Syd Field's book Screenplay

-JunK- said:
I've read most of the books mentioned, Syd Fields, Blake's and Volger haven't read the "SW Bible".

First, the classic, Syd Fields, is a must read imo as well. It's not meant to be a text to make you think creatively and he says that, it's great to learn the process and structure of a screenplay; how to begin and organize and all of that.

Blake Snyder's Save the Cat was a very good read albeit the author very pretentious and condescending at times, imo anyways at least on the first go, the 2nd time I understood his style. Very great stuff I learned a lot, but still just a book to get more insight and expand on.

A Writer's Journey well, great!

Just good books to make your own, not follow like a bible, but all 3 will make you a better screenwriter and writer in general.
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Definitely agree with your last point. All three will make you a better storyteller. My storytelling skills were catapulted after reading Field, Snyder, and Vogler–in that order. A Hero With a Thousand Face, by Joseph Campbell, is a must read for filmmakers too.
 
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I've only read Field and McKee and I must say McKee's book is profound. You not only learn about story, why it is what it is, and how it works but also you learn a little more about yourself and life(at least I did). A lot of life lessons are confirmed in that book. Field tells you important parts of a screenplay. McKee tells you about those and more and why they are important to the story. McKee is a must IMO.
 
This book is an absolute must.

Following blindly the principles, written inside, won't guarantee you a good script, but these are very, very good things to know.

It smartly summarizes storytelling principles, which are thousands of years old and translates them into the circumstances of modern filmmaking.

I can sincerely say that it was an eye-opener for me. I wish I had read it before I did some things :).

I'm planning to apply for funds and translate Screenplay in my native language (It's still not translated!).

Wish me luck ;).
 
Speaking of translation/transcription, McKee's "Story" is available on audio CD and the narrator does a terrific job! I thoroughly enjoy listening to McKee on my iPod when I'm on the move.
 
sounds like I need to pick up McKee's book.
I like Field's book, though its a little too retsricting, it definitely sets a good foundation, I also enjoyed Segar's "Making a Good Script Great" and William Froug's "Screenwriting Tricks of the Trade"

For screenplay format, I found "The Hollywood Standard" by Christopher Riley, easy to use and very helpful. Its great to reference back to and its current.
 
I've read mckee/vog and others I cant remember. One i found interesting was Judith Weston's "the Film directors intuition"

its a goes over script analysis and rehersal techniques. I would say it goes in depth in breaking apart scenes.

Breaking down the scenes as she suggest help the reader form their own opinions about choosing what direction to go.

i found it very helpful in developing characters/ directing the actor/ and formulating the scenes.

I wouldnt say that she gives a straight structure on how to write a screenplay, but more or less thing to consider when writing it.
 
I'd like to make another kind of off beat suggestion, its not a screenplay book, but has some great advice in it for writers.
Stephen King's "On Writing - a memoir of the craft"
I just finished it and I'm using the advice to write my script for Scriptfest.

While a script obviously needs the format and all the elements that are essential to a good screenplay, it should also be exciting to read and I think a lot of King's advice is applicable.
 
I'm pretty sure its McKee, if you check on his website you can work with him in sessions. I was going to do it, but life got in the way. It's not too expensive either.
 
thnks to "kylekmd" and "moonlitnite" for such a compilation but I'm getting error while downloading the file ..could you please upload on some other server..it will be a great help for me
 
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kylekmd Story Structure notes

kylekmd Story Structure notes

filmmaker98 said:
thnks to "kylekmd" and "moonlitnite" for such a compilation but I'm getting error while downloading the file ..could you please upload on some other server..it will be a great help for me
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Huh, I didn't see it there either. Since Kyle (user kylekmd) seems to have put his nifty doc in the public domain and referenced it in another dvxuser thread, I assume it's okay if I upload a copy for your use. Unless we hear otherwise, I suggest we treat the file as Creative Common "Attribution - NonCommercial - No Derivative works." Okay, here's a copy I've uploaded on my website:

http://www.bridgehands.com/Story_Structure.pdf

FYI - it's 11MB so unless you have a high-speed connection, be patient on your download.

Regards, Michael
 
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