Private, interactive lab on Zoom with Hollywood Story Editor Christopher Lockhart (WME, 60,000+ scripts read)

Get Two One-on-One Story Consultations Plus a Downloadable Sample Outline

Only 1 SPOT Remains — payment plans available at checkout, or email edu@stage32.com for more info.

Before you spend months writing your screenplay, make sure your story has the structure, characters, and conflict needed to carry a feature film. In this interactive 6-week lab, you'll take your feature film idea and develop it into a complete, professional outline—giving you the roadmap you need before writing your first draft!

Working directly with Christopher Lockhart, Story Editor at WME and one of Hollywood's most respected story experts, you'll build the story engine behind your screenplay—from your concept and characters to your structure, conflict, stakes, and emotional arc. With over 40 years of experience evaluating thousands of scripts, Chris knows what makes a feature concept stand out, and he'll help you apply those principles to your own project.

Through weekly feedback—including two one-on-one sessions—you'll strengthen your story, identify what's working, fix what isn't, and create a clear blueprint that allows you to write with confidence instead of second-guessing every page.

By the end of the lab, you'll walk away with a polished feature outline, a stronger understanding of your story, and the confidence to move forward with a screenplay built from a solid foundation!

This is a private, hands-on lab—not a webinar. You'll receive direct feedback throughout the six weeks, have email access to your Stage 32 Educator, connect with fellow writers in a private Stage 32 Lounge, and, if you can't attend live, every session will be available to watch on demand within 48 hours.

Praise for Christopher's Previous Stage 32 Teaching

"Very informative. Clarified a lot of questions I've always had regarding loglines. Well worth the money." — Emmit R.

"It was very informative and insightful." — Mays S.

"Chris was clear, concise, helpful, and focused. Loved his enthusiasm and humor." — Lori H.

Session #1 – What Makes an Idea a Movie?

• Why most scripts die at the idea stage

• The difference between an interesting idea and a dramatic ideas

• Testing ideas for character, conflict, stakes, structure, and emotion

• Identifying ideas that should be scrapped, reimagined, or saved for another form

• How to look at your own material with more objectivity

• Q and A with Chris

Assignment: Bring 3-5 potential screenplay ideas. Write a logline for each idea and why you think it could be a movie.

Session #2 – One-on-One Idea Consultations

• Individual story sessions with the instructor

• Review each writer’s strongest potential ideas

• Identify which ideas have the clearest dramatic and cinematic potential

• Discuss the story engine, what may be missing, what may be too thin, and what may need to be reimagined

• Choose the idea each writer will develop for the rest of the course

Assignment: Revise your chosen idea into a clear working premise. Be prepared to discuss the protagonist, central conflict, stakes, and emotional engine.

Session #3 – Building the Character Engine

• Defining the protagonist’s want, need, wound, flaw, and arc

• Building a story around character pressure, not just plot events

• Creating meaningful opposition

• Understanding why the story matters emotionally

• Making sure the main character can carry a feature screenplay

• Q and A with Chris

Assignment: Write a one-page character breakdown for your protagonist and a short paragraph describing the central emotional journey of the story.

Session #4 – Building the Story Structure

• Turning the idea into a dramatic spine

• Act I: setup, major dramatic question

• Act II: Rising action, midpoint, low point. 

• Act III: climax, resolution, and emotional payoff

• Avoiding a story that feels episodic, passive, or underbuilt

• Q and A with Chris

Assignment: Create a rough three-act story map. Identify the major turning points, the midpoint, the low point, the climax, and the resolution.

Session #5 – One-on-One Story Consultations

• Individual story sessions with the instructor

• Review each writer’s character work and three-act story map

• Identify structural weaknesses, missing stakes, thin conflict, or unclear emotional movement

• Refine the story’s major turns and dramatic progression

• Clarify what still needs to be solved before writing pages

Assignment: Revise your story map based on feedback. Expand it into a more detailed structural outline.

Session #6 – Story Workshop / Final Development Pass

• Each writer presents their developed screenplay idea to the class

• Group feedback on what is clear, compelling, confusing, or underdeveloped

• Identifying the biggest remaining story challenges before pages begin

• Sharpening the protagonist, conflict, stakes, structure, and emotional payoff

• Final advice on turning the developed idea into a practical outline for the screenplay

• Q and A with Chris

Assignment: Complete your structural outline and use the feedback from class to strengthen the story before beginning the first draft.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

PLEASE NOTE: This exclusive Stage 32 class will be booked on a first-come, first-served basis. The opportunity to work this closely and for this long with an expert in the field is an incredibly unique and valuable opportunity. If you are interested, please book quickly. Once the spots are gone, they’re gone for good.

• This class is designed for screenwriters of all levels who have an idea for a feature but aren't sure if it's strong enough to sustain a full script.

• This is an intimate, in-depth, practical, and detailed class held on Zoom where you will be interacting with your instructor.

• This class consists of 6 sessions roughly two hours in duration and offers significantly more in-depth content than a standard Stage 32 webinar.

• ***Your instructor will be available on email during the entire duration of the class to answer any questions you have about your project.***

• To stay motivated and inspired you will have access to a dedicated Stage 32 Lounge post where you can meet, connect and communicate with your fellow classmates throughout the length of the class and beyond. Let Stage 32 help you find your tribe!

• Can't make it live? Don't worry, each session will be recorded and you can watch it on demand at your convenience. 

• You will be held accountable to take the lessons from each week and move your work forward.

• Payment plans are available at checkout through Shop Pay

• Screenwriters of all levels who have an idea for a feature but aren't sure if it's strong enough to sustain a full script.
• Writers who have started (or abandoned) multiple drafts and want to understand where the story broke down before it happened.
• Writers who are sitting on several potential ideas and need help identifying which one has the most dramatic and cinematic potential.
• Screenwriters who want hands-on, one-on-one feedback to pressure-test their concept before committing months to the page.

Praise for Christopher's previous Stage 32 Teaching:

"Very informative. Clarified a lot of questions I've always had regarding loglines. Well worth the money." -- Emmit R.

"It was very informative and insightful." -- Mays S.

"Chris was clear, concise, helpful, and focused. Loved his enthusiasm and humor."  -- Lori H.