[2021] - Prima Facie Script

Writing a compelling 100-minute monologue requires exceptional technical skill. Miller keeps the audience engaged through specific writing choices:

The Prima Facie Script: A Masterclass in Tension, Truth, and Legal Drama

Rape (described, not staged), legal victim-blaming, PTSD symptoms, suicide mention (brief).

Remember the mantra: Facts, not conclusions. Specifics, not generalizations. Presumption, not proof. prima facie script

Prima Facie is a one-woman show. Writing a feature-length solo script requires immense skill to prevent audience fatigue. Tan achieves this by:

Law is a performance art. You cannot stumble over the elements. Practice your prima facie script until it is autonomic.

For example, in a negligence case, the prima facie script is rigid: Specifics, not generalizations

The play begins with Tessa, a tenacious and brilliant working-class lawyer who has risen to the top of her field. She treats the law like a religion, believing that truth is discovered through the adversarial system, and she thrives on the "blood sport" of defending men accused of sexual assault.

When drafting your script, always cite to the exhibit number. "See Exhibit A (Dashcam footage at timestamp 00:03:22)." The judge must be able to verify your claims in the record.

However, the very speed that makes the prima facie script useful also makes it dangerous. The script is built on assumptions, cultural biases, and incomplete data. In a famous study, psychologists showed participants a video of a car accident and asked how fast the cars were going when they "smashed" versus "contacted" each other. The single word in the question altered the remembered speed—and even whether participants recalled seeing broken glass. The prima facie script had been rewritten after the fact, but participants believed it was the original truth. Writing a feature-length solo script requires immense skill

Standard industry margins are 1.5 inches on the left (for binding) and 1 inch on the right, top, and bottom.

Tessa’s pre-assault persona is a little too familiar: whiskey-drinking, chain-smoking (stage direction), sexually confident, verbally vicious. It’s enjoyable but borders on cliché. The play earns its complexity later, but the first act feels like a composite of every “tough female lawyer” from The Good Fight to Damages .

If the rules allow, use a chart that lists the elements of the crime or claim. Checking them off as you speak can be very effective.

By treating your script as a prima facie document, you respect the industry's standards and give your creative voice the best possible chance to shine. To help you refine your screenplay further, let me know: What are you currently writing? What is the logline or core concept of your story?

For each legal element, write a specific fact that will prove it.