SCRIPTWRITING

SEMINAR
ON SCRIPT WRITING 
BY LIFTER ADELABU SAMUEL T
#SAINT-SAM
LIGHT FOR THE WORLD DRAMA MINISTRIES 
{LIFTWODRAM}
07062399417, 09065413159

Without script the director, editor, the actors or actress, production manager and all the crew members are handicap.
Any message receive remain a mere ideal until you have put it down on paper as script.
You don’t tell people your story but you show it to them by script.

People should be able to act your script even while you are not around.

Any film production, stage drama without script is like a waste of time. Because even God himself is orderly.

WHAT IS SCRIPT WRITING
Script: Is the blue print or document that shows all the pictures, sound, speech, actions and name of the character.
Script Writing: Is the process of writing script. It is the distribution of words, speech and action for the cast or the character involved.
The process of writing script is the same either for the Gospel and Secular Drama. But the secular are worldly base while the Gospel Drama is spiritually base because Gospel Drama Minister Act the Word {Bible} according to my ministry motto: “Revealing the Word to the World”.
Let discus how a Drama Minister can get his or her script and title.
Consult God
Through the help of the Holy Spirit
Through Prayers
Through the Word of God
Through Revelations, Visions or Prophesy {base on how God speak to you}
Note: After getting this massage / title make sure you are very familiar with it, because it will stand as the bases for you or a work sheet for you. You can as well check the meaning of the title into your own understanding; you can even translate into your own local language to get insight about the topic/title e.g. Devils shop, the scar, the stalker etc.
You can also relate it to your society, the present situation but it must be biblical or spiritually base.
Note: As a drama minister you must be smart in thinking and be brave because it takes a fast thinker to get some things.

SPICES OF A GOOD SCRIPT
These will help a lot; CUBE
C- Continuity
U- Unpredictability
B- Believability
E- Economical
Continuity: A good script must have a good begging and end. It must follow smoothly from opening to the last scene. Allow it to harmonies together. Build the massage around the central theme; don’t dance around the bush without any plot dominating.
Unpredictability: Ensure your script is not predicted. Not knowing what will happen at the end before the end. You can introduce surprise, suspense, flash back etc.
Believability: Your script most be believable / real
Economical: Good management of time, cast, scene and dialogue. Do not include unnecessary character don’t try to write everything you know about the script. More so, the monetary aspect in achieving the production also should be considered.

HOW TO WRITE SCRIPT
Known your Title/Topic: First thing you do is to known the topic or title you are writing something on
Write it out: You think putting it off head will help, No write it out, so that you will not forget and you can see it when writing. So that you will not be writing story out of it.
Pray again: I believe you have pray before getting the Topic/Title, but pray about it again for direction. James 1:7-8.
Relate the Title / Topic: Relating the title will give you full knowledge about the script you are about to write, either to relate it to the society or to your environment but since it is Gospel Drama it must be related to the scripture.
Summarize the script: First thing is to draw a plot showing the whole script somewhere. To tell you how you will arrange them into Scene and Act.
Be watching it alive: When you are set to write the script ensure that you are not been disturb and assume you are watching it live. This will help you most but i think this is a special gift, which God can also give to you has well.
Arrange to Scene / Act: This first thing is to first arrange your story into three {3} Act before the start of scene, especially when it technical script that is for production.
Let talk on how you can divide your script into Act:
Note: Every script or story will always have a begging of a problem that you are about to solve, so godly script start with a burden in your heart or your audience heart that you want to provide a solution to:
Act 1: The begging or the introduction of the story / problem
Act 2: The begging of the problem and how it started i.e how the problems actualize or surface.
Act 3: The solution to be provided and the concluding part of the whole story.

THE BODY OF THE SCRIPT
Tell the Act and the Scene: Write out the scene and write them in Capital letter at the top centre of your working sheet.
The Slug Line: Tell the reader of the script where the scene take place i.e. are we indoor {INT (Interior)} or outdoor {EXT (Exterior)}.
The Location: Tell us where that particular scene is been acted for easy directing and make the work of the location manager easy. Also include the time of the day eg.

ACT ONE
SCENE ONE
“INT”                                            Palace setting”                       DAY ESTABLISHING

The Occurrence: This simply means what happens in that particular scene eg.
(All the chief are sitting to discus about the New Year festival) or
(Brother Peter takes spoon to eat in a bad mood)
Put word into mouth: This is the area where you will be distributing words into the mouth of the cast. Take for example

ACT ONE
SCENE ONE
“INT”                                          “Palace setting”                       DAY ESTABLISHING
(All the chief are sitting to discus about the New Year festival)
KING
{Comes in}
CHIEFS
{Off their caps to greet him} Kabiyesi oo!!!
KING
Stand up my chiefs may the gods of this land bless you all
CHIEFS
Ase!!!
OTUN
We have come to finalize the issue about our upcoming New Year Festival {Osi cut in}
OSI
{cut in} Beeni kabiyesi, New Yam Festival is around the corner, and there is no plan yet, is this how we are going to fold our arms?
KING
Hmmm. Otun, Osi {He look at them and the other chiefs} it is true my chiefs, it is less than 2 month to the time abi iyaloja?
IYALOJA
Beeni oko ilu, what are we going to do now?
IYALODE
To start the preparation ni o {with a smiling face } abi eyin oloye?
CHIEFS
Beeni !!!.................

IMPORTANT NOTICE ON SCRIPT WRITING
Use simple language: When you use big grammar your spiritual drama will become a jokes to the audience they will not have much interest on it any longer
Describe the mood (Parenthetical): This simply means, tell the reader of your script the mood a particular cast is into e.g

JOHN
(Looking at him franking)
PETER
(Standing up angrily) I have told you it over between us
KING
Olori !! (He looks at her somehow)
OLORI
(She was restless)

Suspense is allow: The beauty of a drama is the ability for the writer to convince and let the viewer or reader to be surprise and eager to know what will happens next, by the use of flash back, suspense and if possible the use of dreams or revelation. Make it unpredictable.
No argument is allowed after: As a good writer try as much as possible that there will be no room for argument or confusion instead of blessing.

Each plot or sub-plot most talk about Christ and most be able to bring people to Christ, since it a Gospel Film/Drama it most always leads to salvation.

Use Present Tense/Continuous Tense: Scripts is assumed been done at the time the reader is reading it, so don’t use: He came in, she sang, king Shouted at them, he woke up after the dream. But express your action in present tense eg. Looks, Comes in , Goes, Shout , Standing up, Coming etc.


Short Paragraph: Let your lines or words be very short, do not let them go more than 4-5 lines.

Extension: Is a technical note place directly to the right of the character name that denote how the character voice will be had by the audience eg.  O.S i.e {off screen}, V.O {voice over}.


An off screen voice can be had from the character out of the camera range or from another room. Some use O.C {off camera}.
V.O, think of a voice over as a narration or a character speaking while he or she is not in the screen.

Transition: It helps us to know the duration of time on how the scene will go together. Eg Cut to, Dissolve to, Smith cut, Quick to, Fade to, Fade out, Fade in, Juxtapose to etc.

Ending: It shows that you have ended the whole story and it written has THE END


THANKS FOR LISTENING
LIFTER ADELABU SAMUEL T
SAINT-SAM
LIGHT FOR THE WORLD DRAMA MINISTRIES {LIFTWODRAM}
PRESIDENT