how to write a montage (or, what comes out when i’m too tired to think)
This is for all you aspiring screenwriters out there who have ever seen a montage in a Keanu Reeves movie and thought, “That looks like it would be a lot of fun to format according to current screenwriting guidelines.” Well, guess what? It is! You can make a montage out of just about anything, from buying stamps for the Stamp Fair to lying to your children for the Lying To Your Children Fair. Montages are a wonderful way to show the passage of time, social/environmental change, and personal (or, if it’s a Sylvester Stallone movie, muscular) growth. Think about all of the lessons we would learn if the montage was a part of everyday life. I think it’s safe to say that the world would be a much better place if we all lived our lives to a Kenny Loggins song.
Well, now that I’ve motivated you, and I have, here’s how to write a montage. I’m going to show you through an example, because I believe in learning-by-doing. I will be doing, you will be learning. A LOT.
SURFING MONTAGE: (You’ll want to label the montage in case the reader forgets that the movie is about surfing.)
1. Johnny and Susie X paddle out to the “sweet spot.” (Be sure to describe any important details about your characters earlier in the script so the reader doesn’t assume that they’re 60 year-old Koreans. Luckily, in this case, they are.)
2. Johnny catches a HUGE wave. While he’s riding his surfboard (which is from the future but he found it), he blows a kiss at Susie X. Susie X catches the kiss and puts it on her wetsuit (but I won’t say where because this movie is rated G). Johnny does a double-take and falls off the board. Susie X laughs and air-fives the lifeguard on shore, who wasn’t impressed before but now he knows her womanhood.
3. This time, Susie X is catching some insane water shreddage. But, the other surfers are laughing because she’s a girl. But Susie X jumps her surfboard over the coolest one’s head, knocking his toupee off. He starts crying like a crazy old man who thinks he’s a baby.
4. Susie X and Johnny surf a monster wave side-by-side. Johnny jumps from his board to Susie X’s for a little “smooching” (it’s a colloquialism), and Susie X smiles like she’s gonna do it. But, at the last minute, seriously, the last second, Susie X pushes Johnny off her board and into a coral reef. (TIP: Writers have trouble finding titles from time to time. In my opinion, titles should reflect the essence of the script, and it’s even better if it works as a metaphor or simile. For instance, this script is called “Susie X Pushes Johnny Off Her Board And Into A Coral Reef.”)
5. Susie X rides with Johnny in the back of an ambulance. Johnny is losing a lot of blood. But, then, Susie X feels bad so she kisses his remaining lip and the two are in love. Oh yeah, and the paramedic with them in the back is totally carrying their boards because he liked to study in high school instead of party.
6. Susie X lies with Johnny on his hospital bed, watching TV. But, they’re both dressed in a tuxedo and wedding dress, and the nurse, who is an ordained minister and a judge, marries them in front of all their family and friends.
NURSE/ORDAINED MINISTER/JUDGE
You are married!
Some of the people cheer.
JOHNNY (V.O.) (Which means “voice-over” which means
something the character writes in his diary
that night)
I never knew Susie X liked me like that. She is
now my girlfriend and wife. You may kiss the bride.
They tongue in front of everybody. They don’t even care.
The End.
Well, there you have it. Do you feel patriotic? Because you should. You just did something good for America: you felt emotions. I hope you take those emotions and turn them into a montage, because that’s the circle of life. But, don’t get discouraged when your montage isn’t nearly as good as mine. I’ve been writing them for over less than a decade. Well, there you have it. In the words of the late Susie X: “Life is the biggest wave of all. Let’s ride it together.”
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, the song playing over my montage was “When You Believe” by Mariah Carey.
