Singing

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  • Singing

    Do we usually put singing in the dialogue but in CAPS?
    I noticed they did that in Coco. I haven't read that many other scripts with signing, and my latest script has a lot of singing.

    I didn't use caps...

    Thoughts?

  • #2
    Re: Singing

    Originally posted by cvolante View Post
    Do we usually put singing in the dialogue but in CAPS?
    I noticed they did that in Coco. I haven't read that many other scripts with signing, and my latest script has a lot of singing.

    I didn't use caps...

    Thoughts?
    Not a pro, but no one has thrown a tomato at me for doing it like this...

    Code:
                                         JOHN
                                  (singing)
                             [I]Oh, we're the boys of the chorus.  
                             We hope you like our show.  We know 
                             you're rooting for us, but now we 
                             have to go.[/I]

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Singing

      Originally posted by bioprofessor View Post
      Not a pro, but no one has thrown a tomato at me for doing it like this...
      Hold the tomatoes and double the peppers!

      That's exactly how I do it, too.

      And it's advisable to put in a quick, one-line citation if the material isn't your own. To the prodco receiving/reading the script, this proves you've done your homework... even though major league lawyers are going to redo and confirmed any rights clearance, pre-production, before a single penny is spent.

      So, you might just say "(sings Depeche Mode)", or quote the title of the song (underlined) in a line in the description.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Singing

        This is apparently by John August. I will summarize a bit:
        • If it is not obvious that singing is taking place, put something like (singing) in parentheses.
        • Use Courier Prime italics. He makes no comment about all caps, but it is clear that he assumes normal caps and lower case.
        • You have several acceptable options: End each song line with </<, or not, or expand the dialogue line to accommodate a long line (in other words, cheat on the margins). You can use the </< in any case, but you do not have to.
        If I ever need to show lyrics, I will cheat the margins and put the whole song line into one line. I will use italics. I will not use </<, since it is not at all necessary if you keep each song line on one line. I will retain the capitalization of the original. For example, the start of a new line typically begins with a capital.

        EDIT: I should have added, for those who are not savvy about such things, that when you are typing verse, you can use Shift+Enter at the end of the line (instead of Enter), and you will get a new line without leaving the dialogue. In Windows, anyway.
        Last edited by ComicBent; 02-20-2018, 02:59 PM.

        "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Singing

          Originally posted by ComicBent View Post
          This is apparently by John August. I will summarize a bit:
          • If it is not obvious that singing is taking place, put something like (singing) in parentheses.
          • Use Courier Prime italics. He makes no comment about all caps, but it is clear that he assumes normal caps and lower case.
          • You have several acceptable options: End each song line with </<, or not, or expand the dialogue line to accommodate a long line (in other words, cheat on the margins). You can use the </< in any case, but you do not have to.
          If I ever need to show lyrics, I will cheat the margins and put the whole song line into one line. I will use italics. I will not use </<, since it is not at all necessary if you keep each song line on one line. I will retain the capitalization of the original. For example, the start of a new line typically begins with a capital.

          EDIT: I should have added, for those who are not savvy about such things, that when you are typing verse, you can use Shift+Enter at the end of the line (instead of Enter), and you will get a new line without leaving the dialogue. In Windows, anyway.
          That sounds like a good approach.
          You know Jill you remind me of my mother. She was the biggest whore in Alameda and the finest woman that ever lived. Whoever my father was, for an hour or for a month, he must have been a happy man.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Singing

            Thanks for your responses.

            I'm not sure what you mean by the HTML code black slash dealy-o, ‹/›.
            I went with the italics and said JOE (singing) Doo-bee-dooby-dooo...


            Now I'm finding that in translating the songs (they mostly sing in another language) I'm adding a whole extra page to the script, so I think I will look into your "cheat the margins" idea.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Singing

              The forward slash / is a traditional method of ending a line of poetry when the lines are run together in one paragraph. It separates one line from another without using separate lines. It does not have anything to do with HTML in this use. The tiny characters ‹ and › are single-quotes; the double quotes are « and ». These were not HTML angles < or >. I was using ‹/› in the same way that I could have set off the slash with other characters: */* or '/' or "/".

              These lines
              Winter should always be gray:
              A mythic dull monotone
              Of filthy water sluiced
              From mines of rancid time.
              become

              Winter should always be gray:/ A mythic dull monotone/ Of filthy water sluiced/ From mines of rancid time.

              "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Singing

                The only time I ever used a song in a script, I just made the song title an O.S. character and made the words of the song dialogue.

                Seemed to work OK. Around thirty people commented on the script -- none mentioned being offended by the way I did the song.
                "I just couldn't live in a world without me."

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Singing

                  Originally posted by StoryWriter View Post
                  The only time I ever used a song in a script, I just made the song title an O.S. character and made the words of the song dialogue.

                  Seemed to work OK. Around thirty people commented on the script -- none mentioned being offended by the way I did the song.
                  StoryWriter,

                  You must be talking about a different situation than the one that cvolante was asking about. I think that you may be talking about a situation in which the audience hears a song, but no character in the film is singing it.

                  It was my impression that cvolante was asking about a character who is singing.

                  If I were dealing with a background song, I would put that into the action.

                  "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Singing

                    Yeah, my characters are rabid singers.

                    Thanks for the tip, Comic Bent. I think the linear lines with the slashes will save me at LEAST another page. WOOT!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Singing

                      I think the linear lines with the slashes will save me at LEAST another page. WOOT!
                      If you put each song line into one line of dialogue, you do not need the slash. The slash if for when you run lines together.

                      Preferred method
                      Put lyrics into italics.
                      Expand the right margin of dialogue to accommodate the entire song line.
                      Of course, it should be clear that the character is singing. You can indicate that in an action line or in a parenthetical.

                      FAT LADY
                      Mine eyes have seen the glory
                      Of the coming of the Lord.
                      He is tramping out the vintage
                      Where the grapes of wrath are stored.


                      Acceptable method
                      Use / at the end of each song line, but format like any other dialogue. You can use italics for the lyrics, or not. You can indicate singing in the action or in a parenthetical.

                      FAT LADY
                      (singing)
                      Mine eyes have seen the glory/ Of
                      the coming of the Lord./ He is
                      tramping out the vintage/ Where
                      the grapes of wrath are stored.

                      "The fact that you have seen professionals write poorly is no reason for you to imitate them." - ComicBent.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Singing

                        Originally posted by ComicBent View Post
                        StoryWriter,

                        You must be talking about a different situation than the one that cvolante was asking about. I think that you may be talking about a situation in which the audience hears a song, but no character in the film is singing it.

                        It was my impression that cvolante was asking about a character who is singing.

                        If I were dealing with a background song, I would put that into the action.
                        I should have caught that.

                        Mine really wasn't really background, it was part of the story. So it was an odd duck.
                        "I just couldn't live in a world without me."

                        Comment

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