Screenwriting 101: William Goldman
“Rule of thumb: You always attack a movie scene as late as you possibly can. You always come into the scene as the last possible moment, which is why when you see a scene in a movie where a person is a teacher, for instance, the scene always begins with the teacher saying, ‘Well, class…’ and the bell rings. And then you get into another scene because it’s very dull watching a man talk to people in a room… In a book you might start with some dialogue, and then describe your clothing, and more dialogue. The camera gets that in an instant. Boom, and you’re on. Get on, get on. The camera is relentless. Makes you keep running.”
— William Goldman (Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid, Marathon Man, The Princess Bride)