Ashley Pharoah, award-winning writer and creator of shows including Life on Mars, Ashes to Ashes and Wild at Heart, dropped by our classroom to take questions from our John Yorke Story for Screenwriting students. Here they discuss pitching, his development as a writer and the often long wait from script to screen.
Video games are nothing new (well, compared to the theatre they might be), but rather than brainless shoot-em-ups, gamers are demanding more engaging, emotionally affecting storylines alongside gameplay enjoyment. For this reason, television and film scriptwriters are increasingly looking at games as a new and improved medium to tell their stories. Here, scriptwriter James Henry explores how the Story for Video Games online course can help traditional writers make the leap to this burgeoning medium.
What’s the key to great comedy? How can you engage the audience while still making them laugh? What should a new writer look out for? Actress, writer and producer Katherine Press met up with BBC Studios Executive Producer for Comedy Simon Nicholls to clear up all these questions and more in an exclusive interview for John Yorke Story.
Farah Abushwesha is a BAFTA-Nominated Producer, Amazon Best-Selling Author, and a 2017 Screen International Star of Tomorrow. She’s also the Founder of the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Competition, an initiative created to give talented fledgling screenwriters a headstart in the industry. Professional Writing Academy moderator, actress, writer and producer Katherine Press sat down with Farah at BAFTA HQ to talk Rocliffe, filmmaking and her top tips for new writers.
There is growing recognition that great story is a key factor in player engagement and video game completion. But there are few opportunities to learn the fundamentals of story in a way relevant to games developers. Caroline Marchal and John Yorke have devised an online course for individuals and teams who want to know how to manage a gaming story better. Caroline explains more…
Narrative games designer Caroline Marchal and narrative expert John Yorke explain why games developers increasingly need to understand and apply the fundamentals of story to keep players engaged.
Our Story for Screen students are halfway through the course, so we invited writer, story producer and tutor Ciaran Hayden to answer their questions on troublesome midsections, characters’ desires and how long to make a series.
There’s more to think about when when writing for games that simply what words to use, Caroline Marchal summarises some dos and don’ts for those looking to work in the industry.
Videogame stories need to be complelling if a player is to stay engaged. Story for Games course Leader Caroline Marchal outlines the five most important things to keep in mind about your audience as you write your game’s story.
What does a script editor really mean when she asks a writer to ‘dig deeper’? Caroline Young, tutor on our Story for Script Development course, reveals the truth behind script editor clichés – and what writers hear when they read ‘We’re so nearly there now.’