As the great Alfred Hitchcock once said, “To make a great film, you need three things: the script, the script, and the script.” Whenever we think of a movie, we think of actors, actresses acting out the storyline. But what important thing do every movie, television show, and even video games have to follow by? A script!

What is a script? A script is a written document that consists of 90 to 120 pages filled with actions, character dialogue and locations to tell a story on screen. The script is the most valuable asset of a movie, video-game and television show because if there is no script, there is no story, no characters

The script is the hardest part. It takes long hours, days, weeks, months and can take even years to create the perfect script. I myself know firsthand of how hard it is to write the perfect script. It took me a year and a half to finish my first script. With all the editing, story arc changes and maybe change of characters, the perfect script takes time and patience to be completed.

There are six types of script, but the major ones that everyone knows about and are used in the film and entertainment industry are: Original, Speculative (Spec), and Pitch scripts.

1. Original Script – A script written by the writer himself with content by the writer only.
2. Speculative (Spec) Script – A script that is written by the writer that includes the writer’s content, director and producer notes of directions and added content for when filming has begun. It usually is a revised version of the writer’s Original Script or a rewritten version.
3. Pitch Script – A script that is discussed by the producers with established characters from a particular movie franchise. It decides on a writer and a story direction for the film.

Here’s a challenge, watch your favorite movie and get a notepad and a pen, or if you’re a millennial like myself, use your phone, and after you watch the movie, write a one-sentence summary of what the movie is about. This is called a logline.

A logline consists of two to three lines. Before trying to sell or produce their scripts, writers need a logline to not only save producers and buyers time on figuring out what their script is about but to spark an interest to your audience with an emotional hook, to “hook” your audience to the plot.

Screenwriters are a valuable asset to the entertainment industry. Whether it is writing songs, films or a video-game story, writers are needed to help establish a story for the audience and for the characters or performers. It’s a sense of direction to follow.

Do you write? What do you write about? Are you the next Aaron Sorkin? Aaron Sorkin is a screenwriting legend who wrote several films and tv shows such as The West Wing (1999 – 2006) and Steve Jobs (2015). Let us know what you love to write and what is your favorite movie/tv show/video-game script?

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