Here's a question from a client that I think is instructive: Suppose you have a situation where your character recalls different scenes from the past, some of which contain dialogue, as he puts the pieces of the puzzle together. How would you format that?
In most formatting situations, there is more than one possible formatting solution that is 'correct.' In this case, you could use a SERIES OF SHOTS, SERIES OF FLASHBACKS, or a MONTAGE. With any of the above three devices, it's perfectly okay to include dialogue. I suggest a FLASHBACK MONTAGE where you identify the location of each FLASHBACK to help the reader recall it along with the character. We could call these QUICK MEMORY FLASHES if your desire is for a quick succession of images. For example:
MONTAGE – JIM’S QUICK MEMORY FLASHES
However, in this particular case, it appears that my client wants to insert entire scenes in succession. I suspect you will be best off showing as little of those past scenes as possible--just the key moment of each to remind the reader. This was done to great effect at the end of The Sixth Sense.
In the example below, I made up the content just to illustrate one possible flashback solution to my client's question.
FLASHBACK MONTAGE - JIM REMEMBERS
-- SUZY’S BEDROOM -- Jim spots a bottle of theater blood on Suzy’s dresser. Suzy laughs about it.
SUZY
Oh, my niece’s play.
-- RESTAURANT -- Suzy’s smile fades momentarily.
SUZY
Nature calls.
She leaves the table with her purse. Jim watches her follow a platinum blonde into the ladies room.
-- BEACH -- Jim notices the platinum blonde watching him from the pier above him. She turns her head. Jim shrugs his shoulders.
...And so on. If desired, you could replace the CAPPED locations above with complete master scene headings; for example: INT. SUZY'S BEDROOM -- DAY. That would be perfectly fine. You could also use a non-capped version; for example: In Suzy's bedroom, Jim spots a bottle...
Finally, you could use a different expression to identify the nature of the FLASHBACK MONTAGE, depending on your dramatic purpose. For example: FLASHBACK MONTAGE -- JIM PUTS THINGS TOGETHER.
Naturally, if this MONTAGE takes place within a scene, then at the end, you would return BACK TO SCENE.
Method 7—Very quick flashbacks
If you want to shoot some quick flashes at your audience, use the montage format, as follows:
QUICK FLASHES – DUKE’S BASEBALL MEMORIES
-- Duke slides home safe. Jubilant teammates scramble to congratulate him.
-- Duke, playing shortstop, snags a hot grounder, and tosses the man out at first.
-- Duke swings at a fast ball and watches it sail over the left-field fence.
BACK TO SCENE
If you have just one quick flashback, use the following format:
QUICK FLASHBACK
Duke strikes out.
BACK TO SCENE
Here’s an interesting question I received from another client: “I have a series of quick flashbacks at the end of a short script that reference a character’s memories of three different people. Do I create three flashback headings, one for each flashback?”
You could, but I recommend you use my answer to Situation #1 above as your guide and create a series of QUICK FLASHES.