• The Tag Dept.

  3-act structure act one adaptation character consultancy dialogue dramatic irony format formatting happy ending hero's journey high concept kuleshov layout mckee michael hauge mid-point outline pitching Point of View protagonist ratatouille robert mckee scene screenplay screenwriters screenwriting script script development selling slug line software step outline story consultancy story structure synopsis The Inciting Incident The Logline The Plot Point turning point

Zinneman called it a ‘necessary evil’ and wordsmith par excellence David Mamet says: “A good film script should be able to do completely without dialogue.“ I am not an expert, not even a native English speaker and I most certainly lack a deep knowledge of vocabulary. My passion is for story and structure. So much for the disclaimers.

But as you’re asking about dialogue, here are some principles that I have observed in great screenplays. And yes: more often than not when writers draw the attention to their dialogue, the story doesn’t work.

Following UNK’s publication of his post on The Mid Point and to the benefit of the students in a recent HERO’S JOURNEY workshop, I have updated the article of 20 April last year about this important turning point.

Since writing the below post, I have come to realise that the mid point may well be the last checkpoint to make sure you have the most powerful story you can get.

• Search for: