Following Time of Day, there’s a little category I like to call miscellaneous (excluding weather, these are all functions of time). You can lump the following in this category:
- Time
- Date
- Weather
- Continuous Action
- Flashback / Present Day
Shot Headings: Time of Day
Is your scene taking place during the day or night?
The go-to terns are DAY and NIGHT. I recommend you stay with these, but if you’re feeling a bit rebellious, you can color your script with these:
- MAGIC HOUR
- SUNSET
- SUNRISE
- DUSK
Below, I will find some additional uses outside of DAY and NIGHT.
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Shot Types: Shot Subject
Who or what is being featured in the shot?
It can be a person, place, or a thing — some people calls it a noun. The subject will follow the shot type, or it can be alone. There’s only one thing to remember: keep out the action!
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Shot Headings: Shot Types
Shot types indicate a specific type of shot to be used in a scene. As an aspiring screenwriter, you should be careful — you’re walking the “write, don’t direct” tightrope with some of ’em. Most of the time, I only use two (CLOSE ON & INSERT), and that’s only when I want to convey essential information. I’m not trying to direct. I’m bringing something to the reader’s attention. But, hey, rules are meant to be broken in this game. Below you’ll find a decent list of shot types for your screenplay: [Read more…]
Shot Headings: Location
Location is another no-brainer. At this point, we know we’re either indoors or outdoors (perhaps both) — now we need to know where the damn thing is taking place. Here’s the way the Coen Brothers open up Cormac’s No Country For Old Men:
EXT. MOUNTAINS – NIGHT
Snow is falling in a gusting wind. The voice of an old man:
VOICE OVER
I was sheriff of this county when I was twenty-five. Hard to believe. Grandfather was a lawman. Father too. Me and him was sheriff at the same time, him in Plano and me here. I think he was pretty proud of that. I know I was.
You can choose to be more specific with your location. From The American by Rowan Joffe:
[scrippet]
Shot Headings: Interior / Exterior
Does the scene take place indoors or outdoors?
Use abbreviations. No need to to type out INTERIOR or EXTERIOR. Just use INT. or EXT.
From Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by Charlie Kaufman:
INT. BOOKSTORE – NIGHT
Joel sits in the bookstore coffee shop. It’s a jarring transition, visually and emotionally. Joel is in the midst of some traumatic state of mind.
Shot Headings
You can use up to five different elements in your shot headings. These are most commonly referred to as SLUG LINES and are always in CAPS. You can include the following in your slug lines: [Read more…]
