#14 Growing Pains - “Ben’s Movie” (S. 5 Ep. 25)
Ben makes a short film about a one-eyed alligator he flushed down the toilet who comes back for revenge. His movie was a school project, but also an excuse to film a bunch of girls in bikinis. The dialogue was a bit raunchy for a 1980’s family sitcom. The movie is ridiculous, but super funny.

#13 The Goldbergs - “Who Are You Going to Telephone?” (S. 1 Ep. 6)
This is for anyone who’s had a mother who cares too much. Bev and Barry (painted in green because he's The Hulk) shine in this Halloween episode. Also, the storyline with Adam and Pops is pretty uplifting when Pops wants to go trick-or-treating with his grandson, but Adam is getting too old.
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#12 Dharma & Greg – “Old Yeller” (S. 1 Ep 14)
Before Chuck Lorre had The Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men, and like every comedy on CBS today, he had Dharma & Greg. In this episode, Dharma buys a bus without Greg’s guidance and shenanigans ensue.

#11 New Girl - “Bob & Carol & Nick & Schmidt” (S. 5 Ep. 5)
This episode proved that New Girl really doesn’t need Jess (as Zooey Deschanel was on fraternity leave) which is crazy unbelievable, but this episode was that funny. This almost felt like a rip-off of a Friends episode (when Phoebe’s brother asks her to have his baby), but then it went into a totally new and hilarious direction. Winston and Cece’s storyline was also hysterical. The entire cast killed it in terms of comedy

#10 30 Rock - “Leap Day” (S. 6 Ep. 9) 
Only 30 Rock could take a day nobody really cares about and make it sound like the best holiday ever! Jim Carrey guest stars as we learn about the legend of Leap Day Williams. The mythical figure who turns children’s tears into candy.

#7 Get Educated - “First Day of School” (Pilot)
So I might be biased because I created the show, but this is my list. I do what I want. In this mockumentary about teachers, Coach Flynn becomes the first female football coach at Millard Fillmore Middle School and must prove she’s worthy to teach an all-boys football team. And word gets around that Miss Pappalardo started menopause and students torment her all day.
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#6 The Office - “The Injury” (S. 2. Ep 13)
A classic episode, written by Mindy Kaling from one of the best seasons of any TV show ever. Michael injures his foot on a George Foreman grill and Dwight gets a concussion trying to help him. The cold open was alone was one of their best.

#5 Broad City - “Pu$$y Weed” (S. 1 Ep. 2)
The pilot of Broad City is good, but the second episode really nailed the tone and direction of what Broad City would become. It’s also the first time we meet Lincoln (Hannibal Buress), and we get classic BC quotes like “Bed Bath & Beyond coupons never expire!” and “I am not a mom!”
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#4 Crazy Ex-Girlfriend - “Josh and I Go to Los Angeles” (S. 1 Ep 13) 
Rebecca Bunch finally gets what she wants from Josh Chan, and it’s a moment that would change the course of the show and satisfy the audience. The fake boyfriend storyline was genius! Also, apparently nobody in West Covina has ever heard of the movie Chinatown and Rebecca faces her rival in the amazing Jewish American Princess Rap Battle.

#2 Parks and Recreation- “Harvest Festival” (S. 3 Ep 7.)
The beginning of season 3 built to this episode, and it was so worth it. It has the introduction of Lil’ Sebastian before Tom loses him and blames it on Jerry. April tells Andy for the first time, “I love you.” Andy replies, “Awesome sauce.”
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#1 The Simpsons - “Lisa on Ice” (S. 6 Ep. 8)
Since I was a kid, this is my favorite half hour I’ve ever seen on television. Lisa and Bart play on rival hockey teams. Homer makes them compete for his fatherly love. Not only do the jokes kill from start to finish, but the ending was heartfelt and hilarious. The final scene emphasizes that there’s nothing more important than family.

If you're submitting a script to producers, studios, or even a writing contest, make sure you're not making these mistakes. I see them week after week when doing script coverage.

1) CONFLICT NEEDS TO BE IN EVERY SCENE
This is the first law of screenwriting. If characters just talk in a scene and there's no conflict anywhere then you're going to bore the reader! Put some kind of conflict in every scene or cut the scene altogether.

2) SHOW DON'T TELL
Why have your characters talk about their past when we can see it? If something life changing happened to your character, show it to us! Your audience isn't going to remember words, but they'll remember something they see. 

3) EVERY CHARACTER HAS THE SAME VOICE
Every character needs their own voice. If everyone sounds exactly like you then your  script is in trouble. Everyone is different so we all talk differently and use different vocabulary. Make sure no two characters sound the same.

" Friends" is a great example. It was a show about six friends living in New York all in their late-20s, yet they all had distinct voices.

RULE OF THUMB
Take a page from the middle of your script and cross out all the names. Then see if you can tell who is talking. Great lesson learned from Blake Snyder's "Save The Cat."

4) TOO MUCH SETUP
When your story doesn't start moving forward until page 34, then I've already already PASSED on your script, I don't care if you have an epic story to come, because I'm already bored. I'm not coming back from that painful 30 minutes I wasted on your script. You setup should be short and state your goal as soon as possible.

Look at "The Hangover," within the first two minutes of the movie, we already know the goal. It's to find their missing friend. The story then unfolds and the characters move forward towards their goal.

5) CHARACTERS HAVE SIMILAR NAMES
Don't have a Josh, Jake, John, and Jeff! Your reader is going to get confused if you have even two characters with the same initial and the same amount of letters in their name.

RULE OF THUMB
Don't have names start with the same initial.

6) YOU'RE DOING THE DIRECTOR'S JOB
You're not the director! You're the writer! Don't tell me how camera angles should go or have a crazy amount of transitions. And never FADE IN and FADE OUT more than once. Amatuer writers love to do more than one of these, but this is NEVER OKAY! The only time you FADE iN is the first thing in your script and the only time you FADE OUT is the last thing.

7) TOO MUCH ACTION DESCRIPTION. 
When you're first page is just action description, I'm already cringing at your script.  Screenplays are not books! Keep the action description snappy! The more white space on the page, the better. If I get sick of all your action description then after a certain page I'll stop reading it. I'll just go by the dialogue to figure out what's going on. This is especially true for comedies. Brevity is the soul of wit.

8) ING words. 
Screenplays are written in present tense, not past tense. Take verbs with ing and replace them with present tense verbs! This also makes your action description snappy and shorter. Don't write:

Lou is running and listening to music.

You're wasting space and this slows down the script. Instead write:

Lou runs and listens to music.

9) Characters talk in Paragraphs!
Dialogue should be snappy, especially in comedy. Don't make me read an entire paragraph of dialogue every time your main character speaks. This not only makes it extremely hard for actors to remember their lines, but it’s not natural. Unless we’re giving a speech or telling a story, we don’t talk in paragraphs.

Watch an episode of Seinfeld and pay attention to how snappy the dialogue is. It's super rare when a character says something longer than three sentences.

10) YOUR FIRST 10 PAGES SUCK
The first 10 pages of every new screenplay are the most important. It's the first impression. If it's comedy, it better make us laugh. The first 10 pages decide if I want to keep reading this or if I'm going to eat, go online, or take a nap. The first10 pages have to draw me in and set the tone.

About the Author ~ Jordan Chadwick Imiola is a screenwriter with years of script coverage experience at management companies, freelance, and currently for a very successful script coverage service.

Get Educated - A new TV mockumentary about teachers learning how to educate teenagers. Imagine if "The Office" took place in a Buffalo middle school.

Written and Directed by Jordan Imiola. Starring David Pinion, Stephen Carey, Nicole Foti, Jordyn Lucas, Maria Paris, Ann Elizabeth Lyon, John J. Pistone, Reid Miller, Amy Letcher, and Karli-Rae Grogan. Written and Directed by Jordan Chadwick Imiola. Produced by Sonja Carey, Jordan Chadwick Imiola, Jessica Frias, and Jade Grace. Guest Starring Tyler Michael Brown, Carson Freeman, Jason Faulkener, Lizzie White, Kyle Heyman, Taylor Rampe, Karah Britton, Danielle Dutton, Devon Franklin, Jarod Bainbridge, Jack Mayorga, Gerson Gomez, Calli Matthews, Tori Griffith, Mackenzi Heyman, Tommy Spaulding, Kaia Jones, Mallorey Wallace, Camryn Griffith, Jessica Eady, Justin Gaylord, Tyler Markham, Nicholas Neresyan, Sophia Mosich, Julienna Perez, Dylan Reilly, Myah Salinas, Kelly Anne Sweeney, Anthony Uribe, Maddie Uribe, and Micah Vosper. Director of Photography - Gio Barot, Sound Department - Nicholas Cuarto. 2015. A Funny Buffalo production.

"Get Educated" is based in Buffalo and almost every scene has something Buffalo related in it. In the very first scene of the show (see clip below) you might notice the poster of Buffalo City Hall and the Buffalo Courier-Express.

For all our gym class scenes, we made posters for several Buffalo teams including the Buffalo Bisons, Buffalo Bandits, Buffalo Braves, and Buffalo Blizzard, (yes, we know the last two don't exist anymore.) And of course, we have one of cast members wearing a Sabres jersey and the character, Freddy, played by the talented Carson Freeman is wearing a Buffalo Bills Sammy Watkins jersey the entire pilot.

For the entire post, click here - http://www.funnybuffalofilms.com/get-educated/get-educated-new-tv-show-based-in-buffalo

Working for a few managers, I’ve written more script coverage than I ever want to. When you submit your script to a manager, it’s highly doubtful they will actually read the script. They first give it on to their interns. Usually a college kid who’s earning a college credit doing free work.

This intern will PASS, CONSIDER, or RECOMMEND your screenplay. 95% of screenplays submitted are passed (meaning they will NEVER be looked at ever again by anyone) because these scripts are horrible. I could go on an on about the outrageously bad scripts I’ve read for managers, but that’s another blog. Less than 1% of scripts submitted to managers/agents are Recommended.

These are the questions that inters answer when doing script coverage. If your script has any flaws, (meaning they don’t answer these questions correctly) it will NOT BE SEEN by the manager/agent. Before I submit a script to anyone important. I make sure my screenplays answers all these questions to get a RECOMMEND.

CHARACTER

Is it clear whom the story is about? Who are rooting for?

Can you identify in some way with the main character? Are they likeable? 

Are the characters believable?

Is their behavior consistent with human nature?

Is character revealed through what people do visually rather than what they say? (Film is a visual medium)

Does the main character change, grow, or develop? (they should)

Is the main character active or passive? (should be active)

Are the supporting characters good “foils” for the protagonist?

Are the hero and the antagonist evenly matched? (antagonist should be evenly matched or more powerful)

What’s at stake for the main character? What do they want?

Are major characters introduced too late?

STRUCTURE and STORY

Is the opening exciting?

Does the story “get rolling” quickly enough?

How is the exposition handled?

Is it a good story? Is it compelling? Is it involving?

Is the conflict, and what the story is about clear in the first few pages?

Does it flow? Or are the scenes choppy or confusing?

Does the script have strong narrative drive? Or does it ramble?

Does the story develop or unfold in an interesting way?

Are the scene transitions smooth or visually interesting?

Does the second act sustain your interest?

Do the climax pay off on the promise of the beginning?

Does the structure feel balanced, or is something out of place?

Is the ending satisfying? Or does it leave you with that “so what” feeling?

Does the antagonist get their comeuppance? Does the punishment fit the crime?

Does the writer “follow through” on all his story lines? Do minor characters work out their problems?

CONCEPT

Is there strong conflict?

Will the main idea of the film “grab” an audience? Is there a “hook”?

Are there elements on which to build an advertising campaign?

Is the concept unique?

Is it easily explained in a few words? Is it pitchable?

Is there a clear theme? What is this movie about?

Are there other films with similar themes that can be used for comparison?

DIALOGUE

Does it sound the way people really talk?

Is dialogue consistent? Do people stay “in character?”

Do all the characters sound the same? (They shouldn’t)

Is the dialogue appropriate to the period of the film?

If it’s a comedy, is it funny?

Does the dialogue “track well?”

Is the script too “stagey” or too “talky,” relying too much on dialogue and not enough on visuals?

Are the speeches relatively short and easy for actor to memorize?

BUDGET

Would the production be expensive?

Are there any special sequences that would drive up the budget or that could be trimmed to save money?

Would “star” actors or other talent be requested to make the project work? (Would it work only in the hands of certain directors, for example?)

What other films does this reflect in terms of potential budget?

CASTING

Do casting suggestion come to mind? Sometimes the writer will make casting suggestion in the script? Are they appropriate?

Would casting present any special problems or challenge?

Are there too many characters for the size of the story?

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you ran the studio and could only make ten movies a year, would this be one of the them?

Would you see this movie or recommend it to a friend?

Who is the intended audience for this film? Is that audience large enough to justify the cost of the picture? (A film must make three or four times its production cost to show a profit?)

Does the script work “on its own terms”? It may be exploitive horror movie, but is it a GOOD exploitive horror movie? If it’s a comedy, is it funny?

Is it an appropriate for the studio you work for? Is it what your employees are looking for?

Is the idea timely? Does it relate to something currently in the public awareness? Is the timing right for this movie?

10) MAKE A (REALISTIC) GOAL LIST AND STICK TO IT
My grandma told me that everyday she writes a big list of things to do, and she’s lucky if she gets the first 5 things done on that list, but she’s still proud of those 5 things. Don’t tell yourself you’re going to do a lot, if you know you’re not going to do that. Big lists become overwhelming. Instead make your list of accomplishments smaller, and be proud of those accomplishments…and then go get drunk.