Week 4: Sitcoms

Today we'll talk about your beatsheets and the sitcom-structure article you read this week. We'll also watch an episode of The Simpsons, "Lisa the Vegetarian", and talk about the setup, rising action/increasing obstacles, and resolution.

We'll also choose a list of 5 sitcoms to choose from as you begin writing treatments and scripts.

***Here's the list: Seinfeld, Arrested Development, Family Guy, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Scrubs, Friends.

HOMEWORK:

1. Write a 2-page treatment for a full, completely original episode one of the TV sitcoms chosen today. Instructions are in #1: Treatment (downloadable in the sidebar).
2. After you write the treatment, write a beatsheet for the entire episode. It's important that you do this in the right order! Your beatsheet should be in bullet points, present tense, 12-point font, double spaced, and PROOFREAD. It's OK if you're not writing in complete sentences all the way through, but other writing mechanics still apply (spelling, plurals vs. possessives vs. contractions, etc.).