You can order Christopher's book from Michael Wiese Productions here.
Dave Watson: Chris, first of all, congratulations on the book. Why format and style?
Christopher Riley: Thank you. It was the area I worked in at Warner Bros. I was in the script processing department and format was how scripts first showed their value and how stories and characters became clear and compelling to the reader.
DW: Why a second edition? The first was eight years ago. Has screenwriting changed much?
CR: There have been certain necessary changes, especially with all of the new ways of communication nowadays: tweeting, texting, instant messaging, and so on. Writers now come in asking, “How do I format a conversation that takes place via text in a movie?” The publisher, Michael Wiese, suggested an eight-and-a-half-by-eleven format to enable readers to see full-size script pages in standard format. I also added some new chapters, including a Quick Start Guide. This book is meant to be a companion and reference manual for writers to use while writing.
DW: In your career at Warner Bros., you were there for what, fifteen years in their script department?
CR: I think fourteen. I learned by reading thousands of scripts. I read the pilot of “ER,” episodes of “Murphy Brown” and many features including “Unforgiven” and “Forrest Gump,” though Warner Bros. ended up not producing that film. This experience shaped my sense of screenwriting literature as an art form in its own right, one that creates the film in the reader's imagination.
DW: How did you learn style? Some professionals aren’t even sure what that word means and use it differently.
DW: My book focuses on how writers put the various elements of a script on a page, the format and style associated with that specific task, not on character development or story. For those there are many good books out there. Claudia Johnson's “Crafting Short Screenplays That Connect.” And Stephen King’s “On Writing” for example.
DW: Read “On Writing” two years ago.
CR: King said the first draft minus ten percent equals the second draft.
DW: That applies to screenwriting?
CR: Sure. At Warner Bros. we took scripts in a very accomplished format, such as “ER.” Then we had new writers who wanted help with their format. As a general rule, I tell writers to keep the script as simple as possible while at the same time being very clear. Writers often have great ideas. They often need help putting those ideas on the page. You don't want to confuse the audience, which for a script is the reader. I encourage writers to be wary of too many shot headings and to keep things simple and clear.
DW: This in a sense creates a viewing experience on the page.
CR: Yes! I like that, “a viewing experience on the page.” That's what a screenwriter tries to create. A script also cannot be choked with words or the reading is burdensome. It has to be light, airy, and inviting.
DW: Would you say presentation is as important as content?
CR: Well, it’s like a job interview. How you dress and present yourself is half of it, and the content of your resume is the second half. It's like that with a script. There are so many scripts trying to distinguish themselves. You don't want to send yours out half-dressed. But of course a script also has to be judged as a piece of entertainment, as a story that moves the audience and creates meaning and emotion.
DW: And at one point you say in your book, “say it shorter, say it faster.” Does this only apply to dialogue? I thought of the old saying, “a picture says a thousand words.”
CR: Yes, I think that advice applies to every part of a script. When writing a script, you are trying to paint a picture, but it’s not a good idea to think of it as a painting, certainly not to use a thousand words. People read scripts fast. The screenwriter's job is to devise a vivid, economical way to paint the picture.
DW: Your book also covers single-camera and multi-camera format, shot headings, transitions, even punctuation. Did you see this book as complementing other books on writing?
CR: Yes. Books like “The Art of Dramatic Writing” by Lagos Egri, Robert McKee’s “Story,” and Blake Snyder’s “Save the Cat” are all good for storytelling. My book is meant to be used sort of like a dictionary or thesaurus. When you have a format question, you can look it up. The book can't cover everything, though, because script format isn't a science. Just yesterday, a writer friend contacted me with an exotic formatting problem and I had to scratch my head and think for awhile. That's not unusual. During all my time at Warner Bros., every single day there were new challenges, novel scripting problems, and we would have to devise a solution. We always said to be as clear and simple as possible, and consistent with the principles of standard formatting, and beyond that sometimes you just have to make stuff up!
DW: What about writing rules?
CR: (Laughs) I’m suspicious of being absolute regarding rules on writing. You’ll hear all kinds of absolute statements made about not using flashbacks, narration, etc. But we can all think of good movies that break those rules. The real rule is to exercise critical thinking, and discern whether use of any particular device is a strong move or a weak one.
DW: One rule I read years ago was to not show a screen on the big screen much, to never show a phone screen, computer monitor, or anything. Yet I’ve seen that many times since.
CR: That may be a reasonable rule. But there will be times it's a necessary choice. I'll say this. Filmmaking is an unforgiving discipline. Our audiences are sophisticated, and will turn away if we don't hold their interest. I hate to lose my reader at any point in a script, and I certainly don't want that to happen for a reason like poor formatting that is so avoidable.
DW: You were involved with the Act One writing program. Tell me more about that.
CR: I directed Act One's writing program for three-and-a-half years. It was designed to train Christians of all denominations for careers in film and television. There were fifty or so writers, producers, and professionals that would come in and speak. I loved sitting in on the classes because every writer knows something different about writing and I learned from all of them.
DW: What do you do now?
CR: I live and write in L.A. and teach screen storytelling two days a week at John Paul the Great Catholic University in San Diego.
DW: Chris, thanks much for your time considering your schedule. Your book is a terrific manual for all screenwriter, and helpful to all writers!
CR: Thank you, Dave, it was a pleasure.
Dave Watson is the Editor of the web site “Movies Matter,” http://www.davesaysmoviesmatter.com. He lives in Madison, WI.
Dave Watson: Chris, first of all, congratulations on the book. Why format and style?
Christopher Riley: Thank you. It was the area I worked in at Warner Bros. I was in the script processing department and format was how scripts first showed their value and how stories and characters became clear and compelling to the reader.
DW: Why a second edition? The first was eight years ago. Has screenwriting changed much?
CR: There have been certain necessary changes, especially with all of the new ways of communication nowadays: tweeting, texting, instant messaging, and so on. Writers now come in asking, “How do I format a conversation that takes place via text in a movie?” The publisher, Michael Wiese, suggested an eight-and-a-half-by-eleven format to enable readers to see full-size script pages in standard format. I also added some new chapters, including a Quick Start Guide. This book is meant to be a companion and reference manual for writers to use while writing.
DW: In your career at Warner Bros., you were there for what, fifteen years in their script department?
CR: I think fourteen. I learned by reading thousands of scripts. I read the pilot of “ER,” episodes of “Murphy Brown” and many features including “Unforgiven” and “Forrest Gump,” though Warner Bros. ended up not producing that film. This experience shaped my sense of screenwriting literature as an art form in its own right, one that creates the film in the reader's imagination.
DW: How did you learn style? Some professionals aren’t even sure what that word means and use it differently.
DW: My book focuses on how writers put the various elements of a script on a page, the format and style associated with that specific task, not on character development or story. For those there are many good books out there. Claudia Johnson's “Crafting Short Screenplays That Connect.” And Stephen King’s “On Writing” for example.
DW: Read “On Writing” two years ago.
CR: King said the first draft minus ten percent equals the second draft.
DW: That applies to screenwriting?
CR: Sure. At Warner Bros. we took scripts in a very accomplished format, such as “ER.” Then we had new writers who wanted help with their format. As a general rule, I tell writers to keep the script as simple as possible while at the same time being very clear. Writers often have great ideas. They often need help putting those ideas on the page. You don't want to confuse the audience, which for a script is the reader. I encourage writers to be wary of too many shot headings and to keep things simple and clear.
DW: This in a sense creates a viewing experience on the page.
CR: Yes! I like that, “a viewing experience on the page.” That's what a screenwriter tries to create. A script also cannot be choked with words or the reading is burdensome. It has to be light, airy, and inviting.
DW: Would you say presentation is as important as content?
CR: Well, it’s like a job interview. How you dress and present yourself is half of it, and the content of your resume is the second half. It's like that with a script. There are so many scripts trying to distinguish themselves. You don't want to send yours out half-dressed. But of course a script also has to be judged as a piece of entertainment, as a story that moves the audience and creates meaning and emotion.
DW: And at one point you say in your book, “say it shorter, say it faster.” Does this only apply to dialogue? I thought of the old saying, “a picture says a thousand words.”
CR: Yes, I think that advice applies to every part of a script. When writing a script, you are trying to paint a picture, but it’s not a good idea to think of it as a painting, certainly not to use a thousand words. People read scripts fast. The screenwriter's job is to devise a vivid, economical way to paint the picture.
DW: Your book also covers single-camera and multi-camera format, shot headings, transitions, even punctuation. Did you see this book as complementing other books on writing?
CR: Yes. Books like “The Art of Dramatic Writing” by Lagos Egri, Robert McKee’s “Story,” and Blake Snyder’s “Save the Cat” are all good for storytelling. My book is meant to be used sort of like a dictionary or thesaurus. When you have a format question, you can look it up. The book can't cover everything, though, because script format isn't a science. Just yesterday, a writer friend contacted me with an exotic formatting problem and I had to scratch my head and think for awhile. That's not unusual. During all my time at Warner Bros., every single day there were new challenges, novel scripting problems, and we would have to devise a solution. We always said to be as clear and simple as possible, and consistent with the principles of standard formatting, and beyond that sometimes you just have to make stuff up!
DW: What about writing rules?
CR: (Laughs) I’m suspicious of being absolute regarding rules on writing. You’ll hear all kinds of absolute statements made about not using flashbacks, narration, etc. But we can all think of good movies that break those rules. The real rule is to exercise critical thinking, and discern whether use of any particular device is a strong move or a weak one.
DW: One rule I read years ago was to not show a screen on the big screen much, to never show a phone screen, computer monitor, or anything. Yet I’ve seen that many times since.
CR: That may be a reasonable rule. But there will be times it's a necessary choice. I'll say this. Filmmaking is an unforgiving discipline. Our audiences are sophisticated, and will turn away if we don't hold their interest. I hate to lose my reader at any point in a script, and I certainly don't want that to happen for a reason like poor formatting that is so avoidable.
DW: You were involved with the Act One writing program. Tell me more about that.
CR: I directed Act One's writing program for three-and-a-half years. It was designed to train Christians of all denominations for careers in film and television. There were fifty or so writers, producers, and professionals that would come in and speak. I loved sitting in on the classes because every writer knows something different about writing and I learned from all of them.
DW: What do you do now?
CR: I live and write in L.A. and teach screen storytelling two days a week at John Paul the Great Catholic University in San Diego.
DW: Chris, thanks much for your time considering your schedule. Your book is a terrific manual for all screenwriter, and helpful to all writers!
CR: Thank you, Dave, it was a pleasure.
Dave Watson is the Editor of the web site “Movies Matter,” http://www.davesaysmoviesmatter.com. He lives in Madison, WI.