Definition

Noun: A screenplay is the written script for a film. It contains all the dialogue spoken by the characters and detailed descriptions of the actions, settings, characters, and sometimes camera directions. It serves as the blueprint from which a movie is made.

Usage

A screenplay is used by directors, actors, and the entire film crew to understand and produce a movie. It is a specific type of script intended for cinema.

Examples

• The director hired a famous writer to adapt the novel into a screenplay.
• Her first screenplay won a major award at the film festival.
• The actors studied the screenplay carefully before filming began.

Advanced Usage

• To write a screenplay: The act of creating a film script.
  • He spent two years writing the screenplay for the historical epic.
• Screenplay credit: Official recognition given to the writer(s) of a film's script.
  • She received sole screenplay credit for the film.

Variants and Related Words

• Script (n): A broader term for the written text of a play, film, or broadcast. A screenplay is a type of script specifically for movies.
• Screenwriter (n): A person who writes screenplays.
• Teleplay (n): A script written for television.

Synonyms

• Script
• Film script
• Scenario (can be similar, though sometimes refers to a broader outline of the plot)

Related Phrases

• Based on a screenplay by...: A phrase used in film credits to attribute the source script.
  • The film is based on a screenplay by the director and a co-writer.

Noun

1. a script for a film including dialogue and descriptions of characters and sets