A film script is the blueprint for the actual film to be shot. The script can be the original work of the writer, or an adaptation from a novel or short story written by some different author, who has consented to the adaptation.

The standard specification for a film script is to use the 12-point Courier or Courier New font, without any use of bolding or italicizing. The following points represent the most followed format of writing a film script.

1) The title page

The title page creates the first impression in the mind of a producer and thus the screenplay should seem interesting and must portray the writer as a professional in the field of script writing. The title must be emphasized by underling or putting it under quotation marks. A logline might follow, which would describe the film in a sentence (but not necessary to include). The contact information along with any copyright details must be mentioned at the bottom of the title page.

2) Transitions

The transitions are short descriptions depicting the progress of a film from one scene to another. It is however, not essential and should only be used if necessary. For instance, a Time Cut can attribute a time gap, while a Match Cut can be used to denote the association between elements in two different scenes.

3) Scene headings

A particular scene must be preceded with a scene heading. It must begin with “EXT” if it is to be held outdoor, or else it should be marked as “INT”. The scene heading must also contain name of the location in capital letters. The time of the shooting follows next, which would be placed in the same line beside the location name and with an indentation of ” – “. There should be a left margin of 1.5 inch and a right margin of 1 inch for the screen heading.

4) Page breaks

When a page break occurs in between a paragraph, the break must be placed in between a sentence and not between two complete sentences.

5) Action

The action should be in present tense and describe the observations on the screen.

6) Dialogue

The verbal communication of a character is termed as a dialogue and should always be inside quotation marks.

7) Parenthetical

This option should not be used unless it is a necessity. However, the notation can be used during a long dialogue by a character.