Screenwriting : Format? by Keith A Kedenburg

Keith, here you go. First off, just write it. Get it out of your head and on the page. It's your vomit pass (you get everything out). Overwrite for now, it's okay. Then get your carving knives out and cut away ... rewrite, revise ... repeat ... repeat ... get fresh eyes on it for notes, revise ... trim ... repeat ... fresh eyes ... revise ... trim ...

What software program are you using?

Keith get First Draft software, it automatically formats your script

If your funds are tight there are so many free and cheap priced great screenwriting software to choose from. StudioBinder, Fadein, Trelby to name a few are free and will format your screeplay for you.

"when I write my scenes if the scene I'm writing is long , then it cuts it into the next page witch puts my slug line on one page and the rest of the scene on the next." Hey, Keith A Kedenburg. I've attached a scene from my script. Do you mean like that? That's not a problem. That's how scripts are formatted.

Just taking a guess here. Are your line spacing properly formatted?

I use studio binder . And yes Maurice Vaughn that's what I'm talking about.

The picture Maurice Vaughn has posted is the problem I'm having . Some of my scenes look like we that and when I send them infor someone to read they tell me the format needs work or is not right . How can that be if I'm using studio binder it formats it's for me ..

I'm not sure why they say that's a problem, Keith A Kedenburg. It's not. I've attached a scene from the "Creed 2" script.

Thank you Maurice Vaughn ... Really I'm just typing out the scene. Only so much room on the page ..

You're welcome, Keith A Kedenburg. Some scenes will be short (they'll fit on one page), and some scenes will be long (they'll spill over to other pages).

On thoae cases your StudioBinder ONLY puts your header at the very end of one page and the rest of the scene on the next, there is something wrong with your settings I guess. Check them and adjust. Same for splitting up the scene's narrative or dialog in the middle of a sentence. Adjust.

Rutger Oosterhoff how do I adjust the settings. Where?

How do adjust the settings on studio binder ? I don't see any options for that . Dose anyone in know ??

Keith, don't know, I do not use StudioBinder, maybe Maurice or someone else knows?

I haven't used StudioBinder, Keith, but you could contact them and ask how to adjust the settings.

Try to save your screenplay in PDF and see has anything changed.

Hi Keith, just as Niksa said, maybe try to save it as PDF, so you'll know if it's just a formatting issue on your screen or if you need to contact them at StudioBinder

Hi Keith! I use an app called writerduet and it does the same thing. It's really not a problem for a scene to spill over to the next page. If your slugline is the only thing at the bottom of the page and the actual scene description is on the next page, I would either insert an extra space before the slugline to force it to the next page or see if I can adjust some formatting to either free up space or add space... to either pull the scene description up or force the slugline to the next page. Another thing that helps is NOT allowing your action lines to go beyond 4 lines. Break your descriptions up so that there aren't huge paragraphs of description. It's easier to read when there is "air" in between the lines and looks less heavy. The reader will feel like they're breezing through your script, and slugline-description splits at the end of the page are less frequent. On another note: Are you sure that's the formatting issue this person was referring to? The slugline spill-over, or could it be something else?

Everyone here is right. Scenes go over pages. It is bad to have too much blank space at the end of a page. I use MS Word, easy to set up styles and formatting.

I used to think I was great at formatting and would just set things up in Word. Then, I had someone take a look. He was kind but let me know the formatting was a problem. It was. There are several tools for script writing/formatting, including some that are free. They do a lot of the work for you and make you keep proper formatting. .

I think I just have to many broken up paragraphs that can be condensed shorter . I think that seems to be working . I am shorting some scenes . I went down from 127 pages to 108.

Get yourself a Screenwriter's software such as, WriterDuet. They have a low monthly charge, but all you do is type and it automatically structures your screenplay

Like some of the people who have commented on this post, my go-to for writing screenplays has always been MS Word, thanks to its useful screenplay template. Fortunately, I managed to figure things out with it as I go along, writing three scripts using this exact tool while learning how such concepts as line/paragraph spacing as well as showing and not telling work in the screenwriting process, all in a matter of years!

Guys, if youre using MS WORD to write your scripts, please stop. This is not what you use to write scripts. Use real screenwriting software! even the free ones are better. yes, we can tell when you use Word. No, its not used professionally. thank you.

That's loud and clear, Danny. ;)

MS Word has a strange format that's closer to that of a sitcom, than to a feature film screenplay. Characters and dialogues are incorrect in terms of line spacing and it is very unclear where MS Word sees sluglines.

Please use Trelby screenwriting software. It is free. Screenplay means "What you see on the screen". Script means you can add a little more information. But please avoid explaining the colour of the flower on the vase kept on the mahogany table, if the colour of the flower on the vase on the mahogany table doesn't have anything to do with the story. Stick to a readable style of short and crisp writing when it comes to scene action.

Thank you. Hope it helped.

Trelby is pretty good. It's free. It has character and scene reports, too. Word isn't the right tool. I've got expert skills with all sorts of hidden features and have been using it for long technical documents for 20+ years. It's not the right tool for scripts. It's not. I tried. It didn't work and yes, industry folks can tell immediately.

Danny Manus, take a look at one of my PDF's on here and tell me you can tell what I used.

What did I use here? You get one guess.

Gen. I can tell right away you aren't using a screenwriting software program so you should think about getting one.

Screenwriters should use professional scriptwriting software. If you can't afford it, there are free and low-cost options and trials you can use in the meantime. It saves time, cuts down on frustration and formatting questions, it shows that you're serious and know what you're doing. But it also simply gives you the file format that people will ask for once you start getting work and sharing work with industry professionals. Regarding Studio Binder specifically, Maurice is right, reach out to them and they should help no problem!

I read screenplays and they look the same as my PDF's.

What exactly are you guys looking at? I'm looking at Joker compared to one of mine and all I see is tighter line spacing. I look at other modern screenplays and the spacing is the same as mine.

The action paragraphs are the same width as Joker. Although the dialogue is wider. Easy change if that's all you're looking at.

Screenplay formatting is so "strict" because it's supposed to serve as a gauge in regards to screen time - each page (roughly) representing 1 minute on screen (of course there are exceptions such as live-action versus animation scripts where you typically have more description because you're world building from scratch, but it generally still applies). So, if your line spacing and/or margins are off, it can significantly impact that gauge. Looking at the given example, if you were to transfer that script and applied the standard formatting, my guess is you would lose roughly 10-15 pages. That's a big deal. If your feature script is currently 85 pages long with your non-standard spacing and margins, it could shrink down to 70 pages and that tells me as a producer 1.) this story has a lot more room/need for development 2.) this writer may not be ready because they didn't stick to the standards (which is probably not the impression you want to bring across). With free screenwriting software out, there's very little (if any) reason to put yourself through the hassle of Word.

Gen. I think maybe your action lines are shorter than they should be. Every page of your script should have a left margin of 1.5 inches and the right margin should be .5 inches and both the top and the bottom should be 1 inch. You might want to check that to make sure it is right. When a character is speaking you ALL CAP their name 3.5 inches from the left margin. Dialogue is in regular case, starts at 2.5 inches and stops at 5.5 inches. Actor directions (paragraphs) start at 3.1 inches from the left.

Your line spacing is wider, Gen. And there are extra spaces between the character names and their dialogues.

Appreciate it Dan Guardino . Really easy to change those things. I set up styles n formatting myself from a set of regulations online. Maybe they were older.

I know we have to do whatever we can to have people read our screenplays. But if someone refuses to read past page one of a PDF because of that. I don't want them to read past page one.

Your first reader will often be someone who only makes a few dollars for reading your screenplay. Often they are just other wannabe screenwriters so they really have nothing to do with the company or a producer so try not to give them any reason to reject your screenplay. Good luck.

A lot of screen writing software will automatically format your screenplay correctly.

Already made the changes in Word. Only took two mins. Thanks for the help guys.

Actually worked out really well page count wise.