Report: 2017 London Screenwriters Festival
A whirlwind weekend was well worth it for worldwide wordsmiths.
A whirlwind weekend was well worth it for worldwide wordsmiths.
Last Wednesday evening, I left Chicago after my Story Development class at the DePaul University School of Cinematic Arts. Nine hours later, I landed at Heathrow Airport in London 10AM local time. After managing only one hour sleep on the plane, I gutted it out and stayed awake until 11PM Thursday night, working on last minute tweaks to my presentations.
I awoke the next morning and made the 3/4 mile trek through beautiful Regents Park to Regents University, the site of the 2017 London Screenwriters Festival. I enjoyed the route so much, I repeated my walk each morning of the weekend.
On Friday, I did two presentations:
Coen Brothers: Unlocking the Mystery of These Master Storytellers
Killer Scene Description: Use Screenplay Style to Express YOUR Writer’s Voice
Both sessions were packed. I also held two after-session Q&A chats. The response was remarkable as Festival attendees thanked me over and over in person as well as in social media (here is an example):
On Saturday, I was a little more rested and less jet-lagged which was a good thing because I did one presentation to a room so jammed, people were sitting in the aisles:
Pixar: The Secrets Of Their Storytelling Craft
Then mentored six talented writers for a three hour writing lab.
It was a great session and a wonderful opportunity to work with writers from all across Europe and the U.K.. I followed up by sending them some of my Screenwriting Master Class lectures on Plot and Character.
On Sunday, I delivered my fourth and final presentation, the biggest crowd yet filling the main floor and balcony:
Writing The Compelling Nemesis That Elevates Your Plot, Characters and Stakes
I probably got more of a response from this session than any other as I laid out my take on how to develop and write a worthy Nemesis: Start with the Protagonist and zero in on their shadow.
Here is a smattering of just a few of the many reactions via social media to my appearance at the Festival:
I don’t often brag about myself, however I feel justified in putting the spotlight on my LSF presentations because of two things. First, each session arose from the foundation of what I teach: Character Based Writing. Start with character. End with character. Find the story in-between.
Second, at every session, I admonished attendees not to get hung up by so-called screenwriting ‘rules’, but rather to make narrative decisions based on this question: What best serves the story?
I interpret the response at this year’s London Screenwriters Festival to be a hearty huzzah in support of this type of thinking.
My thanks to everyone who made my visit such a delight including Chris Jones and Judy Goldberg, mainstays of the Festival, Dee Chilton, Vera Mark, Alexis Howell-Jones, and many others who made sure I knew where to go including some choice pubs, and the entire support staff of volunteers, a finer group of young people you’ll never see, almost all of them ardent in their desire to become screenwriters and filmmakers.
Good news: I’ve been invited back to the 2018 London Screenwriters Festival. Hopefully I can make my schedule work to accommodate it next September as I’d love to return for another great teaching and learning experience.
And if you’re a Euro-based writer — or even in the States — consider signing up for next year’s Festival. Great insights from the various presenters and panelists, terrific networking opportunity, and an inspirational weekend.
For more information about the London Screenwriters Festival, go here.
Twitter: @londonswf.