Screenwriting

The screenplay is the roadmap to making a movie, the blueprint that is the foundation upon which a movie is built. Since a screenplay is a story told in pictures, the screenwriter must learn how to communicate visually as well as verbally.

The College seeks to offer students a program that gives them the skills to develop and write a professional screenplay, as well as a forum in which to explore and nurture their talent and creativity. But even the most stellar screenwriter can’t succeed without a realistic understanding of how the entertainment industry works. The College, being so close to the heart of Hollywood, is able to give screenwriting students a real-world view of the essentials needed to succeed – from submitting “spec” scripts to finding an agent, from “pitching” an idea to making a business deal.

All students must take Screenwriting 1.

Required 

Additionally, each student who chooses to emphasize Screenwriting must take these four (4) courses:

(F249C) Screenwriting 2: Characters (or Screen 2: Genre if before Fall 2008)
(F352[A/B/C]) Feature Film Writing Symposium 1, 2, 3
(GH166) Art of the Pitch
(GH255) Script Analysis 2 

Electives

In addition, students choosing an emphasis in Screenwriting must take three (3) of the following:

(F280) “Based On”:  Writing the Adaptation
(F350) Screenwriting 3: Genres (Fall 2008 and after)
(F250) Writing Shorts for Production
(F251) TV Comedy Writing
(V319) TV Drama Writing
(GH253) Hollywood Business Practices & History
(F252) Properties That Sell: Writing Coverage
(GH301A) Creative Writing That Sells
(F315) Navigating New Media
(F341) Development:  From Acquisition to Green Light
(GH326) Comedy Improvisation
(F253) Sketch Comedy Writing
(F451) Rewriting:  Punching Up Your Screenplay
(F355) Screenwriting: Writing the Horror Film

Required

(F249C) Screenwriting 2: Characters (or Screen 2: Genre if before Fall 2008)
(F352[A/B/C]) Feature Film Writing Symposium 1, 2, 3
(GH166) Art of the Pitch
(GH255) Script Analysis 2
(V201) TV Essentials
(F251) TV Comedy Writing
(V319) TV Drama Writing 

Electives

Combined Cinema-Television Writing emphasis students must take electives designated for the Cinema major AND two (2) of the following elective emphasis courses:

(V210) TV History
(V103) TV Directing & Producing
(V350) Shooting the Sitcom
(V221) Shooting the Live TV Drama
(V330) CCH: The TV Series (can be taken twice for elective credit, three times total)
(V209) Non Fiction TV Production
(F253) Sketch Comedy Writing (counts once)