January, 2016 - The 15 Minute Movie Method

Unity of Story

January 28, 2016

Every movie should really tell just one story. If you’re telling a mystery, every subplot should also be a mystery. If you try telling different...

Making Exposition Interesting

January 25, 2016

One hallmark of a bad movie is that at the end, the villain has to explain everything for the benefit of the hero and the...

Make Each Character Interesting

January 22, 2016

Your main characters should always be interesting in some way. That doesn’t necessarily mean they need to be likable, but that they need to grab...

Recycling Story Plots

January 19, 2016

Many people worry about creating original stories that have never been told before. That’s pointless. The real secret is not to create an original story,...

Creating Sympathy for the Hero

January 16, 2016

Nobody will care about your story if they don’t like your hero. Even if your hero is actually the villain, you must make the hero...

Planting Setups

January 13, 2016

Every important story plot must be set up ahead of time. First, this item must be highlighted somehow to make it memorable although initially it...

Creating a Story in Layers

January 9, 2016

At the very least, your screenplay needs a hero pursuing a goal. The pursuit of that goal creates conflict that makes your story interesting. The...

The Unsolvable Dilemma

January 6, 2016

The ending makes the biggest impact so you need to plan your ending before you start writing and write yourself straight into a dead end....

Keep Every Scene Interesting

January 3, 2016

Watch a typical baseball game and at the very least, it’s interesting because you want to know who will win in the end, even if...

The 15 Minute Movie Method

January 2016