How does Quentin Tarantino write dialog for a language he doesn't speak?
How does Quentin Tarantino or any other screenwriter write dialog for a language he doesn't speak? I have never found any mention of Tarantino being able to speak in any language other than English.
In Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, Hans Landa speaks English, German, French, and Italian fluently. In fact, about a third of the film is non-English and is subtitled.
I have never heard anyone who speaks German, French, or Italian complaining that their language was written by a hack.
Is the language written in English first and then rewritten in the appropriate language? Or does he work with other writers as he is writing it? Did he learn the basics of other languages to write for those languages?
Best Answer
It's simple, really. What most screenwriters do is to write the entire script in the same language (which, in the case of Hollywood movies, is English) and then when there's a piece of dialog that's supposed to be spoken in some other language, all you have to do is tell the reader this by adding a parenthesis between the character's name and the dialog.
VADER
(in French)
No, I am your father.
The main reason for this is that there's a huge chance that the person who's going to read your script doesn't know that specific language. And, even if the reader happens to know that specific language it doesn't read as fast and as smooth as if the entire screenplay would've been written in the same language.
When realizing that you don't actually have to know the language your characters are going to speak in the movie, some writers might get carried away and throw some foreign language-skills in there just to spice things up a bit. However, this isn't exactly recommended as it could easily turn a great, dramatic moment into something, well, ridiculous... Just like in the example above.
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How does Tarantino use dialogue?
Tarantino writes dialogue in a way that often serves the whole cinematic story. Each line of dialogue isn't just there to present itself. It's there to set up the overarching character development, plot, and story.What languages can Tarantino speak?
Suspense. The final device that makes Tarantino's dialogue so brilliant is suspense. Now, there are many other ways to build suspense in a film, including camera movement, editing, and lighting, but the director masterfully uses conversations, many times one-on-one, the build tension and anticipation in a scene.How is Tarantino so good at dialogue?
I have never found any mention of Tarantino being able to speak in any language other than English. In Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, Hans Landa speaks English, German, French, and Italian fluently. In fact, about a third of the film is non-English and is subtitled.Quentin Tarantino Explains How He Writes Dialogue
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