The script

The script is the engine that drives your video.

It tells the story and ties the pictures together.

Usually the script is mostly words – such as voiceover narration, a Presenter, and dialogue for any actors – with only a sketchy idea of the visual content.

Remember that what the scriptwriter has written is spoken plain english.

This is not the same as you would write in a business document. It has a different rhythm, it uses different structures, different words.

So resist the temptation to correct grammar and usage – turning “it’s” into “it is”, for example. If you insist on this, you will wonder why the final narration sounds so wooden.

Script approval

You may be happy to approve the script remotely by email, but an internal team meeting is probably more effective at getting agreement and commitment.

A good tactic at the meeting is to get someone, to read the script out loud, line by line, paragraph by paragraph. Amendments can be agreed on the spot.

You can also use this meeting to discuss visual content in more detail – what machines you are going to film, what would be the best example of scaffolding, how best to demonstrate a product.

Next: The storyboard – describing the visual content >>