Description
In this course, we will practice the fundamental skill of successful television writers—the ability to craft entertaining and compelling stories for characters, worlds, and situations created by others. Though dozens of writers may work on a show over the course of its run, the “voice” of the show is unified and singular. The way to best learn to write for television is to draft a sample episode of a preexisting show, known as a “spec script.” Developing, pitching, writing, and rewriting stories hundreds of times, extremely quickly, in collaboration and on tight deadlines is what television staff writers do every day, fitting each episode seamlessly into the series as a whole in tone, concept, and execution. Students will be introduced to these fundamental skills, working step-by-step through the writing of their own spec script for an ongoing scripted television series, effectively taking students from premise lines, through the outline/beat sheet, to writing a complete draft of a full teleplay for a currently airing show. No original pilots will be pursued in the fall. In conference, students will work on deepening characters, understanding dramatic and comedic techniques, and developing additional components of their portfolios. Students are expected to have an extensive working knowledge across many genres of television shows that have aired during the past 25-30 years domestically, and a commitment to developing work from concept through premise lines, beat sheets, and outlines with multiple drafts of each, and with extensive peer collaboration, before writing script pages. Students will not be permitted to write pages until their outlines have been “green lit.” This is the first course in a two-semester sequence and is a requirement for enrollment in the spring course, Advanced Television Writing: Writing Original Pilots (FILM 4187). Closed to students who have taken Writing for Television: From 'Spec Script’ to Original Pilot (FILM 3312).