Screenwriting - Page 1 - How to Hook the Hollywood Reader

Conventional screenwriting wisdom tells us that we have 10 pages to hook the Hollywood reader.





The truth is that we only have 1.





For the well-trained eye of a film industry reader, the first page – sometimes the first line – is where your script or pilot sinks or swims. Even if the reader continues to page 10, they do so with a preexisting opinion of your screenplay, concept, and - unfortunately - your writing ability.





Screenwriters spend years perfecting their craft, but often neglect the most critical page - the page on which a writer hooks – or loses - the Hollywood reader. Ironically, this is the page on which just a minor amount of rewriting can result in an astronomical impact.





Taught by professional screenwriter and script analyst Amanda Gusack, who directed her film THE BETRAYED, starring Melissa George and Oded Fehr, from a spec script she sold to MGM, this course demonstrates how to scrutinize your first page from the viewpoint of the industry reader. Writers of all levels will learn how to sculpt their screenplay's opening for a spellbinding first impression.





Included are the following:

- Video lectures on the critical elements of page 1

- Video analyses of several page 1 examples, with real-time annotations on ways to elevate the content

- A detailed PDF handout/checklist of the critical page 1 elements for students to use with their own screenplays

- Bonus video of instructor's comprehensive screenwriting course, "Hollywood Screenwriting - From Concept to Draft - How to Write a Killer Script.”





This course is vital for anyone interested in writing or elevating a script, or submitting a screenplay to a manager, agency, or production company. It offers a rare inside look at what the industry reader craves – and how to hook the reader the instant they open your material.





Praise for instructor's first course, "Hollywood Screenwriting - From Concept to Draft - How to Write a Killer Script":

"This course is absolutely invaluable for newcomers as well as seasoned writers. I wasted my first seven years in Hollywood, too-cool-for-school to learn the basics of screenwriting under the arrogant delusion that my cinematic creativity would magically reinvent the wheel of a tried and true craft. Amanda Gusack’s insightful instruction could have focused my creative energy to complete a well structured screenplay that was industry-friendly enough to land me an agent.”

Eric Bress, Co-writer/director - The Butterfly Effect, Co-writer - Final Destination 2, Kyle XY





