Exposition

Dialogue

Definition: Exposition is the delivery of background information the audience needs to understand the story — character histories, world rules, plot context, and relationships. It is essential for orienting the viewer but dangerous when delivered clumsily, which is why screenwriters call heavy-handed exposition "expository dialogue" as a pejorative.

Understanding Exposition

Every script needs exposition. The audience needs to know that the protagonist is a disgraced surgeon, that the alien can only be killed by water, that the siblings have not spoken in ten years. The question is always delivery method. The worst exposition is two characters telling each other things they both already know: "As you know, Sarah, our father left us this estate before he died." The best exposition is buried in conflict. If two characters argue about the inheritance while moving furniture out of the house, the audience learns everything without feeling lectured. Other techniques: have a character discover information alongside the audience (the Watson technique), reveal information visually through production design, or let exposition emerge naturally when a new character enters and needs to be brought up to speed.

Example in a Screenplay

                    DETECTIVE
          You missed the briefing.

                    REYES
          I was at my daughter's school.
          Again.

                    DETECTIVE
          Third time this month. Captain's
          noticed.

                    REYES
          What'd I miss?

                    DETECTIVE
          Same guy from the harbor. Except
          now he's hit a bank too.

(Three pieces of exposition delivered through conflict:
Reyes has personal problems, she is on thin ice at work,
and the case has escalated. No one said "as you know.")

Common Mistakes

The "as you know" speech where characters explain things to each other they would already know. Front-loading all exposition in Act I instead of revealing information as it becomes relevant. Using voice-over narration to dump exposition the script failed to dramatize. Writing characters who ask convenient questions just to trigger exposition from another character.

Related Terms

Dialogue

Subtext

Subtext is the meaning beneath the surface of dialogue — what characters actually communicate withou...

Format

Dialogue

Dialogue is the spoken words of a character in a screenplay. It appears indented beneath the charact...

Technique

Show, Don't Tell

Show, don't tell is the foundational screenwriting principle that visual storytelling should convey ...

Dialogue

Voice-Over Narration

Voice-over narration is a sustained use of voice-over (V.O.) as a storytelling device throughout a s...

Dialogue

Monologue

A monologue is an extended speech by a single character, typically running half a page or more, deli...

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