fantasy, and animation. You will study the four elements that illustrate genre—character, story, plot and setting—while becoming familiar with common tropes, stock characters, and crucial story beats. After each lecture, you will read the script of a film and analyze the structural elements that define each genre.

Film History

Writers have a duty to study, understand, and appreciate the masters. In this course, you will follow the evolving history of film, television, and web series through the lens of different filmmakers. As you journey from the silent era to the rise of movements such as French New Wave and Neo-Realism to our modern times, you will be exposed to a broad list of genres, styles, and countries of origin. Each class involves a screening of a classic work, prefaced with a contextual lecture and followed by discussion.

TV Formats and Craft

Television is requires a different set of rules, tropes, and formatting for each of its various programming styles. This course explores a variety of television styles, including one hour serials, episodics, and sitcoms, and each of their unique principles. You will cultivate the tools to write for each form of television programming before creating your own series in the TV Pilot course.

TERM 2

Writer’s Room

In the world of television, writing is not a solitary endeavour. Multiple writers may contribute to any single episode. This course simulates the experience of working with a group to further develop an existing web series idea. The instructor will act as the “showrunner,” guiding the direction of the project as they would in a real-life production. You and your classmates will provide character breakdowns, be part of the casting process, and collaborate on writing the scripts.

Producing

The producer is involved in just about every aspect of filmmaking: from concept development to funding, shooting, editing, and marketing, a producer’s role has endless layers. Being able to produce is a valuable asset in the industry. As a screenwriter, you are encouraged to be more involved in the production, helping cast and crew work towards a unified vision. You will gain various producing skills (such as scheduling, crewing, budgeting, legalities, insurance, and location scouting) that you can later use to fully produce your own screenplays or other projects.

TV Pilot

We live in the Golden Age of Television as our modern serials consistently feature outstanding storytelling, depth, and production values. You will develop your very own television series in this course, complete with a pitch document, series bible, and pilot screenplay. With your classmates and industry mentors, you will workshop your idea from beginning to end and learn the fundamentals of the initial pitch, series arcs, regular characters, and continuing a story over the course of several episodes or seasons.

Networking and Business

You may have written a script that is ready to set the world on fire, but how do you put yourself out there? In this course, you will learn how to protect your work, write a resume tailored to the industry, pitch on the page and in the room, and identify networking resources. By the end, you will know how to present yourself professionally and understand why building a strong reputation and developing connections will take you much further than talent alone.

TERM 3

Writing For Video Games

Develop your own concept for a AAA video game. Write the first mission with engaging construction, objectives, stimulus and rewards. Understand the different skills needed for console vs mobile games and discover why the gaming industry is a growing job market for screenwriters and storytellers.

Adaptation

The industry has become increasingly reliant on brand recognition and proven intellectual properties to decide what to greenlight. Working writers find steady work in adaptations, turning everything from books, comics, games, and biographies into screenplays. As you adapt an assigned piece of literature into a screenplay outline, you will determine how to preserve the heart of the original story while translating it into a visually dramatic work.

Story Editing

“Writing is rewriting” is an old and enduring truth. Everything seen in books and on television has been rewritten countless times before reaching that final draft. Editing is the basis of a screenwriter’s life. Knowing how to edit means knowing what works, what doesn’t, and why. By studying how history’s greatest writers implemented story editing in their works, you will learn how to use effective story editing techniques in your own work as well as in the works of others. With industry practices in mind, you will also learn the crucial skill of rewriting based on producer notes, budget cuts, and more.

Acting For Writers

When actors are the literal life of a film, a screenwriter must consider them during the writing process. In this course, you will step into the role of the actor, learning the kinds of dialogue and scene work that draw the most out of a performance. You will also discover the sort of characters actors are dying to play. An awareness of the actors will help you better understand scene work, integrate subtext, and write believable and effective dialogue.

Feature Screenplay

The feature film is the icon of filmmaking. Since the early 20th century, feature films have driven the masses to theatres, launched the careers of celebrated auteurs, and shaped the industry as we know it today. In this course, you will write an original low-budget and marketable feature-length screenplay with the guidance of our industry professional instructors. Your instructors and classmates will provide constructive feedback during in-class workshops every step of the way as you finesse your script through multiple drafts. You will complete the program with a pitch-ready screenplay for the industry.

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