ATTN JMS: Difference between CoS script and actual filmed episode

[Jeff Kouba]

Hello,

I've been working my way through my B5 videotapes, which I recorded
back when TNT first aired them. I'm up to Season 2, and I finally had
time to sit down with your Scriptwriting book and follow along in the
screenplay for Coming Of Shadows while I watched the episode. That is
quite a unique way to watch a TV show!

In doing so, I noticed some differences between the script as printed
in your book and what I actually saw in the episode, and I was curious
as to why the two were slightly different.

For instance, there were a number of words, sentences, lines, or whole
series of lines that were in the script but did not appear in the
episode.

Just a couple of examples. There was an early scene with Delenn and the
Ranger that did not appear in the episode. There were a couple of lines
absent in the episode that seemed to foreshadow future events, such as
a reference to a head on a pike, and a question to Sheridan 'Why are
you here?'

Elsewhere you've said that the cast was under orders not to change what
was in the script without permission, so I was particularly intruiged
as to why the script in the book was slightly different than what was
aired.

Did TNT clip those lines in order to cram in more commercials? Or did
the script in your book go through some editing before it was actually
filmed?

Thanks,

Jeff Kouba
the_c...@my-deja.com

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.

[Jms at B5]

Any time you shoot an episode, some lines or other, or even partial scenes (or
whole scenes) can end up on the cutting room floor to fit. Dry, we ran about
42 minutes 15 seconds 12 frames (I think), and we had to hit that every time
for formatting purposes. So you edit it all to fit, and sometimes you have to
leave stuff out to make it all work.

jms

(jms...@aol.com)
B5 Official Fan Club at:
http://www.thestation.com

[Bernard HP Gilroy, maximum proconsul]

Well, I'm no JMS -- far from it -- but I seem to recall him mentioning
on many occasions that bits had to be dropped during editing, on many
episodes. I suppose the rule is, it's better to film more than you
need, and drop, than to fall short and not have filmed something
crucial.

On 2 Dec 1999 19:30:29 -0700, Jeff Kouba <the_c...@my-deja.com>
wrote: