Event Details
Monday
July 6, 2020 5:00 pm
via Zoom
The eleventh installment of the Fundamentals of Screenwriting Series with Timothy Michael Cooper
From genre and character issues to plotting to formatting gaffes, here are the 20 most common issues that showrunners, directors, executives, and other readers DON’T want to see in your screenplay—plus the tips, tricks, and exercises needed to not merely avoid these complaints, but exponentially enhance your script in the process.
Some of the topics and techniques we’ll cover include:
- Anticipate and avoid the obvious AND subconscious issues that pro readers dread from page 1
- Delight the reader with “that scene”—the visual showpiece they’ll never forget!
- Create emotionally charged characters that never feel repetitive, predictable, or stereotypical
- Avoid “either/or” thinking—embrace gray zones to build unforgettable conflicts that break the mold
- Deliver sharp social commentary without hand-holding or preaching
- 5 techniques to put your protagonist through the wringer in totally unexpected ways
- How to “stack” events for maximum stakes with minimum chaos
- Prevent the ambivalent “shrug” by delivery a deeply satisfying conclusion to any story
…and a whole lot more. Hope to see you on Zoom!
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Timothy Michael Cooper is an award-winning filmmaker, comedy writer, and script consultant. He wrote and directed the Writers Guild Award-nominated Concierge: The Series, starring Kate McKinnon. His short comedy Lemon premiered at Tribeca, played at dozens of international festivals and on United Airlines, and is currently in development as a sitcom. Plus, he’s been part of the writers’ room for the Writers Guild Awards for the past six years, writing monologue jokes and sketches for numerous hosts/presenters.
Through his company, Blueprint Screenwriting Group, he’s taught hundreds of writers. His clients and students have sold their scripts to major studios; staffed on multiple network and cable TV shows; screened/won at SXSW, Sundance, Tribeca, Cannes, etc.; and got their movies and shows made across the globe.
Timothy is a proud member of the WGAE, the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective Writers’ Workshop, the Hollywood Radio & Television Society, and the WGAE Softball Team.
About The Fundamentals of Screenwriting Series
The Fundamentals of Screenwriting with Timothy Michael Cooper is a WGA East seminar series that aims to live up to its name – to teach the fundamentals for screenwriters that need a refresher or journalists and other screenwriting novices looking to learn for the first time.
