How To Write A Great Script With Final Draft 13

Turn Your Idea for a Story Into a Screenplay

What you'll learn

Turn an idea into a story outline

Organize a story using Final Draft

Write and edit a screenplay using Final Draft

Track changes in a screenplay using Final Draft

Share and collaborate on a screenplay online using Final Draft

Requirements

A copy of Final Draft 13 on a PC or Macintosh

(Earlier versions of Final Draft can also work but this course covers some features only available in Final Draft 13. In addition, the user interface of Final Draft 13 looks slightly different from the user interface of earlier versions of Final Draft)

You should feel comfortable using a PC or Macintosh at a beginner's level

Description

Dreaming about writing a screenplay?Have you ever watched a movie and thought, "I could do better than that!" Maybe you’ve got a vision, some inspiration, and a handful of great ideas, but you just don't know how to get started?Or maybe, you have a copy of Final Draft but found it too complicated and intimidating. Yet you know it could help you turn your great ideas into a great screenplay, but you just need a little help so you'll feel comfortable.Or, maybe you’ve already written a novel and want to convert it into a screenplay to see your story up on the big screen?Either way, you’re here because you want to make something BRILLIANT and LIFE CHANGING.Then congratulations!! I wrote "How to Write a Great Script with Final Draft" just for you.Final Draft is THE screenwriting word processor used in Hollywood today. All the pros use Final Draft. Shouldn't you?Check out what James Cameron (writer/director/producer of "Titanic," "Avatar," Terminator") had to say about Final Draft:"You can't win a race without a champion car. Final Draft is my Ferrari."Robert Zemeckis (writer/director/producer of "Back to the Future," "Forrest Gump," and "The Polar Express") says this:“The intuitive ease of Final Draft allows the writer to focus on what’s truly important – story.”Ben Stiller (actor/writer/producer of "Zoolander," Tropic Thunder," and "Night at the Museum") says:"Final Draft is the only screenwriting software I have ever used, and it is the only one I ever will use. I owe ALL my success to Final Draft. Period. End of story."What does all this mean for you?You can write a screenplay!You can start a new career!You can achieve your dream!So why should you take MY course?I’m Wallace Wang, author of dozens of books including "Microsoft Office For Dummies," "Absolute Beginner's Guide to Computing," and "Steal This Computer Book." I've spent a lifetime demystifying computers and software to make them easy to understand for the average person. Like you, I started out as a nobody in Hollywood. For more than a decade, I've been reading books, watching movies, and studying screenplays along with joining various writing groups to improve my writing and story telling skills. Eventually my scripts started placing in the quarter finals of various screenwriting competitions until I finally won first place in Scriptapalooza's 2023 Screenwriting Competition.I know what it's like to make mistakes as a beginner, but more importantly, I also know how to avoid those mistakes and fix those problems writing and telling stories. So this course contains much of the hard-earned knowledge I learned through trial and error. By taking this course, you can learn to avoid common mistakes beginners make and go straight towards writing the best possible screenplay you can. In addition, I've also written "The 15-Minute Movie Method," "Writing Scenes for Screenplays," and "Story Starter." All of these books distill the knowledge I've accumulated from studying movies from classics such as "Casablanca" and "It's a Wonderful Life" to modern day blockbusters such as "WALL-E," "Pulp Fiction," and "Die Hard." Just look at some of these quotes about my screenwriting books: * Amazing book! Broke stuff down in such a clear way with lots and lots of examples. Worth having in your reference library as a writer.  J. Carrie* I absolutely love this book. He drills the concepts in with a repetitive style that at first I thought would be annoying but instead it has been the best way to come away with a working knowledge of the material. He uses lots of examples from movies I've actually seen. Literally transformed the way I'm writing now. S. JohnsonBut enough about me! What about YOU?My guess is you’re looking for a change in your life. Start a new career? Chase a long cherished dream? Change the world with your ideas?… Am I right?Yes, this course is absolutely for YOU. Whatever stage you’re at.Beginner? No problem. We start with the basics. Already a writer? Good. This is the perfect refresh of your skills.  You’ll not only learn how to use Final Draft, but you'll also understand why you want to use certain features as well. In addition, you'll learn how to turn a great idea into a structured story, and then use Final Draft to help you organize your ideas and write them down as a polished, perfectly formatted screenplay. By using popular movie examples along with short videos that focus on one feature at a time, you'll learn at your own pace whenever it's convenient for you. Best of all, it won't even feel like work because you'll get to watch all your favorite movies to help reinforce each lesson. How awesome is that?Imagine how you’ll feel after seeing your ideas turn into a fully structured story. Then you'll know exactly which features of Final Draft to turn your story into a great screenplay!“OK, I’m sold  – what do I need to get started?”Your brain, this course and a Windows or Macintosh computerA copy of Final Draft 13 or laterA desire to learn and a belief in yourselfDon’t forget, there's always a 30-day money back guarantee if you’re not completely happy.Who is the target audience?Anyone wanting to write a screenplayPeople who already own a copy of Final Draft and want to take advantage of all its featuresAnyone who wants to tell a great storyYou really have nothing to lose!In short, this course will teach you how to take a raw idea for a story and convert it into a full-length screenplay step-by-step. The secret to success will require work and constant practice, but with the guidance of this course, your dream of writing a screenplay can be much faster, easier, and more enjoyable.You can fumble around on your own and waste time, or you can follow the guidance of someone who has been where you're at and can help show you how to write a screenplay with far less frustration.So what are you waiting for? You can achieve any dream, but you absolutely must take that first step. Click that Buy Now button… and let’s begin your adventure today!

Overview

Section 1: Introduction

Lecture 1 What You Will Learn

Lecture 2 How to Watch Videos for the Macintosh and Windows Version of Final Draft

Lecture 3 Changing the User Interface (Windows version only)

Lecture 4 The Two Parts of Final Draft

Lecture 5 Three Ways to Choose Commands

Lecture 6 Creating a New Screenplay

Lecture 7 Closing and Opening Documents

Lecture 8 Saving Documents

Lecture 9 Using Nightmode, Zoom, and Focus Mode

Lecture 10 Undoing Mistakes

Lecture 11 Closing Documents and Exiting Out of Final Draft

Section 2: Understanding the Beat Board

Lecture 12 How the Beat Board Works

Lecture 13 Creating and Deleting a Beat, and Adding an Image

Lecture 14 Aligning Beats

Lecture 15 Viewing the Beat Board and Script Side by Side

Lecture 16 Using the Beat Board with the Outline Editor

Lecture 17 Creating a Script Outline

Section 3: Every Story Starts with a Great Idea

Lecture 18 What Makes a Good Story Idea?

Lecture 19 Creating a Title for Your Screenplay

Lecture 20 The Initial Question

Lecture 21 The Character Flaw and the Haunted Past

Lecture 22 Understanding the Four Part Story Structure

Lecture 23 Make Sure Every Scene Shatters Expectations

Lecture 24 The Importance of Genre in Story Telling

Lecture 25 Using Genre to Define Story Structure

Lecture 26 Applying Multiple Genres to Define a Multi-Dimensional Story

Lecture 27 Choosing an Ending Scene

Lecture 28 Choosing a Beginning Scene

Lecture 29 How the Beginning and Ending Work Together

Section 4: Defining the Structure of a Story

Lecture 30 Understanding the Structure of a Story

Lecture 31 Understanding the Symbol of Hope

Lecture 32 Examples of the Symbol of Hope

Lecture 33 The Two Halves of a Story

Lecture 34 Every Story is Defined by the Hero's Character Flaw

Lecture 35 The Structure of Act I

Lecture 36 The Structure of Act IIa

Lecture 37 The Structure of Act IIb

Lecture 38 The Structure of Act III

Lecture 39 How the Symbol of Hope Defines the Four Act Structure

Section 5: Formatting a Screenplay in Final Draft

Lecture 40 Understanding the Four Basic Screenplay Formatting Elements

Lecture 41 Writing Scene Headings

Lecture 42 Writing Action

Lecture 43 Choosing Character Names

Lecture 44 Changing Character Names

Lecture 45 Storing Character Traits

Lecture 46 Writing Dialogue

Lecture 47 Writing Dialogue in Final Draft

Lecture 48 Highlighting Character Dialogue and Viewing Reports

Section 6: Editing a Screenplay

Lecture 49 Writing a Scene

Lecture 50 Organizing a Story Through Scene View

Lecture 51 Organizing a Story Through Index Card View

Lecture 52 Using Script Notes

Lecture 53 Using Bookmarks

Lecture 54 Reading Text Out Loud

Lecture 55 Combining Multiple Files

Lecture 56 Viewing Reports

Section 7: Collaborating on a Screenplay

Lecture 57 Tracking Changes in a Screenplay

Lecture 58 Comparing Script Versions

Lecture 59 Collaborating Over the Internet

Section 8: Ideas for Polishing a Screenplay

Lecture 60 The Initial Question and the Symbol of Hope

Lecture 61 The Character Flaw and the Conflict

Lecture 62 Fixing Dialogue

Lecture 63 What Genre and Secondary Genre Tells Your Story?

Lecture 64 Reviewing Scenes for the Initial Question, Symbol of Hope, and Genre

Lecture 65 Creating Mini-Goals in Every Scene

Lecture 66 Review Your Characters

Lecture 67 Reviewing the Two Halves of a Story

Section 9: Sharing Your Screenplay

Lecture 68 Using Watermarks

Lecture 69 Creating a PDF file

Lecture 70 Exporting a Screenplay and Beat Board

Section 10: Congratulations!

Lecture 71 Thank You

Aspiring screenwriters who want to get comfortable using Final Draft,Aspiring screenwriters who want to know how to turn a good idea into a structured outline,Aspiring screenwriters who want to learn how to use Final Draft's features to make screenwriting easier