TYPOGRAPHIC CONVENTIONS

The best way to learn these is to get a copy of a professional film script. Reading a few will quickly show you that the rules aren't completely rigid; writers will bend them when they need to. Nevertheless there is an accepted "industry standard" which the novice would be wise to master.

Here is a condensed description of correct Screenplay Format adapted from Michael Hauge's book "Writing Screenplays That Sell" (Elm Tree Books):

Outer Margins should be indented 1 inch from the Right, and 1 & half inches from the Left Edge of the Paper.
Text begins 1" from Top of Page, ends 1" from Bottom.
Page Number is placed a half inch from the Top, 1" from Right.
Scene Heading : ALL CAPS; starts at Left Margin. Double Spacing between Scene Heading and Action/Description.
Action/Description format goes to the Outer Margins. Single or Double spaced between paragraphs; Double spacing between Action/Description and a Character Name.
Dialogue : indented 3" from Left, 2" from Right. Double spacing between Dialogue and the next Character Name.
Character Names : ALL CAPS; indented 4" from Left. Single space between a Character's Name and following Dialogue.
Bracketed Acting Directions are centred under the Character's Name. Single spaced before and after.

Finally, some commonly used scripting abbreviations:

P.O.V. (Point of View). Used after a character's name; shows that the camera is looking through the character's eyes.

(O.S.) (Out of Shot) Used after a character HEADING. A character speaking outside the camera frame. Not the same as (V.O.) Voice Over.

C.U. Abbreviation of CLOSE UP

TELEVISION SCRIPT FORMATTING

There used to be different conventions for television and film scripts but the boundaries seem to have recently become blurred. British television scriptwriters now often seem to use a looser version of film formatting; with more license for individual idiosyncrasy.