“Let’s Get Busy” Screenwriting Seminar – Get your story map down on paper!

Two Saturdays, Nov. 10 & 17, 9 am to 6 pm, Berkeley;
$295 members/$325 non-members

“If you write it, they will come” is instructor Terrel Seltzer’s writing mantra for herself and her students.  But how to write “it” – the spec script that will open doors – is the rub.  “Respecting the form of screenplay structure is key,” says Terrel. “Hitting all the dramatic marks in 110 pages is a major part of the creativity.” The other rub is sitting down and getting the work done.

“Let’s Get Busy” is a fast-paced, two-day intensive designed for those looking for advanced instruction on how to hone their movie idea – and get it down on paper! You’ll do this by developing a working “story map” that can serve as a guide to follow in writing the script. Starting with this premise, you’ll use writing exercises to identify the “Major Dramatic Question,” then develop the “Five Structural Tent Poles” to ensure that your story has sufficient turning points, conflict and escalation. Finally, you’ll fill in eleven “character beats” to describe the protagonist, his/her goals, what keeps him from his/her goals, the theme, and resolution.

The workshop will be two packed days of writing, interactive class discussion, positive encouragement, and always lots of laughs and fun.  The goal will be to write a tight and active one page Story Map that will clarify how your unique story unfolds from its basic premise to its climax and resolution.  So come with an idea, a favorite writing tool, and a burning desire to finally get it down on paper!

NOTE: This workshop is designed for writers who already taken at least one prior screenwriting class. Beginners should take Terrel’s 9-week introductory screenwriting workshop before signing up for this seminar.

Terrel Seltzer is a self-taught screenwriter. She learned the craft by watching and outlining literally hundreds of movies.  Her career started in the Bay Area, working with SF director Wayne Wang, for whom she wrote the screenplays for the independent films Chan is Missing and Dim Sum. Her two produced Hollywood screenplays are How I Got into College (with Lara Flynn Boyle and Anthony Edwards) and One Fine Day (with Michelle Pfeiffer and George Cloony). Currently, she has two scripts in development: Magick written for director Robert Zemeckis at Dreamworks,  and Foolproof, a spec script recently optioned by Warner Brother Classics.