How to Write a Screenplay: The Difference Between Spec and Shooting Script

6 min readSep 1, 2021

In screenwriting, there are two types of screenplays — the spec script and the shooting script. Every screenwriter must know the difference between them. In the addition to my How to Write a Screenplay series, I will cite multiple screenplays to help you see the difference.

At the bottom of this article, you’ll find 5 screenplays of varying genres that really capture what great spec screenplays look like.

*Poltergeist (1982) — Behind the scenes photo.*

MOVING ON —

What is a spec screenplay? A spec screenplay is any screenplay written without the guarantee of a sale or production. Spec is short for speculative — meaning, you’re writing a script on the speculation of selling it.

Every screenplay written by a new or unrepresented writer is 100% a spec screenplay. Because spec scripts have no attached talent or established vision, under no circumstances should camera direction or heavy details regarding production or costume design be written.

“But I’m writing a movie. I should write detailed visuals and sounds,” you might argue, but I’ll tell you why you’re both right and wrong here shortly.

What is a shooting script? A shooting screenplay is a heavily revised screenplay by a director and their team (sometimes not even including the original screenwriter) to cater more to the director’s (or in some cases, the studio’s) cinematic vision of the story. This is the final, most polished, form of a screenplay for a film that is definitely being produced and released.

For an example of a great shooting draft — let’s look at the first scene of Poltergeist (1982) written by Steven Spielberg. Directed by Tobe Hooper.

Within a little over a quarter of the page, Spielberg wrote multiple, specific camera directions. And it looks and reads well too! You can see the movie being presented from the words alone. But this is the draft that was approved by MGM Studios to be produced for a $10 million budget (roughly $28 million in today’s money, considering tax inflation). The filmmakers attached to this movie determined these shots together.

If you’re writing a spec screenplay — do not write like this. Sure, you may know a lot about cinematography and directing already, but unless you have a great reputation as a director or a studio has explicitly told you to write those camera angles and movements, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. Writing a shooting draft without the guarantee for production tells every potential buyer that you have control issues. That’s the hard truth.

Now that you know you should never write specific camera directions or overly-detailed descriptions in a spec screenplay, let’s look at an example that shows you how to write cinematically without being too specific. Because your script still has to read like a movie.

Here is the first half of the first page to Knives Out (2019), written and directed by Rian Johnson.

While this script was still used as Rian’s shooting draft for Knives Out, you can tell this script works incredibly well as a spec screenplay too. But why?

Because it reads with cinematic motion without ever presenting a single, specific camera direction. Also, the written presentation of production design/costume design is just vague enough to give designers creative freedom during production — but not too vague to be void of concept.

Let’s analyze this one. Johnson immediately describes this location, Thrombey Estate Manor, as “a New England manor. Pre-dawn misty.”

In this single line — Rian Johnson gives the location team, production design team, and the cinematographer a sense of direction without doing their job for them. A New England-style manor is very specific but broad enough to paint a picture. “Pre-dawn misty” gives the cinematographer a great sense of lighting and color without telling them exactly where to put their camera.

Knives Out (2019) Behind the scenes photo.

Now, let’s further look at how Rian directed the camera from the page without being obvious. Rian writes, “Follow one housekeeper named FRAN…” The term “follow” is a great way for spec screenwriters to create a sense of movement without taking the director and the cinematographer out of the equation. Even though Rian Johnson directed this film himself, his screenplay reads so well that any director could have given this script a chance. That’s great screenwriting.

To a good director, reading “follow” may inspire a tracking shot in a single, long take to establish a setting through action. Or an editing-savvy director, like Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Baby Driver), could create a series of separate, but connected shots that revolve around the character we’re watching.

And there you are — 99% of screenwriters are writing on spec. Even screenwriters who have produced credits. We all have passion projects that are not backed by guaranteed production. Your job as a screenwriter is to just give the reader a presentation of setting, tone, character, plot, and dialogue at the most minimal. You’re not writing prose. You’re writing a screenplay.

As you can see with Knives Out, Rian rarely breaks 2 lines for direction and dialogue. The tighter, poetically-terse your screenplay reads, the better it is. If you can pack a punch while keeping most of the page white, you’re onto great things.

While it’s difficult to find examples of great spec screenplays online (because most of them are bad — including mine), I’m going to share 5 of my favorite shooting drafts that read like spec screenplays.

Most contemporary screenplays tend to drop camera and detailed scene directions anyway, but we’re still on that trend where new writers think they should write like a director. But they shouldn’t.

Reading these 5 screenplays below will definitely put you in the right direction toward writing a great spec screenplay…