If there’s one thing I’ve learned as a pro reader in Hollywood, it’s that there’snothing more important than compelling your reader — if you can’t do that, your work simply won’t move up the ranks.

There are plenty of ways to do this throughout the screenplay, but I’d like to take a closer look at two things you can do right on page one as well as hear what you find works best for your own writing.

Create a Compelling Character Introduction

One of the first things a reader looks for when opening the cover of a new screenplay is a character — the one they’ll be spending the duration of the read with.

While many writers prefer to position the introduction of central character upfront and center, there’s no right an wrong here.

To distinguish your central character from supporting characters, you need to create a compelling character introduction. It’s hard to explain just how to do this, because the possibilities are only limited to your imagination, but  I like to look at it as if you’re highlighting the character for the reader to remember.

A few specific methods of going about highlighting your central character might include the following:

1. Revealing your character doing something that defines their character at that point in the story (presuming your character changes throughout the duration of the story). This might include something the character does for a living, the situation in which the character currently resides, or an important action that reflects the character’s state.

2. Providing a paragraph or two dedicated to introducing the character. While it’s common to keep everything in a screenplay to the bare-bones minimum, it’s also common to spend time with important elements of story — in this case, character.

3. Make use of surprising reversals. As a bit of an extension to the method above, the introduction of Indiana Jones in the first film made use of the entire first sequence — and just as audiences thought they knew everything about this adventurous hero, the next sequence revealed something else … he’s also a tenured professor. This detail plays an amazing role in the introduction of Indiana Jones, and proves that surprising introductions are effective.

The overall goal of creating a compelling character is to hook the reader’s attention and entice them to learn what happens to the character.

Create a compelling opening sequence

One of the best examples of a compelling opening sequence can be found in the first Matrix film. What makes this particular opening work so well is the mystery — the audience isn’t sure whether to side with Trinity or the authority officers and agents.

Again, the key here is to compel the reader to learn what happens next. The only line that amplifies this in the Matrix comes from Agent Smith just as the police officers enter Trinities building:

“No … you’re men are already dead.”

Check out the Matrix again and pay attention to how you during this sequence — chances are you’re going to be compelled to see what happens next … even if you’ve already seen it.

How do you compel your reader?

It can’t be stressed enough — there is no right or wrong way to go about writing a screenplay, so let us know how you personally compel the reader on the first page.