I was wondering, if you wanted to write a feature film screenplay, would you just get the idea and start writing it, or would you get an idea, and take it to some movie studio where they would give you permission to write the screenplay?
Think of a screenplay as something can be gone about in a few different ways.
First - If you're going to be doing EVERYTHING, lock, stock and sinker, camera, audio and editing then you can pretty much write whatever communicates your story so that you get everything in there you want.
Second - However, if you're going to ask anyone to do anything then you're going to WANT to NOT look like a COMPLETE idiot (somewhat of an idiot is okay, seriously).
So, you gotta watch your A)
splellin an glamatical errrers, and B) proper screenplay format.
If my sister/brother/buddy/coworker comes to me asking for my time, hands over five to one-hundred-five sheets of misspelled, unformatted goobledy-gok I'm gonna fabricate a polite reason why I cannot help despite the "obvious" worthiness of this endeavor.
Hopefully they won't ask for funds to boot.
People who routinely review spec screenplays, like potential actors and God forbid, investors!, don't want their brains bogged down by rubbish.
You gotta at least
look like you
halfway know WTH you're doing.
The more people you'll be bringing on this project the more knowledgeable you'll need to be about not only the screenwriting process, but the whole kit and kaboodle.
Until then just play your cards close while you self educate.
Write some <5min shorts then shoot & edit them yourself.
Cultivate an appreciation for how a budget gets spent really, really fast!
Third - You wanna sell a product to someone else to invest $XX into.
Well, now you're starting to learn a whole new trade.
Download Celtex for FREE:
http://www.celtx.com/addons.html?dlfile=CeltxSetup-2.9.1.exe
Learn some proper spec screenplay formatting basics:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12721428/Professional-Screenplay-Formatting-Guide
See if this map looks vaguely familiar:
http://i879.photobucket.com/albums/ab352/rewriteitagain/ScriptStructure.jpg
Watch a hundred DVD/BluRay extra bonus feature director/producer/actor/screenwriter commentaries.
Cultivate an understanding of just how much changes from studio approved script to screen.
FIGHT CLUB has one of the best commentary collections I've seen.
A couple other notables are SHAWN OF THE DEAD/HOT FUZZ, THE GREEN ZONE and (of all things) THE EXPENDABLES.
You wanna listen to a worthless director & producer commentary? Try PREDATORS.
Ugh.
Write a dozen shorts, get peer review (not buddies and family), compile ideas for your feature and start working on it.
Nothing's more heartbreaking than to see someone pour four-hundred+ hours of work into a hundred-fifty-eight pages of mis-formatted rubbish.
People who know WTH they're looking at go "WTH is this?!" and then the writer (understandably) gets their little feelers hurt.
Good writing is re-writing.
And re-write it some more.
And again.
In fact, just don't get too attached to much of any of it.
GL & GB
Ray