9 ms·
This is a really great analysis of how hard it is to write a really good screenplay. As an occasional screenwriter myself, it's always frustrating when produce
by mdorazio 10y ago
This is a really great analysis of how hard it is to write a really good screenplay. As an occasional screenwriter myself, it's always frustrating when producers and directors repeatedly want to dumb down a script or "make it more exciting" to keep ADD audiences engaged. It's understandable, of course - traditional genre movies for the masses make more money, and entertainment is a business. But the fact that Eric Heisserer was able to keep everything in his screenplay at the intellectual and emotional level that he did really says something about the passion he had for the source material.
Also, the note about the limitations of screenwriting software is spot on. The fact that Final Draft costs $250 and can't even support image embedding is ridiculous.
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- pacaro 10y agoMy first thought was /^H\documentclass{screenplay} Edit: fixing my solidus direction.
- Keyframe 10y agoWhy would you need image embedding in screenwriting software? Scrivener would be for prototyping like that. My primary problem with FD is no support for UTF at all. Real fun writing in other languages. Sometimes even impossible. Fade In saves the day.
- SCdF 10y ago> Why would you need image embedding in screenwriting software? For the reason noted in TFA.
- Keyframe 10y agoThat's one special case and he mentioned he wouldn't do it again. Will I ever use this method in another screenplay? Maybe not. There are tools to do that differently. Often times, I need to 'decorate' a screenplay (TV) with drawings for producers and as a selling tool. It's like an illustrated screenplay. I do it in... Word. Of all things. It's not a production screenplay, so a simple copy/paste between two applications works best. Paste Courier 12pt text into Word, style it a bit and embed images. Done. If you want to have pictures follow your text, do it in Word or Scrivener (better). Scripts have a certain layout and rules which are there for a reason(s). Reasons which are important.
- wodenokoto 10y agoFrom the outside, movie scripts just looks like mono-spaced text with dialogue indented. Can you explain why one would need special software for this? What does Final Draft give the writer, that word or open office doesn't?
- andrewflnr 10y agoRoughly the same reason programmers tend to like IDEs. There are a lot of conventions around alignment, spacing, capitalization, and probably others that need to be respected in a screenplay. Specialized software makes it easier.
- Keyframe 10y agoKeeps the format consistent, yes. Also, word completion for characters, scenes, and other conventions (INT./EXT., DAY/NIGHT/... for slugs). Also, probably the most important reason, it gives you consistent numbering and revision system. This is important when doing a production breakdown. think of it as a reporting tool. There's reporting as well. How many action there is vs dialogue, how many characters and which in a scene or script, which scenes, which props per scene (not every tool does that), etc. Some of these reports are done externally in apps like MMS6 or Gorilla. You could, and people do, write screenplay in Word or whatever. Trouble arises later when you need to go through revisions and work with other people that work in those production-oriented apps. For that reason alone it's better to do it all in a specialised app.
- moflome 10y agoReplied to a sub-comment below, reposting... any feedback on how well Amazon's SaaS solution for screenwriting [0] works as a replacement for Final Draft? [0] https://storywriter.amazon.com https://storywriter.amazon.com
- skepticaldrunk 10y agoI don't have time to check it out right now, as the current project is income-generating, but I'm curious to check it out. On the face of it, it looks like a decent (albeit very simple) screenwriting tool that would be perfect for the amateur or writer/director/producer. One of the things I like about FD is that, as a contract writer, I can define elements (some shows or producers like to format sounds or chyrons or character introductions or whatever) a certain way, so I can write in a manner expedient to me and change the formatting to fit the requirements. This doesn't seem to have that capability, but I could be wrong. It certainly seems like it will get you 90% of the way there, though. I'm guessing they developed this in-house to coincide with their submission system for original content so they can standardize submissions and generate heuristics like wtallis is talking about above.
- JBlue42 10y agoI bought Fade In, which is compatible with Final Draft, and much cheaper. Works on all platforms. http://www.fadeinpro.com/ http://www.fadeinpro.com/