Guide Story editor Check
Page 1 of 105 (feature film · three acts)
Opening image
One image that shows the world and the hero before the story changes them. It sets tone and genre in seconds.
Ask yourself: What's the single picture that tells us what kind of movie this is?
Keys
Enter next line (scene → action, character → dialogue)
Tab change this line's type · ⇧Tab back
⇧Enter new line inside action · ⌘Z undo
Type INT. or EXT. to start a scene · ( in dialogue for a parenthetical
Format, the studio way
Scene heading ⌘1
INT. or EXT., the location, a dash, then the time: INT. DINER - NIGHT. All caps. New heading whenever the place or time changes.
Action ⌘2
Present tense, only what we can see or hear. Keep paragraphs to four lines or fewer. CAPITALISE a character's name the first time they appear, with a short description.
Character ⌘3
The speaker's name in caps above their dialogue. Add (V.O.) for voice-over or (O.S.) for off-screen.
Parenthetical ⌘4
A few words under the name, only when the line would be misread without it: (whispering), (to Maya). Not for stage directions.
Dialogue ⌘5
What the character says. Short speeches play better; break long ones with action.
Transition ⌘6
CUT TO:, SMASH CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:. Use sparingly — modern scripts mostly don't need them.
Shot ⌘7
ANGLE ON, CLOSE ON, INSERT. Only when a specific shot is essential to the story — the director chooses shots.
Page = minute
Courier 12, 1.5" left margin: one page plays about one minute. Features run 90–120 pages; comedies and horror sit near 90–100.
Craft notes
Enter each scene as late as possible and leave as early as you can. Every scene should turn: someone wants something, meets resistance, and the situation is different at the end. Write what the camera sees. If an actor can't play it, it doesn't belong in the action. Subtext beats on-the-nose. People rarely say exactly what they mean. Give your hero an active goal you can photograph — not just a feeling. Read your dialogue out loud. If you trip over it, an actor will too. White space sells a script. Short action paragraphs read faster and feel faster. Plant early, pay off late: anything important in Act Three should be set up in Act One.