How important is it that each page equals one minute of film time?
Screenwriting : Equals minute of film time by Brian Stoneking
Equals minute of film time
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Pretty darn. A lot rides on film length, so your script should be an accurate reflection. There’s always exceptions (Blade Runner:2049 was 108 pages, but the rough cut was almost 4 hours long due to all the tracking shots). But it’s helpful for others to know realistically what’s involved in making the movie.
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Well, that is just the general minute-a-page rule of thumb. In truth, it really depends on whose thumb is doing the measuring and the specific context of any given page and the production and direction of the film. ;)
It's not so much that you try to make each page one minute, there is a general rule of thumb that each page is roughly one minute of screen time. It's not exact because some scenes might have a lot of description for a quick few seconds of screen time or a single blurb like "chase scene" that stretches for a few minutes.
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it is only an average. Just a guide.
Don't forget Jobs script.
Read "All is Lost". It's 20-something pages script turned into almost two hours of film. So It doesn't really matter...unless, you're writing spec. In that case it does and by my opinion not really to measure up page-minute, but to show directors and producers that you can develop a story in full. Shows you have knowledge and discipline to be feature writer. Other that that, basically every short film script can be turned into 70-90 mins feature...
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Important? No. It's just a rough rule of thumb afterall.
It's just a Hollywood theory that some producers go by. One or two short paragraphs of action could take up several minutes of screen-time so screenplays with a lot of action will have less pages than one heavy with dialogue. Mine seldom go over 100 to 105 no matter what I write.