This is a workshop-style course for those who have thought they had a terrific idea for a movie but didn't know where to begin. Students will start with a short script of 5 to 15 pages then we will focus on learning the basic tenets of dramatic structure and how this will serve as the backbone for a feature screenplay. Along the way we will read and watch classic films- Chinatown, Thelma & Louise -and contemporary films- Short Term 12, Bridesmaids -and examine what makes them successful as character driven stories. Each student should, by the end of the semester, have at least thirty pages of a screenplay completed with an outline to guide them the rest of the way. Films and their corresponding screenplays will be required reading for every class, and students will also become acquainted with how the business of selling and producing one's screenplay actually happens in Hollywood and independently.