What is the best way to turn a book into a film script?

Answer 1

Your first step is to work out an agreement with the book's author, for rights to the story. You may need a lawyer for this step.

Then, after reading the book, pick the screenplay elements that make film a different medium than print. Acts one, two and three.

Develop the characters for film, which may mean collapsing several book characters into one composite.

Write an outline of the story you want to tell on film to verify that you can engage a film audience. This means:

• A compelling action within the first 10 minutes that 'hooks' an audience.
• An end to Act One that propels the story into the longest act, Act Two.
• A subplot in Act Two if you need one.
• An end to Act Two that sets up the climax.
• A climax -- usually the last 20 minutes -- that resolves all the conflict in the story and ties up all the loose ends.

Often you'll hear people say when comparing a book to a film "...the book was better," or "...the movie was better," when indeed, given the same story, the mediums are different so the story needs a different focus for each.