Screenwriting 101: Ted Tally

“Somebody said, and it’s not much of an exaggeration, ‘The only thing that matters in a screenplay is the first ten pages, and the only thing that matters in a movie is the last ten minutes.’ From a Hollywood point of view there’s some truth in that. If the first ten pages don’t grab the agent then they’re not going to tell the client to read it, or the studio person, or whatever. If the audience doesn’t walk out happy after the last ten minutes then they’re not going to recommend the movie to their friends.”

— Ted Tally (The Silence of the Lambs, All the Pretty Horses)

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