A
TV script, once it’s been
distributed to the
production crew, must be
locked.
When a script is locked, the page and scene numbers do not automatically change. If you add text to page 1, for example, the extra words will spill onto page 1A, and not 2... same with scene numbers; if you add a scene between scenes 3 and 4, it will be scene 3A. This enables the writer to add, remove, or alter text without changing every single page and having to distribute a whole new script. That would be so wasteful.
It is vital to mark any revisions that have occurred. Most screenwriting programs do this automatically by placing an asterisk on the far right side of the page. I have had to do it manually, which is a pain, but it is important, ensuring that tiny but vital details aren’t missed.
Distribution of revisions can be problematic since many can occur in a single day. They need to be differentiated somehow. The solution: colored pages. Each time a set of revised pages is distributed, it is done on a different color. To keep things even more orderly, the colors are executed in a set series which, for most shows, occurs as follows:
White (this would be the whole, unchanged original script)
Blue
Pink
Yellow
Green
Goldenrod
Buff
Salmon
Tan
Cherry
I have seen some productions who switch Tan and Cherry because it’s so easy to confuse Tan with Buff.
On the title page of the script, you will find in the upper right corner a list of the previous and current revisions by date and page color.