voiceovers

[wwcs]

Thanks a lot for replying.  I guess the main reason I asked was related to script length.  I just saw this movie about a kidnapping where the first line of dialogue doesn't happen until 10 minutes into the film.  I'm thinking describing what happened in the first 10 minutes couldn't have taken more than 2-3 pages.  The movie was 120 minutes though.

[rnbrewer]

Not sure if I can help you with the voiceover stuff, but the action thing isn't too hard. You want to touch only on the important parts of the action. You can't spell out every single punch and kick (unless you're going for something specific in the visual sense i.e. The Matrix). One minute is a bit of stretch for an action sequence. It's just a basic rule of thumb. I try not to worry too much about how long I think an action sequence is going to play out. The overall coreography will take place later and they will no doubt change it up a bit by the time the sequence is actually shot and edited. I would just write the sequence how you feel it should play out and include only the elements that are absolutely necessary. As in, does the hero win or lose? Does the villian win or lose? Is there a big car crash that separates our main protagonist from the hot female? Things like that. Stuff that moves the story forward and is relevant to the story. Everything else is just eye candy that will be put in later.

[wwcs]

Hi,

I was wondering, when writing a voiceover that you intend to have action underneath, how do you keep a sense of continuity?  I wanted to have a voiceover with a montage underneath, so I'm just wondering how I can make it flow best on the page.  It seems hard to accomplish without having the voiceover overlay the action like it would in a movie.  Which normally comes first, the voiceover, or the image?

Also, being new to screenwriting, how do you calculate approximately how much screen time an action sequence will take up?  It seems like one page of action would take up a lot more than one minute of screen time.

Thanks in advance,
Bob