BUY NOW
Subtext – How to Add Layers to Your Story and Characters
Subtext – How to Add Layers to Your Story and Characters
Taught by Steve Desmond
Screenwriter (KNOCK AT THE CABIN, TRANSFORMERS ONE), Filmmaker
On Demand
$49.00
Buy Now with Shop Pay

Summary

Learn how to effectively add subtext to your screenplay from the screenwriter of M. Night Shyamalan's KNOCK AT THE CABIN and the upcoming TRANSFORMERS prequel!

You’re a writer who is struggling with crafting believable dialogue. You’re a director looking for the greater meaning in a scene. You’re an actor trying to connect with what a character is feeling. Subtext is the backbone of emotion in any story, regardless of what genre you’re working in. It also helps to separate great scripts from not so great scripts.

In this Stage 32 Next Level Webinar, filmmaker Steve Desmond will help you to craft engaging subtext to layer your stories with nuance and emotion. Whether you’re going for laughs, drama, or impending fear, he’ll help you to make your screenplay feel more true to life. For directors or actors working with existing scripts, this webinar will help you to dig deeper below the surface to find the true lifeblood beneath a line. For producers, we’ll discuss tips on how to work with writers to make their subtext come alive.

Whether you’re a writer, a director, an actor, or a producer, subtext is a major part of your game and this webinar will help you add an entirely new layer to your projects.


PRAISE FOR STEVE'S TEACHINGS:

"Before hearing from Steve, I would take months off between scripts if I got a really mean rejection because I couldn't handle it. Now, I'm always working on something new. If they don't want my script. No problem, someone else will or I'll make it myself!" - Emilio S.

"It's clear why Steve is currently one of the top writers in Hollywood. He loves what he does and is good at it....and that completely translates to his teaching. I got so much out of this webinar that is helping my work. Thanks, Stage 32." - Mark M.

"Steve knows his stuff, that's for sure! Honestly, I think I learned more from this 90 minutes with Steve than I did in all of film school. And that's not a joke." - Jonah R.

What You'll Learn

  • What exactly is subtext? What is on the nose dialogue?
    • Defining the concepts to set our foundation.
  • Examining Subtext examples
    • We’ll study some great films and show how subtext creates character chemistry and memorable moments.
  • How to get there – It all begins with characters
    • If you don’t understand who your characters are, you can’t write them.
    • Engaging in pre-writing exercises to discover your characters’ inner voices.
  • Scene Analysis for Writers, Directors, Actors, and Producers
    • What is a scene about? What is a scene really about?
  • Steps to crafting stronger subtext
    • How beginning with on the nose dialogue is the first step towards adding layers.
    • The fine art of trimming to find the real meaning hidden within the clutter.
    • Sometimes not having a character say anything is more powerful than any words.
  • Writing Exercises
    • Creating scenarios and giving yourself limitations.
    • How acting leads to better writing.
  • Using real life interactions to enhance your writing
    • Learning to really listen to how you talk with others.
    • Drawing upon real life memories and examining the subtext behind them.
  • When to go on the nose
    • How to make these moments count. And how often to use them.
  • For Directors & Actors – Finding the subtext within a scene.
    • Sometimes ‘ordinary’ lines are filled with meaning.
    • Discovering multiple ways to play a line, a moment, or a scene.
  • For Producers – Improving subtext within a writer’s script.
    • Tips (from a writer) on how best to give notes to make a script feel less on the nose.
  • Case Studies
  • Q&A with Steve

Who Should Attend

  • Screenwriters who want to make their scripts feel more layered and less on the nose.
  • Directors or Actors working with someone else’s script
  • Producers working with writers who want to help sharpen dialogue and character moments.

Executive

Steve Desmond
Steve Desmond
Screenwriter (KNOCK AT THE CABIN, TRANSFORMERS ONE), Filmmaker at

A longtime member of Stage 32, Steve co-wrote KNOCK AT THE CABIN, which was directed by M. Night Shyamalan and released theatrically by Universal Studios. It opened at # 1 at the box office, and subsequently #1 on VOD on Peacock. Steve is one of the writers on the Transformers franchise prequel, TRANSFORMERS ONE starring Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth, which will be released in theaters in fall 2024 by Paramount Pictures. His screenplays have been voted onto the prestigious industry Black List four times, including THE SATURDAY NIGHT GHOST CLUB which he is attached to direct with Brad Fuller (A QUIET PLACE) producing. He sold his sci-fi adventure screenplay, HARRY’S ALL-NIGHT HAMBURGERS, to Warner Bros in a bidding war, with Oscar nominated producer Andrew Lazar attached. His short film, MONSTERS, that he wrote and directed, has amassed over two million views online and screened in over 100 film festivals worldwide, winning 46 awards. Steve is represented by APA and Ziffren-Brittenham LLP.

 

Credits

poster_65c598987e04b.
poster_65c5989892360.
poster_65c59898a7028.
poster_65c59898d2e47.
poster_65c5989905e82.

People who bought this also bought

See More Items