There are no prerequisites besides a firm grasp of the English language.
There are three kinds of feelings when reading a script - yes, no, and WOW! Your job as a screenwriter is to create that WOW! feeling on as many pages as possible. But writing authentic, sparkling, well-crafted dialogue that individualizes characters and entertains the reader is the ultimate challenge for screenwriters, who otherwise may have solid script elements, and yet are bound to fail because of flawed dialogue.
How-to books and seminars discuss superficially, and it is more often prescriptive than enlightening. They focus on what dialogue must do but neglect discussing specific techniques on how to do it. Maybe it’s because most believable dialogue cannot be taught, but GOOD dialogue can.
Expanding on the essential elements of all successful scripts - the reader’s emotional experience, author Karl Iglesias will showcase over 50 dialogue techniques and lots of examples from highly successful screenwriters that turn bland, on-the-nose dialogue into striking speech that snaps, crackles and pops off the page. This class will include dialogue rewriting exercises and analysis of great dialogue.
There are no required materials.
Karl Iglesias teaches at the UCLA Extension Writers' Program, and is the best-selling author of THE 101 HABITS OF HIGHLY SUCCESSFUL SCREENWRITERS, and WRITING FOR EMOTIONAL IMPACT. He also writes a regular column on the craft for CREATIVE SCREENWRITING magazine. A graduate of Cornell University, he has worked as a script analyst and development executive for various production companies. As a script consultant passionate about great storytelling, he specializes in reader emotional response. He's been named a STAR Speaker at Screenwriting Expo 2, 3, 4 and 5 and can be reached through his website at www.karliglesias.com.
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Storytelling: How To Write Stories That Will Grab And Hold Your Audience with Thomas B. Sawyer is a wonderful course. Mr. Sawyer helped me find the writer inside that I always knew was there! Bravo and thanks!
- Nancy Taylor