How many pages is a movie script?

A movie script is usually between 90 and 120 pages, because in standard screenplay format one page plays as roughly one minute of screen time; most spec features land between about 95 and 115 pages, with comedies and horror often shorter and dramas and epics longer.

Page count matters before anyone reads a word. A reader opening a 150-page spec expects a long slog, and one opening a 75-page feature wonders whether the story is complete. This guide gives the usual lengths for each format, explains the page-a-minute rule and covers what pushes a count up or down.

Typical script lengths by format

These are conventions, not rules, and they vary by genre, network and production:

• Feature film: usually 90–120 pages. Comedy and horror often run 90–105; dramas, thrillers and period pieces 100–120.
• Half-hour TV, single camera: usually about 25–35 pages.
• Half-hour TV, multi-camera sitcom: often 45–55 pages, because dialogue is traditionally double-spaced and action written in capitals.
• Hour-long TV drama: usually about 50–65 pages.
• Short film: anything from 1 to around 30 pages; many festival shorts run 5–15 pages.
• Vertical drama episodes for phones: often 1–3 pages each, for episodes of one to two minutes. The vertical drama guide covers the format.

Is one page really one minute?

One page is roughly one minute of screen time when the script follows standard format — Courier 12 point on US Letter with the usual margins and about 55 lines per page. It is an average across a whole script, not a promise for any single page.

A page of rapid dialogue may play in 40 seconds. A page with one line, such as The two armies meet, may last five minutes. Across a whole script those differences tend to even out, which is why producers and schedulers still estimate running time from page count. The rule only works if the format is standard; see the screenplay format guide, which also covers the font.

What changes a script's page count

Dialogue versus action

Dialogue sits in a narrow column, so it uses more lines per word than action. A talky script runs longer on the page for the same number of words; an action-heavy script with dense paragraphs can look short but play long.

White space

Short action paragraphs of three or four lines, frequent scene headings and brief exchanges all add white space and pages. That is usually good for the read, but a writer who breaks every sentence into its own paragraph inflates the count.

Pagination rules

Standard pagination keeps a scene heading with the text that follows it, splits speeches with (MORE) and (CONT'D), and avoids leaving one line alone at a page break. These rules push some text to the next page and add lines across a long script. The (MORE) and (CONT'D) guide explains them.

Formatting tricks

Cheating margins, shrinking the font or squeezing line spacing to hit a target page count is noticed. Readers know what a standard page looks like, and a script that hides 130 pages of story in 110 gives itself away. Cut scenes instead. A script that is short for its genre has the opposite problem, and padding it with description only makes the read slower; look instead for a story beat or a relationship that has not been given room.

How to cut a long script

If your draft is well over the usual length, cut story before you cut lines:

1. Remove scenes that repeat information the audience already has.
2. Enter scenes later and leave earlier; a scene that starts mid-argument rarely needs the hellos.
3. Merge minor characters who do the same job.
4. Trim action paragraphs to what the camera sees, and cut dialogue that explains what the scene already shows.

BEFORE:
Marcus walks slowly across the room, past the
bookshelf and the old armchair, until he reaches
the window, where he stops and looks outside.

AFTER:
Marcus crosses to the window.

One line saved here and there adds up: trimming a line from each of a hundred scenes saves almost two pages.

How long should a first draft be?

A first draft can run long; it is easier to cut a 130-page draft than to stretch an 85-page one. Aim for the usual range by the draft you send out. Many writers find the first draft overruns in the second act, where subplots multiply, and the cut there is often a whole subplot rather than lines spread across the script. A beat sheet with a target length helps you see early whether the second act is growing out of proportion.

Write it in Scenaloom

Scenaloom's editor page and PDF export share one layout engine, so the page count in the editor is the page count in the PDF. The story map takes a target script length and marks pages past it in red, and the beats board places template beats at their usual share of that length (110 pages by default). See display and pagination or start a script.

To check a draft, paste it into the free script timer: it formats the script, counts the pages and estimates screen time and read-aloud time.