Getting Started Writing Your Feature Film Screenplay

Programme details

This course begins on the 11 Jan 2027 which is when course materials are made available to students. Students should study these materials in advance of the first live meeting which will be held on 18 Jan 2027, 13:30- 14:30pm (UK time).

Week 1: Creating engaging characters

Week 2: Building an absorbing structure 

Week 3: Intriguing with genre

Week 4: Evaluate reference work through script reports

Week 5: Formative assessment: Script report presentations (2-hour live session) 

Week 6: Formatting, and setting up the story in the first 10 pages 

Week 7: The script as foundation in filmmaking, and a sense of adventure in the second 10 pages

Week 8: Values, and facing a turning point in the third 10 pages

Week 9: Pitching and meeting tests, allies and enemies in the fourth 10 pages 

Week 10: Final Pitching Exercise

Level and demands

This course is open to all and no prior knowledge is required.

This course is offered at FHEQ Level 4 (i.e. first year undergraduate level), and you will be expected to engage in independent study in preparation for your assignments and for the weekly webinar. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class. Our 10-week Short Online Courses come with an expected total commitment of 100 study hours, including those spent in live webinars.

English Language Requirements

We do not insist that applicants hold an English language certification, but warn that they may be at a disadvantage if their language skills are not of a comparable level to those qualifications listed on our website. If you are confident in your proficiency, please feel free to enrol. For more information regarding English language requirements please follow this link: https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/english-language-requirements

Course aims

Enable emerging screenwriters to start a first draft of their feature film screenplay, communicate the project’s aims as a work in progress, and build on guidance from their tutor and peers. 

Course objectives:

• Express your film idea within the limitations of the screenwriting form and practise the application of dramatic writing techniques.
• Evaluate screenwriting in terms of formal and dramatic achievements.
• Communicate your evaluation, including areas of achievement and those requiring further development, in a constructive manner.  

IT requirements

Any standard web browser can be used to access course materials on our virtual learning environment, but we recommend Google Chrome. We also recommend that students join the live webinars on Microsoft Teams using a laptop or desktop computer rather than a phone or tablet due to the limited functionality of the app on these devices.

Programme details

This course begins on the 11 Jan 2027 which is when course materials are made available to students. Students should study these materials in advance of the first live meeting which will be held on 18 Jan 2027, 13:30- 14:30pm (UK time).

Week 1: Creating engaging characters

Week 2: Building an absorbing structure 

Week 3: Intriguing with genre

Week 4: Evaluate reference work through script reports

Week 5: Formative assessment: Script report presentations (2-hour live session) 

Week 6: Formatting, and setting up the story in the first 10 pages 

Week 7: The script as foundation in filmmaking, and a sense of adventure in the second 10 pages

Week 8: Values, and facing a turning point in the third 10 pages

Week 9: Pitching and meeting tests, allies and enemies in the fourth 10 pages 

Week 10: Final Pitching Exercise

Teaching methods

This course takes place over 10 weeks, with a weekly learning schedule and weekly live webinar held on Microsoft Teams. Shortly before a course commences, students are provided with access to an online virtual learning environment, which houses the course content, including video lectures, complemented by readings or other study materials. Any standard web browser can be used to access these materials, but we recommend Google Chrome. Working through these materials over the course of the week will prepare students for a weekly 1-hour live webinar you will share with your expert tutor and fellow students. All courses are structured to amount to 100 study hours, so that on average, you should set aside 10 hours a week for study. Although the course finishes after 10 weeks, all learning materials remain available to all students for 12 months after the course has finished.

All courses are led by an expert tutor. Tutors guide students through the course materials as part of the live interactions during the weekly webinars. Tutors will also provide individualised feedback on your assignments. All online courses are taught in small student cohorts so that you and your peers will form a mutually supportive and vibrant learning community for the duration of the course. You will learn from your fellow students as well as from your tutor, and they will learn from you.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will be expected to:

• be able to write within the limitations of the screenwriting form (e.g. slugline, scene description, dialogue);
• practice their critical skills, identifying dramatic achievements in creative writing as well as areas that may be improved;
• articulate constructive feedback to peers.

Assessment methods

You will be set a portfolio of up to five pieces of work to complete over the duration of the course, one or more of which might be submitted for the purposes of feedback only and will not count towards your final outcome. The other pieces will be submitted for formal assessment at the end of the course. The assessed work is marked pass or fail.

Mr Carl Schoenfeld

Carl has three decades’ film industry experience as writer, director and producer. He has pioneered fresh approaches across filmmaking and education. His award-winning productions with the BBC, Channel4/Film4, BFI, including BAFTA nominated ‘A Sarajevo Diary’ and Ben Whishaw starrer ‘My Brother Tom’, embraced new technology and launched the talent involved.

Assessment methods

You will be set a portfolio of up to five pieces of work to complete over the duration of the course, one or more of which might be submitted for the purposes of feedback only and will not count towards your final outcome. The other pieces will be submitted for formal assessment at the end of the course. The assessed work is marked pass or fail.

Level and demands

This course is open to all and no prior knowledge is required.

This course is offered at FHEQ Level 4 (i.e. first year undergraduate level), and you will be expected to engage in independent study in preparation for your assignments and for the weekly webinar. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class. Our 10-week Short Online Courses come with an expected total commitment of 100 study hours, including those spent in live webinars.

English Language Requirements

We do not insist that applicants hold an English language certification, but warn that they may be at a disadvantage if their language skills are not of a comparable level to those qualifications listed on our website. If you are confident in your proficiency, please feel free to enrol. For more information regarding English language requirements please follow this link: https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/english-language-requirements

Fees

Module code: O26P745CRZ

Please use the ‘Book now’ button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form.

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