Any Screenwriters out there that can answer this?

Question

If I were to write a screenplay with action sequences in it (ie. a car chase), should I just put [insert car chase here], or specify, or what? Can you give some examples, perhaps?

Answer 1

It's acceptable to do either. As a rule, you should have respect for the director; they will bring a certain vision to your script, a conception of how things will look and flow, and you need to honor that insofar as you can. It's common for beginning screenwriters to do things like specify exactly how the title credits should look, what music should go under each scene, and so forth. In general, directors do not appreciate this. If you have very specific ideas about how your car chase should run, feel free to script it, especially if you feel that the dialogue during the chase adds something to the picture. But it's also acceptable to write:

The MOBSTERS chase JOHN. He lead them on a lengthy CAR CHASE, but he is CAPTURED.

This is, in fact, the more normal thing to do. The textbook example of this, literally (although I can't for the life of me remember the title of the book this is from) is that some writers will write detailed love scenes, while others will just write "JOHN and MARCIA make love."

If you do actually decide to write a car chase scene in its entirety, be aware that it will probably be scrapped and replaced as dictated by convenience.

Answer 2

Yea, that's exactly what you do UNLESS there is an ABSOLUTE MUST REASON

Same thing with jokes to

The term is JTBA (Joke To Be Added) which is done by a "comic" punch up person.

A comic punch up person, by the way, in the Old Days was Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Woody Allen, David LEtterman, Conan O'Brien, Gary Shandling, Rob Reiner, etc.

These people got paid a flat salary to come in and pitch jokes. Maybe three or four of them would be paid $500 a day to come in and pitch all the JTBA things and the producers would pick the best.

Today it's the "hot guys" at the Comedy Club.

These guys make the rounds and do the JTBA for Friends, How I Met Your Mom, Boston Legal, Shark, CSI -- all the netowork shows bring in comics to "punch" things up.

$500 to read a script, maybe 2 hours work, and write out some one liners is considered good money.

If you do it 5 days a week you make $2,500

That's far more than the Comedy Clubs pay you to tell jokes.

$500 is what you are paid to do the LEtterman Show.

It's SAG wages for one day.

You get it for two or three hours of work

Same applies to car chases, becasue the SECOND UNIT DIRECTOR, who is the STUNT ARRANGER will be doing it.

YOU only put in details IF IT IS REQUIRED FOR THE STORY.

Example. In the movie the Pawnbroker, the script writers suggested Black and White or Sepia for the flash backs, like they honestly thought the movie would get a buget for color!

The DP (Director of Photography) did it with slow motion and it started a trend in photography!

So there the story writers "suggestted" a visual to aid the concept of the flash back, but when done in reality the DP had a different idea.

YOUR job is to TELL a uniqe story with a moral and a twist.

They don't even CARE about the dialog. THAT will be changed by the Stars and Director on the day of shooting.

IF Dustin Hoffman, for some reason, CAN'T say your lines or has a Tom Brokow problem (lisp) then YOUR WORDS will be changed to suit him!

Why? Because a million extra people will come to see Dustin Hoffman in this movie

HOW MANY PEOPLE will YOUR name as WRITER DRAW!

Dustin, for no reason to be offensive to you, just can't say the words or he doesn't feel good about them so HE changes the words but keeps your basic intent.

Be thankful he didn't ask for WRITING CREDIT and ROYALTIES

He'd get them if he asked for them!

Answer 3

After viewing many DVD with director commentary, the more specific you are in describing the scene, the easier it is for a novice director to direct it. Regardless how much effort you put on the scene, the constrictions of budget, location, weather, and time are always a consideration. Even the best of scenes have many rewrites and sometimes it is good to take advantage of the unexpected. In the movie "The French connection", the car chase was written a head of time as part of the script. The stunt driver missed his mark and slammed into a car. They decided to leave that in the scene and it did make the car chase see less choreographed.

Answer 4

From what I've learned in my film writing class....aside from the dialogues you're also suppose to describe everything that is happening in the scene (ie. the location, time, the character's actions, etc)...So I guess with a car chase you could describe where the chase is happening and at what time. You could also put in how many streets it might pass or if the car crashes into anything along the way...It's also important to include what the character are doing while the action sequence is going on...

Here's an example:

EXT.AMAZON STREET.PM
That night, Alec's ferrari chases Dan's porsche along Amazon street. Tire screeched along the wet pavement. Alec reached for his gun and shoot at the porsche.

The bullet hit left rear tire of the porsche and the porsche crashes straight to the lamppost.