How to write a great scene?

Consider the airplane scene from the movie Almost Famous.

Or the big standoff scene in Se7en.

The beautiful ending scene from the movie Big Night, five minutes without one word of dialogue.

The touching ice skating rink scene from Rocky.

Or these scenes from The Dark Knight, Goodfellas, Jaws, or There’s Something About Mary.

At their core, scenes are the basic building blocks of a screenplay. But they are much more than that. People remember movies by their memorable scenes. Plot points are comprised of scenes. So are sequences.

In effect, the essence of screenwriting is scene-writing.

Which means it is imperative for a screenwriter to know how to craft and write effective, entertaining scenes.

Do you know the key questions you should be able to answer when writing a scene? What type of scene is it? What is the structural and emotional goal of the scene? What is the central conflict of the scene? These questions can help you to crack every scene you write.

But how to write a great scene? Here you go beyond the basics of scene-writing relying on professional tricks of the trade: Put the scene on its feet. Make the scene about something else. Pressurize the scene.

This is the type of essential knowledge you will learn in the new 2-week online Screenwriting Master Class course Core VI: Scene. I will teach the class beginning Monday, June 20th.

Learn how to write effective, entertaining scenes. Then maybe you will be able to write great scenes like this one from The Usual Suspects. Or Broadcast News. Or The Silence of the Lambs. Or Alien.

For more information on Core VI: Scene, go here.

I look forward to the opportunity to work with you!