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About Roger S. H. Schulman
Expertise
I can answer questions on the creative aspects of writing for features and television comedy: brainstorming, character development, plotting, story structure, dialog, rewriting, editing, etc. I can also address the business side of show business: pitching, writing and presenting treatments, "taking" meetings, common pitfalls, etc. I'm also well versed in the relationship between screenwriting and computers: software for scriptwriting, brainstorming, presentation, outlining, an d general organization. I'm also a producer, and so can answer questions regarding the ins and outs of television production, specifically the half-hour arena. Visit my scriptwriting blog at http://scriptwriting.blogspot.com.

Experience
I have been working in Hollywood as a screenwriter for both TV and features for many years. I'm an Executive Producer and "showrunner" who has run several prime-time and cable comedies. I've written several featurs and contributed to many more for several major studios.

Organizations
Writers Guild of America, West

Publications
Newsweek, BusinessWeek, GQ, Connoisseur, UPI, New York Daily News, please visit my blog at http://scriptwriting.blogspot.com

Education/Credentials
I have a Masters of Science in Journalism from Columbia University.

Awards and Honors
Academy Award Nomination, Best Adapted Screenplay British Academy Award, Best Adapted Screenplay NAACP "Image" Award, Best Television Comedy "Annie" Award, Best Animated Film

You are here: Experts > Arts/Humanities > Writing > Writing Plays/Screenwriting > Actor's direction in a screenplay

Writing Plays/Screenwriting - Actor's direction in a screenplay

Expert: Roger S. H. Schulman - 10/29/2009

Question
I have always been a bit confused about how much scene direction to put in a screen play. For example, if I wanted a character to start of a conversation serious, then turn sarcastic towards the end of the scene, do I make note of that as in 'Fred replies with a sarcastic tone,' or should I just let the dialogue flow without any direction til the end of the scene?

Answer
You're the not the only one who's confused, or at least uncertain. Like the writing of the dialog itself, writing scene direction is an art, not a science. There are no rules, although it is generally accepted that less is better. So what I offer, even more than usually, is just my opinion.

I think each time you come across an opportunity to describe a character's state of mind or inflection of tone, you should ask yourself if in fact it's an opportunity to write better. If at all possible, the inflection and intention should be clear from the situation,the context, the scene, and the dialog. If so, it's an indication that you're being clear in your writing, always a good thing. An addtional plus is that you will be minimizing the "black type" of action description -- something I have a hunch few agents and executives read anyway. (It's like the black keys on the piano -- mysterious, somewhat feared!)

For me, the case in which it's advisable to explain a character's inflection a bit more is when there are two more possible interpretations that are equally sound, or even more -- an interpretation that is MORE likely, but which you do NOT want the reader to have.

For example, a character is charming and warm to another character throughout a scene. Suddenly, with no warning, her tone changes:

PAUL
Then would you mind if I took a look at her journal?

Sally suddenly turns cold.

SALLY
Certainly. Right this way.

If you didn't SAY that Sally is suddenly acting contrary to everything we know about her, the reader would never know, and it's important. Notice that I used action description to describe Sally's demeanor. I often prefer using a parenthetical:

PAUL
Then would you mind if I took a look at her journal?

SALLY
(cold)
Certainly. Right this way.

I think this interrupts the flow less, and indicates that it's an instruction for the actor.

Hope this helps. Feel free to follow up.

Roger

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