Dialogue

Subtext

People rarely say what they mean. They talk about the food when they mean the marriage. The meaning under the words is called subtext, and it gives the actor something to play.

To write it, know exactly what the character feels, then give them a reason not to say it. Pride, fear, good manners or a third person in the room will do.

On the nose

A line is on the nose when the character states their feeling or the plot directly. 'I am angry because you forgot my birthday' is on the nose. In life the same person would bang a cupboard door and say they are fine.

Sometimes a plain line is right. After a long silence, a simple 'I am sorry' can land harder than anything clever. Earn the direct line by holding it back.

Hiding exposition

Exposition is information the audience needs: who these people are and what happened before. The danger is two characters telling each other things they both already know.

Alexander Mackendrick argued that exposition is dull unless it arrives inside a present conflict. So turn facts into weapons. When a character throws the past at someone in an argument, the audience learns it without noticing.

Better still, show it. A packed suitcase by the door says more than a speech about leaving.

Every voice its own

Give each character their own rhythm and choice of words. One speaks in short orders. Another never finishes a sentence. A third moves into English when she wants to sound in charge.

Keep speeches short. Most lines in a film are a sentence or two, and a long speech should be an event.

Read it aloud

Read every line aloud, or ask friends to read while you listen. You will hear the lines nobody could say in one breath and the words no such person would use. Cut and change until it sounds like speech.