# How To Write Short Film?



## newkidintown (Sep 21, 2012)

I've been writing prose for a while, but lately, I've found it easier to write long blocks of dialogue and brief, concise accounts of actions rather than descriptions and narrative. And I love short films anyway, so I thought I'd try my hand at writing them. 

I've done some homework on the topic; I already know a few language cliches/things to avoid, how to write for either little to no budget, not to write in how to film, only what to film, some basics of formatting (Pretty much all I know here is to capitalize the character's name when first introduced, avoid overusing "CUT TO", capitalize setting, and specify the setting as INT. or EXT.), and a few other miscillaneous things. And if it makes any difference, I'm interested in silent animation and non-silent live action. So here are my questions:

1. What's the deal with the Writer's Guild? Is it for major, feature-producing companies only, or would I still have to register a script for a short and/or become a member?

2. What are some huge beginnerish mistakes that you wish someone told you early on?

3. When is the use of "CUT TO" appropriate?

4. What are the big differences between prose and film, aside from the obvious (like no descriptions and whatnot)?

5. Any advice specifically for writing short film?

6. What are some good screenplays I could read online? (I've already read some of Dead Poets Society, Forrest Gump, and a couple John Hughes movies, although they're all features)

7. What are some examples of really bad screenplays?

8. Any good "example shorts"?

9. Any other advice?

10. This is probably an overdone question, but my first script is sort of like a really short version of that first part of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, only its plot involves procrastinating from doing math homework. There's a complication, but it's nothing huge. This is just a practice screenplay, but just so I know going forward; how much more action is needed for a script to be any good, or is it actually decent as is? (I'm getting ready to write the logline, would it help if I posted that?)

I'm sorry if this is an overdone topic, but most of the advice I see is for writing features.


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## Tripper1963 (Oct 8, 2012)

Hi new kid
i have written for tv soaps and a lot of the same rules apply
i was wondering do you have a story planned in other words a simple 5 or 10 minute short
have you considered a story board to begin just to have it down on paper as a draft
want to post an opening scene and i have a look at it no problem


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## L.K.Scott (Mar 2, 2013)

Congrats on your decision to writing films. It's a very lucrative decision when executed properly. Hopefully I can answer some of these questions for you.

*1.**What's the deal with the Writer's Guild? Is it for major, feature-producing companies only, or would I still have to register a script for a short and/or become a member?*
In order to be a part of the Writer's Guild of America, you must have a piece of work to register. Ideas by themselves cannot be registered. Anyone can register his or her script. That means a common housewife to the biggest film executive. Literally, anyone who has written a script of any length can log on to the website and register his or her piece(s) of work. It is a good idea though, in addition to registering your script with WGA, you should also obtain a copyright license from the U.S. Government's copyright pages. To register with WGA is approximately $20 per work and just a bit more for the Government's copyrighting process. It's a good idea to register with the government through every draft of your script. The perks of registering your script with the WGA is it increases your chance of being recognized as a screenwriter, your script will gain exposure, and it will help guide you along the filmmaking process from your writing phase right up to your completed movie's release date.

2.*What are some huge beginnerish mistakes that you wish someone told you early on?

*Don't put the opening credit shots into the script. That's the director's job. Avoid flashbacks whenever possible, and at the end of your script make sure you write [END] so that the agents, producers, script supervisors, directors and everyone else knows they haven't accidentally lost a page somewhere.

Formatting is a big issue. Make sure you use your headers and sluglines appropriately. (Example: INT. BERTRAM'S HOTEL LOBBY - NIGHT). These are necessary for producers, agents, talent, effects teams, directors and everyone else to, in a way, map out their needs and goals for each scene.

A common beginner mistake, which drives many producers and director's crazy, is the over use of camera angle directions in the script. A screenwriter may have a vision of the film in his or her head, but once the script is completed and passed on to the producer and director, the screenwriter's job is over. It becomes the vision of the director at this point and the director has the right to make the camera directions/shots as he or she pleases. The only time it is acceptable for a screenwriter to give these camera directions is if it's something incredibly important to the plot. For example, if a sleuth in a mystery film happens to notice a strange pattern on someone's coat that seems insignificant to the plot or characters at the time, but is in fact crucial to later in the story, it is then okay for the screenwriter to add: CU on the shoulder of JACKIE'S COAT. (CU stands for close-up). There is no need to add CU or camera angles on character's expressions. A director already knows through experience and education where the right camera angles should be.

You may also be able to get away with writing camera directions in the script if you are intending to direct the script yourself.

Another big mistake of amateur screenwriting is the lack of sub-text, shallow dialogue, and talking heads. Consider this conversation between Mike and Sam. Mike: "How is your wife doing?" Sam: "She's fine. Did you hear Ted is getting a divorce?" The subtext is Sam is having marital problems and is considering leaving his spouse. If Sam were to say, "I'm getting a divorce." That would be too on-the-nose and make for some very boring dialogue. Also, avoid the talking heads. Talking Head scenes are professional filmmakers way of describing a scene where nothing physically happens. It's boring and not very interesting to look at. Like two old ladies sitting at tea. Just talking. Now if they were having tea while trying not speaking to each other, it could make for a conflicting scene, which is good. Or, they may be having tea in scuba gear at the bottom of a lake. Suddenly it's become a very unusual, interesting scene.

*3. When is the use of "CUT TO" appropriate?
*Cut To is only appropriate in a scene containing a juxtapositional shot. For example, if you are writing a scene about two late teenage girls at a slumber party and one brings over a cheesecake. Girl 1: I can't believe you brought that! I'm trying to loose five pounds. Girl 2: Just one bite? Girl 1: Okay. Just one bite. CUT TO: INT. BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS, The empty cheesecake platter sits empty on the bed surrounded  by crumbs. Girl 1's mouth is full.

You don't need to use Cut To's at the end of the scene. Everyone understands that your scene is over when you use a slugline.

*4. What are the big differences between prose and film, aside from the obvious (like no descriptions and whatnot)?
*Prose films are not very popular or sought out by major companies. I would suggest not using them unless you have a specific image and mood in mind that you can visualize. Remember, movies are about seeing and not thinking so never, not even in prose films, do you want to describe in too much detail the thoughts or emotions of the scene. Some indie writers can pull this off, but it's very difficult and should be treated with extreme caution. Prose films can also be difficult to shoot because prose is a lot of internal elements. Consider Stephen King's novel, The Stand. Much of that book is characters internal dialogue and thoughts. Internal dialogue and thoughts can't be filmed simply because they can't be scene or heard. That's why they are thoughts and thoughts don't make very good movies. Usually.

*5. Any advice specifically for writing short film?
*Every movie must have a structure, regardless of it's length. A five minute film must have a beginning, middle and an ending, full of conflict, plot beats, character beats and resolution, just like an epic 5 hour movie. The difference is, you have to cram it into less pages.

KISS it. Filmmakers use this acronym because it's effective and true since the beginning of time. Keep It Simple Stupid. A simple plot + simple characters + simple progressions can = a very dramatic and impressive film, full of humor, horror or sadness. Explosions cost money so special effects are avoided unless you have the budget for them as well as the first aid people, fire people, weapons master and police needed to shoot a secure scene.

Each page of script equals about one minute of screen time. A five-page script is about five minutes long. Keep that in mind when writing lengthy dialogue. It could cost you more than just your audiences attention.

Watch short films and read short screenplays. Plenty of indie movies are available as well as compilation films that students and local filmmakers have made. Search Amazon.com or even your local video rental house like Hollywood Video. Avoid Redbox and Netflix. Very few titles are available in these systems by comparison to the infinite amount elsewhere.

Attend every local film festival and even consider visiting your local college campus's film department. There are many eager students willing to share their films with anyone who wants to view them.

*6. What are some good screenplays I could read online? (I've already read some of Dead Poets Society, Forrest Gump, and a couple John Hughes movies, although they're all features)
*Features are good to watch also, because they follow the same structure, like we just went over. The only difference is, if your script is 5 pages long, you're inciting incident must happen on page one, your character's "Pt. Hosh." moment (the moment where the character realizes something is false that he or she otherwise believed in as true and now must change his or her strategy to reach the goal) will happen on page 3 and on page 5 you're character will reach his goal, fail at it, or die. Death is a pretty final resolution. Visit Drew's Script-O-Rama page, read some short film scripts available in the film department of your local college/university, or join IMDB.com and find the link to their screenwriter's resource page. Sometimes you can get lucky and get a script to a movie that isn't even shot yet. For example, I read the script Resident Evil by George Romero years before the movie was actually shot. Now of course it's available anywhere online.

Another excellent resource is withoutabox.com it is an excellent filmmaker's resource and one of the most widely used resources by small independent filmmakers to the big Hollywood Executives. Everyone uses it and it's fantastic.

*7. What are some examples of really bad screenplays?
*Where to begin. . . 99.9% of movie scripts submitted to agencies are terrible. An agent or producer will throw out the movie script if it doesn't get their attention in the first five pages. Sometimes even fewer. So pretty much 99.9% of the scripts you find will be downright aggravating. But you are very wise for taking this approach. One of the many mistakes of rather arrogant and naive writers and filmmakers is that they forget that it's just as important to watch/read bad movies as it is good ones. The film _Boogeyman_ was criticized for it's lack of innovation, creativity and poor dialogue. Visit your local video store (not Redbox or Netflix). Browse the shelves until you come across one that you may not have heard of. Don't limit yourself to the New Release section. Browse the various genres. Many people pass over low budget films because they believe that they are bad just because of their budget. In fact, you may be surprised that some low-budget films are much better than blockbuster hits. Consider the artistic _Cheri_ by comparison to the movie _Transformers_. Also the old cult film, _Children Shouldn't Play with Dead things_ was a terrible script with bad dialogue. The zombie makeup effects were pretty scary though. YouTube has an excellent variety of short films, both good and bad.

*8. Any good "example shorts"? 
*I can only recommend Horror because that's where my expertise is. I write horror and mystery/thriller for a living and I can say one of my favorite influential short film production company comes from FEWDIO horror on YouTube. _The Tale of Haunted Mike_ is a really chilling short film about a haunted collector who purchases a haunted item off eBay with horrifying consequences. They aren't usually gory, but they do bring back the fear of the unknown that was popular in 90's paranormal horror.

*9. Any other advice?
*Yes! Read, read, READ! Read EVERYTHING. Read newspaper articles for inspiration, read novels to get a good sense of character, plot and language. Read movie scripts of all lengths and budgets for an idea of format. Pay attention to the events that happen on crucial pages, 1,3,10,20,45,60,75,90, and 100. Know the difference between plot beats and character beats. A movie can get away with a weaker plot if the characters are interesting enough. A great movie always begins with a great script, and don't limit your reading and movies to the genre you are writing for. If you are writing mystery, it's important to know all the details of what makes a good mystery, but don't forget that a great mystery contains a little bit of humor even if it's dry or settle. Horror is strongest when paired with comedy and sexual tension to allow the audience to breath between scares. Tragedy scenes are more tragic when something makes the audience feel happy just before the tragedy occurs.

Read Viki King's _How to Write a Movie Script in 21 Days_. Also read Syd Field's _The Art of Screenwriting _as well as _Save the Cat_.

Learn to take criticism. If you share your script with 100 people, 99 of them will hate it and many of them will lie about it to spare your feelings. That's just the way things are. Take it for a grain of salt, don't take it personally. If you like their suggestions, take them. If you don't like their suggestions, be as polite as you could ever be and always say "thank you". No one in the film industry wants to work with stubborn people. Many writers think their work is perfect, but that's why we have friends who can tell us otherwise. Bad criticism is worth more than good criticism.

Another excellent resource is OasisMagazine.Org where in their "Entertainment" section offers very specific screenwriting guides from real working filmmakers with degrees and successful films. The information available there is the same information you'd get for spending thousands of dollars to attend a university. And of course, writingforums.com is a GREAT way to get one on one help with other intelligent writers.

*10. This is probably an overdone question, but my first script is sort of like a really short version of that first part of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, only its plot involves procrastinating from doing math homework. There's a complication, but it's nothing huge. This is just a practice screenplay, but just so I know going forward; how much more action is needed for a script to be any good, or is it actually decent as is? (I'm getting ready to write the logline, would it help if I posted that?
*I can't really say much about this without actually reading over your script. From what I can say though, it sounds like it's a good concept open to both funny and tragic complications. It's important to know the key plot points all the way through your script when you start writing. Otherwise it'll be difficult to know where your scene is going which means wasted page space and scenes that are too drawn out. Action is important, good dialogue is important, but don't feel like you have to rely on these either. I've seen incredible scenes that contained little to no dialogue at all. WALL-E, for example is a funny children's movie that doesn't use dialogue at all for the entire first act. Same as the movie _9_. Also, the opening sequence of _The Walking Dead_ in the pilot episode. There's about 15 minutes where no word is spoken, but it's still exciting because the protagonist has entered into a terrifying new world.

Go with your instincts, write your puke draft first to get an idea how everything fits together, and then revise it again and again. When you are ready, give it to someone who's opinions you value as well as to strangers. Be prepared to hear negative comments. Take this gratefully. Critics are good. What you don't want to hear is "it's great!" because that doesn't leave you with any room for improvements. 

I know this post was long, but I hope it helps! Happy writing!


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## newkidintown (Mar 2, 2013)

@L.K.Scott: Wow! I just read all of that, and I can't thank you enough for the advice. That really helped a lot.


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## L.K.Scott (Mar 4, 2013)

@newkidintown, hey I know it seems like a lot of information to soak in at once, but there is SO MUCH MORE to know! I've been a filmmaker, screenwriter and a Hollywood kid for the last ten years, but even still theres many things I don't know and things I struggle with in the industry. The first step is always the hardest. If you need any more advice, help with a project or to review some of your work, or maybe just to chat, feel free to send me a message. Take care and best of luck writing!


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## Lewdog (Mar 4, 2013)

Use less words than a long film.  

Honestly I think story boards are even more necessary for a short film than a feature length one.  You have to stay more precise to your plot and cut as much fat as you can.  Organization will be your friend.


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## Staff Deployment (Mar 5, 2013)

Download this program (Celtx) for the formatting. Then you don't have to worry about formatting ever again. Boom, instant problem-solve.

More tips:
1) Do not _ever_ use camera directions in a script.
2) Do not ever express anything but what you see on screen. That means pure description, action, and dialogue. If a character is sad, you say "They frown" not "They are sad." It's the ultimate test of show vs. tell.
3) Scene headers go like this: *INT: PLACE - DAY*
"INT" refers to interior (as in, shot indoors), which can be replaced with "EXT" for outdoor shots. The place is a description or name of the shooting location. "DAY" means it's shot in the day, "NIGHT" means it's shot at night (you won't need to get more specific than that, usually).
4) That's about it for technical tips. The rest is just practice. And maybe reading a bunch of screenwriting books.


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## Avi Love (Apr 10, 2013)

You mentioned being interested in animation. If you don't already know, you cannot sell an animated screenplay....ever. There is no animation studio that even reviews scripts from the outside. They will send them back without opening them. The only way to write scripts for animation is to either write enough scripts outside of animation to meet the right people or to come up through animation. If you're producing them yourself then forget everything I just said.


The really huge begginerish mistake I wish people wouldn't make is thinking other people can't do their jobs. As was mentioned earlier, don't direct the movie for the director. Camera placement, angles, shot composition, etc all aren't your responsibility. Simultaneously neither is location scouting. If your film doesn't require a specific geographical location, don't give it one. Actors don't need tips on how to act. Don't ever put in a character gesture unless it is so integral to the story that the film would fall apart without it. Fundamentally, don't bother starting to write a screenplay until you can watch the credits of any major movie and know what each person does as their job. That will give you enough of an understanding of both what not to write and what to write to create something that's interesting for all of those people to work on.


There's a concept which has stuck with me in all of writing and really the arts in general. It's the strange attractor. I can't remember who to attribute it to and am feeling too lazy to google it at the moment. The fundamental principle is have a hook. Have something that people haven't seen before even if it's just a twist on a common theme. To understand how to approach a short film then think of it this way. A feature film needs a strange attractor that invites arcs and character changes and subplots. A short film is really just a setup and payoff for a small strange attractor.


So your strange attractor for a feature film might be Earth was invaded by aliens millions of years ago. We just found out they're on their way back, but some of their technology has been uncovered all over the globe in archaeological digs. If we can learn to utilize it then we might stand a chance. For god sakes don't ever write one that's this complicated, but I'm doing it to illustrate a point. Your strange attractor for the short film would be little Timmy finds a laser gun in his back yard. Hilarity or maybe a moral quandry ensues. An alien war doesn't. With a short film ask yourself: can I set this up and pay this off in the length of the short film? Then ask yourself if it's something you'd want to watch.


I recommend Brad Bird's screenplays to read. He's an exceptional filmmaker. To stay in the same train of thought, the Pixar short films are phenomenal. In particular I recommend Lifted. Also if you can find them Studio Ghibli does some amazing shorts, of particular note is The Egg Princess.


The common advice is read screenplays of course, but really look at everything else. Then come back to your own work. Look at animation and the work of animators. Then come back to your screenplay and say if i was an animator would I want to work on this movie? Look at theater, dance, poetry, mythology, neuroscience, anything, everything. Then come back to your work. Who's your audience? If you weren't writing it and didn't have empathy for new writers, would you want to watch this movie? Would a director or actor want to work on this movie? Until you can understand screenwriting from the perspectives of the other major players in film, I really think you won't be successful at it. Until you feel you really understand what excites you in film as just an audience member, I also think you won't be successful at it. Figure those two things out, and people will forgive the rest.


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