Final Draft Blog

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Worldbuilding 101 Using the Star Wars Model

June 23, 2023

“Worldbuilding” is when writers create a world for their characters to inhabit and story to take place.

How to Harness Dan Harmon's Story Circle to Tell Better Stories

June 13, 2023

Loosely based on / inspired by the Hero's Journey story structure, Dan Harmon's Story Circle has gained a sizable following in recent years, particularly among writers of episodic television. But even feature script writers can benefit from using thi...

The Different Jobs of a Screenwriter

May 30, 2023

There are many different writing jobs a screenwriter can be hired to do in Hollywood. And the more flexible you are with filling one of these roles, the greater your chances you have of creating a long, sustaining career as a professional screenwrite...

Guardians of the Galaxy: How Family, Humor and Music Equal Smash Hit

May 11, 2023

Who are the Guardians of the Galaxy? Ten years ago, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who knew anything about this group or was even interested in a movie about these unknown characters roaming the galaxy.

What is Chekhov's Gun?

April 18, 2023

Chekhov's Gun was intended to be advice for playwrights and novelists, from a writer working in a time before there even were movie theaters and televisions.

What Is Irony in Literature and How Can It Enhance Your Screenwriting?

April 14, 2023

Over the years I’ve read my share of unproduced screenplays by aspiring screenwriters, and I noticed that many of them lacked something very important — something that’s usually found in abundance in produced screenplays.

5 Things ‘Air’ Can Teach You About Screenwriting

April 11, 2023

Nike and basketball seem like a foregone conclusion, but in the new movie Air, the filmmakers look back to the 1980s when a fledgling basketball division at an Oregon-based running shoe company teetered on the brink of disaster. What makes the story ...

Air Screenwriter Shares What Made His Spec Script Rise Above the Rest

April 5, 2023

The new film Air tells the story of how the iconic partnership between Nike shoes and basketball player Michael Jordan came to be way back in 1984. It’s one of those partnerships that really wasn’t supposed to happen, but when it did, it changed the ...

What Genre Is My Screenplay?

March 27, 2023

Knowing what film genre you’re writing in is important for several reasons. Whether or not you’re playing into genre conventions or defying them, it’s useful to know what tropes have frequently appeared in certain kinds of films. Also when submitting...