Is My Screenplay Big Enough to Be a Movie?
by Scott Myers
This is a fundamental question screenwriters must ask themselves at all stages of a screenplay’s development and writing. Why? Because it’s a question movie studio execs will ask as one of the key determining factors whether to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to buy your script. For years, movies have been known as playing on “The Big Screen,” as opposed to TV (the “small” screen). Typically movies have big budgets, big marketing campaigns, and big stars. Their running times, clocking in at an average of two hours, are big. The film industry is our nation’s second biggest export business (behind airplane manufacturing). So much about movies is about being big. Being ‘big enough’ pertains not only to huge blockbuster action-thrillers, but also to small character-driven scripts. While the plot may be ‘small’ in scope, what happens and what those events mean to the story’s characters must have a ‘big’ enough meaning and emotional resonance with a big enough potential audience to warrant a studio’s green light. The central question here — Is my script big enough to be a movie — is a… well… big topic. What I’ve done is put together 10 questions you can ask in relation to any of your writing projects, current and future, to test if it’s big enough to be a movie. Use these 10 questions to help you determine the answer to this critical issue: 1: Does my screenplay have a big enough story concept? 2: Does my screenplay have big enough characters? 3: Does my screenplay have big enough set pieces? 4: Does my screenplay have big enough conflict? 5: Does my screenplay have big enough stakes? 6: Does my screenplay have big enough visual style? 7: Does my screenplay have big enough beginning? 8: Does my screenplay have big enough middle? 9: Does my screenplay have big enough ending? 10: Does my screenplay have a big enough Protagonist arc? Read the full post at https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/is-my-screenplay-big-enough-to-be-a-movie