In Advisor Studio sessions, Sundance Collab Advisors share field experiences and insights into their specific areas of craft, including writing, directing and producing for TV and film.

Writing a screenplay can feel intimidating. Writing a great screenplay is a momentous task and a labor of love!

First impressions matter! Introducing your protagonist in their world is your moment to engage your audience. Giving your main character complex and memorable moments and obstacles is essential for developing the rest of the story. How you introduce your protagonist and your film world should keep your audience wanting more.

This Advisor Studio event will help you tackle this work under the guidance of veteran screenwriter, novelist, and educator Howard Rodman. Rodman's television credits include several episodes of the Showtime anthologies FALLEN ANGELS and THE HUNGER for directors Tony Scott, Steven Soderbergh, and Tom Cruise. Rodman has also written for Errol Morris, Clive Barker, David Lynch, Chantal Akerman, Maurice Sendak, and John McTiernan. Howard is also the former President of the Writers Guild of America, West, former Chair of the USC Screenwriting Program and currently the Artistic Director of the Sundance June Screenwriters Lab.

For this Advisor Studio event you will have the opportunity to watch selected clips that Howard curated to show effective openings to several films. You will also hear how Howard works to set up the beginning of a screenplay focusing on the protagonist and world of the film. The session will end with a Q&A about this topic and other aspects of writing a screenplay.