Screenwriting
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Screenwriting refers to the art and craft of writing screenplays.
Writing for film is potentially one of the most high-profile and best-paying careers available to a writer, and as such, it is perhaps the most sought. It is increasingly difficult to make a living as a Hollywood screenwriter, but that does not stop tens of thousands of people from trying every year, as the capricious nature of the film industry makes it possible (though improbable) for a complete unknown to launch a career simply by writing a commercially-appealing screenplay and getting it into the hands of the right people.
[edit] Status of screenwriters in the industry
Historically, screenwriters have had a low social position in the film industry. Despite the fact that a screenwriter is often the genesis of a project, directors — not writers — frequently get their names associated with the films they make (as in, "a film by..."). Screenwriters usually do not get this honor, unless the screenwriter is also directing. Before Alfred Hitchcock, the reverse was the case. The Writers Guild of America agreed to make an exception for Hitchcock, which other directors took advantage of (and insisted on using "a film by...") and gradually screenwriters were marginalized in this respect.
However, the situation has improved dramatically as the resurgence of the independent film in the late 20th century gave new rise to the idea of the screenwriter as the auteur, and creative generator of cinematic product. In the past few years, news of multi-million dollar screenplay deals is a sign of increased respect for the role of the screenwriter in film production.
Recently, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), the labor union representing writers in the American film and television industries, has made great efforts to limit the use of the "a film by" title in the credits of motion pictures, to preserve the respect for level of input made by the writers. (See: WGA screenwriting credit system.)
[edit] Theories on writing a screenplay
Writing a screenplay requires the creativity of a storyteller and the skills of both the dramatist and the filmmaker. Because of the particular combination of skills and standards required by the motion picture industry, many writers find screenwriting more challenging than writing novels or other narrative fiction.
Fundamentally, the screenplay is a unique literary form. It is like a musical score, in that it is intended to be the basis of other artists' performance, rather than standing on its own merits. For this reason, a screenplay is often written using pre-determined technical jargon when describing stage directions. Nonetheless, a good screenwriter will use interesting visually-descriptive language when setting up a scene or its characters so as to conjure up images. There are several main screenwriting theories which help writers approach the screenplay by systematizing the structure, goals and techniques of writing a script. There are also numerous screenwriting programs available to help a screenwriter set up scenes and keep track of structure. Scenes are usually short and dialogue clipped, i.e., the way people actually speak in real life. The First Act is typically anywhere from fifteen to twenty pages leading to a major conflict. Second Act -- the story -- is about seventy pages. The Third Act or resolution is the rest. Screenplays are usually one-hundred-and-twenty pages in length, or two hours, a page of screenplay roughly corresponding to a minute of movie.
The most common kinds of theories are structural. Screenwriter William Goldman is widely quoted as saying "Screenplays are structure." The first, most basic theory of screenwriting is Aristotle's Poetics, which explains the Three Act Structure. The Three Acts are Beginning, Middle and End, or more functionally, Setup, Complication and Resolution. A common way to paraphrase the Three-Act structure is "get your character up a tree, throw rocks at him, then get him down out of the tree." Many screenwriters also draw inspiration from Joseph Campbell's Monomyth which also employs a variation of the Three Act Structure.
[edit] Syd Field
Screenwriting guru Syd Field wrote the seminal book Screenplay, and posited a new theory, which he called the Paradigm. Others refer to it as the Three Act Structure. Field noticed that in a 120-page screenplay, Act Two was notoriously boring, and was also twice the length of Acts One and Three. He also noticed that an important dramatic event usually occurred at the middle of the picture, which implied to him that the middle act was actually two acts in one. So the Three Act Structure is notated 1, 2a, 2b, 3, resulting in Aristotle's Three Acts divided into four pieces.
Field also introduced the idea of Plot Points into screenwriting theory. Plot Points are important structural functions that happen in approximately the same place in most successful movies, like the verses and choruses in a popular song. In subsequent books, Field has added to his original list, and students of his like Viki King and Linda Seger have added to the list of Plot Points. Here is a current list of the major Plot Points that are congruent with Field's Paradigm:
Opening Image: The first image in the screenplay should summarize the entire film, especially its tone. Often, writers go back and redo this as the last thing before submitting the script.
Inciting Incident: Also called the catalyst, this is the point in the story when the Protagonist encounters the problem that will change their life. This is when the detective is assigned the case, where Boy meets Girl, and where the Comic Hero gets fired from his cushy job, forcing him into comic circumstances.
Turning Point 1: The last scene in Act One, Turning Point One is a surprising development that radically changes the Protagonists' life, and forces him to confront the Opponent. In Star Wars, this is when Luke's family is killed by the Empire. He has no home to go back to, so he joins the Rebels in opposing Darth Vader.
Pinch 1: A reminder scene at about 3/8 the way through the script (halfway through Act 2a) that brings up the central conflict of the drama, reminding us of the overall conflict.
Midpoint: An important scene in the middle of the script, often a reversal of fortune or revelation that changes the direction of the story. Field suggests that driving the story towards the Midpoint keeps the second act from sagging.
Pinch 2: Another reminder scene about 5/8 through the script (halfway through Act 2b) that is somehow linked to Pinch 1 in reminding the audience about the central conflict. For example, in Star Wars, Pinch 1 is the Stormtroopers attacking the Millennium Falcon in Mos Eisley, reminding us that the Empire is after the stolen plans to the Death Star that R2-D2 is carrying and that Luke and Ben Kenobi are trying to get to the Rebel Alliance (the main conflict). Pinch 2 is the Stormtroopers attacking them as they rescue the Princess in the Death Star. Both scenes remind us of the Empire's opposition, and using the Stormtrooper attack motif unifies both Pinches.
Turning Point 2: A dramatic reversal that ends Act 2 and begins Act 3, which is about confrontation and resolution. Sometimes Turning Point Two is the moment when the Hero has had enough and is finally going to face the Opponent. Sometimes, like in Toy Story, it's the low-point for the Hero, and he must bounce back to overcome the odds in Act 3.
Showdown: About midway through Act 3, the Protagonist will confront the Main Problem of the story and either overcome it, or come to a tragic end.
Resolution: The issues of the story are resolved.
Tag: An epilogue, tying up the loose ends of the story, giving the audience closure.
[edit] Final thoughts
Perhaps the most daunting theory of screenwriting comes from Pulitzer Prize-winning screenwriter David Mamet, who has advised that a screenwriter should simply read Aristotle's Poetics and write a lot until they get good at it.
Professional screenwriters often recognize the importance of learning about style, craft and structure by reading the screenplays of popular movies.
The time necessary to write a screenplay varies widely upon the writer and the circumstances. Professional television writers frequently are called upon to write an hour-long script in less than a week. Some major movie scripts have literally taken years of rewrites before they are ready. Most professional writers can complete two to three original screenplays in a year.
[edit] Screenplay format and elements of the screenplay
A screenplay has very rigid set of standardizations in place, beginning with proper formatting. These rules are in part to serve the practical purpose of making screenplays uniformly readable "blueprints" of movies, and also to serve as a way of distinguishing a professional from an amateur --- if a screenplay doesn't follow the simple rules of formatting, it is generally disregarded as a lesser product, regardless of content.
Most screenplays are expected to be written in 12 point Courier or Courier New typeface, with no bolding or italicizing. Specific elements and formatting defined below.
[edit] Screenplay format
This section describes the components used to build-up a screenplay.
[edit] Title page
The title page of your screenplay is the first clue to a producer that you're either a professional or an amateur. The title should be about 20 lines down the page and either underlined or in quotation marks. Two lines down, in the same font, should be the words "Written By", "Adapted From (insert title here)", or just plain "By". In the bottom corners put contact information, as well as any copyright information. In shooting scripts, the title page contains in the upper right corner a list of every set of revisions distributed thus far.
Some writers are tempted to insert eye-catching fonts or images on the title page. However, such deviation from industry standards is seen as unprofessional and is not recommended.
[edit] Scene headings
Scene headings (or slug lines) define the beginning of a new scene in a screenplay. They either begin with "EXT." --- if the scene is an exterior, or takes place outdoors --- or "INT." --- if the scene takes place indoors. Following this descriptor, the name of the location of the scene should appear in all caps (example: "BOB'S PLACE"). This is followed by a space, a hyphen, another space, then the time of day (example: " - DAY," " - NIGHT," " - EVENING," etc.). The finished heading should read something like "INT. HOUSE - DAY". Scene headings have a margin of 1.5 inches (37 mm) from the left, 1 inch (25 mm) from the right.
Scene numbering: It is rare that you will find a "spec script" (speculation script, the one written by a screenwriter, before it is sold) with the scenes numbered. This is a tool added later in the production as the "spec script" becomes a "shooting script." The numbers are generally found immediately to the left of the scene heading.
[edit] Action
Two lines below the scene heading and with the same margins, the action begins. Action describes what can be seen on the screen, and is always in present tense. Here, screenwriting varies most from standard fiction writing, in that elaborate prose describing the feelings of a character is to be avoided. When introducing a character, the character's name should appear in all caps (example: "Bob turns and sees JOAN, whom he has never seen before."). Afterwards, capitalize according to standard grammar.
[edit] Page breaks
Scene headers, dialogue cues, and transitions-in (such as FADE IN:) should never appear at the bottom of a page. When a paragraph of action or dialogue is split across pages, the break should come between sentences and not before the second line of the paragraph. When dialogue is split, (MORE) should appear at the bottom of the first page, aligned vertically with the dialogue cue. The cue should be replicated on the subsequent page, with (CONT'D) appearing alongside it.
[edit] Example of proper formatting
INT. WAREHOUSE - DAY
Four criminals are smoking cigarettes. CRIMINAL ONE takes his out.
CRIMINAL ONE When's the big raid? I thought it was today, but I guess I'm wrong.
Silence and awkward looks between the criminals.
CRIMINAL ONE (continuing) So... when is it?!
[edit] Dialogue
In screenwriting, dialogue refers to anytime a character is speaking, even if it is a monologue.
A dialogue "cue" is the name of the character speaking, with a margin of 4.2 inches (107 mm) from the left of the page. The name should be in capitals letters in cues. Unless there is a parenthetical (see below), dialogue is placed one line below the cue. The standard length of a dialogue line is 35 characters starting at 3.1 inches (79 mm). Hyphenation of words in a dialogue is frowned upon.
[edit] Parentheticals
To show minor actions or revealing body language, a parenthetical, or subtext, is placed after the cue and either above or within the dialogue, within rounded brackets. eg:
FREDDY
I can get a better price.
(to Megan)
Let's bounce!
The margin for parentheticals is 3.7 inches (94 mm) left, 1 inch (25 mm) right. Many script readers prefer limited use of parentheticals. They are also looked upon unfavorably by actors and directors, especially when they become too specific about emotions or actions.
[edit] Transitions
Transitions are short descriptions describing how the film will move from one scene (or image within the scene) to the next. They are justified to the right side of a properly formatted screenplay, and followed by a colon. Some of the most common transitions seen in screenplays are:
- CUT TO: - Indicates a direct transition (cut) to a new scene, or to a new shot within a scene. If a scene header follows the cut, this transition is usually omitted.
- DISSOLVE TO: - Indicates a dissolve, where one scene gradually fades into another. Dissolves are commonly used to indicate the passage of time.
- INTERCUT WITH/INTERCUT BETWEEN: - Indicates that a sequence of cuts back and forth between two scenes is about to begin. Subsequent transitions between the two scenes are indicated with the transition BACK TO:. Intercuts are commonly used when portraying telephone conversations, or to contrast action taking place in two locations at the same time.
Intercut example:
INT. ADULT BOOKSTORE -- DAY -- INTERCUT
Max is on the phone by the register, ringing purchases.
MAX (into phone) Dino Velvet... yeah, he's like the John Luc Godard of S+M flicks, supposed to be a real weirdo.
WELLES (O.S.) (from phone) A weirdo making S+M films? Who'd have thought it?
MAX (into phone) His stuff comes out of New York.
WELLES (O.S.) Specialty product.
[edit] Dialogue & description
The following is an example from an unproduced screenplay which may give the reader an idea of how a scene without camera angles can be descriptive, and perhaps even poetic, so as to convey the proper time frame (1910) and/or feeling:
A BUNCH OF GARDENIAS
makes a sudden burst of BRIGHT RED. A hand removes each petal--one at a time. The petals fall on the ground.
Following the petals--
A part of a woman's SHOE is seen. It is strangely ornate with a shabby heel.
Giggles erupt, and the extravagantly painted face of a very young prostitute appears.
Her hand is at the arm of a man who is older by at least a couple of decades.
[edit] Imagery
Imagery can be used in many metaphoric ways. In The Talented Mr. Ripley, the title character talked of wanting to close the door on himself sometime, and then, in the end, he did. Rain is commonly used to express a character feeling depressed, while sunny days promote a feeling of happiness and calm. Use imagery to your advantage to sway the emotions of your audience and to clue them in to what is happening.
[edit] Character
It is very important to develop your characters, because that is who the viewers will be relating to. Characters, especially major characters, should be original and interesting. A character's true nature is revealed by his or her actions in overcoming obstacles.
[edit] Dialogue
Dialogue is very important to the film industry, because there are no written words to explain your characters or the plot; it all has to be explained through dialogue and imagery. If your script has weak dialogue, there is a good chance it will lose a reader's or viewer's interest. Make your dialogue sharp, snappy, and easy to follow.
[edit] Plot
While the story is what will be told (narrative); the plot is how the story will be told (narration). This vocabulary is not indisputable, though. Sometimes in literature story and plot are used exactly the other way round. Develop your plot before you begin work, write a treatment (an outline for a film) and follow it, but feel free to branch out in other directions if you feel that it would make your script more interesting.
[edit] Becoming a screenwriter
[edit] Handling writer's block
Many writers get to the page and get stuck. Writer's block is what happens when you have the desire, but just can't think of what to write. The key to working through this kind of block is to push through it. Pick a time of day that works for you and write, write, write.
Take time out. Relax. Let your screenplay ferment for awhile. Watching movies, reading books of the same genre can spark that jolt of creative writing you've been looking for. Writer's block is quite common, both for new writers as well as tenured.
Some say writer's block is simply a lack of research. It is in the writer's best interest to know the world about which he or she is writing backwards and forwards. Meaning, if you don't know what to write, perhaps it's because you don't know what you're writing about.
[edit] Editing
Every writer knows that editing is an essential part of writing. Rewrite your piece several times until you are satisfied with the final product. Not only check spelling and grammar, but rewrite scenes to develop them more fully. But always check spelling and grammar. If there is improper spelling or grammar in a piece, an agent, producer, or other person that you are submitting it to will strongly judge it. Bad spelling prejudices people against work, and they are less likely to accept it.
[edit] Screenwriting software
Various pieces of software are available to help screenwriters adhere to the strict formatting conventions (as described above):
- Celtx - Free, Open Source scriptwriting software. Linux version available.
- Cinergy Script Editor - Free Windows-based script editor program offered in conjunction with a full suite of non-free production management tools under the name Cinergy Motion Picture Production System.
- DreamaScript - All in one Screenwriting Software.
- Final Draft - Integrated professional scriptwriting software.
- Montage Screenwriting Software for Mac OS X.
- Movie Magic Screenwriter - Integrated professional screenwriting software.
- NTCore ScreenWriter - A little freeware software with autocompletion.
- Practical Scriptwriter - Requires no knowledge of script formats.
- RoughDraft - A simple script and creative writing word processor. Free (donationware).
- Scenario - Modern, intuitive interface with full 30-day trial.
- Scriptbuddy - Web-based screenwriting software.
- ScriptRight Mobile Edition - screenwriting software for Pocket PC and Palm OS
- Scriptware - The first scriptwriting word processor with real-time formatting/pagination
- Sophocles - Screenplay and production management software.
- Script Smart - Microsoft Word templates.
- TotallyWrite Development Suite - A four-module program created by professional writer Jeffrey Alan Schechter to streamline the story development and screenplay structure process
- Writers Store - screenwriting software retailer.
The first screenwriting software was SmartKey, a macro program that sent strings of commands to existing word processing programs, such as WordStar, WordPerfect and Microsoft Word. SmartKey was popular with screen writers from 1982-1987, after which word processing programs had their own macro features.
[edit] Protecting your work
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The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page. |
After you have completed your screenplay, it is important to take steps to protect your work. Two acceptable ways this may be done are to obtain formal Copyright notice (the more important method) by registering it with the Office of Copyright at the U.S. Library of Congress (http://www.copyright.gov/). However, it is important to remember that for any document written after 1978 in the United States, copyright affixes automatically and does not require registration or notice.
The other method is to register the work with the Writer's Guild of America (http://www.wga.org/ or http://www.wgaeast.org/). Remember that completed works and said execution of the work may be copyrighted, ideas alone may not be. For another instant archival for proof-of-creation, you can visit The Creators Vault
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Karl Iglesias (2005). Writing for Emotional Impact: Advanced Dramatic Techniques to Attract, Engage, And Fascinate the Reader from Beginning to End. WingSpan Press. ISBN 1-59594-028-6. - Paperback
- David Trottier (1998). The Screenwriter's Bible: A Complete Guide to Writing, Formatting, and Selling Your Script. Silman-James Press. ISBN 1-879505-44-4. - Paperback
[edit] External links
- 1001 screenwriters
- Wordplay Columns
- The Artful Writer
- Collected Advice from Industry Professionals to Screenwriters
- The Clapperboard article on Film Structures for screenplays.
- Creative Screenwriting Magazine
- Creative Screenwriting Podcast Series
- Screenwriters Podcast -- Free tutorial info
- Articles on screenwriting and interviews with famous screenwriters from a European perspective
- Screenwriters.LA's Screenwriters' Community
- Schmucks With Underwoods
- Discover a Hobby: Online guide for learning Screen Writing
- Free screenwriting tips, coaching and advice articles
