Reading Screenplays

How to Analyse and Evaluate Film Scripts

By Lucy Scher

Oldcastle Books

Copyright © 2011 Lucy Scher
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-84243-510-6

Contents

INTRODUCTION,
1. STORYTELLING AND THE PRINCIPLES OF GENRE,
2. SCRIPT REPORT WRITING,
3. THE SCRIPT REPORT,
4. A SAMPLE SCRIPT REPORT.,
5. WRITING AND ASSESSING TREATMENTS,
6. A CAREER IN SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT,
SELECTED ONLINE RESOURCES,
SCRIPT FACTORY PROGRAMMES,
Copyright,

CHAPTER 1

STORYTELLING AND THE PRINCIPLES OF GENRE

Reading screenplays requires the skills to analyse the ability of the writer, first, to tell a story, and, second, to tell that story dramatically. This book offers a method that enables the script reader to be precise and helpful in preparing the report. But before we get to the detail of the script report, first an exploration of genre. Screenplays are incredibly textured documents and extremely hard to write. As we are reading a script, especially first or early drafts, we begin to feel gaps in the story. We start thinking about ways to fill those gaps by improving the set up, or changing the characters, or making the problems more difficult – or, indeed, simpler – or altering the outcome so the script delivers a more satisfying story. In doing this we are bringing to it a very comprehensive understanding of genre.

GENRE

Genre is a well-established technical term in the film industry. Genre categorises the type or the style of story. Genre is routinely used in marketing films, e.g. a thriller, a horror, a romantic comedy, a heist, a gangster film, etc. However, we use genre in script reading or development to delve beneath the surface to see the basic pattern of the story – the thriller or horror or romantic comedy, etc – that we are recognising or unconsciously beginning to understand.

We recognise the emotional territory within which the story works and the conventions used in the storytelling. Consciously using this knowledge in our thinking about the script will ensure that the analysis in the script report has relevance to industry and audience as well as the writer.

I can illustrate this from my experience in running a workshop in Macedonia for new filmmakers. I asked the class to read the local paper and pick out a story that they thought would make a good film. Every single one of them chose the same article whose headline translated as: ‘200 Macedonian students are to be given the opportunity to work in Disneyworld, Florida for the summer to improve their English and their relations.’

Nine students in three groups of three set about writing film versions of stories this headline suggested to them.

1. The first story presented was a comedy–drama centred around a guy aged 30. Although too old to be a student he was in love with the Disney characters, and the story related his efforts to get enrolled in a college so that he could go on the trip and meet Mickey Mouse. By the time he has succeeded and arrives in Florida, a real person has filled the gap in his life and he no longer needs Mickey.

2. The second story was a slasher film set in Disneyworld where a group of six Macedonian students is employed on the night watch when a Disney character starts to come to life. One by one the students are slaughtered until one lone girl remains, fighting for her life. In the morning she is found alive at the top of Big Thunder Mountain, mute and unable to explain what happened. As she is returned to Macedonia and start