DEUS'S ONE MINUTE FORMAT GUIDE
Part I of III
Format makes it easy to know at a glance what the characters are doing and saying.
First rule of format: CLOSE IS CLOSE ENOUGH.
Don't obsess over margins and measurements, indicated below in brackets.
If it looks like script format - it is the right format.
The following is not carved in stone, they are conventions.
Some writers may have smaller or larger margins. Some writers may use more or less blank lines.
It doesn't matter so long as you approximate the look of a script.
Now that I have said what doesn't matter, I'll tell you what does matter. If you can tell at a glance that there is something wrong with the format, and readers have seen enough scripts to be able to do it, then you have a problem with your format.
Readers aren't going to get out a ruler and measure your margins, but they can tell at a glance if there are easy to see sluglines, if the dialogue is centered and if the font is exceptionally small or big. This sends the message that you have not yet learned the basics of screenwriting so a reader can expect the same level of expertise with the higher and more complex aspects of craftsmanship.
SLUGLINES
Capitalized. Indicates where and when the action happens.
Blank line
(1.5") INT. LOCATION - DAY (1")
Blank line
INT = Interior
EXT = exterior
The first elements in a slugline (int/ext) indicate where the scene is perceived from, i.e. the location you imagine the camera or the audience's POV for the action.
If you imagine seeing the action from outside of a car or house, it is EXT.
If you imagine seeing the action from inside a car or house, it is INT.
It doesn't matter if the car is a convertible or if the windows of the house are open, what matters is if the audience's POV is from INSIDE the structure/vessel/vehicle or from outside of the structure/vessel/vehicle.
Next is the location of the action.
Be specific, clear and concise.
INT. JACK'S BEDROOM
EXT. FRED'S CONVERTIBLE
INT. KITCHEN
Next comes the Time of Day (TOD). As a rule of thumb, it is always best to use either DAY or NIGHT regardless of if there is actually any natural light in the scene. Even in scenes where there is no natural sunrise and sunset like in space or deep underground, it helps to use day and night to keep track of the story's time line.
DAY = Action occurring during the hours after DAWN and before DUSK, including sunrise, sunset and twilight. Basically any time when the sun's light might naturally be visible.
NIGHT = Action occurring after DUSK and before DAWN. Basically any time the sun's light is not naturally visible.
You can use SUNSET, SUNRISE, MORNING and AFTERNOON or leave the TOD off for those stories that do not have natural sunlight.
DAY and NIGHT are conventions, not rules. Unless you have a very specific reason for not using the convention, you should stick with it.
INT. LOCATION - DAY
EXT. LOCATION - NIGHT
Miscellaneous slugline info can be the use of:
CONTINUOUS for the TOD to indicate an unbroken continuous temporal connection between two scenes. (one immediately after the other)
INT. LOCATION - CONTINUOUS
SAME for the TOD to indicate two scenes happening at exactly the same time as each other. (one overlapping the other)
INT. LOCATION - SAME
(FLASHBACK) to indicate a jump backward in the story's temporal line.
INT. LOCATION - DAY (FLASHBACK)
(UNDERWATER) to indicate action occurring under water.
EXT. SUBMARINE - DAY (UNDERWATER)
ACTION
Blank line.
(1.5") Action block (1")
Blank line.
An account of the action and sounds that are necessary to understand how and why the story unfolds. Basically it is almost everything the audience sees and hears (except for dialogue spoken by characters).
The reason I say almost is because there isn't room for details and minutia that are not relevant to the advancing narrative.
A good rule of thumb is to imagine you are in a theatre describing a movie, as it plays, to a blind friend sitting next to you. You don't want to get caught up on details and scenery because you will fall behind the film, you need to focus only on what is necessary to understand the unfolding story.
In other words, focus on what we see (usually what the character does) and what we hear (usually what the character hears) that advances the story.
There is a rule of thumb that information that is not "filmable" should never be included.
This is partly correct but if taken to an extreme it could drain your story of the details that help the reader to envision the story and reduce it to a "see Jack run" story.
Here's my only rule: Include only that which advances the story and/or shades what is being seen and heard so it changes it and gives it a more filmic quality without distracting from or impeding the read.
Do that and you will be fine.
As a rule of thumb you should keep your action blocks to four lines or less, with a blank line between each "block" of action.
Some use one space after a period, some use two. It doesn't matter one way or the other.
NAME HEADERS
Blank line.
(3.5") NAME (1")
Dialogue.
Capitalize. Indicates the character who is speaking the block of dialogue.
NAME (V.O.) indicates VOICE OVER, used when a character's voice is heard from a non-organic source, like hearing a character's thoughts or from a radio or telephone or intercom.
NAME (O.S.) indicates OFF SCREEN, used when a character's voice is heard from an organic source like a character calling out from under a blanket or from an adjacent room or from an air duct.
You can also use extensions like NAME (ON PHONE) or NAME (VOICE) or even combine them like NAME ON PHONE or NAME'S VOICE.
The key is to make whatever you use logical, clear, concise and used consistently.
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