Scriptwriting: The Short Film

Singapore University of Social Sciences

Scriptwriting: The Short Film (FLM364)

Applications Open: 01 October 2024

Applications Close: 15 November 2024

Next Available Intake: January 2025

Course Types: Modular Undergraduate Course

Language: English

Duration: 6 months

Fees: $1392 View More Details on Fees

Area of Interest: Digital Media

Schemes: Alumni Continuing Education (ACE)

Funding: To be confirmed

School/Department: School of Humanities & Behavioural Sciences

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Synopsis

FLM364 Scriptwriting: The Short Film is a highly practical course that builds on the foundation established in FLM361 Scriptwriting: Telling a Compelling Story (the prerequisite course for FLM364). It is a common misconception that a short film is a brief version of a feature film. Students will learn how a short film actually needs to tell a story in imaginative ways that immediately grab attention. Students will go through the process of developing an outline, crafting compelling characters and situations, and writing a script for a short film.

Level: 3
Credit Units: 5
Presentation Pattern: EVERY JAN

Topics

Why short films matter and why 10- to 15-minute shorts are more in demand than 30-minuters
Case studies: 2-Act and 3-Act short films
Genres and the story world
Innovate: Reinterpret, fuse, create something new
The Why and What of your story
Outlining and breaking down the scenes
Hooking the audience
Improving character introductions and weaving in back story
Making characters inhabit their space
Disguising exposition with the right placement and withholding of information
Elevating a scene with analogies
Crafting the dialogue

Learning Outcome

Deconstruct story and character.
Construct an outline that shows clear scene-by-scene breakdown.
Use screenwriting techniques to hook the audience.
Develop and refine characters and scenes.
Experiment with ways of writing exposition.
Create a script for a short film.