How to Write a Script for a

Documentary:Before You
Begin Shooting
www.desktop-documentaries.com

How to Write a Script

for a Documentary
Tips for creating a dynamic storytelling
experience for your audience

By Faith Fuller
That’s because a script is a written description of what the audience
is seeing AND hearing.

A well-written script should be able to “capture your imagination”

and help you visualize what the audience will experience on the
screen.
• RESEARCH! Once you’ve settled on your documentary
idea, time to start digging. Leave no rock left unturned.

• Create a List. Based on your research, start creating a list

of potential characters/interviews, basic storylines, areas of
potential conflict and emotion. Ask yourself, “what’s at the
heart of this story and how do I “show” that visually?”

• Get Style. Decide the look, feel and style of your

documentary. Search web videos or watch TV for ideas.
Netflix is a great resource for documentaries.

• Write a “shooting script” (pre-script/outline) – Often

with documentaries, the script can’t really be written until
after the footage has been shot and you start piecing the
story together based on what you “discovered” with your
camera. However, writing an outline at the beginning can be
an invaluable guide to point you in the right direction,
especially to be able to look back as a reference when the
chaos of shooting can get you off track. There WILL come
that moment in the process when you say, “What was I
thinking!?”

• Get Creative. Think about some unique and creative ways

you can spice up your movie and give it that "Wow" factor.
“How to write a script” creatively involves adding special
elements such as stop motion, time-lapse,
animation/cartoons, recreations, etc. For example, in the
2008 documentary Young At Heart, the filmmakers used
MTV style music videos to segue between scenes of their
elderly singers. Perfect!
How To Write a Script for a Documentary:
After Shooting is Complete

The very nature of the documentary is that it is “unscripted”. It is

meant to capture some aspect of “real life”. Then it is up to the you
(the writer) to take the messiness of real life and create some kind of
story.

As the scriptwriter, you will need to examine all the “unscripted” &
“raw” footage and create some sort of structure out of it.

It will seem daunting at first (you WILL feel overwhelmed at some

point), but think of it as putting together a great big puzzle. It will
look like a jumbled mess at first, but bit by bit, the big picture will
begin to reveal itself as you mix and match the various pieces. How to
write a script:

1. Transcribe your footage – This may seem like a tedious

and boring task at first, but TRUST ME, you will thank
yourself in the end. This is where you begin to "log" and
categorize the various "pieces" of your puzzle.

2. Review the BIG picture. What are the main elements

(characters and plots) that have surfaced through shooting
process that create the tapestry of your overall story. What
are the key “moments”?

3. Create Scenes. Take these “moments” and divide your

documentary into mini-stories (scenes) that, together,
create the documentary.

4. Build a Roller Coaster. Take these scenes and begin

creating a “Roller Coaster” ride for your audience. What
kind of “ride” are you taking them on? Think about the
powerful moments in your story and how to write a script
to build up those moments. A fantastic book that describes
 this process is Writing Great Screenplays for Film and TV by
Dona Cooper.

5. Villain and Hero. Another important part of scriptwriting

is determining the villain(s) and hero(s) in your story. A
hero/villain can be a person, thing or event. (A tornado can
be the villain).

6. BEGINNING, MIDDLE and an END. Of course, every

story has a beginning, middle and end. If you can outline
your story in these three general categories, then you can
begin to fill in the details.

7. The Ending. If you have a lot of footage and information

to work with, a simple way to clarify how to start building
your script is to think about how you’re going to END your
documentary. Everything else leads up to that.

8. Start Strong. I cannot express enough the importance of

how you START your documentary. This is when you “hook”
the audience and set the tone for the entire program. The
beginning of your film should:

◦ Establish the “core message” of the

documentary (this often includes a specific
“incident” that is controversial or offsets the
balance of forces in some way).

◦ Create curiosity -- set up the “problem” or

“issue” in the most compelling way possible to
tantalize or grab your audience’s interest. Create a
situation that makes the audience ask, “Why is
this happening?”
 9. What's in the Middle? It’s easy for scriptwriters to get
“lost” in the middle (body) section of the script. Just keep
asking yourself, “does this scene/story or information move
the story forward and lead to the ending conclusion?” Don’t
get attached to any particular footage or information. If it
doesn’t fit, leave it OUT. You can always put it in the
“Bonus” or “Deleted Scenes” section of your DVD. :-)

10. Script Template. Finally, once you have a general outline

of your story, begin building your script using a 2-column
script template: one column for audio, one column for video.

See a full documentary script from my

documentary Briars in the Cotton Patch,
winner of a regional Emmy for Best Script.

**One of many free bonuses included as part

of my popular 7-Day Documentary Crash
Course.**

How To Write a Script for a Documentary:

Scriptwriting Software

You may or may not need scriptwriting software to help you write
your documentary script. A basic 2-column Audio/Video script
template is often plenty for the average script. A 2-column template
can be created for free from your word processor (Open Office, Word,
etc).

However, if you are shooting a lot of reenactments for your

documentary (half movie, half documentary kind of thing), some
scriptwriting software could come in handy to help you block out the
scenes. Celtx or Final Draft are good choices for this.
Storyboarding software such as Storyboard Quick can also be fun to
use.

Another area where software can be helpful is if you have tons of

scattered information and/or you have no idea how to structure the
information into an interesting storyline. Software such as Scrivener
or Storyist are super helpful for this. A producer for PBS's Frontline
told me he has used both Scrivener and Storyist and likes them both.
However, if pushed to choose one, he says Scriverner is a better all-
in-one solution for documentaries.

Oscar-Nominated Documentary writer-director Daniel Raim chooses

Final Draft scriptwriting software and offers a Documentary
Storytelling and Scriptwriting Masterclass here on Desktop
Documentaries outlining his entire scriptwriting process.

How To Write A Script for a Documentary:

Final Thoughts

How to write a script? Of course, what looks great on paper does not
always work great on the screen. Think of your script as a guide and
be prepared to modify, slice and dice once the video editing process
begins.

This is where those tape logs come in VERY HANDY. A quote or scene
that you didn’t think was very important in the scriptwriting stage,
will suddenly take on new importance once the editing begins.

So those are a few key points on how to write a script for

documentary. Remember, with documentaries, there is no perfect
formula. Just start writing and do what works for YOUR story.

Ready to dive deeper into documentary storytelling and learn how to

make a documentary from A-Z? Click below to learn about the
documentary 7-Day Crash Course.
Faith Fuller

Hi friend! I'm Faith, chief instigator here at Desktop Documentaries.

I've been in the filmmaking/TV/video biz more than 25 years and I
started this site to help super cool people like yourself get their
documentaries made, seen and sold! I hope you enjoy the site and if
you have any questions, please just ask!
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