I have a really brilliant idea of a movie...?!
Question: I have a brilliant idea of a movie and I have been thinking for the story and characters for over two years. Just thinking! I have told many people who have read a lot of books and watched A LOT of movies. They tell me that it is different and interesting. I want to make a movie and spend all of that money among the poor. I don't want anything for me. But, I am not sure where to go if I have a movie idea or if I have a complete script (withevery single dialogue and characters)
Answers: I have a brilliant idea of a movie and I have been thinking for the story and characters for over two years. Just thinking! I have told many people who have read a lot of books and watched A LOT of movies. They tell me that it is different and interesting. I want to make a movie and spend all of that money among the poor. I don't want anything for me. But, I am not sure where to go if I have a movie idea or if I have a complete script (withevery single dialogue and characters)
Well, first, if you have a movie idea, quickly write it down. That way you have a less chance of forgetting it. Start out by taking notes. Who are your characters? What are their names? What do they do? What's the story about? etc. When you think you have enough notes, begin committing it to paper. Start with a rough draft. Remember, since you're writing a script, to include the character's actions and what's happening in that particular scene. Don't mention camera angles unless it's a specific one that you want. Rule of thumb for screenwriting is "one minute per page." Standard scripts run from 90-120 pages. That's usually just for an hour and a half film. Action scenes that are discussed on paper will take longer on film, but use up less paper. I wrote an action script where a five-minute chase scene took up just one page. Another thing is, make sure you do your research. After you write the rough draft, get it proofread. Give it to someone you trust their opinion on and have them note any errors. After that, start your second draft. This could also be your final draft if you're confident enough to move to the next step. After you're finished with the scriptwriting, the best thing to do is get it copyrighted. I'm not sure where you can get it done in Canada, so you'll have to check online. The places you can send it to in the States are either the Library of Congress or the Writers Guild of America in Los Angeles. Getting in copyrighted is crutial. If you spill the beans on your script online and it's not copyright protected, anyone can steal your idea, make their own script based on a similar story, and there's nothing you can do about it, so get it copyrighted. After that, you can shop it around online, or you can look into literary agents that deal with screenwriters. They can help get your script out there if they think it's good enough.
I am curious as to what your idea is (don't worry, I'm not going to steal it.) What you do if someone asks you that or you want to tell friends about it before it's completed is, what they say in the industry, "pitch it to them." Pitch them the story line in 25 words or less. Work on that because it's not as easy as it looks.
I've written three screenplays, one of which I'm in pre-production with, and am currently working on a fourth. If you have any other questions about writing the script or anything really, let me know. I'd be glad to give you a hand. Good luck!
http://www.moviepitch.com