What are the best movie scripts to study as an aspiring screenwriter? Reading great screenplays is an important part of the learning process for any developing screenwriter. By looking at the work of great writers, we can explore a multitude of styles and approaches. Studying great scripts can strengthen and inform your own writing. We’ll be discussing the 10 best movie scripts to study. Let’s get started.Continue reading Best Screenplays to Read for Aspiring Screenwriters — Top 10
Whether you are a cinematographer or photographer, you are very likely to come across a project that will require the use of hard light. High contrast photography, Chiaroscuro lighting, and dramatic images in general are all created with some type of hard light. What is hard light and how does it differ from soft light? We’ll answer these questions and give you some tips to create and shape hard light so that you can use it to create the images you see in your mind. Continue reading What is Hard Light — Examples and Techniques in Film & Photo
Roger Deakins movies include Fargo, Skyfall, Sicario, No Country for Old Men, and recently he won the Academy Award in Cinematography for Blade Runner 2049 and 1917. But these are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the best Roger Deakins movies. We watched every one of them to see which films we think qualify as the best of the best in cinematography. Continue reading Roger Deakins Movies — His 16 Best Ranked for Filmmakers
Sometimes, a hero is only as good as their villain. Whether they’re a charismatic villain that you love to hate or pure, unadulterated evil, these villains will stick in your mind for years to come. Be sure to check out our How to Write a Villain video essay below for a breakdown of three villainous archetypes. Without further ado, please join us in counting down the best movie villains of all time.Continue reading The Best Villains of All Time — 23 Vile and Vicious Evildoers
When you think of some of the most iconic films in cinema history, quite a few also have an iconic prop. The Godfather and the horse head, The Wizard of Oz and Dorothy’s shoes, and of course Star Wars and the lightsaber. All of these props differ greatly from each other in how they look and how they are used. But all, nonetheless, are props. So what is a movie prop and what purpose does it serve? We’ll answer these questions and more in this article. Continue reading What is a Movie Prop — Types of Film Props & Why…
If you ever took any type of film editing class or read a book on film editing, L cuts might have been among the first techniques you learned. This is because it is one of the most effective techniques at creating a natural flow of a film. Nearly every single movie you watch will have some sort of L cut within its edit. So what is an L cut? Let’s find out.Continue reading What is an L Cut in Film — Editing Transitions Explained
The Best Supporting Actor category at the Oscars is often one of the most crowded and competitive fields in the entire Academy Award ceremony. Supporting actor roles tend to be some of the juiciest parts penned by screenwriters and often provide the perfect opportunities for talented actors to sink their teeth in and disappear into character. Join us in taking a look at 20 of the greatest Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor winners of all time, but first, let’s take a look at the complete list of winners over the years.Continue reading Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor —…
Dialogue scenes can be great, but they can easily fall short if they solely focus on the character doing the talking. Reaction shots have the ability to elevate a dialogue scene in a completely nonverbal way. Sometimes the physical reactions of a character can say a whole lot more than words. Let’s find out how.Continue reading The Reaction Shot — Much More Than Essential Film Grammar
A crucial part of filmmaking lies in preparation during pre-production. Developing an idea of what a film will look and feel like takes some deep thinking. Creating a film lookbook is a great way to compile all of these thoughts into one place for your benefit and the benefit of the entire film crew. In this article, we’ll take a look at the components of a lookbook, some film lookbook examples, and how to make a film lookbook.Continue reading Film Lookbook Examples & How to Make a Lookbook for Film
The best movie directors of all time — the idea of such a list sparks immediate debate. Rather than try to impose any sort of definitive or objective best directors list, consider this more of a celebration of the entire medium. Woefully underrepresented on this list are women. While women have been an integral part of the film industry since the beginning, the opportunity to direct was rarely given to them. That means that any list that covers the entirety of film history will be unfortunately one-sided. Thankfully, women have been making great strides in reversing this over the years…
