“The Origins and Formatting of Modern Screenplays”

The fine folks over at FilmmakerIQ have put together an informative and helpful video called “The Origins and Formatting of Modern Screenplays.” It’s as much a history lesson on the development of the movie business as tutorial on screenplay format and as such recommended viewing for anyone interested in screenwriting and film in general. Here’s the video:

The subject of screenplay format and its evolution is of particular interest to me because I’m an obsessive research type guy. Plus I teach a college course called The History of American Screenwriting and have studied the craft for over a quarter-century, so let me make a few points in reference to the video:

* The shift from continuity script to what became known as a “screen play” was also influenced by the stage play. This occurred pretty naturally because many early screenwriters came from a background writing plays in New York. For example, the emergence of the parenthetical almost certainly derived from playwrights turned screenwriters.

* Screenplay format is a constantly evolving thing, so we have to be careful using the word “rule”. What is common today will almost certainly change in 5–10 years. For example, when I broke into the business in the late 80s, the rule of thumb was we should use no more than 5 lines per paragraph of scene description. Nowadays the general practice among many writers is to break up paragraphs into shorter blocks, oftentimes as few as 1–2 lines. This is not only about readability [shorter blocks are easier to read than longer ones], but also a way for a screenwriter to ‘direct’ the action, each short paragraph suggestive of a camera shot.

* Not to keep beating a virtual dead horse, but at the 10 minute mark of the video, the host — who does a great job, by the way — says this:

“The second portion is the action element of the script. This is written in present tense and should only include what can be seen and heard. In other words, no writing about what people are thinking. This is a film we’re making, not a novel.”

Yes and no. Yes, a screenplay is not a novel. No, the fact is professional screenwriters do include scene description from time to time about things that cannot be seen or heard. I call this editorializing, whereby the writer comments on the action, even enters into a character’s mindset or feeling state. We have to be judicious and not overdo it, but depending upon the type of story and our choice of Narrative Voice, it is not only an option, it is common practice.

This is not a new phenomenon, rather something that has been around for decades. Here is how William Goldman introduces Butch Cassidy in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, back in 1967:

A MAN

idly walking around a corner of the building. He is
BUTCH CASSIDY and hard to pin down. Thirty-five and bright,
he has brown hair, but most people, if asked to describe him,
would remember him blond. He speaks well and quickly, and
has been all his life a leader of men; but if you asked him, he
would be damned if he could tell you why.

75% of this content cannot be “seen” or “heard”. Goldman uses novelistic license to get at the core essence of this character. “Hard to pin down… most people… would remember him blond… a leader of men… he would be damned if he could tell you why.”

Hard to pin down: Iconoclast, his own man, makes up his own rules.

Brown hair / remember him blond: Comes across younger than he is, has a youthful vitality.

Leader / damned if he could tell you why: Being a boss comes naturally to him.

Why is this good screenwriting? It helps introduce the character to the reader. It is an expression of and helps to establish the script’s Narrative Voice. And it’s entertaining.

You need only pick up any spec script that has recently sold and you will almost certainly find numerous instances per screenplay where the writer editorializes on a character or action.

I get why this meme — No unfilmables!!! — has made its way around: Make sure budding screenwriters understand the clear distinction between a novel and a screenplay, the latter fundamentally an externalized reality, the story conveyed almost entirely through action and dialogue. But if by editorializing judiciously we can make a script a better read, why restrict ourselves from the use of this valuable narrative device, especially if it is a common practice among professional screenwriters and accepted as such by people who work in the movie development world?

That said, it’s a terrific video and thanks to FilmmakerIQ for putting it together. If you aren’t familiar with the site, give it a visit here. Lots of great content. Plus you can follow them on Twitter like I do: @FilmmakerIQ.

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