How to Write a Short for Animation

Please Note -  The Nickelodeon Script First Contest Is No Longer Open To Submissions.
This course is geared half toward general writing techniques for animated shorts and half toward specific techniques for the Nickelodeon Contest. While the offer to submit to Nickelodeon is no longer valid, this course offers excellent information on writing studio-worthy animation shorts.

Stage 32 is thrilled to announce that we are now working with Nickelodeon to discover up and coming talent!

Nickelodeon Animation Studios is proud to present a new path in series development called Script First. Here’s how it works: you submit a spec 3-5 page script that showcases an original show premise and characters in a self-contained story. If your submission is selected by our selection committee, you will get an offer to be paid to write an expanded script. You can choose to either build upon your submitted spec script or choose a different story using your same original characters and world.

Nickelodeon has extended their deadline to May 20th EXCLUSIVELY for Stage 32 Members. Nickelodeon is also going to award the top THREE (3) Stage 32 applicants with a meeting with a Nickelodeon executive and a chance to get your work produced!

This hands on, intensive two week course will teach you how to write a compelling and unique 3-5 page animated short that you can then submit to Nickelodeon’s Script First contest.

The objective of this course is:

• To introduce the short script animation format to writers wishing to create a compelling sample of their writing style. These types of short samples are often used by writers and studios as a starting point for their biggest projects.
• To educate you about the world of animation and tips on how to stand out.
• To write a 3-5 page short to submit for Nickelodeon.

You will leave the course knowing:

• How to properly structure, format and present a short geared towards animation which could act as your new calling card to get attention.
• How to flesh out the trajectories of characters and convey a full story in a limited number of pages.
• The mechanics of how to write a short in any format (animation or live action).
• Tips on how to eventually expand your short into a full feature script.