The world's most wanted scriptwriting teacher, ROBERT McKEE returns to Australia 19 - 28 June 2009

"Robert McKee is the genuine article. His 'Story' is a testimony of craft, compassion and depth." BRIAN COX, played Robert McKee in 'Adaptation'

Robert McKee, the godfather of screenwriting teaching, will return to Australia this June after a five year absence to present his universally acclaimed Story Seminars in Sydney and Melbourne. For over 20 years, Story Seminar has been the world's ultimate story and screenwriting class for over 50,000 screenwriters, filmmakers, TV writers, novelists, industry executives, directors, actors, producers and playwrights.

Graduates of Robert McKee's seminar have won over 30 Academy Awards, 180 Emmy Awards and still counting. One of McKee's former students - Andrew Stanton - just won the Oscar for 'Best Animated Feature' for Wall*E. The extensive list of award winning professionals who have attended McKee's class is testimony to it being the most respected and rewarded screenwriting class in history. Former McKee students have written Iron Man, Desperate Housewives, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, A Beautiful Mind, The Incredible Hulk, Spelling Bee, CSI, Law & Order, Grey's Anatomy, Ratatouille and Shrek.

Australian filmmakers who have taken his course include Ray Lawrence (Lantana), Rob Sitch (The Castle), Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo, Wall*E), Leigh Whannell (Saw 1, 2 & 3) and Adam Elliot (Harvey Krumpet, Mary and Max).

McKee's Story Seminar is not about teaching formulas, it is about creativity. McKee's intensive seminar teaches that the essence of good story is universal and timeless. Whether on the big screen, on television, in novels, on stage and in all creative work, everything works in the shadow of classic story design.

This is an unmissable opportunity for all screenwriters, novelists, playwrights, journalists, directors, actors and producers to experience first-hand the tutelage of the grand master of storytelling.

Related Links

Robert McKee's website - mckeestory.com

EIA Twitter - media updates

Article in The Australian by Rosalie Higson, June 6 2009

Time Out Interview with Nick Dent [PDF118kb]

Tickets $594.00
Repeaters $440.00 (A prior to 2009, Epiphany produced, Robert McKee Story Seminar in Australia or New Zealand. Please contact Epiphany on 02 9572 7222 or 03 9531 7333)

Story Seminar Outline

Robert McKee's Story Seminar, over three intense days, teaches
you the principles involved in the art and craft of film writing and
story design, and proves the essence of good story is timeless.

DAY 1
The writer and the art of story;
The decline of story in contemporary film, television, theatre
and literature;
Story design: the meaning of story, the substance of story, the
limitations and inspirations of story structure and genre, the
debate between character versus story design;
Premise idea, counter idea, controlling idea;
Story structure: beat, scene, sequence, act, story;
Mapping the story universe: archplot, miniplot, antiplot; and
Shaping the source of story energy and creation.

DAY 2
Act design: the great sweep and body of story;
The first major story event (the inciting incident);
Scene design in story: turning points, emotional dynamics,
setup/payoff, the nature of choice;
Ordering and linking scenes;
Exposition: dramatising your character, the story setting,
creating back story;
The principles of antagonism; and
Crisis, climax and resolution.

DAY 3
Putting the elements of story together;
The principles of character dimension and design;
The text: description, dialogue and poetics;
The spectrum of story genres;
Story adaptations;
Scene analysis: text and sub-text; design through dialogue versus
design through action;
The writer's method: working from the inside out; the creative process
from inspiration to final draft; and
How it all works: the principles of the previous 2.5 days applied in a
6-hour, scene-by-scene screening and analysis of Casablanca.

For over 20 years, Story Seminar has been the world's ultimate story and screenwriting class for over 50,000 screenwriters, filmmakers, TV writers, novelists, industry executives, directors, actors, producers and playwrights, because it effectively demonstrates the relationship between story design and character.

The extensive list of award winning professionals who have attended McKee's class is testimony to it being the most respected and rewarded screenwriting class in history.

Quality story structure demands creativity; it cannot be reduced to simple formulas that impose a rigid number of mandatory story elements.

Using examples from over 100 films, Robert McKee demonstrates that structure and design are about form and principles, that structure is not plot, rigid rules, formulas or 'Hollywood' movies.

McKee's Story Seminar teaches you the principles involved in the art and craft of screenwriting and story design, and proves the essence of good story is unchanging and universal.

Whether on the big screen, on television, in novels, on stage and in all creative work, everything works in the shadow of classic story design.

Characters are what they do. Story events impact the characters, and the characters impact events. Actions and reactions create revelation and insight, opening the door to a meaningful emotional experience for the audience.

Story is what elevates a movie, transforming a good film into a great one. Movie-making is a collaborative endeavour - requiring great skill and talent by the entire cast, crew and creative team - but the screenwriter is the only original artist on a film.

Everyone else - the actors, directors, cameramen, production designers, editors, special effect team and so on - are interpretive artists, trying to bring alive the world, the events, and the characters that the screenwriter has invented and created.

Robert McKee's Story Seminar is a comprehensive, superbly organised exploration of all elements, from the basics to advanced concepts. It is a practical course, presenting new perspectives on the craft of storytelling, not just for the screenwriter but for the novelist, playwright, journalist, and non-fiction writers of all types.