You get ideas for a
killer screenplay, you know the story cold. But sometimes the
screenplay format can stifle your creativity. That's some sort of guide. [Music] But why do we even
need to format? We format because screenplays
are written to be produced. Formatting incorrectly
isn't stylistic. It's necessary. For first AD`s, to break down your script
into characters, props, costumes, etc. in software like StudioBinder. All scenes start with a
scene heading or slug line. To tell the reader where
the action is happening. A slug line is a location followed by a time. Your location can be anywhere. From a specific place to a general idea to a totally real
boarding school. Time is usually what
time of day it is. Like this. Or that. And continuous, if the action carries on
word from the previous scene. And use flashbacks if you're
writing for "Westworld." The first part of
a slug line states whether your location
is inside or out. If your location is outside, it would be an exterior. And get the abbreviation "EXT." Slug lines can be both. As is often the case
with moving vehicles. But every location needs action. Consider this scene
from "Spider-Man." "-Pete? -How strange.
There's nobody here." But what would it look
like on a screenplay? Did you imagine
something like this? The key to successful action, is to keep it visual and in the present tense. Leave interior
thoughts to the novels. While there are no hard and
fast rules for capitalization there are a few guidelines. As a rule of thumb, you want to capitalize character
names the first time they appear, sound effects and interjections, and important details, like a prop or a plot twist. Formatting dialog is
pretty straightforward. "Ezekiel 25:17. 'The path of the righteous man is beset on
all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men.' You have your character ID
followed by the words there. It's pretty simple. Throw an extension
next to a character ID to tell us how the
dialogue is heard. When a character
speaks over the action, on a radio or walkie-talkie. When the characters
speak off-screen, but we can't see them yet. You know when dialogue starts
in the scene before it, like this. "So now now NASA can talk to me, they won't shut up." That's called Pre-Lap. It's marked just like
any other extension. But if you want to show
how characters says a line, you use a parenthetical. Going right into a character ID, a center justified parenthetical
changes how character speak. Like this. " NO,God!" No, God, Please, No!" Transitions. Put transitions right justified
between two scenes. The most popular
transition is "Cut To." It`s emphasizes how quickly the editor
should move on to the next scene. But there's plenty of other
transitions writers use. [Music] And if you want the editor to cut
between two scenes consistently, usually for a phone call that's called an intercut. It goes right where
you put the transition. If you're sitting
in one location and want to move within
it or skip ahead, you use subheaders to move
locations within a scene. Format it after an action line. You press enter and capitalize. Why don`t we see some examples? "-A voice. A sign. Something. -Don`t worry.
Andy`s going to take care of us. I guarantee it." But to be clear a subheading isn't
the same as a shot. Exterior - freeway overpass.
Day. "Anyway, I got places to be, a face to fix and ohh." Format in all caps,
like an action line. A shot directs our
attention to a visual. To sort a montage enter these words above the short scenes you
want to string together. And in it,
the same way you started it. Got lyrics? It is important to keep in mind that one page equals roughly
one minute of screen time. Since lyrics take up
little page space, but require much time, one option is to space out
the lyrics on the page. The other option is to
describe the music sequence, instead of listing
at each lyric. Like Damien Chazelle
did in "La-La Land." "-Oh,
what a waste of lovely night. -You see there's nothing here. Well,
let's make something clear. I think I'll be the
one to make that call." Chyrons. Then the text that
appears over the screen. Under a scene heading, you start an action line with
the word CHYRON and all caps. And put the text after. Some screenwriters use
the word TITLE instead. "Can absolutely makes sense! You`re janitor
who snakes toilets with his bare hands." Now that you know the ins and
outs of screenplay format, you can get back
to telling a story. It's time to get writing. Enjoy this video? Like it and subscribe for more. [Music]
