Stage 32 4-Session Class: How You Can Develop Memorable Characters and World-Class Dialogue
Other education that may be of interest to you:
Outlining Your Feature Screenplay
Join veteran screenwriter Brian Herskowitz and receive sample feature script outlines and scenes while learning how and why professional outlining can set your work above the rest! Are you ready to learn how to write a professional outline for your feature screenplay? A professional outline for your script is the roadmap you follow to write your first draft and it will save you time, effort and some unnecessary rewriting. It helps you work out the kinks early and feel confident about where you’re headed. And the outline isn't just for you. An outline helps any reps, producers, and executives your working with see what you’re going to do with a story before giving you the go-ahead to write the feature film. In this exclusive Stage 32 webinar, you’ll learn how you can increase your earning power by knowing how to craft a strong outline so your work stands out from the competition. Along the way, you’ll receive sample scenes and outlines from the feature films discussed in class that you can take with you for future reference. Taking you through this vital skill is acclaimed screenwriter Brian Herskowitz, who has completed over a dozen feature films and has been staffed on popular shows like HERCULES and TOUR OF DUTY. He’s worked with top-tier talent, including Academy Award winner Jason Alexander, with whom Brian co-wrote the FOX pilot MANTIC. He’s also the author of the essential screenwriting resource PROCESS TO PRODUCT: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE SCREENWRITER. Brian will teach you the 12 guideposts he developed that you can use to keep from getting lost as you write which ultimately allows you more creative freedom. You’ll cover premise, theme, concept, characters, and structure. All of the elements you need to pen a successful feature screenplay. And he’ll also show you the many real-world uses that your outline will deliver for you. Don’t miss out on this chance to work with an accomplished screenwriter with decades of experience and walk away with a practical process that you can use to up your screenwriting game today. Testimonials for Brian's Teaching and Stage 32 Education “As a collaborator with Brian and a guest in his class, I am hugely impressed with his screenwriting knowledge. I heartily recommend him and his course.” - Jason Alexander (Seinfeld, Pretty Woman, Listen Up) "I have a master's degree and a doctorate, Brian is by far the most caring and best teacher I have ever had." "The course was everything I needed and then some. An excellent course." "Mr. Herskowitz is very knowledgeable, patient, and superb at discerning problems and helping us solve them." "A solid course in which I felt I had learned a LOT by the time it was over."
The Art of Dialogue: How to Nail Your Character's Voice
“As a collaborator with Brian and a guest in his class, I am hugely impressed with his screenwriting knowledge. I heartily recommend him and his course.” - Jason Alexander (Seinfeld, Pretty Woman, Listen Up) Filmed entertainment is visual, and though everyone loves a catchy line, it’s really an exceptional dialogue exchange framed by a character’s choice of action that we remember. Dialogue is one of the clearest ways of exploring your character’s agenda, frame of mind, and emotional state. The best dialogue is able to do even more - and succinctly, sometimes in just a few lines. It lets us know something about the overall theme of your script, as well as unresolved areas ripe for conflict between your protagonist and the other characters: friend, frenemy, and foe… In this Stage 32 Next Level Webinar, screenwriter/producer/director Brian Herskowitz will walk you through what professional dialogue looks and sounds like. He will guide you through understanding the link between your character and dialogue, how to develop a strong character voice, the art of subtext and making sure you have the right amount of dialogue to move your story forward. Brian is a veteran film and television writer and producer who has worked on over 2 dozen films and television shows (HBO, FOX, CBS, NBC, UNIVERSAL and more) and he's bringing his experience across all the formats to the Stage 32 community! PLUS! To help you with your own writing exercises you will receive: Character Voice handout Strong Dialogue Voice Handout Brainstorm Dialogue Handout Tranformative Dialogue Handout Good Will Hunting Call Back Script The Fabelmans Script The Empire Strikes Back Script The Banshees Of Inisherin Script You do not want to miss out on this chance to learn how to write effective dialogue! Testimonials for Brian's Teaching and Stage 32 Education “As a collaborator with Brian and a guest in his class, I am hugely impressed with his screenwriting knowledge. I heartily recommend him and his course.” - Jason Alexander (Seinfeld, Pretty Woman, Listen Up) "I have a master's degree and a doctorate, Brian is by far the most caring and best teacher I have ever had." - Alan J. "The course was everything I needed and then some. An excellent course." - Katie R. "Mr. Herskowitz is very knowledgeable, patient, and superb at discerning problems and helping us solve them." - Sandra O. "A solid course in which I felt I had learned a LOT by the time it was over." - Peter L.
The Fundamentals of Story and Screenwriting Structure
4-PART IN-DEPTH CLASS (OVER 8 HOURS OF EDUCATION) Join veteran screenwriter Brian Herskowitz and receive sample feature script outlines and scenes while learning how and why professional outlining can set your work above the rest! Includes Exclusive Handouts Only Available For Those In Brian's Class! You may have heard the screenwriting phrase “story is structure.” Many writers reject the idea as they feel it’s too rigid or restrictive, holding you back from being your creative self. But it’s actually the opposite - the structure if your friend! In this exclusive Stage 32 class, you’ll learn how to formulate your idea, concept, and theme, using the principles of structure that will allow you to be your most creative self and create the best story. Over four sessions, you’ll learn how to develop your script using story as your guide as you build from concept to beat sheet and, ultimately, an outline for your feature script. Outlines aren’t just documents that help you blueprint your script for when you start writing. They’re also documents that many development executives require as they work on projects with writers and something managers use to asses their clients’ progress. Taking you through this vital process is writer and producer Brian Herskowitz. Brian has completed over a dozen feature films, including the low-budget slasher film DARKROOM. He’s also worked with top-tier Hollywood talent, such as Academy Award-winner Jason Alexander and RUSHMORE’S Jason Schwartzman. For the past 30 years, Brian has shared his screenwriting knowledge with students through the WRITERS’ BOOT CAMP at UCLA Extention and Boston University in Los Angeles. He’s also the author of the essential screenwriting resource PROCESS TO PRODUCT: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR THE SCREENWRITER. Now, he brings his decades of hands-on experience to you in this Stage 32 class. Brian will provide you with sample script breakdowns, including SHREK, a cheat sheet of his 12 Guideposts for a great screenplay, and more. Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity to learn from an industry veteran with a proven process for screenwriting success. You’ll finish these sessions with a professionally crafted story and the structure to strengthen every script you write in the future. Testimonials for Brian's Teaching and Stage 32 Education “As a collaborator with Brian and a guest in his class, I am hugely impressed with his screenwriting knowledge. I heartily recommend him and his course.” - Jason Alexander (Seinfeld, Pretty Woman, Listen Up) "I have a master's degree and a doctorate, Brian is by far the most caring and best teacher I have ever had." "The course was everything I needed and then some. An excellent course." "Mr. Herskowitz is very knowledgeable, patient, and superb at discerning problems and helping us solve them." "A solid course in which I felt I had learned a LOT by the time it was over."
The Pitch Tank with Special Guest Actress, Writer, Producer Rachel Paulson
Can you believe this is the last Writers' Room Pitch Tank of 2020? And we couldn't have asked for a better guest than Producer, Actress, and Writer, Rachel Paulson! Rachel is a multi-hyphenate who is the younger sister of Sarah Paulson of “AMERICAN HORROR STORY”and Liz Paulson, the SVP of casting at Fox. Rachel is the star of the series "DATING ZOE", the host of the video series Drink Responsibly with Rachel Paulson, and the co-host of the podcast Gay vs. Straight Bitches with "ONE TREE HILL" alum, Lindsey McKeon. Rachel currently has a YA television series in development based on a true story, with Sarah Paulson attached to produce. During the webcast, Rachel and Jason critiqued pitches including epic Sci-Fi features and series, Drama, Comedy, Family, and more! Listen to their feedback and be sure to take their suggestions in for your own pitches!
A Better Way to Write and Develop Your Feature for the Streamers
Streamers like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, and HBO Max have quickly become the holy grail for many filmmakers hoping to get their film produced and find success. And it’s no mystery why. With a subscriber base in the tens of millions (Netflix has 74 million subscribers alone!), there might not be a better place for your film to be seen and enjoyed across the globe. And streamers ARE picking up a lot of content, a staggering amount even. Netflix recently announced it is releasing 40 more films this year—that’s twice what most major traditional studios make in a whole year, all in just a few months. That said, even with this huge volume of new content Netflix and the other streamers continue to pick up and produce, it is not easy to get your film noticed or considered at these platforms, especially if you’re not already an established filmmaker. This is not to say it’s impossible, but it does require finesse, strategy, luck, and an understanding of how exactly streamers find their original films. For as prominent as streaming platforms have become, the process behind how a film actually finds its way into their libraries is opaque and enigmatic. With so little information on the inner workings of the streamers, it can seem confusing, maybe even impossible to get your own proverbial foot into the portal and get your project noticed. After all, there isn’t exactly a submission platform to upload your script for Amazon to review. The truth is, unless you’re already established or have that ‘in’ with a streamer, it’s very unlikely to get straight through and have them consider your work blind. There IS another way though, a way to get your project to a streamer, not by going through but by going around. Michael Schulman is a Feature Story Analyst for Netflix as part of its Independent Original Film Division, and his job revolves around evaluating feature screenplay submissions and deciding which ones to pass up to the executives to consider. Prior to his role at Netflix, Michael spent nearly a decade in the story department at CAA where he found projects for CAA clients. Over his storied career, Michael also served as an agent at ICM’s Motion Picture Literary Department and held numerous studio creative executive positions at Orion, TriStar, and Disney where he worked to develop film and television projects with some of the top talent in the industry. Michael is very familiar with what it takes for a script to find its way to decisionmakers since this has been a key feature of his job for over a decade. As a companion piece to his previous webinar that details the script evaluation process at Netflix and other streamers, Michael will teach you a smarter and more viable way to get your own feature film considered by streaming platforms, not by targeting the streamers themselves, but instead focusing on their content suppliers. He’ll begin by laying out how the normal streamer system works and go over specific reasons why your script might NOT be as good of a fit for them as you think. Michael will then delve into how “outsiders” can get in the streaming game by taking advantage of resources along the way and better understanding the content pipeline. He’ll explain what streamer “originals” actually are and show how streamers rely on production companies to fill their slate. Michael will show you how you can use this to your advantage by finding your way in with specific production companies and what you can do to make them want to produce your film with you. Michael will even offer a live demonstration, showing how to find the right production companies for your own project and the best contacts within them. Getting your work on Netflix and other streamers will never be easy, but you will leave this webinar with a better understanding of the best way forward. Praise for Michael's Previous Stage 32 Webinar "I loved Michaels honestly. His advice is invaluable." -Linda R. "Very genuine, authentic, knowledgeable." -Lissa C. "Michael was highly competent, extremely knowledgeable about his subject, and not afraid to share hard truths about the industry that many just won't be upfront about." -Lee T. "Michael did not sugarcoat anything. He gave honest information that clarified a lot of questions I had." -Nikki J.
How to Prepare For and Nail a General Meeting (In Person and Online)
Whether you’re leading the creative charge as a screenwriter, in the trenches a director or cinematographer, behind the scenes as a crew member, or in front of the camera as an actor being great at what you do is only part of your job. We at Stage 32 preach that 50% of your job is excelling at your craft, the other 50% is networking and understanding how the industry works. It's simply undeniable, those who commit to treating their networking and relationship building as their job and keep on top of what's happening in the industry land more meetings with decision makers who can make an impact on their career. But the goal is not just to get into the room, it's to stay in the room. And that means you need to know how to be good in the room. And with more and more meetings going virtual and online, you must know how to prepare and have the skills ready for those situations as well. General meetings are the first line of offense and defense for decision makers. As you know, most people in this industry - whether working in film, television or digital - want to find creatives and professionals they can go to war with time and time again. Their tribe. To become part of someone's tribe (and eventually form one of your own), you have to know how to nail the general meeting. It is crucial that you understand how to prepare. You must know who you're meeting with, what to wear, proper etiquette, the story of your project, the story of your personal brand (such an overlooked art), and know your pitch inside and out. Ultimately, you want to turn this general meeting into something much greater or assure that you're receiving a callback meeting. Their are many tried and true tricks for getting this done and we're going to bring them to you. Jeff Portnoy of Bellevue Management is one of the most revered managers working in the industry today. Jeff was recently named been named by Variety as one of Hollywood’s New Leaders in Management. Prior to joining Bellevue, Jeff worked at Creative Artists Agency, The Gotham Group, Resolution Talent Agency and Heretic Literary Management. Along the way he has sold and set up projects to New Line Cinema, Lionsgate, FOX, Screen Gems, Warner Bros. and more. Jeff has been on both sides of the table for hundreds of general meetings and has learned exactly what makes a meeting successful and where many go south – and he’s here to share the do's and don'ts with you, the Stage 32 community Jeff will teach you how to assure that you perform in your general meeting in a manner that makes you memorable. He will discuss everything from attire to how to carry yourself to how to make eye contact. He'll teach you how to prepare your pitch and convey it with the right amount of passion, charisma and energy. He’ll give you important guidelines on how and when you should talk in the conversation and help you understand if you’re talking too much or sending the wrong message. You’ll learn how to get notes from the other side of the table and how you should receive and respond to them. You will know the best way to pitch “you” and your brand so you stand out from other people taking general meetings with the same party. Jeff will teach you how to do research on the people and the company you are meeting with and how to use that information to your advantage (and not be creepy about it!) He will make you understand why the assistant and support staff can ultimately be your best ally. Finally, Jeff will go over the various types of meetings you’ll encounter in your career – from studios, production companies, managers, agents and networks and explain the differences so you’ll be fully prepared. "A wealth of information. Gave me a lot of things to think about - especially with the tips on reading the room. Your description of how to pitch myself and my story were game-changers. Off to practice now." - Sonia H. "What fabulous advice, Jeff, thank you!" - Greg M. "Yep, now I know why I haven't been securing a second meeting. I have seen the light and the err of my ways." - Veronica G "The dress code discussion was very helpful, I never knew what I should wear and now I do!" - John S.
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