Script Frenzy

It's April and that mean's that it's the month for Script Frenzy. For more information, check it out here.

The main purpose of my advertising of Script Frenzy is because on the site, there are some good guides to writing a script or at least starting. They talk about formatting and I would just like to summarize some tips that they have for screenwriting:

1. Support the Draft: Write and re-write. A draft is a draft, a rough. You can eliminate things you don't like and add things you do.
2. Start Reading Movies: Not just on the screen, but on paper/digital copy as well. Finding scripts of movies you love and look at how the scenes were described and how they were delivered. Read a script that you haven't seen on the screen before and try imaging it in your head.
3. Choose an Idea That Excites You: Not necessarily something you know all about, but something that will get you going and you won't stop thinking about.
4. Plan, Pitch, Previsualize: Decide the flow of your story and recite it to a companion of sort. As you're talking, realize what excites you as you speak about it and then imagine what your script will look like.
5. Get to Know Your Characters: Flesh your characters out and decide how they act in response to their situation, according to their personality. Ask yourself what they wear, how they speak, etc. to make them memorable.
6. A Gazillion-Horsepower Engine?: People would be sitting and watching your film for 2 hours or so. Remember not to dwindle because that isn't a lot of time for you to get your point across and get the important things in.
7. Embrace Change: Change helps create a character and conflict. Does the character change and develop?
8. Action: Write a Blueprint: What is said in the script is going to be interpreted in the visuals or sound of the movie.
9. Dialogue: Listen to people in real life talk and interpret that in your script. In movies, the lines can be snappier and more to the point.

The site goes into more detail about it, but I learned quite a lot from these few tips on screenwriting. It is something that is not easy to achieve, but this is just a start.