Lecture 1:
Course Introduction
Class Textbook
Professor Christopher Bradley
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Professor Christopher Bradley
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Lecturer, Film and Media
Studies, Arizona State
University
MFA, Screenwriting, UCLA
Teaches courses in
Screenwriting and Film
History as well as the FMS
Capstone.
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In This Lesson
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What kind of distance
learning course is this?
How can you succeed
in this course?
What do we study in
this course?
What are the
assignments?
Why the short film?
No Country for Old Men (2007)
Written by Cormac McCarthy (novel) and
Joel and Ethan Coen (Screenplay)
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What Kind of Distance
Learning Course is This?
They Live (1988)
Screenplay by John Carpenter
Based on the short story by Ray Nelson)
Lesson 1: Part I
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A Unique Distance Learning
Experience
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This is not an automated course.
This is not a self-paced course.
This course emphasizes interactivity:
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Asynchronous
Synchronous
Participation is key to your success!
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Threaded Discussions on the eBoard
Interactive Learning Modules
Chat Rooms and Skype
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The Advantages of this Course
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Flexibility… not limited by space
Study materials available 24/7
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Lectures (streaming audio w/ PowerPoint)
Websites & other resources
Films linked to site
Clips
Structured like a traditional course
Complements multiple learning styles
Lots of interactivity
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The Disadvantages
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Students that learn best through face-toface debate can struggle in this
environment.
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Ways to compensate
Have real-time meetings with classmates
Students that are not well organized tend
to not do well in this environment.
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Meet all deadlines
Study in advance of assignments
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Online Evaluation
Pause the lecture and
take the Self-Evaluation
of Online Students.
It will help you better
understand how your
learning style meets the
demands of this
environment.
Juno (2007)
Written by Diablo Cody
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How to Succeed in This Course
The Great Train Robbery (1903)
Written by Scott Marble and Edwin S. Porter
Lesson 1: Part II
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How do We Define Success?
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Becoming better, more knowledgeable writers
Leaving the course with a finished short script
Getting a high grade: A or B
Becoming more adept at giving and taking
constructive criticism in workshop and discussion
The Apartment (1960)
Written by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond
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Course Organization
• Each lesson contains:
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Screening (linked short film)
Reading
Reading Review
Website
Lecture
Interactivity (Discussion Board)
Clips (Sometimes)
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Forms of Interactivity
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Threaded discussions on
the eBoard with classmates
and professors
Office Hours (if possible)
Online Chats with prof.
E-mail
Almost Famous (2000)
Written by Cameron Crowe
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And Not Just Any Kind of
Interactivity!
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To study writing and film we must debate.
However this does not require being
disrespectful or insensitive.
I expect us to discuss writing and film with
passion and perspective.
I expect us to challenge each other’s
conceptions of writing and film with rigor
and respect.
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What do we study in this
course?
Rope (1948)
Written by Patrick Hamilton (play) and Hume Cronyn (adaptation) and
Arthur Laurents (screenplay)
Lesson 1: Part III
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The Writing Process
• What does it take to be
a successful
screenwriter?
• Getting Started
• Staying Focused
• Revision
The Great Dictator (1940)
Written by Charles Chaplin
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The Principles of Drama
• How is storytelling related to
screenwriting?
– Plot and story
– Character and emotion
– The three-part structure
– Dialogue
– Meaning
Hamlet
by William Shakespeare
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The Online Workshop
Process
• Why do writers workshop?
• Sharing your work
• Giving and taking constructive criticism
• Improving your work in the workshop
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Assignments
Donnie Darko (2001)
Written by Richard Kelly
Lesson 1: Part IV
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Participation/Exercises
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Participation and short writing exercises
are worth 25% of your final grade (100
points)
Grade is based on:
• Contributing one writing exercise and two
posts per lesson to the forum.
• Keeping up with posts and exercises meeting deadlines.
• Quality of posts & exercises.
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Treatment
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The treatment is worth 25% of your grade
– It is a boiled down prose version of your story
that includes such crucial aspects as an outline
of the plot and a description of the main
characters and their function within the plot.
– It should be 2-3 single spaced pages.
– See the website for a sample treatment.
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First Draft of Short Script
• 25% of your grade (100 pts)
– You will complete the first draft of a
screenplay for a short film. A first draft is
by definition rough, but it should be about
10 pages long and include a beginning,
middle and end along with other identifiable
aspects of story structure such as conflict,
crisis and resolution. Your script should be
in a standard screenplay format approved
by your instructor.
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Final Draft of a Short Script
• 25% of your grade (100 pts)
– The final draft will include many of the
elements of the first draft but show
demonstrable improvement over the first
draft. The student should aim for the final
draft to be 10-12 pages. It should be as
polished as possible in terms of both the
writing and the format.
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Why the Short Film?
George Lucas in Love (1999)
Written by Joe Nussbaum and Timothy Dowling (story)
and Joe Nussbaum and Daniel Sheere (writer)
Lesson 1: Part V
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Starting Short
• As a beginner, writing a short script
before you attempt to write a featurelength script allows you to:
• Work with the principles of fiction and drama at
a manageable level
• Learn economy
• Revise more easily
• Practice screenplay format
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Advantages for the Student
Filmmaker
• Short films are the predominant form in
film schools
• Far cheaper to make than features
• Easier to get into film festivals
• Can act as a calling card to the film
industry
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Short Film about Short Films
• At the conclusion of the lecture watch
Live at Sundance: Short Films, Tall
Ideas.
• For your first post on the e-board,
summarize some of the attitudes about
short films on display in the movie.
Why do these filmmakers like working
on short films so much? What might be
some drawbacks to the form?
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Five Things to Remember
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Go through the website, or virtual
classroom, with care; know it well.
Get to know your classmates.
Keep up with all Lesson Tasks.
Turn assignments in on time, written
at a college level.
Discuss with rigor & respect.
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End of Lecture 1
Next Lecture:
How do I get Started Writing and
how do I Keep Going?
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