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Beat Sheet Workshop

A live, interactive workshop taught by Margaret South, developer of feature films and founder of All Girl Productions

April 15, 2024

8 to 9:30 p.m. Eastern (5 to 6:30 p.m. Pacific)

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Writing a screenplay can seem daunting if you don’t know where to start, where you’re going, or what happens along the way. But with the help of a beat sheet, you can get your entire story on one page, where you can evaluate and fine-tune it with a bird’s-eye view.

 

The beat sheet is essential in screenwriting, but also useful for novelists and memoirists. It’s a crucial organizational tool that goes beyond the outline. Think of it as a roadmap that shows each stop along the way of your story. It helps you clarify the objective for each act, shows you the overall arc, and pinpoints the important emotional moments.

 

Doing the beat sheet is challenging, but it will show you any weakness in your story—something you want to know sooner rather than later. It will also help you refine your story into a logline or elevator pitch.

 

In this 90-minute workshop, Margaret South will share various beat sheets for well-known films and show how you can develop your own.

Beat Sheet Workshop Syllabus

  • What is a beat, and what is the beat sheet?

  • Why is the beat sheet essential?

  • How many beats do you need per act?

  • How many beats are in a typical screenplay?

  • How do you format a beat sheet?

  • How do you use a story template?

  • Examples of beat sheets:

Beaches

Wizard of Oz

It’s a Wonderful Life

Sleepless in Seattle—with two main characters

Faculty

Margaret South founded All Girl Productions with Bette Midler and Bonnie Bruckheimer, and developed feature film projects for Disney, Fox and Tri-Star Studios, HBO, ABC, and NBC, including the beloved Beaches. Together with Ms. Midler, she wrote the screenplay A View from a Broad for Disney Studios.

 

Ms. South also created the innovative Kids Talk Story curriculum, provided in public schools. She has appeared at the Crossroads Writers' Conference, the Maui/Hawaii Writers’ Conference, the Women in Film Convention, as well as American Pen Women, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. She has worked with writers for over three decades.

$79 for 90 minutes of instruction

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EVENING CLASS

April 15, 2024

8 to 9:30 PM Eastern (5 to 6:30 PM Pacific)

You can sign up for only this class or the Storytelling Trio at a discounted price.

Please note: Our classes are designed specifically for live participation, so your attendance is important. If you need to miss a class for any reason, you’ll receive a passcode-protected link to watch the recordings after the course is over.

A Peek at Our Past Virtual Classes

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