How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word. Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing.

How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word

Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing so will make formatting and revising your screenplays VERY easy— so you can focus on telling your stories.

Create Styles for These Screenplay Elements CHARACTER NAME (parenthetical) NOT SHOWN HERE (parenthetical) NOT SHOWN HERE TRANSITION SHOT Dialogue

Setting up the Screenplay Document 1 1)Open a new MS Word document. 2)Set the font to Courier 12 point. 3)Head the document with your name and period (for practice screenplays only). For your 10-page original screenplay, you will create a cover page.

Setting up the Screenplay Document 2 4)Hit the Return key to move your curser down the page. 5)Go to Format on the toolbar and click Document.

Setting up the Screenplay Document 3 6)Set the top, left, and bottom Margins to 1 inch. 7)Set the left Margin for 1.5 inches. Click OK.

Why is the left margin ½” wider than the other three? Read the first paragraph of your yellow format handout.

Let’s set up formatting for the character names first…

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 1 7)Go to the dropdown Format menu on the toolbar, then click Style to create a style for character names.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 2 7)Using the default style Normal, click New.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 3 9)Name the new style NAME. Since names are in all capitals, I like the style name to look like that. 10)Change the formatting font to Courier 12 point. Also make sure the Add to Quick Style list box is checked.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 4 11)Then click the Format dropdown menu in the lower left. 12)Click Font.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 5 13)Click the All caps box. Then click OK. This will take you back to the New Style pop-up box.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 6 14)Now click the Format dropdown menu again. 15)This time click Paragraph to set your automatic indenting.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 7 16)In Paragraph formatting, make sure your text is left-aligned, then set up indenting for 2” from the left. Click OK. This will take you back to the New Style box.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 8 17)Now click Close to add this style to your Styles menu. You only click Apply if you want to apply this style to text where your curser is in your document.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 8 You will now see the style NAME on the Styles menu—in addition to Normal. You will use Normal for indicating Action.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 9 To see how it works, 1)Put your curser up on the page where it is left-aligned. 2)Type a name in any case you want—all lower case is fine.

Using Styles to Auto-format Character Names 8 3)With the curser on the line with the name you just typed, click NAMES on the Styles menu. 4)Voilá! The name is now in all capitals and properly indented.

Using Styles to Auto-format parentheticals 1 1)Put your curser below the name you just typed. 2)Under Format drop-down menu on the toolbar, click Style. 3)Using the default style Normal, click New again. Setting up a style for the other screenplay elements will be easy.

Using Styles to Auto-format parentheticals 2 4)Name the new style (parenthetical). I like the button to look like the screenplay element itself, here all lower case and in parentheses. 5)Make sure the font is set for Courier 12 point and that the style is based on Normal.

Using Styles to Auto-format parentheticals 2 6)Click the Format drop-down menu on the lower left. 7)Then click Paragraph.

Using Styles to Auto-format parentheticals 2 8)This time, set the left indentation for 1.5” and the right indentation for 2”. 9)Click OK. This will take you back to the New Style pop-up box.

Using Styles to Auto-format parentheticals 3 10)Click Close. If you want to apply this style to text where your curser already is in the document, click Apply.

Using Styles to Auto-format Parentheticals 4 To see how it works, 1)Put your curser below the character name. 2)Type direction for how the line is to be said in parentheses, all lower case. Note that MS Word is not able to set up a font style for all lower case and automatic parentheses. Dang!

Using Styles to Auto-format Parentheticals 5 3)With your curser on the line with the parenthetical you just typed, click the (parenthetical) style button. 4)Voilá! The parenthetical is now properly placed.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 1 1)Put your curser below the parenthetical and type something. 2)As before, click the Format pull-down menu on the toolbar and click Style. 3)Click Normal under Styles. 4)Now click New.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 2 3)Name this new style Dialogue. I like it in sentence case, just like dialogue is supposed to look. 4)Click the Format pull- down menu. 5)Click Paragraph.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 3 6)This time, set the left indentation for 1” and the right indentation for 1.5”. Click OK. This will take you back to the New Style pop-up box.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 4 7)Click OK. This will take you back to the New Style box.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 5 8)Click Close. Only click Apply if you want to apply this style to the text where your curser is in the document.

Using Styles to Auto-format Dialogue 6 9)Put the curser on the line with the dialogue you just typed, click Dialogue on the Styles menu. Your dialogue will be instantly formatted.

Shots and Transitions 1)Now do the same thing for SHOTS, which can occur anywhere in a scene… 2)And TRANSITIONS—for example a DISSOLVE or FADE TO—which only occur at the end of a scene to transition into the next scene. Note that spec scripts (the kind you will practice) rarely specify shots or transitions—but consider yourself the “director/screenwriter” like Quentin Tarantino or Spike Lee and add them if you wish.

Shots 1 1)Under Format drop-down menu on the toolbar, click Style. 2)Using the default style Normal, click New—just like you did for the other styles.

Shots 2 3)Call the new style SHOT. Since shots are in all capitals, I like the style name to be in all capitals. 4)Click the pull-down Format menu. 5)Click Font.

Shots 3 6)Click the All caps box. 7)Click OK. This will take you back to the New Style box.

Shots 4 8)Since shots are aligned at the left margin, you don’t need to worry about indenting. Just click OK.

Shots 5 9)Back on the Style box, just click Close. You only need to click Apply if you want the style to apply to the text where your curser is in the document. 10)Back in your document, you will see SHOTS on your Style menu.

Shots 6 11)Back in your document, you will see SHOT on your Style menu.

Transitions 1)Now follow the same steps in Format, then Styles, then New to auto-format transitions. 2)Remember that you will need to set the Font for all capitals and the Paragraph indenting for 4”.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! 1)Now just SAVE your document as Screenplay Format and upload it to your folder on the server or email it to yourself. 2)Do not save it as a “template” to a school computer. This template will just be erased at the end of the day. 3)Any time you want to create a screenplay, just open this document and SAVE AS the name of that assignment.

What if a style doesn’t look like it’s supposed to? Say, for example, your parenthetical turned out to be in all capitals…

How to Modify a Style 1 1)Put your curser in the line of the style you need to modify. 2)Click Format on the toolbar; then click Style. 3)Make sure the style you want to modify is highlighted in blue. If it isn’t, click it so it is. 4)Now click Modify. A pop-up box will appear to let you modify this style. (Note that the Character preview let us know that our parenthetical would end up in all capitals. Oops.)

How to Modify a Style 2 5)Now choose the element you need to change. Since the parentheticals turned out to be in all capitals… 6)Click the Format pull- down menu and choose Font.

How to Modify a Style 3 7)Now just un-check the All capitals box. Then click OK.

How to Modify a Style 3 8)This will take you back to the (parenthetical) style pop-up box. 9)If your curser is in the same line as the parenthetical you wanted to modify in your document, click OK. Your style is now fixed! 10)If your curser is NOT in the same line as the element you want to modify, just click Close.

How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word. Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing.

Similar presentations

Presentation on theme: "How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word. Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing."— Presentation transcript:

Similar presentations

About project

Feedback

Log in

Auth with social network:

How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word. Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing.

Similar presentations

Presentation on theme: "How to Create a Screenplay Template in MS Word. Although creating a screenplay template might seem like a chore, you only need to do this ONCE and doing."— Presentation transcript:

Similar presentations

About project

Feedback