Writing a screenplay
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Before we are going to deal with Ayub Khan-Din's movie itself, you are going to get some insight into his childhood and upbringing as a second-generation immigrant. Based on that knowledge, you will be supposed to write an opening scene. In order to make you familiar with the requirements and conventions of writing screenplays, work through the following "How-to":
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Writing a script / screenplay
The first step towards a screenplay could be a synopsis of the action that is going to take place (this is called a „treatment“).
The final screenplay itself contains the complete information that is needed to make the film: characters, settings, actions, dialogues, camera settings and movements. Before you can put all your ideas into such a form, you could follow a number of steps.
1.Characters
Drama (and movie) is based on conflict. Therefore, you will probably need characters that are involved in some kind of conflict: protagonist(s) and antagonist(s). They don't necessarily need to be „enemies“! The following impulses could help you to create round characters:
- name and age
- personalty traits (funny, irritating, troublemaker, athletic, easily embarrassed, shy...)
- home (kind of place, partners, children, siblings, pets)
- best friends, relations
- tics
- likes /dislikes
- favourite food, music, book, movie...
Your characters will have to deal with obstacles and create solutions.
- What kind of conflict / obstacle does your character have to face?
- Which obstacles will he / she have to overcome in order to achieve a certain goal?
- Which solutions does the protagonist try, which ones fail, which one will be successful?
Be clever! Keep your audience guessing!
2.Story
To make characters, their conflicts and obstacles and their attempts to tackle the problems part of a real story you need to think about the following aspects as well:
- Where does the story take place?
- What other characters are important to the story?
- Who or what gets into your hero's way?
- How does everything get resolved?
- Does your hero learn anything that „teaches“ something to the audience?
3.Writing the actual screenplay
Just like a drama, your screenplayshould be split into sections. You need:
- a set-up (you introduce characters and their goals)
- the main part, in which the hero meets some kind of opposition
- the ending – the problems get resolved
Your screenplay has to be written scene by scene. A scene is a part of the story that happens in one place over one period of time.
Each scene starts with a slug line. This line gives information about time and place. You use EXT. (exterior) or INT. (interior) to say whether the scene takes place inside or outside. Then you give more specific information on the place and time. The slug line is written in CAPS.
Example (from Men in Black):
EXT. ROAD – TEXAS / MEXICAN BORDER – NIGHT
Following the slug line, you give instructions for the action that is going to take place. Here, you can also include information on camera settings and movements.
Another example from Men in Black:
EXT. WORLD'S FAIR – LANDING TOWER – NIGHT
Edgar climbs the outside of the landing tower of one of the spaceships,
pushing Laurel up ahead of him, headed for the saucer at the top.
Then you continue with the dialogue. The parts of speech are preceded by the names of the characters, they too are capitalized. Usually the characters name are centered at the page, the dialogue usually is indented, there are no quotation marks:
EXT. DESERT CLEARING – NIGHT
Kay and DEE lead their captive into a clearing
in the desert brush. Dee pulls an enormous handgun
from a shoulder holster and stays a pace or two off,
covering him. Kay has an arm draped around the man's
shoulders.
KAY
I think you jumped off the bus in the wrong part of town, amigo.
