My protagonist is onstage delivering a speech and imagines being shot to death by a man in the audience. Then she snaps back to reality and smiles at him.

How would you write this?

I wrote it like this. (ignore the corny sound effects, they're just placeholders)

Quoted Text Viola snaps away from the podium. A man in the crowd leers. He pulls out a pistol. THWA! THWA! THWA! Two bullets to her chest. Viola drops to the ground. Three bodyguards jump on top of her. One moves to the forefront. He whips out a glock. The man aims at the officer. THWA! THWA! THWA! BHUMP! BHUMP! BHUMP! The man falls dead.

I don't know if/how I should slug this, and how to snap back to reality, where she's standing there, smiling at the man.

Requiem for a Dream has a similar scene in. Could be worth trying to find that script to see how they do it.

If my memory serves, they write it as you do but then have a slug saying 'BACK TO REALITY' or something like that.

Precious example the fantasy and the reality are in two different settings. How would you slug it when they are both in the same setting?

And Ste, I was thinking about using BACK TO REALITY!

BEGIN DREAM SEQUENCE

END DREAM SEQUENCE

?

I would perhaps divide it into three scenes. At the end of the first stage scene where she is about to enter the dream have her daze-out or have her face go blank. Go to the next scene. Start with something like

INT. STAGE - NIGHT

The dog flies through the air. It barely misses a secret service man. Viola's face is blank.



INT. STAGE - CONTINUOUS

- BEGIN DREAM SEQUENCE - Viola's face is blank. She blinks and snaps away from the podium.

A smiling man in the crowd rushes toward the stage..

He pulls out a pistol. Points it at Viola.

Viola goes wide eyed. Time slows down.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

Two bloody stains appear on her chest. Viola drops to the ground. Three bodyguards jump on top of her.

One moves to the forefront. He whips out a gun.

The man aims at the officer.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

BHUMP! BHUMP! BHUMP!

The smiling man falls dead.

- END DREAM SEQUENCE -



INT. STAGE - CONTINUOUS

Viola's face is blank. She blinks and snaps away from the podium. She looks baffled.

The crowd is hidden in dark shadows. There is no movement.

Viola smiles and waves at them.

---

Don't know if this would be okay but I think something along these lines/format may be appropriate.