Ninja Stage Directions

Writing a script is different than writing a novel. In a lot of ways. If you didn't know that, you're probably not very observant. But here is one specific way. In a novel I can write:

She turned from him and looked out the window, pausing to take a deep breath. She was too angry to look at him. Clenching her fists she continued to speak through tight lips. "You are not the grasshopper," she croaked. Her voice was like a rusty gate swinging in the wind.

(This is just an example off the top of my head.)

In a script for stage or film, these details are inappropriate. As you probably know, you have to be respectful of the actors. They will not appreciate being told moment by moment what they should be doing, feeling, sounding like, etc. It tells them that they are not trusted, and it limits their ability to be creative.

This is a very good rule for writing scripts. But I must confess, sometimes I like to break it. Because sometimes I don't trust actors. Or because I have a really clear image in my head that I just have to include on the page. But, but, but - this is crucial - it's better if you get a little sneaky. Read on for examples.

A few little acting directions in your script are probably okay, but don't be surprised if actors and directors ignore them. If you hide them, actors and directors will accept them without questioning. For example, I could write this:

BARBARA
(shouting angrily)
You're going to wear the pink dress whether you like it or not.

JANE
(whining)
But Mom, I want to wear the blue.

But look at how ninja it is to write it like this:

BARBARA
You're going to wear the pink dress whether you like it or not.

JANE
Muh-om! Don't shout at me. I want to wear the blue.

Without any stage directions we know that Barbara is shouting and Jane is whining (the phonetic spelling of her pouty "Mom" informs the delivery of the rest of the line).

Again, this example sucks, but you get the idea.

Here's an example adapted from a script of mine:

GRAY
I'm not going to do it, Dorothy.

DOROTHY
Come here. Look at me. Don't let this happen.

It's much more subversive than this:

GRAY
(avoiding looking her in the eye)
I'm not going to do it, Dorothy.

DOROTHY crosses to GRAY. She lifts his chin so they are standing face-to-face. GRAY is forced to look at her.

DOROTHY
Don't let this happen.

There is a trade-off here. In the first version you know the actors will have to perform an action something like what you pictured in your mind, but it requires some extra words in the dialogue. In the second, you cut the dialogue down to the bare essentials, but the actors are free to ignore your pretty picture in favor of whatever awful bit of business they come up with themselves. In the end, you must decide which is more important to the scene - the specific action you dreamed up or following the rule of "Show, don't tell."

If you are worried that your script is too full of stage directions, or that your stage directions will be ignored, consider whether you can trick the actors into not noticing you are directing them.

UPDATE: Here's a good one I just found in A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen:

TORVALD
Well, one must accept you as you are. It's in the blood. Oh yes, it is, Nora. That sort of thing is hereditary.

Clearly, Nora has some sort of nonverbal reaction after "It's in the blood," but Ibsen doesn't need a word of stage direction to tell us. Grand!