<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=252463768261371&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">

Final Draft Blog

All the tips, tricks and information you need to inspire your writing!
Read interviews with the pros, catch up with industry news, and listen to Write On: A Screenwriting Podcast by Final Draft.

What is a Subplot?

You've almost certainly heard the term "A story." This self-evidently means the main plot of a movie or TV show. The one the logline is about. That protagonist who wants something and the major obstacles, etc. etc. etc.

Read More

Why You Should Write Dark Comedy

Dark comedy, also known as black comedy, is a style of comedy that finds humor in serious or taboo subjects. At its best, dark comedy can be cathartic, helping people confront the absurdities and injustices of existence while making them laugh.

Read More

Write On: Justified: City Primeval's Showrunner Michael Dinner

The world out there is a brutal place. If you have a hankering for some of the rough justice you remember from old-school lawman Raylan Givens – you’re in luck. Justified: City Primeval is about to drop on FX starring the same Raylan (Timothy Olyphan...

Read More

Write On: Joy Ride's Screenwriters Teresa Hsiao and Cherry Chevapravatdumrong

When one woman's business trip turns into a quest to find her family, things get super funny in the new comedy Joy Ride, a raunchy road trip movie with a global spin. The film stars Oscar-nominee Stephanie Hsu, Ashley Park, Sherry Cola and Sabrina Wu...

Read More

How to Write Action According to Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning

In a cinematic world where superheroes fly effortlessly through multiple universes and the tentpole summer films have been a staple for decades, how does a movie stand out for its action sequences? For screenwriters, the thought of creating an action...

Read More

What Does "Breaking the Fourth Wall" Mean?

What is "breaking the fourth wall?" You may not know what it means or where the phrase originated — but you've definitely seen plenty of examples of it in movies and TV shows.

Read More

12 Villains That Every Screenwriter Should Study

Villains come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes they are hidden behind masks and wielding knives, other times they are conniving and cause destruction. And then, sometimes they’re just mean.

Read More

Internal Conflict Vs. External Conflict

Over the years, I’ve read my share of scripts from aspiring screenwriters. If it’s a character-driven drama, there is plenty of internal conflict; if it’s an action/adventure, sci/fantasy or thriller/horror there’s a good deal of external conflict.

Read More

How To Make Genre-Bending Work in Your Screenplay

Sometimes you have an idea for a screenplay, but it’s not suited for just one film genre. In fact, it might contain tropes from two different genres or even multiple genres! If this is the case, you’ve just dreamed up a genre-bending screenplay.

Read More

Untitled Document