Hi everyone,
I'm a student currently in film production. Does anyone have tips on how to write treatment for a nonlinear story? I am doing a short that is a flashback and I want to be able to describe how certain scenes are taking place at different points of the timeline. Any tips are welcomed!
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I feel like one of the best ways to do this is by using anchors. GROUNDHOG DAY does this well. They go to the alarm clock everyday to let you know it's a new day. Movies without anchors have you asking questions while you're watching.. That's what we don't want. BILL BOYLE'S 'ART OF VISUAL SCREENWRITING goes into this subject in-depth. Hope this helps.
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Angela we are looking for more content and willing to help you
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Catch 22 does it well too, though I've not seen the film. The number of missions the main character has to fly keeps going up so you know roughly where you are in the timeline based on that. It could be anything, really. I considered having a minor character train for a marathon doing progressively longer training runs.
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Linda Aronson goes into several types of "Flashback" in detail. If you cannot get hold of the book 21st century screenwriter, she has blogs and other info. Can post you her email later if you require it. I've been to most of her Master Classes in UK, always come away with something new. @Shawn has a great idea. Something physical happening regularly, to mark exactly where the story is in space and time, ( such as an alarm clock).
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Lemme get it straight here; You're writing a short that is a flashback, or you writing a FL that contains a flashback. Which is it?
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Shawn: I just watched Groundhog Day on Monday. What a great example and a magnificent film. Probably the best romcom of the past quarter century.
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There are flashbacks and flashbacks, the one on this blackboard looks a bit like an Einstein theory. Linda Aronson Master Class on different flashbacks.
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Reading her book now. Didn’t realize she was that old.
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read umberto eco ' Six Walks in the Fictional Woods '
Everyone, thank you so much for your contributions, I did watch some of the suggested films and read up on some recommended material. I have done significant revisions to my script (this is for a production course) and I feel I may be on the right track. Thank you again!
I did opt to write this similarly to the first few minutes of UP. Versus going back and forth, I wrote the flashback concurring chronologically (almost like a montage) and the climatic moment containing smaller cuts to previous images.
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Dear Angela,
Don't worry about the linear story line, because there's two brains inside of you: one is creating THE scene, the other one worries about logical flow. I would write each scene completely apart, the absolute best you can---and when all the scenes are completed to your satisfaction....put them under your pillow" so to speak, and let them assemble themselves within your mind. You may awake suddenly with an...."I know!!" Best, Joel