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Celtx question?

margo macabee

margo macabee

Morning ya`ll!

I'm trying to figure out how(or if I can at all) to put paranthesis AFTER dialoge...

For example in Ocean's eleven screenplay, when Clooney talks to Pitt, laying on the bar:

Clooney
Think ten's enough?
(Pitt shrugs)
You think we need one more?
(Pitt shrugs)
Should we get one more?
(Pitt shrugs)
We'll get one more.

-even though Pitt never shrugs- genius!-
-pardon improper format-


My issue is operator error, I'm sure.
With Celtx it seems I can only put (Pitt shrugs) directly beneath Clooney. If I try to put it after dialoge, it turns my 'Think ten's enough' to paranthesis. I'm sure I'm missing something totally obvious.

Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks
:D
Margo
 
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It can't be done with the built in "parenthetical" input type setting.. but if you hold shift and hit return, it will drop down a single line and stay as a 'dialog' input type. You can manually type the parens, shift-return again and continue your dialog.
 
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Parenthetical...

margo macabee said:
Morning ya`ll!

I'm trying to figure out how(or if I can at all) to put paranthesis AFTER dialoge...

For example in Ocean's eleven screenplay, when Clooney talks to Pitt, laying on the bar:

Clooney
Think ten's enough?
(Pitt shrugs)
You think we need one more?
(Pitt shrugs)
Should we get one more?
(Pitt shrugs)
We'll get one more.

-even though Pitt never shrugs- genius!-
-pardon improper format-


My issue is operator error, I'm sure.
With Celtx it seems I can only put (Pitt shrugs) directly beneath Clooney. If I try to put it after dialoge, it turns my 'Think ten's enough' to paranthesis. I'm sure I'm missing something totally obvious.

Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks
:D
Margo
Click to expand...

I'm sure Celtx performs this function... It's called a PARENTHETICAL. So after you write your dialogue, just use the menu to pull down a parenthetical and then type it in...

Having said that...

Your above example is incorrect.

The only parentheticals that you should have within a character's dialogue are those actions of the character currently speaking.

In your particular example above, each one of those:

(Pitt shrugs)

Should be on its very own action line and NOT under the character cue of the character speaking.

filmy

EDIT:

Hmmm. None of those replies showed up when I replied. Sorry.
 
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I agree, it is incorrect format, and that is why the way the OP was trying to use the parenthetical function behaved as it did.. the method I suggested will allow for writing this incorrect format, but as it's incorrect formatting it should be done as filmy has explained, with each interspersed action on its own action line.
 
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FilmJumper said:
I'm sure Celtx performs this function... It's called a PARENTHETICAL. So after you write your dialogue, just use the menu to pull down a parenthetical and then type it in...

Having said that...

Your above example is incorrect.

The only parentheticals that you should have within a character's dialogue are those actions of the character currently speaking.

In your particular example above, each one of those:

(Pitt shrugs)

Should be on its very own action line and NOT under the character cue of the character speaking.

filmy

EDIT:

Hmmm. None of those replies showed up when I replied. Sorry.
Click to expand...


Hey filmy!
Thanks so much for your info/reply too. I should have replied days ago but Halloween is a big deal here!
I read 'Ocean's Eleven' the night before, that was just a fresh example I had in my head. (I thought that was a great scene, stuck with me.) But, darn it, I MAY have done that incorrect formatting a couple times using that as an example. Fix-y, fix-y! Thanks.
And sorry about being lazy with the 'parenthetical'/parenthesis thing. ..:blush:
:D
Margo
 
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No worries...

margo macabee said:
Hey filmy!
Thanks so much for your info/reply too. I should have replied days ago but Halloween is a big deal here!
I read 'Ocean's Eleven' the night before, that was just a fresh example I had in my head. (I thought that was a great scene, stuck with me.) But, darn it, I MAY have done that incorrect formatting a couple times using that as an example. Fix-y, fix-y! Thanks.
And sorry about being lazy with the 'parenthetical'/parenthesis thing. ..:blush:
:D
Margo
Click to expand...

No worries...

It's one of those things I see a lot of so I thought I would mention it... Not a big deal but I figure if someone is going to attempt to learn how to write a screenplay, learning how to do it correctly is a great start.

Good luck with it!

filmy
 
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FilmJumper said:
No worries...

It's one of those things I see a lot of so I thought I would mention it... Not a big deal but I figure if someone is going to attempt to learn how to write a screenplay, learning how to do it correctly is a great start.

Good luck with it!

filmy
Click to expand...


Morning,
Formatting goes WAY beyond margins and fonts, don't it? :yes:
I think that's gonna lead to a point I want to make for new and hopeful (like me) screenwriters. One of my BIGGEST helps is reading screenplays, honestly, as much as any of my screenwriting books helped. And I suggest it highly. Read, read, read.
BUT there are often little formatting issues as Filmy pointed out that are in great screenplays. But I am not going to be able to get away with it. I'll get NO mistakes. It is going to have to be T..I..G..H..T. Ocean's Eleven and Juno can get away with a few things. I don't think I'm writing an 'Oscar' so it's going to have to be rock-solid.
Thanks for your help with that, filmy.

I am getting pretty close to critique-time. I'm taking a respected 'guru's' opinion and trying to lose five more pages. Not sure how that's going. :rolleyes: I'm doing a skim-thru this week, print-out and read-thru next week. Yeah! And Arrrgh!

Have a good one,

:D
Margo
 
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The other thing that's important to keep in mind is that more often than not the scripts that are available online are shooting scripts, which tend to break the rules more than others.. ;)
 
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Hey! I figured it out!

By accident of course! Just this morning, I was like 'crap! how'd that happen?!' :hmm:

You can make a parenthetical after dialogue on Celtx by hitting 'Shift' then 'Enter', It sends you down that one line(like Will said) then, 'Shift' then 'Enter', again. (The little blinking typing cursor shouldn't move.) Then hitting 'TAB' (should say 'parenthetical' at the bottom) will pop those lovely parentheticals right where they are supposed to be! I've been messing with it this morning. Works perfectly! BUT...

I couldn't make it work inserting it mid-dialogue. That stuffs anything afterwards into parentheticals.

So yeah! Hope that makes it easier on someone!

:D
Margo
 
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The reason you can't insert parentheticals mid-dialogue (without doing so manually) is because it's improper format.

However, to insert parentheticals in their proper position (directly after the character name preceeding dialogue) you're using extra steps that aren't needed.

Enter the character name, hit return, hit tab, type your parenthetical (the parens will already be there), hit return, type dialogue.
 
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Will Vincent said:
The reason you can't insert parentheticals mid-dialogue (without doing so manually) is because it's improper format.

However, to insert parentheticals in their proper position (directly after the character name preceeding dialogue) you're using extra steps that aren't needed.

Enter the character name, hit return, hit tab, type your parenthetical (the parens will already be there), hit return, type dialogue.
Click to expand...

No worries about your last sentence, :). I had that right. No extra steps used.

But for the rest of your post:

Hm. Really? Guess I didn't comprehend that from the other posts. My bad. Even if it's for the character speaking?Well, that's what I get for reading the shooting scripts, right? At least I didn't abuse it. Only twice in my finished screenplay.

For example I just this minute wrote this bit of dialogue:
(formatting is off. But you know Celtx's format)



RENEE
He is so hot.
(worry)
You better bring home some fish, young lady!



You're saying this is considered improper format? I do want to do it right. If it's used SO seldom and only in an above situation am I still going to lose points/look amateur? I'm ready to fix-y...:grumpy: :D

Thank you, Will (Member of the Month!)
:D
Margo
 
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Proper screenplay format dictates that a parenthetical should only follow the character name in a segment of dialog... A better way to write that might be this:

RENEE​
He is so hot.​


Renee, becoming worried, wraps some fish and hands the package to Victoria


RENEE​
You'd better bring these home with you, young lady!​
 
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Hehe.. I can also drive 100mph through a residential area, doesn't mean I should. ;)

You're right of course.. parentheticals CAN come anywhere within the dialogue, so long as they don't end a dialogue segment, but it's not necessarily the best thing to use. I think they are one of those elements that are often overused by writers, and more often than not they're unnecessary.
 
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My two cents...

Glad you figured it out because I actually tried it before making my first reply and it worked fine... LOL.

Will is absolutely correct... Parentheticals are one of the most overused formatting elements there are because often, it is viewed as the screenwriter directing the actor.

So...

If this is a script you're shooting on your own and you need those parentheticals to remind you of a certain behavior for a certain character at a certain time -- go ahead and include as many as you think you need.

However, a character's ACTION should be placed on an action line instead of a parenthetical... Parentheticals are normally used more for giving the reader an insight as to the character's emotional state as per the line of dialogue but again, if it were me, I would only use it in a case where the dialogue is vague and even then, you are always going to have actors who will do it their way no matter what the parenthetical says.

filmy
 
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FilmJumper said:
My two cents...

Glad you figured it out because I actually tried it before making my first reply and it worked fine... LOL.

Will is absolutely correct... Parentheticals are one of the most overused formatting elements there are because often, it is viewed as the screenwriter directing the actor.

So...

If this is a script you're shooting on your own and you need those parentheticals to remind you of a certain behavior for a certain character at a certain time -- go ahead and include as many as you think you need.

However, a character's ACTION should be placed on an action line instead of a parenthetical... Parentheticals are normally used more for giving the reader an insight as to the character's emotional state as per the line of dialogue but again, if it were me, I would only use it in a case where the dialogue is vague and even then, you are always going to have actors who will do it their way no matter what the parenthetical says.

filmy
Click to expand...

Hey, filmy! :D

I think I did it right by accident the very first time when Will helped me figure it, But when I tried later and went to TYPESET the parentheticals were all over the place. I had to fix SO MUCH! There's my LOL! :lol:

I had to remove LOTS of those from my first drafts of 'Masks of Nudity'. Man, I was control freaking all over the place. Mustn't tell the actors when to blink, Margo. Novelists...what can ya do? Oh yeah! I Deleted 90% of my parentheticals! Bare minimum now.

I've kept the improperness to an ultimate minimum on this new script for sure. There are just a few places where, like 'Renee's' lines, a whole action line messed with the speed of the scene. I rewrote it like Will suggested, but I didn't like it. Funny goes hand in hand with timing. Reading that particular line written properly killed the funny. Now I did go over where I used it in my script and made sure it was necessary for timing. I changed some stuff, left some alone, just to be trouble. :cool:

Nothing like a dash of social unacceptability to get you noticed. But, Yes, too much will get you thrown out. I do not want to get thrown out.

Thanks all for your input and helping me write a tight script,
:D
Margo
 
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Will Vincent said:
Proper screenplay format dictates that a parenthetical should only follow the character name in a segment of dialog... A better way to write that might be this:

RENEE​
He is so hot.​


Renee, becoming worried, wraps some fish and hands the package to Victoria


RENEE​
You'd better bring these home with you, young lady!​
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the one that makes sense to me.

I think it's the one most easy on the reader's eyes, too, but I could be wrong there.
 
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barnaclelapse said:
Yeah, that's the one that makes sense to me.

I think it's the one most easy on the reader's eyes, too, but I could be wrong there.
Click to expand...

No, no. You guys are right. But Will's example is, for lack of a better word, incorrect to the scene. Renee has no physical action, just a sudden flash of worry, that her daughter isn't really going fishing with the hot guy. The scene is so fast paced: Julie darting out the door, Mom/Renee on her heels with mommy-questions., I didn't want to slow it down at all, (didn't read as well.)

When I get that scene all snug I'll post it and maybe see what ya`ll think?? It really is just a (beat) that I put emotion to.

Something else might be funnier... Hmmm, :hmm: I'm having good ideas, you'll have to excuse me. :P

:D
Margo
 
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