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Screen Production Research pp 67–83Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Screenwriting as a Mode of Research, and the Screenplay as a Research Artefact

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Abstract

Screenwriting practice is now a flourishing mode of research within universities internationally, whereby the act of writing a screenplay or developing screenplay works is not only understood but also celebrated as a legitimate form of knowledge discovery and dissemination. The resulting work of this creative practice research, which we might call the ‘academic screenplay’, thus functions simultaneously as a method of research enquiry and a ‘non-traditional’ research artefact. In this chapter, we explore what it means to develop and write a screenplay in the academy, under the conditions of and for research. By positioning screenwriting alongside and in between the disciplines of creative writing and screen production, we reflect on how it can draw from both disciplines at different times and for different purposes and can be influenced by their specific—and sometimes contradictory—discourses. By doing so, the chapter provides a comprehensive overview of screenwriting as a growing mode of research, and its practice as an important addition to the academy.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Craig Batty

  2. University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, Australia

    Dallas J. Baker

Authors
  1. Craig Batty
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  2. Dallas J. Baker
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Correspondence to Craig Batty .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Media and Communication, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Craig Batty

  2. School of Creative Industries, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia

    Susan Kerrigan

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Batty, C., Baker, D.J. (2018). Screenwriting as a Mode of Research, and the Screenplay as a Research Artefact. In: Batty, C., Kerrigan, S. (eds) Screen Production Research. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-62837-0_5

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