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| Preface | |
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| Acknowledgments | |
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| Introduction | |
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| Basic Format and Style | |
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| Guides to the Appearance of the Screenplay | |
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| Sample Screenplay Pages | |
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| Getting Started | |
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| The Format Box | |
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| The Header | |
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| Margin Settings | |
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| The Elements of a Screenplay | |
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| How Screenplays Begin and End | |
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| Scene Lines | |
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| General Rules | |
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| The Staging | |
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| The Location | |
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| The Time | |
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| Adding Specifics to the Scene Line | |
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| Instructions | |
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| General Rules | |
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| Introducing Characters | |
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| Identifying Character Names to the Audience | |
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| Limitations and Liberties on Introducing Characters | |
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| Words That Get Capped | |
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| Using a Note | |
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| Refining the Writing of Instructions | |
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| The Dialogue-Block | |
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| General Rules | |
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| Character-Names | |
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| Dialogue | |
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| Parentheticals | |
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| Transitions | |
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| General Rules | |
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| Scenes, Sequences, and Transitions | |
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| Putting It All Together | |
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| Page Breaks | |
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| Unacceptable Page Breaks | |
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| Scene Numbers | |
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| The Title Page | |
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| Final Touches | |
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| Protection of Screenplays | |
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| Advanced Format and Style | |
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| Enhancing the Narrative | |
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| All About Slug Lines | |
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| The Master Shot | |
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| Slug Lines | |
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| Three Types of Slug Lines | |
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| What Utility Slug Lines Do | |
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| What Visual Slug Lines Do | |
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| What Non-Visual Slug Lines Do | |
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| Utility Slug Lines | |
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| Return to Scene | |
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| Establishing | |
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| Intercut as Needed | |
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| Superimposed Words | |
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| Visual Slug Lines | |
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| Isolating Characters and Objects | |
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| Point of View (P.O.V.) | |
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| Cutaway | |
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| Series of Shots | |
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| Inserts | |
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| Subdividing a Scene into Two or More Activities | |
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| Subdividing a Multi-Room Structure into Specific Rooms | |
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| Non-Visual Slug Lines | |
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| Identifying a Critical Sound | |
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| Emphasizing Something Dramatic | |
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| Indicating a Lapse of Time | |
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| Special Format Situations | |
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| Parallel Action | |
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| Telephone Conversations | |
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| Only One Side of the Conversation Is Seen and Heard | |
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| Only One Side of the Conversation Is Seen but Both Sides Are Heard | |
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| Both Sides of the Conversation Are Seen and Heard | |
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| Car Scenes | |
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| Both the Car and Location Are Important | |
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| Two or More Cars Are Engaged in a Chase | |
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| Activity Occurs Both Inside and Outside a Car | |
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| A Car Passes by a Fixed Position | |
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| Televised and Projected Images | |
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| Televised Images | |
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| Projected Images | |
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| Time-Shifts and Flashbacks | |
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| Time-Shifts | |
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| Flashbacks | |
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| Unusual Scene Beginnings | |
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| A Scene That Begins with Sound before the Image Appears | |
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| A Scene That Begins with Text before the Image Appears | |
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| A Scene That Begins with a Visual Slug Line before the Master Shot | |
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| Unusual Effects | |
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| Special Effects | |
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| Strange Creatures | |
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| Strange Environments | |
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| Unusual Character Introductions | |
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| An Environment Is Described before the Character Is Introduced | |
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| A Character Enters the Story before Being Named | |
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| An Imaginary Character Appears | |
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| A Character Is Introduced by a Still Image | |
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| A Character Is Introduced by a Voice | |
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| A Character's Appearance or Demeanor Changes | |
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| A Character Appears at Different Ages | |
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| The Audience Is Aware the Character Is Disguised | |
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| The Audience Is Unaware the Character Is Disguised | |
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| A Character Has Multiple Identities or Personalities | |
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| Dreams and Fantasies | |
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| A Dream or Fantasy That Is Clearly Identified | |
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| A Dream or Fantasy That Is Disguised as Reality | |
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| Written Material On-Screen | |
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| The Content of a Letter Is Read Aloud | |
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| The Content of a Letter Is Heard Through the Mind of the Reader | |
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| The Content of a Letter Is Displayed On-Screen | |
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| An Emblem or a Sign | |
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| Stock Footage | |
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| Foreign Languages (With or Without Sub-Titles) | |
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| Title Cards | |
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| Common Format Mistakes | |
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| General Mistakes | |
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| Using Incorrect Line Spacing | |
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| Using an Incorrect Typeface | |
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| Confusing Real Time and Screen Time | |
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| Scene Line / Slug Line Mistakes | |
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| Writing Inaccurate Scene Lines | |
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| Confusing Scene Lines with Slug Lines | |
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| Confusing Locations | |
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| Improper Intercutting of Visuals | |
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| Confusing Slug Lines | |
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| Creating Unclear Cutaways | |
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| Using the Incorrect Format for a Series of Shots | |
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| Instruction Mistakes | |
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| Writing Instructions in the Past Tense | |
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| Using Illogical Wording | |
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| Using Illogical Actions | |
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| Capping Words Excessively | |
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| Providing Unknowable Information | |
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| Providing a Premature Description | |
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| Over-Describing a Basic Activity | |
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| Neglecting an Important Description | |
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| Introducing Too Many Characters Too Quickly | |
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| Introducing a Character Incorrectly | |
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| Not Clarifying Who Is in a Scene | |
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| Neglecting Character Exits | |
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| Dialogue-Block Mistakes | |
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| Improperly Formatting a Song or Poem | |
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| Creating Unwieldy Parentheticals | |
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| Summarizing Dialogue | |
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| Splitting Words with Hyphens | |
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| Index | |