29 Screenwriting Mistakes

[@MoleculeXmolecule]

Clickable timestamps for mobile users: 1) 0:00 - There Isn’t A Clear External Goal For The Main Character 2) 4:07 - Concept Is Soft 3) 5:20 - Writer Has No Personal Connection To The Story 4) 9:18 - The Wrong Genre 5) 12:33 - Skipping The Set-Up 6) 13:45 - In Addition To Obstacles, Create Learning Moments For The Main Character 7) 16:18 - Choosing The Wrong Lead 8) 16:41 - Having The Main Character Chase After The Goal Too Soon 9) 17:47 - No Ticking Clocks, Raising Stakes, and Good News / Bad News 10) 20:21 - Leaving Out The Conflict 11) 20:53 - Not Being Open To Surprises 12) 22:26 - Writing A Story That Meanders 13) 24:09 - Where Are The Peaks and Valleys? 14) 26:38 - Creating One Dimensional Characters 15) 29:26 - Writing Characters With No Flaws 16) 32:22 - Not Being Vulnerable 17) 34:18 - Holding Back 18) 35:35 - There’s No Emotional Connection To The Story 19) 37:37 - Writing About Pain At The Wrong Time 20) 39:51 - Wrong Story 21) 42:08 - Not Pushing Yourself After The First Draft 22) 44:44 - Never Letting Go 23) 47:28 - Desperation 24) 48:48 - Don’t Be Consumed About Selling A Screenplay While You Are Writing It 25) 50:34 - Don’t Waste People’s Time With Sloppy Work 26) 54:55 - Learn The Phrase, “I’ll Take A Look At It” 27) 56:48 - Avoiding The Process 28) 58:02 - Not Believing In Yourself 29) 1:00:25 - Don’t Be Afraid To Develop Your Own Voice And Style

[@anheroofmen2317]

You people that post the timestamps are lifesavers

[@danielhamilton7429]

The fact that the time stamps were already in the description

[@ItsDeffoScott]

@@danielhamilton7429 Who says they were always in the description? ;P

[@danielhamilton7429]

@@ItsDeffoScott Haha are you challenging me

[@clinton7846]

You obviously have a Note phone.

[@MidnightSt]

0:10 ALREADY LOVING THIS! No loud flashy stupid intros, no peon trying to talk intro to the camera as if we need to know what we just chose to watch, just straigtht to the beginning of the point, great!

[@Life-Row-Toll]

MidnightSt Totally feel the same way.

[@badguybilly]

amen

[@iCyFlaMeZ96]

But ads every 2 seconds

[@cfytcf]

This is one of the most useful KZbin channels for writers of any kind. Even though I've seen a lot of these tips in other videos, this helps cement the points I've heard before.

[@AndromedaImagination77]

you should also check out Lessons from the screenplay.... TOP NOTCH!

[@filmnewsreport3231]

Thank you for compiling this for us.

[@filmcourage]

We're happy to share this one.

[@ricardopuentedalbesio9793]

Please, turn on the "automatic captions" on youtube. my language is spanish. thanks :)

[@FilmmakerTery]

I can't say this enough. I love this channel. I love hear ppl talk about their process. This video helped me so much and I'm not even a screenwriter. I'm a cinematographer/editor. This video is so important that I think screenwriters from all levels can learn from it. Thank you!

[@thereccher8746]

Also find a structure in the way you write. It doesn't have to be written an stone and can vary in subtle details from project to project, and it's very subjective from writer to writer, but find a formula. Do outlines work for you, rough notes, rough notes while you write, before it, outline before? Do you focus on tone in the third draft? Dialogue on the fourth?

[@27Pyth]

These videos are so good I can convince myself I'm learning something and not just sitting here, procrastinating writing.

[@geriburrito]

I know right?

[@BlueisNotaWarmColour]

Before you ask, yes, they do cite Shrek as an example of how to do it right.

[@ghani666]

“If any of us wanted to do work, none of us would be writers.” Preach.

[@MrGojira95]

Where was this video my entire 2017?! I needed this!!!

[@drunkalfuzzyness]

MrGojira95 yeah same for me when I was at university haha

[@StayFractalesque]

for real, everything on this channel is priceless

[@marilynmillerwriter]

For the whole hour I watched this I agreed with your comment!! That was amazing, wasn’t it?!

[@beel1952]

This has to be one of the most insightful channels for writers all around. Love and appreciate all the effort you guys put in!

[@filmcourage]

Thank you! :)

[@trevscribbles]

I'm only watching this because I should actually be writing my 2nd act. Ahhh procrastination, how are you old friend?

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Don't feel bad. I should be working on finishing the first act of one of my scripts; but I'm over here watching this again and looking over a short story I somehow wrote while I was messing around.

[@davidwhitt2717]

It made me want to rewrite my current script a fifth time. It validated my plot but made me realize some missed opportunities to create depth and in a couple instances it will help me condense some content and leave a few concepts ambiguous. Which means rewriting which is a little depressing after already rewriting. Here we go again.

[@AJTV01]

SAME. On Scene 11 and I just...keep...clicking...videos.

[@notnow6647]

I feel your pain

[@proximitystudios2234]

Same lol

[@jag5798]

This is ONE of many of my favorite FC compilations - it has lead me to listen to more interviews I have not yet discovered, thank you! :)

[@rrogers2370]

learn the structure. insert content in its proper context..and don't overdue it..takes more than just an idea.. the guy summed up inception so easy.. exactly what I've been learning.

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Holding back is one of my biggest issue as a writer. Gritty, dark, and heavily morbid subject matters have been my niche for several years. But I find that when I made the switch to screenwriting, finding my ability to let go and be able to go to that place has been super challenging. Even now, I'm writing a very intense, bleak revenge thriller, and I'm in that state where I can't tell if I'm not able to get to that super raw vulnerable place because I'm simply stuck or I'm holding back, and I'm somehow too afraid to let things just happen.

[@aaronkaminski9357]

SirChubbyBunny Are you in the industry?

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Aaron Kaminski - At the moment, I'm not. I only recently found out that there was even a film community in my area less than a year ago, and I began reaching out around October or November. So I'm still taking baby steps with figuring out how to get my name out there. However, I do know that a friend of mine, who is actively involved with our film scene, and has been amazing with giving me the support and confidence I need to get out there more; and we're aiming to do our first collaboration piece sometime this summer before September ends.

[@aaronkaminski9357]

That's cool. Where are you based?

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Northern Pennsylvania. You?

[@aaronkaminski9357]

I didn't know they had a film scene over there. I'm in Michigan. Planning on moving to LA after high school and college though. I'm in my Junior year.

[@mingoshii4031]

This entire video is gold. Excellent and useful tips that I jotted down in my Writer's Notebook. Thank you for this.

[@bennozoid1]

Thank you so much for all these videos. They are such a labor of love - so much effort has been put into making them. SO MUCH useful information - I can’t stop watching them as I write my 3rd Draft....🙏🏻

[@filmcourage]

Which of these 29 mistakes resonates with you the most? Any that you disagree with?

[@MindBenderEnt1]

Having a clear goal for my Protagonist--- not writing characters with enough flaws---and I'd say holding back moments.

[@godscissorer]

Film Courage idk what story is. lol. It gets frustrating thinking about it - the theory? Discovery, genre, conflict and story... I think I'm looking for an idea I can chew on. idk. Hague defined story twice! lol

[@smangione]

I am most worried about soft concept. If it is most important to hero can it be a soft concept. I feel that the story is important even if not meant to be a blockbuster. Would you consider these soft concepts. Christmas Cards: (just finished) After discovering there will be nothing for Christmas, a poor, Italian boy, 9, in 1949, New York, must overcome a bully, the trolls under the bridge and abject poverty as he struggles to save Christmas for his family. Caught in Katonah (working on now) Trapped because he has to support his family, a poor Italian boy, 14, in 1955 New York must earn enough money, a college scholarship or a professional baseball contract, to escape his small town existence.

[@SedricSleepzzz]

Finding my genre has become my antagonist right now. A question for you what about combining genres is that a genre in itself? For example: Action drama, action comedy, dramaedy.....

[@itswatching1177]

they seem like very similar loglines, him being italian or his exact age isnt entirely necessary, you seem to be giving your pro a series of options for his objective when really you should narrow it down to one major goal, i.e "Young boy gets once in lifetime chance to play baseball for major team and if wins gets prize money to save christmas for his family" which is similar to Rocky - obviously its fiction so you want to add some larger than life things in there or else your movie may bore - im not saying go for the logline i put but I think it'd help you to be very concise about what your story is or it'll be thrown out quick.

[@alyssa.h]

starting to plot my first story and I'm so excited to do it. Thanks for uploading this! it's really helpful :D

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Good luck!

[@ghani666]

4 years later lol - how’s it going?

[@kaylalezabeth7175]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE what Markus Redmond had to say because I think the exact same thing. Agree with him 100%.

[@Unsurepositive]

Thanks for this, I teach digital cinema and I've offered it to my students as a resource; the improvements in their stories are noticeable already!

[@michellejackson8547]

The best part of this session is the guy at the end. He tells my story exactly how I write. I don't know until I sit down and go into my head and allow the characters to come to life. Once they come to life I learn about them, I grow with them, cry with them, laugh with them and they teach me the life lessons and take me on journey's that make me miss them when I'm not writing about them...

[@tweezy8750]

Priceless,vital, and extremely informative. I watched the entire video, very captivating.

[@markhickton9418]

Of immense value to any writer humble enough to realize they are not perfect and there is always room for improvement.

[@natedoggg2002]

The most imformative advice on screenwriting I ever seen on youtube! Thank you for this!

[@moviesovermatterproductions]

Interesting about the importance of suspense. One every page?!?! - have a lot of learning to do. This video is FANTASTIC by the way! Many thanks to everyone involved!

[@SanzuFabrications]

Try not to think of suspense as “a killer is closing in” or “a timer is counting down.” Suspense just means that some unanswered question remains. It could be something as simple as “will this character get that character to agree to a bank heist?” Or “When will the ship finally hit the iceberg?” Smaller instances of uncertainty can overlap with each other to create waves of suspense. “When will the bomb under the table explode?” + “Will these two men at the table finish their conversation in time to leave safely?” + “Will the main come back in and insist they have more coffee?”

[@realdaybreaker8013]

@@SanzuFabrications I suggest you watch Triage (2009) I am actually halfway through it - The director and the writer did a decent job in generating curiosity right from the opening shot

[@jamielaurengarner]

"If any of us wanted to do work, we wouldn't be writers" 😭😭 That sounds like it holds truth due to its stereotype but also my job work is so much easier than sitting down and writing something. It is significantly harder than it seems to write a good story.

[@PensareFilms]

51:00- You know? You know? You know? She said "you know" 70 times all the while delivering a mini-lecture about pitching ideas in a compelling way. W T F. Mind blown.

[@milanpenk9537]

The last guy's advice was brilliant. Screw the outlines and all that stuff. How can you write an exciting story if along the way you already know everything? Thank you Mr. Redmond.

[@Tim_Climie]

I'd have to say "14) 26:38 - Creating One Dimensional Characters" resonated with me the most. Most of the interviewees understand that a character must have a clear goal - that they must want something - yet 14 really opens that issue up for me. I'd couple this with "6) 13:45 - In Addition To Obstacles, Create Learning Moments For The Main Character". If a character wants something; great, but what if an obstacle forces them to prefer obtaining something else? These two segments really illustrate the complexity of people; that there are in fact 3 things to consider with character. What do they need? What do they want? And how far will they push a preference to ensure their want doesn't interfere with their need?

[@Tim_Climie]

A remark on Hague's Act Structure (mentioned elsewhere in this series). It might be that "Inciting incident/Opportunity" is the character sensing an opportunity to obtain what they want, but that circumstances (or indeed, conflict) prevents them. "Changing Plans" is moving from want to prefer - something that character must achieve before the want is obtained - and is indicative of the character sensing that their want is putting need at risk (even if they don't yet understand why). It's here (with "Complications) where I think the writer will discover if they've designed a good character or not.

[@Derekray1980]

Oh my goodness. Number 16 is brilliant! Great video.

[@filmcourage]

Thanks Derek!

[@ntherooh]

This channel has become my favourite! So many lessons!

[@filmcourage]

Doing our best, great to see you finding value here.

[@theophilus749]

Since when have producers and film financiers _rejected_ cliche, especially in main-stream cinema? This is news to me.

[@ytcorporate9237]

@Corpsefoot Gaming Technically, it's a producers job to only chase profit. If they didn't, they'd be pretty bad at their job. I mean, there's like ten Fast and Furious movies for a reason, and last time I checked they're as far from art as a piece of dog shit on a kerb.

[@filmsbydiek7316]

John Truby talks about the importance of genre. As I understand it the primary genres are: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Historical/Epic, Horror, Musicals, SciFi, War, and Western. Does this sound about right? Any missing? When thinking about my own work it is interesting how difficult it can be to self-assign a genre (or combination) while writing, but I can see this is hugely important for framing the story.

[@yesyesyesyes1600]

Films by Diek read Save the cat by Blake Snyder. I didn't know the genres either :)

[@colleenurban7673]

Film noir.

[@kaylalezabeth7175]

I love EVERYTHING that everyone in this video said. Very helpful advice here!

[@ravinderdhakatelefilms8842]

Thanks for sharing this gem.

[@ComicPower]

Did the Taken RIP off ever get made? I am interested in how the writer handled it. Seriously. He sold me with his clever spin on it

[@christophercampbell628]

I just came across this video randomly, and I've gottta say, it's good stuff! You've got one new subscriber!

[@filmcourage]

Hi Christopher, welcome! Hope you find some other videos on our channel helpful.

[@lukasneumann1488]

A really good video for all level, the techniques are very important and basic, they teaches the starter and also remind the advances. And the philosophy of doing things are discussed along with the techniques. It;s worth it to watch and only one time but always keeping those points in mind.

[@roundandsquareful]

Great! advice from seasoned writers. Great video, saving to re watch over again in the future.

[@mrdasjo]

I've been in the process of writing a story for an animated series and this has been very helpful.

[@filmcourage]

Best of luck with your writing David!

[@mrdasjo]

Thank you :)

[@Sams_Uncle]

Another GOLD by this channel. Thank You!!

[@MohamadOmarALBosaty]

OOOmy God...I totally watched the whole video, this video is a damn story itself, compiled awesomely, edited and pilled up perfectly as well....luv the hard work...thumbs up and i really needed it...hopefully i shall write carefully now with all these notes in mind...Thanks again folks...

[@johnbrennick8738]

I’m writing nonfiction... about my mother’s family’s ww2 experiences, which have several life or death moments. Therefore I cannot make things up, indeed I need to stick to the facts, but I can emphasize one family member as the lead or I can write from my perspective as the author and how I felt and love them and learned from family and from corroborating reference materials and wondered how the lead and others felt and must have felt, imaging being in their situation, moving from the normal of trying to build a family and getting ahead to simply staying alive. Any advice welcome!

[@akuakritiproductions]

Thank you so much Film Courage for uploading such an informative and very useful videos for aspiring screenwriters and filmmakers. This is the only good KZbin channel for having great and useful informations about Screenwriting and Filmmaking. Keep uploading. ❤️ Best wishes.

[@Von_McKnelly]

Write what you know. Have a personal connection to the story. That sticks in my head like a pickaxe. Great video and learning tool....thanks.

[@koukim]

Did the writers of Suicide Squad watch this video? If they even followed 5% of the concepts they would have had a decent movie

[@Patrickkind78]

no it was just a good character arc, the rest of the movie still sucked

[@davidwhitt2717]

Exactly the shitty movie that came to mind while watching this. Glad I wasn't the only one.

[@lray4559]

How do movies like SS and All Eyez on me (Tupac biopic) even get made? All producers must know these basics.

[@kevinmejia1989]

I'd add Mother! and Nocturnal animals to that list.

[@bradebronson8835]

Kouki Mura Did you watch this video? Even if you absorbed 5% of it, you would understand the reason. I bet that script was really good until the producers notes destroyed it. Writers have zero power when it comes to story. Producers have 100% of the power.

[@literaryartist1]

Great checklist. Love it. Thank you.

[@MarcoR6]

FC, you are the best!

[@filmcourage]

We thought this one would be helpful. Hopefully it is.

[@gnulen]

she has had ten friends with cancer and 25 friends with divorce ??? how many friends does this woman have

[@Selameena]

haha...that's what you took from all of this? :) the 25 are not necessarily her friends...she said she's helped 25 people with their divorce...anyway...

[@jomontanee]

You crack me up.

[@BygoneT]

What if it's the same people with multiple divorces?

[@j.d3804]

Thank you for putting this up .....so helpful

[@bigrat4780]

I am so thankful for this. this is a great reminder for writers

[@michaelmattice4986]

Thanks so much for sharing! ps. Anybody else hear the ghost from 59:31 - 59:34 with what sounds like a serious case of indigestion?

[@SquirrelsForAll]

Wonderfully composed. Thank you for posting.

[@filmcourage]

One of our favorite videos. Thanks for watching!

[@vishva8kumara]

All the great ideas I have thought about writing into a story are the movies I have missed to watch. There goes Gone girl. Someone has written it so much better than I could ever imagine. Must watch.

[@Carlskwell]

Now I want to make a movie with all 29 mistakes.

[@CNNBS]

Thank you once again Film Courage! Excellent tips from very interesting people! And you givin it to us fo' free? Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[@denisblack9897]

i'm making a video game and this was immensely helpful!

[@Mamedliemin]

did you finish making it?

[@SanzuFabrications]

I volunteer as tribute!

[@cutmovies6522]

Did u finish it u lazy bastard answer us

[@CNNBS]

How's that going?

[@Bubblegummonsters]

There's a lot of sound advice in here.

[@phe.mp3]

This is super helpful. Thank you so much :) I'll update you if anything successful happens to my script

[@C0RRUPTI0N소리]

This is excellent and insightful. Thank you~

[@redumbrella4218]

Thank you so much! Very good job!

[@FlyingOverTr0ut]

I'm a bad writer but eager to model myself on great writers and instructors. But I was surprised to see how many writers in writers' groups I've attended believe they know how to write well, think they know the craft, and don't want to hear criticism.

[@funnyciscoleon]

This video is f**king awesome! It jolted my brain into a thought I never knew I had. Thanks Guys!

[@filmcourage]

Love it, we hope this helps you take your work to higher levels!

[@JeanMarieMAZALEYRAT]

Great tips! Even if some of these work better or lesser depending on the genre and the way it's used. E.g. the flawed hero 29:30 : - Nobody cares about the hero's flaw in most of horror or action movies (The Fast And The Furious, …) … because it's just today's version of antique circus games and the winner is bigger if flawless! - Very often, the hero's flaw is just a crutch to make them lovable and it's not properly related to the plot. That only makes them pathetic… And more boring than if they were normal! The use of the flaw is not as simple as it looks and although it can dramatically improve some plots, many movies are ruined by the flaw of their hero, actually. IMO: - The only useful flaws are those that drive the plot (Rear Window, Vertigo, Romeo and Juliet, Taxi Driver …) - Great plots with great leads and not driven by a flaw of the hero would not be better with it (North By Northwest, Duel, Pulp Fiction, Out Of Africa …) - A great dilemma is a much better way to make a great plot than any flaw (The Bridges Of Madison County ...) - Example of a movie which would be better with a flawed hero: Hunger Games (Katniss is a snooty girl who successes too easily in everything she does) - Example of a movie which would be better without a flawed hero: Basic Instinct (Nick's flaw is only used to link him to Beth and Nilsen and never really affects his behavior, decisions, etc.) N.B.: Thanks a lot for not boring us with the 3 acts structure!

[@needhamcomics6370]

Are there links or lists of movies and scripts and shows these people worked on? I'd like to see examples of their work. This is a great video.

[@SirChubbyBunny]

You should be able to find their works on IMDb, then trace them to the website Scripts.

[@FilmmakerTery]

Great tips!!! Thank you for this

[@shirlsshirls8594]

This was awesome and so helpful, thanks!!!

[@OlgaKuznetsova]

This was such amazing advice, thank you so much!!!

[@filmcourage]

Thanks for watching Olga!

[@cheesecakelasagna]

I love how that dude mentioned the classic movie Shrek.

[@nicholsonscience6229]

I provided the stories for The Wedding Crashers, Groundhog's Day, Inception, Gravity, Borne Identity, Titanic (the truckdriver wanted to "raise the Titanic"), and the Black guy at the end has it right. With an audience (committee of screenwriters usually), you can watch their expressions to guide you forward, delighting them in the process. The structure ideas lead to repetition and everything you write will be a sequel to something you've already seen/scene.

[@jomontanee]

Thank you so much for great interviews+tutorial. It'd be much appreciated if you can add CC for international and hearing impaired viewers. Because it is long clips and contain very much info, CC would help a lot.

[@chadkuffert]

Thanks for sharing this!

[@filmcourage]

Our pleasure, thanks for watching.

[@fridakalota370]

Thank you for the information! I love writing and Im going to give it a try and trust in myself

[@filmcourage]

Happy to hear it. Wishing you wonderful adventures.

[@fridakalota370]

Film Courage Thank you

[@j.i4703]

YO I legit thought that Neil DeGrasse Tyson was speaking at 5:26 just close your eyes and listen. No doubt good knowledge though.

[@anilheendeniya6006]

Overall, really solid and thought-provoking advice. Except for #25, "Don't waste time with sloppy work": Gina Wendkos erupted with a rambling, highly-repetitive stream of consciousness and "you knows", incomplete sentences, and fluff. She perfectly exemplified what she's advising us NOT to do: wasting [the viewer's] time!

[@davidyama]

Im trying to think of who the hero was and what their primary goal was in Pulp Fiction. Is it OK to switch the hero, did each have a primary goal? Was their an over-reaching through line?

[@saulodelima23]

Vincent wanted to make his job without pass the line with mia. Bruce Willys character (i don't remember the name) wanted his watch and escape Jules wanted to finish that work and quit to become a good man. Are various heros, each one with one clear goal

[@saulodelima23]

The fun in knowing "formulas" it's so you can break them in creative way. Was what Tarantino made.

[@Lukasssssss]

I'm grateful for this video. THANK YOU!

[@filmcourage]

We are glad it was helpful! Cheers Lukas!

[@Lukasssssss]

@@filmcourage cheereful Christmas to you too!

[@goso03]

Great video, Thank you!

[@roundandsquareful]

Thank you for this excellent video.

[@Faulty2Helix]

Great content! Thank you!

[@bryanortiz5298]

Really helpful. Thank you.

[@doesitmakesense5696]

These 29 mistakes seem to be guidelines for wanting a tradition story that follows the tradition formula. No originality. For example a movie that breaks rule number 8 is Slumdog Millionaire. It opens up with the main character trying to achieve his goal. Or how about Adventure Time where rule number 5 is broken. The show starts as if you already know the characters. No setup or introduction, the audience is just thrown into the world. What about slice of life movies where having too much number 9 would actually hurt the movie? Kiki's Delivery Service does have good/bad news but not on every page.

[@BubbaHojo]

Yeah, that's why Michael Hague says quite clearly in one of these videos that when he says "all" or "always," he actually means "80-90%" because there are always exceptions. These "rules" are guidelines for the general story structure that human beings most respond to, a fact which is demonstrably true. But any good screenwriter or screenwriting guru will tell you that you don't jam every single rule into every single story. These are not Mad Libs, after all, where you just plug in a noun here, a verb there, sprinkle on a couple of adjectives, and now you have a movie. You write what's best for the story you're telling -- maybe yours doesn't need an overt ticking clock -- but knowing the basics, knowing the rules allows you to break them with purpose, from a place of choice rather than necessity. And, honestly, you might still have a ticking clock in your story and not even realize it. It doesn't have to be a literal bomb timer ticking down to explosion. It could just as easily be a relationship that is on the verge of breaking apart if someone doesn't learn an emotional lesson before their partner finally gives up and shuts down. There are many colors in the story-telling rainbow and they're not all neon. These videos are made for people learning to tell stories, not people who are already good at it. Would you go into an elementary school's English class and complain that the teacher is teaching boring grammar that follows an unoriginal formula? Of course not. The students in the class are learning the basics. But, once they've mastered the basics, then they can break them properly and with purpose. Also, I think the form for TV is different. Story-telling is the same at its base, but the rules for TV are a bit different, so the guidelines people are giving about writing movies don't really apply as much to "Adventure Time" (or one of my favorites, "Peep Show," which also just starts mid-stream, so to speak). They still do to an extent, but it's not a 1:1.

[@doesitmakesense5696]

You say they're not Mad Libs, but aren't you contradicting yourself by saying, "... general story structure that human beings most respond to, a fact which is demonstrably true" which I believe is more of a self-fulfilling prophecy. You won't win any screenplay contests or be able to sell to a major Hollywood studio without using the mad lib formula which in turn no large marketing meaning not much of a success.

[@BubbaHojo]

No. My point is that, unlike Mad Libs, none of these screenwriting formulas free you up from actually writing and being creative. They give you a set of extremely general beats that appear in most every story going back to the earliest myths, but, if you ever try to employ one of these formulas, you quickly find that the beats are VERY general guidelines that don't do any of the actual creative work for you. You still have to know how to write, create characters, invent situations, pace story, etc, etc, etc. They just give you a very general structure that human beings have responded to for as long as humans have been telling stories. The "demonstrably true" part is proven out partly by box office numbers (while you and I may enjoy an artistic meditation on the emotional life of a 30-something hermit in Paris who has no clear goals, the vast majority of the movie-going public, rightly or wrongly in either their or our opinion, would hate it and be bored). I mean, hell, I watched both "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead" -- not exactly boundary-busting story structures -- with my ex-girlfriend and her friends and they were BORED any time either show stopped spilling blood and started developing characters emotionally. My previous girlfriend hated any movie or book that had a theme or point beyond what was on the surface because it felt like work to her instead of entertainment. I've tried like hell to get one of my friends -- ANY of my friends -- to watch "Enter the Void" because I was really excited and inspired by the emotional and philosophical story-telling that was happening in the abstract visual sections, and, several years later, not one of them has even called it up on Netflix let alone taken a crack at watching it. On the other hand, I HATED "Jurassic World" as much as you can hate anything and thought it was one of the dumbest, laziest movies that has ever been made -- so dumb that I felt angry and insulted and defeated as I sat in the theater -- and yet pretty much everybody on the planet went to see it and almost everybody I know loved it. Which tells us two things: (1) Most people want to watch "typical Hollywood movies," and (2) I need new friends. I think where we disagree here is that I don't believe it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. You might argue that humans have been trained like Pavlovian dogs to respond to these beats and that's why we think this structure works naturally when really it's just a collective habit, but I honestly don't think that's true. So many other things in culture change year to year, decade to decade -- styles, tastes, and mores are constantly evolving -- that it makes no sense to think that the basics of story-telling wouldn't change as well if they weren't somehow inherent. Everything around that core changes, but the core always stays the same, going all the way back to the earliest tribal stories. Why? I believe it's because these story beats reflect the stages that most every person experiences in their lives. As much as every generation believes its so different from its parents' and its grandparents' generations, human experience and development is pretty much always the same. The details change, but we all have very similar feelings when we're teenagers. We all have very similar crises when we're in mid-life. We all have very similar feelings about death as we age and the body begins to break down (regardless of how we deal with them outwardly). At its base, I think "the hero's journey" -- or whatever any guru wants to call it -- is a metaphorical representation of a human life and human experience. No matter how much you cloak it in spaceships, dinosaurs, cancer-stricken girlfriends, or frustrated country singers, people respond to the journey (when it's done right). Aliens laser-blasting government monuments or a cowboy riding a T.Rex is just window dressing for a common experience that we respond to because we recognize it and are sympathetic to it. Of course, when it's done poorly, fewer people respond. And if, like me (and I assume you), you truly love and study story-telling and movies, you become much more impatient with the lazier iterations because you recognize the patterns and are much less easily surprised or moved by them. I *do* agree that it's harder to sell a screenplay to a studio or win a contest if you deviate from the formula too much, but that's not because the studios are forcing it into that mold. The studios are businesses/investors who care about making profits and they'll go wherever the money is. If the majority of movie-going audiences wanted to watch a new wave of the French New Wave, that's what Hollywood would make. But they don't. If they did, indie movies would suddenly blow up into a huge phenomena and Hollywood would make those instead of "Jurassic Galaxy" (or whatever's next). It's not a lockout though. As both Charlie Kaufman and Quentin Tarantino have said, if you want to sell a screenplay or make it as a writer, write a kick-ass movie. If it's clearly, undeniably good, people will notice and you'll succeed. The problem is that too many people think their script is much better than it is and their talent is much greater than it is and they blame the industry for their failure when, really, they're just not very good writers and/or they're just not writing very good stories. All that being said, I don't deny that there's a lot of garbage being made. Just because someone has the money or power to captain a ship doesn't mean they're going to be good at it.

[@doesitmakesense5696]

All you did was contradict yourself again and proved it's a mad libs game. Let me give you an example to clearly show you why you're contradicting yourself using your own words and by playing a game of mad libs. I'll also give you an example of a renowned story that doesn't fit the mad libs game yet the movie adaptation does conforms to the game. In your own words, “ They give you a set of extremely general beats that appear in most every story... beats are VERY general guidelines...”. That's what mad libs is, a template or general guidelines. So let's take a template that you mentioned, the hero's journey, and make a movie while seeing what other movies said for their answer. The hero gets a call to adventure by “noun”. Disney's Pocahontas: gold Avatar: space rock Me: oil The hero gets supernatural aid from “thing”. Pocahontas: Tree/nature Avatar: Tree/goddess Me: George Washsington's ghost (see how creative I am. I didn't use a tree) The hero cross the threshold into another world “place” filled with “group of people”. Pocahontas: america/native americans Avatar: pandora/na'ai Me: Iraq/Iraqis The hero triumphs by “action”.Pocahontas: stopping the fight Avatar: defeats military Me: seal up the devil We have our outline but as you said, “You still have to know how to write, create characters...” Hmmm? Jake Sully is basically John Smith who say the same thing about the natives are not savages but people. I'll have my character be the same archetype and have him say something like Iraqis are not savages. Copy, paste, edit so it's not plagiarism, done. It's almost as if I can make a living making youtube videos about how movies are a mad libs game. Wait, Couch Tomato already did that. Micheal Bay is proof if you master the mad lib, you'll go far. Now let's examine a well renowned story that break the mad lib. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Hurston. The book makes many of these 29 “mistakes”. The main character doesn't have any goals but propelled along by those around her. She doesn't accomplish anything. Critics at the time said it had no theme nor message. The hero triumphs by “action”. ???? She doesn't triumph. What about the movie version? The hero triumphs by “action”. She becomes empowered and becomes her own woman. In the book Tea Cake beats her and steals her money to show that he owns her. The movie takes out the beating and is a romantic story where the main character finally finds love with Tea Cake. You said, “Most people want to watch 'typical Hollywood movies,'”. Well people liked the book so why did the movie have to change it to a typical hollywood movie? Oh that's right, it doesn't fit the formula so it won't do well. Got to change it to make the self-fulfilling prophecy. See how successful the movie is with the changes. It was a failure before but now it's a success.

[@toe1226]

Critics hated Pocahontas but loved Avatar even though they're the same movie. All these so called film experts don't know what they're talking about. Vox recently released a video mathematically proving how far they shove their head up their own ass by voting for stories about themselves.

[@relaxingsounds1386]

You have to take the inner conflict and somehow externalitize it. You have to put your characters in situations where they have to make DECISIONS that reveal their inner conflicts and move the story forward. Basically.

[@purplekushpro]

some really great points. really helps

[@electrojones]

My LA massage therapistress said that her screenwriting professor a Movie Academy said that most films fail because there isn't enough attention paid to scenes of people being cruel to animals. I took this tip to heart and recently sold my first screenplay to a major Hollywood movie factory. Watch out on the lookout for "Red Crush", my movie about a naked young woman's journey to becoming an internet fetish celebrity by stepping on mice. Kristen and French Stewart attached.

[@aidenhall559]

Are there some nice forums for everything video editing

[@SirChubbyBunny]

Are you looking for advice on video editing? I found that the Rocket Jump film School boards have always been warm and inviting.

[@orionkuciej2182]

I think you can only teach a filmmaker, whether that be a director or writer, how to format a screenplay. I find it very strange that the people in this video give information on the traditional way of screenwriting. They should have talked about what made films that broke storytelling rules in filmmaking work, like a Fellini movie

[@carlweathers5714]

orion kuciej the only rule is that there are no rules. If someone refers to your script as page-turning and they're an avid reader or writer, you know what you're doing.

[@Deepbluecat]

I like it....David Lynch/Barrie Whatsisname? Someone mentioned Kubrick..

[@darrengrenfell9225]

So much great information from leading figures in the trade - for free! Film Courage - nice one!

[@filmcourage]

Glad it was helpful!

[@TheKrazyLobster]

I once heard it said that the great writers rewrite more than the bad writers will ever write in their lives.

[@tmac8892]

Simple story, complex characters.

[@falliezhang4269]

Nicely summarised

[@stonesthrow420]

This is all completely accurate and correct!! "The Last Jedi".... FAILED at EVERY single one of these guidelines!!

[@AbbyWizeBooks]

Terrific! Thanks millions!!

[@filmcourage]

Cheers!

[@donovanwhitley775]

Ah here I am, 15 pages into my first script only rewrote a scene 4 times already, everything is going grandiose, I’m feeling the plot the characters etc, lay down to sleep, watch a few screenwriting videos from my film study play list I made on KZbin only to find out I need to rewrite again because I’ve missed opportunities that I cannot simply just add in.. one day I’ll master it... one day

[@ericcoyle3520]

Does anyone know what that film is with the book writer and kidnapped wife situation?

[@smangione]

I did not anticipate how hard it would be to get someone to read my screenplay. Is the only way to get one read is to pay for it? How do you determine the right place to go? Any advice will help.

[@smangione]

Thanks for the response. You are first screenwriter I have talked to in 2 months. I actually just paid to join San Antonio Screen writers Guild. They have a meeting tomorrow. I can finally dedicate 100% to learning the craft. Half way through my second feature script. I'm 54 and hope it's not too late. Has been a dream of mine for a very long time and was finally able to retire. Thank you so much for responding it means a lot. D. Scott Mangione, you will hear that name again.

[@TheKrazyLobster]

Go to The Blacklist. Fairest service on the web.

[@smangione]

I got a 7.0 average from blacklist. Pretty happy for my first one.

[@batteriesnotincludedreneea4440]

D Scott Mangione I know right. It has taken 3 years and I got someone to read act 1 and most of 2 then they fell off the face of the earth. Glad I got a Non disclose signed and never gave them the entire screenplay at once. After they read 1 I took it and gave 2 then I took 1st half of 2 now I can't reach them and they only have 2nd half of act 2.

[@carmenperez4240]

filmfreeway.com. Enter contests.

[@sproy1]

17:47 What exactly do you mean by "good news/bad news?" I get the part about raising stakes and ticking clocks. But I'm kinda lost when you say "good/bad news."

[@omi7711]

I'm guessing "good and bad things that happen to the character", like wins and losses

[@themarcbon]

Who clicks the thumb down button on KZbin videos? Particularly in videos that express knowledge and experience and tips and everything. Thumbs up their asses.

[@ulyanasemyonkina3799]

Thank you so much.

[@REVFILM]

thanks for sharing this. my friend and i really thanksfull because thia video really helped us