The Ultimate Screenplay Format Reference

Telephone Conversations

Dialog on the telephone is a bit of a challenge because at least one of the participating characters on not physically present.

There are three possibilities to handle this:

1. The audience neither sees nor hears the other party. The content of the conversation is reflected in what the one character says.
2. The audience sees one character and hears the other one - or several - on the phone.
3. The movie switches back and forth between two (or more) characters as the conversation proceeds.

Method 1: Audience sees only one party

In this case the responses of the other (unseen) party are implied by what the visible character says and does:
 

                     HELEN
         Hello, Jack ... Are you sure?
         ... Do you have her number?

She searches her pockets, finds a pen. She looks around,
searching.

                     HELEN
         Once more please.

She starts writing on her hand.

                     HELEN
         Three-Seven-One ... Five-Five-
         One-Eight.

Surprised, she stares at what she wrote, the writing
already smeared by sweat.

                     HELEN
         That’s Cory’s number.
 

Method 2: One party seen, the other party heard

In this case the remote character(s) appears voiced over:
 

                     HELEN
         Hello, Jack!

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Hello, I got a call from Kate.
         She’s back in the country.

                     HELEN
         Are you sure?

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Of course, I’m sure. She wouldn’t
         lie to me.

                     HELEN
         Do you have her number?

She searches her pockets, finds a pen. She looks around,
searching.

...
 

Method 3: Both parties are seen alternately.

If both parties should show up on screen you have several options to handle this situation. Two involve using INTERCUT:

Method 3A: Simple INTERCUT
 

INTERCUT: HELEN’S KITCHEN / JACK’S CAR

                     HELEN
         Hello, Jack!

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Hello, I got a call from Kate.
         She’s back in the country.

                     HELEN
         Are you sure?

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Of course, I’m sure. She wouldn’t
         lie to me.

                     HELEN
         Do you have her number?

She searches her pockets, finds a pen. She looks around,
searching.

...
 

Method 3B: INTERCUT with details
 

INT. HELEN’S KITCHEN - DAY

Helen walks through the door, dressed in workout gear, panting.

The telephone rings.

INT. JACK’S CAR

Jack holds his cell phone.

INTERCUT - TELEPHONE CONVERSATION

                     HELEN
         Hello, Jack!

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Hello, I got a call from Kate.
         She’s back in the country.

                     HELEN
         Are you sure?

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Of course, I’m sure. She wouldn’t
         lie to me.

                     HELEN
         Do you have her number?

She searches her pockets, finds a pen. She looks around,
searching.

...
 

Both methods using INTERCUT give the director complete freedom when to switch between the locations (Helen’s kitchen and Jack’s car). Directors are said to like freedom.

If you need more control over the change then you should use master scene headings:

Method 3C: Use master scene headings

 

EXT. HELEN’s HOUSE - DAY

Helen comes jogging up the driveway, enters the side door.

INT. JACK’S CAR

Jack drives his Corvette on the freeway. He searches his pockets.

                     JACK
         Where is my phone?

A woman’s hand presents him with a cell phone from the passenger seat.

Jack dials. It rings on the other end.

INT. HELEN’S KITCHEN - DAY

Helen enters, panting.

The telephone rings.

                     HELEN
         Hello.

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Hello, this is Jack. I got a call
         from Kate. She’s back in the country.

                     HELEN
         Are you sure?

                     JACK (V.O.)
         Of course, I’m sure. She wouldn’t
         lie to me.

                     HELEN
         Do you have her number?

She searches her pockets, finds a pen. She looks around,
searching.

                     HELEN
         Once more please.

She starts writing on her hand.

                     HELEN
         Three-Seven-One ... Five-Five-
         One-Eight.

INT. JACK’S CAR - DAY

On the passenger seat sits Cory.

She checks a gun, charges it and hides it between the
pages of a folded newspaper.

INT. HELEN’S KITCHEN - DAY

Surprised, she stares at what she wrote, the writing
already smeared by sweat.

                     HELEN
         That’s Cory’s number.

 

If you decide to spread a telephone call over an entire page like in the last example above, then make sure it pays off. Follow Trottier’s advice: “If you describe how a character drinks a cup of coffee, then the coffee better be poisoned.”

Another way of showing both parties of a phone call is to use a split screen. The method appears to be gaining popularity. However, these pages are a reference to the recommendations in The Screenwriter’s Bible which doesn’t mention them.