DUE this week: short screenplay, 1-5 pages
Last week we pitched original story ideas and developed story treatments. Today (Tuesday) we workshopped first drafts. Thursday the screenplay is due.
The evaluation criteria is the same as what we used in our workshop. I'll be looking for:
- Who wants what? and the ironic situation
- Opposition
- The dramatic moment and how that changes the character
- A dimensional main character and a visualization of his or her inner life
- A big idea or theme
Out of this handful of core story assets, a successful short will be strong in at least a couple of ways, and in other ways, possibly not as strong.
(For example, the readers who read my "Party Girls" script today noticed that there isn't much in the way of a big idea--It's based on a fairly small, unprofound, though authentic idea. But the sense I got from my readers is that the irony/character dimension and visualization of inner dynamic tension is strong -- strong enough to make the whole work.)
TIP: If it's fun to write, it's fun to read.
