Short
Film Story Design
There’s a unique craft to creating and structuring strong short film scripts that is rarely taught. Join us to give your short film screenplay the attention it deserves.
Monday 23rd February 7pm - 8.45pm
AND
Tuesday 24th February 7pm - 8.45pm
Course Fee £70 for BOTH sessions. Includes comprehensive training notes
A tantalising dive into another world. An intimate revelation of human truth. A seductive tale with a twist. The best short films leave an imprint far beyond their final frame.
Please join us for this online workshop and give your short film script the focus it fully deserves.
We’ve split the training across two evenings to break up the intensity of learning over Zoom. Both sessions are included in the workshop.
Short films are an incredible storytelling form, often more powerfully resonant because of their brevity. They are infinitely more achievable for film-makers early in their careers.
Having worked extensively developing shorts in recent years, we found that many writers approach the design of their short films by adapting feature film principles rather than working from an understanding of how the short dramatic narrative works as its own form. And many of those assessing short film scripts and offering feedback similarly lack the specific tools required to make the most of these snapshot screen stories.
Our teaching programme will illuminate both the unique challenges and exciting possibilities of the short narrative screenplay. We will inject confidence into your understanding of dramatic conflict and story structure and empower you to hone and develop your screenwriting skills for this exciting medium. The programme is designed for both screenwriters and those working with them in a development capacity.
Workshop Content
Monday 23rd February 7pm - 9pm
THE DRAMATIC CONCEPT
We will explore what makes a strong story idea for a short and tackle the challenge of creating a simple but satisfying dramatic conflict.
With a short film idea there needs to be enough at stake within the film to tell a satisfying and worthwhile story, but not so much happening that the core conflict becomes diluted with excessive narrative detail. We will outline the development analysis process that will help you identify the most compelling stakes within your story idea and refine the focus of your narrative.
We will consider how you use a precise handling of dramatic conflict to efficiently reveal character, and how to invite your audience to understand what’s going on internally with your characters through the external actions that they take.
And we will explore how a limited time frame and/or locations can be used to create focus and add urgency.
Tuesday 24th February 7pm - 9pm
STRUCTURE & CHARACTER CHANGE
With less time to set up your story world we’ll look at how to dive right in from your opening image and we’ll rethink the three-act structure for the short, bearing in mind the demands of different genres. We’ll think about how to seed and plot the turning points that will propel your story to its climax and examine the most effective use of ‘twists’ at the end of the film.
Whether your character is faced with saving the planet or mending a friendship we will consider the range of character arcs a short film can effectively explore, unpicking how to convincingly chart that change through such a fleeting encounter.
We’ll also give special attention to stories which champion protagonists who don’t change and we’ll consider the intended (and sometimes unintended) meanings that your character choices will deliver.
"I've just attended The Script Factory's Short Film Story Design and I can't stop thinking (and boring my friends and family) about the advice I've learnt. So few courses narrow down on the specific art of short film scripting and none, that I know of, to this amount of sheer detail.
You'll leave with a massive boost to your writing confidence and a hunger to get that film made.
If you are planning on writing a short film go on this course, it'll change everything about how you approach your script"
Richard Eades, Filmmaker
FAQs
Who Is The Course For?
This course is for anyone who wants to invest in their understanding of how to write a short film and we welcome writers, directors, script editors and producers. These workshops have been attended by filmmakers with award-winning films under their belt as well as those just starting out.
This is theory-based training so you don’t need to bring a short film idea or script with you.
Course Preparation
There will be some preparatory viewing to do before the programme starts to ensure that everyone has shared examples of successful short films. We will examine these films in quite close detail so we ask everyone to watch them again even if they’ve previously seen them.
Course Tutors
This course will be taught by Justine Hart and Charlotte Bogard Macleod. Charlotte has previously served on the BAFTA jury for live action short film and script-developed 2025’s BAFTA nominated short film ‘Marion’. Justine has worked as a story and script consultant on The Pitch short film fund for the past ten years.
Where And When Will The Course Take Place?
This course will take place over Zoom on two consecutive evenings:
Monday 23rd February 2026 7pm - 9pm (GMT)
Tuesday 24th February 2026 7pm - 9pm (GMT)
The teaching element of each evening will run from 7pm - 8.30pm and Charlotte and Justine will stay on the call until 9pm to answer any additional questions.
After the training is complete, all participants will be sent a PDF set of training notes.
Will The Workshop Be Recorded?
Yes. A recording of the workshop will be available for those who book but are unable to attend, and for those on incompatible time zones. This recording will be available via a private link for 30 days only.
What Does The Course Cost?
Attendance on BOTH workshop sessions costs £70. It is not possible to book for just one.
Bursary Places
We are able to offer 2 bursary places for film-makers who would benefit from this training but cannot currently afford the fee. If you wish to apply for a bursary place, please email hello@scriptfactory.co.uk with the subject line ‘Short Film Bursary’ and a brief explanation of how this training will assist in furthering your filmmaking career. Bursary places will be allocated on Friday 30th January.
“The Script Factory's short film story design class left me brimming with ideas and with clarity on what makes a successful short film. It was great to be in a room with such an inspiring bunch of people. Thank you Justine and Charlotte!”
Alex English, Author & Screenwriter
"Undoubtedly one of the best screenwriting courses I've been on. Would highly recommend to anyone, regardless of experience."
Jonathan Fransman, Filmmaker
Booking
To book your place for Monday 23rd & Tuesday 24th February please click on the button below. If you have any questions, please submit via the form.