Introduction To Screenwriting with Sue Cake

This workshop introduces the basics of screenwriting and sets you on the path to developing your scriptwriting skills.

Screenwriting is unlike other forms of writing. In an industrial context, it is not an end in itself but a blueprint for others to collaborate. The challenge of screenwriting is to project your unmade film into the mind of the reader. This workshop introduces the basic concepts underpinning the classical Hollywood narrative structure featuring a single protagonist with a transformative emotional arc.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this session you will:

• Understand the concept of audio-visual writing and screenplay format
• Develop ideas for an active protagonist with a transformative emotional arc
• Understand character identification, motivation, internal and external conflict
• Identify opportunities for further script development

Format

This is an in-person workshop with a focus on writing craft; it will be held in-person at State Library of Queensland. This workshop is designed for writers getting started in scriptwriting, but is suitable for writers of all levels and backgrounds.

About Sue

Dr Sue Cake is a Senior Lecturer in Screenwriting at QUT. She has taught screen production in the UK and Australia. Her creative practice research, focusing on narrative comedy script development, has been published in national and international journals and the Palgrave Handbook of Script Development. Her latest research examines the role of artificial intelligence in script development.

For more information about Queensland Writers Centre’s Program of Events and answers to FAQs, please visit: www.queenslandwriters.org.au/program-info