What is Script Coverage? Template & Example Learning House

What is Script Coverage? Template & Example

July 13, 2011 – 10:16 pm

Script coverage is a synopsis written by someone who has read a screenplay. Coverage is generally accompanied by the reader’s thoughts and impressions and is usually written for an executive, a producer, an agent, or a manager. Because these people have many scripts to read and not enough time to read all of them, they will often either hire an outside person or ask their assistant to read and cover a script. Coverage is, in some senses, a screening process.

A script lands in different offices for different reasons. If it is going to a producer, they are likely evaluating whether or not your script is something they would like to spend time and money to turn into a film. If it is going to the agent or manager of an actor, they are likely evaluating whether or not their client would be wise to star in your film. If it is going to a literary agent or manager as an example of your writing for potential representation, they are evaluating whether or not you show promise as a writer.

When coverage is being written, the person covering the script is reading the script overall, but is primarily taking into account which point of evaluation they are operating under. So, while the synopsis section of a script will generally be similar office by office, the notes section, which includes the reader’s thoughts and impressions, might change case by case.

The format of the notes section of script coverage varies depending on who has requested the coverage. Some offices have a grading system for a script, while others prefer more open-ended rhetoric from a reader. By and large, all coverage will include a synopsis. In the template weve included below weve included extra information that an independent production company might be sensitive to such as number of locations or number of actors.

It’s important for writers to understand script coverage for several reasons. First, a writer must know that should his or her script land at the office of a producer, agent, or manager, their script is likely to be covered by someone other than the executive it is intended for – especially if the writer is a young writer. This is not necessarily a bad thing! Assistants are very intelligent people, many of whom have just come out of school with a film-related degree. Assistants have less personal stake in the production company or in the careers of their bosses’ clients, and it’s possible they might be less partial than the actual executive.

Writers should also be familiar with script coverage because it can be a great side job or part of a larger job for a writer. As a screenwriter, you are familiar with screenplay structure – what makes a great story, a great character, a great potential film. Coverage can be a great way to employ those skills you have and earn some money for your expertise while you are working on your screenplay!

Below youll find a sample script coverage template. Feel free to use it or change it to fit your own needs.

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