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Script Writing

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15 views

Script Writing

Uploaded by

maishasharmila225
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Literature in

Film and Media


Script Writing
Class Objectives:

● Understanding the different steps of writing a Script

● Learning the format and key eleemnts of a Script

● Putting what you learned into practice and write a Script


Steps of Writing a Script

1. Brainstorm Your Story Concept


2. Write a Logline
3. Create an Outline
4. Build a Treatment
5. Write a First Draft of your Script
6. Revise and Edit
Steps of Writing a Script

 Brainstorming Your Story Concept: The first step in screenwriting is to come


up with a story concept, which serves as the foundation for all other elements. This
concept can be inspired by real-life events or personal experiences, or it can be entirely
fictional and imaginative. At the earliest stage of screenwriting, you engage in initial
brainstorming, gathering various themes, topics, and events to shape your narrative.

 Writing a Logline: Once you've figured out what you want to write, it's time to create
a logline. A logline sums up your story usually in just one or two sentences, drawing people
in to learn more. Try to keep your logline super short. The fewer words you use, the clearer
your screenplay's main points will become. Basically, loglines are like the sneak peek of
your screenplay, giving the gist of your main character, the setup, the big conflict, and the
resolution, but in a nutshell.
Steps of Writing a Script

 Creating an Outline: Next, comes the outline phase. You've got all these ideas
floating around, and your job is to fit them together into a coherent storyline. Think of it as
organizing a messy room - you're sorting through what works and what doesn't. Your
outline acts as a roadmap, breaking down every crucial plot point in the order they appear
in your story. This structure keeps things neat and easy to follow. Your outline will usually
be only one or two pages.

 Building a Treatment: A treatment is like a more detailed version of an outline. It’s


almost like a short story. A treatment includes the plot and also highlights the most
important information about the project, such as its title and character descriptions. This
is the phase where you realize if the story works the way you’re hoping it does in your
head.
Steps of Writing a Script

 Writing the First Draft: A first draft of the script includes all the acts with scenes,
dialogue, character arcs and a complete story. Sometimes writers will revise their outline
and treatment based on ideas that are generated during the first draft of the script. Other
times, writers may follow their outline without making changes. Remember to write in the
present tense and adhere to proper formatting

 Revise and Edit: It may take several rounds of rewriting and revisions before you
reach the final draft. This is when screenwriters revise to tighten up dialogue, fix pacing
issues, or even rewrite the entire draft. There’s no set number for how many rewrites you
should do. Often, the answer is as many rewrites as necessary.
Script Format

Font:
 Use Courier font at size 12
 Use single spacing

Margins:
 Left side of the page: 1.5 inch margin
 Right side of the page: 1 inch margin
 Top of the page: 1 inch margin
 Bottom of the page: 1 inch margin

Document setup:
 Put the page numbers in the top right corner using a 0.5 inch margin
 Do not number the first page
Script Elements

1. Title Page
2. Sluglines/Scene Headings
3. Action/Action Lines
4. Characters
5. Dialogues
6. Parentheticals
7. Transitions & Cuts
Script Elements

 Title Page: This is where you list the title of your play, the author’s name, contact
info, and the date of submission. If the script is based on an already published work,
that has to be mentioned in the Title Page as well.

 Sluglines: Sluglines set the scene via a few components. The first is denoting if the
scene is taking place inside or outside (INT. for interiors, EXT. for exteriors). The next
piece of information a slugline offers is the scene’s location. Finally, sluglines designate
the time of day the scene is taking place (this is done using a dash after the location).
Sluglines are always capitalized (they can be bolded as well, but that’s not necessarily
required)

 Action: Action lines define what happens in your scenes. They describe the look of
the scene and designate the characters’ movements inside it. In short, action lines lay
out everything an audience can see onscreen. They’re also always written in present
tense. Occasionally, certain words or phrases can be bolded, underlined, capitalized or
italicized for emphasis.
Script Elements

 Characters: A character’s name should be capitalized the first time they appear
onscreen. It also helps to give a bit of information about them – gender, age, and any
personality specifics that would help define them in the reader’s mind.

 Dialogues: All spoken dialogues, whether in voiceover or in-scene should be written as


dialogue. The dialogue is also centered, and appears directly beneath their name.
[V.O./O.C./O.S./Prelap]

 Parentheticals: If you’re looking to make certain aspects of your characters’ dialogue


be clearly distinct or very specific, you can put a parenthetical between the character’s
name and their dialogue to provide some extra direction and context on how the line is
meant to be performed. A parenthetical can add depth and meaning to dialogue.
Script Elements

 Transitions: The final element is the scene transition. Script transitions are cues to
the reader on how changes to the next scene can be executed. They can be effective
communicators on the mood of a scene when it comes to an end. Transitions are always
capitalized and followed by a colon. Except for the final FADE OUT or CUT TO BLACK,
which should be followed by a period. The most common transitions are CUT TO,
DISSLOVE TO, SMASH CUT, MATCH CUT TO, FADE IN and FADE OUT.
Task!

Now start developing the story and script for your film!

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