Busting The 'On The Nose Dialogue' Myth - Shannan E. Johnson

Shannan E. Johnson, a native of Houston, TX, is a former creative executive at The Syfy Channel turned CEO of the first black-owned script consultancy in the entertainment industry, The Professional Pen. The Professional Pen is a writer-centered service provider helping emerging and established creatives develop their stories for the screen.
SUBSCRIBE TO SHANNAN E. JOHNSON’S KZbin CHANNEL
/ shannanejohnson
MORE VIDEOS WITH SHANNAN E. JOHNSON
bit.ly/32pCWAF
EVEN MORE VIDEOS WITH SHANNAN ON FILM COURAGE 2
bit.ly/2MxiQx2
CONNECT WITH SHANNAN E. JOHNSON
www.awriterforyourwriter.com
/ shannanejohnson
/ theprofessionalpen
/ shannanejohnson
/ theprofessionalpen
/ shannanejohnson
VIEWERS ALSO WATCHED
Beginners Guide To Screenwriting - • Beginners Guide To Scr...
10 Tips On Writing Better Dialogue - • 10 Tips On Writing Bet...
How Screenwriters Can Create Authentic Dialogue - • How Screenwriters Can ...
Common Dialogue Mistakes And How To Fix Them - • Common Dialogue Mistak...
How To Write Authentic Characters And Dialogue - • How To Write Authentic...
(Affiliates)
SAVE $15 ON KZbin TV - LIMITED TIME OFFER
tv.kzbin.infor0847...
►WE USE THIS CAMERA (B&H) - buff.ly/3rWqrra
►WE USE THIS EDITING PROGRAM (ADOBE) - goo.gl/56LnpM
►WE USE THIS SOUND RECORDER (AMAZON) - amzn.to/2tbFlM9
BOOKS WE RECOMMEND
buff.ly/3o0oE5o
SUPPORT FILM COURAGE BY BECOMING A MEMBER
/ @filmcourage
CONNECT WITH FILM COURAGE
www.FilmCourage.com
#!/FilmCourage
/ filmcourage
/ filmcourage
/ filmcourage
/ filmcourage
SUBSCRIBE TO THE FILM COURAGE KZbin CHANNEL
bit.ly/18DPN37
LISTEN TO THE FILM COURAGE PODCAST
/ filmcourage-com
Stuff we use:
LENS - Most people ask us what camera we use, no one ever asks about the lens which filmmakers always tell us is more important. This lens was a big investment for us and one we wish we could have made sooner. Started using this lens at the end of 2013 - amzn.to/2tbtmOq
AUDIO
Rode VideoMic Pro - The Rode mic helps us capture our backup audio. It also helps us sync up our audio in post amzn.to/3LPIZ8K
Audio Recorder - If we had to do it all over again, this is probably the first item we would have bought - amzn.to/2tbFlM9
LIGHTS - Although we like to use as much natural light as we can, we often enhance the lighting with this small portable light. We have two of them and they have saved us a number of times - amzn.to/2u5UnHv
EDITING - We upgraded our editing suite this year and we’re glad we did! This has improved our workflow and the quality of our work. Having new software also helps when we have a problem, it’s easy to search and find a solution - goo.gl/56LnpM
*These are affiliate links, by using them you can help support this channel.
#film #movies #entertainment

[@filmcourage]

Here is our full interview with Shannan - kzbin.info/www/bejne/e4bHZpuQgZtlg6M

[@AMPATL]

Shannan is hand's down the most expressive and engaging guest in this series.

[@terryfriend16]

Man, this guest is terrific.

[@filmcourage]

Agreed!

[@KingMawlock]

She is brilliant. Love every upload I've seen with Shannan.

[@rodion1911]

This lady is so intelligent, and very beautiful

[@ChancellorMarko]

Makes me cringe so much when I read back the parts of my dialogue that are like, "Hey, let's get the thing and go to the place and stop that event from happening!"

[@jonathancerda-rowell1697]

I love Shannan. Very knowledgeable.

[@FRWHELAN]

Newbie here, but maybe when you are just getting down the bare bones in your first draft, don't worry about being on the nose. Then go back and translate it into actions, subtext, etc.

[@filmcourage]

What is your favorite line of dialogue? Eg., "You had me at hello." "Yo, Adrian!" "My precious."

[@LisaEifie]

"It was as if a scene from a dream. Nothing more, nothing less than a beautiful view." - Kimi no Na wa.

[@wexwuthor1776]

What we have here is a failure to communicate.

[@BooksForever]

“I’ve been falling for thirty minutes!” - Loki “A wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to.” - Gandalf the Grey “There are two kinds of people in this world - those with loaded guns and those who dig. You dig.” - The Man With No Name (called Blondie by Tuco)

[@rodneylopez5073]

A census taker once tried to test me... I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

The problem is that one-liners aren't much better than clever quips in the moment... In that moment, they can seem like genius, but they often just turn meme-worthy and get referenced or repeated to death... and it's too often such a short trip from that "momentary genius" to "death" for them to have been as brilliant as they seemed originally... Currently, the PIECE of dialogue that lingers is from "Heartbreak Ridge"... Probably from sitting through it as background noise today, while I found a new workflow routine that doesn't help me with Blender... (ah... but I digress as usual)... SO the scene is in the bar, where Highway (Eastwood) is chatting with the proprietor (presumably owner?) who's an obvious old acquaintance and a genuinely "saucy ol' gal"... They've turned toward convo' about Highway's Ex'... "her"... Proprietor : So... You gonna go see her? Highway : Hell no... Can I run a tab on this [holds up his mug of beer] Proprietor : Hell no... [smirking] ...and as you probably CAN guess from context so far... THE VERY NEXT SCENE is a confrontation with "her"... the first thing Highway does after speaking to his old friend at his old hangout... OBVIOUSLY... SO I'm not going to reference this under the guise that it's even my favorite movie... It's a good movie to go to... especially if you want to start to pick up on some of the older school nuances in this subject... This is just a solid reference for that precious subtext... Obviously, "Hell no" meant the opposite when Eastwood said it... It was being thrown back at him by the Proprietor/buddy, BUT also carried the sense of "You're a damn liar, and we both know it"... We don't need a lot of poetic sense or sensibility when making subtext... We NEED (as writers) to know what we want communicated, not just to the audience but between the characters based on THEIR relationships, too... SO I often write dialogue "the first time through" very much on the nose... It's through refinement as I've figured out the relationships, the "in-jokes" and how the characters create and build on their interactions with each other to make up the subtext, both between the characters as they interact, AND from them to the audience who is watching... Casually, "Supernatural" is a GREAT TV show for catching subtext. For one thing, Sam and Dean are hunting monsters that the general public doesn't believe in. They deal with magic and hoo-doo and all manners of insanity... and they CAN NOT just bring it to the authorities, unless they want straight jackets and padded cells... SO they're FORCED largely to speak in codes, subtext, and innuendo... It's relatively simple, so you can largely follow everything, and there's just enough "on the nose" to keep you on your figurative toes... AND for all it's flaws, the show NEVER took itself too seriously, so you don't really have to either... ;o)

[@wexwuthor1776]

Nothing inherently wrong with on the nose dialogue. Especially when two or more people are arguing aggressively. Pretense tends to go out of the window.

[@rellyWrotethat]

it’s much more hard to stomach when its exposition

[@garynaccarato4606]

I also heard "on the nose" dialogue could work when the nose is made to be interesting or in other words if whats going on is something exciting and out of the ordinary as opposed to something mundane and common place then on the nose dialogue could actually still work.

[@TheMightyPika]

The only time I saw on the nose dialogue work was in Bojack Horseman, and it worked because even though the characters speak their minds, they are often missing certain insights to understand their own layers. But the audience does understand, which is what makes the dialogue so fascinating.

[@roblindsay101]

This woman is fantastic! So sharp, knowledgeable, and consice!

[@ChristinaFonthes]

We need a Shannan fan club ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

[@lonjohnson5161]

I find it easier to avoid on the nose dialogue when I understand the character and the scene.

[@TamirYardenne]

She's the best of all!!!

[@CooLin1stPlace]

Reading it out loud; I've done that, even before sending an important email. Saved myself from serious embarrassment😅

[@shawshank178]

Brilliant video!

[@HaleyMary]

I find that some lines don't always work when I read material out loud. That helps me immensely for rewriting my stand-up comedy material.

[@MiaCatAdventures]

This is the best explanation of “on the nose” dialogue I’ve seen - thanks so much for sharing

[@filmcourage]

Glad it was helpful!

[@prayalways]

Excellent content! I felt like I was in class! ❤ Excellent 1:29

[@OhtheSuffering]

2:35 The movie is “Concrete Cowboy”.

[@frankhernandez1995]

Concise and extremely informative

[@filmcourage]

Thanks for watching Frank!

[@gcfournier3386]

Great speaker

[@Maria-vg6bx]

Very useful stuff, thanks!!

[@southlondon86]

Great video as always. 🔥

[@filmcourage]

Shannan is excellent!

[@malaikitamin]

love Shannan

[@concernedcitizen7385]

The more intense the emotion, the more on the nose the dialogue.

[@CheapSpaceTravel]

Excellent!

[@subramanianramamoorthy3413]

Haha She is back. Congrats Her hands too talk in line with her voice

[@larslarsen5414]

Initially I thought Shannan was a little too much, although she has made many great insights in many previous videos. But now she just says " I am a little forward". Suddenly I like her very much. Now I get her (of cause I dont know her), but now I just see that she is different from me by being much more forward. Interesting dialogue!

[@bobdhshshxhzvs2314]

The comment you've made reeks of racism, sexism, and small energy bravo.

[@larslarsen5414]

@@bobdhshshxhzvs2314 you probably think so because these issues are prevalent where you live. Try to get past it. 😐

[@bobdhshshxhzvs2314]

@@larslarsen5414 nope, this is an isolated issue concerning just you and yourself.

[@Speed202]

She's great!

[@ndchieh]

Great notes.

[@kaujuanrichey7100]

The only guest I’ve seen that actually answered the question and not talk so flowery and filibuster me for 20 mins 😂 excellent

[@user-zd1jh5zz9n]

Wow! very impressive video thanks,

[@filmcourage]

New dialogue video coming this week!

[@TamirYardenne]

She's the best

[@kennycooper294]

in real life subtext dialogue is the allen iverson "we talkin bout practice" press conference. he was going through something at the time personal and only he knew it and close friends.

[@wombathijs4560]

any examples of her work out there? Can't find anything

[@Ruylopez778]

Walter: Am I wrong? Dude: You're not wrong. You're just an asshole! Walter: OK, then.

[@AKATenn]

when something's too on-the-nose, not just dialog either, is when someone says or does something, or it takes place in a setting so obvious that it makes the rest of the movie hard or pointless to watch because it points out what the entire message of the movie is... or it's being too blunt, and that's uninteresting, and can even turn people right off wanting to watch the rest of the show.

[@BionicDance]

Well, here'z the problem: _bleah._ As an audience member, _I don't want_ the long, rambling anecdote full of subtext. As an audience member, I feel that's a _complete_ waste of my time and a complete waste _of the movie's time_ when there is _plot_ that needs moving forward. 1 - I usually know _exactly_ where the anecdote is going already 2 - It usually takes about 3x longer to get there than it needs to 3 - The anecdote usually follows the same pattern as _every other_ movie anecdote, and ends up being trite instead of clever 4 - By the time it's (finally!) over, I'm irritated and grumpy because _I genuinely didn't give a damn in the first place,_ and only wanted _the story_ to move forward It's like a musical number: maybe someone might find it beautiful, but it's really just a speed bump I have to endure until the story starts back up again. That's why, during the long, rambling anecdote in my last piece, I had the characters _doing other things, too,_ in order to keep the audience interested if the anecdote didn't grab them. The plot continued to move forward _while they were chatting_ about something (at best) peripherally related (and which was all about character stuff rather than the plot). It's like how every scrap of violence is there to serve the plot rather than just being a fight scene and nothing more; that was on purpose, too, because I hate sitting through fight scenes where the characters get martial-artsy on each other for five minutes without really hurting each other or advancing the plot. That's as boring as a musical number or a rambling character moment. I shouldn't be shouting, _"GET ON WITH IT!!!"_ at the screen, but these moments of character drama...? _Boooorrrrring._ You want me to get invested in who your characters are...? Show me who they are through what they _do,_ not what they _say._

[@southlondon86]

Agreed.

[@charlessmyth]

Star Trek and 24 rarely shied away from industrial strength on-the-nose-dialogue. This could have been rectified with edits, but it would have changed the tone of the shows, which may have reduced their appeal. The Unit, for example, even with David Mamet at the helm, wasn't up to much :-) The problem is the dialogue, of the on-the-nose-kind, that has characters directly telling each other what they know already, as a direct way to perform the function of exposition..

[@Thenoobestgirl]

Another fantastic video about writing dialogue: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3LLpX6snN5pg6M

[@12DAMDO]

this basically exposes the problem with a lot of modern adult animated sitcoms..

[@gvphdYT]

Hall & Oates 1985

[@Silverthemystic]

👃

[@filmcourage]

Perfect!

[@shawshank178]

Nice, show don't tell. 😂

[@AaroneousMaximus]

You can’t have your characters state how they feel! That makes me feel angry!