Go in late and get out early.

Hard to do, I know. But following this can cut away a lot of chit-chat.

Always ask, what is the real core of the scene?

Remember, what Hitchcock (I think it was him) said: Movies are life with the boring parts cut out.

It's a hard thing to do...

But step away from your first draft for a few weeks so you can approach it with fresh eyes.

You would be amazed what a break can do...

Even though it will drive you absolutely bonkers while you're baby is away.

But when you return...with a clear head...that four page scene may just look better as a one page scene.

Much easier to edit when you are not living and breathing the same script every single day.

I didn't believe folks until I ripped it away from my own hands...

But it truly helped.

Good luck!

Better than under-writing. It's easier to cut than expand.

"1. Eliminate all parentheticals.
2. Eliminate most transitions.
3. Eliminate 'orphans'."

I'd be careful with these. They work for page count. But a good AD will still know when a script is bloated. They'll spot a 100 page script that is really supporting a 2 1/2 hour run time. High end ADs get paid very good money to be able to see this.

And those tricks won't help.

Take a look at your scenes.

You can probably start later in EVERY scene and get out sooner in about 1/2 of them.

You don't need to see people entering in doors, saying hello to each other, general greetings --

-- Play around with it.

You'll be surprised how little is needed in a scene to actually convey the "setup" of the scene.

Doing this also has the added benefit of keeping your script a speedy, quick, easy read -- which is a necessity for a screenplay.