Looking for inspiration, workflow tools, or educational opportunities to finally finish that script? Well SAW Video's Equipment Manager, Jason Sonier, has compiled a wonderful list for just that very thing!
GETTING READY TO WRITE: SOME RESOURCES FOR SCREENWRITING
Many film and media artists are using this time start planning out projects for the future, including working on scripts. There are a lot of organizations and resources out there that can help folks with their screenwriting skills; we’ve gathered just a few of them, with many of them free to access or use.
SAW VIDEO’S OWN SCREENWRITING WORKSHOPS
We begin, naturally, with SAW Video itself. SAW Video offers screenwriting workshops regularly throughout the year; for example, we will be offering a multi-day online Advanced Screenwriting Workshop starting in Mid-October with other workshops planned for the new year. Why not work on your skills closer to home?
https://www.sawvideo.com/workshops/scheduled/2020-10/advanced-screenwri…
WHERE TO FIND SCRIPTS TO READ AND STUDY
One of the best ways to learn what makes for a good script, is to read as many good scripts as one can. Below are some links to sites where one can read and even download hundreds of scripts for study and analysis.
Internet Movie Script Database:
Go Into the Story (a part of the Blacklist screenwriting community):
https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/script-download-links-9313356d361c
Simply Scripts
https://www.simplyscripts.com/movie-scripts.html
AwesomeFilm
The Daily Script
https://www.dailyscript.com/movie.html
The Screenplay Database
http://www.screenplaydb.com/film/all/
The Script Lab
Move Scripts and Screenplays
http://www.moviescriptsandscreenplays.com/
Script-o-rama
http://www.script-o-rama.com/snazzy/table.html
John August’s Library
https://johnaugust.com/library
NB: He also has created an app called WeekendRead that allows one to download PDF’s of various scripts onto one’s device for later reading:
https://quoteunquoteapps.com/weekendread/
HorrorLair
The Script Savant
https://thescriptsavant.com/free-movie-screenplays-am/
ScriptReaderPro
https://www.scriptreaderpro.com/best-screenplays-to-read/
Script Slug
FREE SCRIPTWRITING SOFTWARE
As you begin to work on your own script, you’ll need software to do the writing in. While it is possible to write your script in simple text editors and word processing software application (many of which come free with your device or computer), having dedicated scriptwriting software can make things easier, faster, and more enjoyable. While well-known titles such as Movie Magic Screenwriter and Final Draft can be expensive (though Final Draft does offer a lower priced IOS option) some of the options below are free to use…
Writer Duet (Free and paid options for Mac and PC)
The free version is online only, and also restrict the user to 3 scripts per account, but the software does allow for real-time collaboration with another writer.
Studiobinder (Free and paid options and extensions for PC and Mac)
https://www.studiobinder.com/scriptwriting-software
This software has free and paid options and can incorporate for extensions that allow for extensive pre-production planning and documents from your initial script.
FadeIn (free/demo and paid versions for Mac, PC and Linux)
The Free/Demo version works just fine, though it will put a watermark on every page of your printed script, which would look unprofessional if you were submitting the script to someone else.
Trelby (free open-source for Mac, PC and Linux)
A good open-source option.
Highland 2 (free and paid versions for Mac)
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/highland-2/id1171820258?ls=1&mt=12
This application strives to allow the writer to focus on their actual writing as much as possible.
Arc Studio Pro (free and paid versions for Mac, PC or online/in-browser)
The company has currently offered the paid version of the software for free for the duration of the current emergency.
Drama Queen (free and paid versions for Mac, PC and Linux)
http://dramaqueen.info/dramaqueen-free-lifetime-en/?lang=en
The free version of the software is basic but still complete enough for most users.
There are also numerous apps just for Android and IOS devices that are quite inexpensive compared to the paid versions of software for Mac or PC; many of them can be used for screenwriting:
Final Draft Writer/Fade In Mobile
Hanx Writer
MyScreenplays
Storyist
Scrivener
Celtx
ScriptWrite
Screenplay
Scripts Pro
Manuscript
Fade In Mobile
WriterDuet
OTHER INTERESTING SOFTWARE:
DubScript (free for Windows and Android)
This software will actually read your script out loud so that you can get a sense as to what it will sound like.
Dramatify (for Mac and PC)
https://dramatify.com/faq/arabic-scriptwriting
Software that supports screenwriting in Arabic
SCREENWRITING ORGANIZATIONS, COMMUNITIES, RESOURCE HUBS AND BLOGS:
There are a huge number of organizations and resources for learning and honing the craft of screenwriting available online. There are just a few of the more notable ones to get you started.
BBC Writer’s Room
https://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/
The Black List
101 Free Resources for Screenwriters
https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/free-screenwriting-resources-70f7008…
Reddit has a thriving and active community of screenwriters
https://www.reddit.com/r/Screenwriting/
Save the Cat
Bitter Script Reader (a bitter scripture reader rants about the mistakes they see most often in a script)
http://thebitterscriptreader.blogspot.com/
Lessons of the Screenplay
https://www.lessonsfromthescreenplay.com/
Screenwriting.io
The Script Lab
Script Magazine
Laura Donahue’s Curated List of Scriptwriting Opportunities
https://lauridonahue.com/resources/a-curated-list-of-the-most-worthwhil…
Amy Suto’s Curated List of Useful Resources
https://amysuto.com/2012/05/22-invaluable-screenwriting-resources-on-th…
Screencraft.org’s List of Resources
https://screencraft.org/2018/11/19/101-free-resources-for-screenwriters/
Flying Wrestler
https://www.flyingwrestler.com/
International Screenwriter’s Association
Film Freeway - Curated list of writing conferences and contests
https://filmfreeway.com/festivals/curated/screenwriting
InkCanada - Facebook Group for Canadian Screenwriters
https://www.facebook.com/groups/inkcanada/
Free Screenwriting Resources from Industrial Scripts
https://industrialscripts.com/category/articles/white-papers/
Coverfly - List of screenplay competitions
https://writers.coverfly.com/competitions
Movie Outline’s list of screenwriting resources
http://www.movieoutline.com/screenwriting-resources.html
Wordplay
ORGANIZATIONS THAT SUPPORT DIVERSITY IN SCREENWRITING:
The Organization of Black Screenwriters
https://www.facebook.com/OBS.WRITERS/
Black Screenplays
https://www.blackscreenplays.com/links.htm
Resources for Black Film Makers and Screenwriters - A Guide (Note: USA focused, but may still be of use to some)
https://cutaway.shift.io/resources-for-black-filmmakers-a-guide
Writer’s Resources for Black Freelancers
https://blackfreelance.com/writer-resources/
Asian American Artist Foundation
Vancouver Asian Film Festival’s Scriptwriting Competition
http://vaff.org/scriptwriting-competition/
Writer’s Guild of Canada Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives
https://www.writersguildofcanada.com/screenwriters/diversityandinclusion
Open Screenplay (billed as a global community where members can write individually or collaborate with other writers around the world “who share the goal of making the world depicted in television and film as diverse as the one we live in,”
https://www.openscreenplay.com/
“Strategies for Latino Screenwriters”
https://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/onlinessays/JC38folder/forLatinoScreen…
Latino Screenwriting Academy
https://www.josefinalopez.biz/latinoscreenwritingacademy
SOME SPECIFICALLY CANADIAN RESOURCES
Canadian Writer’s Guild
https://www.writersguildofcanada.com/screenwriters
Canadian Literature Centre
https://www.abclc.ca/literature-online/canadian-writers-organizations-a…
A list of general writing organizations in Canada
SCREENWRITING PODCASTS
Writers Talking TV
49 Degrees North
https://www.tvwriterpodcast.com/
Black Men Can’t Jump in Hollywood
The Bechdel Cast
Scriptnotes
The Black List Table Reads
The Writers Panel
3rd and Fairfax
Draft Zero
On the Page
On Story
The Q &A with Jeff Goldsmith
The Treatment
Write On with Final Draft
Scripts and Scribes
UK Scriptwriters Podcast
The Script Podcast
Children of Tendu
Paper Team
Dead Pilots Society
Story Break
Good Ones
Hollywood Handbook
Screenwriter’s Rant Room
Write Along
You Had Us at Hello
OnWriting
Writers/Blockbusters
Writer’s Group Therapy
Curious about Screenwriting
BAFTA Screenwriter’s Lectures
Storywise
SOME OTHER LINKS, ONLY SOMEWHAT TANGENTIALLY RELATED TO SCREENWRITING, BUT STILL NOTEWORTHY:
These are links that we stumbled across in our research that don’t fully fit in with this article’s theme, but are still too potentially interesting, helpful or just plain inspiring not to mention.
List of writer’s organizations for diverse authors
https://www.shewrites.com/blog/view/2859004/16-writing-organizations-fo…
Indigenous Filmmaker Fellowship
https://whistlerfilmfestival.com/talent/indigenous-filmmaker-fellowship/
imagineNATIVE Web Series Pitch Competition (DEADLINE SEPTEMBER 18 2020)
https://imaginenative.squarespace.com/opportunities
imagineNATIVE Institute
https://imaginenative.org/institute-programs
Arctic Indigenous Film Fund
Weengushk Film Institute
Capilano University Indigenous Independent Film-making Diploma
https://www.capilanou.ca/programs--courses/program-profiles/indigenous-…
BlackWomenFilm!
Asian Canadian Writers
http://www.asiancanadianwriters.ca/p/writing-resources.html
1497 - An organization devoted to uplifting and amplifying Asian American voices in the Film and TV industries
CAPE - Educating, Connecting and empowering Asian and Pacific Islander artists and leaders in entertainment and media
Canadian Creative Writing Programs
https://www.ccwwp.ca/creative-writing-programs-in-canada/
Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network
http://www.dvan.org/what-we-do
Playwrights Canada
https://www.playwrightscanada.com/Subjects/
BIPOC Writer’s Connect event
https://www.writersunion.ca/bipoc-writers-connect
Vancouver Asian Film Festival’s Movie Making Competition
https://explorasian.org/2020/07/02/the-mighty-asian-movie-making-marath…
Latinx Writer’s Collective
https://techqueria.org/resources/writing/latinx-writers-collective/
Latinx Writers: a virtual symposium 2020
https://www.highlightsfoundation.org/programs/1976/latinx-writers-a-vir…
Latinxs in Kid Lit
https://latinosinkidlit.com/great-resources/
Latino Writers Committee
https://www.wga.org/members/membership-information/committees/latino-wr…
Wet Ink Collective - “Empowering Women Writers”
http://www.wetinkcollective.ca/
Women on Screen - “supporting women on all sides of the camera”
Women in Film and Television
https://www.womeninfilm.ca/Tricksters_and_Writers.html
Women Make Movies
https://www.wmm.com/resources/womens-film-groups/
Vancouver International’s Women in Film Festival
https://filmfreeway.com/VancouverInternationalWomeninFilmFestival
“Handicapped Writer Resources”
http://pbackwriter.blogspot.com/p/handicapped-writer-resources.html
Writers with Disabilities Committee
https://www.wga.org/members/membership-information/committees/writers-w…
Helping Students with Disabilities Become Writers
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/apr94/vol51/num…
Database of Diverse Databases
https://editorsofcolor.com/diverse-databases/
Resources for LGBTQ Writers and Publishers
https://www.lambdaliterary.org/resources/
Prison Writing
https://www.prisonactivist.org/resources/prison-writing-arts-programs
https://pen.org/prison-writing/
Access Reel World - A directory of creative professionals from a range of diverse backgrounds
https://www.accessreelworld.ca/
IMAA Resources
https://www.imaa.ca/resources/
“The Ultimate Film Funding Guide - Updated to 2019”
https://indiefilmto.com/film-funding-and-grants-guide-2019/
Are there any resources, events, organizations or just plain cool stuff that you think SAW Video should let our members know about? Drop us a line at production@sawvideo.com
