Online reference for instructional video script format?

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MarkN

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Corporate Video

Can someone recommend a good online reference for the 2-column format for audio-visual scripts, as in for training videos and such? When I google on "scripts" I get tons of hollywood screenplay tips, but not much in the way of business/industrial references. I'm trying to learn how to be a freelance copywriter, and I'd like to be able to add scriptwriting to my list of available services (especially since there's a production house just down the road from me), but knowing that there are two columns pretty much exhausts my familiarity with the format.

If online references are lacking, hard-copy reference book would do too, I'm just impatient ;)

TIA.
 
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MarkN

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Never mind, I tried some different search terms and found a few sites that are giving me some info that's more along the lines of what I was looking for.

But while we're on the topic, is anyone around here doing this sort of work? Writing scripts for training videos or similar corporate AV stuff? Just curious about what the market's like and what I might be facing trying to get my feet wet in this area (among other things I'd like to be doing). It wouldn't necessarily be my main focus, just something I'd like to have on my list of services available. I'm in the Pittsburgh area, not LA or NYC, if that makes a difference.
 
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Featurewriter

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The problem with most training and imaging videos (i.e., "industrials") is the tight budgets for the "little guys," and the in-place production staff (much of which is augmented by training or HR folks) for the "big guys." Carving out a niche' as an industrial video writer may be pretty challenging.

I've produced training and orientation videos since the mid-80s for (mostly) mid-sized companies and trade organizations (unions and associations) as well as government agencies and public utility companies. Not once in over 20 years have I seen a writer as a separate line item for any of these productions. It may happen on occasion, but my bet is that writers are mostly invisible except to the producers who do this type of work.

Scripts for industrial productions usually start out as poorly-written, jargon-filled clips from other documents that the client -- usually a mid-level staffer acting on behalf of a decision-maker that you'll never meet -- hopes to put video to with a voice reading the copy. The client quickly realizes that it's not going to happen with any kind of good results ... thus begins the education process, facilitated (usually) by the production house.

The house will sit down with the client and consider the realities, offer a price range, then assign a producer (or production contact) to oversee the project, which goes forth from there.

Unfortunately, these projects usually turn out to be poorly-written despite the re-crafting of the material ... even more poorly-worded than this sentence, if you can imagine that.


  • [SIDEBAR: Ever fallen asleep watching a training program? Although many elements affect how well it connects with a viewer, the primary factor in effective dialog writing is whether it's written for the EYE or for the EAR. Most people write for the EYE. Very, very few writers know how to write for the EAR. Makes a HUGE difference.]
A really good scriptwriter would add great value, not only to the final result, but as a means of reducing production costs. The costs rise and fall with the script ... and with the writer's and/or producer's understanding of the production process. The problem is, you're mostly dealing with clients who are uneducated about the production process AND with video producers who are trying to maximize the small budgets they're lucky to be working with.

Here's the bottom line: If you really want to supplement your income with industrials, you need to discover more about the entire production process beyond the video-audio/2-column format with appropriate production shorthand, to the point where you can offer your services as a producer. Producers coordinate with the client, draft the script, and supervise shooting and editing (those are the basics, at any rate). If you don't have a good grasp of the whole process, your effectiveness as a writer will be greatly limited.

It can be very lucrative, but unfortunately the market and its players aren't really set up to hire industrial writers as standalones. But if you're still determined, my best suggestion would be to work with producers ... which is what it sounds like you're trying to do.
 
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