Montage and Series of Shots

[craktactor]

Okay... I've searched and searched and searched and then searched some more... what are the cinematic differences between MONTAGE and SERIES OF SHOTS? Which one would be utilized best to visually convey emotion? (as in MOS scenes) This is important. I really need to know. I HATE NOT KNOWING! I just wish some people would answer their PHONES WHEN I CALL! just kidding.... only about the last part. But seriously... anyone?

[VanHanswyk]

The proof is in the pudding - no proper way to write a screenplay.

The Haunting in Connecticut -

MONTAGE: - INTERCUT
Tight shots of Matt’s treatment with Sara’s house search:

Sara’s hand circling house-to-rent wants ads; some say “no
kids or no pets” then crossing them out; seeing a few of the
available places through her eyes: they’re dumps;
7.


This screenplay is a bit peculiar. Lot's of bold font, tons of underlined, bold font. Stuff that would get my script tossed in the can.

[Population17]

Originally Posted by VanHanswyk

This screenplay is a bit peculiar. Lot's of bold font, tons of underlined, bold font. Stuff that would get my script tossed in the can.

Exactly!

I liked the move a lot but I couldn't get through the script. I tried twice.
The bold font kept distracting me.

brad

[Redsaint]

Hello, I am writing a series of shots (or a montage) and i am still unclear as to what category it would fall in.

A pickup truck drives around a city, showing glimpses of the daily goings on of the city's locals. In each "shot," the locals and what they are doing are the center point, the same pickup truck is just seen driving by in each part. The person driving the pickup truck is not a main character, or really any character at all, he doesn't even have a name. The truck is just something familiar in the background in each of the "shots."

But all these shots aren't closely related, theres no character interaction with people in the different shots, and the actions of one group in a shot don't affect a group of people in another shot. The only two things they have in common is that the people in each shot live in the same city, and theres the same pickup truck driving by in the background.

Would this be a series of shots or a montage? (I have about six different places or "shots" specified, not that the number really matters, just saying anyways.)

Thanks in advance for your help

[Population17]

Check out Scrivener's post in this thread on the first page.

Basically, what you're writing is a MONTAGE. It doesn't have to be active or chronological (I don't think so anyway). It's just a collection of images.

A SERIES OF SHOTS is what you want to use to create, as he said "... mini-series of a sequence..."

He explains it a lot better than that.

thanks

brad

[Redsaint]

Originally Posted by Population17

Check out Scrivener's post in this thread on the first page.

Basically, what you're writing is a MONTAGE. It doesn't have to be active or chronological (I don't think so anyway). It's just a collection of images.

A SERIES OF SHOTS is what you want to use to create, as he said "... mini-series of a sequence..."

He explains it a lot better than that.

thanks

brad

Yeah, im really leaning towards montage, but its still throwing me off just a little bit. The order of the places that are seen in my "montage" do matter, and i have that same pickup driving by in every scene, and when it drives by, its all during the same trip on the same day, so it sort of makes the montage more than only a collection of images or scenes or whatever.

But, after rereading Scriveners post (which was great by the way) it doesn't really quite fit as a series of shots either. It's not meant to be tightly edited for speed (although continuity does play a part with the pickup truck in the background of each shot.)

Anyways, I'm leaning towards montage, but its still in the grey for me.

Thanks

[Protoman2050]

Originally Posted by Population17

Check out Scrivener's post in this thread on the first page.

Basically, what you're writing is a MONTAGE. It doesn't have to be active or chronological (I don't think so anyway). It's just a collection of images.

A SERIES OF SHOTS is what you want to use to create, as he said "... mini-series of a sequence..."

He explains it a lot better than that.

thanks

brad

So writing a surgery would be done as a series of shots? Like this:

INT. OPERATING ROOM
SERIES OF SHOTS
1. Kane Davidson lies on the table under surgical lights. He's on a ventilator, and a cardiac anesthesiologist is performing an intraoperative TEE to help guide Dr Bentley.
2. Dr Bentley makes an incision in his chest, cracks his ribs, and exposes his heart
3. Dr Bentley performs the mitral valve replacement, replacing the destroyed valve with a mechanical one.
END SERIES OF SHOTS

[craktactor]

Scriv, as usual, top notch, grade A info. This is EXACTLY what I was looking for. So, danke, grazie, merci etc...

[Paula]

Scrivener - you now have a document dedicated to you on my computer - I decided to #copy and paste all your fantastic information into one place - as I can never find it again when I come on here to look and so much of it's relevant to what I need to know - I have called it 'Scrivener's scribes'... an insight into script writing by someone who knows...! (actually that last parts not in the title - but it sounds so good!)
so please keep up all that knowledge so I can fill my (sorry your) folder!
THanks
Paula

(P.s # hope i'm not breaching copyright?)

[Julianne - Australia]

Hey there Craktactor and Scrivener,

I haven't checked your links as yet....

I was under the impression the difference between them is one simple word.... 'time'.

Montage is a set of scenes shown to cover a period of time. (Days, months, years...)

Series of shots is a set of scenes to show events.

Juls.