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Scenario: The Craft of Screenwriting
Scenario: The Craft of Screenwriting
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Author: Tudor Gates Publisher: Wallflower Press Format: Softcover # of Pages: 144 Pub. Date: 2002 ISBN-10: 1903364264 ISBN-13: 9781903364260
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About the Book:
Subtitled The Craft of Screenwriting, this volume focuses
on practical methods for writing a screenplay. The author of the sci-fi fantasy film Barbarella, starring Hollywood icon Jane Fonda, and other successful screenplays analyzes the basic
structures of effective screenplays, from initial plot-lines to
finished scripts. All the essential building blocks are discussed
in-depth: the need for a strong premise, the roles of protagonist and
antagonist, the orchestration of plot, characters and dialogue
leading to a clear resolution.
Written by Tudor Gates, a highly-experienced and successful
screenwriter, Scenario is a book which not only instructs
first-time writers how to go about their work but also serves as a
valuable check-list for established authors, and for actors,
directors and teachers, in their task of deconstructing and assessing
the value of the material placed before them.
Tudor Gates says that stories must be constructed in a way
similar to arguments: the narrative states a claim and proves it
through the way the characters relate and the conflict is resolved. A
good premise must have an element of universal truth, he adds.
Parables and proverbs are premises in pure form. Some of the great
lines of literature are a source for premises: "Do not ask for
whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee"; "Hell hath no fury
like a woman scorned." Some examples of the premises driving the
plots of well-known films:
• Cheerful optimism helps one to
survive even the most dire misfortunes (The Gold Rush, 1925).
• Courage born of love will allow one to overcome all obstacles
(The General, 1926).
• True love cannot be defeated and will
live on, even after death (Romeo and Juliet).
• In war there
are no victors, only victims (All Quiet on the Western Front, 1930).
• All that glitters is not gold (A Star is Born)
• With
courage and determination you will always find a way out of despair
(Bicycle Thieves, 1948).
• It is a wonderful life (It's a
Wonderful Life, 1946).
• We all have our own concept of
truth (Rashomon, 1950).
What people say:
"A highly approachable blend
of memoir and manual ... Working under such chapter headings as The
Grammar of Writing and Orchestrating Your Characters, the book offers
a refreshing, unpretentious back-to-basics approach, which quickly
gets down to the nitty-gritty ... An entertaining and informative
master-class." — Film Review
"This is an immensely readable
introduction to the craft of screenwriting and is very helpful for
budding screenwriters." — Alby James, Northern Film
School, Leeds Metropolitan University
About the Author:
Tudor Gates (1930-2007) was a prolific English writer
for both stage and screen. He wrote over a hundred teleplays and
episodes (including The Sweeney, The Saint, and The
Avengers), wrote, co-wrote or worked on the screenplays for
sixteen feature films that enjoyed a huge box office success and
earned him a certain cult status in the genre of horror movies
(including Barbarella), and ten stage plays that enjoyed
lengthy West End runs (including Who Saw Him Die?).
He also served as Chairman of the National Film Development Fund and
the Joint Board for Film Industry Training.
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