Film Courage: What is the purpose of script analysis?
Judith Weston, Coach, Teacher and Author: The purpose of script analysis is to figure out
what there is to be shot and that's you know the core of the scene the the some people call it the
nugget of the scene the the what it's about the I like to use this term emotional event
and I tried to find something catchier but it just expresses what I want to say so I stick to it
but it's to find out what there is to be shot I was talking to a former student of mine just a
few days ago who's been directing television well first she she did a she did a beautiful beautiful
independent feature film that oh just wonderful a couple of years ago and then from that she
started getting some work doing television and so we were we were having lunch with with her
and another former student and she was saying that she felt still felt really puzzled about
how to figure out how to do television because you know it's because there's no time she had spent a
whole year preparing for her for her feature film that her independent feature film and she she was
just puzzled like like because I she said I don't know how to be sure that I get what I have to get
and I said well you know I think you're looking at it from the wrong point of view you have to
you have to do the work to figure out what it is you want to get you have to you have to start not
just with don't start with what what angles camera angles you want start with what the scene is about
and yeah start there and then and I talk in in this new book my dollhouse approach to
figuring out your blocking to get some dollhouse dolls or action figures or Lego figures and put
some furniture around on a tabletop and move them around and see where they see where they want to
move when you're while you're seeing the lines or where they want to stay stay in one place and then
figure out your your shot list from from taking from from looking at that through a viewfinder
and but that those places where but to have an idea before you start moving them around
of what the scene is about what what happens to these relationships how do people hurt
each other how do they help you rescue each other how do they how does a love
how does how do they take one more step in a love story or one more step in a breakup and
that that's where you always have to start and it will get easier to figure out your shot list
if you start there if you start with I have to come up with a shot list well like should I do
this shot should I you won't have a reason for choosing any particular shot so you need
to know what this what the scene is about in order to have a reason for choosing the shots
so even even setting up a mock set with a Lego figures or whatever even if it's two stationary
figures having a discussion whether it's positive or negative just all right well see this is me
and that's why this is a suggestion I'm not saying everybody should do this or has to do this but for
me I it does help if I take my two Lego figures and I just sit them down here and I say the lines
out loud while they're right here and I and I feel it in my fingers no this person doesn't want
to move over here this person doesn't want to move over here they're they're I don't know it you have
to try it to see if it works for you I mean I'm not saying it would work for everybody but but it
it's you know how some people say that they prefer when they're writing they prefer to write long
hand because it's more physical than their their fingers are more connected to their brain that way
it's actually the opposite for me I find my fingers more connected to my brain if
I'm using a keyboard but anyway but whatever connects your body to itself to your your body
to your brain is always going to be is always going to be a good thing so so so I think that
that that that that that that helps clues in a screenplay sort of underlying world of behavior
can you talk the clues well that's a script analysis you're looking for clues if you know if
a character says I remember you were the you know you were the worst you were the worst drunk in the
dorm well that's a clue they went to college together right that's a very simple clue and
yeah you're looking for Clues like that so that everything doesn't have to be spelled out
what are the best ways for directors and actors to unpack a screenplay they're gonna they do that
work separately usually usually they would do that work separately now there are exceptions of course
I have seen tape heard about and seen tape of a rehearsal for the Social Network directed by
David Fincher where they all sat in a room all the actors and they and the director and the writer I
think was also in the room Aaron Sorkin and they went through the whole script line by line and
talked about what each line meant so that would be if that can be done and that would be unusual
but movie came out very good so that's very interesting to note that and and I think directors
and actors can do this this can even be done on Zoom one one at a time that you know a director
and a lead actor can go over all the line all the lines of their scenes all of their scenes and
allow themselves the idea of talking about what each line means is that you're allowing questions
you're you're even starting with the question what does this line mean with the understanding that it
might not mean what it literally says it means and just asking that question what does this line mean
is you're on the way to acknowledging that it has subtext and I'm wondering who determines
what the line means is that the writer director because the actor could embody this character
and it turns out they actually may know some of the motivation in some ways better
you're so right so it's very that's why it's good to ask questions though you know I one thing that
I say to directors is you will be they're afraid of being judged by actors sometimes and I say you
will be judged by the quality of your questions more than by the exactitude of your answers
so a good question is better than a bull answer but you got to have good questions so that's
the so that's the reason for doing script analysis is so you'll have good questions
and then you know but if you're using questions with actors which I recommend that you direct
by acting by asking questions you have to be prepared for the director for the
actor to answer with something that you're not expecting so this is similar to a table read
I like to call it a company read rather than a table read because I like to do them without
tables but yeah but table read is the usual description well this table read that they did
with you know the whole company and or maybe just the main characters the main characters
and for the Social Network that that was around a table and but what I liked about it was just this
idea that for every line you could say let's talk about it and it assumes there could be
some something more to it than just the literal words so say the literal words are I'm I'm tired
of talking about this okay so that could be the literal line I'm tired of talking about this then
if you say well what does this line mean then you're you're opening the idea that it could mean
I actually think you're tired of talking about this and I'm going to let you off the hook I
mean the obvious thing is I'm tired of talking about this just shut up right that's the obvious
meaning but it might mean something else even opposite like I see your eyes wandering and
maybe we should go on to something else so so or it could be or it could be I'm afraid this
is going to get into dangerous waters and there are things about me that I don't want you to know
so let's stop talking so it could mean it's opening the door to choices
to choices and as far as making the choices here's here's something so important
is that there are certain choices that the actor and director must agree on
you know in order to be on the same page about the story they're telling
but there are so many choices that they don't have to be on the same page about that that where the
choices can be left up to the actor that the actor can have secrets the actors can have secrets they
can have secrets from their other actors and they can have secrets even from the director
yeah this is this is really important and now the director is responsible for saying the scene works
let's move on to the next one or saying no I'm still not satisfied I want to work on it some more
oh but they don't have to say make this choice because and the and the thing is
that they don't know when you have an idea it's an idea if a director has an idea for a
choice that they think that the objective to humiliate the other person is going to work
for the scene that's an idea it doesn't it's not the scene until the actor tries it and it works
so yeah and when a director gives an actor a secret that none of the other cast will know
when is that happening is it a little note are they pulling him aside having a little chat it
seems any anytime anytime it can happen anytime yeah yeah the director can suggest a secret
but again I would always do that with the language of permission to say I was I was
wondering if maybe they did talk about this one time before and it's just that the other your
character you're talking to doesn't remember that could be a secret it can be it's a very simple one
or it could be very big secret but yeah it could happen anytime and that's a that's a big part of
a director's talent is is being able to have a you know their intuition their leadership skills
is being able to have a sense of you know when when to step when to step in when to step back
knowing when to step in when to step back now that's something that I
can't tell people you know they have to get it by experience they have to practice and practice
and do and try things over and over and then then develop an intuition about when to step
in when to step back when to leave an actor alone and let them figure it out themselves
went to when to step in and say are you struggling can I help I had an idea it might be worth trying.