What goes into writing a great movie script?

Cut everything that is not a payoff, or a setup for a specific payoff. “Omit needless words.” Think about the sparseness of joke telling, or Grimm Brothers.

All rules are made to be broken, but you damn well better know WHY you’re breaking them.

A scene should change valence from beginning to end. Up to down, down to up.

Scientists discover universal rule that governs all life on Earth - The Brighter Side of News

Get up there yourself. Be in a movie. Take some acting (not writing) classes. Learn how a trained actor approaches a text. Learn why actors take roles. They do as much if not more than the writer does.

Only God gets it right the first time. Rewrite everything.

Outline everything. Use story beats. Keep character’s mouths taped up, until they absolutely MUST speak. Write the script and the dialogue at the last minute, after you’ve revised the hell out of the outline.

Why is Roblox so laggy it’s unplayable? My computer is fine and the internet is great.

Maintain a slush pile/idea file. When you are ready to write, choose the best seeds to plant.

Make sure to pack enough explosives into the rocket.

A critical function of storytelling is wish fulfillment. This is why video games are so popular. “That protagonist is JUST LIKE ME.”

Solid Rock Caught Flowing 1,700 Miles Beneath Surface in Experimental First - ScienceAlert

Leave holes. Write and unwrite. Put it in, take it out.

Conflict is your power source; without it you have no drama and hence no script.

People choose what to see based on the high concept. Make sure to deliver an ending consistent with the high concept -- it is what the audience paid for.

Raleigh passes Bench for most HRs by catcher before All-Star break -- in 14 fewer games! - MLB.com

Write in reverse time. Major characters need to change polarity; minor characters may remain the same at the end.

The DSM 5 is a wonderful character compendium.

Your primary job is to create situations. Modern actors will fuck up your dialogue, despite whatever your contract says.

Why paracetamol – one of the world’s most common painkillers – works - The Jerusalem Post

Actors give better feedback than writers do.

Audiences are smarter than you think. Something about turning down the house lights makes their IQs go up.

Don’t direct from the page. Everyone, from the director on down, wants to be part of the process of making movies. Let them do their work.

Beautiful European women were killed by inquisition but Russia was not Catholic. Is this the reason for a drastic difference explaining why Russian women are the prettiest?

Research the facts and then throw away the research.

Learn to tell a story orally and not through writing. Try telling your story to a friend.

Primary characters must change polarities. Secondary characters can change less.

"It Was a Crazy Idea": James Webb Space Telescope Confirms Dramatic Phenomenon On Pluto - The Debrief

Use status to help drive conflict. King Lear/fool. Upstairs/downstairs.

To develop a unique voice for each character, try interviewing your characters.

What you leave unwritten is as important as what you write. SUBTEXT.

Why is Reagan seen as the best president in the USA when he literally destroyed the American economy with trickle down system and was strongly against worker unions?