In Screenwriting Unchained, Emmanuel Oberg sets out a dogma-busting, innovative method for developing screenplays

This practical, no-nonsense guide leaves behind one-size-fits-all story theories and offers a refreshingly modern approach to story structure, making it a precious resource for anyone involved creatively in the Film and TV industry (or aspiring to be): writers, directors, producers, development execs, showrunners and, more generally, storytellers eager to reach a wide audience at home and abroad without compromising their creative integrity.

Oberg identifies three main story-types--plot-led, character-led, theme-led--then reveals in a clear, conversational style how each of these impacts on the structure of any story and how we can use a single set of tools to develop any screenplay, from an independent crossover to a studio blockbuster. Crucially, he also looks at hybrids and exceptions, those unique gems that don't fit any of the story-types but still work beautifully.

This leads to the Story-Type Method, a powerful yet flexible way to handle the script development process. Oberg's inspiring framework doesn't tell filmmakers what to write and when, but focuses instead on why some storytelling tools and principles have stood the test of time, and how to use them in the 21st century.

Including case studies from films as diverse as Gravity, Silver Linings Playbook, Crash, The Intouchables, Birdman, Edge of Tomorrow, The Secret in Their Eyes, L.A. Confidential and The Lives of Others, Screenwriting Unchained will transform the way you write, read, pitch, design, assess and develop screenplays. Guaranteed!

Emmanuel Oberg is a screenwriter, author and script consultant with more than twenty years of experience in the Film and TV industry. After selling a first screenplay to Warner Bros, he has been commissioned by StudioCanal, Working Title / Universal, Gold Circle and Film4. He has also designed an internationally acclaimed 3-day Advanced Development Workshop.