How to write a training video script: a template and a worked example
Updated 28 October 2026
Write the brief first
Three lines before any dialogue: who watches it (the roles), what they should do differently (one verb), and where it happens (one place). Everything in the script serves that one change. If a line does not, cut it.
The four beats
| Beat | What happens | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | a person we recognise, in a normal moment of the job | 5 to 15 seconds |
| The mistake | they start to do the usual wrong thing, for a reason we understand | 10 to 20 seconds |
| The turn | something shows them the better way: a question, a fact, a colleague | 10 to 30 seconds |
| The line | one sentence the viewer takes away, on screen and spoken | 5 seconds |
Show the mistake from the inside. If the viewer can see why the character got it wrong, they will see themselves in it, and the fix lands.
How many words
Narration and dialogue run at about 130 to 150 words a minute. A 60-second video is about 130 words of script, a 90-second one about 200. Leave room: a reaction shot with no words is often the strongest second in the film.
Keep each spoken line under two sentences. Two people trading short lines reads as a scene; one person talking for thirty seconds reads as a lecture.
A template
Who watches: [roles]. They should: [one verb, one behaviour].
Place: [one place]. People: [two or three names and roles].
Setup: [narrator or first line: who, where, what is normal].
The mistake: [what they start to do, and why it makes sense to them].
The turn: [what changes their mind: a question, a fact, a person].
The line: [one sentence, on screen and spoken].
Words: [130 to 200].
A worked example: The Third No-Show
A patient-care scenario for clinic staff. The behaviour: ask before you judge a missed appointment. Made in Nima Learn; the film below is the product's own export.
| Beat | In the script |
|---|---|
| Setup | Narrator: Meet Dr. Park. Her nine o'clock is Sam. He has missed two appointments, and her morning is already behind. She has a speech ready. |
| The mistake | Dr. Park: Sam. Two missed appointments. I can't help you if you don't show up. |
| The turn | Sam: I know. My mum had a fall. I'm the only one who can get her to the bathroom in the mornings, and the bus from hers doesn't get me here before ten. Dr. Park: I didn't know that. Let's move your visits to the afternoon. And on the weeks you can't come, I'll call you. Sam: That would help. Thank you. |
| The line | Narrator, and on screen: Before you judge the no-show, ask about the morning. |
About 100 words, 46 seconds, eleven shots in four places, with two short cutaways while Sam talks.
What to avoid
- Reading the policy. Quote the rule once, at most, at the end.
- A villain. The character who gets it wrong should be likeable and busy, not careless.
- Three lessons in one video. Make three videos.
- A happy ending with no cost. Show what the right way takes (Dr. Park changes the schedule and offers to call).
Turning the script into the video
Paste the script, or only the brief, into Nima Learn. The director lays it out as scenes and shots, builds the cast once, and puts each line on the shot's timeline, where you drag it to its second and record it as a take. The whole process.
Common questions
How do you write a script for a training video?
Write the brief (who, what they should do differently, where), then one scene in four beats: setup, the mistake, the turn, the line to remember. About 130 to 150 words a minute.
How long is a training video script?
About 130 words for a 60-second video and 200 for a 90-second one. Most single-scene training videos need 100 to 300 words.
What is a good training video script template?
Title, who watches, the behaviour, the place, the people, then the setup, the mistake, the turn and the closing line, with a word count. The template above is ready to copy.
Can AI write the training video script?
Nima Learn's director drafts the plan and the lines from your brief; you edit them on the page before anything is drawn or voiced.
Want your next training video made this way? Get started with our team.
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