STOP PRESS:     Version 6 now released.

Video Tutorials are available below for installation and
use of the Toolkit on either Windows 10 or Mac OS.

The Scriptwriters' Toolkit

6

produced by

Bill Williams

(website last updated 15 Aug 2020)

For more information, example scripts and a free
sample template continue scrolling
down this page, then come back here.

If you don't have a Serial Number yet,
please type OBTAIN in the box
and press GO

To DOWNLOAD the Toolkit or upgrade to
Version 6 type your Serial Number
in the box and press GO
 
When you come back to pay your
Success fee, please type SUCCESS in
the box and press GO.

The Tookit is a set of 
Microsoft  Word templates
for writing Screenplays, Stageplays
and Radio Plays. It includes the 
formats preferred by the BBC.

As used by
Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran

In the past the main outlet for such scripts was
submission to BBC & TV companies and to
Film Producers, nowadays the brilliant technology
of DV camcorders and affordable home computer
video editing software means that these templates
are ideal for amateur films producers too.

Version 6 works with for Microsoft Word 365,
which is part of Office 365 (now known as
Microsoft 365) and so should work for all
modern versions of Microsoft Word
from 2007 onwards.
including Word on the  Apple Mac.
 

The toolkit is  available here. One of the templates is
available below, free of charge, for you to try out or use; 
it is the template for a modern style Stage script for
the UK. The free template is ideal for use in stage
productions ar schools..

The full set of Version 6 includes: Hollywood Film
format, UK Studio Format, Radio and Stage plays
together with formats for the BBC as formerly
described in the BBC Writers Room.

Versions of these Script Templates have been in
use since the 1990s and have been used for
Birds-of-a-Feather, Goodnight SweetHeart, Love Hurts, Unfinished Business, Mosley and other successful productions.
This is released as SUCCESS-WARE,
you don't have to pay significant sums
until you have success in selling your first
significant script, or make a significant
profit from your own production(s).

Then it is an honor system:

pay if you feel it really helped you.

Pay whatever you feel it was worth.
  INDEX:

Introduction
Documentation
Obtain
Sample Template
Features
Support
Older Versions
  Brief Descriptions:

Hollywood Film
BBC Film
BBC Drama
BBC Sitcom
BBC Stage
BBC Radio Drama
BBC Radio Sketch (cue format) 
Private Films
Script Development Cards
General Studio Sitcom
Traditional Radio
Three UK Stage Formats

Tutorial Videos

for installing and using the Toolkit
on Windows 10 and Apple Mac OS
are listed below

Please watch the videos.
Don't try to guess how to install the toolkit!


Videos for Apple MacOS

Click the link to view the video tutorial.

1,  Preliminary Setup for MacOS

2. Installing the toolkit on an Apple Mac

3. Beginning a new script on an Apple Mac

4. Continuing & concluding a script on MacOS.

 

Videos for Windows 10

Click the link to view the video tutorial.

1 Installing the toolkit on Windows 10

2. Alternative install of the toolkit on Win 10

3. Beginning a new script on Windows 10

4. Continuing and concluding a script on Win 10

FREE SAMPLE

 

One of the templates is available below, free of charge,
for you to try out or use; it is the template for a
modern style Stage script for the UK.

The free template is ideal for use in stage
productionsat schools..

Sample Template
Click it to download (FREE) 61 Kbytes

Example of Script being worked
30 Kbyte PDF

Example of Submission script
25 Kbyte PDF

SAMPLE TEMPLATE: STAGE6C

A  script format  for stage scripts, with the dialogue indented
by roughly a third of the page width, and the Character
Names right justified within the left third of the page.
Act and Scene headings are centred, Stage directions
in italic fill only the right two thirds of the page. A
second style for stage directions is right justified
for Exits & Entries.

Installation of the sample template is the same
process as installing the whole toolkit. See
the tutorial videos linked above.

FEATURES

All of the templates have the following features in common.

Designed for rapid typing:

The names of the first twenty main characters are kept
in an internal rapid access table; as you finish typing
the dialogue of one character, you press the
key-combination of the next character and the
computer inserts the relevant name, sets the
formatting and is ready for new dialogue.

The extensive features of Microsoft Word are still all
available, should you need to deviate from a normal
format, but you probably will never need to.
Consistent Keystrokes:

Unlike some other Script templates systems, the
keystrokes do not vary dependent upon the type of
script that you are making. You use basically the
same set of special keystrokes, whether
you are typing a film, or a sitcom, or a play or a
radio script. So once you have learened to use
one template, such as the free sample, you have
learned them all.
Paragraph styles:

The relevant layout styles are immediately available
by key-combination, toolbar or dropdown menu;
whichever suits you best.
Headers and Footers:

Title and page numbers are provided automatically, but
you can easily remove them if your producer dislikes
headers. Act and Scene numbers are
automatic in most cases.
Production Script:

During your writing phase, the layout is coloured for
easy perception. When the script is ready for submision
a menu command converts it to all black for printing 
and removes the macros and crib-sheet to avoid
macro security warnings at the production company.
MICROSOFT Word features:

Unlike some over-enthusiastic scripting templates,
the underlying features of Word are not disabled.
They are available if needed for unusual situations.
For example: Autotext, a short sequence of
keystrokes can substitute a long frequently
used text string
.
Non-printing notes:

There is a facility for including non-printing notes
in your script; these notes are displayed in grey font.
Version 6 of the templates (the current version)
works with all versions of Microsoft 365 which
has included Microsoft Word from  2007 through
2019,  but it must be installed correctly.

See the link above to the Video Tutorials.

Office 365 for the Apple Mac should be
compatible with the Toolkit, but it has only
been extensively tested with versions of
Office 365 which include Word 2016 onwards.

The script formats preferred by the BBC are not in
the oldest versions, prior to Version 5. Scroll to the
bottom of this page for the older versions which
are completely free.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS

of each template.

Hollywood6_USLtr.dot and  Hollywood6_A4.dot

The Hollywood5 template produces scripts in courier
font and conforming to current information of the
Hollywood fashion in film scripts. 
 
I  chose to put a page number in the top right corner
with the Screenplay title in the top left corner both in
smaller letters than the main script.


Either addition can easily be omitted from the final print.

Hollywood's style in film scripts migrates slowly
from year to year, possibly to distinguish the
in-crowd from the newcomers.

This version matches the format originally
recommended by Bill Craig on his website,
but now no longer there.

These templates are preset for the two sizes of paper
A4 and US Letter. The only differences are in the margin
settings and arearranged in both cases so that the active
area in the centre of thepage is 6 inches by 9 inches.

So if you use the template appropriateto your paper
size you should get exactly the same quantity of
script on the page in both cases.

Set to traditional Courier 10 font,this gives the format
that producers believe will give on average one minute
of finished film per page of script.
 .
 
Example: [ The Bulge by Bill Williams ]
BBC_Film6.dot

BBC_Film5 produces a  script in the format favoured by
the BBC for films and single TV dramas. It is broadly
similar to the Hollywood Film format. The template also
contains the paragraph styles for adding the Act
headings to create the BBC "Screenplay Format for
TV Shows" formerly mentioned
on the BBC writers room web site

Example:

A Work-In-Progress Format:

[Wall of Silence by Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran ]

Its final Submission Format:

[Wall of Silence by Laurence Marks & Maurice Gran ]
BBC_Drama6.dot

This template produces the BBC Taped Drama format
.
The font is Arial,  Character names appear in Bold Caps,
Underlined left justified above the dialogue,
which is single-spaced.

Stage directions are bold, capitals, single spaced and
offset to the right of the dialogue.

There is a wide left margin to provide space for the
production teams.

BBC_Sitcom6.dot

This template produces the BBC Taped Sitcom format.

The font is Arial,  Character names appear in Bold Caps,
Underlined,  left justified above the dialogue,
which is double-spaced.

Stage directions are Bold, Capitals, single spaced and
offset to the right of the dialogue.

There is a wide left margin to provide space
for the production teams.

Example:[
Our American Cousin by Tom Taylor ]

BBC_Stage6.dot

This template produces a UK stage format as suggested
by someBBC staff.

Character names are left justified in the left column and
in-line with the first line of dialogue.

Stage directions are in All Capitals and set off to the
right from the dialogue.

The font is Courier.

BBC_RadioDrama6.dot

This template produces the BBC Radio Format (Scene Style),
used for drama and non-audience comedy. 

Character names are bold capitals left justified in the left
column and on the same line as the first line of dialogue.

Sound directions, produced by CTRL+SHIFT+V, 
are bold capitals underlined and offset to the
right from the dialogue
.

  Examples:
[Pigeon Kind by Sally Ann Farmer ]
[The House of Teeth by Spike Milligan ]
A Goon Show script
BBC_RadioCue6.dot

This template produces the BBC Radio Format (Cue Style),
used for sketches and recordings with an audience.

Approximately the sameas the radio drama format it
adds undelined cue lines for F/X and GRAMS
and identifies the sketch and author on every page.

   Example:
[Foiled by President Fred by Spike Milligan ]
A Goon Show script. 
PrivateFilm6.dot

PrivateFilm5 produces a compact film script for private
productions where the producer & director are not
worried about therule-of-thumb that one page produces
one minute of film or video.

So this format uses arial font which is easier to read than
courier font and uses less paper. In other respects
e.g. centering and margins etcit is similar to
Hollywood Film format, but it is amazing how different
it looks with such a small change
.

  Example:
       [The Bulge by Bill Williams ]

ScriptDevCards.dot

ScriptDevCards is a very simple template, which you can
use to print out blank script development 'cards'.

These are a handy tool for getting your thoughts in order
before and during the writing of a script.

Example:
[
Blank Development Cards ]

Studio6.dot

Studio5 produces a UK SitCom type script, as used with
studio audiences. The character names in bold capitals
on a line alone, followed by dialogue on the right half
of the page, double spaced.

Stage directions are in Capitals in the right half, but both
left & right justified.

Scene headings are bold full width. It is similar to the
BBC sitcom format above but has wider left margins.


  Example:
         [Believe Nothing Episode 5 by Marks & Gran ]

Radio6.dot

The Radio.Dot template has been dropped from Version 6
of the Scriptwriters' Toolkit as it is very similar to the
BBCRadioCue format above. so you can use that instead.

.

Originally Radio plays didn’t have scenes, so you can put
 just a bold START and END heading for the whole play.

The BBCradioCue template includes an automatic cast list
and a place for typing your synopsis.
Stage6A.dot

There appears to be no definitive standards for stage scripts,
whatever looks nice seems to be suitable, so I have
supplied 3 variations suitable for UK stage productions.

USA Stage scripts tend to be in similar format to Hollywood
Films, so stageplay writers in the USA should use one of
those above.

A USA stage format will probably be added to this set later.
  

All of the stage templates include an automatic cast of
characters page. This template (Stage5a) produces a
stage script roughly like the compact scripts used to
publish books like "The Complete Works of Shakespeare".

Scene headings and stage directions are centred and
dialogue is against the left margin, with Character
Names in bold Upper+Lower case.


Example:

[The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare ]


Stage6B.dot

A second style for stage scripts, with the dialogue indented
by roughly a third of the page width, and the Character
Names left justified with just a small indent. Act headings
are centred, Scene headings left justified. Stage directions
are italic and full page width.

A second style for stage directions is right justified
for Exits & Entries.


Stage6C.dot

This is similar to stage5b except that the character names
are right justified within the left third of the page, to make
them match more easily to the first line of dialogue.

Scene Headings are centred and Stage directions in italic fill
only the right two thirds of the page. Automatic numbering
of Acts and Scenes are provided.

  Example:
[The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare ]
 
[The Adding Machine by Elmer Rice ]
 
[The Adding Machine by Elmer Rice   (production type)]

OLDER VERSIONS

For the oldest versions of the templates, for Word 2,
 Word 6, 7, 8, Office 95 and Office97

CLICK HERE

 

To obtain Version 5 of the Toolkit for pre-Ribbon
versions of Microsoft Word, Click Here.

Produced by

  Bill Williams Bill Williams(IT),
  252 Colney Hatch Lane, London,
  N10 1BD, UK

  Tel: 020-8444-6706
  eMail: toolkit2020 @ datahighways.co.uk

Please visit the Script Writers Toolkit section
of my Support Site , before eMailing or
phoning, the answer to your problem
may be already listed.