camera moves in a spec script

A

armadillo

Well-known member
Hi, I just wanted to get people's take on including a couple camera terms in spec scripts.

I have a submission deadline coming up quickly and wanted to finalize a couple formatting issues.

How acceptable (in a spec script) are:

1. "CLOSE ON" Character X as Action Y happens (in a spec script)
2. "LOW ANGLE" / "HIGH ANGLE"
3. Camera moves like "PAN RIGHT TO"... (in a spec script)
4. "FROM BEHIND:" mid-scene to indicate that we are behind a character now

Is it just a matter of personal taste? Or are some of these outright offences?
 
Unless you're writing it for yourself or under a commission, you should leave all the camera direction out.

e
 
I'll occasionally use "Close on" to high lite an important element. I'm not really using it as a camera move though, more as a story telling device.
 
Additional question...

I am aware that it is standard to start with FADE IN, and then have your 1st setting INT/EXT...

What do I do if I want to CUT IN to the first image...

Do I open with
CUT IN. ?

Or CUT TO: EXT. STREET - DAY...

Or just open with: EXT. STREET - DAY...

Thanks, just wanted to clear this up...
 
armadillo said:
How acceptable (in a spec script) are:

1. "CLOSE ON" Character X as Action Y happens (in a spec script)
2. "LOW ANGLE" / "HIGH ANGLE"
3. Camera moves like "PAN RIGHT TO"... (in a spec script)
4. "FROM BEHIND:" mid-scene to indicate that we are behind a character now

Is it just a matter of personal taste? Or are some of these outright offences?
Click to expand...

"from behind" is definitely a matter of personal taste.
 
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Zak Forsman said:
"from behind" is definitely a matter of personal taste.
Click to expand...
 
Zak Forsman said:
"from behind" is definitely a matter of personal taste.
Click to expand...

Funny and also a good point.

Is there a spec script convention for suggesting (for storytelling impact) a view from behind the character, eg. seeing the character and what he sees (dirty POV kind of)

Also,

in terms of POV descriptions, I have come across conflicting methods. Would you recommend:

BOB'S POV:
what he sees.

POV BOB:
what he sees.

POV BOB - what he sees.

or
BOB'S POV - what he sees.

And after the POV passage, is it necessary to re-establish the non POV setting in any way before continuing? (eg. a slugline, or a simple, IN THE CAR:, etc)

Thanks as always.
 
Some camera moves are allowed in a spec script. ANY camera move is allowed, but ONLY if it is a really essential camera move for the IDEA to get across. If it's simply a camera move because you want to direct it and think its a good camera move, 86 it. But, If the camera move itself is part of the story or idea it can be left in.


But, picture this.

Say you want to include a camera move or shot location or anything. Why did you come up with this camera move? Because when you wrote the story you felt the move was warranted.

WRONG..

That is not your job. Your job is to write the screenplay well enough that a DIRECTOR will be able to come up with the same or better shots based off what he reads.


For example:

Close on: Bob's Hand is clenched in a fist.

Why have "Close on:?" There is no point. Any director worth a penny would realise that a tight shot on the fist MIGHT be a god idea. So therfore that camera move/angle should NOT be in a spec script.

If, though, the camera angle goes AGAINST normal inclination of the director, or the camera move ITSELF is PART of the story, it would be acceptable. Though, this circumstance is rare and thus, no camera direction at all..
 
agreed. the director would (or should) know when to use close shots.

and in reference to 'cutting in' instead of a fade in: from what i learned in school, u always start with a fade in. not sure why, just policy i imagine. interestingly, this is the same reason u aren't supposed to use camera moves...just because u aren't.
 
occasionally there is a point in having CLOSE ON or ANGLE on, remember you are supposed to be telling a story visually. Plus if you do it once a screenplay or very seldom, i.e., when looking at whatever it is is essential to telling the story it won't look like you don't know what you're doing by littering your screenplay with camera directions.

I'm writing a screenplay with vampires and theres some psychic connection stuff in it and sometimes only one character in a scene sees another character, so I have to indicate who's seeing what.

Sometimes I still try to steer away from POV though and I just write "Martha sees ... " dunno if that's right or wrong.
 
What I say (Probably wrong, but meh)

If it's your own script, GO WILD!

Write what you want, if you can understand it.

Don't follow my advice as I'm probably wrong, but I tend to do it when I write...Lol.
 
maybe that's ok for a first draft but Robbie as you get more and more experienced and your films get better and better, you'll want to attract experienced talented knowledgeable people to be in, and work on your movies ... remember you're not the only one who has to read your script, once you stop working with friends and people's moms it'll matter what your script looks like so might as well start practicing the form.
 
Hi Armadillo,

When you get a moment, begin reviewing script formats using in our industry. You can review thousands of scripts here, here, here, here, here, here, etc. And as others have said, scriptwriters generally aren't so presumptive tell DPs how to do their job unless the direction is really necessary to clear up an ambiguous scene. Shooting scripts come later, once you've got a signed contract - that's the time you'll get into camera directives. Here's a site where you can contrast the two formats (ss = shooting script).

Happy Trails, Michael
 
Thanks everyone for the help so far.

Moonlit, thanks for the links. Believe me, I have been reading scripts, scripts and more scripts. In fact, I shot myself in the foot by reading mostly shooting scripts way back when and that is part of the reason I am now forced to come up with specific questions for formatting in spec scripts, where I need to know if one of my shooting script conventions (or some odd convention I developed on my own for God knows what reason) needs altering...

I am currently "un-shooting" a script to make it fully spec-formatted for a rapidly approaching deadline, and individual oddball points keep coming up to which it can be very difficult to find a clear answer. Anyway, I'm going over scripts, scripts and more scripts for the answers, and you did provide one very good script site that I was not yet familiar with, so thanks.
 
armadillo said:
l oddball points keep coming up to which it can be very difficult to find a clear answer. Anyway, I'm going over scripts, scripts and more scripts for the answers, and you did provide one very good script site that I was not yet familiar with, so thanks.
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Don't fret of this stuff. It's the least important part of a screenplay. If it more or less looks like a screenplay, it's a screenplay.
 
Jack Daniel Stanley said:
, once you stop working with friends and people's moms it'll matter what your script looks like so might as well start practicing the form.
Click to expand...

You talking about Blind Date? I casted people for Blind Date....Due to some of the people who couldn't make it, that's when I chose randoms.
 
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