Page One: “Call Me by Your Name” (2017)

Screenplay by James Ivory, novel by André Aciman

The movie version of the opening:

Obviously given the way the script handles the use of Italian and French, you can do the same: use parentheticals for each side of dialogue. If, however, the dialogue were in only one language, a more conventional way would be to indicate that in scene description: All dialogue in this scene in Italian unless otherwise indicated. This saves you from using multiple parentheticals which can begin to make for a rather clunky read. There’s no right or wrong, you are free to do what works for you … as long as it’s clear to the reader.

You may read the screenplay here.

FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY!

Page One is a daily Go Into The Story series featuring the first page of notable movie scripts from the classic era to contemporary times. Comparing them is an excellent way to study a variety of writing styles and see how professional writers start a story.

For more Page One posts, go here.