Friday, September 21, 2018

Discovering Writing Assistance With A Screenplay Companion

By Patrick Harris


When writing for film and television, it can often be difficult to understand the different rules and regulations associated with formatting. Now, a screenplay companion is available which can assist writers when actively working on a project. For, while it is possible to gain a sense of format from a former script, it is not always the best way to do so.

When it comes to making a movie, whether a student film or major motion picture, the screenplay and script are often considered the most important part when it comes to whether a film is successful or otherwise. In order to assure this is the case, using a screenwriting software tool along with the companion is often a good idea.

While each genre has a different format, the basic format is often the same. For example, the format for filming a video, public service announcement or student film is often the same. Whereas, many screenplays which are rewritten as shooting scripts often have different rules with regards to formatting. For one thing, in a script, it is important that a director and actor understand the difference between dialogue which is to be heard by the audience versus stage directions which are only directed toward the actors.

In most screenplays, one page often equates to a one minute scene. It is important to note that page and screen length can sometimes differ as this is only a rough estimate. As such, it is often hard to calculate a movie running time based on these calculations. One format that is almost always consistent in any script or screenplay is the 12 type font with a 10 pitch Courier typeface.

When it comes to terminology, action, screen direction or dialogue, all refer to present tense and can easily be heard by an audience. Whereas, descriptions of sound effects, character movements and settings are separate and apart from character dialogue. Generally, by placing the character dialogue in the center column of a script, it is easier for the director and actors to better understand the role each plays in the making of a film.

Unique to scripts versus screenplays are slug lines, or master scene heading. In a script, slug lines refer to three pieces of information. These are whether the scene is set inside or outside, the specific location and time of day. Each slug line refers to the start of a new scene.

American scripts are often formatted differently than in other countries. As such, when searching for the correct physical format or glossary term, it is important to know which genre the finished project will fall under. For example, comedies, dramas, horror stories and romances are all formatted differently from one another.

Most often, it is the screen and script writers whom do the majority of work when making a film. For, it can often take years to complete such a project. Whereas, while actors, directors and crews all play a huge part in bringing a project from conception to reality, it is the writer whom plays the largest role. While this is the case, screen and script writers whom have found success have often used as many writing applications, companions and tools as possible.




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