Producing Video in 2022? Download Our Editable Video Script Template

Every word and every shot is carefully lined up so the editor can turn the words on the script, whether written or spoken, into the video you see below:

Why Do I Need a Video Script?

If you use a video script template correctly, you will see value during every phase of production. Because it helps you visualize the finished product, it will help you see any issues or concerns long before they are ever edited, and in many cases, even shot.

• Planning — Because of its name, the script is obviously the source of words for any reporters, announcers, or actors in your video. But it's also the roadmap that you'll use to lay out those words with the visuals and plan your production, fleshing out the vision so you can make changes to your drafts long before you ever shoot or edit them. 
  
  
• Efficiency — If everybody understands how to read and visualize a script while it's in progress, it becomes an effective way to share the vision, gather critiques, and discuss corrections. Even in our "unscripted" videos, a draft script is an efficient way to share and discuss the messaging and structure, and plans for execution.
  
  
• Estimating — It even serves as a benchmark to help you estimate the timing of your video. Most scripts in this  template result in about 30 seconds per page, although different templates and different ways of using them will vary.
  
  
• Execution — Once the scripting is complete, it becomes the roadmap for execution — a common touchpoint for communicating the vision to on camera and voice talent, videographers or editors. It lays out how every word, every shot, and everything else in your video should come together.

Pro Tip: Although the script is a valuable tool to bring together all three columns in your production — video, audio, and graphics — it can also be a tool to analyze how well each of those will work on their own. Read down the "audio" column to see whether your messaging works for somebody who's not paying attention to the video, the "video" column for somebody who doesn't hear the audio on social media ,  and the "graphics" column to make sure you're identifying everything properly.

Bonus: How Do We Use Scripts for "Unscripted Videos"?

In the beginning of this article, I mentioned that at StoryTeller we specialize in "unscripted videos." By their name alone, one would assume we can't use scripts - so how do scripts apply? 

Unscripted videos aren't planned word-for-word. The producer begins with an understanding of the key messages that need to be communicated and the characters who best communicate that information. The producer will write a list of questions to steer the conversation to ensure the interview subject delivers the desired responses. The response is then in the words of the interview subject, not a "canned" response. Once again, the right script will help the video stay on-topic and save time for the shoot. 

Conclusion

Using a video script template works for long videos as well as short ones, it works for documentaries and music videos, and we used a similar format for news stories when I was at WCCO-TV, our local Minneapolis news station. If you're working on a video project and don't have your own video script template, download ours. I guarantee it will help you organize the project and improve communication with all stakeholders.

Editor's Note: This blog originally published in 2016 and was updated in 2022.