F***ing c**t S**tb*gs

How bad is swearing?

I've got a script I'm working on and one of the characters is, by her nature, angry, grumpy and a right bastard. I want her to say f**k an awful lot. It makes it funnier when she can express herself through swearing. I've toned it down and it just doesn't make me laugh as much and it's not true, the nature of the character is a belligerent sweary person.

So, my question is...should I tout around the clean version or the f**king sweary version?

The obvious non-answers is 'isn't it cleverer and funnier to find a way to express herself without swearing a la Father Jack?' - No. Tried it and f**kstick is a funnier word than cackspanner.

Show off the version you think is funniest.

Be true to yourself.

If you can't even write it in a title for a thread and make it funny, best not is my gu**s.

Quote: Matthew Stott @ December 6 2012, 10:16 PM GMT

Show off the version you think is funniest.

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Can't work the quotey thing proper but just clicked through to your website and enjoyed reading it very much

"- Roy is mugged by Nicholas Lyndhurst."

is complete genius

What's your target market?
Would it be a lot less funny with Soddings & Bloodies?

yeah, soddings and bloodies make her sound self censoring and careful of what she's saying and takes the edge off her unpleasantness. target market for me at the moment is probably sitcom trials, mission and writers room.

As someone who likes to swear in their posts, like a lot, the secret to a good cuss is just like comedy itself, timing.

When used constantly, it lacks shock value and soon becomes tiresome - especially if you're sat in the audience and it dawns on you that the writer isn't funny and they're just throwing in the swears because they can't come up with actual jokes.

However, if your character is a Sweary Mary, then there are all sorts of imaginative and original profanities that you can come up with, such as monkey jizzer, cock sniffer, flange, twunt and so forth, to keep it fresh and different.

When done correctly and with an actor of brilliant artistic verve such as Peter Capaldi, then you onto a winner. But if it's Catherine Tate's Gran, then it becomes really stale, really quickly.

It's your final decision, but if I had to read a script that was constant swear words, I'd chuck it in the f**king bin.

All I will say is that you write stuff that couldn't possibly be aired in front of the target audience or is innappropriate for the likely time-slot you are showing yourself, at best, to be naive and uninformed, at worst, inflexible and difficult.

Not a good start.

I find that,for me personally, I get turned off by constant swearing. A couple of times are funny but after that it's boring. The only time swearing makes me laugh is when an elderly actress has a rant and repeats the swear words several times in that rant.

Quote: Renegade Carpark @ December 7 2012, 12:17 AM GMT

As someone who likes to swear in their posts, like a lot, the secret to a good cuss is just like comedy itself, timing.

When used constantly, it lacks shock value and soon becomes tiresome - especially if you're sat in the audience and it dawns on you that the writer isn't funny and they're just throwing in the swears because they can't come up with actual jokes.

However, if your character is a Sweary Mary, then there are all sorts of imaginative and original profanities that you can come up with, such as monkey jizzer, cock sniffer, flange, twunt and so forth, to keep it fresh and different.

When done correctly and with an actor of brilliant artistic verve such as Peter Capaldi, then you onto a winner. But if it's Catherine Tate's Gran, then it becomes really stale, really quickly.

It's your final decision, but if I had to read a script that was constant swear words, I'd chuck it in the f**king bin.

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Too true this script sounds like the choad less travelled

Right, I think she is what she is...she's sweary and toning it down makes an inferior script. So I stick with it.

But I think what I'm taking for this is probably best not to have sweary folk in your script if you're a nobody as it'll alienate folk.

So QED, this won't be the script that I use tout around to...well, whoever the hell you tout stuff round to. Cross that bridge when I come to it.

Thanks for comments.

Put ten interchanges of dialogue or so up here Trinder and people will be able to advise you better.

Quote: Trinder @ December 7 2012, 12:10 PM GMT

But I think what I'm taking for this is probably best not to have sweary folk in your script if you're a nobody as it'll alienate folk.

View original

It really does depend who you're pitching it to.
If it's a movie with an intended 15+ rating, fill your boots..
If it's prime-time sit-com, I'd forget it.

Lazzard has made an interesting and important point, which is quite simply know your target. Read any interview with commissioners and one of the most common complaints they express is not that the material's poor, but that it simply isn't right for them. Obviously CBBC isn't gonna take the same work as Playboy Channel, but often the differences are more subtle, and it's a good idea to investigate your target before sending stuff on.