Paco Wiser's Screenwriting Program
From “I have a story” to “I can write a scene”
4
Levels
18
Exercises
4
Gates
~6
Hours
Paco says:
Welcome. Before we do anything, I need to know who you are. Not as a filmmaker — as someone who sits in the dark and watches. Shall we begin?
How CineCoach Teaches
You Write
Every exercise asks you to create — scenes, loglines, character sheets. No multiple choice. No passive reading.
You Submit
Your work goes directly to Paco’s coaching engine — trained in forty years of movie making and teacher at INSAS Belgium — EICAR Paris.
Paco Coaches
You get personal, specific feedback — what works, what doesn’t, and exactly how to improve. Not grades. Coaching.
“This is not a textbook. You don’t read about screenwriting. You write. I read. We talk.”
The Wish
CurrentPROBefore you write a single word, you must know why.
“Does your logline have a motor?”
List 3 films that shaped you — not as cinema, as emotion
Map the feelings that connect your life to your story
"I want to tell this story because..." — sincerity, not pitch
Craft 3 loglines, choose the one with a motor
3 key images: frame, light, feeling — no dialogue, no plot
Is there a film here?
“There's a film here.”
Submit your best logline, your Why paragraph, and your 3 images from Exercise 1.5.
0 / 5 exercises
The Characters — the hero and its Goal
The hero carries the message and the action. You are what you do. Reveal character through action, not description.
“Does your character have a motor?”
Want vs. Need — the gap that drives all drama
Providing obstacles to the goal of the hero
For both hero and antagonist
Every story has a judge and a witness — find yours
A scene where what's unsaid matters most
Why would I want to follow these people?
“I want to follow these people.”
Submit your Hero sheet, Antagonist sheet, and the 1-page dialogue scene.
The Narrative Blocs
Each block answers one question, then passes the baton. It can be a scene, a shot, a sequence.
“Does your bloc have a motor?”
Build the engine: A causes B, B causes C
A 2-page scene with a question and a change
Strip your scene to the bones — does it still run?
Does the machine work?
“The bridge has to hold.”
Submit your best 2-page scene and the Motor Test analysis.
Style & Voice — be original and surprising
Show, don't tell — and never tell the camera where to stand.
“Does your scene make me want the NEXT scene?”
Show, don't tell — rewrite flat words into images
Theme must be felt, never stated
Remove every on-the-nose line — speak through silence
Same story: drama, comedy, your voice — genre is tone
Shot, light, rhythm — see it through the camera
This scene has a voice
“I can hear your voice in this.”
Submit your best scene and your director's notes.
The Production Mind
A great script is also a shootable script.
“Can this actually be shot? And for how much?”
Could you actually shoot this? Be honest.
You have one take. The light is leaving. What do you shoot?
Everything you've learned, in 3 pages — and you could actually shoot it
Is this ready to shoot?
“I'd show up on set for this.”
Submit your complete scene and your production reality check.
What You’ll Create
Every piece personally evaluated by Paco’s coaching engine
- ✍A founding logline with emotional motor
- ✍A hero with want, need, and flaw
- ✍An antagonist who believes they’re the hero
- ✍Dialogue scenes with subtext
- ✍Visual writing — images, not descriptions
- ✍A 2-page scene that passes the Motor Test
- ✍A 3-page scene worth shooting
- ✍Director’s notes: shot, light, rhythm
Begin Your Journey with Paco
“When in doubt, test if you would want to watch this film: choose tense, surprising and lively over boring clichés.”
— Paco Wiser
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