Screenwriting : Looking for articles about Subtext by Daryl Powell

I would be interested too.

Hey Steven. I found this old article by Mystery Man called The Art of Subtext. He's got examples from a number of movies. http://mysterymanonfilm.blogspot.com/2006/07/art-of-subtext.html

Visual subtext in film is the gun seen in beginning scenes, then used later to kill the antagonist, speaking in generalities here. I can tell you from writing novels, your sometimes lucky enough to supply the subtext in your original working draft/outline. But basic subtext, for me, is usually purposefully created (as annotations many times) in the 1st draft and nailed down there through constant rewriting so I don't have conflicts in 2-3-4-5th drafts. Work backwards to place subtext (notes and partial ideas) to elevate your main plot/character after 1st rough draft. If your story arc is working, the subtext should supply a fuller image of actions, character or plot without the audience remembering the subtext or with only a vague idea that it ever existed in visuals, symbols or dialogue. Of course if you're writing mass market stuffs/fluffs, "I'll be back," may suffice for all the subtext ever needed. I fuck up when I purposefully try to place subtext when attempting to ameliorate my lazy mistakes or to leverage sub-plots (into over-blown subtext) when my plots have gone awry. Or if I've lost control of a character in the scheme of things. Too much subtext and your story arc sags... and reading it out loud, preforming it will tell you this in seconds. Also don't try to create subtext out of thin air. It should exist as an unseen guide to the buried treasure, like lingerie Subtext is repainting after you've layer down the sketches and drafts.

@ Daryl , cool I will check that link out. Thanks! I found the following too http://www.scriptforsale.com/articles/subtextfuture.htm http://www.writing.org/html/a_subtext.htm http://www.movieoutline.com/articles/screenplay-subtext-how-to-write-eff... But I'm looking for more

Hey Steven, good links. Thanks. I don't know if this helps but I have a link to the symbolism of colors. As max says above, subtext is repainting, so maybe it's good to know what the colors represent. http://www.incredibleart.org/lessons/middle/color2.htm

Hi Max. Would that gun be a Chekhov reference? Nice. I agree with you, subtext is the last thing I work on. I'm really interested in subtext in dialogue or gestures. Can you recommend a book or movie that I could study? Things like Casablanca where Rick and Ilsa talk in front of the lace merchant, for example.

Chekhov -yes. But here is my secret. I know everything is cooking, plot and character wise, if I'm writing and teared-up. Am I a sissy? Fuck no. Comedy or tragedy, I'll have tears in my eyes and the words flow out as if from an inner storm of emotions bursting from within, while I sniffle and snort. Usually, all the elements line themselves up and flow out (subtext included) as if by magic. I only write prose and poetry, however, one must consider the written arts as emotions and actions placed on the page and the most direct method works best. I highly recommend poetry as a first draft. The bullshit of logistics and place fall to the wayside and the raw emotions pop out like magic. Then write to prose or screenplay form to tame and channel the emotions or convert to gestures or symbolism. Once the emotions are rendered fully (to the last page/scene) the jacking up or cementing with subtext is only craft. The masters I steal from are Conrad and Nabokov and Pat Highsmith and Ernest Leman and Tenn WIlliams and ...Jesus, the list never ends.