Has anyone here ever written or tried writing a script?

[love2grow2live]

I have some good ideas for a sci-fi story (I think they are good, anyways) but I don't have the talent with words to ever write a book. My grammar is poor and my prose is even worse. Shakespeare, I am not. I can see images unfolding in my mind, but I don't know how to best communicate them.<br /><br />So I was thinking, maybe I should try to write my story in a script format. Isn't a script just a set of instructions for film makers to follow? It doesn't have to be poetic, does it?<br /><br />Where does one begin to learn script writting? Are there any good resources online?

 

[qso1]

You can google script writing and probably come up with quite a few sources. You were able to write your posting pretty well, as in communicating your idea and request.<br /><br />love2grow2live:<br />So I was thinking, maybe I should try to write my story in a script format. Isn't a script just a set of instructions for film makers to follow? It doesn't have to be poetic, does it?<br /><br />Me:<br />A script is pretty much dialogue of the characters in the story or movie with some descriptions of scenes here and there as needed and no, it does not have to be poetic.<br /><br />In addition to online resources, simply watching movies should help. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[love2grow2live]

Watching movies does not teach you how to format a script. I'm sure it has to be laid out in a specific way, or else no one will even look at it.<br /><br />And I tried to google script writing before I ever started this thread. The only results I got were websites trying to make money. I didn't find any websites which simply have instructions for or examples of proper scripts to look at.

 

[tom_hobbes]

http://www.dailyscript.com/movie.html <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font size="2" color="#339966"> I wish I could remember<br /> But my selective memory<br /> Won't let me</font><font size="2" color="#99cc00"> </font><font size="3" color="#339966"><font size="2">- </font></font><font size="1" color="#339966">Mark Oliver Everett</font></p><p> </p> </div>

 

[PistolPete]

The Complete Idiots Guide to Screenwriting, by Skip Press<br /><br />Verry good, verry informative, verry concise. I learned a lot from it. (BTW screenwriting is very diffrent from writing a novel) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

love2grow2live<br />Watching movies does not teach you how to format a script. I'm sure it has to be laid out in a specific way...<br /><br />Me:<br />They do have to be laid out in a specific way and I guarantee that the way they have to be written varies from producer to producer. My point was that you could watch a movie to pick up on some of the nuances on script writing, such as how actors can be seemingly casual and natural with written lines. Lines from scripts that have to be written in a manner not so rigid as to cause the actor to verbalize it incorrectly.<br /><br />You may want to visit a bookstore or library to see whats available on scriptwriting since Google didn't work out for you.<br /><br />And again, you do a decent job of writing posts so I don't think script writing will be all that difficult for you. In fact, once you see a technical method for scriptwriting, you'll probably be saying to yourself..."I knew that". <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[fatal291]

I would like to write a book or short Sci Fi story.. how do i go about this? I know some basic prinicipals for a storyboard but I'm no Spielberg

 

[PistolPete]

<font color="yellow">They do have to be laid out in a specific way and I guarantee that the way they have to be written varies from producer to producer</font><br /><br />This is so incredibly wrong, it's not even funny. There is a verry verry verry verry verry verry specific and universal format, down to the font (courier, not courier new) and font size (12). Now, if you're an über-famous screenwriter, you might, and I repeat might, get away with an unconvintional format. However, anyone less famous than Steven Spielburg absolutely <b>has</b> to follow format, lest the scriptreader (yes, studios employ people just to read scripts) trashes your script before they get past the title page (not uncommon). So it is vitally importaint that you read a book on it (i.e. The Complete Idiots Guide to Screenwriting) or at least try to google the format. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

If I'm wrong, then post the Universal manual on scriptwriting...I wouldn't mind seeing it. But even you stated there is the uber-famous screenwriter...so uber-famous screenwriter as opposed to what else. Yes I do agree there is a generally accepted script writing method for most people. But havn't you heard of cases where someone sends a script to a publisher and the publisher sees the selling potential and mails the script back for cleanup on the writers part rather than automatically trashing it? I know thats pretty rare but it has happened. If there is one set formula for script writing. Then a writer ought to go to college and get a degree in it so they won't miss a trick.<br /><br />Otherwise, you can certainly buy a copy of "The Complete Idiots Guide to Screenwriting". But there are other books on script writing out there and all will vary to some degree while agreeing on much of the technical part of it. If there were one set way, you wouldn't need but one book for scriptwriting.<br /><br />love2grow2live said they tried googling and I did too but unless your going to buy a book on it, the stuff I found wasn't all that helpful.<br /><br />In any case, by saying I'm so wrong, you have just established yourself as the scriptwriting expert so lets see expert advice. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

I'll turn that over to PistolPete as he has just established himself as the expert on these matters. And honestly, I can't argue with him. I'm an unpublished looser so its better to take advice from someone who actually knows. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[love2grow2live]

"BTW screenwriting is very diffrent from writing a novel"<br /><br />Yes, I know. That's exactly why I'm interested in learning how to do it. I can dream up a decent story, but I couldn't make it sound pretty if I was to attempt a novel. A script would give me a way of telling my story without having to make it sound pretty.<br /><br />On a side note, judging from the sheer volume of dumb movies and simple remakes to come out of Hollywood in recent years, I have to believe they are starving for an original and half decent script to come along. Movies of such greatness as E.T. or The Empire Strikes Back are few and very far between.<br /><br />More often than not, the movies they come up with are just plain ********. The bar has been set so low I could walk over it. I mean, c'mon, if I was to get rejected by the same people who thought Snakes On A Plane was a good script, my hope for humanity would be lost forever.

 

[PistolPete]

Well, Qso1, my major at UNC Wilmington is film studies.<br /><br />Anyway, in Hollywood at least, the importance of formatting cannot be understated. I get this information from several people in the buisness like, for instance, my personall conversations with producer Frank Capra Jr.<br /><br />Mr. Capra started Screen Gems studios in Wilmington, the largest film production studio on the east cost, and is the son of Frank Capra Sr., director of <i>It's a Wonderfull Life</i> amongst many others. Formating was one of the many things that were stressed to me by him.<br /><br />The reason that I keep mentioning The Complete Idiots Guide is that I found it to be a verry concise and informative book on all things screenwriting. Skip Press has been in Hollywood for years, and I've also seen him lecture at UNCW a couple of times. He is a bottomless pit of knolwedge on the subject.<br /><br />While formatting is important to keep from getting your script round filed, there is much more to it than that. While taking college courses on the subject is the best approach, Skip's book makes an excellent (and cheap) primer on the subject. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[PistolPete]

The reason that Big Hollywood does the same stupid stuff over and over again is because they are scared. Yes, blockbusters make them a lot of money, however, a lot of money is lost on the hundreds of flops that are made every year. The blockbuster is a much rarer entity indeed. Most of Hollywood does not have much faith in scifi. While it has a devoted fan base, all the studios see is diminishing returns on ticket sales each year. There just aren't enough trekkies and browncoats out there to offset the $100 million per picture cost. Hopefully your script is diffrent enough to break the vicious cycle. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[spacester]

<img src="/images/icons/cool.gif" /><br /><br />With the success of Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia, I had hoped that Hollywood had dicovered the box-office potential of Fantasy (as opposed to Sci-Fi).<br /><br />I do not follow the industry closely, but it appears my hopes were in vain. Would you agree? Were those the only two properties deemed worthy?<br /><br />It occurs to me that a space flight fan with a film studies background could be enormously valuable to future space flight advocacy. Is that where you might be headed? <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[PistolPete]

To tell you the truth, except for a new (and hopefully good) D&D movie, I havn't heard much about any new fantasy movies. I myself am surprised that there hasn't been a rush on fantasy movie rights like there was on comic books after X-Men hit it big. I can't expain it, perhaps fantasy suffers from the same prejudice that scifi does. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[cdr6]

love2grow2live-<br />I have done 5 only two of which have gotten as far as an agent before being rejected. Pistol Pete is putting out the straight stuff... I have read the Idiots Guide by Skip Press and as far as it goes it's a good starting point. It will give you format and so forth. (I recommend it highly. Actually I wish I'd had it earlier on.) <br /><br />I say a good starting point because every time I think I've found the bible it's “method” falls out of favor with the Hollywood types. (Alas, they're a fickle lot in tinsel town.) <br /><br />But to get started on your story/idea I suggest firing up the ole word processor and do a simple outline, nothing elaborate you understand. At the top of the first page blast out a quick description of the story premise/idea. A couple of lines will do... Much like you’d see in a copy TV Guide for example. <br /><br />Then on to the outline, a couple of words on each line just to jog your memory later. Go as far along as you have figured out the story thus far. (Not to worry if don’t have an ending.) Then go back to the first line and start filling in a bit more description under the heading. Basically tell what happens, then what happens next. (Keep it real brief, no dialogue.) The idea here is to get it out of your head on to the screen so you can work it around and play with it. <br /><br />Some folks like to do this on 3x5 cards, (I’ve done it both ways, on the computer, and on cards. The cards work best for me. Either way, you can shift them around if the need arises.<br /><br />Things to keep in mind… <br />One page of script equals one minute of film. <br /><br />Two hours worth (120 pages) is about all the Hollywood types want to see unless you’re very good. <br /><br />Average scene length is about 3-4 pages.<br /><br />Start by hitting the script reader right between the eyes with some big event! (You want to snap his/her head back!!!) If it’s real-real good you can give it 5 pages, but you’ve got to be out of the scene by

 

[qso1]

PistolPete:<br />Well, Qso1, my major at UNC Wilmington is film studies...<br /><br />Me:<br />Thats why I responded to Fatal291 the way I did by saying I'd turn his question over to you. I'm a nobody who never went to any school for writing. I've written and write a lot but never published and probably suck at it. BTW, hold the violins, I'm just stating facts.<br /><br />Therefore, I'm not going to even attempt to compete with a person of your credentials. Your the person best suited for answering the questions posed here. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[PistolPete]

I'm sorry if I came off as demeaning, it was not my intiention, I was just trying to state my cred. Sometimes when I write I can seem a bit defensive without meanint it. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[qso1]

I understand but I wasn't seeing it as demeaning. I accept that when someone who has better schooling and experience will be better equipped to respond to their area of expertise. Apology not really necessary but thanks. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong>My borrowed quote for the time being:</strong></p><p><em>There are three kinds of people in life. Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen...and those who do not know what happened.</em></p> </div>

 

[love2grow2live]

Wow, Chuck. That's the kinds of nuts and bolts information I need to learn. <br /><br />I'm going to look at the bookstore today for The Complete Idiots Guide to Screenwriting. If I don't find it, I'll order it on Amazon.com.

 

[skyeagle409]

You could take a class in it. They offer these at many colleges and through community education venues. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>

 

[love2grow2live]

"Most of Hollywood does not have much faith in scifi. While it has a devoted fan base, all the studios see is diminishing returns on ticket sales each year. There just aren't enough trekkies and browncoats out there to offset the $100 million per picture cost."<br /><br /><br />Hollywood's first mistake is in blaming the genre for poor ticket sales, when they should be blaming themselves for making bad movies. As has been demonstrated by Spielberg and Lucas, a scifi movie appeals to everyone if the story is good to begin with.<br /><br />The movies that fail are the movies that are so horribly made only a die-hard trekkie or browncoat would pay to see it. Those are the movies that depend on special effects to carry the movie, rather than depend on the story to carry the movie.

 

[PistolPete]

<font color="yellow">Hollywood's first mistake is in blaming the genre for poor ticket sales, when they should be blaming themselves for making bad movies. </font><br /><br />True, but don't tell <i>them</i> that. <i>They</i> honestly think that they are the smartest people on the face of the planet, that they know everything about what people want to see. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[yevaud]

Oh HELL yes. Take someone's award winning story or novel, and radically alter it to suit your pathetic ego?<br /><br />(If they were so freaking good, how come THEY aren't writing award-winning science fiction?) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>