Linear writing for non-linear films
When writing a narrative that jumps back and forth throughout time and events (ie. PULP FICTION, THE KILLING) is it standard operating procedure to write the story in a more traditional straight ahead format then re-arrange the script; or is the script written in a non-linear format as we see it in the movie?
–Matt Higgins
While there have been cases where a film’s timeline was juggled after-the-fact (HEAVEN AND EARTH was one), the vast majority of scripts are written with the non-linear elements in place. It’s a cliché, but screenplays are really blueprints for making a movie, so the two forms should match up scene-by-scene.
If you’re planning to write a story that will ultimately unfold in a non-linear way, such as GO or MEMENTO, it’s a good idea to make a second outline of the story as it happens in "real time," to make sure the logic tracks. In fact, this kind of outline is helpful with any kind of story, because even if a script moves forward scene by scene, inevitably characters will refer to things that happened "earlier," and it’s important to make sure all these events could have happened in the sequence you propose.
Personally, I find that non-linear structure is often just a flashy trick to disguise bad storytelling, or worse, a boring plot. It demands that the audience pay closer attention in order to figure out what’s going on, but rarely rewards the effort.
An analogy: When laser printers first arrived, they gave people access to calligraphy fonts like Zapf Chancery Italic, a typeface designed for wedding invitations. Suddenly, people printed entire newsletters in 9-point Zapf Chancery Italic, without any consideration of whether it was the right tool for the job. (It’s not. It’s almost unreadable.) Now I cringe whenever I see the font. It’s been ruined for me.
What these novice designers - and many novice screenwriters - failed to recognize is that just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should. I wrote GO with three overlapping chunks because that’s the only way it made sense; to intercut between the plotlines would have slowed everything down too much and made it confusing. In short, I used a strange timeline because that’s what the story required.
Always ask yourself why you’re choosing a particular way of telling the story. Used well, and with the right material, non-linear structure can be a very powerful technique. Used poorly, it just makes a crappy movie harder to follow.
(Originally posted in 2003.)
Articles
November 1st, 2004 at 9:41 am
Thank you for writing this brief answer to a difficult question. I am about to write a 5000 word paper on this subject because I think non linear films mostly command attention because they make the audience have to engage fully with the narrative, but also make them aware of the relationship between form and content. You have to be a very good filmmaker to take the risk but as with “Momento”, I feel it is worth it. The web is full of sites which do not engage but I am greatful for your frank appraisal.
November 1st, 2005 at 11:38 am
Hey, I’m a student at Manchester Metropolitan Uni in England studying ‘Contemporary Film and Video’. I’m working on a short film with a broken narrative called ‘The Actuality of Evil’. I’d just like to say that the structure can also be used to bring up topics and points e.g.- about our society, the way we live. Regards, Adam Barker
July 3rd, 2007 at 9:56 am
I remember an interview with Guillermo Arriaga in which he said he does write his stories (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel) in a linear fashion and then chops them up and scatters the scenes. I’ve been thinking about this topic while writing my current screenplay — wondering whether the traditional linear narrative feels dated. But I agree with John that “non-linear structure is often just a flashy trick to disguise bad storytelling, or worse, a boring plot.”
July 3rd, 2007 at 10:29 am
Reruns are friggin’ boring! Why not let Matt write his own artcle? It would be interesting to hear a writer’s assistant talk about his daily duties and experiences. Or how about asking a “guest speaker” to post an article?
July 3rd, 2007 at 11:07 am
Heck yes. I saw this movie “Go”, man, just a train wreck of bad writing. The director was doing his best but you can only direct what’s on the page, I guess.
Right, guess I’d better read the rest of the article.
July 3rd, 2007 at 1:50 pm
laser printing? maybe the worst analogy I have ever read
July 3rd, 2007 at 6:06 pm
I kinda like the re-runs. As someone else pointed out before, few of us would have trolled through all John’s archives. Good to have someone pick out a few greatest hits for a second viewing. You don’t throw away a DVD just because you’ve watched it once.
July 4th, 2007 at 3:28 am
I agree, Griff. I was hoping for some examples where non-linear didn’t work.
July 4th, 2007 at 7:36 am
I love these reruns and that is perhaps the best piece of advise I have heard on linear vs. non-linear story telling. Thanks, much appreciated.
July 4th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
I love the reruns too. Hope you’re having fun, Matt!
July 5th, 2007 at 5:31 pm
For me, it’s Comic Sans. After more than a decade of misuse and abuse, I despise that font to the core of my being.
July 5th, 2007 at 6:58 pm
“Suddenly, people printed entire newsletters in 9-point Zapf Chancery Italic, without any consideration of whether it was the right tool for the job.” I’d say the analogy has to do with font selection more than laser printers. Laser printers are simply the first access consumers had to printing documents with hideously inappropriate fonts.
Same goes with website design. A basic web page with lots of content will win over a fancy page (in Zapf Chancery or Comic Sans) with nothing to say.
July 6th, 2007 at 4:52 am
Amen to the Comic Sans. I even see it all over town on signs for actual businesses! What are they thinking?!
July 6th, 2007 at 5:01 am
By the way, some stories are light on plot and that’s OKAY! Just because a story doesn’t have a “high-concept” plot doesn’t mean it’s not worth telling. Non-linear storytelling is a great way to keep the audience engaged in a story that would otherwise require little “work” on their part. Storytelling is a conversation between the teller and the audience, not a monologue, so if the plot isn’t going to get the audience involved, then the teller needs to find a way to do that. Unfortunately, non-linear in the wrong hands can just be all style and no substance, but that’s true of any storytelling device.
July 6th, 2007 at 7:37 am
“Suddenly, people printed entire newsletters in 9-point Zapf Chancery Italic”
For some reason I keep reading this as Zapf Chicanery Italic, as if the Zapf were up to some mischief.
Which I suppose it is, given the point of the analogy.
July 9th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Form follows function…form follows function…
And by the way, is there really a “standard operating procedure” for writing?
January 28th, 2008 at 12:20 am
“I remember an interview with Guillermo Arriaga in which he said he does write his stories (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel) in a linear fashion and then chops them up and scatters the scenes.”
Guillermo Arriaga writes screenplay non linear fashion right from start here is the link http://www.scriptfactory.co.uk/go/News/Articles/Article_7.html