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I've been hearing opinions on the proper length of a scene for years. Obviously, the shorter the better. And avoid the never-ending scene that goes on and on and on.
The best piece of advice on the topic came from a teacher friend of mine who said that we should all try to keep scenes no longer than 4 pages. There will of course be the periodic exceptions where a scene has to go to 5 pages. Or maybe 6. Or even 7 if it's all dialogue and snappy back and forth stuff.
But if your 118 page script consists of eleven scenes, each of which is 12 pages long, you're in trouble.
If you want to write long scenes, write plays. Or novels.
When you're writing a screenplay: short and sweet is the rule of thumb with the occasional scene that runs 5 or 6 pages.
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