Beginning Screenwriter - Will you give feedback on my screenplay?

Taylor W.

Member
hey there, im a beginning screenwriter. It's my first time writing a screenplay.
I'm here to present one of my work, and hopefully receive some advice and notes that i should be aware of.
Thanks everyone, I'll appreciate every comment!
 

Attachments

  • remember, day after day.pdf
    113 KB · Views: 413
Taylor,

Always, always remember that your script has to get past a reader. As such, you cannot be sloppy in your grammar and clarity. You have a great deal of grammatical mistakes that will get your script marked as a PASS. Take time to do some serious proofreading.

Also, learn proper screenplay formatting. This will even involve how the story unfolds. For example, you have Edward onscreen first and introduce him well after. That's a no-no. But, have your mind on the subtle things as well. You can't show a "summer wind", and how would the audience even know it's summer anyway. A script is imagery and dialogue, basically. You can mention a few things that can't be communicated on screen, but only because they are relevant to things like characterization and so on.

Your dialogue has some formatting issues too. Numbers are NEVER written as a numeric when spoken. It has to be written out as it is said. "Eighteenth" not "18th".

You lean, very heavily on your action/description lines. A little too much.

Okay. So that's enough on the technical aspect. Concerning the story itself, you seem to have started in the middle of the story and not the beginning. Just remember, you as the writer know what you're going for, but that doesn't mean the audience does. So, put yourself in their place, or else you'll confuse them.

Hope that helps.

Cheers!
 
Taylor,

Always, always remember that your script has to get past a reader. As such, you cannot be sloppy in your grammar and clarity. You have a great deal of grammatical mistakes that will get your script marked as a PASS. Take time to do some serious proofreading.

Also, learn proper screenplay formatting. This will even involve how the story unfolds. For example, you have Edward onscreen first and introduce him well after. That's a no-no. But, have your mind on the subtle things as well. You can't show a "summer wind", and how would the audience even know it's summer anyway. A script is imagery and dialogue, basically. You can mention a few things that can't be communicated on screen, but only because they are relevant to things like characterization and so on.

Your dialogue has some formatting issues too. Numbers are NEVER written as a numeric when spoken. It has to be written out as it is said. "Eighteenth" not "18th".

You lean, very heavily on your action/description lines. A little too much.

Okay. So that's enough on the technical aspect. Concerning the story itself, you seem to have started in the middle of the story and not the beginning. Just remember, you as the writer know what you're going for, but that doesn't mean the audience does. So, put yourself in their place, or else you'll confuse them.

Hope that helps.

Cheers!
Thank you so much! As a beginner plus a non-native English speaker, its really hard to notice the mistakes.
Really appreciate your comment!
 
Hope it helped. Also, if you are a recent transplant to the U.S., also keep in mind the audience you are writing for. For example, British humor does not play well here in America. Most Americans don't get their brand of humor. Also French films have a lot of angst to them that doesn't play well in America either. Just keep in mind the culture you are writing for
 
Hi there,

So i made some improvements in my screenplay. I'll put it in the down below. However, when i was writing it, i encountered some issues:
If i want to show that the recorder is playing the playbacks, should i add (over radio) below the character cue or (V.O) next to the character cue? And should i add (CONT'D) when Edward is rewinding the recordings? i didn't add it, because i want to present that Edward is rewinding files of recordings instead of one recording, but i'm not sure whether it would confuse the reader.

Sorry for taking your time. And thanks again for your suggestions!
 

Attachments

  • remember, day after day.pdf
    96.8 KB · Views: 407
Have you ever seen the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey? Treat the voice recorder as a character, just as Stanley Kubrick did with HAL (the computer) in the film. You can let reader know in the action lines that the recorder is Edward's own voice and then treat it as you would normal dialogue, basically.
 
Log your film school application with our Application Database so that we can improve our admissions statistics.




Latest Accepted Applications


Acceptance Data
For up to date Film School Acceptance Rates, including Minimum GPAs, Minimum Test Scores, After Interview and Off-Waitlist Acceptance Rates, Film Experience and Undergraduate degrees of accepted applicants, Age data, and other acceptance statistics for your film program of choice simply navigate to the Acceptance Rates tab on each film school's page in our Film School Database.

For example:
Log your own Application with our application database to help improve the site's acceptance data.

Latest Film School Reviews

  • University of Colorado at Boulder (BFA)
    4.00 star(s)
    Reviewed by: Alumni
    Degree: BA/BS/BFA
    BFA University of Colorado at Boulder BFA Film Production
    Honest review. CU Boulder is an interesting place to learn filmmaking. The University boasts some excellent professors who are actively making...
    • Anonymous
  • University of Central Florida - School of Visual Arts & Design
    4.00 star(s)
    Reviewed by: Current Student
    Degree: BA/BS/BFA
    Concentration: Film - Feature/TV Writing
    UCF Film BFA (College of Sciences - School of Communication)
    UCF's BFA program is split into 4 modalities: narrative production, documentary production, experimental production, and feature/tv writing. I...
    • Anonymous
  • Syracuse University
    4.00 star(s)
    Reviewed by: Current Student
    Degree: BA/BS/BFA
    Concentration: Film
    Syracuse Film and Media Arts - BFA Film
    I'm in my last year at Syracuse University as a member of the department of Film and Media Arts, and it's been a lot of ups and downs. There's a...
    • Anonymous
  • Fitchburg State University
    5.00 star(s)
    Reviewed by: Alumni
    Degree: BA/BS/BFA
    Concentration: Film/Video and Theater
    A Great School with Great Professors!
    I was a student there from 2018-2022 and had a great experience. I would recommend it to anyone, especially people living within Massachusetts...
    • Anonymous
  • Florida State University - MFA in Writing
    5.00 star(s)
    Reviewed by: Current Student
    Degree: MA/MFA
    Concentration: Screenwriting
    Hidden Gem
    Before I get into the details, it's worth mentioning that I'm in my second year at this program and have really enjoyed my time here. I will be...
    • catmom

Latest Applications

Latest questions

Latest Articles

Latest Accepted Applications

Applications
Articles
Forums
Film Schools
Scholarships
Back
Top