Unit 19- Learning Aim A

 Unit 19 Learning Aim A 

 

INTRODUCTION 

A script is a document that compromises setting, characters, dialogue, and stage directions for movies, tv shows, and many other sectors.  Across all sectors in media scripting is formatted differently and varies between each sector. A Scriptwriter is responsible for the concept, idea and initial vision for the film. Not only are scriptwriters responsible for the details in the script but have legal and ethical considerations that they must have within their scripts. 

 

A1 – ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF SCRIPTWRITERS IN THE MEDIA INDUSTRY 

 

Obtaining work as a scriptwriter 

Studios will already have projects in development and will hire writers to work on it, if studios like their work and show interest in their writing style they would hire them for their work or for another project they think would suit a certain film, TV show or game. Depending on the producer’s choice, if the scriptwriters work is up to their standard. Another similar way of getting hired as a scriptwriter, is usually scriptwriters would come up with their own screenplays and ideas and try to sell them to agents and producers. Once scriptwriters have had their work accepted and start to build a professional reputation within the film industry, producers might then commission them to produce scripts for them. 

Screenwriters are almost always freelancers. In film, initially, screenwriters develop roughly three drafts of a screenplay. This is the version that gets pitched to a producer or film studio. Alternatively, a screenwriter may be commissioned by a producer or studio to create a screenplay. Once a screenplay is picked up by a studio, more screenwriters may be brought in to work with a development producer to get it ready for production.  

Another way to obtaining work as a scriptwriter is when actors wish to have a certain writer to script the film/TV show. When an actor likes a specific scriptwriter’s work and wishes to work on future projects with that same scriptwriter in the future. 

Video games: Game scriptwriters would submit a writing sample to a gaming studio. Some game teams may prioritize writers and may bring them on early. Some might have multiple roles together and have the writer be someone who’s already doing another job on the project. Others might not require writers at all because the story is just not essential for the type of game they’re building. 

Television: Scriptwriters will send out samples of their work if studios like their work and show interest in their writing style they would hire them for their work or for another project they think would suit a certain TV show. Depending on the producer’s choice and if they feel that their script is up to their standard and suits their tv show to an extent. 

 

Case study 

Akira Kurosawa a famous scriptwriter, director in Japanese cinema who wrote over 80 films and TV   projects, Kurosawa was a master of both directing and storytelling. Akira Kurosawa was the first Japanese film director to win international acclaim, Kurosawa entered the film industry in 1936 as an assistant director, eventually making his directorial debut with Sanshiro Sugata in 1943. He is regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in film history. 

Akira Kurosawa started his career as an assistant director to a well-known director and he worked on 24 films during his time with this famous director. During his time as an assistant, Kurosawa learnt a lot and particularly gained knowledge about writing a quality script, which helped him get into the job of being a director. Akira Kurosawa first debuted in 1943 with his first ever film he directed and scripted Sanshiro Sugata after six years as an assistant director and screenwriter. Akira’s work had one of the largest influences in the film industry he has inspired many other screenwriters and directors. Akira Kurosawa’s 1958 film. The Hidden Fortress had one of the largest influences on the movie series Star Wars. Kurosawa’s was known as the first Japanese film maker, not only did he script his films but directed them too, which led to him to his successful life that sadly ended 1998.  

Akira Kurosawa was nominated for many awards and has been awarded many awards and has earned the recognition he and his worked deserved. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Demands and requirements  

One way to develop your skills as a scriptwriter is through working within the industry and observing different techniques of other scriptwriters, which is like how Akira Kurosawa started his career he gained a lot of knowledge working aside a famous director and used that knowledge to debut as a scriptwriter and director. Another way of developing as scriptwriter is doing scriptwriting workshops. Script writing workshops help you develop an understanding and how to write a good script, these classes will advance your communication and dialogue when it comes to scripting. Another way to develop skills as a scriptwriter is through script writing competitions. Scriptwriting competitions allow you to see others work and develop your skills by exploring different writing styles that will allow you to zoom into other.  

Demands and requirements for scriptwriters in the film sector includes having a strong vocabulary, a wide knowledge of English language and excellent written communication skills with knowledge of media production and communication. However, a degree is not needed to become a scriptwriter in the film sector but having relevant education, that would English, or screenwriting subjects would be very useful and helpful to become scriptwriter in film. However, the demands and requirements for scriptwriters in gaming may differ to the demand and requirements in film. Gaming scriptwriters require a bachelor’s degree in scriptwriting, companies may prefer to hire those with a bachelor’s degree in scriptwriting or creative writing. Gaming scriptwriters demand an extensive knowledge of games and creative writing skills, but that can also be developed overtime. 

 

 

A2 – LEGAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR SCRIPTWRITERS IN THE MEDIA INDUSTRY 

 

Legal considerations 

Legal consideration that come with being a script writer are, Screenwriters must copyright their work otherwise their ideas can be stolen by other writers or their whole script can be copied. Copyright should be shown on the front of their scripts and on the bottom of every page. Legal action can take place if anybody’s work is plagiarising somebody’s work. Writers must also consider censorship, as when writing a film script, things such as sexual content cannot be shown to a certain extent. Censorship differs depending on what rating a film has, so scriptwriters should take this into account and make sure the content is suitable for the audience. 

Another issue some scriptwriters may face is the watershed. Before 9pm, any content containing sex, violence etc. cannot be shown. If writers are writing a script for a TV show that will be shown before the watershed, they must ensure everything is suitable for a young audience. Perhaps the most famous case of copyright infringement is that of Battlestar Galactica, who apparently ‘borrowed’ a little too much from Star Wars. Galactica was produced in the wake of the success of the 1977 film Star Wars. And sci-fi author Jerry Pournelle, starring on a guest panel in This Week in Teck (episode 223), explains that 20th Century Fox sued Universal Studios (the studio behind Battlestar Galactica) for copyright infringement, claiming that it had stolen 34 distinct ideas from Star Wars. Among them was a character named Skyler, a tad too close to Skywalker, and the possibility of airing with the title “Star Worlds”. 

 

Ethical considerations 

Ethical issues which relate to race, gender, sexuality, religion and stereotypes also come into play when producing films, tv shows and games. Misrepresenting them can be damaging to a writer and tarnish their own name. If the script this is completely unethical and can affect a writer heavily if they do not censor their content and misinterpret large chunks of the world’s population.  One of the recent ethic issues is the misrepresentation of women in the media, especially in Hollywood however because of the feminist movements more women are becoming strong and independent leading ladies instead of being a traditionally stereotyped women doing household chores. Now the push for feminism has reached Hollywood this is starting to change however the misrepresentation of minorities is still in full force within the media. Within the media Christianity can be shown as a cult as well as showing the audiences that all Muslims are terrorists, 

An example of a film that didn’t consider ethical issues surrounding the film, Cannibal Holocaust. The film Cannibal Holocaust was seen to be a controversial film due to its film making process which disturbed the audience in many ways. The most often brought up point of controversy surrounding Cannibal Holocaust is its onscreen depiction of animal death, which most would argue qualifies as animal cruelty since the creatures were killed solely for the purposes of film production. The most graphic animal demise is that of a large turtle, but a monkey is also brutally killed, in a scene filmed twice, meaning that it required two monkeys to die.  Cannibal Holocaust's graphic gore and sexual violence have also repeatedly drawn the ire of regulatory boards, with the film having been banned in many countries at various points. It was also part of the UK's infamous list of banned films, and it took until 2011 for an almost entirely uncut version of the film to receive approval for release by the BBFC. During the film's initial release, a magazine article in France posited that several of the human deaths shown onscreen were real, making Cannibal Holocaust a controversial film. Before that could be proven, director Deodato was charged with murder.  

 

Evaluation 

Though it all begins with the Screenwriter, the scripts are a blueprint for the entire production. It is what the Director uses to develop her vision; it's what the Actors use to mold their characters; it's what the Costume Designer uses to dress the Actors and what the Production Designer uses to set the scene. Scripts are the bases of a film, TV show, games etc won't be able to be produced without a script. Scripts are seen as the most important part in the film industry without them production can't be done. Being a script writer comes with many responsibilities not just for production but for themselves too, such as obtaining work as a scriptwriter, there are several ways to secure work as a scriptwriter but the main one is freelancing. Sending out your independent work to studios or companies and if your work is good enough for that studio, then you have secured work as a scriptwriter. Working as a scriptwriter requires many skills and demands. Being a scriptwriter demands a high number of transferable skills that you’ve gained from work experience or other things. 

Bibliography

2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-become-a-video-game-writer> [Accessed 22 September 2022].

Akira Kurosawa info. 2022. Sanshiro Sugata. [online] Available at: <https://akirakurosawa.info/sanshiro-sugata/#:~:text=Sanshiro%20Sugata%2C%20released%20in%201943,the%20spiritual%20meaning%20of%20judo> [Accessed 21 September 2022].

FutureLearn. 2022. Explore: The media industry - FutureLearn. [online] Available at: <https://www.futurelearn.com/info/blog/general/explore-media-industry> [Accessed 16 September 2022].

Hustle, I., 2022. Akira Kurosawa: Breaking Down the Master's Techniques. [online] Indie Film Hustle®. Available at: <https://indiefilmhustle.com/akira-kurosawa-composing-movement/> [Accessed 21 September 2022].

IMDb. 2022. Akira Kurosawa - IMDb. [online] Available at: <https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000041/> [Accessed 21 September 2022].

ScreenSkills. 2022. Writer in the games industry. [online] Available at: <https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/games/design/writer-games/> [Accessed 16 September 2022].

Script Writing. 2022. Legal and Ethical Issues That Concern Script Writing.. [online] Available at: <https://scriptwrittingdupree.wordpress.com/2016/02/05/legal-and-ethical-issues-that-concern-script-writing/> [Accessed 22 September 2022].

SoCreate - Screenwriting for Everyone. 2022. How to Become a Script Writer for Video Games. [online] Available at: <https://www.socreate.it/en/blogs/screenwriting/how-to-become-a-script-writer-for-video-games> [Accessed 16 September 2022].

Wordpress.com. 2022. WordPress.com. [online] Available at: <https://wordpress.com/typo/?subdomain=heldayscriptwriting> [Accessed 21 September 2022].

  ScreenRant. 2022. Why Cannibal Holocaust Was So Controversial. [online] Available at: <https://screenrant.com/cannibal-holocaust-movie-controversy-explained/> [Accessed 28 September 2022].

Resubmission- I have changed and added more details to the introduction and evaluation. I've also added more detail to my A2 section.