Sitcom Script Question, Help Needed Page 2

Thanks for all the helps guys. I'm still not sure how to go about the flashback thing though, because I number my scenes you see...so right now I would probably do it like this...

SCENE 1. INT. SHOP - DAY

MAN: Hey nice coat!

WOMAN: That's my wedding dress

(Warning that is not my actual Scene I just made that up)

CUT TO:

SCENE 2. INT. FLAT - FLASHBACK

MAN: Will you marry me?

WOMAN: Get up you fool, we're already married

(Warning, once again just making this up as I go along)

SCENE 3. INT. SHOP - DAY

MAN: Oh I thought it was your coat, I'm sorry.

-----

Don't know why that wedding theme took over there. But yeah, that to me looks confusing because Scene 1 and Scene 3 are suppose to be happening at the same time but marking it as Scene 3 seems to suggest its moved on.

Oh and in response to Ed Parnell, the caption thing is only going to be used at the beginning of the pilot episode when we first meet the characters, its because I'm doing a 'big cast' sitcom, so this will give an idea of how these characters link to each other.

You should put CUT TO: at the end of it scene (except the last when you put END), so put it after scene 2

Hmm, "at the end of it scene"...did you mean to say "At the end of 'a' scene" or "At the end of every scene"??

All right, forget about numbering the scenes, it's pointless and if it's happening at the same time, try this....

INT. SHOP. DAY

Insert words.

CUT TO:

Flashback.

INT. SHOP. CONTINUOUS

Insert words.

Ah yeah, forgot about the old CONTINUOUS tag. Think I'll go for that one. So do people generally not number their scenes? I've always numbered them in the past.

This thread can be made into a general thread for formatting style questions if you like, although I seem to be the only one asking at the minute lol.

The only time i've seen scenes numbered is in The Office script book, but most scripts on the net (thought most are american), never number each scene.

Number the pages, that's important.

Instead of doing on screen captions, why not try that much more creative and sometimes more stylish way of having the names on objects in the scene. For example you could have a close up of someones name tag, which is just a simple way or a more "crazy" way for example, have them butter their toast and then when they move their hand away you see their name - I saw that on something recently.

Shaun Of The Dead? Kind of. Well, the nametag part.

Oh yeah, but I bet you could do it in loads ways, a tattoo, someone else saying their name, filling in a form, a name tag... wait already said that...

Yeah lots of good ideas the Leevil I may use that. It's not the fact that I'm finding it hard to make the audience know what the characters names are, I can easily do that just by other characters referring to each other by name (which will be happening obviously). But I also want to add this at the beginning, with also the relation underneath the name, it's kind of a way of linking the characters up straight away.

You know how some shows have a whole title sequence like that, where it shows each character and their name etc. Well kind of like that, but wasting less time because action and dialogue will be going on while these captions appear....means more time for jokes and plot movement, rather than wasting time on a big title sequence.

Bluth?

Quote: Martin Holmes @ May 10, 2007, 8:36 PM

Hmm, "at the end of it scene"...did you mean to say "At the end of 'a' scene" or "At the end of every scene"??

View original

I meant each scene

Arrested Development do it well, the pilot episode. Also the 1st episode of the 2nd series of Spaced. The UK/American Office gets to it quick.

My view is that if you describe what's happening to the reader and have made enough effort to stick with the conventions then you ain't gonna be penalised for mis-formating an unconventional bit. Just describe what you should see.

And, at the risk of contradicting myself a little bit, leave most of what you see to the director. I'd be surprised if more than 20% (10%...?) of programmes that finally appeared on screen with "captions" in front of the first appearance of characacters actually had the captions written into the accepted first draft of the script that got sold.

The captions can be a useful device if parodying programmes like '100 Best ..' that caption their 'experts'.
Woody Allen used it in the 'documentary' parts of 'Take the Money and Run' - most notably with the caption "Stanley Krim (cretin)".