Sample Format Script Pages
And
Information Packet
written, researched and assembled by
Greg Beal
Program Coordinator
Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
This material may be photocopied for educational uses only.
FOR A FEW DAYS MORE .
by
April Rider
[Script pages written on Scriptware for Windows.]
FADE IN:
INT. DRISKILL HOTEL SEMINAR ROOM DAY
JOE and APRIL burst through the doors into a clean, well lit
seminar room,
JOE
Are we in time?
APRIL
How could they start without us? We're the main attraction.
Joe catches his breath as he leans against the podium at the front of the room.
JOE
(looking about
the room)
We are?
APRIL
Don't be a moron. You know we've been invited to Austin to discuss script format.
JOE
But why is the room empty?
April and Joe both look out across the room -- rows of empty chairs and nary a person in sight.
APRIL
Okay, okay, don't panic.
She takes three deep breaths. Then she looks at her watch and smiles.
APRIL
(continuing)
We're an hour early. . . . We should rehearse.
JOE
Okay, you start. Margins?
APRIL
Left, 1.5 inches. Right, 1.0 inches. Top, 1.D inches to the body, 0.5 inches to the number. Bottom, 0.5 to 1.5 inches, depending on where the page break comes.
JOE
Page break?
APRIL
Right above you.. There are rules for breaking a page. Scene headers remain attached to deacription. A single line of dialogue is pushed to the following page. A long dialogue passage would be split but I'll get to that later.
JOE
What about fonts?
APRIL
Courier, 12 point, 10 pitch. Make sure it's a non-proportional version of Courier.
Joe's grimace suggests that he's deep in thought.
JOE
What about bold-face or italics? Or a Gothic font? I love to jazz up my scripts.
APRIL
No bold, no itals, no script fonts, no Gothic, no Helvetica, no Times Roman. Stick with Courier. That's the industry standard.
JOE
Oh, we're talking about industry standards?
Suddenly, Joe bolts from behind the podium and runs out into:
INT. DRISKILL HOTEL HALLWAY DAY
Joe glances up and down the hallway, then reaches back to open the door.
JOE
(calling)
April -- come on! There's no one here.
APRIL
(walking through
the door)
Ah, a scene heading. Or a slug line, as I was taught in film school. Always CAPPED. What happens if we . . .
EXT. TEXAS CAPITOL BUILDING DAY
Joe pinches himself as he stands with April before the seat of Texas politics.
JOE
How'd you do that?
APRIL
There was a cut -- from the hallway to the capitol. What'd you want to do -- ride in a cab?
JOE
Dialogue margins.
APRIL
Left, 3.0 inches. Right, 2.5 inches. Of course, you can cheat those a tad.
JOE
So, you have about 3.0 inches for each line of your dialogue?
APRIL
You've got it. Though you can go out another three or four spaces to the right and no one will hold it against you.
Joe jots down several notes on a 3 x 5 card, studies the care for a moment, then scribbles another note.
JOE
(looking up)
And the position of the character's name?
APRIL
All CAPS, and tabbed to about 4.2 inches. Some writers center all the character´s names.
(MORE)
///////tu je akože prechod na novú stranu///////
APRIL
(CONT´D)
Personally, I don´t think it matters. The look of the script pages is slightly different in either case.
JOE
Hey, what happened?
APRIL
A page break appeared in the middle of my dialogue. You use MORE at the bottom of the page to show that the character's dialogue continues onto the next page. Then CONT'D next to the character to show that it has roots in the previous page.
JOE
But not everybody uses MOREs and CONT'Ds, do they?
INT. CAPITOL BUILDING DAY
Joe stares up into the dome. April examines the portraits of Texas governors on the nearby walls.
APRIL
Some writers just plan their page ends so as to avoid them.
JOE
(considering)
What about parentheticals?
APRIL
Start them about 0.5 inches to the left of the character name tab mark. In our case that would be at 3.7 inches.
JOE
And what are they for?
APRIL
For years, parentheticals were used to express emotion, the manner in which a character spoke her lines. Loudly, passionately, sadly, and so on. In recent years writers have often used them for brief bits of action.
JOE
(going up a
stairway)
Something like this?
APRIL
(following him)
Exactly.
JOE
How wide are parentheticals?
APRIL
Not very -- about 1.5 inches. And they should wrap to the following line when they extend beyond that point.
(pointing up to
the top of the
page)
If you place a parenthetical in the middle of a dialogue passage, it should remain distinct from the dialogue.
EXT. MISSISSIPPI RIVERBOAT NIGHT
A gambling boat rolls slowly along the mighty river. April and Joe wander about its upper deck.
JOE
I have to ask -- what happened to CUT TO: between scenes.
APRIL
Many writers still use transitions such as CUT TO: and DISSOLVE TO: between scenes.
JOE
Those would introduce a new scene header?
APRIL
And typically a different time and/or place. But many writers have dispensed with such transitions, feeling that a new scene header signifies a cut without the need of any additional indicator.
Joe stares out at the river.
JOE
How did we reach the Mississippi and when did the sun set?
APRIL
If you'd like . . .
EXT. AIRPLANE SLTNSET
A jet liner cruises East across Texas.
INT. AIRPLANE SUNSET
A customized interior, replete with lounge chairs and sofas. Joe and April sip margaritas.
JOE
Is this a flashback?
APRIL
Or it could be tomorrow. Or next week.
TITLE OVER:
October 19, 1997
APRIL
(continuing)
You see, a few weeks have passed.
JOE
Okay, I didn't notice. But I thought only DAY and NIGHT were allowed on scene headers.
APRIL
Production managers would certainly prefer it that way, but many writers use headers as a means of showing a particular time of day, especially SUNRISE and SUNSET.
JOE
So that's allowed?
APRIL
On writer's drafts, without a doubt.
JOE
A writer's draft?
APRIL
Essentially, any draft that hasn't been paid for. Any draft to be sent to agents, studio execs, production companies, development people. Those are writer's draft. And they all should be FIRST DRAFTs, no matter how many versions the writer has actually written.
JOE
You really think so?
APRIL
That's my recommendation.
INT. BLUE CAMARO DAY
April drives along Austin's Congress Avenue as Joe rides
shotgun.
JOE
You speak any foreign languages?
APRIL
(in French)
Why do you ask?
JOE
What about action scenes?
SUDDENLY, A BLACK CADILLAC
whips around a corner, racing quickly towards them.
APRIL
punches the accelerator and –
THE BLUE CAMARO
leaps forward, leaving a trail of rubber. The Camaro takes
a left, then a quick right to accelerate into --
A DARK ALLEY
The Camaro guickly reaches a dead end, just as --
THE BLACK CADILLAC
pulls into the alley, sealing it shut.
EXT. DRISKILL HOTEL DAY
April leads a dazed and confused Joe to the front door.
APRIL
That's one way to do an action scene. It's a variation on the Bill Goldman style that's used by many writers.
JOE
(coming to)
But other writers just use normal description and standard scene headers for action scenes, don't they?
APRIL
Many do.
INT. DRISKILL HOTEL ENTRANCE HALL -- PHONE BOOTH DAY
A slightly less dazed Joe speaks on the phone.
JOE
I thought we were walking together.
APRIL (O.S.)
(filtered)
Well, we were, but I realized a phone call was needed.
JOE
You're filtered?
INTERCUT WITH:
EXT. STATE CAPITOL PHONE BOOTH DAY
With the dome looming large behind her, April speaks into the phone.
APRIL
Only when you hear my voice over the phone. Radio voices and phone calls often are filtered, though it's a convention that isn't used by everyone anymore.
JOE
Let's try something easy. What about page numbers?
APRIL
Number each and every page, though you can start with page two. The numbers should appear in the upper right hand corner, about 0.5 inches down and 0.75 inches from the right page edge. Those dimensions are not set in stone, but the numbers should always be placed in the upper right hand corner.
INT. DRISKILL HOTEL HALLWAY DAY
Joe walks slowly towards the seminar room.
JOE
You know, that pronouncement almost seemed godlike.
APRIL (V.O.)
If it were, I probably would have spoken in a voice over and not on the phone.
Joe searches the ceiling, trying to decide just where this disembodied voice is emanating from.
JOE
What's a V.O. used for?
APRIL (V.O.)
Oftentimes for narration, for a narrator's voice. In film noir' the protagonists often filled the audience in on their thoughts or story details. Documentary films are filled with voice over.
INT. DRISKILL HOTEL SEMINAR ROOM DAY
Joe races past April to reach the podium first. April walks slowly past the still empty chairs.
At the podium Joe gestures with his hands as if he were making a major political speech.
April sneaks up behind him and mimics his movementa – until he notices. Joe spins to confront her.
JOE
Why I ought'a . . .
APRIL
I was just demonstrating the way many writers break descripticn into shorter paragraphs. I've seen blocks of description covering an entire page.
JOE
That makes for tough reading, doesn't it?
APRIL
I know studio readers who just skip long description and read only dialogue.
JOE
But there are pros who write scripts with extended descriptive passages.
APRIL
When you make a half-million or
so per script, you can pretty
much use any format you want.
Joe climbs atop the podium.
JOE
But when you're like me, you have to stick to format. Is that what you're trying to say?
APRIL
That's the story.
Joe jumps down from the podium and runs out the door just as conference ATTENDEES begin to enter.
APRIL
(continuing)
By the way, the first time you introduce a character in deacription, you CAP his name. And when you break dialogue with description, the standard is to place "continuing" within parentheses when a character chatters on and on.
April watches as a number of people sit down before her.
APRIL
(continuing)
Of course, many writers have dropped "continuing" from their repetoire. I mean, it's obvious that I'm still speaking, isn't it? And that I never stopped speaking .
JOE (O.S.)
(shouting from
beyond the door)
Hey, April, c'mon. There's a buffet at the hotel and a shuttle leaving in two minutes.
APRIL
(shouting)
We haven't mentioned master scenes.
A sheepish Joe enters, then glances about the room as he slowly approaches the podium.
JOE
That one I know. No CLOSE UPS, no WIDE SHOTS, no shots of any sort. Just scene headers, description and dialogue. And no scene numbers. Those are left to shooting scripts.
APRIL
Don't worry, I would never let you miss a meal.
FADE OUT:
THE END
Other items of some import:
BRADS -- (Acco brand) No. 6 round head fasteners / 1.5 inches. This length works well on most scripts. For a thin script, you might use 1.25 inch brad (#5). You do not want to go longer as 2+ inch brads are universally known as “killers" for their propensity to stab readers and other humans.
CARD STOCK -- stationary stores carry heavier paper known as card stock (perhaps because greeting cards are often this weight paper). Find a solid yet flexible weight for your script cover. The color is up to you, but always remember that several people will handle each copy of your script as it passes through a production company or agency. Will each of them appreciate your color choice? Does it matter? Probably not.
Do not place an admonition against copying your script on your script. If the first person who reads your script at a company likes it, rest assured that the script will be copied. At some companies all scripts are automatically copied.
For the same reason, do not permanently or semi-permanently bind your script. Good scripts need to be copied. Bad ones do not. What does that make a permanently bound one? Well, it could be a classic film script in someone's library. Otherwise...
How strictly must the script format on these eleven pages be followed?
Your screenplay should resemble these pages. Certainly, spacing and capitalization should generally be mimiced. Margins can vary slightly. Details of format can vary even more. For example, one space or three after EXT.? Space hyphen space or three spaces or space hyphen hyphen space between location and DAY? Sound effects CAPPED? (continuing) under a character name or (CONT'D) on the same line as the name or no (continuing) at all? To most people reading scripts in Hollywood, none of theae format details matter. What about POV and INSERT shots? Same answer. Some writers use them routinely; others do not. No one will freak out if you do or don't (unless you get carried away).
On the other hand, double-spacing dialogue or writing it in all CAPS as in a TV sit-com script when you're writing a feature is not acceptable.
SCRIPT FOIBLES THAT MIGHT CAUSE
A NEGATIVE FIRST IMPRESSION OF YOUR SCRIPT
Can your script give a reader a negative impression before the reader starts reading?
The answer is "possibly," and whether it does will vary from reader to reader. Does a negative first impression mean that a script will be automatically dismissed? Of course not. If a script is good enough, no minor "fault" is going to stop it. But why cause a reader to have a negative first impression of your script if you can easily avoid it?
Writers who entered scripts with one or several of these "faults" (variant covers and brads are the most obvious) have won Nicholl Fellowships. Undoubtedly, many scripts with some such "faults" have sold.
Twelve Foibles that might cause a reader to think less of your script before it has been "cracked":
1) Art on the script cover.
2) Hard, slick, Acco covers (with long metal connectors).
3) "Permanently" bound scripts (i.e., plastic spine binding).
4) Commercial, "college paper" covers.
5) Wimpy brads.
6) Long "dangerous" brads.
7) Cut "dangerous" brads.
8) A "clipped" or "rubber-banded" script on non-three hole paper.
9) Overly thick scripts.
10) Thin scripts.
11) Three-ring binding.
12) Color of card stock cover that ínadvertently bugs a reader.
(You'll notice that I did not include the number of brads, though scripts with one brad generally aren't too good. And once you turn inside a thin scipt and discover that it's been copied on both sides of the paper, you forget the thinness [unless you hate having to fold back the pages to read them].)
What about after the cover is turned?
Fourteen Foibles that might invoke a poor first impression (based only on a script's title page and page one):
1) Typo/misspelling on the title page.
2) Typo/misspelling in the fust scene header.
3) Typos/misspellings in the first sentence or paragraph or page.
4) Triple/double spacing of every/many line(s) on first page.
5) Lack of spacing between scene header and description and/or between description and dialogue and/or between dialogue and dialogue.
6) Use of font other than Courier 12-point, ten-pitch, non proportional.
7) Extensive use of bold print.
8) Dialogue that stretches from the left margin to the right margin.
9) Extra space between character name and dialogue.
10) Description and/or dialogue typed ALL CAPS.
11 ) Extremely narrow or wide outside margins.
12) Long, long, long descriptive passages.
13) Handwritten or hand-printed script.
14) Other, glaring, non-standard format usage.
Writers who entered scripts with one or several ofthese "faults" (non-Courier and lengthy description being the most obvious) have won Ncholl Fellowships.
Remember, these remarks are based on subjective observation of subjective reactions. Not all readers are affected by the same "problems" when picking up a scipt. And if Shane Black were to have six typos on page one, would anyone care? Probably not. Until you are paid to write scripts, it's probably more reasonable to be careful about your submissions.