This is a course which will introduce the beginning student to the conventions, problems, and possibilities of the screenwriting form. It will be useful--but not necessary--that students enrolling in the class have some writing experience of whatever kind.
Using a close reading of both the screenplay and the cinematic text of Dennis Potter's "The Singing Detective," the course will proceed by analyzing both texts from the perspective of the dramatic and cinematic problems inherent in them, and discussing how such problems have been solved--to the degree that they have--in the screenplay and in the film. Some of these solutions--and failures--will then suggest similar strategies for students to use in their individual writing assignments. These will begin with segments of scenes and will culminate in a short screenplay. One-on-one interaction with the instructor--known in the profession as story conferences--will form a significant part of the course.
| Home | Wedding Scene Text | Wedding Scene Clip | Definitions | Class Links |
| Other Links | Comparative Literature Program |