Script Consultant & Academic Reviewer

I collaborated with an Emmy®-nominated screenwriter and NYU Film Professor to provide detailed feedback and notes on her students’ treatments and screenplays. My goal was to ensure my feedback aligned seamlessly with her teaching style and philosophy, offering insights that guided students through their rewrites while enhancing their understanding of screenplay mechanics and formatting. I reviewed work for 12 students, focusing on crafting notes tailored to their individual writing voices, strengths, and areas of improvement.

Story Beat Notes: Detailed analysis of story structure and narrative flow (1–3 pages).

On-the-Page Notes: Scene-by-scene feedback addressing character development, dialogue, and pacing.

Formatting Edits: Ensured scripts adhered to industry-standard formatting conventions.

Tailored Feedback: Constructive notes for treatments, first drafts, midterms, and final scripts.

The client is an experienced NYU Film Professor known for her work on celebrated daytime drama series such as All My Children and One Life to Live. As an educator, she is passionate about nurturing emerging screenwriters and preparing them for the rigor of the film and television industry.

The professor faced the challenge of managing a large volume of student submissions while ensuring each writer received thoughtful and actionable feedback. Though highly skilled, she sought an extra hand to meet her high standards of critique and provide detailed notes across all student work. My task was to uphold her teaching philosophy, helping students not only improve their scripts but also develop a deeper understanding of screenwriting fundamentals.

The professor’s rubric and examples of her feedback revealed that her approach was both constructive and meticulous, balancing encouragement with actionable critique. By adopting her tone and methods, I was able to provide feedback that seamlessly integrated into her teaching, ensuring students felt supported while being pushed to elevate their craft.

To meet the professor’s needs, I created a feedback system aligned with her rubric and teaching philosophy. Here’s how:

Understanding the Vision: I began by reviewing the professor’s rubric and sample notes, gaining a clear understanding of her priorities, tone, and approach to critique.

Tailored Feedback: I analyzed each treatment and screenplay, offering constructive notes tailored to each writer’s style while focusing on areas like structure, pacing, and formatting.

Clear and Actionable Notes: I provided margin notes directly on the script for scene-specific feedback and summary notes to guide the rewrites.

Timely Delivery: Each round of feedback was delivered within 5–7 business days, allowing the professor to maintain her teaching schedule and provide timely support to her students.

Initial Consultation: The professor shared her rubric, examples of her feedback, and the scope of the project. I took the time to fully understand her teaching style and the specific goals she had for her students.

Review & Analysis: I carefully read each student’s work, identifying strengths, areas for improvement, and adherence to the professor’s guidelines.

Feedback Creation: For each script, I provided

Revisions & Finalization: I made adjustments to my feedback based on any additional notes from the professor, ensuring alignment with her expectations.

Final Delivery: Delivered polished feedback in PDF format for all 12 student projects, clearly organized and annotated.

The feedback provided helped students elevate their scripts, aligning them with professional industry standards while nurturing their individual voices. The professor appreciated the clarity and depth of the notes, which enhanced her teaching process and allowed her to focus on broader curriculum goals. The project reinforced the importance of collaboration in academia and creative mentorship.

This project combined hard skills like narrative analysis, formatting expertise, and screenwriting mechanics with soft skills like collaboration and adaptability. Using clear communication and attention to detail, I ensured my notes aligned perfectly with the professor’s approach. My ability to balance constructive critique with encouragement made the feedback valuable and actionable for each student.

Working closely with an experienced screenwriter who also happened to be a teacher reminded me of the value of precision in storytelling and the importance of meeting writers where they are. This experience sharpened my ability to identify and communicate areas for improvement while respecting a writer’s unique voice. It also deepened my understanding of how to tailor feedback to specific teaching philosophies—a skill I’m excited to bring to future collaborations.

I can help!

Let’s create a custom package tailored to your class size and feedback needs. Whether you’re looking for detailed margin notes or story beat analyses, I’m here to support you and your students. Let’s connect and get started today!