The Tools of Screenwriting: A Writer's Guide to the Craft and Elements of a Screenplay

In The Tools of Screenwriting, the authors illuminate the essential elements of cinematic storytelling. These elements are guideposts for the aspiring screenwriter, and they can be used in different ways to accomplish a variety of ends. Questions of dramatic structure, plot, dialogue, character development, setting, imagery, and other crucial topics are discussed as they apply to the special art of filmmaking. The authors demonstrate how the tools of screenwriting work in sixteen notable films, including Citizen Kane, E.T., One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Rashomon, The Godfather, North by Northwest, Chinatown, and Sex, Lies, and Videotape. In the analyses of these films, the reader will discover the common elements of compelling screen stories. The Tools of Screen Writing is an essential book for anyone who wants to write a script that will be filmed.