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Writing Short Films: Structure and Content for Screenwriters
Writing Short Films is one of the bestselling university text books on writing short film screenplays. This updated and revised edition includes several new chapters.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 25, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
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November 8, 2023logging my screenwriting textbook bc i need to reach my reading goal somehow 🤷♀️
September 30, 2012
It was what I expected: not a let down.
First year students at Arizona State University are very privileged
to be using this.
First year students at Arizona State University are very privileged
to be using this.
January 26, 2013
Although not all that entertaining to read, Cowgill does breakdown narrative structure well, and her re-iterations ought to help clarify for first time 'story tellers.'
Her references are dated, but are also great examples worth further study.
Her references are dated, but are also great examples worth further study.
May 22, 2017
Good information for someone who wants to understand the structure and process of writing a screenplay. Although the title indicates it's for short films, any aspiring screenwriter would benefit.
I had a bit of a hard time getting through it, to be honest. The examples helped a lot. One reviewer complained that she used the same short films over and over for different aspects of writing, but I found it helpful to not have to revisit a new film every time she needed an example.
I also enjoyed watching some of the short films she referenced, e.g., "Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life," and hope to watch others as well.
I had a bit of a hard time getting through it, to be honest. The examples helped a lot. One reviewer complained that she used the same short films over and over for different aspects of writing, but I found it helpful to not have to revisit a new film every time she needed an example.
I also enjoyed watching some of the short films she referenced, e.g., "Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life," and hope to watch others as well.
April 18, 2020
I feel ready!
I'm glad Life Lessons is used for examples throughout the book. It helps you see how the different concepts dovetail into a satisfying final product. You see lots of angles of the same - high quality - narrative, so you get to know the screenplay/film pretty well, and this leads to understanding and learning.
There are other frequently mentioned short films, but Life Lessons is the only one I bothered to watch and it was sufficient enough to understand each new concept well. I think a reader of this book should at minimum watch Life Lessons before reading this. It adds another dimension to the experience. It's pretty good :p
I'm glad Life Lessons is used for examples throughout the book. It helps you see how the different concepts dovetail into a satisfying final product. You see lots of angles of the same - high quality - narrative, so you get to know the screenplay/film pretty well, and this leads to understanding and learning.
There are other frequently mentioned short films, but Life Lessons is the only one I bothered to watch and it was sufficient enough to understand each new concept well. I think a reader of this book should at minimum watch Life Lessons before reading this. It adds another dimension to the experience. It's pretty good :p
October 5, 2010
Very good instructional material. Only fault would be that I wish she would have used more examples instead of returning to the same one to illustrate her various points.
April 4, 2020
When I was in college, I loved book-buying time. I loved going into the bookstore at the student union and finding what books were required for my upcoming classes, but I also loved browsing the shelves to see what books were being used in other classes. I remember that one semester in graduate school I found the shooting script for Fargo, and I admit that I bought it, hoping the professor had printed extra copies.
Well now that my son is in college, I returned to my browsing habits when we went to get his books. I’m happy to report that I didn’t buy anyone else’s books, but I did take a couple of pictures of books for a screenwriting class. One of those books was Linda J. Cowgill’s 2nd edition of Writing Short Films. I put it on my Christmas list for 2019, and now that work has slowed down due to the coronavirus outbreak, I have gotten around to reading it.
This is an excellent book. It is relatively short (under 200 pages of instructional text), and it breaks everything down into manageable chunks, so you have plenty of breaks to stop and process what has been presented. It does a great job of pulling from a limited set of examples (most readily available in this age of streamed programming) to keep the text and the reader both focused. The book binds itself to the practical art of screenwriting while pointing briefly to the larger philosophical issues involved in storytelling. And finally, it manages to be about scriptwriting in general and the short film in particular. I’m impressed.
If someone was burning to write the script for a short film and had an idea in mind, I believe this book would provide the guidance needed to bring that script from idea to the page all on its own. There are exercises at the end of each chapter that are designed to help you move that script from idea to fully fleshed out scenes in a logical progression.
The book is divided into three main parts. In the first part, Cowgill covers the fundamentals of storytelling in the visual medium of film. In the second part, she looks at the general concerns of the beginning, the middle, and the end of those stories. And in the third part, she looks at what the construction looks like at the level of the scene. It’s a solid design. She even provides and weighty appendices that includes everything you need to know for formatting the script, references to more reading and viewing, and a complete script of one of the short films she references in the book.
On top of it all, Cowgill has an easy writing style and a skill for fullness and brevity.
Well now that my son is in college, I returned to my browsing habits when we went to get his books. I’m happy to report that I didn’t buy anyone else’s books, but I did take a couple of pictures of books for a screenwriting class. One of those books was Linda J. Cowgill’s 2nd edition of Writing Short Films. I put it on my Christmas list for 2019, and now that work has slowed down due to the coronavirus outbreak, I have gotten around to reading it.
This is an excellent book. It is relatively short (under 200 pages of instructional text), and it breaks everything down into manageable chunks, so you have plenty of breaks to stop and process what has been presented. It does a great job of pulling from a limited set of examples (most readily available in this age of streamed programming) to keep the text and the reader both focused. The book binds itself to the practical art of screenwriting while pointing briefly to the larger philosophical issues involved in storytelling. And finally, it manages to be about scriptwriting in general and the short film in particular. I’m impressed.
If someone was burning to write the script for a short film and had an idea in mind, I believe this book would provide the guidance needed to bring that script from idea to the page all on its own. There are exercises at the end of each chapter that are designed to help you move that script from idea to fully fleshed out scenes in a logical progression.
The book is divided into three main parts. In the first part, Cowgill covers the fundamentals of storytelling in the visual medium of film. In the second part, she looks at the general concerns of the beginning, the middle, and the end of those stories. And in the third part, she looks at what the construction looks like at the level of the scene. It’s a solid design. She even provides and weighty appendices that includes everything you need to know for formatting the script, references to more reading and viewing, and a complete script of one of the short films she references in the book.
On top of it all, Cowgill has an easy writing style and a skill for fullness and brevity.
May 24, 2024
Don’t let the title of this book fool you. Cowgill states, “This book is designed specifically for those wanting to make a narrative-driven short film, and who recognize before production can begin a completed script must be in hand” (Cowgill x). I, however, feel that the content in Writing Short Films can also be applied to full-length screenplays and novels since the author does an excellent job breaking down and explaining all aspects of the story structure, character development, and the writing process.
Writing Short Films gives the reader a complete picture of what it takes to craft an effective narrative with strong characters, no matter how short you wish it to be. I also like that Cowgill provides plenty of useful exercises at the end of each chapter to get the reader thinking creatively about the topics presented.
Cowgill even provides encouragement to those who feel overwhelmed by the task at hand, writing that “the key to starting is simple: All it takes is a commitment to a process that follows certain steps and leads to putting words on paper” (4). If you take the time to study this book and its great information, there’s no telling how strong of a script or book you can craft.
Writing Short Films gives the reader a complete picture of what it takes to craft an effective narrative with strong characters, no matter how short you wish it to be. I also like that Cowgill provides plenty of useful exercises at the end of each chapter to get the reader thinking creatively about the topics presented.
Cowgill even provides encouragement to those who feel overwhelmed by the task at hand, writing that “the key to starting is simple: All it takes is a commitment to a process that follows certain steps and leads to putting words on paper” (4). If you take the time to study this book and its great information, there’s no telling how strong of a script or book you can craft.
June 30, 2021
I read this book in preparation for my annual participation in a 48 hour film competition. Certainly this book does not envision you getting the idea for a short film and writing it in the next 12 hours - BUT it was quite helpful for me. It's certainly "basic" information, but needed basic information. I enjoyed the many short film examples cited - I only managed to look up a few of them, but I look forward to watching more of them later. The author helps provide a needed framework of character, conflict, and everything else to keep in mind when writing a short film. I hope to re-read it every year to keep me on the straight and narrow of good storytelling.
December 21, 2023
I picked this one up because it was required for a screenwriting course I took this fall, but I wanted to finish the whole thing because damned if it isn't a great introduction to writing short screenplays.
No real review here, no notes; I'll be keeping this on the shelf for future reference because it's so useful.
No real review here, no notes; I'll be keeping this on the shelf for future reference because it's so useful.
January 21, 2022
Ugh I read this in one day for class and it was helpful but mostly describes other short films in length. That takes up a lot of the chapters. Otherwise the analysis/breakdown is helpful
March 27, 2022
good handbook. Contains some uniquely useful information I did not see in the other screenwriting books.
October 6, 2022
Loved how it shows how the same elements work for both features and shorts.
December 7, 2022
Read for school - great for filmmakers currently working on short films.
July 11, 2023
I read this for my Writing for Feature Films Course in the Summer of ‘23.
Helpful, boring but helpful.
Helpful, boring but helpful.
September 1, 2024
In need of abridging.
October 11, 2024
Just as good as more illlustrious titles on the same subject.
January 30, 2025
no muy divertido de leer pero muy interesante!!! aprendí bastante muchas gracias
March 25, 2025
جميل جدا
April 21, 2018
Quality Rating: Five Stars
Enjoyment Rating: Four Stars
Enjoyment Rating: Four Stars
April 23, 2025
Writing short films is, in many ways, more challenging than crafting a traditional feature-length screenplay. With a full three-act structure, longer films allow time to properly flesh out characters and plot. Short films, however, demand that everything a 90-minute film accomplishes be distilled into a tight, finite timeframe—usually 30 minutes or less.
That said, this book is an excellent starting point for anyone hoping to tackle that challenge. Pay particular attention to the chapters on scripting, as that, in my opinion, is the most difficult aspect to master.
Keep in mind that this is the second edition, so if a third edition exists by the time you're reading this, I would recommend turning to that version. However, this one should serve your needs just fine.
That said, this book is an excellent starting point for anyone hoping to tackle that challenge. Pay particular attention to the chapters on scripting, as that, in my opinion, is the most difficult aspect to master.
Keep in mind that this is the second edition, so if a third edition exists by the time you're reading this, I would recommend turning to that version. However, this one should serve your needs just fine.
June 24, 2007
Great reference
December 30, 2011
Required reading for my Short Animated Filmmaking Bootcamp class at SVA. A very solid guide.
January 28, 2013
I found this book to be useful, but you really have to search for the useful material and spend a lot of time reading to get there. A shorter version with the basics would be ideal.
March 5, 2015
Interesting and useful manual for writing. Sometimes it was a bit lengthy but overall very clear.
October 27, 2015
Excellent book. Filled in all the cracks for me -- or at least many of them.
March 31, 2015
mostly very educational but in some parts a little bit repetitive.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews