30 Days of Screenplays
Volume 1 and Volume 2.
Volume 1 and Volume 2.
Years ago, I ran a series: 30 Days of Screenplays. The idea was simple. Reading scripts is a good idea. Reading a lot of scripts is a better idea. Reading a lot of scripts day after day is the best idea.
There’s something about immersing oneself in scripts … reading them back to back to back … you not only benefit from each individual screenplay, but also the cumulative effect of the sheer volume.
It’s like a kind of gestalt experience where the individual parts (each script) result in a larger type of learning.
You start to gain an intuitive sense of screenwriting.
Scene construction … when to enter scenes … when to exit scenes … pace … transitions … how to handle exposition … dialogue … subtext … scene description … narrative voice …
What I did was ask blog readers to suggest notable scripts which could be found online. People responded.
Here are links to the original 30 Days of Screenplays: Vol. 1.
Day 5: The Shawshank Redemption
Day 25: The Silence of the Lambs
A bunch of people took up the challenge. Each day, read a new screenplay. In fact, the 30 Days of Screenplays was so popular, we did it again a year or so later. Here are links to Vol. 2.
Day 14: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Day 25: The Kids Are All Right
Day 30: The Great Gatsby (bonus)
A while back, I went through each of these 61 posts and updated script download links. I haven’t had a chance to do that recently, so it’s possible some of those links have gone dead. If you find any, please let me know.
Finally, there’s this: Let’s do another 30 Days of Screenplays!
I’d like your suggestions. Remember: The script has to be available online somewhere at sites like:
One thing I’d very much like to see is more female-centric and POC-focused stories, so please bear that in mind.
Also, the script must be for a movie that is well known. That doesn’t mean it has to be a big studio franchise movie, but if it is a smaller indie film, it should have created some buzz. It’s hard enough to entice people to read scripts. If they haven’t even heard of a film, that diminishes enthusiasm.
Please post your suggestions via the Respond button. We may run the series as soon as October.
Bottom line and as always: Read Scripts!