The Art of Writing Dialogue - A 6-Week Online Seminar

Lecturer: Oliver Schütte

eLearning with Live-Webinars – 15.10. to 29.11.26 – 6 Weeks
Chat Appointments Wednesday 7 p.m.: 21.10., 28.10., 04.11., 11.11., 18.11., 25.11.26
with individual project development
Early Bird offer until 11.10.26 340 €, after that 360 €
based on the new edition of the handbook "Schau mir in die Augen, Kleines. Die Kunst der Dialoggestaltung"

Creating vivid, original characters and writing gripping scenes for them is one of the toughest challenges any screenwriter faces. At the same time, it has to deliver information, reveal character, and convey emotion — ideally through subtext rather than on the nose.

This seminar approaches the art of great dialogue from multiple angles. You’ll explore the essential building blocks — from scene structure and dramatic scene construction to the concept of the “acoustic mask,” the distinctive verbal signature that makes each character sound unmistakably like themselves. Through carefully selected examples, you’ll see what well-crafted dialogue actually looks like on the page. We’ll analyze scenes from recent films and dissect dialogue from international classics to uncover what makes them work.

Learn from the expert
Your instructor, Oliver Schütte, is the author of the only German-language handbook devoted entirely to dialogue: Schau mir in die Augen, Kleines. Die Kunst der Dialoggestaltung (“Here’s Looking at You, Kid: The Art of Writing Dialogue”), released in a newly revised and updated edition in January 2022. Together, we’ll read key passages and put the concepts into practice through a wide range of exercises designed specifically for this course.

Hands-on, every week
In weekly live webinars, you’ll have the opportunity to analyze and refine your own dialogue under the instructor’s guidance — receiving direct, actionable feedback in real time.

The goal
By the end of the seminar, you’ll walk away with sharper instincts, practical tools, and fresh inspiration to bring back to your own screenplay — along with the kind of personal feedback that only a small, focused workshop can provide.

 

About the lecturer
Oliver Schütte studied film and theater studies at the Freie Universität Berlin. He has been working as a writer for film and television since 1986 and as a dramaturg since 1990. He received the German Screenplay Award in 1988 for his first screenplay "Koan." In 1995, he founded the Master School Drehbuch, which he led until the end of 2008. That same year, he also began his extensive teaching activities at home and abroad. Today, Oliver Schütte works as a dramaturg for production companies and writers, as a lecturer at international film schools, and as a journalist and screenwriter. MORE ...