Of all forms of fiction the screenplay demands the greatest economy from the writer. To succeed as many as thirty different concerns must be satisfy on a single page. The final product must serve the disparate needs of actors, directors, producers their story development and production teams and last but not least the audience of the movie.

The only reason that experienced screenwriters can handle so many technical concerns is because they have reached a point where they have sublimated the theory and can write either instinctively or according to a careful design calculate. Even so to persistently improve a working draft by rewriting requires that the screenwriter maintain a clear perception of of his goals. Only writers who have thoroughly mastered the the technical challenges of the craft can hope to realize their artistic potential.

I have been creating a new approach to handle the technical side of screen writing called "Patterns Of Screen Writing". This innovative approach is based on pattern languages - an paradigm used to reduce complexity in architecture and software development. Here are some of the films which I used to illustrate the techniques from the book.

• Reservoir Dogs
• Chocolate
• Pulp Fiction
• Juliette of the Spirits
• Big Fish
• The Big Chill
• Barton Fink

The pattern system starts with common problems and the techniques best suited to handle them. As writers progress they will be able to do more on any given page and it will be time to attempt more advanced techniques. By limiting what you ask at each stage of planning and writing you can learn to work with greater economy. You will also insight into the minimal set of questions all that are required to describe your story, characters, and their actions.

As the text gain in maturity I am becoming more critical of new materials for the book. I hope that by sharing some of my thoughts I can provide further illustrations of the pattern system. Some materials are too detailed or too advanced to go into the book.

Currently I recommend Micheal Hague work as a basic starting point and Robert McKee's less accessible Story for the more advanced writers. For an in depth study consider Syd Field's Four screenplays.