Writing a script for improvisation

Hey peppers,

peppers said:

Hey, I have been thinking about shooting a short film and having most of it improvised. I thought I should come up with a story and a short script with just examples of topics for each scene. Do you guys have any suggestions for writing a script that is meant to be mostly ignored and improvised?

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You want samples of scripts that are meant to be mostly ignored i.e, crappy scripts ? I can give you 10 in a day if you want me to, and there is this guy who can give you 500 scripts in a day !

All the best.

Raghu.

peppers said:

Hey, I have been thinking about shooting a short film and having most of it improvised. I thought I should come up with a story and a short script with just examples of topics for each scene. Do you guys have any suggestions for writing a script that is meant to be mostly ignored and improvised?

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See if you can get your hands on a script for one of the many improv TV shows based on the idea of a group of commuters in a train car. The original seems to have been in Poland, but the Australian version was called "Going Home" and the Canadian version "Car 48". Apparently, Showtime's going to do a US version called "Bar Car".

I would just write a list of scenes and the plot points/beats/whatever it's necessary to hit in those scenes. I've been thinking about doing an improvised short myself.

Sounds like a mockumentary, most of which is improvised.

Ditto what zep said.

I must be too much of a control freak because I have the movie already in my head, I want it to look and sound like that, so I put it on paper as best I can to relay what I see, so that I can share my vision.

IceCreamEmpress said:

See if you can get your hands on a script for one of the many improv TV shows based on the idea of a group of commuters in a train car. The original seems to have been in Poland, but the Australian version was called "Going Home" and the Canadian version "Car 48". Apparently, Showtime's going to do a US version called "Bar Car".

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Hang-on. 'Going Home' certainly wasn't improvised.

Sure, the scripts were written, filmed and shown in a single day, but it wasn't improvised ... there were definitely scripts - and even rehearsals.

I saw the bit on there being a Polish 'original' but I hadn't heard of it before. I've dropped a quick email to one of the writers to see if it is accurate.

Mac

Mac H. said:

I saw the bit on there being a Polish 'original' but I hadn't heard of it before. I've dropped a quick email to one of the writers to see if it is accurate

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A quick followup. I got a reply email (within minutes! .. if only producers replied as quickly as writers do!)

Hi Mac

No, Going Home was an original idea developed by the McElroys. Perhaps there was a Polish series that was similar but we were certainly not made aware of it. They subsequently sold the idea internationally and there are now versions around the world ..
(He comments on one of the differences )
"Bar Car": It has a later time slot and uses comedians as its key characters ...

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As someone from the acting side, I would just put them in situations and guide them, roughly, to a general point. Start at this location, with these characters and have a point so that they can hit a spot and then move forward to the next, you set the plot and characters, they find out how those characters act in the situations and how they get from point a to point b. HTH.