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  3. Bachelor in Communication Sciences
  4. Optional Area of Journalism
  5. Scriptwriting

Scriptwriting

Objectives

Students will develop capacities in the development of screenplays in different genres, media and platforms. They will learn to face the many challenges of writing and finding their voice, the integration of audiovisual project teams and critical analysis of films based on fundamental theoretical concepts. They will be able to present and debate texts and projects produced by them during the semester.

General characterization

Code

711011056

Credits

6.0

Responsible teacher

Paulo Filipe Gouveia Monteiro

Hours

Weekly - 4

Total - 168

Teaching language

Portuguese

Prerequisites

Available soon

Bibliography

AREAL, Leonor (2011). Cinema Português - Um país imaginado (Vol. I e II). Edições 70.
ARISTÓTELES (2004). Poética (2ª Edição). Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian.
CAMPBELL, Joseph (2005). O Herói de Mil Faces. Pensamento.
DELEUZE, Gilles (2015). A Imagem-Tempo - Cinema 2. Documenta.
DELEUZE, Gilles (2016). A Imagem-Movimento - Cinema 1. Documenta.
FIELD, Syd (2005). Screenplay: Foundations Of Screenwriting. Random House.
GRILO, João Mário (2006) O Cinema da Não-Ilusão - histórias para o cinema português. Livros Horizonte.
MCKEE, Robert (1999). Story: Substance, Structure, Style And The Principles Of Screenwriting. Methuen.
MENDES, João Maria (2009). Culturas Narrativas Dominantes - O Caso do Cinema. EDIUAL.
PROPP, Vladimir (2003). Morfologia do Conto. Vega.
RANCIÈRE, Jacques (2010). O Espectador Emancipado. Orfeu Negro.
ZIZEK, Slavoj (2008). Lacrimae Rerum (Ensaios sobre Kieslowski, Hitchcock, Tarkovski e Lynch). Orfeu Negro.

Teaching method

This course’s methodology is both theoretical and practical, the evaluation is continuous, requiring an attendance of at least 75% of classes. The number of students will be limited in order to achieve optimal results at the stage of creation, discussion and analysis, teamwork, as well as the debate of study cases. The evaluation of students is based on five key elements: Three of them are writing processes (free writing, script writing and team writing). The other two correspond to the participation in discussions and film debates and the presentation in class of the final project. This will be the result of all the work developed throughout the semester. The three writing exercises represent 70% of the final score, and the remaining 30% refer to participation and presentation skills. The theme’s originality, writing style, structure of narrative and compliance with technical rules are valued. The relevance and quality of interventions and final presentation will also be valued.

Evaluation method

Evaluation Methodologies - participation and presentation of the final project in class(30%), three writing exercises(70%)

Subject matter

We will investigate the specificities of script writing, seeking to develop valid narrative proposals both in the eyes of Aristotle's Poetics, as well as following the concept of the Hero's Journey, or other contemporary narrative theories. We will think about this text as a visual, sound and narrative proposal, a living experience unique for each spectator, in different formats, genres and media. We will analyze films, identifying key elements in their structure, evolution, theme and approach. We will develop exercises that promote writing skills, as an original but also collaborative language, where personal experience will be explored as inspiration for different writings. We will exercise reading and the debate of texts developed by students, questioning the fundamental aspects of the script, analyzing individual and group proposals in terms of internal elements, development, broadcast platforms and, above all, artistic consistency.