Don't cry into your Hagen Dazs. Write female-driven screenplays that hang with the big boys. This seminar will help you brainstorm original stories with female leads, replace 'soft' scenes with active moments, and create bold characters, all without falling into tired stereotypes.

Learn the multiple techniques that will keep the reader in your 'created reality' throughout your script. Study the most common mistakes made by professional and advanced screenwriters.

Most screenwriting books and seminars attempt to teach the frustrated screenwriter what to do; this seminar will outline how to do it. Author Karl Iglesias will discuss the ten essential habits of highly successful A-list screenwriters such as Ron Bass Akiva Goldsman Eric Roth and more offering students an insider's view at how the pros discipline themselves create original material conquer the blank page eliminate writer's block and persevere in Hollywood. Students will also get an insightful look at the realities of the business directly from the top writers in Hollywood.

Hollywood studios are looking for screenplays with worldwide blockbuster appeal. Acclaimed teacher and consultant to studios in the U.S. and abroad, John Truby explains the specific story techniques in blockbuster scripts and how to execute them. Part one covers – The one story technique found in all blockbusters; How to write the most popular character in movies; Translating the high concept premise into a quality script; The 6 filmic elements you must have for a blockbuster movie; The best technique for punching up the middle; The structure sequence of summer’s most popular genre; The key plot technique for both drama and comedy, and more!

We will again interview Guest Of Honor Shane Black, and then throw the session open to audience questions. Ask away about the next Lethal Weapon, his his upcoming Cold Warriors, his most recent film Kiss-Kiss Bang-Bang, how to break into action feature writing, or any other question you can think of!

The opening of your screenplay is your single most powerful weapon for acquiring an agent or securing a deal. Most Hollywood executives won't read past page 10 if they're not immediately involved in your story but will forgive an abundance of weaknesses later in the script if you grab them from the moment they begin. Using examples from several Oscar-nominated screenplays this seminar will show you how to insure that your opening scenes draw readers into the world you've created set the tone of your screenplay establish empathy with your hero lay the groundwork for character growth and theme and compel readers to turn the page. Michael also gives selected participants direct feedback on their opening scenes which you can read directly on the screen as you hear his commentary and suggestions.

A must for any writer who's mastered the basics but has yet to break the barrier. Focusing on the key element of all successful scripts—the reader's emotional response to the written page—Karl Iglesias will show you fresh ways to evoke emotion on every page of your scripts. He'll discuss why emotion is the key to successful screenwriting what readers look for in evaluating scripts showcase 'good' and 'bad' examples and illustrate why A-list screenwriters keep getting hired. He'll also guide you through the professional's creative process from concept to final draft.

JOHN AUGUST is the acclaimed writer of Tim Burton's Big Fish and the indie hit Go. August has also collaborated with Burton on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the animated film Corpse Bride, and the 2011 Disney release Frankenweenie. August has also delved into action screenwriting by having a hand in both Charlie's Angels films. His last project was the lauded film The Nines, on which he made his directorial debut.

This seminar will present Evan Smith's acclaimed method for creating 'premise-driven comedy ' an organic approach that focuses on developing a story's humor from the ground up. Attendees will learn how to weave comedic elements into a story premise to automatically generate funny scenes and seamless jokes throughout a script.

See the Cyberspace Open pages for details at http://creativescreenwriting.com/cyberspace.open.2010.html

Screenwriting has been described as a craft not an art. Structure is arguably the most important factor in a script's success. Learn how to quickly analyze your screenplay in 18 crucial areas. Discover what it takes to make your script fire on all cylinders.

John Truby, “the best script doctor in the movie industry,” continues his 3-part series on blockbuster scripts – Creating the all-important spine of your story; The one story element that must be at the beginning; Building the pressure on your hero; The trick to a great scene weave; How NOT to use dialogue; The trick to scene sequencing; How to find the best genre for your script, and more!

Good scenes are like great movies in miniature: they draw the reader into a unique reality; create empathy and identification with the characters; reveal compelling desires and insurmountable conflicts; contribute to character growth and theme; provide a blueprint for direction and performance; and elicit bigger-than-life emotions. Using examples from a variety of recent successful films this seminar will reveal the elements of action description and dialogue that will ensure the overall success of your screenplay.

A screenplay should be as exciting to read as the movie will be to view and this requires writing designed to involve the reader. Expanding on the key element of all successful scripts the reader's emotional experience author Karl Iglesias will discuss the basics of emotionally evocative writing. Topics will include how to command attention on the page energize descriptions seamlessly weave exposition into description and trim the fat.

Obviously movies are the best medium for compacting and compressing huge events--for example an ocean liner crashing into an iceberg, the D-Day invasion of Normandy Beach, an outsized gorilla mounting the Empire State Building--but what they accomplish still more effectively is quite the opposite, rendering that which is small--the gesture, the facial expression, even the mere offer of a cup of coffee--into something that is hugely dramatic and emotional. This session provides time-tested techniques for mastering that aspect of the screenplay. 

This information-packed seminar utilizing film clips and a Hollywood insider's pragmatic experience defines the essential components of a marketable romantic comedy. Learn how to create compelling leads who have real chemistry how to tweak the formula and how to develop genuinely passionate funny stories of substance that will speak to contemporary audiences.

John Truby, creator of the best-selling story development software Blockbuster, explains the final techniques in writing a script that will sell in Hollywood – Why two or three plot points aren't nearly enough; The one trick that works for every genre story; How to make your script race forward; How to come up with the right goal for your hero; The one genre you must use for a blockbuster script; The trick to rewriting that kills most writers; Hollywood's essential story strategy that must be in your script, and more!

Author Karl Iglesias takes an in-depth look at the most challenging area for screenwriters: how to avoid 'on-the-nose' dialogue and create dramatic interactions that have subtext—the meaning and emotions behind the spoken words. This workshop presents ten proven techniques and tricks of the trade for creating subtext in your dialogue with lots of script examples. Topics include why subtext is such a big deal and the dramatic moments when 'on-the-nose' dialogue is actually acceptable.

More than a thousand entrants, and it will be down to the final three in the new Cyberspace Open, the web version of the CS Open sceene-writing competition. The three finalists' scenes will be performed live before the audience at the Closing Ceremony, which will pick the winner. Also at the Closing Ceremony: Don't miss the free "raffle ticket" giveaways, including a free trip to the 2010 Expo, free subscriptions to Creative Screenwriting Magazine, and, if they consent, free stuff signed by Guests of Honor. And, of course, one lucky (we hope) registrant wins a free Bill's Barbecued Planked Salmon cooked right before you and up to 50 of your friends (you supply the party, the location within 30 miles of Los Angeles, and the barbecue, and the publisher of Creative Screenwriting comes to your location with the salmon and cooks this delight for you).