ABSTRACT
Motion pictures start out as ideas. Movies have extraordinary expressive potential, but you need to have something to say with the tools. This chapter focuses upon the inception and development of ideas for motion picture programs. You will survey the methods used by professional writers to inspire ideas, and the process of molding ideas into a creative concept for the screen. You will study the writing tools used for developing video and film projects, and explore the elements of the dramatic structure so you can organize your ideas to form a complete story. The objectives of this chapter are to:
Introduce the three stages of video and film production: preproduction, production, and postproduction; Explore techniques for developing ideas and program concepts; Organize strategically for writing effective stories and treatments; Understand the dramatic structure; Survey the creative process of writing stories and scripts.
