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Should I take a screenwriting course?

I've got several scripts, and, as I'm almost ready to do the table reads. A producer is impressed by my work, and he's suggested I take a screenwriting course. I'm wondering if I should do that, because I'm an aspiring mogul/producer, as opposed to an aspiring screenwriter. My thought initially would be to start the scripts and have a script editor go over them, instead of being an actual screenwriter.

Any thoughts?
 
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Editor? Go over them? It's a long way to go. You want the course and not just some course.

The course where the teacher says "I've had great ideas and can prove that my scripts came out great as well".
 
No, you don't have to. Can always hope other people know what they are doing.

Do you watch Project Greenlight this year? Saw what happened in the script process? They all thought the concept looks good and went with it. When you need fast decisions you have to REALLY know. Guessing or relying on other people means mistakes are being made. Things looked good, but the well made movie became unwatchable craaappp.
 
My thought initially would be to start the scripts and have a script editor go over them, instead of being an actual screenwriter.

You don't *HAVE* to.

That being said, you should. It will save you lots of heartache and time in the long run, even if you have no intention of writing yourself.
 
No, you don't have to. Can always hope other people know what they are doing.

Do you watch Project Greenlight this year? Saw what happened in the script process? They all thought the concept looks good and went with it. When you need fast decisions you have to REALLY know. Guessing or relying on other people means mistakes are being made. Things looked good, but the well made movie became unwatchable craaappp.

it's unwatchable crap? Is the project green light film available, I didn't know I could check it out.

but i'm not surprised that matt and ben didn't like his movie. It's their fault from the beginning. I watched episode 1 and thought why the hell did they pick this guy? To create the most drama of course, not to create the best film.
 
It was showed on TV - right before the series puts it in front of the audience. The test screening will be fun to watch.

The acting is good, but the choices how they tell the story destroys the experience. That's writer's territory. Interesting as hell.

But Aspiring Mogul, first, make sure that you are as good as you possible can in what you see as your main task. Then you will be needed to do that and hard to replace. If calling shots on script related matters helps you in that McKee is very good. He also sees things from a producer's perspective.
 
A producer is impressed by my work, and he's suggested I take a screenwriting course.

I don't know what to make of this.
If he is so impressed then why do you need to take a class?

What does it mean…

Additionally consider this 12 second line of dialogue from a directors commentary
(If you haven't seen the movie you might want to close your eyes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfvowgqBwGU

I don't know what to say to you personally.
I'd like to take one for the experience and judge for myself if it helped or not. But I don't think that will ever happen.

If you like this producer and you want to work with him in the future then I suggest you take his advice and attend the class. People often think higher of you when you listen to them and take action.
 
I don't know what to make of this.

If he is so impressed then why do you need to take a class?

To polish up my work.


If you like this producer and you want to work with him in the future then I suggest you take his advice and attend the class. People often think higher of you when you listen to them and take action.

He's been a mentor, advising me on how the film business works. He's a screenwriter-turned-producer. As for my scripts, they're shorts, to give me experience, and, over time, I hope to turn them into movies.
 
In working with actors, writers, directors and producers, I've found that we all have our strengths and particular interests. However, as a producer, you want to be familiar with all aspects of the media business.

Too many people think "anyone can write a script". After reading hundreds of scripts, I can safely say, that is NOT the case. When I work for a producer as a script consultant/reader, my responsibility is to make sure the script is properly formatted, well structured/paced, has solid plot and character development and meets production criteria which may include budget, locations, etc.

A producer doesn't need to know how to write scripts at a professional level but should have enough background to critically evaluate a script's quality. Sometimes the story is great but the script itself is abysmal. Sometimes the script is immaculate but the story is lackluster.

As a producer, understanding a script will help grasp budget issues, timing and other production issues. One or two classes in understanding techniques of screenwriting can be a help in becoming a successful producer/mogul. Not because you need to be a writer but to appreciate good writing. The screenplay is the blueprint for the film. So it's like wanting to be the head of a construction company without being able to read or create effective blueprints. Blueprints and jargon are how you communicate between clients and your workers. Understanding blueprints is how you judge how much the project will cost.

For shorts to get your feet wet, it's probably not a major issue. From your mentor's suggestion, it may be that to take your ambitions to the next level you will need to expand and solidify your toolbox. I suggest to writers that that take an acting class. It expands how writers think about scripts and dialogue. I don't see any harm for producers taking a similar approach since their stock and trade is in selecting quality scripts to produce.
 
Thanks, F&SF.

But, to take that argument to the extreme, would it mean that I would also have to learn about make up, sfx, cgi, cinematography, etc? I don't think I should have to learn all the skills.
 
Thanks, F&SF.

But, to take that argument to the extreme, would it mean that I would also have to learn about make up, sfx, cgi, cinematography, etc? I don't think I should have to learn all the skills.
Never good to take things to the extreme but if you watch enough "behind the scene" clips, you get a good sense of what's involved. However, you need to focus on the "bread and butter" parts of the producer role. Many times the producer needs to secure and oversee financing. There are producers by title only, but actual working movie moguls need to be thinking in terms of profitability and budget. You should have a good handle on the cost of SFX, CGI, etc. though not necessarily how it's done. For example, wardrobe needs to be coordinate if you are doing green screen/blue screen so you don't have conflicts. How much will need to be green screened and that will figure into studio rental. While normal makeup is inexpensive, if you need special prosthetic, the cost jumps up rapidly because you are also paying actors for modeling and fitting times. While you don't need to be a technical expert with cameras, understanding what equipment rentals will be needed should be part of your education.

Again, for a producer, your principal concern is the bottom line. And in the media industry, it's kind of like horse racing. A mogul will have a few projects and is a booky of sorts. S/He take other people's money and put odds on the horses (scripts). There's no magic solution but understanding good scripts from bad ones, betters your odds of recovering some of your investment at the races (film festivals).

So, do you need to take a class in automotive repair to work on your car? No. Can it make you more proficient and marketable if you choose to go in that direction? Of course. Learning to change your oil, refill fluids and basic maintenance doesn't require you to be an expert but makes you good at keeping up your own car. Taking a basic screenwriting class won't make you an expert but it will give you a good sense of what makes for good formatting, structure and story. It can help with your own scripts or make it easier in evaluating scripts.

If you invest in a franchise, it's best to get trained in how to run that business. If you're goal is to be a film mogul, it's worth investing some time and a little cash into some training to learn a bit about the industry. This is a competitive field and a little education can shorten the learning curve. For every good script, there 100 more that are mediocre or worse.
 
If you can find the right course, run by the right person then go for it. It can only help hone what you already know. But don't just sign up for any course, get recommendations and do your research or you're just wasting your time and your talent. And aim for one that's not for beginners or you'll get frustrated.
 
You don't have to, I learn screenwriting by reading a book that was written by David Trottier The Screenwriter's Bible. It's a great book to learn from if you want to be a screenwriter.

Tim "Timbo" Moore
 
would it mean that I would also have to learn about make up, sfx, cgi, cinematography, etc? I don't think I should have to learn all the skills.

As a producer, you need to be able to evaluate. The more you know and understand (though not necessarily need to be able to perform at a professional level) the better you will be able to perform your job.
 
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