Screenwriting is an art. It involves creating a movie or television plot structure using imagery, establishing characters, researching and developing compelling ideas, dialogue, actions, etc. In short, it is establishing a blueprint of everything that needs to be shown on the screen.
Learning how to write a screenplay properly can be challenging and confusing, considering there are so many online materials available. To make things easier for you, we went through dozens of scriptwriting online courses and came up with a list of the 10 best screenwriting courses available to hone your skills.
The list includes both beginner-level screenwriting classes and classes for intermediate and advanced writers. In addition, there are a few of these courses that are free to access and others that require payment.
Best Screenwriting Courses Online
In shortlisting this list, we considered courses that focus on character development, different mediums, and screenwriting basics. In addition to diverse strong syllabuses, teachers’ experience, student feedback, price, and overall impressions. This list is intended to assist you in understanding the courses and choosing the most appropriate one. So without wasting time, let’s get started.
1. Inspirational Screenwriting: The #1 Screenwriting Course (Udemy)
If you are a beginner looking for a course that will help you develop plots, create suspense, and bring your imagery to life, then this course taught by Paul Castro is your best choice. Castro is best known for writing August Rush, Speed Kills, and Wedding of Dreams. In addition to being a screenwriter, he also teaches screenwriting at UCLA. In short, Castro is experienced and knows his stuff when it comes to screenwriting!
In this course, you will be introduced to the basics of screenwriting, how to develop the plot and characters, different screenwriting techniques, and industry insights. However, the cons are that the various technical terms will not be explained in detail, and most of the topics are not covered in-depth.
Platform: Udemy | Teacher: Paul Castro | Course length: 26 lessons (2 hours and 52 minutes)
Student Review – “I can’t think of a better course than this for the fundamentals of screenwriting. The brevity and the amount of valuable information relayed in this course are mind-blowing. Recommend this to anyone and everyone as a screenwriting basics course.” (from the website)
2. Shonda Rhimes teaches Writing for Television (MasterClass)
If you are keen on writing for TV shows and want to explore different opportunities available within television production, then this course by Shonda Rhimes is for you. She is best known for piloting and writing Grey’s Anatomy. With this course, you will get to learn everything about the television industry firsthand from her.
In this course, you will learn how to master script writing (research, plotting, etc.), character development, and successfully pitch your show. In addition, Rhimes shares her experience and offers insight into television writing, and offers valuable tips on how to set up a writing routine, adapt to the writers’ room, and make your mark in the industry. You will also be provided with resources, mostly case-specific, for your reference.
Platform: MasterClass | Teacher: Shonda Rhimes | Course length: 30 lessons (6 hours and 15 minutes)
3. Aaron Sorkin teaches Screenwriting (MasterClass)
Screenwriter Aaron Sorkin is most famous for his work on The West Wing and The Social Network. This Masterclass, curated and taught by him, will take you through writing for both feature films and TV. This is also one of the most in-depth online screenwriting classes you will come across.
In this course, you will learn how to craft narrative hooks, create captivating dialogue, exercise writing habits, and understand the different rules of screenwriting. Furthermore, he illustrates different case studies and talks about his own experiences when writing different scripts, making the content relatable and easy to understand.
Platform: MasterClass | Teacher: Aaron Sorkin | Course length: 35 lessons (8 hours and 1 minute)
4. Micro-Budget Filmmaking: Screenwriting (Skillshare)
If you are looking for a beginner’s course to learn the basics and different strategies of screenwriting, then this is the best course option for you. In this course, you will be taught by the American actor and filmmaker Dustin Curtis Murphy. Throughout the course, he breaks down the screenwriting process into simple and easy-to-follow steps. In addition, he discusses his personal journey and how to manage screenwriting for microbudget films.
This course is mostly preferable for beginners who are looking for guidance and inspiration to start their screenwriting journey.
If you are looking for an advanced course to enhance your screenwriting skills, then the Shonda Rhimes course may be the best suitable for you.
Platform: Skillshare | Teacher: Dustin Curtis Murphy | Course length: 9 lessons (38 minutes)
Student Review – “Loved this class! The prospect of writing a screenplay has always felt overwhelming to me, but Dustin did an amazing job of breaking the concept down into simple and actionable steps that were easy to understand. I feel like I’ve learned so many valuable skills through this class and I now have a clearer sense of direction in my work.” (from the website)
5. Learn to Write Movies: Screenwriting Step by Step (Skillshare)
If you’re looking for a more practical and easy-to-follow course, then this course would help you. The course is taught by John Watts, a professional writer with an industry experience of over 20 years.
In this course, you will learn how to create strong characters and identify the themes of your screenplay, and craft dialogue. In addition, you will be explained different topics with examples and asked to submit a project during the course for better understanding.
Furthermore, this course is even suitable for advanced writers. The concepts are simplified and easy to understand.
Platform: Skillshare | Teacher: John Watts | Course length: 23 lessons (3 hours and 58 minutes)
Student Review – “Watching this as a professional writer/writing coach who wanted to review some basics for a writing client interested in writing their first screenplay, I was delighted by the clarity and thoughtfulness John Watts brought to this class. I’m going to recommend it to all my clients–for both screenplays and books. It’s an excellent primer on basics that are all-too-often forgotten even by pros.” (from the website)
6. Screenwriting Masterclass: A Complete Guide to Screenwriting (Udemy)
This Masterclass course covers everything you need to know about the fundamentals of screenwriting – plot development, character creation, dialogue writing, editing, etc. With this course, you can improve your storytelling abilities as this is one of the very few courses emphasizing storytelling and theory.
In addition, you will be asked to work on various assignments throughout the course so that you will be ready to start working on your script by the end of the course. And you will be provided with free screenwriting tools to assist you.
Platform: Udemy | Teacher: Phil Ebinner, Brian Birmingham | Course length: 3 hours 30 minutes
Student Review – “It is undoubtedly a nice intro to those who have absolutely no knowledge of professional storytelling and screenwriting structure. However for anyone with even a moderate understanding of how such processes work will likely be disappointed with how over-simplistic this course is. The exercises were the crown jewel of this course as they serve to inspire all of us to search within ourselves to find what it is that makes our individual writer’s voice unique which is crucial to the creative process regardless of experience.” (from the website)
7. Script Writing: Write a Pilot Episode for a TV or Web Series (Coursera)
This course will help you understand the basic concepts of TV series and how scripts are constructed from beginning to end. The course is taught by David Wheeler. By the end of this course, you will have learned how to develop a comprehensive episode script for a series and how to polish your script to make it more appealing to the audience. In addition, you will have to submit various project work, and you can provide feedback to other students who are enrolled in the screenwriting class online.
The only drawback of this course is that it is self-directed, and you will have no practical guidance.
Platform: Coursera | Teacher: David Wheeler | Course length: 22 hours
Student Review – “The content of the course itself was quite good, pretty well-paced and the advice simple but helpful – I’m quite happy with what came out of it. The one downside, however, is the grading system. I understand there’s not really a practical solution to grading the amount of stuff that must be coming through the course, especially for people who are already full-time lecturers, but the current peer-review system is kind of broken.” (from the website)
8. Building Your Screenplay (edX)
If you want to learn industry-specific insights like the relevant trends, demand, and latest global developments, then this is the course you’d want to consider. In addition, this course will teach you how to improve your writing skills, how to create a strong visual script idea, and how to establish a solid structural foundation for your screenplay. As a result of this course, you will be able to comprehend screenwriting better, and you will be able to utilize screenwriting techniques better.
Platform: edX | Teacher: Abigail Docherty | Course length: 4 weeks, 8-10 hours per week
9. Beginning Screenwriting Made Easy (Udemy)
This course is one of the easiest to understand and a complete guide to screenwriting. This course provides you with a step-by-step guide to understanding the basics of scriptwriting, including plot and character development, and how to format your drafts. In addition, you will receive a guide to help you understand how to write characters for movies or shows that audiences would love. In fact, this is one of the few courses that covers all the concepts in scriptwriting.
Platform: Udemy | Teacher: Word Dancer | Course length: 3 hours | Price: $18.99
Student Review – “This course is great for anyone starting out in screenwriting. I found the advice to be very practical and useful. It’s like getting advice from a friend who actually knows what they’re talking about. It is evident that the main focus of this course is to help you in your own journey to becoming a screenwriter. Using relevant examples from produced films and personal stories, I found the instructor to be knowledgeable, professional, and, most of all genuine. left this course feeling encouraged and hopeful.” (from the website)
10. Screenwriting for Beginners (Udemy)
If you are a beginner looking for a short course to understand the basics and how you can get started in this field, then you can consider opting for this course. The course is taught by David Ford, an award-winning screenwriter.
In this course, you will be introduced to scriptwriting, understand the elements of a screenplay, and learn how you can break through in the industry. In addition, David provides various examples and talks about his personal experiences during the course for your better understanding of concepts.
Platform: Udemy | Teacher: David Ford | Course length: 5 lessons (37 minutes)
Student Review – “The intro starts a little confusing but beyond that it is extremely helpful for beginners! The course breaks down the elements of a screenplay script, how to use them, and gives several easy to understand examples. I highly recommend it if you are a beginner who has never written a screenplay before.” (from the website)
Conclusion
Hopefully, this article has helped you to understand better what the best screenwriting course is for you! While choosing the right screenwriting class online for you, also consider various other factors, such as the instructor’s experience, the course contents and how they will help you grow, the price, and whether the course focuses on the aspect of screenwriting you are interested in.
Happy Learning!
Frequently Asked Questions
What Are the Advantages of Taking an Online Screenwriting Class?
Honestly, there are various advantages to taking up a screenwriting class online. Some of them are –
- You will learn from industry experts and award-winning celebrities.
- You will learn how to seek inspiration for your story, elements of plot and character development, techniques used to ensure the movie or TV script is successful, etc.
- You will learn how to pitch your story or ideas and plenty more!
How Much Does It Cost?
The prices for online screenwriting courses vary from $20-$100. In terms of subscribing to courses provided on platforms like MasterClass and Skillshare, the prices vary from $180-$200. Subscribing to these platforms will provide you access to other available courses on the platform as well.
How Long Does It Take to Learn Screenwriting?
You can find both short courses and long courses. Short courses are usually 37 minutes, while long courses can be up to 8 hours. However, you should also take into account the time consumed for practice and assignments, which will often be five times the course length. And, since most of the courses are self-paced learning courses, it will also depend on your interest.
What Is the Best Online Screenwriting Course?
Our top recommendation is MasterClass. Among our top recommendations is MasterClass. With MasterClass, you can learn from eminent writers like Shonda Rhimes and Aaron Sorkin.
Thank you for this!!! such a random topic for an article, but SO helpful for people like me that don’t have the time to do this research. Now you’ve given me a great starting point so I can jump right in and get to writing!