Directing: Workshopping Your Film

Sundance Collab offers a robust collection of online courses in the Sundance spirit of amplifying your independent voice as a storyteller. Join our global community to hone your craft, network with other creators, and develop career strategies to help you navigate the film and television industry.

Expand on your director's toolkit with experienced directors as your guides. In this live, online course, you will shoot a scene from your short or feature script, after lessons on translating your work from script-to-screen, breaking down your story, directing actors, and visual storytelling.

In class sessions, you will focus on analyzing scenes from films and will review exercises with classmates and course advisors. Designated homework designed to move your prep work on story, visuals and performance forward is reviewed by your advisor. The course concludes with a one-on-one mentoring session with your advisor focused on your project.

By the end of the course, you will:

understand the foundations of storytelling (objective, obstacles, conflict).
improve your understanding of the character journey.
develop a character analysis for your script.
create a thematic statement for your project.
hone your project logline and short synopsis.
breakdown a scene from your script and complete a scene analysis.
learn what to look for in key collaborators.
develop language and a process for working with actors.
craft language and an approach to visual storytelling.

This course is ideal for:

directors ready to make a short or feature film who want to dive deep into their creative prep work with the guidance of an experienced filmmaker.

Participants will be placed in small group workshops of about nine. To apply, you must have a short or feature film screenplay that you plan to direct (you do not need to have written the screenplay) AND have completed at least one fiction short as Director OR have completed Sundance Collab’s Directing: Core Elements.

Space is limited. Applications for this course are considered as they are received and applicants are accepted on a rolling basis until the course is full or the deadline has passed, whichever comes first.

Sundance Collab provides accommodations and support services to participants with disabilities. Accommodations and services are designed to meet the needs of each participant. Please email us at accessibility@sundance.org to arrange for services.