Script Formatting Questions

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Hello,I've been a lurker for a while, and really enjoy this newsgroup. I just finished my first, um, first draft and I had some formatting questions:1. On slug lines Do you always put the time of day after every one oronly when it changes? i.e. INT. WAREHOUSE - NIGHT, INT. BANK - NIGHT. would those be considered the same day? or two different days? I hope this is clear.2. When describing action, what do you put in caps? on my draft Icaps'ed everyone that had some relevant part to it (whether they spoke or not.) Is that right or not?I hope these questions are clear, and I thank everyone who looks at this. I know these kind of questions must get old.Also, just as a side question, can anyone define the difference between a script and a screenplay?Thanks,YetAnotherSuperhero"The first draft of anything is ***"- Ernest Hemingway

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]I've been a lurker for a while, and really enjoy this newsgroup. I just finished my first, um, first draft ... INT. BANK - NIGHT. would those be considered the same day? or two different days? I hope this is clear.[/nq]
Always.
[nq:1]2. When describing action, what do you put in caps? on my draft I caps'ed everyone that had some relevant part to it (whether they spoke or not.) Is that right or not?[/nq]
Put each new major character's name in caps on FIRST APPEARANCE ONLY. Thereafter Upper/Lower Case.
Some writers (including me) cap major props and sound effects but there's no need to to do this, and it's probably better to avoid it in a spec script.
For all format questions, get hold of The Screenwriters Bible by David Trottier.

"They loved him up, and turned him into a... ***** toad." O Brother Where Art Thou?

Usenet · Answer

Thanks for the quick reply! And just to clarify, the First appearance only is for the whole movie, NOT for the first apperance in the scene, right?
YetAnotherSuperhero

"The first draft of anything is ***"
- Ernest Hemingway

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Sorry to be a bother, but "Major" character, not a thug even if he speaks a line and appears only once?

"The first draft of anything is ***"
- Ernest Hemingway

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Thanks for the quick reply! And just to clarify, the First appearance only is for the whole movie, NOT for the first apperance in the scene, right?[/nq]
That's correct.
[nq:1]Sorry to be a bother, but "Major" character, not a thug even if he speaks a line and appears only once?[/nq]
I cap the first appearance of every character, unless they're part of some background crowd, and even then if that person-in-the-crowd is going to come forward in the drama in some way.
Basically, I cap the person's name at the same time the audience/reader ought to be noticing them as someone with a part in the drama.

Alan Brooks

A with an Underwood
INT. BENEATH THE CRYSTAL STAIRCASE NIGHT
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Great! Thanks for the help. Time to clean it up now.

"The first draft of anything is ***"
- Ernest Hemingway

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]Always. Put each new major character's name in caps on ... questions, get hold of The Screenwriters Bible by David Trottier.[/nq]
[nq:1]Sorry to be a bother, but "Major" character, not a thug even if he speaks a line and appears only once?[/nq]
I'd do it for any speaking part. Others don't they restrict it to those who get dialogue in multiple scenes. Your mileage may vary.

"They loved him up, and turned him into a... ***** toad." O Brother Where Art Thou?

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Thanks for the quick reply! And just to clarify, the First appearance only is for the whole movie, NOT for the first apperance in the scene, right?[/nq]
Yes first appearance in the movie.

"They loved him up, and turned him into a... ***** toad." O Brother Where Art Thou?

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Some writers (including me) cap major props and sound effects but there's no need to to do this, and it's probably better to avoid it in a spec script.[/nq]
In the old days (and still on some TV shows) you were supposed to CAP certain things to make sure that the departments don't miss them.

Now, that's not really neccesary (except of certain TV shows, mostly three-camera, live-studio-audience type stuff, where, for example, certain lighting and sound cues will be capped because some tech somewhere needs to remember to hit them.) This stuff is all covered in breakdown meetings.
So you have the liberty of capping, selectively, for emphasis.

But be REAL selective about this.
It gets VERY annoying when a NEWBIE screenwriter CAPS every other WORD. DON'T be one of the people who DOES THAT.
I might have five or six words capped for emphasis in an entire script. I don't think I've ever had more than that.
-Ron

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]I've been a lurker for a while, and really enjoy ... day? or two different days? I hope this is clear.[/nq]
[nq:1]Always.[/nq]
I still say this is one of those many cases of "there are no absolutes." Most writers, most of the time will stick DAY or NIGHT on every slugline. But not all, and not always.
For one thing, when doing a series of short, related scenes, or when you've got a character moving through "sub-locations" that have mini-sluglines, many writers leave off the time thing after establishing it. And I can't be the only one who's done a script that all took place over a very short period of time, making it totally unnecessary to keep saying DAY over and over again. After using DAY on the intitial sluglines, it stayed off until the sun went down halfway through. Then NIGHT appeared on sluglines for a page or two, and once it was clear that NIGHT was here to stay, it too was dropped in favor of slimmer slugs again.

Admittedly, this example is far from the standard way of doing it, but I don't think any writer would get in trouble for something along those lines.
If a script looks slick, and reads smoothly, no buyer (or buyer's gatekeeper) is going to put much thought into a writer's faithfulness to traditional formatting rules for sluglines they're just skimming over anyway.

Ken

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