101 Things I Learned in Film School

As the saying goes, good things come in small packages. One of the strengths of this little gem is that the wise advice Neil Landau gives is distilled to its essence. Nothing long, rambling, or drawn-out. Here we are presented with succinct tips for writers and filmmakers that can immediately be grasped and put to use. I can flip through this book to remind me of things I already know about writing, but that have gotten bogged down in a muddle of too much information. And I can find tips and ideas about writing and story-telling that I had never considered. The advice for filmmakers is also useful to me as a writer, and can help me tell the story more effectively and cinematically. I'm not sticking this book on a shelf -- it belongs on my desk! As a screenwriting teacher, this is a book I will enthusiastically recommend to my students. There is a vast amount of information about screenwriting out there -- books, blogs, articles -- much of it overly complex and difficult to wade through. Students get confused and frustrated. They don't want complicated theories -- they're just interested in some truths and guidelines. 101 Things I Learned in Film School is the answer. The lessons are clear and deceptively simple, but each one is packed with valuable information. I know that the students who read this book will come away with a better understanding of how to write a good script.

"101 Things I learned in Film School" is a small, easy-to-carry rectangular book with 101 tips about writing and filming a movie. This book is easy to flip through. Each page is filled with some useful advice about navigating the murky world of successful filmmaking, with accompanying illustrations. Put together, the lessons from this compactable book could easily substitute some real film classes. The basics of screenwriting, for instance, are wholly summarized on page fifteen. They just about cover the majority of a real screenwriting class--apart from the actual writing of course. The writing tends to revolve around writing a good story, and tips about shooting it. Some filming/production vocabulary is included, which adds some textbook style to the writing and provides an amateur-friendly manual. Overall, a useful read for those interested in working in the movie industry or those simply thinking about it.

Film making is essentially storytelling, and as a writing teacher and avid reader, it's always fascinated me. I have been wanting to learn more about this storytelling process, and about the nuts and bolts of movie-making -- including scriptwriting, camera angles, and editing -- in a way that's relatively quick and accessible. This little book was perfect for me. It's deceptively straightforward and simple but rich with information. It helped me grasp the process of film-making, which Neil Landau described as both "painstakingly deliberate and fortuitously experimental." I am excited about looking for some of techniques he described next time I watch an excellent movie. Some aspects of movie making the author touches on: * The stages of film-making -- from pre-production to post-production. * The nuts and bolts of screenplays -- have you ever wondered how to format a screenplay or how long it should be? (hint: 1 screenplay page = 1 minute of screen time) * Writing and editing the screenplay -- it includes some of the standard gems cherished by us writing teachers, like "show, don't tell," plus tips for plotting, advice on developing a compelling protagonist, and more. * Coming up with an effective movie title. * Creating believable dialogue. * How to pitch a screenplay to a film studio executive. * How to use lighting and various camera lenses and angles to tell your story and reveal important things about a character's psychology. * Tips for casting. * Things the audience should experience during a movie, like catharsis. This is a concise, intriguing overview of the art of film making, strewn with quotes from movie makers, actors, and writers, that I'll be keeping on a side table in my T.V. room for future reference. Many of the ideas explored in this book, including plot development, creating characters, storytelling, themes, and imagery, will also help with reading or writing fiction. I highly recommend it to writers, film buffs, teachers, homeschoolers and anyone who is fascinated with the process of telling a compelling story.

I just finished reading 101 Things I Learned (TM) in Film School, and started it again. The information is concise, pithy, and totally helpful. I find Landau's information on structure and characterization particularly interesting because they help me to write in a different way and to watch movies as well as television shows differently. His description of taking a film apart scene by scene is fascinating and really helpful when I edit my own work. I recommend this book to anyone who writes - anyone who writes anything! - as well as to anyone who views film. It's terrific.

I carry around a little black book--101 Things I Learned in Film School by Neil Landau. Ever since I bought and read it, I have been carrying this excellent book around with me like a good luck charm so I can have Landau's sage wisdom and years of talent/expert advice and experience as a screenwriter/filmmaker at my fingertips. I am sure you will feel the same about its contents--you'll never "lose" this book - it's chocked full of 101 powerful lessons on screenwriting and film for the beginner, intermediate, or advanced student. Even professional filmmakers/screenwriters will benefit from reviewing all of the book's most pertinent ideas and advice to recharge their creativity or focus anew on a project or script. As a professor of creative writing, I will now use 101 Things I Learned in Film School in all my film/screenwriting classes. Additionally, as the Director of both the Chicago Writers' Workshop and the Los Angeles Writers' Workshop, I am implementing this book into all of our screenwriting and film classes! Forget about spending thousands of dollars on film school when this book can give you so much at a fraction of the cost--expert advice from a master who knows Hollywood and his craft, Neil Landau. I highly recommend 101 Things I Learned in Film School!