How the Pros Structure Their Scripts

Over the past ten years Corey Mandell has been fortunate enough to work closely with some of the smartest and most successful directors, producers and writers in the business. He's seen first-hand how they think about, create and revise stories - and almost none of them use the common structure approaches and methods. In fact, their approaches often fly directly in the face of the conventional wisdom.

This intensive Writers Store lab is for writers wishing to move beyond paint-by-the-numbers formulas to learn the approach professional writers use to structure their scripts to support and enhance what is original about their stories, characters and writing. This intensive seminar gives participants the specific tools to shape their ideas into unique well-crafted stories that evoke maximum emotional impact.

Topics include:

• The requirements for a successful narrative foundation
• The power of the unifying principle
• Why most scripts fall apart in the middle and how to avoid it
• What is required for a reader to care about your protagonist
• How to build momentum
• How to avoid the five traps that sink most stories
• The use of thematic subtext
• How to create high-impact resolutions
• Sequence construction 
• Character-driven narration

Through lecture and film clips, participants learn a professional approach to cinematic storytelling that applies to classically structured pieces as well as minimalist and ensemble works. Perfect for both beginners as well as advanced writers.

Where: 

The Writers Store
3510 W. Magnolia Blvd.
Burbank, CA 91505