Drama vs. Dialogue
Robert McKee teaches the difference between excessive dialogue and character talk that serves an essential purpose in story.
Do Screenwriters Supply the Film’s Image System?
Robert McKee discusses the process a director might use when implementing image systems, and how ultimately they are embedded in the story by the writer.
Keeping Your Image System Subconscious
Robert teaches the importance of subtlety when creating image systems, and how writers can best judge their own work.
Keeping Your Image System Intact
Robert McKee discusses what writers can do to see their image system fully realized in a completed film.
Does Your Image System Work?
Robert McKee teaches practical ways writers can test whether their image systems are working.
Common Mistakes in Horror Writing
Robert McKee highlights the most common mistakes a horror writer can make to undermine their story.
Creating Character Arcs in Horror Stories
Robert McKee explains how horror affects character change, and how that might play out in long-form storytelling.
Creating Meaning From Clichés
Robert teaches how writers can layer subtext underneath a cliché in order to make the line work.
Turning Scenes with Backstory
Robert McKee teaches how to create and use backstory to turn scenes through revelation.
Adapting Dialogue for the Screen
Robert teaches how adapting novels, and the dialogue within, for screen is a matter of reinvention.
How Would a Treatment Look for a Scene With Mostly Dialogue?
Robert McKee on how to deal with dialogue when planning out your story beats and turning points in a treatment.
Can an Image System Be Too Heavy-Handed?
Robert McKee teaches the relationship between image systems and empathy.