Here is how you should write the script and how it should look like:

1. Paper size: 8½” x 11”

2. For the cover page, use a solid color index stock of at least 65 pound
but preferably 110 pound. Nothing appears on the cover. It’s just a
blank page.

3. Typography: 12-point Courier. No fancy or proportional fonts. Do not

bold or italicize. Why is this so? Courier is a non-proportional font,
and it appears to be typed using a typewriter. When you type 1 to 0
using 12-point Courier, and you measure it, the result is one inch.
Using this font is also going to be easier for your reader who reads a
lot of scripts in a day.

To illustrate proportional vs. non-proportional font:

Tahoma 12-point: 1234567890

Courier 12-point: 1234567890

4. Margins and tabulations: Your scripts are going to be placed in a

three-ring binder. Therefore:
Left margin must be 1.5 inches or 15 spaces or characters using
12-point Courier.
Right margin: 0.5 inch
Top margin: 1 inch
Bottom margin: 1 inch
Dialogue: 2.5 inches (or 10 spaces from left margin)
One line of dialogue should not be wider than
3.5 inches
Actor’s instructions: 3.1 inches (or 16 spaces from left margin)
Character’s name: 3.7 inches (or 22 spaces from left margin)
Do not justify.

5. Pagination: Page numbers must be located at the upper right hand

corner, flush right.
Then double-space and begin writing your first line.
The first page is not paginated.

6. Slug Line: Every time there’s a change in location, you need a slug
line. A slug line includes the sequence number, location of
the camera (INT: interior or EXT: exterior), the place, and
the time. It’s written in all caps and separated by a period.
For example:
 1 INT. CLASSROOM. MIKE FAILS HIS TEST. DAY

7. Character’s first appearance: The name must always be written in all

caps for every character’s first appearance only.

8. Sounds: Place important sounds or sound effects in all caps.

For example, BUZZING of bees

Reminders/Do’s and Don’ts:

1. Use the present tense.

2. Don’t “cheat” on the margins or typography just so to meet the

number of pages required. Again, follow the format strictly.

3. Don’t date your scripts.

4. Don’t label your script “first draft” or “final draft” or any draft.
Remember, it’s not supposed to be a draft. It’s a spec script.

5. Don’t put a suggested cast list or character list with bios, UNLESS
requested

6. Don’t attach a synopsis UNLESS requested. Remember, you want

them to read your script and you are technically “selling” your writing
skills.

7. SHOW. Don’t tell. You are writing for a visual medium. It’s important
to visualize what you’re writing. Imagine for the audience. Don’t just
simply write, “Rene walks into the room.” Be more specific and
descriptive. Always include the “how” factor. How does he enter the
room?

Choose specific verbs that will really convey the exact image you
want your audience to visualize. For example, the verb walk has
several other synonyms, but which is the best word to describe it? Is
it stroll, saunter, strut…?

Avoid using adverbs. It’s doing a short cut and a form of laziness.
Don’t just write, “Rene struts into the room with confidence.” Again,
show the “confidence” of Rene. Let your audience receive that
confidence of Rene by showing it to them.