Joe: Audiences don't know somebody
sits down and writes a picture. They think the actors make it up as they go along. On the WGA's list of the 101 Greatest Screenplays, four of them are movies by Billy Wilder: Double Indemnity, The Apartment, Some Like It Hot, and this masterclass in screenwriting that won an Oscar in 1951 for Best Screenplay. Here are ten screenwriting
secrets in Sunset Boulevard. [MUSIC] In Sunset Boulevard, just as in real life,
there’s an underlying theme: Be careful what you wish for. Let’s see how the characters get what they want,
only to pay a terrible price. I'm over a barrel. I need a job. I haven't got a thing. Norma: I want you to do this work me. Me? Look i'm supposed to fix up your script. There's nothing in the deal about my staying here. You'll like it here. I just want to work again. You don't know what it means to know that you want me. Norma: Joe! [GUNSHOT] [GUNSHOT] The cameras have arrived. They have? Tell Mr. DeMille I'll be on the set at once. I don't want to be a reader all my life. I want to write. I'm sorry if I crossed you up. You sure have. I'm not in love with him anymore. That's all. What happened? You did. Look, sweetie. Be practical. I've got a good deal here. A long-term contract with no options. I made her a star. And I can not let her be destroyed. No one ever leaves a star. That's what makes one a star. All right, Mr. DeMille. I'm ready for my close-up. It’s one of my favorite themes in screenwriting, and it’s a powerful tool to push your story
into the second act. [MUSIC] Story is king. So be sure to have everything in your screenplay serve the story. When it comes to Sunset Boulevard,
they do just this. First, let’s start with objects. Notice how these objects support the story by giving us even more insight
into Norma’s character. Joe: It had a 1932 license. I figured that's when the owners had moved out. The great Norma Desmond. How could she breathe in that house
so crowded with Norma Desmonds? Joe: I felt caught, like the cigarette
in that contraption on her finger. Next, we have locations. Don’t these locations give us insight
into Norma Desmond’s life? Joe: It was a great, big, white elephant of a place. The kind crazy movie people built in the crazy twenties. The perfect setting for a silent movie queen still waving proudly to a parade which had long since passed her by. There was a tennis court. Or rather, the ghost of a tennis court. And, of course, she had a pool. Mabel Normand and John Gilbert must have
swum in it ten thousand midnights ago. And doesn’t this give us an insight
into the relationship of Joe and Betty? Look at this street. All cardboard, all hollow, all phony,
all done with mirrors. Let’s also not forget about the weather, and how that can also drive the story. Joe: It came right through the old roof
of my room above the garage. She had Max move me to the main house. When it comes to a screenplay,
all we really want is the story. So be sure to make everything that’s
in the script serve the story itself. [MUSIC] If we’re going to talk about a Billy Wilder film, we need to talk about the characters. Billy Wilder’s screenplays work outstandingly well because they clearly answer
important questions about the characters. For example: What do they want more than anything? Joe: Well, I needed about 290 dollars. And I needed it real quick or I'd lose my car. Look, Mr. Sheldrake. Could you let me have 300 bucks yourself
as a personal loan? What do you think I've been doing? I need 300 dollars. I've waited 20 years for this call. We'll be working again, won't we, chief? We'll make our greatest picture. Now, that's what I want to talk to you about. It's a good script, isn't it? Joe: She was absolutely determined to be ready. Ready for those cameras that would never turn. I kind of hoped to get in on this deal. I don't want to be a reader all my life. I want to write. Couldn't we work in the evenings? Six o'clock in the morning? [CAR HONKS] This next month i'm completely at your disposal. Here’s another question: What’s their main problem? Only now we want you to believe us. That car better be back here by noon tomorrow,
or there's going to be fireworks. You used to be in silent pictures. You used to be big. I am big. It's the pictures that got small. What happens when she finds out? She never will. That is my job, and it has been for a long time. You're getting married. That's what you wanted. I don't want it now. Why not? Don't you love Artie? And another one: What’s their emotional shield? I just think the picture should say a little something. Oh, one of the message kids. Just a story won't do. I'd always heard that you had some talent. That was last year. This year i'm trying to earn a living. Joe: December 21st. Sagittarius. I like Sagittarians. You can trust them. DeMille is Leo. I'm Scorpio. Mars have been transiting Jupiter for weeks. Today is the day of the greatest conjunction. And she's turned you into a servant. I could have continued my career. Only, I found everything unendurable after she'd left me. So if you want to avoid having
flat characters in your story, take a cue from Billy Wilder here. Make your characters more complex and human by thinking about these questions. [MUSIC] To fix the problem of having scenes that go off course, try to think about how they fit into sequences. Sequences are a string of several scenes
that form a cohesive narrative form. They follow their own basic story structure. Let’s look at examples of sequences in Sunset Boulevard. Notice how they’re each composed of several scenes. Look, Mr. Sheldrake. Could you let me have 300 bucks yourself as a personal loan? Joe: I got myself ten nickels and
started sending out a general S.O.S. Now you'll have to sit behind the typewriter.
Now you'll have to write. What do you think I've been doing? I need 300 dollars. [TIRE BLOWS] Joe: A great, big, empty garage
just standing there going to waste. Norma: Just a minute, you! You're a writer, you said? Joe: Why? Are you or aren't you? Well, pack them up again! I didn't say I was staying. Suppose you make up your mind. Do you want this job or don't you? What right do you have to take me for granted? What right? You want me to tell you? I just had to get out of there. I had to be with people my own age. Can I stick around here for a while? Oh, sure. This will go on all night. No, I mean can you put me up for a couple of weeks? Madame got the razor from your room and she cut her wrists. What? Max! Max! Happy New Year, darling. I'm sorry to bother you again,
but I've confirmed the number. I must speak to Mr. Gillis. He's not here. Now if we could sit down for two weeks to get us -- I'm sorry, Miss Schaefer. I've given up writing on spec. But I tell you this is half sold! Couldn't we work in the evenings? Six o'clock in the morning? This next month i'm completely at your disposal. I will now kiss that nose of yours. If you please. You're getting married.
That's what you wanted. I don't want it now. What happened? You did. Sequences are a powerful way to help
straighten out your screenplay and keep your scenes on track in the story. [MUSIC] We all know that an excellent way
to reveal character is through action. However, if the action taken is
the result of a crucial choice, or -- better yet -- a dilemma, then true character is revealed more powerfully. Look at all of the character-defining choices
that are made in Sunset Boulevard. Well, pack them up again! I didn't say I was staying! Suppose you make up your mind. Do you want this job or don't you? Well, as long as the lady's paying for it,
why not take the vicuna? Why don't you just say "thank you" and go? Go! Go! Not until you promise to act like a sensible human being. Now, if we could sit down for two weeks to get us -- I'm sorry Miss Shaefer. I've given up writing on spec. But I tell you this is half sold! As a matter of fact, I have given up writing altogether. How old are you, anyway? 22. May I suggest that, if we're ever to finish this story,
you stay at least two feet away from me? Where are you? What is this all about? Or, better yet, why don't you come out and see for yourself? Now get your things together and let's get out of here. Come on, where? Back to a one-room apartment I can't pay for? Back to a story that may sell,
and very possibly will not? Great actors look for difficult choices that are made by characters in a screenplay. Give them what they want and
you’ll also write a better story. [MUSIC] The midpoint of a screenplay
is an important sequence in which several things are accomplished. Let’s see what Billy Wilder gives us in the midpoint sequence of Sunset Boulevard. First, we have the unveiling of a character. Joe: It was at her New Year's party
that I found out how she felt about me. Maybe I'd been an idiot
not to have sensed it was coming. What is this, mink? Judas H. Priest. Stakes are raised. One of them being this is New Year's Eve.
How about living it up a little? As, for instance? Well... Madame got the razor from your room
and she cut her wrists. What? Max! Max! And finally, characters usually put aside
their differences and forge a relationship. You'll be waiting for me. With a wildly beating heart. Life can be beautiful. In the case of Joe’s relationship with Norma, he makes a crucial choice that changes
the course of the second half of the story. This also brings him to a point of no return. Why don't you just say "thank you" and go?
Go! Go! I'll do it again. I'll do it again. Happy New Year, Norma. So don’t underestimate the importance of the midpoint. It’s a crucial sequence that will shape
the second half of your story and propel the action to a satisfying resolution. [MUSIC] If you want real conflict in your scenes, it’s best accomplished by having characters
with opposing goals in those scenes. And the audience connects more easily to the story when the characters’ goals are clear and visible. Don’t make us have to guess
what a character wants. Look at how we get natural conflict in these scenes
because of the opposing goals. Joseph C. Gillis? That's right. We've come for the car. I loaned it to a friend of mine.
He took it down to Palm Springs. Oh, had to get away for his health, I suppose? That car better be back here by noon tomorrow
or there's gonna be fireworks. All right, Gillis, you've got five minutes.
What's your story about? I'm over a barrel. I need a job. I haven't got a thing. Joe: Any kind of an assignment. Additional dialogue. There's nothing. So, you need three hundred dollars. Of course I could give you three hundred dollars.
Only I'm not going to. If i lose my car it's like having my legs cut off. Greatest thing that could happen to you. Now you'll have to sit behind the typewriter.
Now you'll have to write. Now, if we could sit down for two weeks to get us -- I'm sorry Miss Shaefer. I've given up writing on spec. But I tell you this is half sold! As a matter of fact I've given up writing altogether. I'm sorry to bother you again, but I've confirmed the number.
I must speak to Mr. Gillis. Nobody here can give you any information. And you will please not call again. To see Mr. DeMille. Open the gate. Mr. DeMille is shooting. You got an appointment? Sure, Miss Desmond. Come on, Mac. They can't drive on the lot without a pass. Miss Desmond can. Come on. So remember: wishy-washy goals
equals wishy-washy conflict. As Hal Ackerman says, think of it as two jackals
fighting over one bone. [MUSIC] The beauty of Billy Wilder screenplays
is that when characters want something, things get even more complicated. For example, we start the story
with Joe wanting to write, but repo men come for his car. Joe later tries to sell a script at Paramount, but Betty tells Sheldrake his story is bad. Joe flees the repo men, but his tire blows out. Joe hides his car in Norma’s garage, but is then mistaken for the caretaker. Joe just wants to get his money and get out, but Max moves his belongings into the house. And Norma falls in love with him. Joe wants to remain his own person, but Norma showers him with extravagant gifts. Joe wants to escape and stay with Artie, but Norma tries to kill herself. Joe wants to keep his life with Norma a secret, but Betty starts searching for him. And just when Joe doesn’t need money anymore, he now has a great story idea. And finally, Joe and Betty
fall in love with each other, but now she’s engaged to his good friend Artie. And, of course, Norma gets in the way. So remember, when writing your scenes, think of how to add complications. Think of the question, “What’s the worst thing that can happen here?” In other words, just ask yourself: “What would Billy Wilder do?” [MUSIC] Scene agitators are a great way to
inject extra conflict into a scene. When characters are in the middle
of trying to accomplish something, another character agitates
the scene by impeding them. For example, Joe tries to read Norma’s screenplay. But Norma watches him, making him uneasy. When the repo men come to take his car away, Joe desperately needs money from Norma. But the situation is made even more tense with Buster Keaton and the
other card players present. When Joe needs to use the phone at Artie’s place, notice how two women are
using it and get in his way. At that same party, Joe wants
to talk to Betty in private. So, of course, we get this. Hey, Joe. I said you could have my couch.
I didn't say you could have my girl. Later, Joe runs into Betty
and Artie in the drugstore. Betty asks Joe to work with her on the screenplay. And this happens. Mr. Gillis. If you please. I'll be right there. And finally, Joe talks to
Betty at Paramount Studios. And we get the scene agitator. Now the first time they meet --
[CAR HONKS] Look, if you don't mind. I haven't time to listen to the whole plot.
[CAR HONKS] I'll make it short. I'm sorry. It's your baby now. So if you’re looking to add another
layer of conflict into your scenes, don’t forget about the power of scene agitators. [MUSIC] It’s no question that Billy Wilder is
one of the undisputed masters of dialogue. Although it’s certainly a gift that
comes naturally to some writers, we can still learn several techniques that Billy Wilder frequently uses in his dialogue. For example: Don’t let a character answer
a simple “yes” or “no”. You're a writer you said? Joe: Why? Are you or aren't you? That's what it says on my guild card. Sit down. Is there enough light? Joe: I've got 20/20 vision. Another example: Build tension by having characters not answer a question. How did you know I was going to stay this afternoon? The bathroom is over there.
I put in some towels, soap and a toothbrush. Max, or whatever your name is!
What are my things doing here? I'm talking to you! You send them. Is that it, Max? I better press your evening clothes, sir. Cute. Come on, let's have a drink. Shouldn't we wait for the others? Max, champagne! Next, use a character’s background
to flavor their dialogue. For example: Joe is a screenwriter. So notice how he talks like a screenwriter. She turns out to be a multimillionaire
and leaves you all her money. That's the trouble with you readers. You know all the plots. You didn't believe me. Now, I suppose you don't think I have the courage. Oh, sure, if it would make a good scene. Artie is an Assistant Director. Notice how that shows in his lines of dialogue. Hey, wait a minute.
Go easy on that punch bowl. Budget only calls for three drinks per extra.
Fake the rest. Could you write in plenty of background action
so they'll need an extra assistant director? Oh, Artie. Shut up. And finally, there are the classic witty comebacks
that we see in many of Billy Wilder’s movies. In other words, use dialogue as verbal sparring. You're Norma Desmond. You used to be in silent pictures.
You used to be big I am big. It's the pictures that got small. Then out came talk. Talk, talk! That's where the popcorn business comes in. Buy yourself a bag and plug up your ears. Who did you borrow that from? Adolphe Menjou? Close, but no cigar. Don't worry she's just a fan for my literary output. Hurt Feelings Department. So do what Billy Wilder does: treat dialogue as an action. An action that characters
take to get what they want flavored by who they are. So what’s your choice for the
best-written Billy Wilder film? Let me know by leaving a comment below. As always, I want to thank my wonderful patrons
for your awesome support on Patreon. You help grow the channel and inspire me to continue making videos for
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