Script Snippets

A Shawshank Snippet

Good Morning!

That Fall feeling is here. Creativity is in the air…

Keep a lookout for the new story this week, and of course, if you haven’t already, check out some of my stories. I post new ones every week! I’ll link my latest story at the bottom of this post.

Now, let’s dive into a little Script Snippet.

Studying screenplays, good or bad, is a great way to hone your screenwriting skills. There are so many tools and tricks of the trade it’s important to have direction and know what to do.

And what better screenplay to learn from than The Shawshank Redemption?

I just finished another teleplay pilot over the weekend, and while editing it, I grabbed one of my favorite scripts for a little refresher on some things - The Shawshank Redemption.

Among Shawshank Redemption for studying screenwriting, anything Taylor Sheridan (especially Hell or High Water) and or Shonda Rhymes is a GREAT place to start.

That being said, one of the first things I learned along the way was from Shawshank, and as I was re-reading it, I came across this tib-bit and wanted to share it with my SubStack peeps.

It’s EXTREMELY SMALL regarding page real estate, and a new screenwriter would quickly gloss over it, but with screenwriting, less is more, fresh is best, and small but descriptive is gold.

So, how would you take something that would otherwise be wordy and that needs to showcase an essential item, person, object, or whatever for the audience of your screenplay?

Here’s what you CAN’T do… you can’t explain in wordy prose in a screenplay. ZERO EXPOSITION should be every screenwriter’s goal unless it’s vital.

So, instead of getting all crazy, keep things terse and straightforward. Like Screenwriter Frank Darabont, who wrote - you guessed it - The Shawshank Redemption.

Check it out…

Yup. That’s it.

CLOSE UP - PAROLE FORM = what we are looking at.

A big rubber stamp slams down: “REJECTED” in red ink = what we see.

So simple!

But it reads so nice, quick, and easy. Just what we want…

Just like this post, right?

Anytime you need inspiration or have a question about writing, you can find the answer you’re looking for in a screenplay or book.

Cormac McCarthy said the ugly truth about books is that they are made from other books. So don’t be afraid to use past works of greatness as a guide.

It’ll certainly give your script a little redemption of its own.

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