One Page Per Minute

The rule of thumb that a properly formatted screenplay page runs about a minute on screen.

In standard format — Courier 12, standard margins — a screenplay page averages roughly one minute of screen time. That single conversion is why format is sacred: schedules, budgets, and running-time estimates all lean on it.

It's also why page count is a note in itself: a 140-page spec announces a two-hour-twenty film before anyone reads a line.