format Format Question

[T.Coster]

Hey,

I have recently finished a script but need to polish the way the script is formatted...

I have a scene that is just audio, this audio is to go over the next scene which is visuals of two guys running away. So far I have written it as two septate scenes. I'm not sure how to get this overlap of two scenes (one audio one visual) in one across in my script. Any one know how this could be done? I'm thinking using (V.O) and explaining the use of voice over in the action? Would this be correct?

Thanks in advance

 

[IndieBudget]

Think "frames" you know what frames you need, what action; convey that. My talent sometimes is not so concerned with the overall story, just what you want them to do

 

[Jamster]

V.O. is the correct term, yes.

 

[T.Coster]

Cheers thanks for fast reply!

 

[NickClapper]

I would use VO on the scene where it starts. Then when you start a new scene use 'VO CONTINUED' to show that the voiceover hasn't 'stopped', as such, since the previous scene...

 

[FantasySciFi]

Example handled two ways

Hey,

I have recently finished a script but need to polish the way the script is formatted...

I have a scene that is just audio, this audio is to go over the next scene which is visuals of two guys running away. So far I have written it as two septate scenes. I'm not sure how to get this overlap of two scenes (one audio one visual) in one across in my script. Any one know how this could be done? I'm thinking using (V.O) and explaining the use of voice over in the action? Would this be correct?

Thanks in advance

Here is a quick example of a situation I think you are describing

EXT. TIME SQUARE, NEW YEAR'S - MIDNIGHT

Announcer stands with the ball perched to drop framed in the background.

ANNOUNCER​

Here we are waiting for the ball to fall. What a beautiful night here in the Big Apple. ...​

EXT. STORE FRONT - MIDNIGHT
The window crashes and an alarm goes off.

ANNOUNCER (V.O.)​

... This promises to be a good year. Oh, it looks like it's coming down.​

Sounds of people chanting and shouting OFF SCREEN.

Two hooded men grab items from the display and push them into a parked van.

VOICES (O.S.)​

Ten ... nine ... eight ... seven ...​

They slam the van doors, race to get in. Tires squeal as they go racing down the desolate street.

INT. VAN - MIDNIGHT

The robbers peel off their hoods.

VOICES (O.S.)​

... six ... five ... four ...​

EXT. 14TH STREET - MIDNIGHT

The van banks around the corner and down an alleyway.

VOICES (O.S.)​

... three ... two ... one. Happy New Year!​

The sound of party horns blares and merges with car horns.

This is not a perfect example but it provides one way of crossing over narration or off screen sounds with images. Another way to do this would be:

EXT. TIME SQUARE, NEW YEAR'S - MIDNIGHT

Announcer stands with the ball perched to drop framed in the background.

ANNOUNCER​

Here we are waiting for the ball to fall. What a beautiful night here in the Big Apple. ...​

FADE​

SERIES OF SHOTS - ROBBERY SCENE

• Display window shatters and an alarm sounds.
• Two hooded men begin taking items from the display and toss them into a parked van.
• The men slam the van doors close and race inside.
• The van speeds off with tires squealing down the desolate street.
• The van sharply banks around the corner of 14th and heads into an alleyway.

END OF SERIES​

ANNOUNCER (V.O.)​

... This promises to be a good year. Oh, it looks like it's coming down.​

Sounds of people chanting and shouting OFF SCREEN.

VOICES (O.S.)​

Ten ... nine ... eight ... seven ... six ... five ... four ... three ... two ... one .... Happy New Year!​

The sound of party horns blare and merge with car horns.

I tend to like the latter since it has a cleaner look to it. Secondly, it gives the director and editor more freedom to edit the shorts to fit their conceptions. This is really the only time I use a series or montage is when the narration is going over the top of a series of images.

 

[FantasySciFi]

Follow-Up

Here is another short clip illustrating your point from a Dexter TV Episode script. You have a series of images with a voice over (V.O.). You see three different scenes which are connected by the narration. This could have been done with a series, but by individually following each scene, the writer has more control over the pacing. Generally, I would use this approach for flashback or narration because it gives more precise description, especially for a production script like the one below.

DEXTER’S POV: Rita’s eyes, searching.

DEXTER (V.O.)​

If the eyes are the windows to the soul, then grief is the door.​

44 INT. GYM - NIGHT 4 44
A long PUSH IN on Debra’s back as she furiously works the heavy bag.

DEXTER (V.O.)​

As long as it’s closed, it’s...​

CAMERA comes around. Tears stream down her face.

DEXTER (V.O.)​

... the barrier between knowing and not knowing.​

45 INT. POLICE STATION - DEXTER’S INNER LAB/BULLPEN - NIGHT 4 45
Dexter deletes and shreds everything pertaining to Little Chino and his new Gulf Stream body dumping scheme.

DEXTER (V.O.)​

Walk away from it and it stays closed forever...​

A light coming on draws his attention. He spreads the blinds and looks across to see Special Agent Frank Lundy burning the midnight oil in the Briefing Room.

DEXTER (V.O.)​

... but open it, walk through it... and pain becomes truth.​

Lundy sits there, staring at the photos of the Bay Harbor Butcher’s ‘sunken treasure’.

There is also some disagreement as to V.O., O.S. and O.C. Voice Over (V.O.) is used for narration when the voice is describing a scene but the narrator is not actively involved in it. Off Screen (O.S.) or Off Camera (O.C.) are often used interchangeably and mean the speaker cannot be seen but is a part of scene.

So someone outside a door or heard over a phone but not seen is 'off screen' or 'off camera' but still very much a part of the scene's action. A disembodied voice (say someone is a ghost or invisible) would be considered (O.C./O.S.), not a voice over. My only suggestion is that you be consistent with OC or OS. Most screenwriters are now told to use Off Camera (O.C.), Off-Screen (O.S.) being older.

 

[T.Coster]

Thanks for the examples, its a tricky one but thanks for clarifying the differences. Think ill need to change it to (O.S.) or (O.C.). But its not too complicated, I think any one who reads what I have done would understand what I'm trying to achieve... which for me is the main thing.

Thanks

 

[Tinalera]

I learned some stuff here too-good thread!


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