As founding director of the graduate screenwriting program at the university of Southern California, David Howard has taught the authors of some of the most successful movies of our time, including The Hand That Rocks the Cradle and Natural Born Killers . His comprehensive new book deconstructs the craft of writing for film, and reveals: story arc; plotting and subplotting; classical vs. revolutionary screenplay structure; tone, style and atmosphere; the use of time; and the creation of drama and tension.