A screenplay is a blueprint for the screen and if you cannot visually describe what you are writing in the script then there is no way for the director or actor to create it visually.
Format
- Page numbers on the top right of every page
- ALL CAPS for the first introduction of a character in the scene description only – By putting the character name in all caps only at the first introduction, the reader will know that when the character appears later and is not in all caps that we have already been introduced to him/her.
- Translate any language other than English in the screenplay – put a note at the beginning of the script that the entire script will be in Afrikaans or Zulu and then have English as the dialogue spoken for the reader.
Tips to improve screenwriting.
- Read your favourite movies/ screenplays – the more often you delve into the actual blueprint of a movie, the more adept you will become at being able to interrogate the structure of your screenplays.
- Avoid reading transcripts. Read the original script so you can see what the film looked like on the page before getting made.