Script Formatting

12-point COURIER font

A fixed pitch font: one page will equal one minute of

screen time.So it looks like it was typed on a

typewriter.

5 essential elements of screenplay format:

1.Slug Lines2.Descriptions/Directions3.Dialogue4.Fades & Cuts5.Marginals

Slug Lines

Where & When:

Tells the reader that the story has changed in location or time.

Slug Lines

Always capped - “slugs” are single-line entries used to introduce a scene or a shot

It tells the reader where and when the action appears and the line

comprises three parts:

* INT. or EXT. - is the scene an interior or exterior scene?

* Location - where does the action takes place?

* DAY or NIGHT - what is the time of day?

EXAMPLES:

INT. OFFICE - DAY

EXT. 1818 TACOMA AVE - NIGHT

Make sure there is a SPACE DASH SPACE

between the LOCATION and TIME OF DAY

Rules for Slug Lines

1. Slugs fit on only one line2. Whenever you end a shot, should always triple-space to the next slug

3. Must double-space to whatever follows a slug

4. Either direction or dialogue must follow a slug

5. Put all slugs in CAPS6. Do not use camera angles in your

slugs

Directions

Step 1: Think about the action that needs describing. You cannot write a description if you are unsure about what you need to describe.

Step 2: Stay in the script. Good action descriptions bring you into the world of the script and sound as if from the story, not an outsider.

Step 3: Be brief and to the point. Action descriptions are the most overlooked areas of scripts because they are the most unread. Get your point across quickly and do not waste any time of the readers.

Step 4: Never use exclamation points. Underline or capitalize words to stress importance.Step 6: Only write what can be seen on-screen. Viewers cannot visibly see interior motives, so they should not be made to read about them.

Step 5: Never use the phrase "We See" or describe any type of directing shot in the script.

Characters

All NAMES are in caps.

Character cue begins 4.1 inches from the left edge of the paper,

or at space forty-one.

Dialogue

Begins 2.8 inches from the left edge of the paper, or at space

twenty-eight.

Dialogue must be read down the center of the page.

Left margin is 2.8 inches (28 spaces)

AND

the right margin is set at 5.6 to 5.8 inches (fifty six / eight spaces) from the left

edge.

The Parenthetical

a.k.a personal direction - refers to the instructions to

the actors (the way they should say, emote or render

the line of dialogue) enclosed in parenthesis and placed directly beneath the

character cue

The Parenthetical

When the parenthetical appears directly beneath the character cue, place the first parenthesis at

3.5 inches, or thirty-five spaces, from the left edge

of the paper.

V.O. / O.C / O.S.

V.O. (voiceover) is used for offscreen narration that characters can’t hear

O.C. (off-camera) and O.S. (off-screen) is used when the speaker is present in the scene, but not in the shot.

Type in CAPS and in ( )’s after the speaker’s name:

Ex: LUKE (O.C.)

Dialogue

When you break dialogue at bottom of page, only break it at the end

of a complete sentence.

On the following page, add (CONT’D) directly after the character cue.

All slugs, directions, FADE IN:, and the top-of-the-page CONTINUED: begin 1.4 inches from the left edge of the paper, or at space

fourteen.

Marginals

The two cuts (CUT TO: and MATCH CUT:)

the bottom-of-the-page (CONTINUED),

and the closing (FADE OUT)

begin at 6.1 inches from the left edge of the paper, or at

space sixty-one.

Most times CONTINUED show up at the top and bottom of the page.

The rule is: except for page one, the top of

each page in a screenplay begins with either a CONTINUED or a

slug.

If you end a page, but the shot that you are writing has not ended, then the next page is a continuation of the same shot. To show the reader that the shot is continuing, you write CONINUED on the top of the page. When shots end at the bottom of the page, the following page begins with a

new slug.

The top-of-the-page CONTINUED begins at

horizontal space fourteen and is placed approx one inch from the top edge of

the paper. The CONTINUED at the page’s bottom is written in caps and

enclosed by parentheses:(CONTINUED)

The bottom-of-the-page (CONTINUED) begins at space sixty-one, as do cuts, and is double-spaced down from the final direction or

dialogue on the page.

Some writers have stopped using CONTINUED altogether; some use it incorrectly. Use of the CONTINUED remains a

courtesy to the reader because it lets him or her know that the shot is ongoing. It also show that the writer knows standard script format.

FADE IN / FADE TO BLACK

The first and last words that bookend every script.

SFX

Sound effects.

Typed at the left margin

Ex: SFX: Alarm

DISSOLVE / CUT TO / FADE

Indicate transitions from one scene to the next.

Placed at the right margin. Use only if you want a certain effect.

Otherwise, simply indicate the next master scene at the left slug line.

CU / ECU

Close-up and Extreme Close-up.

Placed at left slug line.

Only use if crucial to the scene.

Abbreviated Cues

• FADE IN / FADE TO BLACK

• INT. / EXT.• V.O. / O.C. / O.S.

• SFX• DISSOLVE / CUT TO

• CU / ECU• INTERCUT• ANGLE ON• AERIAL / CRANE SHOT

• POV• PAN

Intercut

Allows you to switch back and forth between two locales.

Mainly used for phone conversations.

Ex: INTERCUT PHONE SEQUENCEEND INTERCUT SEQUENCE

ANGLE ON

Used to draw attention to a particular element in a scene.

Placed at left slug line.

Use only if specific angle is crucial.

AERIAL / CRANE SHOT

Placed at left slug line.

Ex: CRANE SHOT of rooftop

POV

Point-of-View.

When the camera is used as the eyes of a character (seeing something

from her/his perpective.

Ex: TIM’S POV

PAN

Horizontal movement in a scene.

Written at left slug line.

Ex: PAN of classroom

8 1/2 x 11-inch page

Margins

1 inch from top edge of page

.75 inches from the bottom edge of the paper (with .5 inches from bottom of paper to top of page number)

1.4 inches from the left edge of the page(because scripts are re-copied onto or printed on 3-

hole paper)

Right margin is set at 75 spaces

Voice Over

(V.O.)

Off Screen / Off Camera

(O.S.)

(O.C.)

Series of Shots&

Montage

A montage is a series of small related scenes, grouped together. Often

montages are silent scenes that have music or some other sound

over them.

MONTAGE OF THE UFOs LANDING

A) The ship settles on the Washington Monument.B) Humans are rounded up into Candlestick Park as more ships land in the parking area.C) An African tribal leader chats with one of the aliens.

A Series of Shots is similar to a montage, but takes place in one

location during one piece of time. Think of a chase scene when you see a car racing through the street,

then a baby carriage wheeled across the street, then the cop chasing the first car, then the first car narrowly missing the baby carriage and the cop car having to stop to

avoid hitting it.

SERIES OF SHOTS

A) Police swarm the Federal Building.B) Ambulances swerve into the driveway.C) SWAT teams aim their guns.

First Page

No page number on first page

First line of text on first page should begin .75 inches from the

top.

Second Page

Top of page number to bottom of page should be .5 inches (3

returns).

Add a period after the number:Ex: 2.

3.

The Language of Screenwriting

Scripts are comprised of:

• Master Scenes (where & when something is happening)

The Language of Screenwriting

Scripts are comprised of:

• Master Scenes (where & when something is happening)

• Dialogue (who is talking & what they’re saying)

The Language of Screenwriting

Scripts are comprised of:

• Master Scenes (where & when something is happening)

• Dialogue (who is talking & what they’re saying)

• Abbreviated Cues (how a shot is set up - including transitions and sound effects)

Screenwriting is an art form

It requires absolute precision, clarity, and simplicity.

It takes discipline.

A screenplay should be specific enough to communicate exactly what you want to happen, yet at the same

time manage to be open to interpretation.

so much depends upon

a red wheel barrow

glazed with rain water

beside the white

chickens.

William Carlos-Williams, “The Red Wheelbarrow”