Module 6

Can a contractor build a house or an office building without being able to understand the architect's blueprints or plans? Not likely.

In the same way, key production personnel must understand the basics of scripts before they can create a production from a script.

A comprehensive guide to scriptwriting is beyond the scope of this course; however, when you get through with this module you should be able to understand scripts and even have a good start on being able to write one. (Keep in mind that we said that the most traveled route to producing is through writing.)

"Excuse Me, Mr. Brinkley..."

Many years ago, one of my TV production students was eating dinner in a Miami restaurant when he saw David Brinkley, one of the most experienced and respected network anchorpersons of all time, eating at a nearby table.* The student boldly went up to Mr. Brinkley and introduced himself as an aspiring TV journalist.

"Mr. Brinkley, what advice could you give me to be successful in broadcast journalism."

David Brinkley, who won more awards in news than any radio or TV newscaster in history, put down his fork, thought about the question for a moment, and said, "Three things: Learn to write. Learn to write. And learn to write."

Although you can learn the basics of writing here or in a good book, you can only become a good writer by writing.

Doing lots of writing.

Most successful writers spend years writing before they start "getting it right"-at least right enough to consistently start making money from what they do.

In a sense, initial failures aren't failures at all, they're a prerequisite for success.

Thomas Edison said, "Genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration. Accordingly, a  'genius' is often merely a talented person who has done all of his or her homework."

So here we go with this little bit of "homework."

First, keep in mind that writing for the electronic media is not the same as writing for print. Those who write for print enjoy some advantages that their broadcast counterparts don't have.

For example, a reader can go back and reread a sentence. If a sentence is not understood in a TV production, the meaning is lost-or worse, the listener is distracted for some time trying to figure out what was said.

With the written word such things as chapter divisions, paragraphs, subheadings, and italics and boldface type guide the reader. Plus, the spelling of sound-alike words can indicate their meaning.

Things are different when you are writing for the ear.

Since narration should be delivered in a conversational style, the standard rules of punctuation sometimes aren't followed. Ellipses...three dots...are commonly used to designate pauses. Often, complete sentences are not used...just as they aren't used in normal conversation. An extra helping of commas is often used to provide clues to phrasing.

Although such usage is sometimes inconsistent with proper written form, and your English 101 teacher might not approve, the overriding consideration in writing narration is clarity, and that entails making it easy for an announcer to read.

The way we perceive verbal information also complicates things.

When we read, we see words in groups or thought patterns. This helps us grasp the meaning. But, when we listen to something that is being said, information is delivered one word at a time.

To make sense out of a sentence we must retain the first words in memory while adding all subsequent words to them, until the sentence or thought is complete.

If the sentence is too complex or takes too long to unfold, meaning is missed or confused. Of course, a narrator can go a long way toward insuring understanding through proper phrasing, word emphasis, etc. This gives the spoken word a major advantage over the written word.

Broadcast Style

Video scripts are written in what has become known as broadcast style. With allowance for sentence variety, this means that video scripts use short, concise, direct sentences. Unnecessary words are weeded out.

It is not saying "at this point in time" when you mean "now." It's not saying "close proximity," when "proximity" means "close." It's not saying "completely destroyed" when "destroyed" means complete destruction.

You should also be aware of the difference between words such as further and farther.  This type of list is a long one. 

Why does it make a difference?

There are listeners "out there" who will catch you on these things and try to embarrass you by proving their "superior" grasp of the English language. (It happens regularly!) And, by the way, you don't want one of these people to be someone reviewing one of your job application audition tapes.

Before we end this short lesson, we need to mention the use of "words" that, technically, aren't words, as, for example, "irregardless."    

All this having been said, the English language is constantly changing. Things which were deemed "wrong" at one point come into regular usage-and then are accepted. "Close proximity" is an example of a phrase that is becoming accepted.  "Whom," even when correctly used in speech, now sounds stilted.

Facts must be taut, verbs strong and active; a script should crackle.

In broadcast style avoid dependent clauses at the beginning of sentences. Attribution should come at the beginning of sentences ("According to the Surgeon General...") rather than putting attribution at the end of the sentence, which is common in newspaper writing - "Bla, bla, bla, according to the Surgeon General." In broadcast style we want to know from the very beginning who's doing "the saying."

The classic reference on writing clarity and simplicity is a little 70-page book by Strunk and White written in 1959 (but regularly updated) called Elements of Style. Even seasoned journalists keep this little book handy.

A recent book on punctuation, which was on the best-sellers list throughout 2004, is the humorous Eats, Shoots and Leaves. Who would ever believe an instructional book on a mundane subject like punctuation could make the New York Times Best-Sellers List? But, as the saying goes, "It's not what you say, but how you say it." - which is important to keep in mind when writing scripts.

Ten Newswriting Guidelines  

With a bit of help from Ms. Debrah Potter of RTNDF (the Radio Television News Directors' Foundation), here are ten guidelines for writing news.

1. While making sure you bring the most interesting and surprising elements of the story to the forefront, don't give everything away right at the beginning. Maintain interest by spreading these "nuggets" throughout the story. Plus, try not to let the studio lead-in steal all the thunder from the story.

2. Use active voice: subject, verb, and object.

3. Remember that nouns and verbs are stronger than adjectives and adverbs. Don't tell viewers what they should be feeling by using adjectives, especially shopworn adjectives, such as "tragic," "amazing," stunning," etc. If the facts in your story don't make such things obvious, you might want to reexamine your approach to the story.

4. Avoid jargon; use terms that are well-known.

5. Include defining details: the make of the car, the type of trees being cut down, etc.

6. Once you get your notes on the story in mind, write (tell!) the story as if you were trying to catch the interest of a friend.  Try following up on the phrases, "Guess what...," or, "This may be hard to believe, but...."

7. After the story is written, try to set it aside for 10 minutes or longer and concentrate on something else. Then, with a bit of a fresh perspective go back and review your story. Cut out every unnecessary phrase and word. Make sure that nothing could be deleted without hurting the story. 

8. Read the story out loud (not under your breath). Rewrite -

• sentences that are too long
• tongue-twisting or awkward phrases
• phrases that could be taken two ways
• long titles ("The 18-year-old, College Park Central High sophomore...").

9. Don't rely on the sound track to tell the story or explain the video. The basic idea of the story should be obvious from the video. At the same time, the audio and video should complement and strengthen each other. (See the section below.)

10. Screen the complete audio and video story (package) as if you were a doubting-Thomas critic. Have you made statements that could be challenged?   Ideally, your clearly-stated and verified facts will silence any rational critic.    

Correlate Audio and Video

Since viewers are used to having what they are seeing on the TV screen relate to what they are hearing-generally in the form of dialogue or narration-the basic guideline of correlating (relating) audio and video should be kept in mind. (Note that the intentionally long an complex sentence you just read would not be approved for broadcast style.) If viewers are seeing one thing and hearing about another, things can get confusing.

Even though you will want audio and video to relate, watch out for the "see Dick run" approach where the audio states the obvious. If you can clearly see what's happening on the screen, this can get downright annoying.

Although radio drama had to slip many things into the dialogue to tip off the listeners to what they couldn't see ("Emma, why are you staring out the window?"), this is hardly the case in TV where you should be able to see what's taking place.

The trick is to write slightly off the pictures. This means that while you don't describe the pictures, your words aren't so far removed from what is being seen that you split viewer attention. This technique involves a delicate balancing act.
   

Information Overload

With more than 100 TV channels available to viewers in some areas and millions of pages of information available on the Internet-to name just two sources of information-one of today's biggest problems is information overload.

In TV production the goal is not just to unload information on viewers. To be successful we must engage our audience and clearly communicate selected information in a manner that will both enlighten and entertain.

We can only absorb a limited amount of information at a time. Keep in mind that the average viewer has internal and external distractions, preconceptions, etc., which get in the way of the communication process.

If a script is packed with too many facts, or the information is not clearly presented, the viewer will become confused, lost, and frustrated-and simply tune to another channel.
  

Lost vs. Bored

Not only is the amount of information you want to communicate important, but also the rate at which information is presented.

In information-centered productions you need to give the viewer a chance to process each idea before moving on to the next. If you move too rapidly, you'll lose your audience; too slowly, and you'll bore them.

The best approach in presenting crucial information in an instructional production is to first signal the viewer that something important is coming up. Next, present the information as simply and clearly as possible. Then reinforce the point through repetition, or with an illustration or two.

In summary, here are seven general rules to remember in writing for television. Some of these apply to instructional productions, some to dramatic productions, some to both.

• Assume a conversational tone by using short sentences and an informal, approachable style.
   
• Engage your audience emotionally, make them care about both the people and content of your production.
   
• Provide adequate logical structure. Let viewers know where you are going, which points are key concepts, and when you are going to change the subject.
   
• After making an important point, expound on it, illustrate it.
   
• Don't try to pack too many facts into one program.
   
• Give your audience a chance to digest one concept before moving on to another.
   
• Pace your presentation according to the ability of your target audience to grasp the concepts.  
      

Video Grammar

Some people argue that, unlike writing, video and film production don't have any standardized grammar (i.e., conventions or structure).

Although video has abandoned much of the grammar established by early films, even in this MTV era we can still use various techniques to add structure to our productions.

In dramatic productions lap-dissolves (where two video sources overlap for a few seconds during the transition from one to the other) often signal a change in time or place.

Fade-ins and fade-outs, which apply to both audio and video, can be likened to the beginning and ending of book chapters. A fade-out consists of a two- or three-second transition from a full signal to black and silence. And, of course, a fade-in is the opposite.

Fade-ins and fade-outs often signal a major change or division in a production, such as a major passage of time. (But "often" is a long way from "always.")

Traditionally, teleplays (television plays) and screenplays (film scripts) start with a fade in and close with a fade out.
   

Script Terms and Abbreviations

A number of terms and abbreviations are used in scriptwriting. First, there are those that describe camera movements.

When the entire camera is moved toward or away from the subject it's referred to as a dolly. A zoom, which is an optical version of a dolly, achieves somewhat the same effect. A script notation might say, "camera zooms in for closeup of John," or "camera zooms out to show that John is not alone." When a lateral move is needed, the term is truck. Note the illustration on the left.

Then there are terms that designate shots.

Cuts or takes are instant transitions from one video source to another. Put in grammatical terms, shots can be likened to sentences where each shot is a visual statement.

The cover shot and establishing shot are designations for a wide shot (WS) or a long shot (LS). This type of shot gives an audience a basic orientation to the geography of a scene-who is standing where, etc.-after which you cut to closer shots.  In the relatively low-resolution medium of standard definition television (SDTV) this type of shot is visually weak, simply because important details aren't easy to see. Film and HDTV (high-definition television) don't have quite the same problem.

Cover or establishing shots should be held only long enough to orient viewers to the relationship between major scene elements. Thereafter, they can be momentarily used as reminders or updates on scene changes-so-called reestablishing shots.

In the video column of television scripts the shorthand designation for a cover shot or establishing shot is normally  LS, for long shot. Occasionally, the abbreviations XLS, for extreme long shot, or VLS, for very long shot, will be used.

So that you can see how some of these things come together, here are some sample scripts.

Simple video script
Dramatic film/video script format
Commercial script
News script

Television and film scripts are available on the Internet for study. (See the section on Internet Resources at the end of this module.)

Whthin the script itself you will find the following shot designations:

LS-long shot or FS (full shot). With people, this is a shot from the top of their heads to their feet. When applied to talent a MS is normally a shot from the waist up. (To save space we've used a vertical rather than a horizontal format in this illustration.)

On a person, a MCU (medium closeup) is a shot cropped between the shoulders and the belt line.

A relatively straight-on CU (closeup) is the most desirable for interviews. Changing facial expressions, which are important to understanding a conversation, can easily be seen.

XCUs are extreme closeups. On people this type of shot is reserved for dramatic impact. The XCU shot may show just the eyes of an individual. With objects an XCU is often necessary to reveal important detail.

A two-shot or three-shot (also 2-S and 3-S) designates a shot of two or three people in one scene.

The term subjective shot indicates that the audience (camera) will see what the character sees. It often indicates a handheld camera shot that moves in a walking or running motion while following a character. Subjective camera shots can add drama and frenzy to chase scenes.

Camera angles are sometimes indicated on scripts. Included are bird's eye view, high angle, eye-level, and low angle. A canted shot or a Dutch angle shot (note photo on left) is tilted 25 to 45 degrees to one side, causing horizontal lines to run up or down hill.

Although a scriptwriter occasionally feels it necessary to indicate camera shots and angles on a script, this is an area that's best left to the  director. Even so, in dramatic scripts you may find the term camera finds to indicate that the camera moves in on a particular portion of a scene; camera goes with to indicate the camera moves with a person or object; reverse angle to indicate a near 180-degree shift in camera position; and shot widens to signal a zoom or dolly back.

In addition, there are a number of other abbreviations used in scriptwriting.

• EXT and INT- are used to indicate exterior and interior settings.
   
• SOT-sound-on-tape. This indicates that the voice, music, or background sound will be from the audio track of a videotape.
   
• SOF-sound-on-film. (Not much used any more because today everything is converted to a video recording before use.)
   
• VTR-videotape, videotape recording. (As we will later see, video and audio tape are now being replaced by computer disks and solid-state memory.)
   
• VO (voice over) refers to narration heard over a video source. It can also refer to narration heard at a higher level than a source of music or background sound.
   
• OSV-off-screen voice. The voice indicated on the script is from a person who is not visible.
   
• MIC-microphone (pronounced "mike")
   
• POV-point of view. Dramatic scripts will often note that a shot will be seen from the point of view of a particular actor.
   
• OS-over-the-shoulder shot. The picture shows the back of one person's head and possibly one shoulder. These are also designated as O/S and X/S shots.
   
• ANNCR-announcer.
   
• KEY-the electronic overlay of titles and credits over background video.
   
• SFX or F/X-special effects. These may be audio special effects (audio FX) or video special effects-effects that alter reality.

With this basic background established, we'll turn to some "bottom line" considerations in the next module. 

*After a 50-year career in broadcast news, David Brinkley, who won more awards in news than any radio or TV newscaster in history, died in June, 2003, a few weeks before his 83rd birthday. David Brinkley and his TV news co-anchor, Chet Huntley, are credited with establishing the popularity and credibility of TV news in the United States. Mr. Brinkley had to give up covering presidential candidates, because he was so recognizable that when he accompanied the candidate, more people would gather around him than the candidate.

Noted for his sage observations, he once pointed out that history provides many examples of generals seizing power and putting journalists in jail. But it provides no examples of reporters seizing power and putting generals in jail.

Internet Resources

A free, comprehensive scriptwriting program for Windows computers is available here.

You can find free demo programs of scriptwriting and general production software on the Internet at bcsoftware and screenplay, among other places.

The site that offers the widely-used Final Draft scriptwriting software also has a forum where scriptwriters and aspiring scriptwriters can register and exchange ideas and information.

Many writing tools are available to both professional and aspiring writers at The Writers' Store in Los Angeles.