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How to Write a Kung Fu Screenplay

The martial arts have moved from late night cable and obscure video rentals to mainstream media. Kung Fu movies spawned a number of martial arts subgenres with fantastic feats and magical swordplay, but in their purest form they follow a strict formula, modeled on historic figures, which you can incorporate into your own screenplay.

Instructions

    • 1

      Create your characters. Write a page of biography for each major character beforehand and at least a paragraph for your incidental characters. Kung Fu movies revolve around three major characters: the young hero who thinks he can be a Kung Fu master (a variant is the disgraced martial artist looking for redemption); his wise mentor who patiently guides him through training (and who may have been defeated by the evil master sometime in the past); and an arch villain who leads a gang of vicious thugs and appears to have unbeatable mojo.

    • 2

      Build a backstory. A sense of history is important to Kung Fu movies to convey the context of the young hero's emergence. Usually the hero is the black sheep of a martial arts family who have fallen on hard times because of the arch villain, or a disgraced martial artist looking for redemption. The backstory should be reflected in the setting you choose for the movie storyline.

    • 3

      Establish your setting. The setting can be urban or rural, but a central setting is often built around the family business (often a dojo, a healing clinic or a store). Look for a setting that where gangs or clans can thrive and with locales big enough for large fight scenes. You don't have to be too original; kung fu movies are expected to adhere to the formula.

    • 4

      Outline your movie. The Kung Fu formula follows three rigid acts: In act one the evil master disrupts the town and disgraces the hero, who isn't up to the challenge; in act two the hero pledges loyalty to a good Kung Fu master but consistently fails his training; in the final act the hero masters a key technique and challenges the evil master and defeats the evil master in one-on-one combat. Don't worry too much about plot twists; with these movies formula is everything.

    • 5

      Type your script in screenplay format. Keep the script to 80 minutes (about 80 pages). Kung Fu movies are short and intended to deliver a punch. If you go longer than 80 pages, you need to cut some scenes.

Screen Writing

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