Screenwriting Essentials: THINK IN SCENES

It’s simple, it’s basic, it’s WHAT SCREENWRITERS REALLY DO.
Really: teaching yourself to THINK IN SCENES is one of the single best things you can do to get better at writing for screens.
This video helps you get started - including an easy, at-home EXERCISE you can do - now.
So watch this - now!
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This channel is here to help you learn to write for screens - ANY kind of screens, from Hollywood tentpole to streaming series to DIY indie.
Want to know more about me? Want to work with me, one-on-one? Script reading and consulting, project and process consulting: go to WRITINGFORSCREENS.COM.
Credits Motion Graphics: Xander Brennan, xanbrennan.com
Credits Music: musicfornothing.com

[@MattEdwards1]

Although these videos are for screenwriters they are helping me very much with my novel writing. It all feels like a series of scenes when I think about what's happening, so it's very applicable!

[@writingforscreens]

Yes, thank you - I think it IS applicable. The boundaries and shapes of scenes are much more flexible and varied in fiction - but they're still, somewhere in there, scenes. And especially with so many possibilities available to a novelist, it's nice to have something to hold on to.

[@stagename2]

I’m here as a novelist too. Great insights that cross over easily.

[@writingforscreens]

@@stagename2 So glad to have you here!

[@shadeburst]

As an admittedly not very successful novelist (my excuse is I'm the wrong demographic) I like to start every scene with action or dialog. Louisa is playing her guitar. This tune always makes her think of... To me that works better than, When Louisa was very young her parents split up and she..

[@shadeburst]

@@writingforscreens It's easier to write if I spend ten minutes, half an hour or whatever visualizing the scene before I write. Then all I have to do is write down what I saw.

[@oraclemedia9266]

a scene is a peace of information that brings forward the story. A scene can take place over more than one location but in most cases a scene plays out in (at) one location!

[@tomlewis4748]

NOVELISTS! Listen up! Screen is different than lit, sure. Some of what is expressed as advice for screenwriters will not apply to fiction writers (and it's good to be able to triage out the advice that doesn't). But it's a bit ironic how much terrific advice screenplay people like Glen have that also applies directly to writing long-form fiction (and what a paucity of it there is coming from actual authors, agents, editors, and publishers). Maybe it's because screen folks are collaborative, work tribally, and have a shared language and vocabulary, while fiction authors are insular, reclusive, and define everything differently, even among themselves. Regardless, these people know things, and know how to tell us what they know, while the writing community often does not, regardless of how the writing process for fiction works. There is real value here for writers of long-form fiction, as well as for screen folks. This is one of his best, and Glen's advice here applies directly to every artistic medium.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you so much, Tom Lewis!!!

[@wolfpowers36]

The "Analyze a Random Scene" exercise is a lot of fun. I've only done a few so far, but it's really interesting what I've learned. Thank you!

[@writingforscreens]

It's interesting to watch "with different eyes" isn't it?

[@PureMagma]

Sometimes I like to do this exercise with the volume "muted" so I can see how the descriptive actions are being used for storytelling. Describing story scenes using the actions of characters is profound. You could watch the movie "Weekend At Bernies" as a silent movie and 100% understand the story being told.

[@wolfpowers36]

@@PureMagma That's a clever idea. Thank you!

[@writingforscreens]

@@PureMagma That's a very good way to think about the "core" of a scene and the deepest actions taking place.

[@manuelcervellera9275]

Excellent sir

[@auntiebarnes]

Thank you for your generosity! You are teaching me more than I gleaned from a mountain of books.

[@writingforscreens]

What a wonderful thing to hear, thank you!

[@auntiebarnes]

@@writingforscreens 🧡

[@bogdanalexandrustefan5395]

God bless you, sir. This helped me a lot.

[@writingforscreens]

So glad it's helpful! Keep writing :)

[@amelia-bartlett]

Excellent. All of your videos are excellent. Thank you for publishing this information here on KZbin!

[@writingforscreens]

Thank YOU so much for watching, and this encouraging comment!!

[@HomeOfRebel_films]

I really enjoyed this. So enlightened

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you!

[@Maria_Espino]

This reminds me of the Story Circle by Dan Harmon - he said that the circle can be applied to entire story but also broken down by Act, by Sequence, and by Scene.

[@writingforscreens]

So many ways to approach a script!

[@paradoxinmotion]

i love how simply gers speaks about scene and story! thanks you!

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you for watching and commenting!

[@JP_AZ]

🔥💎

[@writingforscreens]

☺✅

[@markburton9712]

Even though the "One-on-one" has finished, thank you so much for keeping your site active. Cracking video, I always learn a lot from you.

[@writingforscreens]

So glad to hear this, thank you!

[@silfervox2970]

Terrific video. Clear, insightful explanation of what a scene is and does.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you so much!!

[@keihinjin]

Amazing Talk, that confirm my though and feel more confident, thank you.

[@writingforscreens]

Excellent, I'm glad it is helpful!

[@etiennedenis6091]

I must say I began to wath saying to myself "I won't learn anithing" (OK, it was in French). And then, "oh, maybe I have someting to change on that novel scene I was working on yesterday...". Very usefull, thanks!

[@writingforscreens]

Wonderful to know - thank you! (Merci...that's close to the full extent of my French, but I offer it.)

[@ManuTomeA]

Love your content! Very good one! Thanks!

[@agoogleuser4410]

This is also great for novels and short stories. Excellent info.

[@writingforscreens]

I think so too! Despite the much richer range of fiction-writing, they are still stories - and stories mostly have scenes :)

[@matthewlavagna6080]

My two most important pieces of advice for writing scenes are firstly, every scene must have a strong purpose and secondly, every scene should begin as late as possible and finish as early as possible.

[@writingforscreens]

Very true!

[@bloodysavage0]

What does that mean? "Every scene should begin as late as possible and finish as early as possible".

[@matthewlavagna6080]

@@bloodysavage0 It means you must get straight to the point of the scene. Don't include any unnecessary dialogue or action. Once the purpose of the scene has been served, get straight to the next scene.

[@alimusannef]

Brilliant exercise!!

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you so much!

[@Tom_Roberts]

I came here from the Film Courage interview and so pleased I found this channel. No bullshit easy-to-understand content from someone who really knows what he's talking about. Thanks a lot for the time and effort in recording this channel.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank YOU - comments like this make me feel the time and effort are worth it!

[@SuperSavvyTravelersLLC]

Thank you! This is awesome!

[@writingforscreens]

Yes, I feel this one is really important. Thanks!

[@karentownsendillustrates1769]

Thank you for this invaluable help

[@patrickmooney4135]

I am enjoying your videos very much and very slowly catching up. They are very instructive. Just the other night I decided to sit down and attempt to write the first 10 pages of an idea that I had. I was definitely thinking in terms of scenes but got bogged down in format. I'm not sure if my opening 6 scenes which deal completely with the hero's world and the story's theme is really the 3 pages I have written or need to be condensed into a few paragraphs that just fill the first half of the first page. In a few weeks, when I can get 20 pages down that will at least provide the vision of the story, I'll probably be ringing your bell for the script consulting just so I can see what how it should be done and what it should really look like. Thanks.

[@writingforscreens]

I'd certainly enjoy working in more detail one-on-one, but in the meantime: try not to go back and mess with your first 10 pages until you've finished a whole rough draft. You DO find the voice of a project at the start, and sometimes it is tempting to polish it and polish it...but in my experience, there is so much MORE to be learned about a story in the middle and at the end. Wading into that mystery zone, even VERY roughly, will tell you so much more about how you want to start. It also just gets easier to make decisions about proportions and such when you've been "away" from it by getting through to the end. If possible, march through to the end - however sketchy or "bad" a lot of it may be - before going back.

[@shadeburst]

It's like when you're hanging with the gang. If you have something to say you have a few seconds to get their attention, or someone will start talking over you. A stand-up comic for example has to set up a joke in a few sentences, or beware incoming tomatoes. EXTERIOR. SMALL BOAT HARBOR. DAY. Jack Kemp readies Acapella for sea. Any detail you add on top of that had better be good. :)

[@entschnabler]

bless you! and thank you!

[@writingforscreens]

Thanks for commenting!

[@THORFXMX]

Great advice! Currently studying FRACTURE.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you!

[@AnyDayNow360]

Love your content and instruction! Hope your channel continues to grow!!!

[@writingforscreens]

Thanks so much!

[@gigmcfish]

Thx!

[@BlancheChiang]

Great insights. Thanks a million from Taiwan 🥰

[@writingforscreens]

Glad they are helpful! Thank you. All my best to Taiwan!

[@joannkelly7994]

Thank you. Stay blessed.

[@writingforscreens]

You're welcome! Thank you for watching!

[@irongirl009]

So super helpful!!!! Thank you.

[@writingforscreens]

So glad it is, thanks!!

[@mhorohello]

Thanks for the video!

[@writingforscreens]

Thanks for the thanks!!

[@Maria_Espino]

In my current SCI-FI script, because we’re dealing with very vibrant worlds (literally, it’s set in a very explored galaxy), I have scenes that only show the planet and spaceships flying into or out of it. I do that because I want the audience to experience the world and see the spaceships. Is that totally what you mean Glenn? About some scenes being pure “filler”???

[@kb2vca]

Hi Maria. I don't pretend to be in any way a skilled writer of fiction but I don't know that I heard the word "filler". Presumably, any scene that does not add SOMETHING to the audience's understanding of the story is superfluous. So any scene that is simply "filler" is superfluous. And if I were the producer or the angel (the people providing the $$$ for the movie or the play) I am not sure that I would see the value in scenes that could be eliminated without any damage to the story or to the audience's grasp of what is going on and their identification with the protagonist/s. Scenes that add to our understanding of the characters, their goals, the obstacles to achieving those goals OR indeed, scenes that add to our understanding of the world that you are creating are not "fillers". But audiences are not stupid. Show me something once and I will appreciate it. Show me the same thing a half dozen times and I wonder what you are trying to sell...Perhaps the scene is your "trademark" and you are selling me on your TM.

[@Maria_Espino]

Maybe filler is the wrong word here. But there are times when you have scenes that do NOT necessarily advance the story and could possibly just exist because the writer or filmmaker wants to show the audience something cool. Like in my example, the planets and spaceships.

[@kb2vca]

@@Maria_Espino I guess if you are making the movie and not simply writing the screenplay then you are free to include any scene you want for any reason or no reason. That goes double if you are Tarantino or the Cohen Brothers.

[@writingforscreens]

Yes - it is, though I don't think of them as "filler." I think of them as the film directly addressing the audience to say: "here, look at this, it's cool and it's the world of our story." They can't just pile on randomly, but if they unfold and shape the audience's journey to/with the characters, they can be great. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY does this very well - unexpectedly long sequences all through in which Kubrick is letting you learn about and think about the reality of the characters' situations and world.

[@damageincluded5823]

Your videos are extremely helpful. This one especially made me rewiter some of my longer scenes into more punchy, to-the-point moments that deliver the relevant info or set up the charater actions, then gets out of the way instead of dragging on for another half a page.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you so much - I'm so thrilled this could be USEFUL for you! Funny how much you can take out, when you start looking for that, isn't it?

[@Luwuluf]

Nevermind me, just favoriting your everything 😂 Thank you for all the great advise

[@writingforscreens]

I don't mind at all! It's the only way I know that I'm reaching anyone. Thank you!

[@Luwuluf]

I always love coming back to this. There needs to be a second thumbs up button! I have a question though: Does it ever ruin the movie watching experience for you to just see the mechanical workings of a scene? Does it happen against your will sometimes?

[@writingforscreens]

Strangely, I don't ever feel I have ruined a viewing experience with my extra mechanical eye...in fact, it tends to give me a whole other level of joy, an additional thing to marvel at. I will admit sometimes ruining viewing for others, though - especially when I stop a streaming movie and play something back because I want to see a particular edit again, lol.

[@NeuroTechNexus]

Great videos dude, this is going to be a game changer for my youtube channel, I knew all I needed was some sort of process but I couldn't find one that made sense, this does, thank you

[@writingforscreens]

So glad to hear this! Thanks!

[@NeuroTechNexus]

@@writingforscreens No problem thank you !

[@Mr.Monta77]

Excellent content. 🙏🏻

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you!

[@moklooking3485]

thanks Q very much sir

[@writingforscreens]

Glad it's helpful!!

[@jonasulrich]

Great video! I think one probably learns the most by analyzing a random scene of any Coen brothers film - I don't think there's anybody working today who's better in scene writing. Even the films that didn't 100% come together (Hail Ceaser, e.g.) still contain GREAT scenes.

[@writingforscreens]

Strong agree on that! They are great filmmakers - and great writers, who love writing and are constantly pulling in forms and styles and voices from all types of literature.

[@jonasulrich]

@@writingforscreens Literary influence is definitely an important mark of their style! As good old Werner Herzog likes to say: "That's the problem with film students [or any aspiring filmmaker]. They don't read."

[@writingforscreens]

@@jonasulrich What a great quote!!!

[@alecwebb5670]

those outtakes haha

[@writingforscreens]

:)

[@bryanubaghs406]

I just subscribed because your wisdom-sharing is awesome! Also, may I ask who painted the couple at the table with the guitar, over your right shoulder? It's cool. Thanks!

[@writingforscreens]

Thanks!! The painting is by Marta Becket, a remarkable character you can read more about here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marta_Becket. The documentary "Amargosa" from 2000, is very good. My wife and I stayed at Ms. Becket's Amargosa Opera House on our honeymoon, back in the 20th Century, and bought the painting then. If you can, search for photos of the Amargosa Opera House interior: the painted an audience on the walls :)

[@bryanubaghs406]

@@writingforscreens Thanks much! I'll check it out...

[@Shka_maru]

Thank you for this. Your videos have been extremely helpful to me. I've gotten into screenwriting recently and still have a difficult time actually seeing a "scene" when watching a film/tv show. Due to film editing, so much goes on I can't see where a scene properly ends and where one begins. A lot of blending/weaving. I see the "scene headers" in scripts, but it seems to function as more of a device for the director and cinematographer. How can one go from a scene written on a note card (having all the elements of a scene you mentioned), to translating it on a script page? What about weaving in different plot threads? Do you have videos on this? Or would it be better to contact you and maybe I could get more clarification that way? Thanks! :)

[@writingforscreens]

When watching - try watching something you have already seen, so you can try not to be involved in the story, and then look for scene endings by noticing when the story substantially changes PLACE or TIME. I think once you practice looking for it, you'll start to see that most scenes actually do indicate the end of one scene and the start of another. They often will have a shot to establish the new location/time. The "scene headers" are also very useful for writers. They do mostly indicate the end of one scene and the beginning of another. I think this is all mostly a matter of practice - it takes time to "see" the shape of scenes in a story. The best way to do it is to watch something several times, so that you can be analytical. Sometimes you notice techniques the second or third time you watch. It also can be helpful to find a script to compare to the movie. (MANY "scripts" on the internet are actually just transcripts, which are NOT useful. Look for a script that has a title page, and ideally a date and company name on the title page. Also, if the script you are reading is EXACTLY the same as the finished film - it's NOT a real script. There are always changes from real scripts to finished films.) The main advice is: explore, practice, experiment. You can only learn much of this over time, with experiences.

[@l3xitscomplicated191]

Out-takes at the end, hilarious :'D Really enjoing this informative and well structured videos, theyre kinda perfect for my adhd brain to take in. Writing a story for my comic, and script writing is just the best way of doing that, thanks alot for your great content.

[@writingforscreens]

Thank YOU! Its really great to hear that they're helping - especially with other forms of writing! I do wish there was a way to add to the name of my channel, like "Writing For Screens But Not Just For Screens..." Wonderful to know it's reaching all types of writers, despite the name.

[@Iwasonceanonionwithnolayers]

Okay, I think a HUGE part I was missing is that I was defining action a character doing something, not a character doing something to get something they want. This is why some scenes feel directionless.

[@writingforscreens]

I'm so glad it's made you think a new way!

[@daneoman1000]

A scene to me is a location change. Hence the shifting in INT and EXT, visa versa. I would not call it key action because that to me is movement of characters I would call it want is the key Moment in each scene.

[@writingforscreens]

Fair enough. It doesn't matter much what we call things, it matters that the things work for us :)

[@NeuroTechNexus]

Could you make a video on how to write an introduction to a story, this is what I struggle with the most, I can see the story, but how do I hook them at the beginning because there needs to be some exposition how much is too much? How much is too little? How do I set the scene for the rest of the story?

[@writingforscreens]

That's a great topic, I will work on a video about it. BUT that will take a while - so let me just tell you the most important thing I know about starting a story: less is more! The reader/audience don't want to have everything set up or explained or laid out: they want to know one thing at a time. Let it BUILD. Add to it, bring in new elements...but start SIMPLE. You DON'T want or need to do "exposition" at the start of a story. I urge you to read at least the first section (the Chekhov story) of "A SWIM IN A POND IN THE RAIN" by George Saunders. He's talking about writing fiction - but storytelling is the same process no matter what. This is the best lesson I know on how "building a story from nothing for the audience" works. Re-watch ten favorite movies or shows, and stop after each scene of the opening 10 minutes to ask: what exactly am I being given here? I think you will find that mostly, it's just "One Thing At A Time."

[@NeuroTechNexus]

@@writingforscreens Thanks for responding mate ! That's brilliant I shall patiently wait and ok thanks for the tips less is more, start simple, I get you and I will read the whole book I may as well 😎 and i've already been stopping scenes because I believe you said it another video and they are starting to slowly make more sense to me, particuarly with amazon prime as it has an xray function where it actually breaks down the scenes for you it's great. I love your videos thanks for making them i've learned a lot and look forward to more! 😁

[@alecwebb5670]

how do I remove bloated setups for a scene?

[@writingforscreens]

The easiest way is: write the bloated version, then later (when you're done with the rest of the script) - see if there's ANYthing you can cut. Even just a few words. Is there a simpler way to say any of it? Can you just reduce the number of steps, sentences, etc? I think you'll find when you have distance you'll be able to do some surgery. The main thing to ask is: what is essential to this setup? What do you have to accomplish? When you've figured out what the bare-bones-necessity version is, it's easier to see ways to cut it down.

[@alecwebb5670]

​@@writingforscreens thank you!

[@ehimenosagie-ogunbor3361]

This vid is great but I wish it had more examples

[@writingforscreens]

Thank you! I usually try to keep the videos as "things to do, things to try in your own work." But if you can tell me specific things you want examples for, I'll try to write some for you here. Let me know!

[@ehimenosagie-ogunbor3361]

@@writingforscreens Just examples to drive home some of the explanations you gave. Like giving an example of a scene from a popular tv show to help the viewer better understand what a scene is. And same for dramatic action, sequence and so on. Using related examples from the same tv show would make it even easier to understand and probably more fun to watch for fans of the referenced show. My thoughts as an about-to-be beginner writer and viewer. :)

[@writingforscreens]

@@ehimenosagie-ogunbor3361 Fair enough! For now, I'm trying to keep turning you eyes back to your own work: no matter how well you grasp what another artist has done, the work doesn't really begin until you look at your own ideas and start to ask questions and make choices in your own way. It takes practice. I think I am teaching this way because I feel I wasted years of my life trying to get good at writing by consuming and admiring and analyzing other people's work. And at the end of all of it, I was a truly great film nerd/critic...but still a struggling beginner as a writer. You can really only learn writing by writing your own work, as best you can. And keep doing that, a lot.

[@ehimenosagie-ogunbor3361]

@@writingforscreens yes of course I’ll write my own stuff and learn from experience. Examples would just be helpful for me in understanding the ideas in the video that I’ll be trying to implement and execute in my own work. Gives me something to relate the concepts to before I create something of my own using those concepts.

[@nathandean4412]

The term screenwriter should be altered to scene-writer!

[@writingforscreens]

Absolutely!