3 Rules Beginning Screenwriters Need To Know - Dr. Ken Atchity

Three things a screenwriter has to know: structure, structure, structure

Even being the most important character, its not good the audience to know they got targeted.

What a wonderful mantra to keep front-of-mind. “The audience is the main character”. Thats one of the only fixed rules there are I would imagine.

$22 for a ticket?

I think the audience is important because they always want to get value for every story they watch

Thank you thank you

It’s amazing how many people there are out there who can shovel bullshit so confidently.

I agree, the audience is the most important thing to consider when writing a screenplay. I remember watching the matrix and that scene where Morpheus is explaining What is reality to neo. The audience was dead silent. It’s like everybody was paying attention not just Neo.

Yes the audience is very much important in your screenwriteing

that was interesting to listen, please more

I hate it when they do the things that are obvious in movies It’s like they pulled a can off the shelf in Hollywood ok feed them this! I hate to already know which way the story is already going! I like to be surprised I’d rather see her not go up the step cause I know thats stupid and there’s a million films that do that same thing and it’s boring! BORING, TRICK ME GO LEFT INSTEAD OF RIGHT! Have her do something logical and the birds out smart her and catch her a totally different way! So in your mind it made sense to not go up the steps thats stupid! Show her run to the basement and they come though a broken pipe we saw her trying to fix in the middle of the movie before the birds went crazy! When we were just being introduced to her! Working around the house! I like to be fooled!

I’m starting a screenwriting program soon. Wish me luck! This was great. 🎬🍿🎥

bro off the rip was a dick to the lady "thats just an arbitrary number but lets go with it." Lost all credibility after that. Also NO ONE cares about what color hat a character wears moron.

I can't fathom why you didn't do another take without all the action in the background. Or why you shot towards the door.

1) match the plot with the backround

We can change most of the characters’ looks in sequels but not the most important items as speaking of connections.

As a writer✍🏽, if looking at the audience as characters means making them feel like they are in a novel, movie, show, series, etc., then si, I agree; otherwise, I'm not with it.

"How to grab audience by the throat and never let go of it" I think that's the formula used by every successful director

The man is right. However:

Chronological Order is part of the film, so it does need to be took into consideration, as it can give the audience different perception on events.

Phycological order needs to work to, as the fear the character faces is directly to do with the earlier instances heightening and leading to the climax.

For the example he gave of the girl not checking the flashlight, this may relate to what the man was talking about. If there are details of her being stupid and clumsy beforehand, you can expect the films logic plays a big role in making her do actions that best portray her character

What a great advice!

Yes the audience is the most important think

Dramatic order is the key

Whenever I am in the audience - it is.

I like this guy..a lot..Sage wisdom and experience right there!

If I think the audience is the most important character? The answer is another question. Who's paying for having fun?

There's a lot of movies that break these rules and makes u wonder how the hell they even managed to make that awful movie?

A director's job is to be the audience before the show opens, in live stage shows, and also in film productions. The director is the first audience.

1 & 2 definitely but #3? how did 'star wars' or 'predator' used the audience? if not to shock them; for drama i would say yes but sci-fi and even action, that rule is out; now you have to be aggressive about ideas because most have already shown (unless you have great actors people will pay to watch regardless lol see Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep or Jim Carey for that matter!

The problem with films is that most of it is fan service and sensationalism none of it is believable, real, relatable. I say F*ck the audience as the main character. Im trying to make art and something original. If they don’t like it f*ck em. People don’t like oscar best picture movies. You can’t please everybody so there’s no point in trying to keep them in mind 24/7. If you’re pleased with what you wrote someone else will be pleased with story.

I'll just say what I think. I played a lot of games and watched a lot of shows and from my perspective, striking a good balance between the dynamics(action, music, visuals, etc.) and dialogue keeps things interesting. Add a flavor of unpredictability and it's gonna be like striking gold every time the audience get surprised; That's if the content garnered the audience's trust in the first place. Teasing, pleasing, sharing, and caring is what I think will make a great story. In a way you're still speaking to your audience; It's just fancy words and complimentary factors.

"The audience is the main character in the story, not the characters..."

Thank you!!!!

Stories that start with sex scenes, parties, fights... just useless nonsense that do nothing to lead to the core of the story is a waste of time. Stay on the story and purpose. And make sure it's interesting.

When a zombie walks in during a talking session and disappearing in the background to scare him in the next room.

For me, I go by three rules when it comes to writing a script for a movie or just a movie in general:

1) it must be a good story, an interesting story and it moves forward. No one wants to be bored.
2) it must be perfectly casted
3) it must have entertainment value

No. What's he going on about? He's saying that the audience will both question what characters are doing, and that they will keep watching because it's a movie. How many terrible movies follow that advice? How many people complain when characters do something unmotivated or plain dumb because it's a movie. Dumb characters are so hard to want to see succeed, because they come off as following the plot. you want something scary? The character does everything right, everything that the audience would do, and still loses. We cheer when dumb characters in movies die.

these are 2 rules not 3 but thanks anyways, pretty good, not gold but solid good.

I don’t think him saying the audience is the main character means in any notion that as a writer you need to care about specifically what people are going to think and although that is important in its own way, I believe what he means is you want to make sure your audience feels a connection to the main character/characters. therefore there’s a projection onto the audience that creates an a understanding to the story. The main character and the audience should definitely feel like one. It’s like when we watch a movie, for example, “back the future”. we get to see everything through the visuals of of our main character’s ,Marty’s life. His daily morning, his relationships, his problem, how he gets through it. just to make you feel like “wow I can’t even imagine trying to just start off my day and getting blasted into 1955.” You want the audience to experience this adventure with him. You NEED the audience to become him. I thought this was excellent advice. Thoughts?

I agree about the audience wanting what they pay for but you can still build in those elements of her putting on a jumper, checking the flash light but then it still falls down at the last minute. I think newer directors are doing this more and more.

Thank you.

Logical order is not necessary? That's sounds a bit lazy, if you can give her a motive to go upstairs, that will intensifies the tension on the scene, and will not make the audience think she is stupid.

I'm not 100% convinced we should think of the audience as a 'character'. But I do think we need to give their views and expectations a great deal of credence. I mean, a show like Mr. Robot did treat its audience like a character and in my view, they did it successfully. But maybe I'm wrong, and this is now more important in the age of streaming and VOD.
I have no problem with the idea of treating the audience as a voyeur.

Good advice

I think modern audiences wouldnt buy a character walking into that room or not checking the flashlight. Character motivation would compell me to write a reason why she NEEDS to go in that room.

Beginner movie writer here, 👍👍👍👍

Who else spend the whole time trying to write a story based on the old man in the background of this video?

How to sell an English script I wrote. What is the usual value of a scrip. I know that depends on certain things.