Helping screenwriters succeed since 2007
The first 10 pages are everything in a screenplay. They get your work read or tossed. Here’s a curated list of top resources that focus on that critical opening. Some of these are also the best or among the best in their respective media for writing an entire screenplay:
The Writer's Journey by Christopher Vogler
Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder
Screenplay by Syd Field
The Screenwriter's Bible by David Trottier
Writing the Character-Centered Screenplay by Andrew Horton
Michael Arndt – "Beginnings: The Art of the Opening Scene" (the single most essential video on this list)
Note: Book links go to Amazon search results, which should be reliable even if editions change. Platform course URLs were accurate as of the date they were looked up, but course pages can move. Searching by title on those platforms is a safe fallback. The Michael Arndt video also circulates on Vimeo.