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Raindance Presents: Top 10 Tools For Great Screenwriting

Greetings! New Year's Resolutions have come and gone. The grey winter skies are beating down on our heads. Here's how to keep on the straight and narrow and write great films: 1. Watch Movies Was Rome built in a day? Did Beethoven write the famous No. 5 his first time out? Did Picasso paint Guernica as his student project? Of course not. Artists in all mediums learn from past masters of their craft. Great filmmakers watch great movies. Want to see movies where they are meant to be seen? In the cinema? Raindance believes Cineworld have the best deal in town to see movies: The Unlimited Card Want to see independent movies on www.raindance.tv for free?

2. Script If you want to make it as a filmmaker, your most important task is to learn how to identify or create a great script. - Learn how to Write and Sell the HOT Script Learn how to bulletproof your script - Discover the hidden secrets of story Learn the 22 Step Story Structure Don't live in London? Here's some stuff that might help: - Screenwriting books by Raindance tutors - Script archive site www.imsdb.com - Check out the Black List (top unproduced scripts of 2007) 3. Story Structure At Raindance we have developed some controversial ideas about story structure. Unlike other film schools, we put our theories to the test. Past students like Christopher Nolan, Guy Ritchie, Kirk Jones and James Marsh all base their success on principles learned at Raindance. Our flagship structure class is presented by John Truby What: 22 Step Story Structure When: Saturday/Sunday 5/6 April Where: University of Westminster, W1 (nearest tubes Oxford Circus/Goodge St How Much: £250 + VAT (Raindance members save 15%) Call 0207 287 3833 to register or Book Online Here Don't live near London? Here's a sample of our structure ideas: Click here: Click here: Why 3 Act Structure Will Kill You Click here: The 9 Elements of Great Films Click here: Moral Storytelling and the Oscar-nominated Screenplays 4. Understand Genre Genre is the valuable storytelling tool that allows you to craft your drama into a marketable script. The film industry does not buy drama. The term drama is too general. All stories are dramas. A writer's task is to understand genre and then find the genres and genre blends that suit the story. Raindance leads the field in genre-related studies. What: Understanding Genre with John Truby When: Monday/Tuesday 7/8 April 6:30 - 10pm Where: University of Westminster, London, nearest tube Goodge St/Oxford Circus How Much? £145 + VAT Raindance members save 15% To register call 0207 287 3833 or Book Online Here 5. Script Format and Style Guide The industry gets pretty anal about script formatting. Make sure you have it typed properly and ready to submit. Click here for the Raindance one-page summary Here's the best guide on the net, courtesy of the BBC Want script software? We recommend Final Draft from the Screenwriters Store 6. Make A Short You can learn more about screenwriting by making a short than you can by taking 100 screenwriting classes. Maybe you are a bit shy about filmmaking? How about 10 Guerilla filmmaking tips? When you subscribe to the Raindance newsletter you get loadsa tips like these from our members all around the world. How about forwarding this page to a friend? We'd really like that. 7. Learn Directing Writers write for directors. Directing is an incredibly glamourous job, but incredibly difficult. Ask Raindance tutor Simon Hunter, whose feature The Mutant Chronicles has just been completed nearly 2,900 special effects shots and 3 years later. He is coming back from LA especially to teach How To Make A Short Film on Saturday/Sunday 15/16 March If that doesn't suit, try our Hands-On Directing course. We run it 3 times a year. Don't live in London? Here are some tips for directing: Free article: Better living rooms, better movies or How to fake it as an indie auteur or The 9 Routes to breaking in as a director. 8. Don't live in London? Here are some of our most popular articles, designed to keep you tooled up: Free article: 5 Tips for Rewriting Some great ideas to get you going: New Slang Terms from 2008 Free Article: Writing is Rewriting Learn what and when and how to use copyright: IP Checklist 9. Awards and Festivals Film festivals are where you go to get exposure for your film, to win awards, and get the buzz going for your film. They're also a great place to meet producers and directors - the people who will buy your scripts. Click the blue link for the 4 reasons for attending film festivals. And what are the 100 top festivals for shorts? What are the basics of preparing a press kit? The 10 top tips from Sundance. How do I submit a film to the Raindance Film Festival? 10. Sales and Distribution To get your film sold you need to make a plan, get it into the right film festivals and the big 3 film markets: Berlin, Cannes and AFM. Or consider distributing your film yourself. The best help on the net is with a great company, Film Specific. Go on their website, subscribe, and learn. There really isn't a better way.

Thats about all I have at the moment. If you have anything you think we've missed, send it to live@raindance.co.uk, Enjoy Elliot Grove and the Raindance Team Raindance Festivals Limited

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