If you're interested in screenwriting then the first thing you have to come terms with is that film history is littered with good manuscripts that never got made. The director fell out with the producer. The star got pneumonia. The distribution company got cold feet. It's possible to make quite a tidy sum out of writing screenplays that will be never be seen by a single paying punter. Somewhat demoralising, you may think, but before you worry about all that, you have to write the manuscript in the first place.



We asked two successful screenwriters, Shane Connaughton and Robert McKee , for guidance on how to write an effective screenplay.



Starting points - immediate advice for aspiring screenwriters



Remember that a good screenplay is a story and stories are critically important - they offer people equipment for living. Write about what is familiar to you and what you are passionate about.



"It's the storyteller - be it for the stage, page or screen, who civilises us. The art of writing makes meaning out of life. So screenwriting is not to be taken light-heartedly. It's a serious business."

Robert McKee



"Write about what you know and what you care about. I want to say to people who read my screenplays or see my films - this is what it was for me on the planet when I was alive."

Shane Connaughton



The first step - writing a treatment



A treatment can mean different things - it can refer to an outline of the plot, or to a detailed plan that you use to help you write the screenplay.



"A true treatment is something that you would never show anyone! It's an elaborate plan which describes scene by scene what the characters say and do, and what they're thinking and feeling. It should be about 80-100 pages long. It's a tool that the writer uses to build toward the screenplay."

Robert McKee



"I've learned over the course of practice that the shorter a treatment is, the better."

Shane Connaughton





