New to Screenwriting

Overkill said:

Good Morning, everyone.

I am ready to try my hand at writing a screenplay, and intend to use my first novel as my first experiment. Are there any books that i should consult before i try the process? A friend suggested Save The Cat, which i have. But are there any other ones that i can get that would help me along when figuring out how to put one of these scripts together?

thans and have a great day guys

greg

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You need to learn about format, so use the latest edition of Dave Trottier's, A SCREENWRITER'S BIBLE: THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO WRITING, FORMATTING AND SELLING YOUR SCRIPT.

But what you really should do is read 50 feature scripts, all written within the last 5 years (because styles change). Some adaptations, some original specs, some assignments. The only way to really learn what screenplays are all about is by reading screenplays, not reading about screenplays.

And if you have the urge to use Voice Over as the exposition-vehicle to drive your screenplay, beat that impulse to death with a hammer.

Good luck!

I second Save The Cat. Excellent book.

Overkill said:

Is there a place where i can go to download scripts to read? I am a horror junkie and would love to find a few of those, one in aprticular i would like to read is Alien vs Predator Requiem.

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That would be the best way to get a feel - read actual scripts. It's what helped me when I was trying to sort through ideas and lack of formatting knowledge. Some of my personal favorites: Inglourious Basterds, The Dark Knight, and The Shining (which I'm pretty sure you can find online somewhere).

There's a copy of one of the Alien/Predator scripts online here:

http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Alien-vs.-Predator.html