Teleplay: Difference between revisions
Not the same thing. "Teleplay" is a somewhat archaic term for any script for a TV production . It's distinct from plays and screenplays in formatting and conventions, but it's not limited to television plays, a particular type of production. |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{distinguish|Television play}} |
{{distinguish|Television play}} |
||
{{refimprove|date=July 2016}} |
{{refimprove|date=July 2016}} |
||
A '''teleplay''' is a [[screenplay]] or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as an episode of an [[anthology series]];<ref>[https://wcftr.commarts.wisc.edu/exhibits/golden-age-television/tele-playwrights "The Tele-Playwrights"]. [[Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research]].</ref> in internal industry usage, however, all television scripts (including episodes of conventional ongoing drama or comedy series) are teleplays, although a "teleplay" credit may be subsumed into a "written by" credit depending on the circumstances of its creation.<ref name=wga>[https://www.wgaeast.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/tvcredits_manual10.pdf ''Television Credits Manual'']. [[Writers Guild of America]].</ref> |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | |||
==Usage== |
|||
According to current [[Writers Guild of America]] guidelines, a television script consists of two distinct parts: "story" and "teleplay". The story comprises "basic narrative, idea, theme or outline indicating character development and action", while the teleplay consists of "individual scenes and full dialogue or monologue (including narration in connection therewith), and camera set-ups, if required".<ref name=wga/> Simply put, this distinguishes between the contribution of ideas toward the story, and the actual writing of the dialogue and stage directions present on the page in the finished product. |
|||
Accordingly, story and teleplay will appear as distinct credits on a television script if different people played those distinct roles in the script's creation; if the same person or two people performed both roles, then the story and teleplay credits will not be used and instead a merged "written by" credit will be given.<ref name=wga/> |
|||
==History== |
==History== |
||
Revision as of 16:47, 16 October 2016
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2016) |
A teleplay is a screenplay or script used in the production of a scripted television program or series. In general usage, the term is most commonly seen in reference to a standalone production, such as an episode of an anthology series;[1] in internal industry usage, however, all television scripts (including episodes of conventional ongoing drama or comedy series) are teleplays, although a "teleplay" credit may be subsumed into a "written by" credit depending on the circumstances of its creation.[2]
The term first surfaced during the 1950s with wide usage to distinguish teleplays from stage plays written for theater and screenplays written for films. All three have different formats, conventions and constraints.
Usage
According to current Writers Guild of America guidelines, a television script consists of two distinct parts: "story" and "teleplay". The story comprises "basic narrative, idea, theme or outline indicating character development and action", while the teleplay consists of "individual scenes and full dialogue or monologue (including narration in connection therewith), and camera set-ups, if required".[2] Simply put, this distinguishes between the contribution of ideas toward the story, and the actual writing of the dialogue and stage directions present on the page in the finished product.
Accordingly, story and teleplay will appear as distinct credits on a television script if different people played those distinct roles in the script's creation; if the same person or two people performed both roles, then the story and teleplay credits will not be used and instead a merged "written by" credit will be given.[2]
History
On the hour-long TV anthology drama shows of the Golden Age of Television, such as The United States Steel Hour, The Goodyear Television Playhouse, The Philco Television Playhouse, The Alcoa Hour, Armstrong Circle Theatre, and Studio One, productions often were telecast live from studios with limited scenery and other constraints similar to theatrical presentations. These constraints made a teleplay quite different from a screenplay.
However, television dramatists, such as Paddy Chayefsky, JP Miller and Tad Mosel, turned such limitations to their advantage by writing television plays with intimate situations and family conflicts characterized by naturalistic, slice of life dialogue. When seen live, such productions had a real-time quality not found in films (shot out of sequence), yet they employed tight close-ups, low-key acting and other elements not found in stage productions. For many viewers, this was equivalent to seeing live theater in their living rooms, an effect enhanced when television plays expanded from 60-minute time slots to a 90-minute series with the introduction of Playhouse 90 in the late 1950s.[3]
Notable examples:
- The Comedian (1957)
- Days of Wine and Roses (1958)
- Playhouse 90 (1956-1961)