Shooting script

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A shooting script is a version of a script from which a movie is actually shot; it includes scene numbers, camera angles and certain directors' notes -- and it is generally fiercely marked up by the script supervisor and other production workers, while the writer's draft is simply the skeleton around which the production is built.

Sometimes, it is far more practical and economical to shoot some scenes consecutively on the same day, even though the scenes appear in the original script far apart from each other. For example, consider two scenes from Jurassic Park: the first near the beginning in which a helicopter is used to bring the scientists to Jurassic Park and the second at the end of the movie when the scientists escape from Jurassic Park aboard the same helicopter. Even though the first and the second scenes appear far apart from each other in the original movie, in the shooting script for Jurassic Park, they probably appear consecutively with one another, with one benefit being the cost savings related to renting the helicopter for only a single day rather than two different days. At other times, the benefit may be that the location for the shoot is only available for a limited time in which all the scenes must be shot, even though they are not consecutive in the original script. Thus, once again, the scenes will be rearranged in the shooting script so that they may be shot consecutively on the same day. This is a main benefit of shooting scripts: they allow the best possible utilization of all available resources.

Once a script is approved for production, and pre-production begins, it is scene-numbered and page-locked. Scenes are numbered for easy reference, and page-locking allows everyone to keep the same copy of the script even if the script changes. Changes are supplied as colored pages which people involved in production insert in their script, replacing or adding to the pages already there. Since writing often goes on even during production itself, most real shooting scripts are a rainbow of gold, pink, blue, green and other colors.

The order in which colored pages (often referred to as 'pink pages' whatever color they are) are introduced into the script is rigidly fixed for a particular production.

The color scheme order is not set in stone across multiple productions; the general idea is that if you have a pink copy and everyone is working off blue, you've got the wrong revision. A time and date stamp on the cover sheet as well as words such as "GOLDENROD REVISED" or "SALMON REVISED" boldly written across the top help keep everyone on the same revision, even if working with faxed and emailed copies.

[edit] See also


The Filmmaking Paper Trail:
Pre-production:

Screenplay | Breaking down the script | Script breakdown sheet | Production strip | Production board | Day out of Days | One liner schedule | Shooting schedule | Film budgeting

Production:

Daily call sheet | Daily editor log | Daily progress report | Film inventory report (daily raw stock log) | Sound report | Daily production report (DPR) | Cost report

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