If you are a film enthusiast or someone who works with movies, you know that is almost impossible for a finished film to be at least 90% similar to the original screenplay. Several things are altered during the production and post-production process, including dialogue and scenes. Even some characters are added or edited out! Therefore, the filmmaker is very busy, and the bureaucracy of participating in film festivals makes them even busier. Luckily, the dialogue list can help you to prepare yourself. But what is a dialogue list? And how can it help you?
What is a Dialogue List (DL)?
A Dialogue List is a script of a film, television program, or play that includes all important information such as onscreen titles, the exact starting and ending time of each scene, music and lyrics.
It is the final and most important element of a film or television production since it contains all the spoken dialogue in the film, broken down by individual lines, along with time codes where each line begins. In addition to this, it also includes the name of the speaker.
Its purpose is to describe the story’s plot, character, and action. It provides information about characters, settings, and overall story plot.
How can a Dialogue List Help You Prepare Yourself for Film Festivals?
A dialogue list is essential for any subtitling activity; you may even need to include it as an asset in your digital distribution strategy. Some distributors require you to create a dialogues list before releasing your movie on their platforms. The film festivals demand that the filmmaker send them a DL. Of course, it also helps them to translate the movie since most films in those festivals are foreigners.
Remember that the industry standard for DL is Microsoft Word (.docx) since it is fully editable, making it easier to fix errors if needed. However, some festivals may require it in Adobe (.pdf) or Microsoft Excel (.xlsx).
How to Create a Dialogue List for Film Festivals?
As you may be thinking, creating a DL is very hard. The process of making an accurate transcription requires a lot of experience, skill and patience. Many filmmakers question why they need to hire an expert when they can transcribe themselves. Yet, once you start doing a DL, you understand why it is so difficult to make one. If you make a little mistake, everything’s ruined since the DL is progressively constructed, scene by scene.
Besides, finishing a DL takes a long time, and the process is repetitive and exhaustive. That’s why most people hire a company to do it for them, like Back to the Paper, a 20 years old company that offers several closed captioning services, including DL, CCSL script, ABS, and more. Check their website out and hire their DL service to maximize your productivity and use of time.
