This story originally appeared in NPR's Student Podcast Challenge newsletter. Subscribe here. When I (Abē Levine) started interning here at NPR, I worked nights as a wedding server. And one thing ...

Maybe you’re thinking about writing a screenplay, but don’t know where to start. Or maybe you’re interested in following in the footsteps of writer-directors such as Mindy Kaling or Jordan Peele.

But it’s the scene that changes the story. In the film American Beauty (1999), the moment Lester Burnham quits his job, walks out of his cubicle with a beer in hand—that’s it. That’s his turning point ...