Do you want to work as a writer for film, TV or Plays? This course can get you pointed in the right direction. You will learn about plotting your script, character development, story arcs, dialogue and the business of script writing. This will equip you for the script writing world – full of employment opportunities.
Write your Passion
This course is suitable for:
- anyone interested in writing scripts
- course writers
- television writers
- content writers
- radio writers
- amateurs looking to get into script writing
- professionals who want to hone and improve their script writing skills
- study for professional development, CPD or interest.
Course Structure:
The duration of this online course is 100 hours. This consists of 11 indepth lessons:
Lesson 1. Scope and Nature of Script Writng
- Learning Aim: Explain what script writing is and its many applications
- Introduction – what are scripts?
- Where are scripts used?
- Writing Scripts – what is the story you want to tell?
- One page, one minute rule
- Visual, behaviour and aural storytelling
- Show and don’t tell
- Handling time
- Formatting script
- Abbreviations
Lesson 2. Plotting the Screen Play
- Learning Aim: Describe and compare techniques for plotting the story
- Types of stories
- What are the specifications?
- Duration of the performance
- Developing the story-line
- The Story Pyramid
- Creating a story board
- Techniques for plotting a story
- Fiction and creative non-fiction
- Non-fiction – Education, Corporate, Presentation Writing
- Screen play formatting guide
Lesson 3. Outline and Writing the Script
- Learning Aim: Explain how to write the outline of a script and then write the script itself
- Writing the outline
- Cliff hangers in a script
- Formatting outlines
- How to write the script
Lesson 4. Characterisation
- Learning Aim: Explain how to write good characters in your script
- Writing good characters
- Building characters
- Character planning
Lesson 5. Use of Dialogue and Sound Effects
- Learning Aim: Explain the use of dialogue and sound effects in script writing
- Dialogue in script writing
- Writing dialogue
- Dialogue tags
- Tips on writing dialogue
- Examples of dialogue
Lesson 6. Writing for Internet, TV and Film
- Learning Aim: Explain how to write for the internet, TV and film
- Time frame
- Fiction or non-fiction
- Pace
- Sound effects
- Visuals
- Writing for TV
- Writing for film/screenwriting
- Writing for websites
Lesson 7. Writing for Radio
- Learning Aim: Explain how to write for radio
- Introduction
- Components
- Voice
- Music
- Sound Effects
- Other points to consider when writing for radio
Lesson 8. Writing for Training/Instructional Videos
- Learning Aim: Develop scripts for use in educational programs
- One person script
- Two person script
- Multiple persons script
- Visuals in training presentations
Lesson 9. Writing for Children
- Learning Aim: Develop scripts for an audience of children
- Introduction
- Fiction and non-fiction hybrids
- Children’s cognitive development
- Implications for the writer
- Socialisation
- Gender, roles and stereotyping
Lesson 10. Writing for Advertising
- Learning Aim: Develop scripts for an audience of children
- Writing for advertising
- What is the purpose of advertising?
- Writing and analysing adverts
- Summary skills
- Tips for summarising
- Writing for infomercials
Lesson 11. The Business of Script Writing
- Learning Aim: Develop an understanding of the business of script writing
- Commercial Opportunities
- Start your own production business
- Ethical and legal considerations
- The law
Extract From Course Notes
Building Characters:
We must be true to our characters. As a scriptwriter, we should ensure that our characters have the correct characteristics to develop the story in the correct way. Imagine you are writing a script about a poor, down at heel man, living on the streets in poor shabby clothes with no money and then finding out that he is being blackmailed and is a millionaire. Unless there were pointers in the story to suggest that he was wealthy, the audience may not believe the story you have created, we need to ensure that we give those clues. For example, he may be very well spoken, know a lot about good whisky, say that he has travelled the world etc. These ‘clues’ might help the reader to believe us when we say he is a millionaire.
Try and visualise your characters. What do they look like? How do they talk? What do they do? How do they behave? Are they good or evil? Are they human? If we can imagine what a person looks like, we can find it easier to find their voice when we are writing a script.
How does a Warnborough Online Course work?
You can start the course whenever is convenient for you. You will be studying from home and have access to support from our qualified tutors. Practical exercises and research tasks will be set at the end of each lesson – including an assignment. You will submit this assignment to your course tutor, who will mark your work and give you constructive feedback and suggestions.
If you have any questions please contact us.
