You’ve found it! This is the definitive guide to professional script
formats used in Hollywood, written by Hollywood’s foremost authority.
Thousands of promising scripts never get a fair read from Hollywood because their format is wrong. Poor formatting is the mark of an amateur and in the ultra-competitive world of screenwriting, the wrong first impression can kill your dreams.
The simple format rules found in this book, which you can learn in an hour. come from Hollywood’s top expert on script format and will guarantee that your script makes a winning first impression.
Intended to be kept at a screenwriter’s fingertips, The Hollywood Standard gives you what even the best script software can’t: clear, concise instructions and hundreds of examples to take the guesswork out of a multitude of formatting questions that perplex even seasoned screenwriters.
Eliminate common mistakes so your script will look professional •
Reference hundreds of clear examples to see how it’s done by the pros •
Use format to communicate your ideas clearly and powerfully • This new
edition has been expanded and updated, and features easy-to-use,
lay-flat binding.
Contents include:
- When a new scene heading is appropriate and when it isn’t
- How to control pace with formatting
- How to make a script page visually inviting to the reader
- What to capitalize and why
- How to get into and out of a POV shot
- What can and can’t be included in an establishing shot
- And much more
Simply put, Riley knows more about script format than anyone in Hollywood and shares it all with you.
Buy this book. Learn the rules as if your career depends on it…because it does.
What People Say
“Required reading for any screenwriter who wants to be taken seriously by Hollywood. Can’t imagine how there never has been a book like this before!”
Elizabeth Stephen, President, Television; Executive Vice President, Motion Picture Production,Mandalay Television Pictures
“The Hollywood Standard is the last and final word on screenplay format. Much more definitive and thorough than any other script format book on the market. Highly recommended!”
John Dart & Jeff Swanson, StoryPros.com
“Frankly, all the stuff you learn from Field or McKee won’t get you anywhere if you don’t know the stuff in Riley’s book. Because if your screenplay doesn’t read professionally, it won’t be read by the professionals. This is the only writing book I still keep near my computer.”
Brian Davidson, writer-producer, CSI: Miami
“The Hollywood Standard shows how scripts come alive on the page. Mastering these skills will communicate the movie you envision, and separate you from the pack. His expertise is a gift to all screenwriters and filmmakers.” Bobette Buster, adjunct professor, USC School of Cinematic Arts, international speaker on screenwriting
“Aspiring writers sometimes wonder why people don’t want to read their scripts. Sometimes it’s not their story. Sometimes the format distracts. To write a screenplay, you need to learn the science. And this is the best, simplest, easiest to read book to teach you that science. It’s the one I recommend to my students at UCLA.” Antwone Fisher, from the foreword
Christopher Riley ran the acclaimed script processing department at Warner Bros. He is a professional screenwriter working in Hollywood with his wife and writing partner, Kathleen Riley. Together they wrote the 1999 theatrical feature After the Truth, a multiple-award-winning German language courtroom thriller. In addition
to writing, the Rileys train aspiring screenwriters and have taught throughout the world.
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Christopher Riley
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