Build a Better Outline (and a much better script)
If you are writing a feature film screenplay or TV pilot and you haven’t done an outline, you are making life harder for yourself in multiple ways. You’re also decreasing the chances your script will ever be noticed by the industry.
Outlines are arguably one of the most important aspects of screenwriting, and also one of the most under valued. Anyone who reads scripts for their job (agents, managers, producers, script competition judges) can tell if a writer has completed a solid outline within the first fifteen pages of their script. The differences are that obvious, and that significant.
This OnDemand webinar will explore why an outline matters so much, what risks you take by not diving into one, and offer helpful tips and advice on making the most of the time you spend prior to launching into ‘page one’. You will leave this webinar empowered to explore your idea in whatever outline format suits you best. You will gain an appreciation for the outline, you will write better outlines, which will lead to better scripts, immediately.
An architect doesn’t build a house without a blueprint, so why would someone hoping to work at the very top of the industry try to write a script without an outline? Join us, and polish your screenplay blueprint skills.
What You Will Learn:
- What an outline actually is
- How important an outline is for your writing process
- The risks of not having an outline
- The different types of outlines
- How to write an effective outline
- How to truly understand your script idea and characters
- What to focus on, and what to avoid
- How impactful an outline can be, and how much time it will save you
Who Should Watch:
- Writers who want to fast track their screenwriting skills
- Writers who want to understand what really makes a successful screenplay
- Writers who want to understand why they have chosen this particular idea
- Writers who want to learn how to write a useful outline
- Writers who have struggled with scripts that lose focus and direction
- Writers who want to improve their screenplay structure skills
- Writers who need help creating compelling characters
- Writers eager to understand what their idea is really ‘about’
- Writers who want to gain more confidence and understand their process
- Writers who get stuck trying to figure out how to finish their script and lack the confidence to finish their project
Instructor:
Tim Schildberger is a screenwriter, author and journalist. He was the youngest writer ever on the globally popular Australian TV series "Neighbours", a senior member of the production team for the movie “Borat”, and creator, writer and producer of the comedy series for US and International TV, “Lawrence of America”. Tim started his screenwriting consulting, education and screenwriting competition organization “Write LA” in 2016 and has been helping writers improve their command of craft and launch their writing careers ever since. He’s also the author of the popular screenwriting book The Audience and You: A guide to writing screenplays with emotional impact. When not teaching webinars, reading scripts or giving feedback to writers, he’s writing his own scripts, he’s the US Correspondent for an Australian Breakfast Radio show, host of the Script, Mate! Screenwriting podcast, and he’s currently preparing to take on a master’s degree in psychology.