FORMATTING YOUR SPEC SCRIPT WHILE SOCIAL DISTANCING: A PRIMER - PART 10
This will be our last post in our blog series about formatting spec scripts. We hope the advice and insight presented here has been helpful as you’ve worked on fellowship applications and furthered your television education (even while stuck at home). We are still available to answer formatting and other questions at library@wgfoundation.org and will be back soon with a new series on writing original pilots and other samples.
Happy writing!
GRACE AND FRANKIE (Netflix)
Average page count: 32-34
Average scene count: 20-22 or so
Broken into acts? No
Other things to consider:
Snappy dialogue, lots of back and forth, lots of clean white space on the page, not overloaded with description. An ability to write banter is a plus.
The show takes a no frills approach to formatting.
Some scripts begin with a FADE IN: at the beginning on the left-hand side.
All episodes end with “END OF EPISODE” underlined, centered.
GREY’S ANATOMY (ABC)
Average page count: 60
Average scene count: 57-ish
Broken into acts? Yes, 6
Other things to consider:
Scripts are broken into six acts. Each act is roughly 8 to 12 pages. Act one and act six are typically the longest, but not always.
Act breaks are formatted ACT ONE / END OF ACT ONE, centered and underlined. The first new scene at the beginning of an act is preceded a FADE IN: on the left-hand side. The end of the act is preceded by a FADE OUT. On the right-hand side.
In spec-ing this show, your ability to come up with a surprising medical case will be a plus. A deftness for medical and science terminology will also come in handy.
The show has loads of characters, all with distinct voices and hearts, but it also has a very, very specific wry, witty tone.
THE HANDMAID’S TALE (Hulu)
Average page count: Somewhere between 43 and 54
Average scene count: 30-40 (but can go much higher and lower depending on story content)
Broken into acts? Yes, 4 plus 1 teaser
Other things to consider:
June’s (formerly Offred’s) voice-over is written in italics. The same goes for any off-screen recitations, prayers or dialogue. **Note this example is from season 2. If your spec is season 3 or after, it’s JUNE, not Offred.
Description is very simple. Sentences are not very long. This way you can visualize every cut in your head.
Act and teaser lengths vary fairly greatly per episode. Act breaks are denoted ACT ONE / END OF ACT ONE, centered and underlined. At the end of the episode, it’s END OF EPISODE.
LEGENDS OF TOMORROW (The CW)
Average page count: 55
Average scene count: 60
Broken into acts? Yes, 6
Other things to consider:
No teaser; six plain acts. Act breaks look like: ACT ONE; END OF ACT ONE... centered, bolded and underlined. Act six ends like END OF EPISODE. Acts are 6 to 9 pages. The first act is usually a bit longer, clocking in at 11-12.
Most scripts feature a main title card, centered, bolded, italicized and in a much larger font: “DC’S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW”
The show often uses act outs before the end of each act.
The show also denotes significant bits of action with or dialogue with underlines or italics.
YOUNG SHELDON (CBS)
Average page count: 30
Average scene count: 31
Broken into acts? Yes, 3 plus a cold open and a tag
Other things to consider:
Scene headings are underlined.
The show tends to use “FADE OUT” (right-hand side) at the end of each act, cold open, etc.
Since the show takes place in the late 80s, the script references to songs of the time period with music cues.
The scripts are broken into 3 acts. Each act is approximately 8-10 pages in length. ACT ONE / END OF ACT ONE, etc. underlined and centered.
The scripts also feature a cold open (2 pages) and a tag (1 page). These are formatted just like the act breaks. COLD OPEN / END OF COLD OPEN. At the end of the tag, it’s END OF SHOW.