WRITING FOR FILM & TV “Our instructors Writing for Film bring real world knowledge, insight and contacts to & TV your education.” Dundas Campus 10 Dundas St. E Suite 704 Toronto, ON M5B 2G9 18-MONTH DIPLOMA PROGRAM 1-866-467-0661 www.torontofilmschool.ca TorontoFilmSchool @TorontoFilmS TorontoFilmS1 WRITING FOR FILM & TV OVERVIEW Program Description With the explosion of growth in traditional and new media, this is an ideal time for aspiring writers to be entering the world of film and television. Highly skilled, professional screenwriting graduates are well positioned for many creative and exciting career opportunities. The Writing for Film & TV Diploma at the Toronto Film School blends creative, business and technical skills training to prepare graduates for work as: Screenwriters Story Editors Staff Writers Development Executives Producers Production Executives Picture Editors and more Specific courses explore several areas of screenwriting, including: Sitcom One-Hour Drama TV Movies Feature Film New Media Documentary Broadcast News Commercials & PSA’s Factual Entertainment In this program, students have the opportunity right from the beginning to collaborate closely with those in other Toronto Film School programs (Film Production and Acting for Film, TV & the Theatre). They learn about their role in the entire filming process from developing a script through to production and editing. They are challenged every term in workshops where they review and critique each other’s work. Students gain practical experience within a simulated writing room environment in their television courses. In the final term, students get to bring their work to life, shooting scenes from their original scripts. Throughout the program, students benefit from the support and mentorship of our high level faculty who are talented working professionals in their respective fields. Learning Outcomes After completing the Writing for Film & TV program, graduates will be able to: Understand and utilize effective storytelling principles for various formats. Critically analyze the scripts and development materials of others. Demonstrate specific skills in writing for documentary, broadcast news, commercials, sitcom, one-hour drama, factual entertainment, TV movies and feature film. Write proposals, beat sheets, outlines, treatments and script coverage. Develop and pitch an original one-off or series concept. Understand techniques for creating a compelling adaptation from a novel or other medium. Understand how new media is changing the industry and its the latest developments, including trans-media narrative, digital games, interactive cinema, installation-based media, web-based content and mobile applications. Understand the legal and business aspects of the industry, including copyright law, finance, marketing, distribution and working with agents, lawyers and managers. Understand different avenues and techniques for funding a project. Distribute a portfolio of their own writing work, including a spec sitcom and one-hour drama, an original sitcom and one-hour drama, a feature film script, a documentary pitch, commercials, PSA’s (public service announcements), promos, corporate videos, news broadcasts, and a proposal for a new media project. Display their final-term capstone project – a fully produced scene from a script they have written. WRITING FOR FILM & TV FACULTY Adam Till Genie-nominated Flower & Garnet, concentration camps in Austria, winner of Program Coordinator Turning Paige (nominated for four The Chris Statuette at the Columbus Film Adam Till started life as a lawyer, but Genies), Vincenzo Natali’s feature film, Festival, “Sacharov – Conscience of a made the move to screenwriting shortly Nothing, and recently, Real Time written Country” (2003), known as the Father of after being called to the bar in 2001. and directed by Randall Cole and the hydrogen bomb and the first Russian Adam had early success with a number starring Randy Quaid and Jay Baruchel. to receive the Nobel Prize only to be later of short films including Leo, which was Ken has recently been story consultant exiled for 7 years as an enemy of the admitted to several festivals (including for the new CBC one-hour drama series people, interviews with President Mikhail TIFF) and won the Grand Prix at the Arctic Air. Gorbachev and winner of Best Historical Little Big Films Competition. Leo also Documentary at the Houston Film won Adam the Canadian Comedy Award David Goorevitch Festival, “Gorbachev’s Revolution” for Film Writing in 2006, in a category that David Goorevitch is the President of (2004),exclusive interview with former included both shorts and features. Adam Javelin Pictures, a production and President Mikhail Gorbachev, George then moved on to television, where he consulting company with a specialty in Bush Sr. and Eduard Shevardnadze, the worked with Atom Egoyan to adapt scripted entertainment, new media film explores Gorbachev’s dramatic rise Egoyan’s film The Adjuster into a storytelling and interactive experience in the Communist Party to the eventual television series – a project that was later design. Currently, he has a development coup which ended his leadership and optioned to Showtime. Adam’s TV slate awash with original content from dissolved the Soviet Union; The Velvet credits include Billable Hours, a sitcom feature films and dramatic series to a Revolution (2005), the story of Vaclav he co-created with series star Fabrizio wide range of new media entertainment Havel’s rise from playwright to dissident Filippo, and which ran on Showcase for properties. David is a past resident at the to the first President of a free three seasons. Adam acted as Co- Canadian Film Centre Media Lab and Czechoslovakia, nominated for a Gemini Executive Producer on the series and was formerly the Deputy Creative Head for best Biography; My Opposition- The wrote the majority of the show’s at CBC Drama, where he was the Diaries of Friedrich Kellner (2006), One episodes, Billable winning the Gemini executive in charge of such flagship man’s foresight and opposition to the Award for Best Writing In A Comedy shows as DaVinci’s Inquest, Dragon Nazis destructive forces and years later Series in 2009. Adam’s other writing Boys, This Is Wonderland, North of 60, the trials and tribulations of his Grandson credits include the Lifetime Movie Too The Odyssey and Jozi-H. While at CBC, who would rise above his tragic Late To Say Goodbye, which debuted on David pioneered and championed early childhood to share his Grandfather’s LMN and TMN in 2010. Too Late was online experiments, multiplatform courageous story. Living Through Dying based on a novel by Ann Rule, and production and an online presence for (2008) The film follows three people all in starred Rob Lowe and Lauren Holly. CBC TV Arts and Entertainment. His long their mid thirties who are faced with a Currently, Adam is finishing work on career includes work as a Producer, Head terminal illness...and how they live their Perfect Sisters, a feature film directed by of Production, Creative Producer, Senior lives. For Discovery Channel, 7 Days of Stan Brooks, starring Mira Sorvino and Development Consultant, Film Editor and Remembrance and Hope (2010) The film Abigail Breslin. Perfect Sisters was shot independent director/writer/filmmaker. chronicles the journey of 60 university this past summer (2011) and is currently David has read, analyzed and edited students from across Canada as they in post-production. Adam is also more than 8,500 screenplays. travel to the concentration camps of developing a new sitcom for CanWest Europe and deal directly with the Global called Last Resort, under his Fern Levitt holocaust. production company Shiny Happy Fern Levitt is an accomplished producer Pictures. and director. Her credits include “A Gift of Jonas Chernick Life”, (1998) which chronicles the Jonas Chernick is an Ken Chubb struggle of two families whose children actor/screenwriter/producer. He wrote, Ken Chubb is a sought-after story and need a life saving bone marrow produced and stars in My Awkward script editor for both film and TV and an transplant, “EACH OF US HAS A Sexual Adventure, which had its world outstanding developer of new and NAME“, (1999) the journey of Canadian premiere at the 2012 Toronto emerging writing talent. Ken was story teenagers and Holocaust survivors as International Film Festival and was editor for the successful teen werewolf they tour the former death camps of subsequently named one of TIFF’s Top feature film, Ginger Snaps and it’s sequel Poland, winner at the Chicago US Ten Films of 2012. It went on to win the and prequel. He story edited Hunt for International Festival for Best People’s Choice Award at the 2012 Justice, the Louise Arbour Story, Agent Documentary; “The Little Rock Nine” Calgary International Film Festival and of Influence starring Christopher (2001) the story of nine black students the Audience Award at the 2012 Whistler Plummer, and Crazy Canucks – all CTV who in 1957 were the first to desegregate Film Festival, and was picked up for US MOWs, as well as H2O starring Paul an all white school in Little Rock distribution by Tribeca Films who will Gross and Dragon Boys - both CBC mini- Arkansas, interviews with President Bill release the movie in March 2013. Jonas series. Ken was Executive Story Editor Clinton, “Come Out Fighting” (2002) the was nominated for an ACTRA Award for for JOZI-H a 13 x 1 hour medical drama story of the 761st, a segregated tank Outstanding Male Performance for his series shot in Johannesburg and shown battalion in the second world war that work in the film. on CBC. He has story edited films was responsible for liberating several including Claude Jutra award winner and WRITING FOR FILM & TV FACULTY He co-wrote and starred in Lucid, a Street law firm of Davies, Ward, Phillips feature film that premiered at TIFF 2005 & Vineberg, one of Canada’s foremost and won the City TV Award for Best securities law firms.