
HOW TO WRITE A SOLID VIDEO SCRITP
Step 1:
Start concepting with a brief.
A brief? Really? Yes -- really. Although it might seem like this is an easy step to skip, it’s not worth it.
Creating a brief allows you and your team to document the answers to really important project questions so everyone involved in creating the video can get on the same page. And that’s ideal, because you know what’s the worst? When you’re three-quarters of the way through the editing process and your boss or colleague wants to completely redo that whole shot where you demonstrate how your gizmo solves global warming.
When pesky predicaments like this one try to stand in the way of progress, you can just refer back to that questionnaire containing the goals and project plan your team mapped out together, and say, “No way, José. That’s not what we agreed to.”
And boom. You can move on.
Focus on your goals, topic, and takeaways when developing your brief.
A brief doesn't have to be fancy, nor does it have to follow a specific formula, but there are several key questions every questionnaire should include to craft an effective video script.
What’s the goal of this video? Why are we making the video in the first place?
Who are we making this video for?
What’s our narrow video topic? (The more specific, the better. For example, if you’re in the house painting business, you might choose a topic like “buying the right paint brush”).
What are the takeaways of the video? What should viewers learn from watching it?
What’s our call-to-action? What do we want viewers to do after they’ve finished watching the video?
You can easily create a brief in Microsoft Word or a Google Doc to serve as a living, breathing template that you revise over time.
Different video projects may require your team to think through different things before you get scripting and shooting, so you may find that you add or subtract certain questions to your brief as you become more experienced with video creation.
Step 2:
Write your script.
Once you’ve picked a topic, it's time to write that script.
Just like the brief, the video script doesn’t have to be fancy. You’re not trying to submit this script for any awards or hang it in the hallway. It’s purpose is strictly functional. A good script makes it easy for the people on camera to get their message across while sounding and acting natural.
Write in plain, conversational English
.
Writing a script is not the same as writing a college paper or marketing research report. You want to write the script how you want the video subject to speak. On camera, saying, “I’m gonna create a video after reading this blog post” will read much better than “I am going to create a video after reading this blog post.”
Make it thorough.
A script doesn’t just include dialogue. If your video will require multiple shots, characters, or scenes, include these details. Be sure to include any necessary information about the set or stage actions, such as a wardrobe change.
Basically, you want the script to be thorough enough that you could hand it off to someone else to shoot.
Differentiate the main narrative from B-Roll, text overlays, and voiceover using different formatting or callouts.
If your video will transition from a the subject speaking the primary narrative to a close up shot of your product with a text overlay, you’ll want to call that out in your script so anyone who reads it knows what’s supposed to be read on screen versus incorporated in the editing process.
Oh, and one last tip ...
When it’s time to shoot, use a laptop and a chair as a teleprompter.
Just as you don’t need a fancy script, you don’t need a fancy teleprompter to remember your lines. But you do need help remembering your lines. You can actually just use two things you already have -- a chair and a laptop -- to keep your lines handy as you’re shooting.
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