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.
Is All Subtext Manipulative?
Robert McKee explains the purpose of subtext, and the difference between manipulation and tactics.
Combining Genres to Create an Original Story
Robert McKee explains the benefits of combining genres as a tool to aid your construction of an original story.
The Danger of Complex Action Villains
Robert McKee explains how sympathy for a villain risks audience excitement, and why writers must be careful when introducing detailed backstories for their antagonists.