How to format lyrics in scripts
I was quite curious as to how one would write a scene with characters singing a song, musical style. Do we just include “singing” as an action within the handy parentheses? Or is there some other formatting we must use? And how much mention are we supposed to give to the music itself?
– Adam Scott
Perth, Australia
For movies and television, the convention is to put the lyrics in italics. It’s probably helpful to include a “(singing)” parenthetical the first time you do it, because some readers may not catch it otherwise. And yes, dialogue in italics can also be used for foreign languages, so you’ll need to make sure it’s clear in context.
Here’s where the former graphic designer in me resurfaces. Screenplays are written in 12-pt. Courier, which is not the most attractive typeface in the world, but certainly sturdy and readable. There’s an italic form of Courier that’s rounded and a little more like handwriting, which would be quite suitable for lyrics.
However, the “italic” form of Courier you find on most computers is really just normal Courier with a slant effect applied (called “oblique”), and it seriously blows. It’s ugly on screen. It’s ugly printed.
It’s impossible to write beautiful lyrics in such an ugly typeface.
So, having written lyrics in many of my scripts, I’ve come to use a different typeface altogether for the songs. For Big Fish, I used 11 pt. Stone Sans Italic. For Charlie and Corpse Bride, I switched to 11 pt. Verdana Italic, because I needed to send those scripts in as .pdf files, and you can safely count on just about any computer having Verdana installed.
Why 11 pt., when the main text is set at 12 pt.? That’s because Verdana looks much bigger than Courier when set at the same point size. You’re also more likely to get a full lyric line in without a break at that size. (Although I feel no guilt cheating a margin slightly to avoid a break in any event.)
Some scripts I’ve read will include a slash “/” at the end of each sung line. I don’t find that helpful, so I never use it.
In terms of talking about the music, your best bet is to describe the general style and tone, such as “bright, Sousa-like march” or “melancholy dirge.” You can give an example if it’s particularly apt, but I’d avoid a reference that makes the reader stop and think, “Hmm, how does that go?”
Note that the convention for songs in stage musicals is completely different. For those, lyrics are placed in uppercase along the left margin. You can see examples of the format in the templates for Final Draft or Screenwriter.
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February 23rd, 2006 at 2:42 pm
PDF files also support embedded fonts. That is, you can include your custom fonts inside the PDF and be guaranteed that it’ll look the same in the studio as when you’re looking at it on your own screen.
A better question would be, how do you come up with these cool award-nominated songs?
February 23rd, 2006 at 7:40 pm
I’ve been wanting to ask you this for a while, Mr. August, but what do you do if you’re writing a script where you know there are going to be songs in a movie, but the style and lyrics of the song are being handled by someone else, like with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? Did you just write “Oompa-Loompas SING,” or what?
February 24th, 2006 at 12:35 am
Which format do you prefer yourself, John? The stage musical way, or the screenwriting way? Regardless of which you’re forced to do or are used to.
February 24th, 2006 at 9:00 am
Because I’m much more familiar with the screenwriting way of doing lyrics, that’s definitely my preference. But now having done a stage musical, I can see why they’re formatted the way they are. It keeps the songs a little more separate, which makes it easier to follow.
February 24th, 2006 at 9:21 am
Thanks for answering my question, captain. When I was reading it I was thinking “Wow, someone else is curious too – I’m not the only one.”
Turns out I just might be.
February 24th, 2006 at 3:26 pm
John,
This question doesn’t relate to the topic, but only because I can’t find the “ask a question� section.
I was reading the ‘how each character feels about God’ exercise you did for DC. It’s really clever. What other exercises do you do to flesh out characters in your head before beginning a script?
February 25th, 2006 at 7:22 am
Mr August -
Thanks for answering his question. On a similar note, how would you handle the reciting of a poem?
February 27th, 2006 at 6:12 pm
John, yer a phuggin HACK!!!!!1111111111111111111111111111111111111v ‘lkdfjgfd
Just kiddin’-yuoyu are the greatew
June 28th, 2006 at 12:19 pm
Hi John
I have begun working on a stage musical, and have several of the songs written. I have looked at the BBCs script smart template, and although it does give you the tools to present the script, it doesnt really give an example of what it should look like. WOuld you be able to suggest an example or a lay out that I could use as a guide?
Kind Regards
Tracy Johnson