Possibly the hottest writing market there is, and certainly one of the most difficult to break into, Screenwriting is a different animal than most writers are used to. In this article the basics of formatting and much of the proper jargon are explained, giving the reader enough of a foundation to begin writing their dream movie.
You’ve finally got it; the idea for the perfect movie.
You’ve watched hundreds of movies and you know where they go wrong, and where
they go right. Now all you have to do is write the screenplay and sell it. You
warm up your computer and sit down in front of a blank screen, excited to get
your idea down. You type the title for your blockbuster, and then…nothing.
Unfortunately you haven’t the foggiest idea where to begin. Is a Screenplay
written like a book? A short story? Do you just slap it all down and then shop
it out, banking on someone buying and then writing it in the correct format?
No, no and no. Screenwriting is its own industry and skill set, with new
jargon, rules and styles to learn. The good news is the basics are not
difficult to master, and there are many great resources available to you to
learn the craft, and a lot of them are free.
What is a screenplay?
A screenplay is a visual tool that serves two purposes, to tell a story and
to provide a guide to a filmmaker or director with which to shoot the movie.
Looking at a script for the first time can be confusing, as the formatting is
very different than what most people are used to reading. Even without a
tutorial on how to read it, however, it would not take long to catch on, as the
very formatting of the script is designed to be understood quickly and clearly.
For example, whenever a Character in the movie is speaking, his name is
centered in the page and all capitals, with the dialog appearing directly
below. In this fashion the eye jumps right to the Character line, and the
reader knows someone is speaking.