BA Drama and English Literature

This course offers Level 3 students a practical introduction to screenwriting and the opportunity to write a short film. 

Students learn the core techniques of visual story-telling through reading, watching and analysing short and feature films. The unit explores the distinctive characteristics - and the aesthetic and industrial contexts - of writing for the screen.

Students will develop their own writing skills through a series of focused writing exercises that will be critiqued in class. Students will be introduced to some of the major theories of story design, and be taught how to develop their work draft by draft. Weekly classes will cover (among other issues) the classic three act structure, beginnings and endings, the importance of genre, universal themes and their audience relevance, and dialogue. 

Students will be expected to develop and extend their own knowledge of film and television history: there will be weekly viewing and reading requirements, and a recommended viewing list is provided. Each student will write an original short film script for their final assessment.

• to introduce students to some of the core techniques of visual story telling
• to give students a basic understanding of the role of screenwriting within the contemporary  film and TV industries.
• to broaden students’ knowledge and understanding of the short film as a genre.
• to encourage students to develop their own screenwriting skills through a supervised process of drafting and revision.

By the end of this course students will:

• Have a wider knowledge of short films and the history of the genre.
• Understand the core structure of a screenplay.
• Have a strong understanding of how stories work and how and why audiences respond to them.
• Understand how genre affects and guides story. 

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Critique their own and others’ work effectively and constructively.
• Use their extended knowledge of short film history as a resource to develop and refine their own writing practice.
• Better understand the core techniques of visual story-telling

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Express themselves effectively in written and oral form
• Effectively revise their own work based on constructive criticism from their peers.
• Write a short film script which demonstrates an understanding of some of the core techniques of visual story-telling.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

• Write to a deadline and within the conventions of a certain genre.
• Understand storytelling skills which could be transferred to advertising, journalism, theatre or any other writing which is to persuade an audience.
• Work both independently and within a creative team.
• Express their own ideas with confidence and clarity.

Formative: 

First 3 pages of an original short film script 

Summative:

Film Analysis essay - 30%

Original short film screenplay - 70%

- Written feedback via email and oral feedback in class relating to formative assessment above and to work in development.

- Numerical grade and written comments on both screenplay and film analysis within 15 working days

On Film Making: An Introduction to the Craft of the Director  

Alexander Mackendrick  

Main Library: Blue Area Floor 4 (791.45 M46)  

The Calling Card Script: A Writer’s Toolbox For Stage Screen and Radio  

Paul Ashton  

Main Library Blue Area Floor 4 (791.44 A4)  

Save The Cat! The Only Book on Screenwriting You Will Ever Need  

Blake Snyder  

Main Library Blue Area Floor 4 (791.44 S6) 

Three Uses of the Knife (Diaries, Letters and Essays): On the Nature and Purpose of Drama   

David Mamet  

Main Library Blue Area Floor 3 (808.2 M30)  

On Story: Screenwriters and their craft  

Barbara Morgan  

Main Library Blue Area Floor 4 (791.4673 M59)  

Screenplay, The Foundations of Screenwriting  

Syd Field  

Main Library Blue Area Floor 4 (791.44 F1)  

The Hollywood Standard: the complete and authoritative guide to script format and style.   

Christopher Riley   

Main Library Blue Area Floor 4 (791.43 R4) 

Please note, to take this course unit you need a mark of 60 or above in ENGL20001/2 (Creative Writing: Fiction), ENGL20901/2 (Creative Writing: Poetry) or DRAM21141/2 (Playmaking)