Film is visual. The words that a screenwriter writes will never be read by anyone. They will only be seen and heard as images on a screen. The most important skill of a screenwriter is that he must be able to write visually. Theorizing or explaining a concept in a script is pointless; if the audience can’t ‘look’ at the theory, it’s not worth writing. A screenwriter must think, ‘Is what I’m about to write visual in nature? If not, then how can I make it visual?”
Film shows motion. Most of the images you see on screen have action. It’s what separates moving images from photographs. Stories for film must be translated by a screenwriter into active images.
Film reveals what the eye often can’t see. A tiny cell in our bodies, a country
we’ve never been to, details that we would normally miss. The screenwriter must
bring things to life for the audience who may have never before experienced what
they see on screen.
Film transcends time and space. A film doesn’t adhere to our dimensions of time and space. Once made, it continues to exist in a little bubble of its own,
transcending the limits of our present lives. A screenwriter must understand that
writing for a film means creating a being that should have a life of its own long
after the writer has moved on from it.
Film is Subjective. By simply pointing the camera in a specific direction, a
subjective choice has been made. The very nature of film, like our eyes, is to
focus on what is considered to be the object of interest and eliminate what lies
beyond the lens, thereby losing all sense of objectivity.
Film chooses audience. The screenwriter must always keep in mind that each
film chooses its own audience depending on how he chooses to tell the story. By
varying a script, he may be showing the film to very different people in the end.
Film repeats accurately. Film footage doesn’t discriminate between objects,
doesn’t hide, cheat or lie. It consistently reproduces what the camera sees in full
detail. It is the filmmaker who must shoot objects in a particular way to include or
eliminate details.
Film may have colour and audio elements. It’s not only about moving images.
Most films, unless the filmmaker chooses not to use them, have the elements of
sound and colour. These elements are always, if present, incorporated into the
script.
Film emphasizes and emotionalizes. Films can evoke different kinds of reactions in the audience, from grief to anger. They can make the audience think and send powerful messages across to them.
(Source: Trisha Dash, How to write a documentary script)
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