HOW TO WRITE A STRONG SCREENPLAY
The lack of knowledge can condemn us
As a screenwriter, one might think that the worst thing you can face is a blank page as a result of a lack of inspiration or ideas. But there’s probably something worse, something that not only affects the creation phase but can also be a problem once it’s finished and try to sell it. The lack of knowledge about what we are going to write can condemn us to have a bad script.
That is why research must be a mandatory part in our process of writing any script. Whether based on a true story, set in a time or historical context, or even in the fictional stories, we have to incorporate this phase to be credible and consistent.
Research is kind of like pre-production for the writers.
As screenwriters, we must know our characters as well as ourselves, we must treat them as something with a life of its own. Characters must not only have a well-defined personality and characteristics but a psychological and historical depth that allows us to know them better. Even if this information doesn’t appear in our film, it will help to make the story building and make our characters much more solid and powerful. Otherwise, our characters are only going to be features on a piece of paper. No emotions, just archetypes. And that’s what we should avoid.
The purpose and motive is the first thing that we have to be clear at the time of writing our script. Without either of them, we are beyond lost. Our script will lack a narrative and emotional meaning that is essential if we want to tell and convey something. That’s why we need to be clear about where we start, structure everything from the beginning and then complete it with the results of the research phase. There is no established method of how to do it, but the goal is the same for all writers. Everything we find in the research phase must be aligned with our purpose, each idea must be unique in order to contribute something different to our work. Writing a script is not only to reflect on paper what we have in our heads but to make it possible to reach the mind and heart of the public.
It’s very important to remember that what we’re trying to write is a movie script. The research process is not aimed at the viewer, but at the screenwriter. The better our work, the clearer we’ll have our ideas. Write a screenplay can last for years, so do not worry if the research ends up being long, because it is usually something parallel to the process of writing.
Research is kind of like pre-production for the writers. It functions as a base that is set to make the writing process more solid. This will allow us to know better what we want to write about, and therefore, more fluid and consistent our story will be. We must become experts in the field. Writing a script is almost like taking a degree whose learning and inquiry can last more or less depending on the magnitude of the story, but with the sole purpose of getting to entertain and excite with what we have learned.
If you think you have something really special on your hands, our UK Online Pitchbox is your chance to prove it. For the fifth consecutive year, this online initiative aims to discover high quality unproduced projects and match them with leading companies in the industry. Executives from Baby Cow Productions, Bankside, BBC, FilmNation, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal, See-Saw Films, Sky Originals and Vertigo Films are already confirmed to attend.
