Filmmaking Edition

Below is a short and concise - but hopefully useful outline on how to write a script. It is by no means comprehensive and is a mish mash of various teachers' and theorists' ideas and work. See this as a simple crash course. Hope it helps. Here we go...

Writing a script (especially a feature length one) is not as easy as many seem to believe it is. Compared to the novel or traditional prose, the script is a unique animal. Ultimately most see a script as not a thing in itself but rather like an architect's plan for a building. In the same way that a building's plans are not the building itself - the script is ultimately an aspiration towards making a film. However increasingly scriptwriting is being considered by some as an art unto itself and one that is often read and appreciated regardless of whether it is produced or not.

There are a considerable amount of rules and conventions you are expected to follow when writing a script. Some are annoying and some are downright stupid. But if you want to have your script read you should try and follow as many of these conventions as possible. Script readers, commissioning editors and producers who have an intimidating pile of scripts on their desk tend to first throw "unconventionally" formatted and styled scripts straight into the dustbin without even reading them. To them this is a time saving way of weeding out the amateurs from the professionals or serious writers. Never make it obvious you're new to the game - even if you are.

Many of these conventions are largely based on Classic Hollywood Realism - the style of the vast majority of American films. But even if your script is to be the ultimate surreal, Dadaist, art-house experience, conventional wisdom tell us that it's nevertheless useful to learn these "rules" anyway. The logic is that you've got to know the rules before you can subvert them.

THE PLOT
The first thing to do is to work out what your script is going to be about. This is your business so figure it out yourself. (Although bear in mind what is written below because it does impact in the type or idea you will want to develop). Then you need to create a plot - i.e. basically what happens in your story and in what order.

The traditional Hollywood script plot structure is often called the three-act structure. Another way of looking at it is what I call the "balance-imbalance-balance" concept. These concepts work pretty much the same - focusing primarily on a central character. The Balance/Imbalance/Balance structure works in the following way. (We'll call our central character "X").

1 - Balance: This is the initial state of your main character: X is a content dog trainer living with her dog Shoop. She avoids men because of previous affairs gone sour.

2 - Imbalance: A challenge or obstacle is foisted onto our hero which she undertakes to do something about. This changes her life: Shoop is stolen by a rival dog training company. Lonely and her spirits low, X spends her time searching for Shoop. She begins to lose customers as a result. Along the way she meets a helpful, sensitive policeman with buns of steel who embarks on the dog searching journey with her. Eventually she and Mr Buns of Steel track down Shoop and rescue the canine.

3 - Balance: Things are restored back to order but with something gained: Having rescued the dog, X returns to her life of contented dog training now with the addition of a well hung policeman in her bed. She has also overcome her fear of taking romantic risks. Together with the help of her beau her business has taken off like never before. Our hero has learnt something and gained from the experience. In other words, she has developed.


The most dramatic elements occur in the "imbalance" section. The challenge and what our hero does to overcome it is the "meat on the bones" of our story.

If I were to ask what X's primary challenge is, you might say that it is to find her dog. I might disagree and say that her primary goal is actually to overcome her loneliness and fear of men. In this way scripts can have different levels of meaning.

X's story could be a comedy, a serious drama and even a feminist comment on the way women are expected to conform to patriarchal society in which life without a man is seen as meaningless. It's your choice.

Now how does the plot become a script? Follow the easy steps below.

STEP ONE
Clearly write out your concept in a couple of lines: eg: "This movie is about "X, a happy dog trainer whose life is thrown into disarray when her faithful doggy companion Shoop is abducted by a rival dog training company." This sets out what your story is about as well as who your primary characters are. You should also try and figure out if this will be a comedy, a drama or horror story. This is called the "genre" of the film. (Producers need to know this or they get very confused.) However today we see more and more mixing of genres in the same film. No dialogue should be added until STEP SEVEN

STEP TWO
Write a paragraph outlining the story in a little more detail - this time adding in a few more characters and important events. Get a stronger feeling for how the thing will play out. We find out X has actually been rather lonely, we learn that there's a hot policeman in there too and there's a climatic shootout towards the end when Shoop is rescued. One could call this paragraph a short synopsis of your story.

STEP THREE
Write a longer outline of your plot. Depending on you, this can be anything from two to twenty pages. (You can also break this step into more steps and write increasingly longer outlines before proceeding to Step Four.). This pretty much establishes the basics of your plot and many of the twists and turns that may take place. Some also call this the "beats" of your script. You can add in stuff about the bad guys, who they are and their motivation for their actions.

STEP FOUR
Take your long outline and begin to break it up into one-or-two line paragraphs. Each paragraph should be a particular unique event. Eg:

What once was:

"X is woken up in the morning by Shoop's long tongue in her face. Later X drives to her dog-training school with Shoop panting in the back."

Becomes:

Paragraph one: X is woken up in the morning by Shoop's long tongue licking her face.

Paragraph two. X drives to her dog training school with Shoop panting in the back.


STEP FIVE
Fill in more paragraphs to make the story flow well and add any other paragraphs needed to fill out the story and expand elements that need it. The paragraphs should include more detailed actions on how things happen.

STEP SIX
Turn these paragraphs into scenes. The concept of a scene is very difficult to explain and almost needs to be intuitively understood. I've never seen an adequate explanation or definition to-date. It helps a great deal to read as many scripts as possible to get a feeling for this. Nevertheless, roughly, a scene is an event that happens in a unique place and time. E.g. The paragraph description:

Paragraph Sixty Five X arrives at the factory and after looking around discovers Shoop's dog leash in the bathroom.


Could be broken down into:

EXT. ABANDONED FACTORY. DAY X looks up at the front of the abandoned factory. A sign atop reads "NUWARE TILES". X walks up to the front door and opens it.

INT. ABANDONED FACTORY FLOOR. DAY Walking through the dark factory building it becomes clear that there is no-one here anymore. Rubble and trash are strewn all over the floor.

INT. ABANDONED FACTORY TOILET. DAY X opens the door to a filthy toilet and looks in. About to walk away she sees something. A dog's leash. Bending down she picks it up and realises that it is Shoop's leash.


INT/EXT: This refers to the location of the scene. If it is inside it is INT (for interior); if it is set outside it is EXT (for exterior). This should be followed by the location e.g. ABANDONED WAREHOUSE.

DAY/NIGHT: This refers to wether the scene occurs in the day or night. This follows the location.

STEP SEVEN
Start filling in dialogue as well as more detail under each scene. You should have a first draft completed by the end of this process.

STEP EIGHT, NINE, TEN, ELEVEN etc... There's a corny but valuable saying about writing that goes: "Writing is not about writing - but about re-writing". The first draft will almost always be shit. It's in the refining, re-writing, re-plotting and fine-tuning that great scripts get made. Congratulations - you've written a script! Now wasn't that fun?

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Becoming A Producer

"Producers are assholes... They know all the tricks of the trade but they don't know the trade itself... They don't believe in anything"
James Woods

"Collaboration, that's the word producers use. That means, don't forget to kiss ass from beginning to end."
Sam Shepard
You're sitting in a row of famous people. One billion households worldwide are watching you trying not to care. Jack Nicholson gives you a wink. Your voluptuous B-list partner squeezes your hand. Tom Cruise opens the envelope, cracks a gag about pre-nuptial agreements and intones: "And the Best Picture goes to..." A low voice whispers in your ear: 'Do you have a photocard with your pass, madam/sir?' You don't. You swear at the conductor. You're asked to pay a £10 fine. The moral of this story is blindingly obvious: most producers don't get winked at by Jack Nicholson. In fact, most producers don't get anywhere near the Oscars.

What is the difference between a would-be movie mogul and a bona fide movie mogul? Girth. Clout. Films. And money. Lots of money.

WHAT IS A PRODUCER?
The reason why it's the producer who goes up to the podium to collect the Best Picture Oscar and not the director is because it's the producer who really authors a film. The producer raises the money that pays for the film to be made, and is responsible for anything affecting the budget of the film. The producer hires the director and the crew, manages the film through production and secures distribution for it when it is finished. In short, most of the time, it's the producer who does the work to make a film happen.

SO WHAT'S AN EXECUTIVE PRODUCER, THEN?
They're the people who never get famous. Either faceless studio executives, bankers, sales agents, film channels. They have usually invested cash in the film, although the title is sometimes given to a project mentor or initiator, who then has very little to do with the project. If they are the financiers, then the buck stops with them. They put in the money, so very often, what they say, goes. Producers go to financiers for money. And as Tony 'Scarface' Montana knew only too well: "First you getta da money. Then you getta tha' power".

...AND A CO-PRODUCER, AN ASSOCIATE PRODUCER, A LINE PRODUCER..?
A co-producer may have helped in the development of the script, be a partner at the Producer's company or raised one section of the finance but not have enough responsibility to make final decisions. An Associate Producer is similar but has less responsibilities. It's often, but not always, a token title in exchange for a contribution to the genesis of the film. A Line Producer is like a TV Production Manager, they get very hands on with the budget and schedule and make sure the numbers crunch in the way a floor manager or foreman might on a factory production line.


WAYS IN...

1) MAKE YOUR OWN SHORT FILMS
One way into the profession is to produce your own short films. If you want to go to school to learn, then the National Film and Television School has an excellent Producer's Short Course. But competition is incredibly fierce.

2) CLIMB THE PRODUCTION LADDER
Many producers have worked their way up through the Production Departments of films, from Running to Production Assisting, then on to Production Co-ordinating and Line Producing. Others get into producing via development jobs. The advantage of doing it this way is that these are the personnel that you will have to manage and depend on when you eventually produce a film.


ON THE JOB

1) WHERE DO YOU FIND MATERIAL?
Good producers are constantly on the look-out for material. Scripts, books, plays, news items, anything and everything these days can be turned into a movie.
For every film they get made, a good producer will have up to ten other scripts "in development". Some go for a wide spread of projects, others prefer to concentrate on one type of film that they can make their own. The advantages of having a slate of projects is obvious. It means you do not have all your fragile-skinned eggs in one basket. Remember: the development life of most scripts is several years.

2) HOW DO YOU OPTION SCRIPTS?
A script begins its working life once it's been optioned. The producer buys an option on the script which gives him or her the exclusive right to develop it. It's then up to them to raise the cash before the option runs out. Options last anything from 2 to 7 years.
If you want to adapt a novel, you will pay one fee to the author of the book and another to the screenwriter. If no one wants to make your script within the time limit of your option, then you could loose all your cash unless you can persuade the author to extend. It's a high-risk operation.

3) CHOOSING THE RIGHT SCRIPT
A good script is vital if you want good, high profile actors and the investment that comes with them. If you haven't got the money/experience for stars, your script will be all you'll have.
But relax. The good thing about there being so much shit about is that, people will want to talk to you if you have something fresh and original. Crucially, you really have to love this script: you will be living with it for a long time and you have to convince others of its worth.

Four Weddings and a Funeral producer Tim Bevan once said he applies three criteria to choosing a script. 1) Does the script create its own world? 2) Could it be better serviced by TV or radio or as a novel? If so, forget it. 3) Is it something I haven't seen before?

How can you tell a good script? It's a world of skill and pain. You can buy books on script-writing theory and technique. The most well known is Robert McKee's excellent Story but McKee is only one of a number schools and not all writers subscribe to his belief in story coming above all else. Most script savvy comes from experience. You can make a start by reading a lot of scripts, both of films which have done well and of films which haven't. You should start to get a sense of the differences.
Busy producers or those with backing hire Development Executives (£10,000 - £40,000 depending on the quality) who do this for them. Otherwise you could hire a SCRIPT READER to give you feedback (typically £30 per script).

4) CHOOSING THE WRONG SCRIPT
If your closest family reads the script you've forked out a fortune to option and can only give you feedback like 'I like the font', it might be time to wake up to the bitter whiff of a turd in your in-tray. Once you've recognised what you have, it's decision time. Abandon the project and concentrate on something that doesn't make peoples' noses turn up. Or see if you can polish it.

5) WORKING WITH WRITERS
If you commission a script from a writer you will have to know what you want. Comments like 'I think there should be more shagging' will only be welcomed as a valid desire to satisfy your target audience and recoup your investors money - provided you make equally valid comments about structure, pace, character and plot.

Apart from whatever cash you can give them, it's a good idea to remember that writers spend long amounts of time on their own, obsessing over their precious creations. As with anyone, encouragement goes a long way. Helping with their research, putting them in touch with people you know who might help and buying them meals will go even further.

6) HOW DO YOU GET A REPUTATION?
'Nobody knows anything' is the famous adage that opens William Goldman's famous book Adventures in the Screen Trade. Only one film in ten turns a real profit. Every time the industry settles in to a pattern thinking it knows how to makes hits, another film comes along which breaks all the rules Blair Witch Project, obvious case in point.

You can turn this anomaly-phenomenon to your advantage - but you must be able to persuade/browbeat investors into thinking that your project is different and hassle/cajole distributors - who market the film once it's in the cinema - into handling your film with the care and attention it deserves.

If you've already had a hit, people will listen to you. That's because they'll think you 'know something' and you can do it again. This is your 'reputation'. And in an industry run on rumours, half-rumours and slanderous gossip, your reputation is everything. Being able to talk about films, understand and appreciate how they fit into the broader culture is a bonus - but is not considered vital.

HOW DO YOU LOSE A REPUTATION?
By bad-mouthing other people - it's a small business and it will get back to them. By crying at the Oscars (if you are a man). By suing someone powerful and losing. By losing a lot of Other People's Money. By bankrupting a studio.

WHAT'S IN YOUR BAG?
· Trade magazines. Variety and Screen International will tell you what film's taken what at the box office, Screen Finance will give updates on where to look for the latest slush fund.
· Don't forget a script of your latest movie; one you are trying to get off the ground - you never know who you'll bump into at the club/ golf course/ dentists.
· Palm Pilot, mobile phone and credit cards obviously.
· Cuban cigar and 'I have a big cock' sticker optional.

DO PRODUCERS ACTUALLY MAKE MONEY?
A producer's bank balance depends upon a producer's ability to make films that sell and his or her having a stake in the profits. You can only really get a significant stake or 'points' as they are called if you've had a hit before. Most of the time, producers are not rich people. If you're getting into the business and want some security, you'd probably be better of in a salaried position with a film company. If money is your motivation, try IT.

WHAT CAN YOU DO WHEN YOU'RE NOT PRODUCING FILMS?
Good question. There is a belief in the UK that some films are rushed into production because their producers need the cash flow. Many producers have jobs in a related field, making TV programmes or corporate videos. The key is to earn enough money to live on, and to be able to buy and develop material to produce whilst you're waiting for people to come back to you.

WHERE SHOULD YOU HANG OUT?
The Ivy, if you can get a table. Media clubs like Soho House (Tom Cruise attends but so do an alarming amount of berks in advertising), The Groucho Club (clientele a little bit older, more popular with the TV world), Blacks (cosy and relaxed), The Green Room (like the best sixth form common room in the world). The clubs are members only. So make friends with someone or get yourself on the waiting list. You have to be recommended by a current member.

PRODUCERS ORGANISATIONS
Like any business, sometimes you can learn the most from your peers. The New Producer's Alliance is dedicated to helping new producers do just that. They provide opportunities for the exchange of information and welcome all up-and-coming producers, even those who have yet to make a movie. Their monthly seminars and networking sessions form the basis of a very effective unofficial film school. They have a monthly newsletter New Producer. Call the NPA for more information and membership rates on 0207 580 2480.

PACT - the Producer's Alliance for Cinema and Television is a larger, more 'senior' organisation, also involved with political lobbying and industry regulation and its members tend to be more established producers.