How To Take A Note Like A Pro

Screenplay notes are your friend?

Bullshit. Screenplay notes are the worst, right? 😒

You’ve spent months, possibly YEARS, writing this profoundly personal screenplay. You’ve put in the time; you’ve put in the work. You’ve invested in courses, books, and those YouTube Videos. You understand the structure, pace, and proper formatting. You opened your veins and spilled your deepest, darkest secrets onto the page. Your Aunt Millie and Uncle Steve said your screenplay was the most impactful piece of literature since The Bible. 📚😇

Then along comes this clueless, pompous, suspender-wearing, coffee-sipping dickhead who says, ‘𝗬𝗲𝗲𝗮𝗮𝗮𝗵…𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿? 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁.’ 😤

At least, that’s what you hear. But what is this pompous dick really saying? 🤔

Look, I get it. It’s hard to take a note, especially if you think: “𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰’𝒎 𝒅𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏’𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅!” Well, I hate to tell you this, but they do understand. You just didn’t explain it adequately. 😕

Okay, but what about seemingly ridiculous notes that make your blood boil? Notes that you’re convinced were meant for another screenplay; stupid notes about hair color, location changes that have nothing to do with the plot or dialogue; trite and unconvincing notes. What about those notes, MCH?– shhh, shhh, calm down. Relax. Deep breaths. 😌💭

A note is not a criticism of your talent, worth, artistry, or skill. It’s a ‘𝐛𝐮𝐦𝐩.’ That’s it. And if your note-giver is worth their salt, that bump is usually followed by a ‘𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.’ Do you have to take the suggestion? Absolutely not. 💡📝

But you do have to address the ‘𝐛𝐮𝐦𝐩.’ 🚧

If I bump up against a beat or a moment or the character’s motivation, it’s often because that beat, moment, or reason runs contrary to what you’ve established, and, as a result, it doesn’t work. You may have intended that beat, moment, or reason to mean 𝐗, but if I read it as 𝐘, that’s on you. 🎭🤔

If you said, “𝑴𝑪𝑯, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 ‘𝒈𝒆𝒕’ 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑰’𝒎 𝒕𝒓𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆.” I’d reply, “𝒀𝒐𝒖’𝒓𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒖𝒍𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕?” I’m not thick. I’d like to think I’ve been doing this long enough to ‘𝗴𝗲𝘁’ what you’re trying 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼, but if you had ‘𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘁,’ and I ‘𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐭,’ you wouldn’t be 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 the note. 🤷‍♂️📝

Let’s break this down. You have spent all this time, effort, and energy writing this personal story. You’ve done all of the heavy lifting. You’ve finished a full-length feature film screenplay. Congratulations. I mean this sincerely! No small feat! You worked hard, and you are 100% investing in the success of this screenplay! 👏💪🎉

But, to me, this screenplay, your life’s work? It’s just ‘𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗱𝗼𝘁𝘀’ on a white page. I am reading your script with fresh eyes and for the first time. My only emotions are my reactions to the words on these hundred or so pages. That’s it. I am as impartial as it gets. 😮📖

The majority of the notes I give come from me asking three basic questions:

• Have you created a solid mythology or something that exists only within the pages of this screenplay? Or, simply put, is it clear what this story is about?

• Do you adhere to this mythology? Or, simply put, do you follow the rules you’ve established? Or even simpler still, does this all make sense within itself?

• Is there a more compelling/concise way to explain, describe, or show the reader what you intended? If the answer is ‘𝘆𝗲𝘀,’ here’s my suggestion. If the answer is ‘𝗻𝗼,’ then I leave it alone.

There is nothing personal here. I’m not trying to trip you up or give you notes for notes’ sake. I’m not trying to take over and tell you how I would do it. It’s not about me; I’m simply bumping up against a moment, scene, beat, or line of dialogue. 💡🎞️📝

Here’s a tip that has served me well over the years. Instead of saying, '𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏'𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒕.' Try asking, ‘𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝑰 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑴𝑪𝑯 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅? 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒂 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍?’ If you can develop a better way of getting the intent across, then great. You’ve kept the scene’s integrity, moment, and beat intact while making it more evident on the page. If you cannot, you have one of two choices: Scrap the scene, beat, or moment entirely, or leave it in and see if anyone else bumps. 🤷‍♀️💭✍️

But here’s the rub, if you get two bumps on the same beat? Y͟o͟u͟ ͟h͟a͟v͟e͟ ͟t͟o͟ ͟c͟h͟a͟n͟g͟e͟ ͟i͟t̲

Your intentions in your writing are essential; this is your most intimate ‘𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐜𝐞.’ So when someone doesn’t understand what you’re trying to say, you often hear, ‘𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙠 𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜.’ Or, ‘𝒀𝒐𝒖’𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒂𝒓𝒃𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓.'

You don’t, and you’re not. Give yourself a break. You’ve done so much work here. Don’t take anything personally, and remember why you wanted to get notes in the first place. 💪😌📝

When you get a note– as strange as it may feel– try saying ‘𝐲𝐞𝐬’ right away and see where that takes you. It may take you right back to where you started, and that’s okay. You only lost an hour or so of your time, but if it takes you somewhere new and exciting, forget about that lost hour and consider all you’ve gained! 🤔💡💪🚀