Screenwriting : Using AI to improve dialogue. by Göran Johansson

Neither. The AI did make a few improvements, but failed in multiple places, such as with the line, "Yes, so I'm very happy with my job." This would've worked better as, "Yeah, it keeps my mind off of it." Also, the last line is still completely clunky. It would've worked better with something like, "Okay. Let me do that now."

If you want to improve your dialogue, a great way to start is by choosing different people you know, it can be actors, to play the characters in your head. Works really well.

Dear friends, thanks for comments.

About imagining friends speaking in my head. When I write in my native language, I think about those actors I have filmed and edited. But all those people from USA whom I know, they answer in Standard American English when I email them.

So the best thing may be if I create a second version of my screenplay. Where the dialogue created by AI is used. Then I ask people if that version is better, if the characters speak differently in a believable way. I have accepted network request from about 40 persons who live in USA, largely writers. And many of them presumably want to know if AI can improve upon dialogue.

Anybody here who wants to read? To avoid misunderstandment, it will take about a week before I can send the screenplay with the new dialogue.

Feels like the AI made the dialogue much less naturalistic sounding. The dialogue got stiffer and more rote imo. The best dialogue is gritty and real, using and often playing around with turns of phrase, something AI can't replicate on its own.

The dialogue involves two characters explaining a situation to each other, but both seem to be aware of it already and are only making some of these points for the benefit of the audience. When it feels like this is what is happening, then dialogue sounds unnatural. The trick is to see if you can weave the exposition into the narrative. This is something the AI can't help with. Think about how to real people would have this conversation, rather than two characters that are trying to have a conversation while explaining it to the audience. If information is missing, see how you can tip the audience off to what is happening without making it too obvious. Think about non-verbal cues as well, so characters aren't explaining their every thought and feeling, but showing how they feel.

IMO, AI is incapable of "improving" dialogue (or any aspect of a well written script). Only the writer knows their characters inside and out, so only the writer, not a computer program, can bring forth dialogue that benefits the entire story. Here's $0.02, keep the change :-)

Göran Johansson if I could offer some unsolicited advice, one exercise I like to try when writing dialogue is to think of the dream actor for that role and write the dialogue as though that actor were speaking it. That might be difficult if English isn't your first language, but if you study the syntax and mannerisms that individual actors have, and even if they never play that role, it will at least allow you to bring the variety you're looking for to the writing.

Dear friends, your comments are such that if somebody wants to become my coauthor, please feel welcome. I know my limitations.

I have earlier created 22 hours of television programs. If nobody buys, my screenplay is written in such a way that I can produce it as my 4th no-budget movie.

Göran Johansson I am interested in cowriting one with you. You can check out my bio here if you are interested and DM

AI doesn't work well when wrting dialogue. I tried it once just to see how it works and it sucks. I am for anything that might help make my screenplays better but AI is not the answer for me anyway. I hope this doesn't sound like AI wrote this. lol.

As a "creative," I'm not a fan of using AI for writing. Stories need to come from the heart. If you have a weakness in your writing, work on strengthening your skills instead of using the crutch of AI.

You should use the version you wrote. If you don’t like it, you should practice and learn how to improve it.

Learning how to instruction someone else, being it human or a machine that steals from humans, is not writing.

You have writing a version, which is better than what the average person. So improve it by becoming a better a writer.

We have a really cool webinar coming up where we are exploring the uses of AI with ChatGPT for screenwriters: https://www.stage32.com/education/c/education-webinars?h=introduction-on...

Dear friends, many thanks for the time you spend on me.

Further comments about using AI for screenwriting.

Yesterday I read somebody's conclusion that AI can write screenplays. Well, when I tested a week ago, the result was unoriginal. Scene description, characters, action and dialogue was all cliché. If somebody accepts a screenplay which is far from orginal, better tell a human to adapt a biography, novel, play or whatever. Or if one wants a sequal to a bestselling film, one may ask the fans to send suggestions.

I did another test. I have written a screenplay which is set in 1896. I asked Chat GPT4 to change the language, to make the dialogue archaic. Complete failure. So I machine translated into English. Then Chat GPT4 managed to make the language more archaic. But when I translated back into Swedish, the archaic expressions were lost. I hope that limitation will be solved within a year or so.

So my attitude to AI is mixed. Useful or useless depending on what one wants to do.

Amanda Toney it appears we now have proof Stage32 is just a money making platform that devalues art.

The WGA fought against it, but you are embarrassing the myth that AI can be used for art and has some legitimate use.

It has been fun.

Bye.