Whether you're college-educated or self-taught, chances are you were (unknowingly) instructed to either under-direct or over-direct your screenplay from the page.

This is a huge problem for your screenplays.

Here's why:

Using either extreme can cause you to lose a competition or miss out on representation because the gatekeeper reading your script isn't experiencing the story you intended—

They're pulled out and stop reading.

Here's what I mean:

Common Extreme —
Under Directing:

• Robotic, emotionless
• Difficult to decipher
• No subtext
• Lacks artistry
• Breaks immersion

Common Extreme — Over Directing:

• Bloated paragraphs
• Clunky camera angles
• Hard to understand at a glance
• Feels amateurish
• Breaks immersion

Sound familiar? I don't blame you, either.

Before I mastered visual screenwriting, I did plenty of both of these.

I was taught this way at times too because it used to be the prevailing wisdom of yesterday's Hollywood. 

But things have changed.

Your script is ain't just a blueprint for someone else to direct. 

You, the screenwriter, must direct the story on the page. 🎥

Reading your screenplay should emotionally mimic what it feels like to watch your movie.

This means avoiding both extremes by directing from the page using unobtrusive, engaging techniques:

The Perfect Balance — CineMagical Screenwriting:

• Pithy & skimmable
• Visual poetry with musical rhythm
• Formatting and page layout enhance story experience
• Immersive & emotionally resonant!

Why?

The story you're telling is only as good as how you're telling it.

Execution, not just intention.

It all comes down to one thing:

👀 Visual Screenwriting Skills! 

That's how to keep the reader engaged, get past the gatekeepers, and place in high-stakes screenwriting competitions. 

Most screenwriting books and gurus don't talk about how to actually do this, though. 

Typical screenwriting books and courses teach story structure, but not line-by-line cinematic storytelling. 

They just focus on all the abstract stuff: 

• 3 Act Structure 
• Character Arcs
• Plot or "Beats"
• and other theoretical topics...

In fact, those are all important aspects of screenwriting you have to learn, but they won't help you with line-by-line cinematic storytelling. 

They lack the detailed techniques you need to execute your story with excellence. 

That's why...

You need to learn visual storytelling from a director.

You need practical examples from epic screenplays.

You've got to get out of theory and into hands-on application.

You need to embrace visual screenwriting skills to craft celluloid sorcery! 🧙‍♂️

Mastering visual screenwriting is like learning to forge a traditional katana because each step of the process builds the foundation for the next step:

And of course, any swordsmith must apprentice under a consummate practitioner of the craft...

...who also happens to be a professional director.

Here's how:

Don't let your brilliant story sink in the sea of other mediocre screenplays because you lack the visual writing skills to bring them to life on the page.

In today's competitive film industry, mastering visual screenwriting isn't just an option—it's essential for success. 

Imagine:

• Readers unable to put your script down...

• Producers captivated by your cinematic descriptions...

• Directors fighting to bring your vivid scenes to the screen!

Don't sabotage your dreams of seeing your story on the big screen. Develop your visual screenwriting skills now and transform your scripts into compelling, visual experiences that demand attention.

The choice is yours.

Continue struggling with lackluster descriptions, or elevate your writing to create scripts that leap off the page and onto the screen.

Your future in screenwriting depends on the decision you make today.