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How do you get your ideas on to paper?

Semiazas

Semiazas

I'm wondering, how is it you actually get the concepts in your to words in a screenplay?
I mean, I write horror fiction (I used to write a lot before school got so stressful) and I could never do dialouge well so, you can imagine, doing screenplays is quite a daunting task.
I'm aware of something I read online that was 'one page of a screenplay is a minute on screen' and even for my shorts I have ideas for, which will vary in length probably from 10 to however many minutes, that's only like 10 pages of screenplay but.. I have no idea how to really do it =\
Tips?
 
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I'm one of those types who isn't creative in the sense that I can't do something completely original like write a book or screenplay or song. Hey, some of us can and some of us can't. But I'm definitely one of those who works with creative people - I played and produced music, I currently do audio post.

Natural sounding dialog comes from listening to real people having real conversations. But you really have to sit down and listen. I've spent hours in train stations, diners, etc. with and without my recorder & headphones and eavesdropped on people for hours - as well as listening to footsteps, cars, trains and other things. It's good training.
 
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Semiazas said:
Well I'm writing for me to direct, I doubt I'll put in technical or camera directions, I'll just keep it simple and work with what the actors are doing tech wise, as opposed to making my actors work around tech restrictions. But that's just me.
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I don't put in everything. It's more, when I'm writing the scene, I have a specific way of filming it in mind, or a specific way I want the scene blocked. Rather than risk forgetting it, or have to add it back in to the shooting script later from separate notes, I just go ahead and put it in there.
 
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Of my first three short films only one was dialogue driven.
And even then the five minute film only had dialogue for
the first two minutes. That's the one I made when I was
16. My other two shorts had five lines and one line. They
were all action.

What you do is write out the action. I guess you can say
you are writing like a stage play but most stage plays are
highly dialogue driven with very little stage direction so I
think the comparison isn't too accurate.
 
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oh, and compared to this...

Jack%20Black%20Video%20Games%2015.JPG


Jack Black in that photo above is looking prety trim and tough..
 
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