Screenwriting

I like the Comedy Western mix, Jim Boston. I haven't heard about a lot of them.

Quite a few feature-length Western comedies came out of Hollywood in the 1957-74 period. (Two of the most famous ones were 1965's "Cat Ballou" and 1974's "Blazing Saddles.")

I guess what happened to shut Westerns of all kinds down were three things: A dip in popularity as the Twentieth Century headed for the sunset, spaces to film oaters in the Mountain and Pacific time zones dwindling, and...1977's "Star Wars" setting a new standard.

It's a good problem to have, but my problem is Comedy - the awful temptation to put comedy gags into serious stories to amuse myself. I'm a natural gag writer so have to stop myself. Nothing ruins the high-tension moments in a thriller more than e.g. a fart gag - it is hilarious, but it's not supposed to be there. What I do to control it, is write the gags down separately. I just love writing comedy. -- Yes, I have a few, including a very recent TV thirty minuter called 'Ponzi's schemes' - which makes me fall about laughing.

I think a comic relief character is fine in serious stories, suspenseful scenes, and Horror scripts, David Taylor. Maybe avoid writing too many comedy moments though, or maybe don't make the comic relief character over-the-top funny.

Yeah. I do manage to get the balance right.

Thanks for sharing the article, Amanda Toney. I haven't written a biopic yet. This article will come in handy. And I might even write a biopic/narrative film mix.

Congratulations on Shaolin Demon being named a semi-finalist, Ramon Zapata! I'm looking forward to watching it! I like the inspiration for writing Shaolin Demon. I think it'll be great in your pitch. I suggest making it shorter though so it doesn't take up a lot of time in your pitch.

There's a lot of selfishness in the world and people not helping others. That's part of the inspiration for the Horror Action feature script I rewrote for November Write Club.

Congratulations!

As I recall the script for ALIEN is very short and did not describe the alien, just said things like "the alien reaches out." But I think you want to get to 90 pages for a feature. You can space out the language. Check out the script for HARD TIMES by Walter Hill. Admittedly he was directing it himself and could keep description to a minimum, and did not have to describe the hero Cheney (who was played by Charles Bronson in the excellent film), but it's a good example of minimal wording with lots of white space. I think Hill worked on ALIEN as well.

A 61-page script might be considered a feature, Srabon Ghosh. I watched a feature film the other week that was like 71 minutes without the end credits, and I've heard about other short feature films getting made.

I suggest checking with the contests to make sure they consider a 61-page script a feature.

Let a screenwriter see it. You'll get an opinion about length and probably easily resolve your 'time issue'. Sixty pages is very likely giving you an immediate disadvantage you cannot afford at this stage of your journey.

I don't know of any structure besides 3 acts. As for a perfect first 10 pages, absolutely. Try to make the whole damn thing perfect. If you want to see a perfect first page, check out the first page of FALLEN ANGEL in Lew Hunter's book "Screenwriting 434."

Hi, Alyazin Alriyami. I use the three-act structure for feature scripts. I used a three-act structure plus a cold open (at the beginning) and a tag (at the end) for a kids show pilot I wrote a while back, and I used a four-act structure plus a teaser (at the beginning) in an old Action Crime Drama pilot.

Stage 32 has a webinar called "How to Master The Story Structure Of Your TV Pilot Script" (www.stage32.com/education/products/how-to-master-the-story-structure-of-...).

And here's some free TV writing webinars: www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Stage-32-and-Netflix-Partnered-Up-o...

If it's a Series Pilot, you can have Four Acts - Literally Act One; Act Two; Act Three; Act Four. You can also add two- or three-minute TEASERS at the start - -Excerpts of what happens later - - and add two or three minutes of TAGS at the end -- adverts of what happens in the next episode. That gives you a 'Six Act' structure - which if it is fifty minutes total, gives you a traditional TV one-hour Pilot Episode. For 'The First Ten Pages' read lots of scripts first ten pages of successful movies or TV shows. The perfect first ten pages, means telling a great story beginning, which is properly formatted and doesn't have daft mistakes in it, like bad spelling, wrong scene headings, wrong character names, huge blocks of dialogue, or the author thinking out loud notes. etc

Hi, Alyazin Alriyami. Welcome to the community. I’m a Stage 32 Lounge Moderator. I wanted to let you know that I moved your post from the TV Series Pitch Document Writing Lounge to the Screenwriting Lounge. The TV Series Pitch Document Writing Lounge isn't active anymore. Let me know if you have any questions.

Stage 32 has a blog that'll help you navigate the platform and connect with creatives and industry professionals all over the world. www.stage32.com/blog/how-to-successfully-navigate-the-stage-32-platform-...

Stage 32's November Community Open House was Tuesday. It'll help you navigate Stage 32 and connect with creatives and industry pros. The recording is up now. It's free to watch. Your parents or guardians can sign up for you here: www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32-s-november-community-open-ho...

Since you’re a minor, make sure your parents or guardians are aware of your account and have access to it. Also, be especially careful about privately connecting with anyone on the platform.

I suggest adding a profile picture of yourself. People will feel more comfortable networking and collaborating with you if they know what you look like. And if you have a picture, your profile will show up when someone searches for you. You can upload a picture by clicking the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and selecting “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu, then clicking the red button underneath your location and choosing "Update profile picture."

I’m not sure if you’ll get a chance to pitch as a 16-year-old, but your location doesn’t matter. I suggest keep learning about screenwriting and the industry and build a portfolio of great scripts.

Here’s a blog for up-and-coming screenwriters: www.stage32.com/blog/the-questions-up-and-coming-screenwriters-need-to-a...

Stage 32 has other screenwriting resources:

Screenwriting Lounge: www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting

Screenwriting Blogs: www.stage32.com/blog/tags/screenwriting-25

Screenwriting Education: www.stage32.com/education/search?term=Screenwriting

Script Services: www.stage32.com/scriptservices

The Writers’ Room: www.stage32.com/writers-room (your parents or guardians can sign up for your first month of membership free here www.stage32.com/writers-room/plans-vip)

Hi Maurice Vaughan ,thanks for your reply I really appreciate that and will try doing what you suggested, thanks again!

You're welcome, Alyazin Alriyami. Great. Hope those resources help! And I'm a Stage 32 Lounge Moderator. If you ever have any questions about Stage 32, let me or another Lounge Moderator know. We have badges on our pictures. Or you could email support@stage32.com.

Finish school if you can. Make sure all your ideas are written down. They say getting any kind of job in the industry is a place to start so you make connections. Take your best story and begin the journey learning the craft of screenwriting by writing the script soon. You have the huge advantage of being young. There is ample information and learning capacity on this site - and people who will help you. You are very far from needing a 'manager' so just take it one step at a time. Write. Write. If you want to be a writer, you need to write. It's the first rule of Write Club.

Thanks for sharing Tim!

Congratulations on the job and meeting, Tim Morell! A strong visual hook can help. I pitch my scripts on Stage 32, Twitter/X, and IG with posters.

Eddie Lawhorn that's fantastic - looking forward to you sharing them through your project!

Thank you very much for your words — that truly means a lot Sebastian Tudores

And yes, The Silent PFC War and The De-Evolution Game are completely separate projects.

The Silent PFC War is a psychological sci-fi thriller built on neuroscience and global collapse,

while The De-Evolution Game is a multiverse, time-paradox epic driven by a sentient AI.

They both explore humanity in extreme situations, but each world has its own tone, logic, and philosophy.

I’m really enjoying the process of developing them — it's chaotic, but in the best way.

that's super Meriem Bouziani - creative projects that not only entertain but create a reflexive need for reflection are my favorites. keep rockin' it! :)

Thank you very much for your encouragement Sebastian Tudores

Hey @Sebastian Tudores. It's the last day of the month, and I wanted to check in and say, she's not a pretty pitch document yet. Rough draft is the phrase to use, but it is a completely written pitch document Ready for prettying up.

How are you doing on your end of our deal?

Thank you very much for this great encouragement Sandra Isabel Correia

Yes, we can make it, no matter what.

Happy NWC

Always welcoming the challenges Sandra Isabel Correia! It's what keeps us going!

That’s the truth my friend Eon C. Rambally :))

I’m really happy to share that today I finished writing the screenplay for The Misstep, a total of 97 pages!

My original plan was to complete it by November 28, but thanks to focus, resilience, and dedication, I reached this milestone one week early. Sometimes the work happens faster than we dream, and this is one of those moments.

Because of this achievement, I’m setting a new goal for next week: polish the screenplay for The Misstep. This way, I’ll be ready to move into packaging and prepare for the festival circuit in 2026.

Grateful for the motivation and support from this community. Let’s keeping pushing forward together!

Sandra Isabel Correia, it is excellent seeing this! Great anticipations for the next move!

The momentum is spectacular!

I use all three of these in scripts, Ehsan Rahimpour, especially suspense. I don't think I've used all three in one scene. I might try it.

That’s a solid idea Maurice Vaughan, but it really depends on what the scene or story organically calls for. Sometimes all three are essential, while other times one alone packs enough punch.

Ok, thanks, Ehsan Rahimpour. I'll definitely keep that in mind.

Writing commercial scripts (15 sec, 30 sec, etc.) can help writers get better at writing the first page, Elle Bolan. There's not a lot of time in a commercial script, so you have to grab the reader's attention right away. It gets writers in the habit of grabbing the reader's attention right away (the first word or sentence/sentences).

I've found starting a feature script with the protagonist or monster/antagonist doing something that's important to the story grabs the reader's attention.

Yep, that's the same method. 15 to 30 seconds flexes that exact same muscle.

It's a good skill to have.

I tend to drop in media res as often as possible. Right to a pivotal moment before page 1 ends. Maurice Vaughan

That's a great idea, Elle Bolan. I mainly do it in commercial scripts and short scripts. I also like to set up a mystery (like showing an object) on page one. I used to overuse flashforward scenes on page one in my scripts.