writing for feature films and television

A screenplay

(sometimes referred to as a speculative script, or spec for short) is the written or printed text of a story that a writer creates for the screen (television, movie, or computer). The writer submits the screenplay to an independent producer or a production company, and if it's approved and accepted, it will be made into a movie. If you wish to write for a television series, you may initially need to write one episode (to showcase your talent) and seek the approval of a television network. This episode is called a television pilot, or more often, just a pilot. Writers often write original screenplays specifically for films or television series. However, they may also create screenplays by adapting existing novels.

Beat sheet:

A beat sheet lists out every action in the episode.

Logline:

A logline is a summary, or a brief (usually one to three sentences long) description of the plot. Spend adequate time creating the logline, because it is an important marketing tool.

Spec:

A spec is your screenplay for one episode.

Title:

Create a title that will catch the reader's eye.

dialogue

Dialogue plays a major role in screenplays and scripts. It conveys your story to the audience and reveals the personalities of your characters, their relationships, and their conflicts. You may use dialogue to set a scene, develop the characters, or advance the plot. The best way to learn to write dialogue is to listen to real conversations. You do not have to understand the spoken words. Notice the flow, pattern, and rhythm of the conversations. Be attentive to the pace of the words and the gaps and pauses between words. Your characters need not always speak in grammatically correct or complete sentences, because we don't always do so in real life. While characters will convey information to each other through dialogue, remember that you are also using that dialogue to convey information to the audience. After writing, review the dialogue to make sure that it makes sense. The words should reflect the personalities and attitudes of the character speaking them—they should convey what you want to say, and your characters should respond to each other (unless they are deliberatively not listening to each other in the scene) and not merely mouth the words. As with all forms of writing, you may have to write many drafts before you have your final version. Once you are satisfied, read it aloud to yourself to get a sense of how it sounds when spoken. Delete unnecessary words and words that obstruct the flow of dialogue. If possible, get others to read your lines and check if it makes sense to them.

Dialogue

Dialogue refers to all types of speech—characters talking to themselves, among themselves, and even if they are not actually on screen, but only heard. Underline all actions or dialogue that you consider important.

Extensions

Extensions are technical terms added to the right of a character's name. They indicate how an audience hears the voices of actors who can be heard, but not seen. Some commonly used extensions are O.S. (off-screen), O.C. (off-camera), and V.O. (voice over, used for narrators). indicates how the audience hears unseen characters

Action

Keep the action paragraphs short, preferably to less than five lines. Write the names of the characters with spoken dialogue in capital letters when they make their first appearance. Also, write the sound effects and instructions for the technicians (for example, "ClOSE-UP") in capital letters. Use appropriate abbreviations: CGI, SFX, SPFX, M.O.S. (without sound), and POV (point of view, indicating from which character's viewpoint the scene should be shot).

Parentheticals

Put the actions, gestures, and attitudes of the characters (with spoken dialogue) in parentheses. indicates the actions and gestures of characters

What is important for you to remember when writing dialogue?

The dialogue should be true to character and should fit the situation.

script

The document that the director, production crew, and actors refer to during the actual production phase is a version of the screenplay known as a script (sometimes called a shooting script or production script).The script incorporates all the information and guidelines required by the cast and crew during the actual shooting, such as camera angles, props, and technical aspects like computer-generated imagery (CGI), sound effects (SFX), and special effects (SPFX). Producers often use CGI to save time and cut down on costs. Movies such as Jurassic Park, Dark Shadows, and The Incredibles have all used CGI. The special CGI effects in the movie Avatar played a crucial role in making it successful at the box office. Television producers also use special effects in some or all of their episodes.

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The process of filmmaking involves coordination between many people (producers, directors, actors, cinematographers, art directors, etc.). For this reason, most production companies expect writers to follow a standard format for screenplays and scripts. To avoid making formatting errors, you can use scriptwriting software that comes with preprogrammed formatting. Here are some of the traditionally accepted guidelines: Start with the title page, with your contact details on the bottom left-hand corner. Print the page numbers on the upper right-hand corner from the second page onward. For feature films, try to trim the length of the screenplay to less than 100 pages. Producers prefer the script length to be less than 125 pages because lengthier movies are more expensive to produce, whereas shorter films are not only less expensive, but offer scope for more screenings (and therefore more revenue) at the theater.

Scene Heading

The scene heading (also called a slug line) indicates the setting—the location and time of day. For example, "INT. OFFICE- MORNING" indicates a morning scene in an office. Use INT. for indoor locations, EXT. for outdoor locations, and I/E. for locations that are inside as well as outside (for example, in a scene that involves an automobile racing along a highway). Write the heading in capital letters, with a hyphen between the location and time, aligning it flush left. Underline the scene heading if the scene is a flashback or the character is daydreaming. When the action moves back and forth between two scenes or shots of two characters, write, "INTERCUT." For example, in the case of a telephone conversation, write the heading as "INTERCUT TELEPHONE CONVERSATION." A series of interconnected shots is known as a montage. You may need to use a montage to show the passage of time quickly, or to give a lot of information in a short period. The screen heading must then contain the word "MONTAGE."

Format:

This document indicates the development and flow of the series. Keep this to about half a page.

Treatment:

This is your story in brief. It contains the theme, the main characters, the location, the plot, and sub-plots (revolving around the characters' personal lives). You must write the beginning, conflicts, and ending clearly. It should only be between three and twelve pages long, because agents and producers are usually short of time. The treatment is your main tool to sell your idea to a producer. A treatment is also called a written pitch.

Character sketches:

Write brief character sketches of between two and four lines for the main characters and a line each for the minor ones.

Synopses:

Write short outlines (two to three lines) of all the episodes.

Characters

Write the appropriate character's name in capital letters before every piece of dialogue.

Writing a Television Series

Writing for television is a lucrative business these days because of the proliferation of cable channels and internet shows. It is also easier to get a break in the television industry (as compared to the movie industry). If you wish to write for a television series, it is helpful to follow some of these guidelines (in addition to using the general guidelines for writing fiction). Study popular shows and select a genre that you will enjoy writing. Popular genres these days include drama, reality shows, talk shows, and documentary series. You need a concept (an original idea or theme) that you think can be developed into a series. Next, decide on your main characters and plot. When you are writing for television shows, you need not write out the entire series right away at the beginning. You will usually write the screenplay for one episode as a spec TV pilot. However, you still need to pitch your storyline for the entire series to a producer or agent. For this, you need to create a document known as a TV series bible.

montage

a series of interconnected shots

intercut

camera moves between two characters

Which part of the TV series bible gives information about the development and flow of the series?

format