Donald L. Vasicek

Blog

  • “The Screenplay Page”

    Hello, Everyone!

    Everything on the screenplay page must be able to be seen on the screen.
    So, when you’re writing, and are puzzled about whether something
    should be on the screenplay page, or not, look at it and imagine
    yourself in a theater watching this movie. Where would it fit in
    the movie?

    Also, always rely on this: People who read screenplays, agents, directors,
    producers, production companies, actors, script readers, etc. have stacks
    of scripts to read. Therefore, it is part of the screenwriter’s job to strive
    to have more white on each page of the screenplay, than black. All
    screenplay readers want to be able to “buzz” through each screenplay. And
    brevity is part of the art of screenwriting.

    I hope this is of help to you.

    Best Regards,

    Donald L. Vasicek
    Olympus Films+, LLC
    The Zen of Writing (& Screenwriting)
    http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
    dvasicek@earthlink.net

    Award-Winning Writer/Filmmaker Donald L. Vasicek - Los Angeles TV Appearance
    Award-Winning Writer/Filmmaker Donald L. Vasicek – Los Angeles TV Appearance

  • Screenwriting – Dialogue – Spacing

    Think in terms of the tabs on your word processor rather than
    measuring from margins, etc. Dialogue begins at tab 29 and
    cuts off at tab 60. Period. That’s all there is to it.

    This information was taken from Cole/Haag’s “The Complete
    Guide To Standard Script Formats: Part I: The Screenplay.”
    You should purchase this book. It is the industry standard
    and covers just everything on which you might a question.

    Producers, readers, actors, directors, etc. aren’t so much
    concerned about spacing as the screenwriter is. There must
    be some semblance of order on the page so that it is easy for
    others to read. So, dialogue is placed in the middle of the page
    for easy access. No one will take out a tape and measure
    distances. They measure with their eyes, like what looks right
    and what doesn’t look right. Whatever doesn’t look right can
    throw them off and cause the screenwriter to lose credibility,
    not only in spacing, but the writing as well.

    I hope this is of help to you.

    Best Regards,

    Donald L. Vasicek
    Olympus Films+, LLC
    The Zen of Writing (Screenwriting)
    http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
    dvasicek@earthlink.net

  • “Screenwriting – Camera Directions”

    Some say some utilization of camera directions by the screenwriter
    is okay, just as long as its limited and the screenwriter is unable
    to find another way of expressing what they’re writing. I’ve been
    in the screenwriting trenches with studios and indies, and I have
    to say that whatever camera direction or camera directions are
    used by the screenwriter, the camera directions will be changed
    when the shooting script is being written.

    So, what you’re doing works. However, utilizing your creativity
    in place of camera direction will be more impressive to the
    producer, director and actor if you avoid camera directions. In
    this way, the screenwriter will not be insulting these people
    and/or showing amateurism.

    So, in place of using CAMERA, something like this:

    INT. HIROKO’S OFFICE – DAY

    Hiroko aims her eyes at a name holder on her desk.

    HIROKO
    Hiroko…

    Hiroko quits articulating her name. She looks at Simon,
    then eyes the name holder. Simon looks at the name
    holder.

    INSERT

    Name Holder shows

    HIROKO YAKISHIMA

    BACK TO SCENE

    XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

    By doing it this way, it builds confidence in the reader,
    whereas camera directions, can lose your reader right
    away.

    I hope this is help to you.

    Best Regards,

    Donald L. Vasicek
    Olympus Films+, LLC
    The Zen of Writing
    http://michaelc.nextmp.net/wordpress
    dvasicek@earthlink.net