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Your screenplay is wrong. Here's why.

Came across this on the Internets, thought it was worth posting...

http://www.fastcocreate.com/3022129...in-one-handy-infographic?partner=newsletter#1

Last year, a scriptreader read 300 scripts for 5 studios, all the while taking notes on the problems and trends he saw. The number 1 problem? The story started too late in the script.

The scriptreader listed 37 frequently occurring problems, here are the top 20:

The story begins too late in the script
The scenes are void of meaningful conflict
The script has a by-the-numbers execution
The story is too thin
The villains are cartoonish, evil-for-the-sake-of-evil
The character logic is muddy
The female part is underwritten
The narrative falls into a repetitive pattern
The conflict is inconsequential, flash-in-the-pan
The protagonist is a standard issue hero
The script favors style over substance
The ending is completely anti-climactic
The characters are all stereotypes
The script suffers from arbitrary complexity
The script goes off the rails in the third act
The script’s questions are left unanswered
The story is a string of unrelated vignettes
The plot unravels through convenience/contrivance
The script is tonally confused
The protagonist is not as strong as [he or she needs to] be

An anonymous professional scriptreader read 300 screenplays for five different studios recently, all the while tracking the many recurring problems found along the way. If it's frustrating experience to bang out a screenplay without much experience, just imagine what it's like to read some of these hastily banged-out doozies, one after the other. Eventually, the person doing so organized all the data into a handy infographic that could be read as a diagnostic on where screenwriters go wrong.

The infographic is too huge to post here, but it's on the website link above.

And I don't agree lock, stock and barrel with the findings and reasons, since each script will have its own merits and issues and specific ways to help improve that script. What appeals to one reader may not for another. Only wanted to share the link and info with y'all.
 
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It's not really invoking Godwin to mention Hitler in a discussion about bad people though, is it? Sometimes the internet police get a little overzealous. Anyone who invokes Godwin in this case is practically the SS.
 
...and that would be a box office smash having a brutal killer and man of world domination be the star of the movie. All the good people of the world being crushed under the feet of his advancing armies. People's new brides being forced to sleep with English Nobles as this this is their "Noble Right". He'd be the perfect role model for the children of today's society. We can walk away rooting for a brutal murderer hell bent on taking away your freedom. ...But he was just misunderstood, ya know? ...Probably a "victim" of something along the way?

The reason why movies like this aren't made is because civilization is based on "Good triumphing over evil". That's what guarantees you and your children a "tomorrow". The moment you start celebrating evil is the moment you see your tomorrow slipping away.

You really have no clue what you're talking about, do you? There are entire subgenres dedicated to this kind of movie. If you can't see story in the redemption of evil, the corruption of good, and the ironies that can interplay when one or the other occurs, then I struggle to imagine what sort of crap you'd turn out.

And what happens when you make movies showing the "sensitive side" or "victim circumstances" of child rapists?

Watch some episodes of Law & Order: SVU sometime. They pretty frequently discuss the line upon which pedophilia rests between crime and disorder, and how easily it transfers from one to the other. And many movies have examples of humanized criminals, and I'm not even talking about mistaken identity "you've arreted the wrong man!" movies. A Time to Kill comes predominantly to mind.

You get reduced sentences. You get sympathy in the court rooms, news media and politicians. Then you get sanctuary states providing refuge for these poor "victims of circumstances". ...then ultimately you get a lot more raped children. That's the way it works, people.

Your world view is terrifying. This is how art gets piled and burned.

"Make movies that center along bad children, eh? The resulting child rape is inevitable!"

Ridiculous...

So get out there and make those scripts! Let's see the "brighter side" of poor old misunderstood Adolf Hitler. If you make it good enough maybe you can get those ovens fired up for another round?

There are numerous historical dramas about Hitler. They normally wind up carrying a theme of how his power led to corruption and how his greed led to his downfall, even when he's not portrayed as a completely inhuman monster.

Then you go right ahead and click away on that next script glorifying Nero ...or Manson maybe? Jeffrey Dahmer was also misunderstood. I'd love to see the brighter side of him. That's where my Friday night movie money wants to go.

Sure, there are movies about famous "Bad Guys" ...but they don't glorify them. There's always the part that shows their true colors.

Movies turn things however they want. Movies often white-wash the more horrific acts of their heroes (ie The Patriot) and gloss past any redeeming values that their antagonists may have had.

The world is a very grey place, Birdman, and a lot of good story comes from that.
 
My story begins at page 17. Is this too late? The screenplay is 91 page long. Thanks for answering!:)

Yes.
Your story should begin on page 1. What else could possibly be going on that matters?

let me say that the stated criteria aren't that harsh.

Story, story, story, story.

Nevermind what you see in the theaters.

for a Writer, it's all about STORY.
 
I don't necessarily agree with all of these as it represents a fairly "broad brush" in script analysis. These three seem fairly subjective or opinionated:

"The ending is completely anti-climactic"

Not every script needs to end with explosions, ultimate rescue or buildings falling. I liked "Monster's Ball" very much, ...but it was a very subtle climax juxtaposed with the movie's chaos that made it interesting. A movie's ending should always be judged by it's purpose within the context of the movie ...not just it's overall screen impact.

"The characters are all stereotypes"

Two words: "Star Wars" Everyone in that movie was a cookie cutter character ...and I loved them all!

"The scenes are void of meaningful conflict"

...One man's "Meaningful" is another man's "Tripe". Do we compare a holocaust victim's survival plight to a trendy schoolgirl struggling to become class president? It all depends on the way the movie is designed.

Just my opinion.

-Birdman

I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree.

"The ending is completely anti-climactic"

Emotionally anti-climartic. Unsatisfying is what they mean. Explosions have nothing to do with it.

"The characters are all stereotypes"

Star wars characters are NOT stereotypes-- unless you're a fan of classic scfi. They created the stereotypes in the movies.

Characters are the most important part. Stories are about people. not places or events. unique characters carry a film.

"The scenes are void of meaningful conflict"

"...One man's "Meaningful" is another man's "Tripe". Do we compare a holocaust victim's survival plight to a trendy schoolgirl struggling to become class president? It all depends on the way the movie is designed."

WHAT?

"the way the movie is designed" is called "The Script"!

Reality sucks. but shoulda-woulda-coulda is non sequiter in the movie business.

If the reader says it sucks, it sucks.
until another reader says otherwise!
 
I think how far you get into the script until a story actually starts can be subjective, depending on how you look at it. I was watching The Stepford Wives (1975), and you don't even find out what the movie is really about until two thirds in at least. The rest is set up, but very effective set up, I thought.
 
I think how far you get into the script until a story actually starts can be subjective, depending on how you look at it. I was watching The Stepford Wives (1975), and you don't even find out what the movie is really about until two thirds in at least. The rest is set up, but very effective set up, I thought.

I agree. Although a screenwriter should keep in mind that the film was based upon a novel.
 
wiki Godwin's Law: there is a tradition in many newsgroups and other Internet discussion forums that once such a comparison is made, the thread is finished and whoever mentioned the Nazis has automatically lost whatever debate was in progress
 
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