MA Script Writing

Goldsmiths, University of London

The skills of storytelling are timeless. Tackle the creative, analytical and professional sides of script writing for film, television and radio on this industry-accredited MA.

This course is accredited by ScreenSkills.

With myriad new media platforms, there are more opportunities to create content than ever before. And all these require a script and a story. But how do you get your work to industry-standard and in front of the right people?

The questions we explore

The main question you have to ask yourself for this MA programme is: do I really need to be a writer more than anything else? That’s quite brutal, but script writing is a tough profession. You’re totally exposed as a creative person, it’s you and the page and the tradition in which you’re working, and that can be a liberating but also uncomfortable place to be.

The processes we use

The programme is not about learning how to be a writer; it’s about developing and pushing forward your own writing projects as far and as fast as you can in 12 months. You’ll be developing your own voice, learning how to critique the work of others, and getting to grips with marketing your projects. You’ll also be making industry contacts so you can pitch for employment in an extremely competitive industry.

You’ll cover every aspect of the writing process from getting ideas, maintaining productive writing practices and developing characters and storylines, to presenting your work to an industry standard and pitching your ideas. Writing is a lonely business – that’s why the community of writers that the programme gives you is such a creative advantage.

The approach we take

This is an MA that really focuses on you as the student. There are lectures, but most of the time you’ll be working one-to-one with a writing tutor or within small group workshops.

We keep the course small deliberately. In this way, we know your individual work and you know other students’ work through the weekly feedback process. We also believe you don’t know who you are until you’re relating to another person, and ultimately this is what scriptwriting is about: making that connection.

Why study MA Script Writing at Goldsmiths

• Focus on further developing your own feature film or TV project in a workshop-based environment limited to twelve students, ensuring intensive engagement.
• Study on one of the few MA Scriptwriting programmes accredited by ScreenSkills.
• Gain industry exposure from multiple angles. Attend lectures given by industry professionals, and have your scripts read by professional actors at a Script Showcase, attended by agents and other industry professionals.
• Be supported in finding industry contacts and mentors who can encourage and support your development as a scriptwriter.
• Develop script editing and script development skills.
• Study within Goldsmiths’ Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies, and hone your craft in a critical, stimulating, and interdisciplinary creative environment.

Careers

MA Script Writing is all about the product. So when you complete this masters, you leave with a whole portfolio of writing, a set of professional skills, a list of industry contacts, and a set of professional friendships through the Goldsmiths Screen School.

The programme gives you a safe, supportive and stimulating environment to unpack your ideas, get constructive feedback, make mistakes, and find the story you want to tell. In the end though, it’s down to you as an individual to become the writer you want to be.