Between the Lines
Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988)
'In the Beginning was the Word', the Bible tells us, and so it is in filmmaking. Nothing happens without some kind of written story outline, however basic. (BFI Special Collections holds several poignant examples of first outlines written in biro in an exercise book or on an Oxford Notepad, such as Colin Welland's for Chariots of Fire and Terence Davies's for Distant Voices, Still Lives. At this early stage there is no attempt to describe camera movements, particular shots or the 'look' of the film, for that will be the director's job when s/he comes on board. However as with everything, there are always exceptions. Scripts for early silent films, interestingly, give a lot of directions to the actors, concerning the pose, facial expression or emotion they are to adopt and convey to the viewer. The script will go through many drafts until everyone - especially the producer - is satisfied.
Once principal photography commences, shooting scripts are produced, which are broken down into numbered shots with camera movements. The BFI is fortunate in holding several examples which have been annotated by the director, screenwriter or actor, and some of these are included in the display. Some directorial versions of the script may have other production material bound in, such as storyboarding or character notes, ideas for art direction or editing. Derek Jarman's famous black notebooks are crammed with all of his visual and literary influences and ideas, so that postcards of paintings, quick costume sketches, press cuttings, polaroids and poems, jostle with the text.
In post-production a continuity script is produced, which covers everything which happens on the screen - dialogue, action, camera movements - and is divided into reels with footage. The release script is the legal version of the continuity script for copyright purposes. Other post-production scripts may include a master title script, a trailer script, or an export script, which may incorporate slight changes for the foreign market.
Do Not Adjust Your Set (1959)
For TV, the documentation differs a little. The programme submission provides an outline of the intended programme, including a projected budget. The shooting script and the story order are produced prior to filming and provide a guide to what the director intends to shoot. They are very much an 'aide de memoire' for the production team - the record of what was actually shot is contained in the camera script and the shot list. The camera script will contain dialogue and action, sound and vision information, camera moves, lighting instructions, recording breaks, and insert material. For drama productions, an additional rehearsal script may be produced prior to filming. Transcripts provide a true record of any unscripted or live programme.
The BFI's unpublished script collection now numbers around 30,000 film and TV titles.
For a full listing of published scripts held in stock at the BFI National Library search under the subjects of 'Published scripts' and 'Television: scripts' on our book catalogue.
