Screenplays and scripts

What is a screenplay?
A screenplay is just the script of a film that can be used as a short, brief guide to follow instructions. This includes a detailed description about the setting, locations and stage directions. These are always written during the pre-production stage of the making of a movie.

What is a screenwriter?
A screenwriter is just the person that writes the screenplay with thorough detail. They must always include the basic outline of the film on the screenplay that can be simply and easily followed by the rest of the movie crew for example: Directors, Producers, Editors, Cinematographers . Screenwriters always have to meet their strict deadlines with high standard work.

What is the difference between a script and a screenplay?

Most people just think and assume that scripts are only used in theatre production and screenplays are used in the film industry . A screenplay is always written to be played on a screen. For example a movie, television or computer screen. But a script can be written for more things such as : a movie, television, computer screen, stage plays, video games and radio programmes .

A screenplay is a script for a film that includes acting instructions and scene directions. A screenplay is usually written in a 90-120 written document written in the font Courier 12pt on "8 1/2 x 11". It is written in this same font every time because its a timing issue. One formatted script page in Courier font equals roughly one minute of screen time.

A screenplay can be an original piece, based on a true story or a previously written piece, like a novel, stage play or a newspaper article .

Professionals that work on the set for example: Film directors, producers, set designers, and actors all translate the screenwriters vision using their own individual talents.

How to write a screenplay/script?

When writing a screenplay and a script you have to include the location, setting and time of day that it will be filmed. This gives the audience the geographic location and era in which the story takes place. By clearly describing the location and place that the film is taking place, it will immediately engage the audience in the plot so they won't wonder where and when the story takes place.

In screenplays, key characters are introduced and a short description about who they are and what they look like is also used. This is so the audience gets a brief idea about who they are, this is to stop confusion. Key dialogue between characters and details about their actions and expressions are put on a screenplay. This is so the actors and producers of the film don't get mixed up and confused about what they have to do next. Details about different camera shots/angles/movement are also used and put on screenplays. This is to avoid confusion and to be used as a simple guide that can be followed for direction about what comes next.

Jaws Screenplay:

"Jaws" has to be one of the most famous, popular, well-known horror thrillers ever made. The American thriller film was directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley's 1974 novel of the same name. The storyline of 'Jaws' is that there is a giant man-eating great white shark that is frequently attacking people that are visiting the beach on Amity Island, a fictional New England summer resort town. The local police chief, a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter all go on the search hunting for the vigorous creature.

I have studied the opening scene of the 1975 Steven Spielberg production 'Jaws'. This gave me a clear insight as to how the scene follows the screenplay . The screenplay for the well-known film was written by Peter Benchley and Carl Gottlieb. The video below is the opening scene clip that I have studied called "Chrissie's Last Swim'.

Have a quick watch and see what you think...

The photographs below are images of the 'Jaws' screenplay that I have studied. I have annotated them with brief notes to widen my understanding about screenplays, especially this one.

Have a quick read and see what you think..

It is clear that from the first page of the screenplay there is a large focus on the setting . For example "blue light in the center of the picture" and "The quaint little resort town". These settings are described with a large amount of detail. As well as this, it is clear from the screenplay sound is an important aspect as that is mentioned a couple of times on the first page of the script e.g "Sound of the inner spaces rushing forward".

Another thing that I have learnt from the script is what 'EXT and 'INT' mean. These are used as short codes to describe location. 'EXT' means exterior which means outside , and 'INT' means interior which in other words means inside. 'EXT' is mentioned a couple of times on the first page of the screenplay, this suggests that some of it is filmed outside.

It is evident that the different camera shots, angles and movements used also are very important in the screenplay. They are located on the left hand side , mainly on the second page of the screenplay, alongside with numbers which mean a change in scene or a new location.

What's changed from the screenplay to the film?

Usually in the production of any film/movie screenplays are only used as a guide, not to be followed completely with no changes or add-on's being made. Sometimes certain scenes are added to create suspense, tension or to help build the characteristics of a particular individual. In addition to that, sometimes scenes are cut out to minimise and shorten time if its too long . Also extra scenes may be added to extend time if running low . Some camera shots are not added in the actual opening scene that are mentioned in the screenplay. For example on page two of the screenplay, there is apparently a close up shot in scene 6 of Cassidy trying to kiss Christina. However, from the opening scene it doesn't actually seem to happen. The film director may have thought that this scene was unnecessary and wasn't worth putting in.

Also within the opening scene, Christina hangs on a buoy to try and save herself , however in the screenplay, there is no mentioning of this actually happening and 'buoy' isn't mentioned either. This is added to create a hopeful feeling for the audience ,however this doesn't last long because Jaws attacks her shortly after.

Conventions of the Thriller Films Genre

ABOUT THRILLER FILMS

The thriller is a broad genre of literature, film, gaming and television having numerous sub-genres.    A thriller film usually consists of a battle between the protagonist (the leading character or one of the main characters) and the antagonist (a person who competes/struggles against). The aim of thriller films is to keep the audience alert/awake and on the edge of their seats . The story shows a chain of bad events that keep happening throughout , this builds up tension and suspense for the climax. The aim of the protagonist is to restore justice, while the antagonist seeks to destroy it . There are many different types of thriller films, for example: Action thrillers, horror thrillers, psychological thrillers, crime thrillers, romantic thrillers, supernatural thrillers and more.

Low key lighting is frequently used in thriller films. This is because it produces dark shadows on screen, creating a sinister tone. It also creates a sense of horror and spook for the audience . Low key lighting is created using the key and back lights. When they are used together they create a sharp contrast between light and dark areas on screen. This creates dark shadows which is a common technique used to make thriller films. This is because they create dark tones. The image below taken from a South Korean mystery thriller shows how the dark and light tones contrast from each other creating a mysterious atmosphere.

Top lighting is used to make thriller films seem eerie and spooky. Top lighting is where light is placed above the object of character. This is a useful technique when features of a figures face want to be highlighted so they stand out more to the audience watching . It has been frequently used in horror thrillers in the past to create an eerie and sinister effect on the subject the light has been directed on. The image below shows an example of a top lighting shot that has been taken.

Quick cuts are used all of the time in thriller movies. Quick cuts are used to speed up the pace of the film. Thrillers also often use quick cuts to create tension for the audience. It can be used to convey a lot of information very quickly. In thriller films , quick cuts are used mainly in action sequences. It is the most used convention in thriller and the most effective convention. The fast cuts lead the audience to think that there is some sort of danger, but it doesn't allow them to get the full picture. It creates confusion for the audience and leads to the asking of questions.

Tension music is used in thriller films to bring the audience into the movie, and feel like they are the ones actually experiencing the danger and suspense for themselves. Tension music can also be used in thriller films as a build up to something that might happen or is going to happen. It makes the audience quite confused and ask frequent questions as they don't know if they're expecting something or not.

Diegetic sound of breathing creates an eerie realistic effect for the audience watching. It helps the audience actually feel like they are in the film, experiencing what actually is happening . It creates tension for the viewer and an uncomfortable atmosphere.

Changes in the angles of shots is also frequently used in thriller films. For example, a lot of close up shots and extreme close ups of the protagonist character are filmed. This is to show their emotions, it can also be used to focus on props to aid the narrative. The shots of the antagonistic character will be cut quickly and will aim to hide their identity e.g a shot of the back of them or a silhouette . Reveal shots are often used in thriller films because they build tension using dark, deep sound effects and music making the audience question what is going to happen next  .

There are many different types of thriller films. Some genre types of thriller films are written below with a brief description about what they are and what they are usually about  :

Action thriller:

These types of thriller movies are jam-packed with action that forces you to the edge of your seat. All thriller movies aim to keep you entertained by having a spectacular storyline and an unusual twist to them. The plots of most action thrillers are the same most of the time. They usually contain one of the following: Terrorists, psychopaths, exploration and crime fighting .

Plots written for thrillers usually include heroes, villains, guns and other weapons. Most action forms contain moderate forms of gore and violence such as fight sequences, wars violence, torture and more. Some examples of Action thrillers that have been made are :

Horror thrillers-

Horror thrillers are probably the most famous type of thriller going out there . This focuses on suspense tension and adrenaline whilst having emphasis of fear. Most of the time horror thrillers contain elements of supernatural genre. Some famous productions of horror thrillers are :

 Insidious, The Conjuring, Saw and The Exorcist.

Saw

The conjuring

The Exorcist

Insidious

Psychological thrillers

Psychological thrillers are thriller stories which emphasize the abnormal psychological states of its characters. Psychological thrillers often incorporate elements of and overlap with mystery, drama, action and horror (particularly psychological horror). They are usually books or films. They are usually suspenseful movies and books emphasizing the psychology of its characters rather than the plot; this sub-genre of thriller movie or book. Some psychological thrillers are listed that you may know/be familiar with:
Black Swan, Seven, Gone Girl.

The Fall- textual analysis for Gender

Gender Analysis

^ Please click the following above to view my gender textual analysis ^

Although I completed this as part of my study of the representation of gender for my AS exam, it is relevant to the my coursework as, in planning for this, I will need to consider how the representation of gender is constructed through the use of camera shots, mise-en-scene, editing and sound. This will hopefully enable me to represent characters in a variety of different ways in my film opening.

Evaluation of preliminary task continued ..

What was some feedback that you received from other groups?

Many groups told us that the colour correction in our preliminary task was very good and was one of the best things we did in our video . We increased the saturation and the light intensity which made the colours seem slightly brighter . This is a way of enticing the audience to continue watching because its unusual and different . The same colour was used continually throughout which meant there wasn't a continuity error to do with this .
We were also told that a strength of our preliminary task was the upbeat music at the end. This music comes on as we all walk out the door. The music fits in well with the name "Party Talk". Parties are usually meant to be a loud, upbeat place where there is lots of dancing . We added this music to create a lively effect . Groups told us that it made the video seem more exciting.
We were also told that the rolling script at the end and the fading in/out title at the start made the video seem realistic and very creative .

Some groups told us that the overall video was edited well, however we could have been more creative and open minded about the storyline instead of picking something basic to follow . They said we should've been more creative and imaginative as this would've led us to explore different things.
We were also told that we could've made it slightly longer as our video was snappy, short and over very quickly, approximately a minute . We didn't manage to squeeze in a 180 degree rule shot either and we missed out some camera angle shots because of the timing and how quick it was over .
Another negative was that apparently you couldn't hear us very well in the video. This comment will encourage us to be louder in future videos that we will make, however it could have been a camera recording fault.



Evaluate your contribution to the groups work

As a member of this group, I had quite a few contributions towards our preliminary task video. The first included actually starring in the filming as a main character and helping come up with the ideas needed to make our work the best it could possibly be. I was extremely flexible with this and was open to new ideas, and ways we could improve the task even more. I have learned how to stay confident in front of the camera when being filmed, which is a key skill to have in media as you are constantly filming and creating new video tasks . My one key criticism of this part of the task would definitely be that although we were confident with the camera, there is potential to be better and more flexible with the camera without stuttering, giggling, wasting time and forgetting what to say. 
Another contribution towards the preliminary task that I made was editing the video . This was my favourite part as it allowed me to be creative, explore different techniques and become familiar with the software we were using. I used the software Adobe Premiere Pro to do this and managed to add slide transitions, rolling credits at the end , opening titles and altering the saturation/colour of our mise-en scene. The skill I have gained from this is definitely the ability to edit videos whether that includes changing certain aspects of the clip, adding certain/different effects or cutting out pieces of film that weren't of any use or relevant to keep. This will benefit me greatly in the future when I come to use the software again. It has enabled me to go a certain depth by exploring the basic editing techniques . This will now allow me to explore and develop better editing techniques for future videos as I am now familiar with how the software works and how to use it .

Preliminary task evaluation video

This is our evaluation video that answers the following questions :

- What have you learned during the making of your preliminary task.
-  What were the areas of success?
- What were the areas of development ?
- How well did you meet the brief?