Staff Member #1
Biography of instructor/staff member #1
Screenwriting
WorldMentoringAcademyAbout This Course
Discover the craft of cinematic storytelling through the lens of legendary filmmakers. This course blends classic Hollywood structure with modern auteur innovation, guiding students from concept to polished script using proven techniques in story, character, and dialogue.
This immersive screenwriting course guides you from blank page to production‑ready script by blending the timeless foundations of classic Hollywood storytelling with the bold innovations of today’s most influential filmmakers. Students learn the essential techniques behind compelling narrative design—three‑act structure, character arcs, dialogue rhythm, scene construction, pacing, and visual storytelling—while studying how masters like Kubrick, Coppola, Tarantino, Gerwig, and Nolan shape emotion, tension, and meaning on screen. Through guided exercises, script breakdowns, and practical writing assignments, you’ll develop the tools to craft unforgettable characters, build powerful story worlds, and write scenes that move with cinematic clarity. Whether you dream of writing your first short film or developing a feature‑length screenplay, this course gives you the professional techniques, creative discipline, and artistic confidence to bring your stories to life.
Requirements
Add information about the skills and knowledge students need to take this course.
Course Staff
Chief Educational Troublemaker
Michael Williams
Michael Williams is the Chief Educational Troublemaker at World Mentoring Academy — a title he earned the hard way: by spending more than a decade poking, prodding, and occasionally drop‑kicking the traditional education system into the future. In 2010, long before “MOOC” became a Silicon Valley buzzword, Michael was building a free global college from a backpack, a stubborn belief in open learning, and whatever Starbucks Wi‑Fi he could borrow. The Orange County Register profiled him as a “homeless by choice educator to the world,” documenting his 12‑hour days assembling university‑level courses from MIT, Yale, NPTEL, and Stanford — all without charging a cent.
While the big platforms eventually traded “open” for “subscription,” Michael never budged. World Mentoring Academy remains one of the last true free MOOCs on Earth, offering more than 1,000 courses without paywalls, upsells, or fine print.
Michael’s LinkedIn essays — including “Harvard & MIT, Follow a Homeless Educator,” “The Future Won’t Wait for Academia,” and “Future of Education May Have Ancient Roots?” — have earned him a reputation as a futurist with calluses, someone who can explain why AI is breaking the job market, why teens are the workforce pipeline no one is using, and why the next education revolution will look more like ancient Athens than a modern lecture hall.
Across every WMA course, Michael appears as your unofficial guide, mentor, instigator, and occasionally your friendly academic arsonist — the guy who hands you the map, the compass, and the confidence to build a future that doesn’t depend on debt, gatekeeping, or waiting for institutions to catch up.
He helps learners find their place in a world that’s changing faster than universities can update their syllabi — and he does it with humor, humanity, and a refusal to accept that opportunity should be rationed.
If education needs a troublemaker, Michael is happy to volunteer.
Frequently Asked Questions
What web browser should I use?
The Open edX platform works best with current versions of Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Safari.
See our list of supported browsers for the most up-to-date information.
Question #2
Your answer would be displayed here.