Easy methods to Write a Screenplay: The 5 Step Course of
Have you ever wondered how to write a screenplay? Have you ever dreamed of writing a Hollywood movie or, with a bit of luck, creating the next great TV series?
In a visual age with the decline of traditional publishing, you might consider writing scripts as a way to create the "literature of the future."
But how is a script written? How do you even start And why is it important to know how writing a movie differs from, but can also be similar to, writing a novel?
In this post, we're going to look at the five-step process that professional screenwriters use to write a script.
Learn how to write a script that filmmakers – and audiences – love!
FADE IN:
Why I think about writing a script
Earlier this week a friend who is a lawyer approached me about an opportunity to write. He closed a tragic but intriguing case and thought it might be a great movie.
At first I shrugged.
Scripts are like books: everyone thinks they have one thing in them. But then he told me the story and it was great – a family's quest for the American dream, drug dealers under the control of the law, police corruption, an adrenaline rush, anything you could want in a big movie.
Still, I held back.
The hardest part of making a movie is not writing a good script. It gets someone to fund the process of making the story come true (do you have a hundred million dollars lying around to fund a movie?).
Fortunately, the lawyer said, he is friends with several people in a large Hollywood studio. He said to me, “We have everything we need. . . except for a great script. "
"Hmm. . . " I thought. "Maybe it's not a waste of time."
In my experience, most writing projects like this don't work, but when they show up it's important that you do your best.
At least it's good writing practice. And, as always, practice is always good for your writing process.
Are you thinking of writing a script? Check out the master class from Oscar winner and TV hit maker (The West Wing) Aaron Sorkin.
How I learned to write a script
In college, I took a class from John Wilder, a veteran Hollywood film and television writer, who began the class by writing. "STRUCTURE! STRUCTURE! STRUCTURE!" on the blackboard.
"What's the most important part of a script?" he would ask almost every class at the beginning.
It was obvious what he was thinking. No script format. Not the industry standard. Not even main characters.
The most important part of script writing is STRUCTURE.
I then wrote three short scripts, one with a producer from MTV's Made.
After digging into the weird formatting of scripts (which is easiest to master with solid script software), I found that it's difficult to create unique stories for film production in such a compressed form.
But it's been a few years since I've tried writing a script. My standard is a novelist, not a screenwriter.
I needed a step-by-step process that would allow me to write a special script that I was proud of.
A good story that was well worth the investment by a production company.
"
First and foremost, a good story worth investing in by a production company starts with a solid structure.
Before I started working on this new project suggested by my lawyer friend, I had to re-examine scriptwriting.
I needed a plan that would liven up my friend's pitch with an entertaining plot and STRUCTURE.
Something more than just the script format. (Since the script format is important when writing a script, I'll give you some tips on how to do this at the end of this post.)
I made one up. In five steps.
The 5 steps to writing a script
- Create your logline
- Write a treatment: your first sketch
- Structure the outline of your script
- Write a Flash draft
- To edit
- BONUS: Must-haves in script format
Most screenwriters follow these five steps to write a screenplay.
While this doesn't mean you should strictly follow these steps, hopefully this will be a helpful guide if you're writing your own script.
1. Create your logline
A logline is a single-use summary of your story and is primarily used as a marketing tool.
When a studio manager asks you to give them your best pitch, your logline is the first thing you mention. (It should also be used in your elevator parking space.)
Loglines also serve as a helpful guide to help focus your writing on the most important aspects of your story. In other words, loglines help your story stay on track.
Loglines generally contain three elements:
- A protagonist (main character)
- An antagonist
- A target
It is also helpful to put a summary adjective in front of your characters to give a sense of their personality. This can even be more effective than using a character's name.
For example, Star Trek's logline could be:
A headstrong orphan and his Vulcan archenemy must save the Federation (and himself) from the future from a vengeful Romulan.
Not too difficult, right?
(For more examples, see the log lines in the IMDB.)
For specific instructions on how to write loglines, see my post on Writing the Premise of a Story. This post also includes a worksheet for the premise that will help you set the three items above.
2. Write a treatment: your first sketch
Also primarily a marketing document, a treatment gives executives an idea of whether the story is worth the money. Like the logline, however, it serves as a helpful tool for the author, as a kind of first sketch of the story.
For most of art history, paint was prohibitively expensive, and before Monet or Picasso tried a full-size painting, they did a "study," a sketch of their subject (artists do this today, of course).
If a sketch doesn't come together, they may save its color and fail the picture or revise the study until it's worth it.
Treatment is like a first sketch of a film.
Treatments are usually two- to five-page summaries that break the story down into three acts. Here are the three main elements of a treatment:
- Title of the film
- Logline
- Summary
Treatments may include excerpts from dialogues and descriptions, but the main focus is on summarizing the story.
Filmmakers can review a treatment and have a good idea of whether your script is worth investing in (they can probably predict what bandwidth it will cost) and producing.
3. Structure the outline of your script
In this (extremely important) step, you focus on the structure of the story. As Wilder said, in order to master scriptwriting, one must master the STRUCTURE! STRUCTURE! STRUCTURE!
Outlining your script is the first step that you should fully focus on. You will likely only show this to your writing partners.
Most feature films are 90 to 120 pages and around forty scenes. These scenes also follow a strict division of 25-50-25, with twenty-five percent being given for the first and third acts, and fifty percent for the second act (which can be split into two equal parts).
As a screenwriter, your outline job is to map the setting and key events of each scene. You can also include an important dialogue.
The most notable book for understanding the structure of a film is Save the Cat by the late Blake Snyder. If you want to learn more about how to write a good script or even a good story, I highly recommend it.
howeverAfter many years in the world of writing, you can take Blake Snyder's Fifteen Beats a little further.
I've spent a long time developing The writing structure To do this, writing a feature film has its differences when it comes to certain details like formatting. The structuring of stories shows fundamental similarities.
Whichever structure you choose, remember that the outline of your script is primarily meant for you.
Write as much or as little as necessary.
4. Write a Flash draft
This is the fun part, your first real draft, and the same guidelines apply here as for your fiction writing:
- Write quickly
- Don't think too much
- Don't edit
Wilder told me his goal was to write the entire first draft of a script, about 120 pages, in three days. If you've done the hard work structuring your story into your outline, it should be easy to do.
If you're unsure of how to format your script, don't forget to check out the bonus step below.
The script software can also save you a lot of time formatting. Final Draft is the industry standard, but the Scrivener I use to write books also has helpful scripting tools.
Others, like Celtx, are free (recommended if you're just starting out and just want to try writing a specific script).
5. Edit
As with books, I recommend doing at least three drafts.
After you've completed your first draft, read it through once without editing it (you can take notes, however).
In your second draft, focus on major structural changes, including filling gaping holes, deepening characters, removing characters that don't advance the story, and rewriting entire scenes from scratch.
In your third draft, focus on buffing, especially making your dialogue pop. If this is your final draft, don't forget to add a title page and check out any other screenwriting formatting requirements.
Once your script is ready, it's time to get feedback and send it to the studios. Note that most production companies don't use unwanted scripts. In this case you need an agent.
P.S. If you want to rent one dDevelop our certified Story Grid Editor to review the structure of your story and make it the best possible draft.
Good luck!
BONUS: The script format has to be a must
If you've never written a script before, you may feel overwhelmed by the format of a script. Note that when purchasing script software like Final Draft, most of the special requirements such as page margins (like the left margin (1.5 inches)) are taken into account.
Because screenwriters should understand the formatting of scripts and when to use specific formatting requirements, here is a list of formatting basics to keep in mind when writing your first draft:
Scene heading
A scene heading or slug line indicates where the action takes place in the new scene. This line is in capital letters.
In the line you will see INT. (Interior) or EXT. (outside) and the location for the scene, followed by a dash and then the time of day.
Slug lines mark the beginning of a new scene and help the reader maintain a sense of movement between locations.
Lines of action
Action lines are located under the scene heading. They are as descriptive as possible, but brief, and focus on the plot and visual representation as it occurs.
In contrast to what is described in books, lines of action are often more direct than writing with the five senses, which is aimed at evoking an emotional response in novel readers.
There will rarely (if ever) be more lines of action in a script than in a dialogue.
character
Character names are displayed above the dialog box and are always in uppercase. Every time a different character speaks, a new name will appear above the dialogue.
In some cases, the action breaks the dialogue, but the same character is speaking. These are marked with an extension, which indicates that the same character continues to speak (see extensions below).
dialog
Dialogue is the most important part of a script. It's the bulk of what's written in a script, and it gives filmmakers and actors directions on how to tell the story.
Aaron Sorkin (Oscar winner for The Social Network, among other films and TV hitmakers like The West Wing) is a popular screenwriter in Hollywood best known for his mastery of dialogue.
If you want to learn how to master dialog like Sorkin, you should try Aaron Sorkin's MasterClass. You can read our full review of his MasterClass here.
Extensions
Extensions tell the reader how the dialogue is heard. These are in brackets next to the character name.
This is formatting that most scripting software does when you use it.
Some cases where you would use an extension are:
- Voice Over (V.O.): When we hear a narrator who is not on the screen and the characters on the screen don't hear the narrator either (minus a few exceptions used for comedic effects, like George of the Jungle)
- Off Screen (O.S.): When the speaking character is heard by the other characters on the screen but is not displayed on the screen itself, such as an intercom announcement
- In devices: When a character speaks into a device like a phone
- Pre-Lap: If the dialogue starts at the end of a page, it is carried over to the next page
- Continuation (CONTINUED): When the same character speaks as the previous line of dialogue that was interrupted by actions
Like characters, all extensions are in capital letters.
Extensions are also technical instructions that indicate where the actor saying the line is compared to. . .
Brackets
A bracket is written like an extension (in brackets below the character name), but instead explains how a line should be executed.
Sarcastic, for example. Or laugh.
Or, lowercase the beat, indicating a pause.
Transitions
Transitions tell an editor how to edit a scene. In this case you will see something like CUT TO: On the right side.
Sometimes used: camera shots
Keep in mind that while screenwriters see camera footage in completed scripts, they don't always include them in their specification script.
This is because the choice of settings belongs to the director and they will most likely change the lyrics.
When you sell your script, watch it be torn apart
The film industry is cooperative.
Most films have several scriptwriters working on one script. During the production process, the script is constantly changing based on feedback from producers, actors and the director.
It's not easy to be a screenwriter in Hollywood. Often times, the first writer of a script isn't even recognized because so much of the original script has been revised.
Others might sell one six-digit script, but then worry all the time that they won't be able to sell the next one.
I thought of that while working on my new project.
Even if our film is lucky enough to be bought, my chances of getting my name in as a first-time screenwriter and industry outsider are still slim. (I also want to make sure I'm part of the Screenwriters Guild.)
Fortunately, I learned this final lesson from John Wilder:
“That's why structure is so important. You can completely rewrite the dialog, the action and the setting descriptions. However, if you have a solid structure, your name will appear at the end of the movie. "
Wouldn't that be a pleasure?
HIDE:
Have you ever written a script? What is your process Let me know in the comments.
WORK OUT
Write a line of minutes, either for your work in progress or for a new story. Remember that your logline should include:
- A protagonist (main character)
- An antagonist
- A target
Take fifteen minutes to write. When you're done, post your logline in the comments section.
And when you post, make sure to comment on some other authors' loglines. Let them know if you want to see their movie or not!
Note: Some of the links above are affiliate links. We only recommend books and tools that we have used and that we have found helpful. With the purchase you support this writing community. Many Thanks!
Joe Bunting
