Books for Film students and professionals: Technical and Creative
Aspects of Filmmaking
Books by major screenwriters on their craft :Lew Hunter's Screenwriting 434
This book is a version of the course offered by the author at UCLA's graduate school in film. This manual offers us a comprehensive
guide to the art and business of screenwriting.Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman.
Butch Cassady and the Sundance Kid (screenplay included in the above book, but buy the DVD special edition of the movie)
Directing Movies by David Mamet (This is a fabulous little book that will open your eyes to the importance of the visual)
Backward and Forward by David BallFour Screenplays With Essays : Marathon Man, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,
the Princess Bride, Misery by William Goldman (key screenplays)Check out an Amazon.com review of his complete works
Screenplay : The Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd FieldChinatown and the Last Detail : 2 Screenplays by Robert Towne
What They Don't Teach You at Film School by Camille Landau, Tiare White
500 Ways to Beat the Hollywood Script Reader by Jennifer M. Lerch
Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger
Which Lie Did I Tell? : More Adventures in the Screen Trade (Vintage) by William Goldman
How Not to Write a Screenplay: 101 Common Mistakes Most Screenwriters Make by Denny Martin Flinn
The Screenwriter's Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script by David TrottierDirection, Editing, and General Works on the Art of Drama
In the Blink of an Eye by Walter Murch (an important book on editing by one of the man who edited The Godfather and The Unbearable Lightness of Being)Film Directing Shot by Shot by Steven Katz (film direction)
Making Movies by Sydney Lumet (The distinguished directed tells everything that matters, and only things that matter)
The 101 Habits of Highly Sccessful Screenwriters by Karl Iglesias (Ron Bass, Akiva Goldman, Eric Roth, Nicholas Kazan, Leslie Dixon and others speak
about their approaches and habits to their trade. Very useful.Independent Feature Film Production : A Complete Guide from Concept Through Distribution by Gregory Goodell
Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee
Myth and the Movies : Discovering the Mythic Structure of 50 Unforgettable Films by Stuart Voytilla, Christopher Vogler
Martin Paule's Micro Movie Reviews:
A--B--C--D--E--F--G--H--I--J--K--L--M--N--O--P--Q--R--S--T--U--V--W--X--Y--Z----Recommended reading: 1. Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman.
2. Butch Cassady and the Sundance Kid (screenplay included in the above book, but please buy the DVD special edition of the movie with bonus materials. We will use this film throughout the semester.)
3. On Directing Film by David Mamet
4. Backwards and Forwards: A Technical Manual for Reading Plays by David BallIn addition to Butch Cassady and the Sundance Kid, we will study the script of American Beauty very closely. Download American Beauty for free.
MOVIES. No need to buy.
THE APARTMENT, 1960, Billy Wilder classic; comedy/drama; Jack Lemmon and Shirley McLaine)
TOOTSIE (1982, Sydney Pollack's masterful presentation of Dustin Hoffman as a woman)
BIG screenplay (1988, Penny Marshall film; screenplay by Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg
AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999, Sam Mendes film; screenplay by Alan Ball (screenplay)
UNFORGIVEN (1992, Clint Eastwood film ; online script by David Webb Peoples)
DIE HARD (1988 John McTiernan film; screenplay by Jeb Stuart and Steven E. DeSouza online script)
ANNIE HALL (1977 Woody Allen fim: Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman online script)
Some more recommended textbooks:
There are dozens of excellent screenwriting textbooks in the market. After a debate about making one of them a "required text", the instructors have decided to leave it up to you to find the one textbook suitable for your bookshelf. If you want to pursue screenwriting seriously, read them all!Here is Thomas Palakeel's annotated list of the Top 5 Screnwriting books.
1. Screenwriting 434 by Lew Hunter
A version of the course offered by the author at UCLA's graduate school in film. This manual offers us a comprehensive guide to the art and business of screenwriting. Detailed analysis of the author's screenplays.2. Screenplay : The Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd Field.
This may be the best known book in the field. Very practical, insightful, and comprehensive. Commentary on Robert Towne's Chinatown.3. Screenwriting: The Art, Craft, and Business of Film and Television Writing by Richard Walter.
The author is a professor of film at UCLA graduate school. Short and to the point. Inspired writing!4.How to Write a Movie in 21 Days by Vicki King.
I know, I know, the title sounds like a chicken-soup book, but the truth is that it takes the fear-factor out of screenwriting and it is quite sophisticated in its understanding of the screenplay structure.5. Fitzgerald Did It: The Writer's Guide to Mastering the Screenplay by Meg Wolitzer
In fact, this is my most favorite book, but unlike the above books it is not a textbook, not comprehensive. A major young novelist describes how she wrote screenplays based on her novels. Simply wonderful! Recommended for those who have already written in other forms, and for students of creative writing.More FILMS and SCRIPTS
(send me your nominations for great screenplays; let's make a good list here.)Once you have presented the faculty with your story idea, you will be assigned two more movies whose scripts,
we feel, have something which could inspire or inform you as you bring your story to life.2001:Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, online script)
Amadeus (Peter Shaffer online script)
Antz by Todd Alcott and Chris & Paul Weitz (online script)
Big Liebowski (Ethan and Joel Cohen, online script)
Being John Malkovich (by Charlie Kaufman online script)
Kramer vs. Kramer (Robert Benton, 1979)
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968, 1990, George Romero and Tom Savini)
BACK TO THE FUTURE (online script)
YOJIMBO (1961; Akira Kurosawa; about a samurai "bodyguard" who sells his services to two masters)
SCARFACE (Brian de Palma's 1983 remake of the 1933 classic; screenplay by Oliver Stone; Al Pacino, script)
THE BIRDS (1963 Alfred Hitchcock classic online script, PDF)
NOSFERATU (F.W. Murnau, Script by Henrik Galeen)
NURSE BETTY (Screenplay by John C. Richards & James Flamberg, online)
Fanny and Alexander (Ingmar Bergman)
The following screenplays are easily available for purchase at bookstores.
We recommend that you gather a personal collection of screenplays.Michael Collins (Neil Jordan). Exstensive production notes and comments by the director/screenwriter.
Bounce (Don Roos) Recent work, easily available.
Smoke Signals (Sherman Alexie). Intelligent commentary and production revelations by the novelist/screenwriter.
Smoke (by Paul Auster) The William Hurt, Harvey Keitel, Forrest Whittaker film.
Green Mile (Frank Darabont, Stephen King). Excellent edition with photographs and commentary.
Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, also online)
Jackie Brown (Quentin Tarantino, also online)
Hannah and Her Sisters (Woody Allen, online)...one of the best screenplay editions available in the market.
Good Will Hunting (Matt Damon & Ben Affleck)...the two young actors wrote this distinguished work, online script
Sense and Sensibility (Emma Thompson). Almost a coffee table book, but excellent materials by the actress.
The Odd Couple (Neil Simon) This is a classic of dialogue.
St.Martin's Press catalogue of print editions of screenplays
Win a $50,000 Walt Disney Fellowship in Screenwriting
Project Greenlight competition for writers and directors (organized by HBO, Miramax, Matt Damon and others)
E-mail me Writer's Guild of America Go to more film books Movie info: Internet Movie Database Free online screenplays another Web screenplay collection Recent Script Sales Archive Final Draft script writing contest Top 250 films list by IMDB Martin Paule's Micro Movie Reviews:
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