Top Tips for Script Writing: How to Write a Good Script

Updated November 2026 · 9 min read · By the Moov Studio team

Every film, ad and explainer video starts the same way: with words on a page. A script is the blueprint. Get it right and everything downstream (storyboard, design, animation, voiceover) falls into place. Get it wrong and no amount of beautiful animation will save it.

We write scripts for explainer videos every week, so this guide covers both worlds: the basics of film and screenplay writing, and the very different craft of writing a 60 to 90 second explainer script that actually gets people to act.

Movie Script vs Explainer Video Script

Both need clarity and structure, but they have completely different jobs.

Same character, two jobs:

• Movie: "INT. BAR – NIGHT. The lights flicker as JACKSON (30s), exhausted, downs his whiskey, lost in thought."
• Explainer: "Meet Jackson. He's juggling six projects and can't find anything. Here's how [Product] fixes that."

A movie script asks the audience to feel. An explainer script asks them to understand, fast, and then do something.

Script Format Basics for Film

If you're writing a screenplay, formatting matters. Readers, producers and studios expect industry standard, and a badly formatted script often gets put down after one page.

1. Scene headings (sluglines): in all caps, stating interior or exterior, the location and the time. "INT. COFFEE SHOP – DAY."
2. Action lines: what we see, written in present tense. Keep them short and visual: "Waves crash onto the empty shore." Don't write thoughts the camera can't show.
3. Character introductions: the name in caps the first time, with a short description: "JACKSON (30s), tall, scruffy, pacing."
4. Dialogue: centered under the character's name. Use parentheticals like (angry) sparingly. Let the actor do the work.
5. Page timing: one page is roughly one minute on screen, so a feature lands at 90–120 pages.
6. Transitions: CUT TO or FADE OUT are optional in modern scripts. Use them only when the transition itself matters.

Screenwriting software like Final Draft, WriterDuet, Fade In or Arc Studio handles this formatting for you automatically.

Script Format for Explainer Videos

Explainer scripts don't follow screenplay format. The industry standard is a two-column script:

• Left column: visuals. What's on screen ("Jackson's desk, buried in sticky notes").
• Right column: voiceover and on-screen text. What's said and shown as words.

This lets the client, the illustrator and the animator all see how words and pictures line up, scene by scene.

The most useful number in explainer writing: natural voiceover runs about 150 words per minute. That means:

• 30-second video: about 75 words
• 60-second video: about 150 words
• 90-second video: about 225 words

If your script is 300 words, your video is two minutes long, whether you planned it or not.

4 Questions to Ask Before You Write

1. What's the one thing I want people to remember? For a film, that's your theme. For an explainer, it's a single message. If you can't say it in one sentence, the script isn't ready yet.

2. What actually belongs in this story? In film, every subplot should serve the central theme. In an explainer, every line should serve the core message. Your product may have 20 features, but your video has room for about three.

3. What do I need to research? Screenwriters research eras, places and professions to make the world believable. Explainer writers research the customer: reviews, support tickets, sales calls. The best explainer lines often come word for word from how real customers describe their problem.

4. Who is the character, and why should the viewer care? In film, characters change over the story. In explainers, the character is a mirror. The viewer should think "that's me" within the first five seconds.

The Script Writing Process, Step by Step

1. Outline. Map the structure before writing a single line. For a film, that means plot points and arcs. For an explainer: hook, problem, solution, how it works, proof, call to action.
2. First draft. Get it all down. Don't edit while you write. For explainers, note visual ideas next to each line as you go.
3. Read it out loud. This is the most underrated step. Time yourself. Awkward phrases and overly long sentences become obvious immediately.
4. Revise. Cut ruthlessly. For films, revisions are about pacing and emotional stakes. For explainers, they're about clarity, timing and the client's feedback.
5. Lock it. In animation, the script (and then the voiceover) gets locked before animation starts, because everything is timed to it. Changing words after animation begins is expensive.

Common Script Writing Mistakes

Overwriting. This is the number one mistake in both worlds. In film, it's dialogue that explains what the visuals already show. In explainers, it's cramming 10 features into 60 seconds. Viewers can absorb a lot less than you think.

Starting slow. "Hi, we're Acme Inc., founded in 2015..." Nobody cares yet. Open with the viewer's problem or a sharp question instead.

Leaning on clichés. Every genre has tropes, and every industry has explainer clichés (the stressed person at a desk, the lightbulb moment). Know them, then find a fresher way in.

The wrong tone. A playful, joke-filled script might be perfect for a consumer app and completely wrong for a healthcare or finance company. Match the tone to the subject and the audience.

No clear call to action. If the viewer doesn't know what to do when the video ends, the script hasn't finished its job. One action only: book a demo, start a trial, or visit the site.

Best Practices for Writing Great Scripts

• Write a logline first: one or two sentences that sum up the whole story.
• Know your audience better than you know your product.
• Make every scene earn its place. If it doesn't move the story forward, cut it.
• Write for the ear, not the eye. Short sentences and everyday words. Read it aloud.
• Get feedback early, from someone who doesn't know your product.
• Study great examples in your genre or industry, so you know what good looks like.

How We Write Explainer Video Scripts at Moov Studio

After writing explainer scripts since 2018, we use a simple story framework that works for almost any product:

1. The hero: the viewer's stand-in, someone they recognize instantly.
2. The problem: the frustration they feel today, in their own words.
3. The guide: your brand, which understands the problem and has solved it before.
4. The plan: how it works, in three simple steps or fewer.
5. The call to action: exactly what to do next.
6. The outcome: what life looks like after, which is the reason to act now.

Your customer is the hero and your brand is the guide. Most brands get this backwards and make themselves the hero, and their videos feel like ads. Flip it, and the video feels like it's for the viewer.

Scriptwriting is included in our explainer packages, so you don't need to arrive with a script, just your goal and your audience. See what's included on our pricing page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long should an explainer video script be? About 150 words per minute of video. A 60-second explainer needs roughly 150 words, and a 90-second one about 225.

What is the best structure for an explainer video script? Hook, problem, solution, how it works, proof, then a clear call to action. Keep the focus on one core message.

What's the difference between a screenplay and an explainer script? A screenplay follows strict industry formatting (sluglines, action lines, dialogue) and runs 90–120 pages for a feature. An explainer script is usually a two-column document (visuals on one side, voiceover on the other) and fits on one or two pages.

What software is best for script writing? For screenplays, Final Draft, WriterDuet, Fade In and Arc Studio are popular. For explainer scripts, a simple two-column table in Google Docs works perfectly.

Do I need to write the script before hiring an animation studio? No. Most studios, including Moov, write the script as part of the project. It's usually better that way, because the script is written with the animation in mind.

Want Us to Write It for You?

Writing a great 60-second script is harder than writing a 10-page one. At Moov, scriptwriting is part of every explainer project: you bring the goal, and we turn it into a story people remember.

See our pricing to find the right package, or browse our work to hear how our scripts sound once they're animated.

Have a project in mind? Tell us about it and we'll get back to you with a quote.