Screenwriting 101: "Pass the salt."
What makes screenwriting so unique is the critical nature of each line of dialogue. If a line of dialogue fails to reveal some level of emotion or some element of character, it simply must be tossed.
For example, if you're watching or writing a dinner scene and one character says, "Pass the salt," that line better reveal something beyond what it says.
Consider the scene: among the dinner guests is a master chef dining at the house of a star pupil. However, to the master chef the entree lacks the proper amount of salt. How, then, will the master chef react? Already, you can see how "Pass the salt" takes on added meaning. Also imagine the many ways the line can be delivered--even perhaps with a condescending clearing of the throat and gesture towards the salt shaker.
But why stop there? Suppose also at the table is the master chef's significant other, and in the scene prior the two argued about something completely unrelated to salt and dinner. And suppose the salt shaker is closest to that person. See how this may affect the way the master chef will request the salt? Also, this introduces another layer of conflict. Will that person refuse to pass the salt altogether? Imagine the possibilities here.
That's a good example of the craft of screenwriting. I'm not likening it to brain surgery, but, on a different level, it's a kind of literary surgery, and requires a skilled hand. It's why screenwriters need so much time to cook.
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