Screenplay Scenes:How many?
Phillip Sumner
Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
average.
Any help will be appreciated.
Gord Jeoffroy
Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>average.
It's not the number of scenes you should be counting but the number of
pages. The rule of thumb: in a "properly" written screenplay, printed
in a ten characters-per-inch typeface such as twelve-point Courier,
the number of pages roughly equals the number of minutes in the
finished film.
So an eighty minute script has eighty pages.
--Gord
Barthwait
>>--Gord
Gord is correct that one script page equals one minute of screen time.
What one must also be aware of is if you write eighty pages of action your
script is going to require way over eighty minutes of screen time, but on
the other hand eighty pages of dialog are going to fall short of eighty
minutes of screen time. On the average pure dialog will more accurately
run at about forty-five to fifty seconds per page. So you can see that
the one page per minute equals one minute of screen time is just a general
rule of thumb.
What is of greater interest in the posting is why eighty minutes? If you
are hoping to sell it as a feature be aware that the MPAA has a minimum
time for a theatrical release. That’s why you never see eighty minute
live action films (animation is another story.)
As a side bar: A few years ago a friend of mine was editing a comedy for
a well known director/producer. The running time started out in the low
nineties and the film stank. This well known director/producer kept
trimming this scene and then that scene until the film was really good.
Unfortunately the running time was sixty minutes and there was no way it
could be released. So for the next month they worked on reinserting
approximately half-an-hour of the previously deleted film to make it one
of that year’s worse films.
Barthwait
Bill Ice
Phillip Sumner wrote:
>
> Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
> script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
> average.
>
This will depend on your genre. The best idea would be to watch movies
in your genre and count the scenes. Assuming they're roughly 80 minutes
long.
A screenwriter's two best friends: his/her computer/typewriter, and
his/her VCR.
Bill
prv0...@private.nethead.co.uk
crs...@inforamp.net (Gord Jeoffroy) wrote:
>Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>>average.
>It's not the number of scenes you should be counting but the number of
>pages. The rule of thumb: in a "properly" written screenplay, printed
>in a ten characters-per-inch typeface such as twelve-point Courier,
>the number of pages roughly equals the number of minutes in the
>finished film.
>So an eighty minute script has eighty pages.
>--Gord
Gord is absolutley right, but I've also found that * on average*, a 90
min screenplay has *about* 150 scenes.
I would be FAR more concerned about the page count then the scene
count, though.
Bird
Irreverend Friday Jones
In article <4sjb0p$o...@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, bart...@aol.com
(Barthwait) wrote:
> >Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
> >script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
> >average.
>
> >>It's not the number of scenes you should be counting but the number of
> >>pages. The rule of thumb: in a "properly" written screenplay, printed
> >>in a ten characters-per-inch typeface such as twelve-point Courier,
> >>the number of pages roughly equals the number of minutes in the
> >>finished film.
>
> >>So an eighty minute script has eighty pages.
>
> >>--Gord
>
> Gord is correct that one script page equals one minute of screen time.
> What one must also be aware of is if you write eighty pages of action your
> script is going to require way over eighty minutes of screen time, but on
> the other hand eighty pages of dialog are going to fall short of eighty
> minutes of screen time. On the average pure dialog will more accurately
> run at about forty-five to fifty seconds per page. So you can see that
> the one page per minute equals one minute of screen time is just a general
> rule of thumb.
>
> What is of greater interest in the posting is why eighty minutes? If you
> are hoping to sell it as a feature be aware that the MPAA has a minimum
> time for a theatrical release. That’s why you never see eighty minute
> live action films (animation is another story.)
Wasn't "Mystery Science Theater 3000:The Movie" only 75 minutes? Or
didn't that count because it only got limited release?
> As a side bar: A few years ago a friend of mine was editing a comedy for
> a well known director/producer. The running time started out in the low
> nineties and the film stank. This well known director/producer kept
> trimming this scene and then that scene until the film was really good.
> Unfortunately the running time was sixty minutes and there was no way it
> could be released. So for the next month they worked on reinserting
> approximately half-an-hour of the previously deleted film to make it one
> of that year’s worse films.
>
> Barthwait
- The Irreverend Friday Jones
http://www.cybercom.net/~friday
Barthwait
> - The Irreverend Friday Jones
>http://www.cybercom.net/~friday
Wrote in reply to my comment about a restriction about the length of
released films.
>Wasn't "Mystery Science Theater 3000:The Movie" only 75 minutes? Or
>didn't that count because it only got limited release?
I don't know. Things have been changing a lot lately. For example prior
to this year the studios had the "five mile rule," which meant that two
theaters within five miles of each other couldn't run the same film. Now
it's common to see theaters within five miles of each other to have
similiar titles. There may have been a change in the running time length
rule too.
There is one other possibility. The "Mystery Science Theater 3000:The
Movie" might have been four walled. Four wall is when the distributors
rent the theater and collect all of the gate money themselves. It's a
creative business, especially when it comes to $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.
cla...@hooked.net
> > Gord is correct that one script page equals one minute of screen time.
> > What one must also be aware of is if you write eighty pages of action your
> > script is going to require way over eighty minutes of screen time, but on
> > the other hand eighty pages of dialog are going to fall short of eighty
> > minutes of screen time. On the average pure dialog will more accurately
> > run at about forty-five to fifty seconds per page. So you can see that
> > the one page per minute equals one minute of screen time is just a general
> > rule of thumb.
I read in "Writing The Script: A Practical Guide for Films and
Television" that this one minute to one script page is more apt to
television shows. Mostly comedies. Some movies you see and realize that
there is no way that the amount of minutes in it equal the amount of
pages. Look at something like Sergio Leones "The Good The Bad and the
Ugly". There were a lot of scenes where the characters simply look at
each other. The ending of Good, Bad, and Ugly uses up a lot of time but
doesn't necessarily have a lot of scene description to it.
--
respond to Cla...@hooked.net
WEB SITE- http://www.hooked.net/~clayton/movies/index.html
includes Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, John Woo
Michael Mann, and Stanley Kubrick
Patgmason
I was panicked that a screenplay I'm plotting had too many scenes so I did
a quick count and average of a random group of 'real' scripts I had lying
around. The unscientific results were: 142 scenes, 122 pages for
features.
Have to beg to differ on someone's comment re the 1-pg/1-min rule being
true for television comedies, they are definitely longer because of the
wide margins and double spacing; a sitcom will run in the 40s and 50s of
pages.
MmmCherry
In article <4tnn0b$s...@newsbf02.news.aol.com>, patg...@aol.com
(Patgmason) writes:
>a sitcom will run in the 40s and 50s of
>pages.
A sitcom script is 30 pages. Double spaced dialogue if it is a taped
show, single spaced for film (most are filmed now-a-days).
The pacing of a sitcom is completely different from features. Ever notice
that?
M.A.Cherry
mmmc...@aol.com
ba...@csnsys.com
In article <4tnn0b$s...@newsbf02.news.aol.com>,
patg...@aol.com (Patgmason) wrote:
<--->
>Have to beg to differ on someone's comment re the 1-pg/1-min rule being
>true for television comedies, they are definitely longer because of the
>pages.
Never saw the original post with that opinion. You are right - 1/2 hour
sitcoms have a different format than feature films and dramatic television.
But the 1 page 1 minute rule holds true for anything using the standard format
- there are exceptions (Braveheart is about 124 pages...), but it works rather
well.
hollywood_bull-evard
Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>average.
> Any help will be appreciated.
You've no doubt heard of the 1 page = 1 minute rule. As for scenes,
it depends on the story, but I've found that a feature film has 25-40
major scenes (i.e., scenes more substantial than a shot or short
sequence of shots).
edwin lynch
Hollywood Bull-evard wrote:
>Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
It all depends on the type offilm/screenplay it is. A slow, langorous
film like "Sex, Lies and Videotape" may have only 80 scenes, while
"T2" might have 150.
Edwin James Lynch
http://www.filmtv.com.au/edwin
jcaron
Ed is right. There is no rule or limit as to the amount of
scenes in a screenplay. It's up to the writer. Well, at least
until a director gets a hold of it.
JC
Robert Gregory-Browne
Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>average.
> Any help will be appreciated.
I'm sorry, but counting scenes is a waste of time. Think story.
Write story. If it comes out too long, cut story.
80 pages = approximately 80 minutes. Anyone who gives you an
"average" number of scenes doesn't have a clue. (I don't believe I've
ever actually counted the number of scenes in one of my scripts...)
To paraphrase Amadeus: Write just as many scenes as you require,
neither more nor less...
rgb
Robert Gregory-Browne
Robert Gregory-Browne
Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>average.
> Any help will be appreciated.
Don't worry about the number of scenes. The number of scenes is
irrelevant. Just write the story. 80 pages will be approximately 80
mins. If you go past your target, start cutting.
rgb
Sounds deceptively simple, doesn't it?
Robert Gregory-Browne
I HAVE NO IDEA WHY THESE POSTS, WHICH ARE AT LEAST A COUPLE MONTHS OLD
, ARE SUDDENLY POSTING NOW. AND VARIOUS VERSIONS, TOO.
VERY ODD.
rgb
Robert Gregory-Browne
Phillip Sumner <psu...@ix.netcom.com> wrote:
>Hi all. I need to know about how many scenes are in an 80 minute
>script. I know this depends on scene length, etc. but just on the
>average.
> Any help will be appreciated.
80 pages. The number of scenes is irrelevant. Just tell a story.
but do it in 80 pages, which works out to approximately 80 minutes.
If you have so many scenes it turns out too long, then cut it down.
There'll always be stuff you can dump.
rgb
Didi S. DubelyeW
This happens often. As New Usenetters receive their first
packet of hundreds of messages, they begin to answer old
ones thus reviving dead & buried threads. Also happens when
people return from vacations. Sometimes feels like a round-robin,
or an incessant whirlpool.
Hope this clarifies dilemma,
Didi