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How to Cut 10 Pages from Any Screenplay

8/28/2012

9 Comments

 
Is your script too long?

You probably already know that readers, agents and producers like to read scripts that are as short as possible.

But you're struggling with the task...

Picture
...How can you cut 10 pages from your screenplay, without compromising something important?

Keep Reading...
We've all heard the famous expression, "Writing is rewriting." Writers, aspiring and accomplished alike, have beaten it into the ground. I'm positive none of us ever need to hear it again. And when I'm on my 35th draft, this truism spins painfully in my mind. 

However, there is a similar yet little known phrase that does bear repeating: "Writing is deleting." 

Writing is cutting. Hacking. Sawing. Chopping and downright decapitating. And in many ways, this phrase is even more difficult to swallow than "Writing is rewriting". 

As writers, it's hard for us to 'kill our babies'. We slave over our words, carefully choosing their order, spacing and placement on the page. It's difficult to admit that our own ideas might be bogging us down, but we must if we ever want to crawl out from the detritus of our own words. 

Alas, "Writing is mercilessly destroying dozens of carefully composed thoughts," right? So embrace your cleaver and learn to love the massacre. Your writing will be better for it. 

Not sure where to start? Comb through your dialogue scene by scene. Remember, we need to be getting into scenes as late as possible and out as early as possible. 

Scan for the following bits of dialogue, and you'll end up with a shorter, tighter script:
  • Salutations – The vast majority of the time, we don't need to see characters greeting each other the way we humans greet each other in the real world. "Hi, John. How are you?" is dull and boring and completely unnecessary. Instead, jump right into the meat or conflict of your scene. Clearly, there are exceptions here. Salutations can sometimes be used to reveal character relationships or tendencies, or as a comedic device. But be honest with yourself, and if they have no purpose, push the pleasantries aside.
  • Opening with a question. Scan your work for scenes that open with a question, and see if you can achieve the same effect by opening with a response. Or even the response to that response. But be careful not to rephrase the question in the response, because that comes off as sloppy. "What do you mean rephrasing the question in the response comes off as sloppy, John!?" See? Open with the demand for a divorce and work backwards, and I'm hooked.
  • Any 'aside'... At all. Especially to end a scene. Especially if the scene ends on a joke. Don't deflate your punch by having one character comment on it before you cut away. No matter how clever that comment is, you want to get out of every scene as quickly as possible, and end on a high note.

After you've done all this, re-read your script with an objective eye. Often times, you'll find huge chunks of screenplay that can be deleted or re-arranged. 

Does every scene move your story forward? If not, cut it. Is every joke as funny as it was in the first draft? Probably not.

 As screenplays morph from one draft to the next, jokes can lose comedic resonance. Jokes that are hysterical in the first draft might not make sense in the final draft. As a writer, we remember how funny it was in the first place, and struggle to cut it. 

The same logic applies to dramatic situations. If a new draft lost a small dramatic subplot, make sure all evidence of that subplot disappears. Misplaced remnants of old drafts in new drafts are confusing and easy to spot. 

If you've done all that and your script is still a few pages too long, don't give up hope. Although there are plenty of well documented 'cheats' out there, there are a few legitimate avenues to pursue that don't compromise the format or integrity of your screenplay.

  1. Look for blocks of action tacked onto the end of your scenes. Often, this is just filler that slips through the cracks. If the action at the end of your scenes doesn't move the story forward or reveal something new, you can cut it.
  2. Look for lone lines of action between dialogue. Can these lines be tacked onto earlier action paragraphs or deleted all together? Each lone action line takes three lines of your screenplay, and it's probably not worth it.
  3. Inspect all your parentheticals. Delete all of them and then read through your screenplay again. You won't notice their absence most of the time, and if you do, you can always write them back in.
  4. Scan for ellipses in your dialogue. Is this the character hesitating, or you hesitating as you wrote? Trust the actors to insert trepidation, and save lots of space in the process.
  5. Cut overly long action. "JOHN GETS UP, CROSSES TO THE DOOR AND OPENS IT," can usually be replaced by "JOHN OPENS THE DOOR."
  6. Check to see if characters are referred to by name too often. This isn't how we talk in real life, but character names are often over-used in screenplays, and they take up lots of space.

Feeling lighter? It's surprisingly rewarding to discard unnecessary bits of writing. Even if it's like pulling teeth to admit they're unnecessary. 

Your script will always benefit from deletion, and at the end of the process you might even find you have room to squeeze in something new and improved. So put your pointer on that delete key, and CUT CUT CUT!


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9 Comments
Robin E. Simmons
8/29/2012 03:41:59 am

Cut the beginning and end of every scene and you will be surprised at how much better the whole script is.

Reply
Script Quack link
8/29/2012 07:21:53 am

Definitely. Getting into a scene late and out early can be a huge help, and using that tool effectively will really help your screenplay move.

Thanks for commenting! Looking forward to seeing you around the blog.

Reply
K. Rowe
8/29/2012 03:45:48 am

I just managed to cut 5 pages out of my script. I know there is still some more cutting, but right now it's 114 pages and starting to take shape. I opted for coverage so I can learn how to fix it up- being a novelist means I'm used to filling pages, not cutting.

Great article, will repost to my FB page.

Reply
Script Quack link
8/29/2012 07:23:43 am

That's great news! Five pages is a good chunk of screenplay. It sounds like you'll definitely be able to cut even more pages as you progress.

Glad you liked the article.

Reply
Alex Moreno
8/29/2012 05:12:29 am

I swear you guys are on some telepathic wave with my laptop. I spent all of last night cutting with my Ockam's Razor- shaved 6 pages so far. Love the idea of starting a scene w/ a response-Bravo.
Alex M-Miami

Reply
Script Quack link
8/29/2012 07:24:46 am

Thanks for commenting, Alex. Glad to hear you've been busy cutting. I hope the rewrites are going well!

Reply
Darren J Seeley
10/9/2012 06:36:09 am

After I do a draft or two, one thing I'll always find expendable is profanity, especially if it profanity that is said 'by itself'. (A character cries out 'Sh*t!' for example) . One thing I never do, but I have seen in my peers scripts is "establishing scenes" where I'm supposed to see a character walk up/drive up to a building and nothing really happens. (Or no character at all!) Nothing happens in this action other than this. If there's something interesting about the building that needs to be seen, or some surrounding that pays off later - it will nag at me.

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Rose link
1/6/2021 12:28:22 pm

Thank you foor writing this

Reply
Harish link
4/19/2022 01:58:37 am

Very informative and Helpful article! Cutting out the story has been the most diffcult task for me. Now, I have got some clarity on what needs to be removed. :) Thank you.

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