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FilmSkool — a free film school

How to Write a Short Film – Principles of Drama

Darious Britt goes back to fundamental drama theory — want, obstacle, action — and shows how to apply it specifically to the compressed short film form. A strong pick for writers who want the 'why' behind short film structure, not just a checklist.

D4Darious · 15 min · Intermediate · SCR · Screenwriting · 2025

What you take away

Every scene in a short must be driven by a character actively wanting something — passive scenes are the first thing to cut.

Watch it

Filed under

Oscar winners for screenplay

Books on screenwriting

Writing the TV Drama Series — Pamela Douglas
The Art of Dramatic Writing — Lajos Egri
Writing Short Films — Linda J. Cowgill
The Coffee Break Screenwriter — Pilar Alessandra
Making Short Films — Clifford Thurlow
The Anatomy of Story — John Truby

Kit for this lesson

Sony a7 IV — The all-round full-frame hybrid
Canon EOS R6 Mark II — The affordable full-frame RF hybrid
Nikon Z6 III — Partially stacked sensor, N-RAW internal
Fujifilm X-H2S — Stacked APS-C, F-Log2, open gate 6.2K
Fujifilm X-S20 — Small, cheap, 6.2K open gate
Rode VideoMic NTG — On-camera shotgun that doubles as a USB mic

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Anatomy Of Story - John Truby [FULL INTERVIEW] — Film Courage · 60m · Intermediate
THR Writer Roundtable: Chloe Domont, Andrew Haigh, Cord Jefferson, Tony McNamara, Eric Roth & More — The Hollywood Reporter · 40m · Advanced
12 Stages Of The Hero's Journey (Narrated By Christopher Vogler) — Film Courage · 23m · Beginner
Pedro Almodóvar | BAFTA Screenwriters’ Lecture Series — BAFTA Guru · 60m · Advanced
Céline Sciamma | BAFTA Screenwriters’ Lecture Series — BAFTA Guru · 55m · Advanced
Essential Skill Sets Screenwriters Need To Write Professionally - Corey Mandell [FULL INTERVIEW] — Film Courage · 75m · Intermediate
How to write amazing endings for your film. — Standard Story Company · 11m · Intermediate
Mike Leigh | BAFTA Screenwriters' Lecture Series — BAFTA · 62m · Advanced
Writing Subtext — The Secret to Writing What's Under the Surface — StudioBinder · 22m · Intermediate
Anatomy Of Story - Television Edition: The Complete Film Courage Interview with John Truby — Film Courage · 55m · Intermediate

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