Scriptwriting workshop in Mumbai

This is Rajashree, urf Raju, my younger sister who is conducting the workshop in Mumbai. I will say this for her. She was a wonderful partner as a scriptwriter since 1986, much before either of us went through any formal training in any kind of writing. She has that intiutive ear for drama.

Her book, Trust me, is a bestseller.
And she is very pretty.

The Indian film and television industry is looking for good, original screenplays. With the diminishing appeal of the formula masala film, there is a demand for fresh voices and out of the box thinking, for scriptwriters who understand the art and craft of screenwriting. The audience wants good stories, well told.

This weekend workshop will introduce the participants to the basics of writing scripts for film and television.

FACULTY

Rajashree is an award-winning filmmaker and a bestselling novelist. She has taught at the Film and Television Institute of India, Poona, and some of the best film schools in Bombay.

Rajashree’s been a film buff since she was a kid – she once stood in a line for five hours to get tickets for Sholay. She has been working in Bombay after studying direction at the Film and Television Institute of India, Poona. She’s assisted Mansoor Khan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. A film she wrote and directed, The Rebel, was screened at many film festivals, and won the National Award and the Golden Ten Award. Her critically acclaimed first book, Trust Me, is a lighthearted romantic comedy set in the Bombay film industry. According to figures given by The Times of India and The Sunday Telegraph, Trust Me is the biggest-selling Indian chick lit novel. http://rajashree.in

DURATION

A fullday workshop on Saturday, the 27th, and Sunday, the 28th of June.
6 sessions of 3 hours each.

CERTIFICATE

The students would be given a certificate of participation.

FEES

The fees are Rs 2,900.

Discounts available for students.

VENUE: Somewhere in Goregaon. (East or west)

COURSE CONTENT

• Film-making: As a scriptwriter, it is necessary to understand the process of making a film - pre-production, production and post-production.

A brief overview of how films are made would be given to the students.

• Storytelling: The audience is looking for a good story told well. Fiction films are basically about telling stories through visuals and sounds. Where do stories come from? Life as a source – memory, imagination, experience – yours & others. The nature and role of intuition. Universalising the personal experience. Importance of research. Adaptation from literary works. The difference between actually being inspired and stealing ideas.

• Audiovisual Writing: Films are an audiovisual medium, so a script is basically a description of the visuals and sounds that will be seen and heard in the film. What are the elements of visual story telling? The discipline of writing a screenplay. The ‘outer manifestation of inner reality’ which Satyajit Ray talks about.

• Characterization: How to create 3 dimensional characters.

How to establish characters on screen. The Protagonist and the Antagonist. Dramatic Need of the protagonist & its relation to the plot. The way the character grows and changes during the film.

Establishing characters on screen. “Show, don’t tell.”

• The Format: The format for writing the Synopsis, One-Line Script (Brief Step-Outline), Screenplay / Script for a film.

• The Elements of Scriptwriting: Scriptwriting is an art, but there’s also a craft to it. The students would be taught the elements of screenwriting: Action, Character, Setting, Theme, Structure.

• The Importance of Conflict: Drama comes from conflict. We would also discuss the way mystery, surprise and suspense are used.

• Structuring: Understanding the way screenplays of films are structured and learning how to use these elements in your own work: The 3-act structure. Set-Up, Confrontation, Climax & Resolution.

Plot, Sub-plots, weaving them together.

• What does the film ‘say’: Films reflect the Zeitgeist, the spirit of the times when the film was made and the Weltenschaung, the world-view of the film-maker. We would discuss the Premise, Theme, Ideology, Ethical & Socio-Political Ideas conveyed through films.

Please call 097694 49556 or email rajashree.in@gmail.com