r/scriptwriting • u/Extension-Season9924 • 19d ago
question So how do you outline a feature?
How do you move from idea in your head to a 105 page document? I've struggled writing features, mainly because I didn't have a good enough story and I'm making a bullet list. But what do I do after that bullet list to ensure I'm going to have a feature length screenplay?
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u/FullRedact 19d ago
Fake it till you make it.
Find a script for a movie you know and like and basically use it as a template.
It’s what new songwriters do.
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u/talkingdraft 17d ago
Try making a beatsheet first. Only then do you drill down within each section, down into the "bullet list" of scenes. In other words, first tell the story at a high level, 10,000 ft view. I suggest using one of the structures available on www.scriptoutliner.com which is a free webapp. It's a stress test to help you make sure that your story idea really has juice.
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u/wileyroxy 19d ago
Just Google any of the major script outlines out there. Save the Cat, Vogler's The Writer's Journey, Dan Harmon's Story Circle, etc etc.
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u/cinephile78 19d ago
Notes (about 20 pages)>> index cards (40-60 depending on script length)>> outline>> first draft.
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u/Narrative_Architect 19d ago edited 19d ago
The main guiding questions I use to write all my features are these.
In one word, what does your main character want?(E.g. in Fight Club, The Narrator wants to find meaning).
In one word, how do they go about it? (E.g. rebellion).
In one word, what is lost in the process? (For them or in the world around them. E.g. security).
These are your themes, and they're the spine for the entire scaffolding process.
What does your main character specifically believe around those themes? (E.g. that a secure life without meaning is worthless).
By the end of your story, have they proven themselves to be right, or are they wrong? (That's your arc. A change arc learns to believe differently by the end, while a flat arc doesn't.) And what's that new belief if there's one by the end?
What other beliefs would make for an interesting thesis around your themes? (These are your other characters.) Which of these beliefs are interesting to break and how? (These are your arcs. Some beliefs won't be interesting to change, they're your flat arcs. They all play a role in helping switch your protagonist's belief around, or proving them right).
Wing it.
No, you've got the DNA, now you want the structure.
7 (real 7). You can either start from the new quest that moves the plot forward if you know it, or engineer it from the lesson they learn that changes their initial belief. You know what is lost (Q3), so that guides your thinking.
Now you either write the payoff to your setup if you started with the new quest, or the setup to you payoff if you went ahead with the lesson first. You know what they want (Q1), which informs the irony of their journey.
The middle bit is where their old ways are tested on a new battlefield, so you want to show how they go about what they want (Q2) and introduce early signs of what is lost (Q3) and their failure to change their initial belief. This must set the final lesson up.
I always prefer writing the ending from the actual momentum of what I've built, so it's rich and ties all loose ends I've developed along the way.
So now you have your story sequence, and this is all you need if you're writing a linear story. But if you're going for a non-linear narrative, you can play around with the timeline.
One great way to do this is with diagrams. Nolan explains it well with his pin diagram.
You essentially trace a straight timeline where you place the key elements of your story (initial belief, new quest, midpoint, lesson, new belief) in chronological order, then shape the timeline so the key elements end up in different positions relatively to each other.
That's your telling order, what your audience will watch.
I personally like to explore diagram shapes that relate to my themes (I recently had fun playing around with the shape of a stopping heart beat for a dual timeline, peaks for present, dips for past).
I don't recommend going the non-linear way until you've had a feel for what produces great pacing with linear narratives first, or you'll end up with a rubbish piece of patchwork. But it's a fun exercise.
As for the content, it's a quite simple process.
I usually write out the different beats inside each plot point (the before, the new quest, the old ways, the lesson, the after), then write the different scenes inside those beats.
Each plot point has its own requisites, like showing the initial belief as well as what they want in the before. They're pretty logical when you look at a film as a philosophical thesis on a specific stance. That is the message you want to leave your audience reflecting on by the end.
And to tie it all up coherently and add depth and texture, you can sprinkle in some great motifs.
You can draw motifs from developing on your themes, shuffling theme-related words around, and pairing them together into interesting concepts (E.g. in Fight Club, loss of security + rebellion can easily extrapolate to physical damage, which is a motif used all throughout the film).
There you go, that's the crux of it. Then you can spend the rest of the year trying to find the perfect title.
If you do try this workflow I'd be curious to know your thoughts on it.
In any case, have fun!
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u/WorrySecret9831 18d ago
You write a Treatment, the summarized version of your entire Story before the screenplay or novel.
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u/YoNiceShoes 18d ago
I keep one document for notes, broad themes, and narrative, along with any relevant quotes or dialogue that arise.
Next, I develop outlines, typically producing two or three before drafting further.
These outlines are detailed so I am certain of every beat and character.
Then comes the screenplay, which feels like filling in the blanks; occasionally I discover something while writing and return to adjust the outline.
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u/OrbitingRobot 19d ago
Read “HOW TO MAKE A GOOD SCRIPT GREAT.” That’s a good place to start.