WED 19 November, 9.00–17.30

Hall E1–2, Cankarjev dom

Creative Europe Desk Slovenia Masterclass in Screenwriting

with Mary Kate O Flanagan

“Grab your audience by the throat as soon as you possibly can and don’t let them go until the very last minute.” (Billy Wilder)

Within the framework of the 25^th Ljubljana International Film Festival, Creative Europe Desk Slovenia, information office for the EU programme Creative Europe, organises a masterclass in screenwriting with a renowned Irish script doctor, Mary Kate O Flanagan. The masterclass, in partnership with MIDPOINT Central European Script Center, is recommended to producers and directors as well as screenwriters and all film professionals interested in TV series.

“Most writers can get from zero to seven – the work Mary Kate does is to get a scene or a project from seven to ten and that’s a terrific skill.” (Lisa Albert, Writer-Producer, Mad Men)

Programme

Creating and Sustaining Dramatic Tension (9.30–13.00)

The secret of telling a great story on screen is understanding how to involve the audience. This lecture will explain how to do that, every time. The lecture is followed by the analysis of a low-budget, high-drama feature film. That demonstrates how these principles of storytelling can elevate European films and help them to break out and reach audiences outside their own countries. 

The Secret of the Scandinavians’ Success (14.00–15.30)

How can other countries reproduce the secret of the success of Scandinavian drama in recent years? Mary Kate will parse an episode of Swedish-Danish hit Broen/Bron/The Bridge as a teaching tool. The purpose of the master class is to impart skills to writers and give them a blueprint for compelling drama.

Does Comedy Require Dramatic Tension? (16.00–17.30)

In this session, a half-hour comedy for television will be parsed, showing how to weave multiple strands while bringing twists into every scene. Setting tone and The Lubitsch Touch will also be discussed. 

The masterclass will be held in English. Participation is free of charge.

Pre-registration is required on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. until 10 November at the latest More information: http://media.ced-slovenia.eu/

MARY KATE O FLANAGAN works with screenwriters and producers internationally, helping to shape stories by emerging and established screenwriters. She trained in teaching screenwriting with David Howard, author of The Tools of Screenwriting and How to Build a Great Screenplay and Martin Daniel, Professor of Screenwriting at University South Carolina (USA), among others. She designs and delivers training in the craft of screenwriting across Europe and in Africa. Mary Kate grew up in Denmark and has a special insight into the flowering of Danish film and television.

MIDPOINT was launched by FAMU Prague with the support of the MEDIA Programme as a professional script development and film dramaturgy training aimed at creative teams of writers, producers and directors.

The main three-month programme focuses on development of feature films (debut films and second feature films) of younger generation of emerging filmmakers.

Other MIDPOINT programmes include Training the Trainers workshop designed for young teachers of screen writing and dramaturgy, for script editors and TV commissioning editors; Dramaturgy in the editing room workshop for projects in the rough-cut stage; and genre workshops.

In 2015, MIDPOINT plans to start a new platform aimed at development of high-content ongoing, episodic TV series (together with partner programme Mediterranean Film Institute – MFI).