How to Become a Screenwriter: Everything You Need to Consider When Starting Out

What to consider first.

“If you can think of any other thing you want to be almost as much as a [screenwriter], anything, go be it.” 

Education

Top screenwriting schools.

• University of Southern California: USC's film program is one of the best there is, boasting alumni such as George Lucas, Judd Apatow and Ron Howard. Only accepting 26 undergraduates and 32 graduates per year, the screenwriting side of the cinematic school provides an intimate setting in which students can learn the ins and outs of both screenwriting and the film industry at large.
• University of California, Los Angeles: Joining USC as one of arguably the two best film schools in America, UCLA also boasts an extremely selective and highly prestigious MFA screenwriting program within their School of Film, Theater and Television. Notable alumni of the program include Francis Ford Coppola (“The Godfather”), Michael Miner (“RoboCop”) and Eric Roth (“Forrest Gump”).
• University of Texas at Austin: Moving further East, UT’s MFA in Screenwriting another prestigious and highly selective program — accepting just seven students per year. And with an in-state tuition under $12,000 per year and an out-of-state tuition almost half that of other programs throughout the nation, UT’s program is much kinder to the wallet.
• Loyola Marymount College: LMU’s Writing for the Screen MFA is yet another prestigious program. But what sets it apart is the programs third year, which focuses on individual professional development and a full-fledged launch into the industry.
• American Film Institute: One of the most selective film programs in America, the AFI’s MFA in Screenwriting is a two-year conservatory program designed to simulate the world of professional screenwriters. Notable alumni include Darren Aronofsky (“Black Swan”) and Jeff Nathanson (“Catch Me If You Can”).
• Chapman University: A two as opposed to three-year program, Chapman’s MFA in Screenwriting is excellent within the classroom and provides guidance in the form of screenwriting mentors outside of it. Notable alumni include Matt Duffer and Ross Duffe, the creators of “Stranger Things.”

Certificate programs and workshops.

• New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts — Certificate in Dramatic Writing: Screenwriting: NYU’s certificate program introduces students to playwriting, feature film writing, and television writing over the course of one-year or two successive summers. Notable alumni include Donald Glover (“30 Rock,” “Atlanta”), Suzanne Collins (“The Hunger Games”) and Alexa Junge (“The West Wing”).
• Emerson College — Screenwriting Certificate Program: Costing $3,600 at most, dependent on your elective workshop selection, this Boston-based program is one of the most affordable around. Notable alumni of the well-regarded program include Kate Boutilier (“Rugrats”) and Alex Tse (“Watchmen”).
• University of California, Los Angeles — Professional Program in Screenwriting: This certificate-awarding screenwriting program is the only graduate-level non-degree screenwriting program that has oversight by UCLA’s renowned School of Theater, Film and Television. The three-quarter program is taught by faculty of the school’s MFA screenwriting program and features an intimate classroom environment with no more than ten students per workshop.
• New York Film Academy — Screenwriting Workshop: This eight-week workshop is “designed for individuals with little or no screenwriting experience who are ready, willing, and able to work and learn within a fast-paced, high pressure, focused environment.” By the end of the workshop, each student has developed their own feature-length screenplay.

Internships

DIY

• Find, purchase and read the books required by the aforementioned degree and certificate programs.
• Find and read screenplays. Many screenplays, and all that are nominated for Academy Awards, are available to the public for free.
• Reach out to screenwriters, directors, producers and other film professionals whose work you enjoy and are interested in. See if you can sit down for coffee and simply pick their brain. You probably won’t be able to meet with Quentin Tarantino this way, but an up and coming professional may be willing to assist you.
• Take a MasterClass. Many of the most renowned screenwriters now have a course that they teach on the platform.

Career paths into screenwriting.

• Shonda Rhimes: Shonda Rhimes took the film school route. After receiving her BA in English Literature and Creative Writing from Dartmouth College, the Illinois-native went on to earn her MFA at USC. Soon after, she sold her first screenplay. And though it never got made, it led to her being hired to write other feature films, launching a career she would eventually center around television and her Shondaland empire.
• Aaron Sorkin: This theater-actor turned screenwriter extraordinaire started by simply transcribing his thoughts for a military courtroom drama series on cocktail napkins. “A Few Good Men” proceeded to make it big on Broadway in 1989 and hit the big screens in 1992, immediately catapulting the NYC-native’s now illustrious career.
• Quentin Tarantino: This eclectic creative hated school and loved film so much that he dropped out of high school to work at an usher at a movie theater while he took acting classes on the side. Eventually, he landed a job with a video store. While there he wrote multiple screenplays, which helped him land a job at a small production company. Utilizing connections he made at and through this company, Tarantino proceeded to launch his directorial and writing careers with the likes of “Reservoir Dogs” (1992) and “Pulp Fiction”(1994).

Screenwriter pay.

Resources for aspiring screenwriters.

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J.P. Pressley is a writer, entrepreneur, and an asthmatic former two-sport college athlete (basketball and track). Is he a jockey-nerd or a nerdy-jock? The world may never know. You can learn more about him at his personal website.