5 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN GETTING SCRIPT NOTES

Make the most of your notes by asking yourself these questions…

by Emily J on November 20, 2024

So you’re ready for the next draft of your script! Congrats! Don’t stress about how your “script isn’t ready yet.” You’ve already done the hardest part and conquered the blank page. Now, it’s time for the fun of digging in moving the pieces, finessing the parts you weren’t sure if they were “just right” before, and just having fun with all the things that got you excited to write this script (in case you weren’t already)!

Since you sent your draft out, you received a pile of notes. Make sure as you’re hearing or reading those notes you remember to take them all in and not get defensive. Don’t push back or dismiss anyone’s notes out of hand. You’re about to organize these notes and it will help you determine which are the most important pieces of feedback and which are worth letting fall to the wayside or get more clarity on.

Going through this process, you can approach feedback from executives, producers, reps, or anyone else with an open mind and the attitude of a team player—even if you think they’re not really getting your script.

Write down every piece of information you get from anyone who’s read your most recent draft. Now, you’re going to make “notes on notes” and organize them by asking these questions…

IS THIS A FORMATTING OR A TYPO NOTE?

Don’t get too hung up on any feedback in this category. You’re about to make so many changes to your script that they might not matter. If you’re in one of your later drafts, highlight these and go through your script to correct them first. It will be easier to find them now before you make any changes since the reader likely listed the page numbers, and changes could impact the location of these typos.

Remember that Final Draft also now has Grammarly integrated into the software, so take advantage of all that it can do before sending your script to anyone!

If your notes are formatting-related, definitely check out screenwriting software like Final Draft (if you’re not using it already). It will save you a great deal of time and energy so that you don’t ever have to get a note like this in the future. The best way to learn what your formatting should be like is to use Final Draft’s templates built into the software and read recently produced professional scripts.

IS THIS A WORLD OR PROSE NOTE?

Do you have any notes that mention your prose writing style? Or that there are moments where the story drags and you have it in there because it’s showing the audience the rules over the world? How about there being too much exposition?

No matter the genre, you have information you have to get across to the reader, and you want to do it in an interesting way. Sometimes, you simply have to include exposition in dialogue, but the goal is to get anything in this vein across through the story, which means character action. Think of movies like Inside Out, which uses the opening to show us not only who Joy is (setting up her emotional arc, vulnerabilities, and desires), but also the bigger rules of the fantastical world in a little girl’s mind.

Even in more grounded stories, like last year’s teen comedy Bottoms, the script uses character interactions and humor that feel familiar to real life while also letting us know how different the attitudes at the high school are from real life. Without this distinction, you would never allow yourself the suspension of disbelief to go along with the premise of the film, which follows two teen girls who start a fight club at school, even with the permission of a principal and teacher advisor.

You’ll tackle these notes later, but it’s important to consider them first because they’re clearer than the next two areas, you can often combine them with other feedback in your solutions.

IS THIS A PLOT/STRUCTURE NOTE?

Now, let’s look through your feedback and highlight anything that falls into “structure.” The reader is looking for an inciting incident, catalyst, midpoint, low point, all-is-lost moment, climax, reversal, pinch, setback, etc. to anchor your story.

You might have them they’re and they’re not registering them. If they’re there, mark it as a “character” note (next section). Otherwise, you’ll want to look at your overall structure.

Do you have clear moments in your script that act as checkpoints where the plot hits bigger, causing your character to palpably change? That is what your structure is there for. It’s to challenge your character through the plot.

Another note you might receive could refer to how big or small your story is, meaning it’s a plot note. If you’re writing an action film, you might hear over and over to make it “bigger.” They likely want bigger setpiece moments, but as you go bigger, don’t forget the stakes, whether it’s something tangible (like money) or emotional (like a relationship).

And if someone is concerned with your script’s budget, you’ll want to look at your setpieces and see if there are smaller ways to pull them off while still making an impact. Big setpieces can be fun, but lasting impact will always come from character, which brings us to…

IS THIS A CHARACTER NOTE?

I don’t understand why they did this… This moment didn’t feel that big to me… I just don’t understand… These are the kinds of notes that come when the reader doesn’t understand who your protagonist (or another character) is and what makes them tick.

The audience needs to know early on who they are based on what they need (whether it’s healing, overcoming a flaw, leveling up, or all of the above), what they want/desire in life, what their goal is in the film, and what’s at stake if they don’t get it.

Their goal is essentially the plot of the film, but everything that leads to that choice has to be grounded in character. Every setback that follows has to hit those same emotions in a new and bigger way.

If we don’t know what’s at stake or what makes them tick, you’re going to get a lot of wishy-washy questions and pitches on how to fix it that you’re going to want to push back on. Don’t push back. Hear the ideas, there may be some good ones in there, but remember the “note behind the note” is that they just don’t understand your character.

HOW CAN I COMBINE THESE NOTES IN MY SCRIPT?

You’ve organized it all and likely thought up some cool fixes along the way. As you pull back and look at all the notes, is there a throughline about what’s not working for the reader? Are there ways to solve multiple issues that came up in one scene or sequence?

You have likely heard that problems in the third act come from problems in the first act. Meaning, that if you work on your opening pages, it will impact the rest of your script and answer a lot of questions for your reader.

Let’s say you are told that they don’t understand why your character is making certain choices in the middle of your script. In the opening pages, did you set up how your character reacts in similar situations? Did you show their vulnerabilities? Maybe make them even clearer than they already are and include a callback in those mid-film moments.

If your reader wants you to bring the budget down, can you put the moment in a smaller setting with fewer characters and make the emotional beats even bigger?

A great script will have the character’s wants, needs, and stakes apparent as the plot smacks them with every structural checkpoint. It’s not an easy thing to pull off, but as you grow in your craft, you’ll get stronger with every round of notes and rewrites.