Final Screenplay Project

Description

For this project, you are to write the first act of an original screenplay. You do not have to write out the entire screenplay from start to finish! By an act, I mean a substantial beginning or setup of the film contained in your screenplay that establishes your main character(s), sets up the setting or locale, and gives readers an awareness of the main thesis or conflict of the film to be resolved (or not) in subsequent acts.

The screenplay concept must be completely original. It cannot be an adaptation from a book or television show or any other preexisting material. However, while it is important to be creative in this project, your grades will not be based on my subjective appreciation or disapproval of your original ideas. Instead, your project assessment is based upon how well you seem to understand and apply the different aspects of motion picture production in your screenplay, and how well you follow the instructions below. In short, your grade is not dependent on your creative writing skills.

In many respects, this project is an evaluation of what you have learned about film from the class. Your screenplay should demonstrate that you considered how dialogue functions in your film, as well as other tools of cinema such as cinematography, the selection of shots and how they will be assembled in the editing room, and mise-en-scene (the sets, costumes, lighting, actors, etc.). As you have hopefully learned from this course, films are
comprised of so much more than what the actors are saying on-screen. If your screenplay consists of dialogue only, then it is not really a screenplay!

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It is imperative to use terminology, vocabulary, and concepts that you have learned in this course throughout your screenplay. You are writing a
“shooting” script, not a “spec” script. Speculation or “spec” scripts are screenplays written with an intentional vagueness for sales purposes. The production information is not included in the spec screenplay so producers and directors can fill it in as they see fit. In contrast, you are
creating a production or “shooting” script. You are the writer and director for this project! Please provide all the camera shots and editing transitions you envision between shots and scenes as well as information about mise-en-scene (costumes, sets, lighting, etc.). If this information is not included, I cannot see your application of what you have learned in class. Let me be clear: This is the most important element of your project.

Furthermore, the screenplay must be in screenplay format. There is a specific formatting strategy for screenplays that must be followed to receive credit for the project. I have provided examples in the Important Documents module in Canvas to help you mirror this format. While I do not expect absolute perfection with specifics such as margins or exact placement of page elements, I do need to see that you are trying to mirror the format. If you submit something that does not even closely resemble a script, you will lose points. There are screenplay software applications out there for purchase that you may use but they often will not allow you to output to a word doc or PDF so be careful! I will only accept scripts in .doc, .docx, or .pdf formats; no other format will be graded. However, be aware that there are several ways to write screenplays in Microsoft Word, including templates provided within that program.

One final important rule: Screenplay projects must be at least 2,000 words. Before this amount of writing makes you panic, screenplay pages typically hold anywhere from as little as 100 words of dialogue or as much as 300-plus words of dialogue and description. In the provided formatting information, you will see that the writing of dialogue takes up a significant amount of space on a page.

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This project will be difficult, so do not procrastinate! You must learn the formatting and come up with original material, so it is not a good idea to leave this to the end of class. Therefore, I suggest you start writing now. I have placed both a formatting guide AND a few pages of a sample screenplay project written for you in Canvas under the instructions to get you started. Again, I will not accept a late screenplay, so please do not put yourself in a position to not complete this project by the deadline!