Screenwriting : No dialogue/mime scenes by Banafsheh Esmailzadeh

Hey, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. I like watching movies and writing scenes that don't have dialogue. It's tough writing a scene without dialogue sometimes though. Something writers can do is write the scenes with dialogue, then see where they can replace the dialogue with action. And writers can read scripts/watch movies that don't have dialogue.

Telling your story through action is as important as dialogue. It's easy to overwrite a scene like this. Think about it as dialogue in quick short bursts. This will keep a reader engaged without overwhelming them with a paragraph of information. My best way to think about it is different camera angles. Write action for every time it changes in your vision. Then use 5 words rather than 12 if you can. Just keep it concise to STORY. Any minor movements leave to an actor or director to flesh out hence DON'T overwrite it. Hope this helps.

That's very true Maurice Vaughan, I'm envisioning them kinda like silent film scenes so there's music playing and taking away the dialogue cards (I think that's what you call them?), and really thinking of the few acting classes I took in school where we mimed. Really taught me how to boil things down to actions. One of my favourite examples is that interpretive dance scene from Giri/Haji; it wonderfully shows off the character relationships with one another and is full of emotion. Trying to put my own twist on it basically.

Writing silent film type scenes sounds fun, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. And challenging.

And I just remembered. I wrote a short script a while back that had a mime character. I formatted his dialogue as action lines like this:

The mime gestures: "This sidewalk is mine." (points to sidewalk, points at self)

That is also very true Daniel Silvas. To make it easier on myself the no dialogue scenes are all flashbacks, and I'm keeping in mind that when you look back on memories you might not remember sounds very well but you do recall sights and actions but most importantly, emotions. So yeah, I guess that's the trickiest part not to overwrite lol so thanks, that does help a lot :)

Oh okay cool Maurice Vaughan, good to know I can do that :) I also remember at least in terms of novel-writing there was this one scene in Stargirl I think it was, where the narrator (I forgot his name lol) recounts a conversation he had with Stargirl but it wasn't written like a conversation, so it was I said that ___. She said that ___." and I thought that was a neat use of tell. In mine of course I'm keeping it show to the best of my ability so I've been putting as much subtext into the scenes as I can.

Have you ever seen the "Hush" episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer? The whole town loses their voice at the same time. They do lots of cool things with no dialogue for most of the episode. One of my absolute faves. Might be worth trying to track down to see how they did it?

In a script of mine with people keeping silent but actively communicating I put the "words" they were mouthing/acting out in italics after an action line explaining the exchange was silent.

Banafsheh Esmailzadeh I completely agree that dialogue-free scenes can be incredibly powerful, especially for drama. I think whether a scene should be silent or not really depends on the relationship between the characters fighting. If it’s a deep rivalry, some dialogue or taunts could build the tension before or during the fight. But for pure intensity and realism—like in crime, horror, or shootouts—silence makes it feel more raw and immersive. No one stops to monologue in a life-or-death moment. It really depends on what you’re going for, but when used right, a silent scene can hit even harder!

Oh that's awesome Alison Weaverdyck, I haven't ever watched Buffy but I have been thinking about it (like many shows I didn't appreciate it when I was younger lol). I'll look into it :D

The new characters in mine who didn't show up for the previous story who don't talk, I'm treating them kinda like dancers and mimes. The four brothers I'm especially seeing kinda like graceful dancers despite how they're initially introduced since they grow to be associated with ballet, and the female angel is primarily associated with her violin and mostly subtle actions, like watching how a certain other character is treated. I'm keeping in mind that she has an altogether small role but with a HUGE impact, and the one time she does visibly speak, you don't hear her, so I'll find an effective way to write how she says it.

100% Dwayne Williams, silence can say so much when done right. And for fight scenes it definitely helps to have the odd word here and there, taunts definitely fit the bill.

It can get tricky writing dialogue/action lines for mimes, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. And really, I could get rid of "This sidewalk is mine" and just put "The mime points to sidewalk, points at himself."

I like that idea ("I said that ___. She said that ___."). That's one thing I love about writing. Writers can do all kinds of things.

Many iconic films have scenes with no dialogue. All genres. Most notably for suspense. But comedy too.

I still want to see an entire short film starring Mr. Mime from Detective Pikachu. The creators didn't think his scenes would even work with the audience, but of course they did.

Five films where the protagonist says little to nothing, or is soley engaged in monologue:

1. Locke

2. Perfect days

3. Arctic

4, Thunder Road

5. The Comedy

Of course Quest for Fire has no dialogue, save for the grunts.

It’s all in the effectiveness of the description. Honestly, the Wall-E screenplay is a masterclass in this.

I personally enjoy watching AND writing scenes with no dialogue.

I just finished watching the stunning new British series, Adolescence, which is full of long, silent shots (in fact, each episode feels like one continuous long take). I was struck by how beautiful those silences are, and it makes me wonder why we don't see them more often in series or films.