Script Structure

When reading through a script, it is important to understand the structure of a script and what items to pay particular attention to.  At the heart, this website has a Scheduling & Budgeting focus, however - if you don't understand all the pieces of the puzzle - how can you expect to be able to put it all together?  With this concept in mind, I have included here a brief overview of a script.

As you read through a script, you will be looking for elements to be broken down and out of the story.  Eventually you will put costs associated with everything in the story.  At this moment now, however, in the most basic of ways: Let's understand the script.

THE SLUGLINE

This is the first line of a new scene.  It displays the location and time of the scene.  For example:
INT. OFFICE - DAY

We now know immediately that we are inside an office during the day.  Simple.  Here's a rule to follow:

"It's a new scene (which means a new slugline) whenever there is a change in action location, time of day (or time of story, if we flash forward or back in the same location, same time of day)"

CAUTION: PRODUCTION "UNFRIENDLY" SCRIPTS

Many scripts that you will receive will be written "for the producer / reader" and they will not be "production friendly".  There are certain things you will want to review before starting to breakdown the script.  Here are a few of the more common "production un-friendly" issues you may run across.

Time of Day: There are four options (six depending on how technical you want your breakdown: Day, Night, Morning, Evening (also Dawn & Dusk / Sunrise & Sunset).  These should be your only options.  You may see time of day descriptions such as...

Later that Afternoon
Just After Breakfast
Magic Hour
Continuous

I've seen these and you will too.  In order, a production friendly version would change to:

Later that Afternoon = DAY

Just After Breakfast = MORNING

Magic Hour = most usually associated with sunset, but generally means to denote that time of day which DP's love and gives a cool amber/blue light.

Continuous = Is a touch one, because the entire script is in essence, continuous.  It is important for you to start to think of the script compartmentalized as pieces of the story.  When you breakdown the script, you will see each scene as it's own section.  If you only have 'continuous' as the time of day - then you'll have no clue when this takes place, because you won't necessarily have the scene before it to compare.  Don't even get me started on a script I read once that had EVERY slugline as 'Continuous' after the first one that said 'Morning'.  True story.

THE ACTION DESCRIPTIONS

The next area which should be in the script is a block of text describing what's going on.  This is the "Action" of the scene.  This is usually very straigtforward and there should be little to anything you'll need to do it, unless...

Some writers seem to get carried away when writing and forget the simple rule - a new slugline if we change action location or time of day.  Sometimes, the action will ramble like in this scripted action text: Greg sits on the couch and flips mindlessly through the TV channels.  Suddenly, the phone rings and he dashes into his bedroom to get his cel phone.  He takes the call, sitting on his bed. Yes, this was in a script I got once and you'll find things like this too.  So, what you will need to do is "re-slug", that is - insert a slugline to denote that we are now in the bedroom.  This will allow you to schedule those two scenes separate from each other.

DIALOG

If during a scene, a character speaks, you'll see speaking lines.  Simple enough.

The only word of caution I'd like to highlight is to remember that you are now making this production friendly, so sometimes writers will use the character name of "VOICE" for a person they plan to reveal later.  This is a good device for keeping the producer or studio executive on the edge of their seat - but if you want to ensure you have the right person on the set to say the line, you'll want to change this to the actual character's name.

RINSE and REPEAT

Those items make up the basic structure, in various frequencies, of a script.  There are other things like parentheticals and camera cues, but remember - you are not a writer now - you are a Line Producer.  Those things make no difference to you now.

FORMATTING

Nope, you're not done yet.  I wanted to take a quick moment to speak about text and pagination formatting.  It's important that scripts conform to a standard font and margins.  The standards are as follows:

• Left Margin:  1"
• Right Margin: .5"
• Top Margin: .5"
• Bottom Margin: .5"
• Font: Courier (Final Draft has one specifically called Courier Final Draft)
• Font Size: 10pt

Why?  There are many reasons and they all harken back to tradition.  The way you count page 8ths, the timing of a script (one minute per page) and simply the look are all reasons to make your script look like scripts from the 1920's.  It's true, so, if you get a script that's written in Word with Myriad Pro in 12pt font - be aware.  It will need to be redone into a real script program.