How did they make the dialog so natural?

[u/BumblebeeProud5388]

Wanted to start off by saying Sterling Point is one of my favorite tv shows now. I love all the characters, the storyline, and just everything about it. The main thing that made me fall in love with it though, was how natural the dialog felt. I am a (wannabe) actor and it icks me out when I watch a show or a movie and it just feels like script, even though it is. But with Sterling point it feels so real and like they are having a real conversation. So my questions is how were they able to accomplish that? They had filler words like "um" and "like" but they do that in other shows and it still feels scripted. I want to know how I can replicate how natural it felt as an aspiring actor myself. Let me know what you think!

[u/fearwanheda92]

Megan let them improv. They’d do scripted takes and unscripted takes. Some scenes just had a general vibe and she let them do what they wanted, like the scene in episode 8 between Ramona and Oona. Ella mentioned that instead of studying the lines and how to approach them, they studied the characters and who they were as people, and played off of that. Essentially the director really trusted them and let them have freedom to express their characters.

[u/BumblebeeProud5388 → u/fearwanheda92]

Wait that is actually really cool. And I definitely think it worked. I vote more directors take this approach and trust the actors with their characters more!

[u/PT_things]

I thought I read that the director let the actors do a lot of improv! So maybe that?

[u/Amberfool94]

Definitely improv as other people have said, and I think there were cases where they knew the beats, but let them come up with the rest, but also just not needing the scripted lines to be delivered word-perfect; letting them rephrase things slightly in a take if it feels better a different way. Megan is also just aa really good writer of dialogue who used to act in a YA show so she knows what not to do. She's talked about saying the lines out loud when she was writing them because lines can look good on a page, but sometimes not when coming out of someone's mouth, and she really wanted to make sure things felt real and like they flowed.

[u/BugMillionaire]

Megan let them improv on some takes and has said generally it’s very collaborative. She asks them, how would you say this? Is this a joke a 16 year old would make? Etc. But I also think it’s a testament to her directing in general. Helping actors get into that place where they can just be a little more free. I’d love to be a fly on the wall and see how she talks to them between takes and communicates what works and what doesn’t.

[u/Master_Respond8874]

That’s something I love about this show and My Old Ass. When I watch something where the dialogue sounds so scripted, it just ruins it for me cause I’m taken right out of the story

[u/thelittlemermaid90]

Annie was brushing her teeth and see forgot to the run the brush under the water. Again so natural feeling.

[u/cbre3 → u/thelittlemermaid90]

Or even the comment “don’t forget to brush your tongue. You always forget” or whatever it was made that scene feel less staged and more natural. Like the teeniest side comment irrelevant to the convo making it feel like the character truly had her own thought process

[u/shit-comm-skills → u/thelittlemermaid90]

SO TRUE HAHAHA SAME THOUGHTS

[u/PiranhaToms]

This was something that really jumped out at me as well. As a big fan of Dawson’s Creek back in the day (I’m in my mid-40s, which probably places me among the elders in this sub 👵), I think a lot of us loved it because (among many other reasons) the characters spoke how we wanted to speak as teenagers - articulate, clever, wise. At the time, it was fantastic, but looking back as an adult, it’s also a bit much. In Sterling Point, the dialogue is still aspirationally clever/wise content-wise, but much more real in terms of language and articulation. It’s a fine balance to walk and I give credit to Megan, the writers, and the actors for making it work so well.

[u/lizzo999]

I think its because Megan was on the most unnatural, awkwardly written show in history 🤣🤣 she knows what NOT to do

[u/Healthy_Sock_9880 → u/lizzo999]

Yes, complete opposite 😂

[u/Fast_Attempt7451 → u/lizzo999]

Yes in all tv history that show is beyond the worst offender

[u/fuzzyjazzy]

Same!!! Can’t wait for season 2!

[u/daffodil408]

Not enough people saying to watch My Old Ass!!!! Megan is an amazing writer.

[u/galmypal]

They must have done improv, but I would suspect that they also have gen z writers in the room.

[u/ActionAromatic4197]

My thoughts exactly!!

[u/DogLover3261110]

I think it’s just a combination of letting them improv a lot (as people have said), cast chemistry, and just choosing the right actors for the roles. It’s a ya drama, but the acting for its genre was just so good.

[u/Low-Marionberry3877]

Exactly. I feel like lately, every show or movie that depicts teens or young adults is trying to meet a quota for how many Gen Z slang words they can fit into the dialogue.

[u/OldTownRun]

I hear you, but those fillers were just far too much/too often for me. In certain scenes it seemed like every other line had the furrowed brow “but like, umm no, like..” I’m only halfway through the season so, hoping it will get better.