10 Basic Rules of Screenwriting
1. Feature film script should be between 95 and 120 pages in length. Never longer. A script over 120 pages needs editing. Never shorter. A script shorter than 90 pages is too short. The perfect length is 100 pages for comedies, 110 for dramas. Cheat your margins if you have to, but better yet write and cut to the correct length.
2. Do NOT use camera directions. Ever. (Note: Historically, writers used to employ camera directions, but the practice is no longer in vogue.) Do not use words like CAMERA, CLOSE UP, LONG SHOT, DOLLY, PAN, or anything else that refers to the camera. Do not use CUT TO or any references to editing. At the beginning of the script, you may use FADE IN. At the end of the script, you may use FADE OUT. Please use a maximum of two dissolves in the entire script. If any. Dissolves are not generally well-received, disdained by directors and studio readers.
3. Dialogue should generally be one to three lines long. Only occasionally should dialogue exceed four lines. Keep it short and simple. A few monologues may be acceptable, but even they should be broken up with action (e.g. ‘he drags on a cigarette’), so they are under ten lines in length. Long stretches of one character talking are boring and hard to read.
4. Scene description should be kept to a minimum. Many studio executives and readers may actually skip over scene description. If they can’t get the story from the dialogue, some may feel frustrated and stop reading. Scene description should be one to three lines in length, and never more than five lines without a break. When describing significant amounts of action, break the description into logical paragraphs, separated by double spacing.
5. An entire scene – from one slug line to the next – ideally runs three pages or less (it can be as brief as a small fraction of a page). Never more than five pages in length. The average scene should be a page and a half or less. Larger, important scenes can run three or four pages. Please make certain the script keeps ‘moving’ or ‘flowing’ for the reader. If you have a great deal of dialogue or information, experiment with breaking the scene up into multiple locations (e.g. “Let’s get to the restaurant, and I’ll explain…”).
You can find more tips on my blog.
1. Feature film script should be between 95 and 120 pages in length. Never longer. A script over 120 pages needs editing. Never shorter. A script shorter than 90 pages is too short. The perfect length is 100 pages for comedies, 110 for dramas. Cheat your margins if you have to, but better yet write and cut to the correct length.
2. Do NOT use camera directions. Ever. (Note: Historically, writers used to employ camera directions, but the practice is no longer in vogue.) Do not use words like CAMERA, CLOSE UP, LONG SHOT, DOLLY, PAN, or anything else that refers to the camera. Do not use CUT TO or any references to editing. At the beginning of the script, you may use FADE IN. At the end of the script, you may use FADE OUT. Please use a maximum of two dissolves in the entire script. If any. Dissolves are not generally well-received, disdained by directors and studio readers.
3. Dialogue should generally be one to three lines long. Only occasionally should dialogue exceed four lines. Keep it short and simple. A few monologues may be acceptable, but even they should be broken up with action (e.g. ‘he drags on a cigarette’), so they are under ten lines in length. Long stretches of one character talking are boring and hard to read.
4. Scene description should be kept to a minimum. Many studio executives and readers may actually skip over scene description. If they can’t get the story from the dialogue, some may feel frustrated and stop reading. Scene description should be one to three lines in length, and never more than five lines without a break. When describing significant amounts of action, break the description into logical paragraphs, separated by double spacing.
5. An entire scene – from one slug line to the next – ideally runs three pages or less (it can be as brief as a small fraction of a page). Never more than five pages in length. The average scene should be a page and a half or less. Larger, important scenes can run three or four pages. Please make certain the script keeps ‘moving’ or ‘flowing’ for the reader. If you have a great deal of dialogue or information, experiment with breaking the scene up into multiple locations (e.g. “Let’s get to the restaurant, and I’ll explain…”).
You can find more tips on my blog.
