Why write sluglines in a spec script?

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  • Why write sluglines in a spec script?

    The A Slugline Is not A Scene thread brought up an interesting question. Why do we put sluglines or master scene headings in a spec spript?

    Why not just tell the story without breaking it up into units preceded by master scene headings?

    Why not just write present tense narrative (action/description) and dialogue that is formatted like a script, but without the sluglines. Let whoever buys the screenplay create a shooting script which specifies the location and content of each scene.

    They do this anyway. The spec script gets revised prior to production, so why bother with master scene headings (sluglines)?

  • #2
    Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

    Because it helps clarify the story in the mind of the reader, and that is never a bad thing.
    "So I guess big parts of our youth are supposed to suck. Otherwise we'd get too attached and wake up one day trapped on a hamster wheel that used to look like a merri-go-round." - Hal Sparks

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    • #3
      Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

      Yeah, it would probably make the story confusing as heck if a reader isn't completely focused and make it a whole lot a work just to figure out the structure and where he is as opposed to using that energy to get into and enjoying the story. Not fun. Not good.

      Corona
      I love you, Reyna . . .

      Brown-Balled by the Hollywood Clika

      Latino Heart Project's MEXICAN HEART...ATTACK!
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      • #4
        Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

        What you all say makes sense. Sluglines (Master Scene headings and Secondary Slugs) serve a very useful function to enhance the read and flow of a screenplay.

        It seems to me that knowing where to insert a slug is part of the art of writing a screenplay. Sluglines take us from place to place and one time to another time, cleanly, quickly, and without excess verbage.

        I think it is academic what we call the place and time following a slug. We can call it a scene, a unit of action, a focused object or location in a scene, whatever.

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        • #5
          Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

          Also, if you can't write a screenplay that looks like a screenplay, many people will assume you don't know what you are doing. It's like dressing inappropriatelly for a job interview. Once you make a bad first impression, probably nothing else you say can make up for it.

          In any field where too many people are trying to break in, there isn't room for everybody nor time to read every wannabe's spec, so the gatekeepers make some snap decisions about who to throw into the "forgetabout-it pile" -- those who don't conform to the field's most basic conventions. It's human nature. "That guy doesn't have a clue! One less script I need to bother reading."

          There is some leeway in how to format a screenplay, but there are some norms, too.

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          • #6
            Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

            I recall Deus saying he also works the location into the Action because readers skim over the Scene Headings.

            And you must consider that novels are bought all the time and converted directly into Shooting Scripts. They don't have Scene Headings and readers (even the general public) seem to understand what's going on.

            It would be nice to remove the Scene Headings and have four to five more pages to devote to story, but listen to Joan.
            "I am the story itself; its source, its voice, its music."
            - Clive Barker, Galilee

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            • #7
              Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

              Originally posted by jonpiper View Post
              I think it is academic what we call the place and time following a slug. We can call it a scene, a unit of action, a focused object or location in a scene, whatever.
              A rose by any other name smells as sweet. Just don’t ask me to smell (or like) a rose that doesn’t have a scent. It may be pretty to look at, but it's not all there.

              (Sorry, my mistake, this reply belongs in the other thread.)
              "I am the story itself; its source, its voice, its music."
              - Clive Barker, Galilee

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              • #8
                Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                And Deus was a recent finalist in the Nicholl Fellowship and sold the screenplay to a production company. Where is his/her work posted?

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                • #9
                  Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                  Umm, hmm...

                  Well I'm not that old, and not that wise, but i figure it has to do with a visual conception your trying to covey to the reader.

                  Scripts are a modern version of plays. Plays have scene changes. Basically location or time changes, so that you can tell a larger story in a short period of time. If your incredibly interested you should study Greek theatre and how these ideas have been developed over a thousand year period.

                  In a play the Scene changes, taking time and the stage is covered. It's this seemless illusion of scene change that's even more important in a change of SLUG LINE in a script.

                  These endocentric ideas that you argue seem pointless.
                  (IE: why split up books into chapters)

                  For what i know(and I don't know much at all):
                  In a spec script, the script isn't re-written to make into a shooting script. The script has a blank back page adjacent to the written page. On this page a DP can write out the shot selection need for each Location/Slug.
                  But this wily god never discloses even to the skillful questioner the whole content of his wisdom.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                    Because Mommy said so!

                    Kind of what Joan said - but it's the same reason why use Courier instead of some other font, etc. That's just the way it's done (and the less time you spend trying to change that, the more time you can spend on important things like the actual writing).

                    One reason for format is that it helps measure - how long is this script compared to that script? Is this script going to end up a film under 2 hours? Is it going to be too short? If things are *uniform* we can instantly weed out the stuff that doesn't fit. If things are uniform, we can instantly tell what doesn't belong. And if things are uniform we can focus on the writing - the part that's unique and innovative and interesting.

                    - Bill
                    Free Script Tips:
                    http://www.scriptsecrets.net

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                    • #11
                      Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                      Good point about the length-measuring factor, Bill.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                        What Bill and Joan said.

                        Also, length, number of locations, type of locations, are big factors in the cost of production.

                        Cost of production is a major issue, if not the major issue, for anyone buying a script.
                        If you really like it you can have the rights
                        It could make a million for you overnight

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                        • #13
                          Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                          Scene Headings / Sluglines need to be in the spec script to provide some elementary format. It is just like putting the Character Name above dialogue and keeping dialogue lines between 3-4 inches in length. Even in a spec script you follow some of the format that goes into the shooting script.

                          "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

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                          • #14
                            Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                            Originally posted by ComicBent View Post
                            ... and keeping dialogue lines between 3-4 inches in length. ...
                            Don't you mean 3 - 4 lines?

                            Just don't be the first on the block to stop using Scene Headings.

                            The use of Scene Headings is just a part of the current formatting trend. Just like Transitions were part of the current trend at one time. Once (and if) Scene Headings are ever considered to be unnecessary (redundant, there's a better way, Bill stopped using sluglines, etc.) they will also fall by the wayside.

                            The "difference in length- is not an issue because once everyone stops using sluglines you can compare the lengths of scripts. It used to be 120 pages was the standard/average for a 120 minute movie. Now, since writing has become tighter, you can still get a 120 minute movie from a 110 page script. There's nothing wrong with a future average of 106 pages.

                            Just don't be the first on the block to stop using Scene Headings.
                            "I am the story itself; its source, its voice, its music."
                            - Clive Barker, Galilee

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                            • #15
                              Re: Why write sluglines in a spec script?

                              All of the above are good reasons why we write master scene headings into a spec script.

                              It took me a few months to realize that a completed spec script is only the first of many steps required to transform our story into a movie. But before it can be transformed it must be bought.

                              With this in mind I now realize that a spec script should be both easy to read and easy to transform into a shooting scrip.

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