Emma Jane Unsworth’s Top Screenwriting Tips
3 minutes read
Dreaming of seeing your story come to life on the big (or small!) screen? Writing your first screenplay can feel daunting, especially since it differs so much from other forms of writing.
To help you get started, we turned to Emma Jane Unsworth, acclaimed author and screenwriter, who will be teaching our Start Your Screenplay in Five Days course this January.
From studying existing scripts to crafting the perfect elevator pitch, here are her essential tips for turning your story into a screenplay.
Read scripts!
This is probably my biggest tip. Getting to grips with the lingo and layout of scripts is key to becoming fluent in them. They are their own language. Watch lots of your favourite TV shows (especially pilots!) and films, and read along from the screenplays as you go to see how the words on the page line up with what you are seeing on screen. Most scripts are available free online as downloadable PDFs if you search.
Learn how to describe your idea quickly and simply.
This will make it clearer in your own mind, too, and help you focus on the execution. Think about your logline and outline. How would you describe your idea to a friend or someone you just met in a lift and have literally ten seconds with? (This is why it’s sometimes called the “elevator pitch”.) In simpler terms, what do you want your characters to go through? Which issues or aspects of life are you seeking to explore?
Try and see your script play out in your mind before you write.
Remember this is a visual medium. It’s much more than just dialogue or description on a page. Think about what the audience will actually SEE. Can you add any visual jokes? Action always speaks louder than gags or sass.
Remember less is more.
Keep things tight and lean. Make every scene count. How is it moving the story forward? What new information is it giving us about the characters?
Subvert the audience’s expectations whenever you can.
Set things up and flip them. Never let our audience get too comfy. Conflict and surprise are the basis of great TV.
Emma Jane Unsworth is a BAFTA-nominated, BIFA-winning screenwriter and best-selling novelist. Her third novel, Adults, was an instant Sunday Times bestseller when it was published in 2020. Emma adapted her second novel, Animals, into a feature film. The film, directed by Sophie Hyde and starring Holliday Grainger and Alia Shawkat, premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2019. The same year, Emma won the BIFA for Best Debut Screenwriter for her script. She is currently working on several television and film projects, including a new comedy commission for the BBC, a new drama for UKTV, and a new period drama produced by Scarlett Johansson. She was lead writer on Sky Atlantic’s Dreamland. She wrote an episode of Stephen Merchant’s The Outlaws for Amazon/BBC, for which she was nominated for a BAFTA. Emma’s fourth novel, Slags, will be published in early 2025 by HarperCollins.
These tips are just the beginning. Continue your screenwriting journey with Emma Jane Unsworth this January with our Start Your Screenplay in Five Days course. In this friendly five-day course, you will begin to understand the key elements of screenwriting and find the space and permission to be inspired.
Start Your Screenplay in Five Days begins on 20 January 2025. Book your place.
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