Instead, the concept must be introduced and delivered with a quick but impactful resolution for the characters. They don't have time to build the concept. Short scripts don't have time to build tension. But because there is more time to fill within those feature pages, what we do share has to be compelling and drawn out enough to keep the interest of the audience. So within those parameters, it's very important that what we do show conveys the type of character in either the broadest of strokes or in the most specific single strokes because the short script structure does not allow for the time to indulge. With short scripts, we don't get to spend as much time with those characters we create.
Anything less is not enough and anything more is far beyond what is needed in the industry's eyes.īeyond the obvious length of eventual cinematic running time, the condensed and lengthened script page perimeters of short and feature-length scripts also affect the time that the characters and stories exist in our eyes and minds. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as “an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all credits.” The general rule of thumb is that each script page equals one minute of screen time - give or take - so thirty-five to forty pages is generally the limit of what would be accepted as a short screenplay.įeature scripts run anywhere from 80 to 130 pages, according to the general guidelines and expectations of the film industry - especially for up-and-coming screenwriters. Short scripts run anywhere from two pages to forty pages. Screenplays are cinematic blueprints for film, thus they have to be quantified in the eventual running length of a film that is to follow. Here we look at the differences between these two types of screenplays and explore the ways in which screenwriters should approach them.
They are two different beasts to tackle - complete with different structures, different pacing, and different end results. A short script can't just be a feature condensed into smaller perimeters - the same way a feature script can't just be a lengthened short.
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