Go Into The Story

Interview (Video): Michael Arndt

In conversation with the late Syd Field.

Page One: “Infinitely Polar Bear” (2014)

Written by Maya Forbes

On Storytelling: Thoughts, Feelings, Mentors, and Attractors

Reflections on two primary character archetypes.

The act of writing provides health benefits

“From long-term health improvements to short-term benefits like sleeping better, it’s official: Writers are doing something right.”

Page One: “The Incredible Hulk” (2008)

Screenplay by Zak Penn, screen story by Zak Penn, Marvel comic book by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Writing Tip: How to Discover a Character’s Humanity

A writing exercise which helps you tap into a character’s inner life.

The Business of Screenwriting: Commencement of Principal Photography

When your movie officially starts production, that can trigger a writer’s payday.

Page One: “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” (2013)

Screenplay by Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley, story by Chad Kultgen & Tyler Mitchell and Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley

What is a movie script’s denouement?

It answers this question: What do you want the audience to feel when they walk out of the theater at the end of your movie?

Scene Description Spotlight: “Ed Wood”

A period piece. A bio-pic of an enigmatic character. A drama with absurd comic elements. The 1994 movie Ed Wood is all of these — and more.

Page One: “In Fabric” (2018)

Written by Peter Strickland

My Favorite Five Films at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival

Amidst a strong slate of movies, these five films stood out.

Screenwriting 101: Rita Mae Brown

“Character is destiny. The resolution of any plot must come from within the character. The redemption or destruction of any character is…

Page One: “I Think We’re Alone Now” (2018)

Written by Mike Makowsky

Scene Description Spotlight: “The Deer Hunter”

During the Vietnam War, two American prisoners are forced to play Russian roulette.

On Writing

“Plot is what keeps you going when you first read a story, and character is what stays with you after you have finished reading it.”

Page One: “I Love You, Man” (2009)

Screenplay by John Hamburg and Larry Levin, story by Larry Levin

Go Into The Story Interview: Alysha Chan and David Zarif

My interview with the 2024 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winners.

Writing and the Creative Life: Mind Wandering

“What no [spouse] of a writer can ever understand is that a writer is working when he’s staring out of the window.”

Page One: “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore” (2017)

Written by Macon Blair

Interview (Part 6): Alysha Chan and David Zarif

My interview with the 2024 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winners.

Scene Description Spotlight: “The Dark Knight”

Today we shine the spotlight on a great piece of screenwriting, the screenplay for The Dark Knight, co-written by Christopher & Jonathan…

Page One: “Tucker and Dale vs Evil” (2010)

Written by Eli Craig & Morgan Jurgenson

Interview (Part 5): Alysha Chan and David Zarif

My interview with the 2024 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting winners.

The Business of Screenwriting: Movies are a director’s medium

“But that’s the whole point of the God damn movie!”