Learning Intentions
- Identify the role of a script producer and writers’ room processes.
- Reauthor an overview of a television synopsis using credible sources and quotes.
- Identify reliable sources to reference in a written document.
Lesson 1: The Writers' Room
Watch
Review the opening titles for The PM’s Daughter Series 2 and meet the script producer, Jessica Paine.
What is the role of the Script Producer?
The script producer is the leader of the writers’ room. Each member of the writers’ room brings story ideas, representing their perspectives and lived experiences in the script development process. This collaborative way of working enables the team to find the ‘best ideas’ by working together. The aim is to produce a television series that is relevant and entertaining.
Review
Read the following roles and steps to learn about the process of creating a script:
Roles in the writers’ room
- Script producer: Leads writers’ room
- Writers: Pitch ideas, contribute perspectives
- Note taker: Documents all the ideas and possible story directions by taking notes of everything said in the room.
Steps involved in writing episodes for the screen
How to map the ‘big ideas’ of a series
- Writers collaborate to brainstorm the central themes, challenges, characters, the story arc, and characters.
- Writers generate questions that can be explored across episodes, for example in The PM’s Daughter season 2 one of the central questions is: ‘Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) good or bad?’
Mapping the ‘big ideas’ of a series
- Writers collaborate to brainstorm the central themes, challenges, characters, the story arc and characters.
- Writers generate questions that can be explored across episodes. For example, in The PM’s Daughter Series 2, one of the central questions is ‘Is Artificial Intelligence good or bad?’
Script development steps
- The Script producer divides episodes among the writers to focus on.
- Writers plot ideas to map what happens in each episode.
- Writers integrate plots and ideas from the writers’ room to create a scene breakdown.
- Writers work on a draft of the episode, both individually and collaboratively.
- Episodes are prepared for pre-production and production, then shared with the cast and crew.
- Writers make updates to the scripts. Revisions can be made all the way through, even during the filming process.
The PMs Daughter Series 2
Review the following video to hear how Jessica Paine describes the second series. Focus on how the characters engage with and react to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and technology.
Activity
Using the Jessica Paine interview video and transcript, the Series 2 overview on the Australian Children’s Television Foundation website and other credible sources, reword a 100–200-word overview of Series 2.
