How to Sell a Cartoon Series: Write a Script

You have a great idea for an original television animated series, and have developed four or five memorable cartoon characters. What’s your next step? To get in the door to pitch your premise and characters to an animation studio or television production company, you’ll also need a script to show how your characters interact; if your main story premise (i.e.: “Superman is an alien with superhuman strength passing as an earthling”) is strong enough to carry an animated series; and, above all, a well-executed script will show that you can write. The first thing to understand: while a cartoon series script may appear at first glance to be similar to a live action screenplay or teleplay, there are formatting nuances and jargon specific to the animation industry. As an animation writer, I’ll summarize what I’ve learned pitching and developing cartoon series for animation producers.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Paper
• Pen
• Computer
• Word Processing Program
• Animation Scripts

1. Write a treatment. In Hollywood jargon, a “treatment” is a screenplay or teleplay story outline formatted as if it were a short story. Treatments can be as brief as one paragraph, or as long as two pages. It serves as the plot line of your animated series script. Use a three-act structure: beginning, middle, and end.
2. Learn the basics of the animation “assembly line” from start to finish. There are many books on the subject. While a screenplay acts as a skeletal blueprint for actors and directors, an animation script must offer more detail in setting, and stage and character direction for the sake of the next step in the animation process after scripting: the artist storyboard.
3. Learn how to format an animation script by studying scripts from current cartoon series. Drew's Script-o-Rama is a longstanding Internet site that includes examples of screenplays, teleplays, and animation scripts.
4. In animation, camera and character directions must be spelled out much more specifically. Compile a list of jargon unique to cartoon scripts, including camera movements like “pan to”, “angle on”, "push in", and "zooming."
5. Start writing. Note that, while most half-hour television sitcom scripts are 22 pages in length, a 22-minute cartoon episode script could by as long as 40 pages.
6. Register your script with the Writers Guild of America. While most animation writers are members of I.A.T.S.E., the WGA will allow you to register your script for limited legal protection.

Tips & Warnings

• If you live in the Los Angeles area, take one or two introductory animation courses given to the public at the Animators Union in North Hollywood.
• Is your series geared to a primetime television audience like “The Simpsons”, or to a Saturday morning audience like “Spongebob Squarepants”? If your script is geared to primetime, it’s best to study television sitcom scripts for formatting only because most primetime animation writers come from the world of live television as opposed to the world of animation. If you’re aiming for a Saturday morning audience, it’s best to study an animation script for formatting and jargon specific to the animation industry.
• Some animation companies won't buy scripts from non-artist writers. It helps if your script is accompanied by a storyboard.