Post by Hal Berlin on Feb 24, 2010 3:29:42 GMT -5
Getting your script past the reader is both very difficult and very simple. It's difficult because you have to - at once - craft up a compelling story, introduce colorful characters, craft tight scenes, design compelling sequences, keep the action moving, avoid detours or pitfalls, and spice the whole mix with an undefinable but completely necessary verve. But it is very simple, because all you have to do is keep the reader interested. Let me say that again. Keep the reader interested. Do it, and you're fine.
There is a very simple reason for this, easily illustrated by personal experience. Most scripts I got assigned were very boring. Nobody wants to read boring scripts. And writing coverage on boring scripts is even worse. Because boring writing is unmemorable writing, and half of any given coverage involves trying to remember and synopsize the plot. (Oh the temptation to fake synopses! But I resisted evil and remained good. ) So if you wrote a script that I wanted to finish, and could easily remember, it meant something. Something big. It didn't even have to be that good! Just memorable. (Although this counter my point, it is possible to write something so bad you can't forget it. Come to think of it, this might be a good exercise -- write the WORST script possible)
Now, making a script memorable involves the application of significant craft. I happen to believe that this craft doesn't come from reading screenplay gurus but mostly from intelligently watching movies and screenplays and analyzing both the movie and your own response: figuring out what appeals to you and what makes you want to throw a rock at the television.
But there are some stupid monkey tricks that will make your script an easier and more enjoyable read.
And the first one is the pageturner. You're probably familiar with cliffhangers. Old serial technique where you get the audience hooked by ending an episode with the hero's car flying off a cliff into an ocean of flames and thorns, or whatever. You'd be hard pressed to find a television show that doesn't, in some attenuated sense, use the technique today. Even the news does it: don't change channels because just after this commercial break you'll find out what household fruit causes CANCER. But it is used (and overused) because it works.
And it also works for the page. Here's how. Think of each page as a mini-act. And think of turning the page (yes, this sounds stupid) as the ad. Now turning the page isn't a big distraction, but it is a distraction. And it's always easy to say -- this is boring, I'm going to go smoke a cigarette after this page and wish that I had applied to grad school.
So here's what you can do: you set up a little surprise or turn at the end of the page. Doesn't have to be every page, although it could be. But give us something that makes us want to turn the page. Some little mystery. This is the pageturner.
Now, obviously, this can be overused or completely unnecessary. But your job is to make your script exciting to read, and this is a simple, if cheap way to do it. So think about each page as a dramatic unit. Don't over think it, of course. But consider it.
There is a very simple reason for this, easily illustrated by personal experience. Most scripts I got assigned were very boring. Nobody wants to read boring scripts. And writing coverage on boring scripts is even worse. Because boring writing is unmemorable writing, and half of any given coverage involves trying to remember and synopsize the plot. (Oh the temptation to fake synopses! But I resisted evil and remained good. ) So if you wrote a script that I wanted to finish, and could easily remember, it meant something. Something big. It didn't even have to be that good! Just memorable. (Although this counter my point, it is possible to write something so bad you can't forget it. Come to think of it, this might be a good exercise -- write the WORST script possible)
Now, making a script memorable involves the application of significant craft. I happen to believe that this craft doesn't come from reading screenplay gurus but mostly from intelligently watching movies and screenplays and analyzing both the movie and your own response: figuring out what appeals to you and what makes you want to throw a rock at the television.
But there are some stupid monkey tricks that will make your script an easier and more enjoyable read.
And the first one is the pageturner. You're probably familiar with cliffhangers. Old serial technique where you get the audience hooked by ending an episode with the hero's car flying off a cliff into an ocean of flames and thorns, or whatever. You'd be hard pressed to find a television show that doesn't, in some attenuated sense, use the technique today. Even the news does it: don't change channels because just after this commercial break you'll find out what household fruit causes CANCER. But it is used (and overused) because it works.
And it also works for the page. Here's how. Think of each page as a mini-act. And think of turning the page (yes, this sounds stupid) as the ad. Now turning the page isn't a big distraction, but it is a distraction. And it's always easy to say -- this is boring, I'm going to go smoke a cigarette after this page and wish that I had applied to grad school.
So here's what you can do: you set up a little surprise or turn at the end of the page. Doesn't have to be every page, although it could be. But give us something that makes us want to turn the page. Some little mystery. This is the pageturner.
Now, obviously, this can be overused or completely unnecessary. But your job is to make your script exciting to read, and this is a simple, if cheap way to do it. So think about each page as a dramatic unit. Don't over think it, of course. But consider it.
