x

1. All scripts submitted must be typed, on white A4-
sized paper and on one side of each sheet. Any
which are not are always returned unread.
7 DAYS TO LIVE
Screenplay for a cinema feature
by
Dirk Ahner
1st draft?
INDIGO Filmproduktion GmbH
Bavariaring 26
D - 80336 München
Tel.: (+49) 89 - 272 94 00
Fax : (+49) 89 - 271 01 15
E-Mail: IndigoMuc@aol.com
FADE IN
Here we can see the first draft the writer of the script put forward to
the production team with the company’s name and contact details on.
Personally, I believe that the writer of the script has done this in case
the actors have any questions about the script which need answering
then they can contact the writer via the contact details given above.
1. OUTSIDE COUNTRY HOUSE - EXT. / NIGHT
An ancient house, standing lonely in the middle of a
deserted landscape in Northern Germany; lying there like a
sleeping giant under the starry sky.
But something seems strange: All of the windows and doors
have been nailed shut.
Text chart: "1976"
The headlights of a car pierce the darkness. A car halts
in the yard. Three MEN step out. One of them is wearing a
police uniform. The men switch on their flashlights and
look around.
MAN #1
How long has the house already
been like this?
KARL LINDNER, a keen police officer in his late thirties,
approaches the entrance door. He speaks in a calm, hoarse
voice.
LINDNER
No idea. I haven't seen them in
weeks.
Lindner makes himself a picture of the situation.
He rings the doorbell. Nothing stirs inside the house.
Then, he tries to get a look inside through one of the
nailed-shut windows.
Through the cracks, he can barely make out a faint
pulsating light.
Linder
I haven't seen them in weeks.
The three men exchange looks.
With a heavy heart, Lindner makes his decision:
The title of the film is in capital
letters and is at the top of the page,
so that it is clear and easy to read
for the production team.
Scene headings provide the basic
where- and-when information
for the scene that follows. Each
new scene has its own slug line
and they are always written in
capitals.
In this case it is an exterior
setting and at night. This would
be filmed at night as the film
genre is a thriller/horror.
Examples: Int. (interior – e.g. in a
room)
Ext. (exterior – e.g. in the street)
This is a transition shot.
Transition shots can be included
in scripts. Examples of these are
Fade out, Fade to black, wipe to,
cut to, dissolve to and pan to.
The action
describes
what we
can see on
screen/sta
ge and
what
happens.
When a character is first
mentioned, their name is spelt
fully and in capital letters to
emphasise the first time the
character is seen on the script.
The ‘#1’ represents the first man
in the film and suggests that
they’ll be more men in the film.
When the character is
introduced after the first time
there name isn’t presented in
capitals as they are a regular
character now.