http://movieline.com/2010/03/23/david-mamets-memo-to-the-writers-of-the-unit/

I found this succinct and entirely helpful. I think I will quickly re-read it every time I start a re-write. Easy to forget the basics, sometimes.

Don't know much about this but his lecturing makes it seem like he hired preschoolers.

I found it interesting, however, that the writers use typewriters. Probably David just being in the moment on his typewriter.

Thanks for posting that! Chris, weren't you around when we did a OWC and the assignment was to not use any dialogue at all? That was the first script I ever wrote. I loved it and I thought it helped me immensely. Great reminder that we are writing with pictures and not just telling.

One thing I've noticed though, since I've had a few scripts filmed, is that if I'm contacted by an actor to use one of my scripts, they want more dialogue. Maybe they like to hear themselves speak?

Anyway, thanks! I saved the page.  

What David Mament writes there is exactly how I believe The Game of Thrones is written...

I never have any idea what the fuck is going on... but I don't care. I have to keep watching.

"IF YOU PRETEND THE CHARACTERS CANT SPEAK, AND WRITE A SILENT MOVIE, YOU WILL BE WRITING GREAT DRAMA. IF YOU DEPRIVE YOURSELF OF THE CRUTCH OF NARRATION, EXPOSITION,INDEED, OF SPEECH. YOU WILL BE FORGED TO WORK IN A NEW MEDIUM - TELLING THE STORY IN PICTURES (ALSO KNOWN AS SCREENWRITING)
THIS IS A NEW SKILL. NO ONE DOES IT NATURALLY. YOU CAN TRAIN YOURSELVES TO DO IT, BUT YOU NEED TO START."

Maybe I should ask in another thread, but would anyone be interested in a challenge where we write a short with no dialogue?  

Yeah, I'm up for it.  Sounds like fun.


--Steve

Yes.

To be honest, I try my best to keep my scripts just action and hardly any dialogue, but once I get my characters talking, I just carry on with it.  I usually go back and butcher the scene, taking out what doesn't belong.  Sometimes I'll leave a scene talk-heavy if I like the banter, but normally I try to shoot for action over dialogue.


--Steve

Quoted from Guest To be honest, I try my best to keep my scripts just action and hardly any dialogue, but once I get my characters talking, I just carry on with it.

What he says in the rant though is true and I found it extremely helpful at the beginning of my screenwriting. If you have to write a no dialogue script, it forces you to think visually which is what directors usually like. And please don't refer to writers/directors who write dialogue heavy stuff. They are the exceptions...because they are brilliant at dialogue. Most of us are not.  

Anyway, maybe I'll start another thread for this and see if there is enough interest. In the last one, Feb -06, I think seven scripts were submitted. It was a hard challenge, but oh so helpful.

Suggestions?

It's an interesting way of looking at things, for sure.
I always used to make the action more important than dialogue, 70% action 30% dialogue was my achieved average.
Of course it depends on what your story is about and how you plan to tell it, so it's kind of up in the air. An all action movie is bound to be more action whereas a drama is likely to be more dialogue more oriented. It all depends.

As for exposition, I really don't have a problem with it if it is done well. As far as I can tell, all dialogue is exposition. It's just bad dialogue or good dialogue. Hide it well enough and it's good. Make it point blank it's bad. All dialogue is exposition. If it's not, it should be. Otherwise, why is it there?

Stating the obvious but hey, just saying the obvious.

* I think entries disabling the ability to talk will result in a massive overload of : He/She looks and various interpretations of the word, not necessarily increase creative productivity.

Quoted from Grandma Bear What he says in the rant though is true and I found it extremely helpful at the beginning of my screenwriting. If you have to write a no dialogue script, it forces you to think visually which is what directors usually like. And please don't refer to writers/directors who write dialogue heavy stuff. They are the exceptions...because they are brilliant at dialogue. Most of us are not.

I wasn't referring to any writers or directors.  I don't know where you got that.  I was referring to myself.  I've been trying to write more action, less dialogue for a while now.  I always tried, but more so the past year or two, I've been really trying.  One such compliment I received from James was (paraphrasing) my "use of props to avoid exposition," which made me feel like I accomplished something in my writing.  I do however sometimes let my characters talk too much and just run with it, then I'll go back and cut excess dialogue when I am through.  But, most of the time, even if the scene is heavy with talking (which, like I said, I try to avoid), I implement it with as much conflict as possible... or try to imply a sense of impending doom in the scene, as well...

--Steve

Quoted from Scoob * I think entries disabling the ability to talk will result in a massive overload of : He/She looks and various interpretations of the word, not necessarily increase creative productivity.

Yeah. Writers should just concentrate on telling the story and making it flow as best as they can. That's it. It's just like writing a novel or short story, or a poem, or a song.


This is a written medium, wow them with your (generally speaking) story-telling technique, engage them with your larger-than-life characters and crisp dialogue, amaze them with your action sequences. If you can't do it, if you haven't got it... then pHuck off because the spaces are few and there's a bottleneck.

No special technique is going to help you sell your story. In fact, there's a pretty good chance NOBODY is EVER going to be interested in your story... nor mine (like I said this is general and it saves me using 'one') either. What they will be more interested in - or not, depending - is getting you to write theirs.

Personally, I don't care where the ideas come from. I'll write anyone's idea. The way I see it, it comes down to just being able to do it better than anyone else the producer knows. I think that's it in a nutshell.

Quoted from Guest I wasn't referring to any writers or directors.  I don't know where you got that.

I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to writers in general. Quite a few of them like to defend their dialogue heavy scripts with comments like "Tarantino has 15 pages of dialogue in his script. If he can, so can I". The difference is that his dialogue is often genius. Most writer's dialogue is not.

Further more, I was suggesting a challenge to help us writers to think visually. Something directors prefer. I did not say that we all must write no dialogue scripts from now on.

Oh.  Sorry.  You directly quoted me, so I thought you were talking directly to me.

As for this challenge, I have no ideas at the moments, but maybe a separate thread would help?


--Steve

Quoted from Grandma Bear ...would anyone be interested in a challenge where we write a short with no dialogue?

Jordan nods with approval.

Jordan