I just read the Journal Assignment File and if I read right then I am suppose to post notes here. And I’m not too sure if I’m suppose to. Will edit if I have to. And here it is. (:
FROM WEEK TWO.
THE ROLE of CONFLICT.
Conflict : central feature of the screenplay.
- man against man
- man against environment
- man against self
It’s variation of sex, age, religion and culture which provide variety to the Conflict.
Conflict = Change
- change is common to everyone
- change is universal
EVERYTHING CHANGES.
- as universal as change may be, people often resist it for fear of the unknown.
- People must learn to cope with change if they want to survive.
- The action in drama depends on the conflict.
Conflict
- It is the interaction of opposing ideas, interest, or wills, and creates the plot.
- Plot cannot be constructed w/o conflict.
- As your characters attempt to reach their goals, they come into conflict with each other.
- End of story nears when the protagonist and antagonist approach their goals and the conflict rises to generate maximum suspense and excitement.
Writing for an Audience
Screenwriter = storyteller
- the cinematic experience is not just made-up of words you might put on paper, but the audiences’ emotional reaction to that information.
- NOT director to people, writer to people, camera to people.
- It’s people to people.
What’s the writer’s purpose?
- to connect : themselves to their vision, the material, the drama and others.
Audiences want to be transported by a screenplay
Where do you look for a story?
Inside yourself.
Everything you learn about other people is already in you.
Now you need to figure out how to connect to it.
I like that last bit of notes. (:
FROM WEEK 3 :
REVIEW EXERCISE 2 : 50 WORD STORIES
- Difficulties : What were they?
- Restraints : Did they help?
Do constraints help you be a better writer?
Storytelling Tool 1 : OBSERVATION
- Whom am I writing about?
- Who is my character?
- what is he/she/it like?
- What does he/she/it do?
- What happens to him/her/it in the story?
Exercise : AWARENESS LEVEL
- People rarely observe familiar people or things closely
- Most people pass through the day with 20%-30% awareness
Storytelling Tool 1 : OBSERVATION
MINDLESS OBSERVATION vs. TRUE OBSERVATION
- OBSERVE in a conscious way
- Develop the ability to SEE and RECORD PEOPLE:
• Their MOVEMENTS
• Their PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
• The SETTING/PLACES they’re in.
(People are generally boring, BUT a person is NOT BORING) so true. (:
FROM WEEK 4 :
People watch is a good way for finding out characters.
Aristotle was from Olympius. Stageira, Chalcidice.
Aristotle poetics. Attempt to deduce poetry using mathematical fashion. E.g math equations to explain poetry. (depression square=death)
student of Plato. Teacher of Alexander the Great.
Definition of tragedy :
- creates a cause and effect chain that cleary reveals what may happen
- arouses not only pity but also fear, cause members of the audience can imagine themselves within the cause and chain effect.
(if no happy things to compare with then it’s not a tragedy)
Story is what happens and plot is the way it is arranged to show what happens.
Story tells everything and plot tells the main idea.
Thought is the theme of the play/story. Lines should reflect the theme. The lines are thought.
Cause and effect chain. Aristotle said that all causes of things are beginnings.
Events that have happened may be due to accident or coincidence; they may be particular to a specific situation…..
Unity of three types.
Time, Place and Action.
Unity of time is the duration.
Unity of place limits it to one general locality e.g one theather.
Unity of Action.
Single set of incidents that are related as cause and effect. The action was “the vital principle and very soul of the drama.
Aristotle says : “Tragedy is an imitation, not of men, but of actions.”
Catharsis : usually viewers feel it more than the actors. The actors are mediums of the poet to convey the emotions he wants the viewers to feel.
Mimesis : allows for the identification for viewers. Somewhat the copy of human nature. Direct relation for viewer and actor.
Peripeteia : reversal of the situation in the plot in the tragedy.
Simple plot vs. Complex Plot. E.g Goldilocks & Three Bears and Fight Club.
Scriptwriters learnt theme, plot, character, dialogue, music and spectacle.
Cliché’s are bad for scripts because the reflect laziness and lack of imagination.
Plot is MORE important than the character?
IS THIS TRUE? THINK ABOUT IT.
Character supports plot.
- Personal motivations are connected to the cause-effect chain.
- The protagonist in a tragedy should be renowned and prosperous, so his change can be from good to bad.
- In the ideal tragedy, the protagonist will mistakenly bring abt his own downfall.-not because he is sinful or weak – but because he does not know enough.
- This lack of knowledge is called “hamartia”
3 Act Structure.
Advantage of working in three act structure is it breaks down the story and makes it more manageable.
1st Act : set up.
- The story begins with a goal-oriented character introduced at a point of crisis.
- The character meets roadblocks produced by the plot and antagonist.
2nd Act : confrontation.
- Action intensifies.
- An event happens which forces the character to make his or her choice.
3rd Act : resolution
- Level of effort rises to new heights.
- Both plot and character is resolved.
- But the main character either achieves or does not achieve his goal.
FROM WEEK 5 :
STORYTELLING TOOL 2 : EXPERIENCE
(first tool : , second tool : observation
- a storyteller should be concerned with the potential or every experience
- many of our experiences are universal and translatable and can be used in any location
- everything about you – what you eat, how you do things is unique and irreplaceable.
TIP :
- if you don’t know what to do with a character, make him yourself for awhile.
- see how he relates to the world he has been thrown into.
→ Plunder your own personal background
the things that happen to you as you grow up and the things that are currently happening to you and your stories will be interesting.
WEEK 6 :
Review : storytelling tool 2 : experience
• all people have fragments of stories.
• these potential ideas prompt your desire to know more.
• respond emotionally and intellectually to what you heard.
• good stories are born in the heart, not the head (I like this bit, ruled by you heart and not head, that’s what good about it.)
• remember the role of an audience.
• after all, you ARE the audience (you are always the first audience to your own)
STORYTELLING TOOL 3 : MEMORY
• your memory is a wonderful cabinet of past incidents which you have experienced or been told.
• these memories are points of reference to your own past existence.
TIP :
• Write what you don’t know because you will find some part of you that does now.
• There is always room for personal discovery.
• What is the difference between memory and experience?
• How do we use memory to build creative content?
Les Mistons(1957)
Dir : Francois Truffaut
&
Sunat
Both made from memory.
Experience in Les Miston is love and in Sunat is the sunat itself and the memory for that is pain.
A virginal heart has it’s own logic.
- a heart that has never loved or been love will find its own logic
memories can be made up, don’t actually have to experience them.
WEEK 7 :
CHARACTERIZATION : DEFINING THE CHARACTER
- every story starts with a character
- the character is…
the heart, the soul and the nervous system of your story.
- it is through your characters that the viewers experience emotions.
- It is through your characters that they are touched.
- <without a CHARACTER, there is no ACTION>
- <without ACTION, you have no CONFLICT>
- <without CONFLICT, you have no STORY>
- <without STORY, you have no SCREENPLAY>
- WHEN DEVELOPING A CHARACTER, ASK YOURSELF:
- → who is your character
- → what does he want?
- → what is his quest?
- → what drives him to the resolution of the story?
1. ESTABLISH YOUR MAIN CHARACTER
- character should have a 3-D structure. (so that they can achieve their ambition. The more realistic, the more interesting the story)
a) physiology
- characters sex, age, height, weight, colour of hair, posture, defects, hereditary, abnormalities, birth marks, eyes, skin, the way he walks, talks. (this can be very powerful)
b) sociology
- class (lower, middle, upper), occupation (type of work, hours, income), education(how far in education they got to), home life (parents living, parents habits), race, religion, nationality, place in the community, political affiliations, amusements (hobbies, books, newspaper)
c) psychology
- sex life, moral standards, personal premises, ambition, frustrations, chief disappointments, temperament (choleric, easy-going, pessimistic, optimistic), attitude towards life (resigned, militant, defeatist), complexes (obsessions, inhibitions, superstitions, phobias), personality (extrovert, introvert), abilities (languages, talents), qualities (imagination, judgement, taste, poise), I.Q.
- What is the deep and personal secret this character has which he is desperate to protect/hide?
DEVELOPING CHARACTERSERATE
1. SEPARATE THE COMPONENTS OH HIS LIFE INTO 2 BASIC CATEGORIES:
a) Interior
- the interior life takes place from birth until the moment your story begins
- it is a process that forms character. [when you start formulating your character from birth, you see your character build in body and form]
1. how old is he when the story begins?
2. Where does he live?
3. Does he have siblings?
4. What kind of childhood did he have?
5. What was his relationship?
b) Exterior
- the exterior life takes place the moment your story begins to it’s conclusion.
- It is a process that reveals character.
1. who are they and what they do?
2. Are they sad or happy with their life?
3. Do they wish their life was different? Another job? Another wife?
>>YOU MUST CREATE YOUR CHARACTERS IN RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER PEOPLE OR THINGS
ALL DRAMATIC CHARACTERS INTERACT IN 3 WAYS:
1. They EXPERIENCE CONFLICT in achieving their dramatic need. [eg, need money-rob a bank, rob a store]
2. They INTERACT with other CHARACTERS. [either in an antagonistic, friendly or indifferent way]
3. They INTERACT with THEMSELVES. [eg, he overcame his fear of being caught for robbery successfully]
HOW DO YOU INVENT CHARACTERS?
- TRY TURNING THEM UPSIDE DOWN
A monk who is devoted to his religion…but is a football fanatic.
A serial killer…whose obsession is to kill other serial killers.
A common street rat…who loves to eat and cook only fine food.
EXERCISE : DEVELOPING CHARACTERS
- think about 10 characters
- turn them upside down
1. a barber who seduces women for their hair
2. a customer service officer who likes to prank call at work
3. an orphan who makes others orphans and take cares of them
4. a cool cat who likes a hot dog
5. a pilot who’s afraid of heights
NEXT WEEK.
REVIEW FOR TEST.
- 3 storyteling tools
- memory
- observation
- experience
- aristotle’s storytelling techniques
- developing 3D characeters
- writing for an audience.
- 6 elements of tragedy
- 3 act structure
- plot, story (simple/complex)
- cause and effect chain
- plot is the most important feature of tragedy
- plot is arrangement of incidents
- it is not the story itself, but the way the incidents are presented to the audience
- episodic plots are the worst kind of plots according to Aristotle
- nothing links the plots other than the fact they happen to the same person
- simple vs complex plots.
- Simple has a change of fortune
- Complex has a reversal of intention “peripeteia” and recognition “anagnorisis” connected with the catastrophe
- Katharsis
- Mimesis
- Anagnorisis (when the character realizes what he does wrong)
- Perepeteia
- Hamartia
- 3 act structure
- 1st act set up
- story begins with a goal oriented character introduced at a point
- 2nd act confrontation
- action intensifies
- an event happens which forces to make his or her choice
- 3rd act resolution
- level of effort rises to new heights
- plot and character is resolved
- but the main character either achieved or does not achieve his goal
- chain of events
- cause and effect chain that clearly reveals what may happen
- arouses not only pity but also fear cause members of the audience can imagine themselves w/in the cause and effect chain.
WEEK 8 :
ELEMENTS OF DIALOGUE
- DIALOGUE REVEALS CHARACTER
→ a character will talk about himself and other people will talk about him
- DIALOGUE ESTABLISHES RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN CHARACTERS
→ once you have established you main character’s POV, you can use dialogue with other characters to show that they have other attitudes, creating opp/alternative POVs
→ this helps to create and sustain the element of CONFLICT between characters
- GOOD EFFECTTIVE DIALOGUE WILL MOVE THE STORY FORWARD.
- DIALOGUE COMMUNICATES FACES AND INFORMATION TO THE AUDIENCE (indirectly tells people facts, communicates who the person is)
EXPOSITIONS tells us what happens in the film.
→ It conveys essential exposition.
→ Characters will talk about what happened, establishing the storyline.
→ Exposition tells everything, like James Bond movies where the villain tells everything e.g his evil plans.
- DIALOGUE COMMENTS ON THE ACTION
- DIALOGUE TIES THE SCRIPT TOGETHER
→ It is one of the devices that YOU as a writer can use to expand and enlarge your characters.
→ “If you can see it or hear it, don’t write it.” – Neville Smith
→ DIALOGUE SHOULD BE USED SPARINGLY
→ NEVER TELL HE AUDIENCE WHAT THEY CAN SEE FOR THEMSELVES!!!
<<DIALOGUE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR ACTION>>
→ In Hollywood when they look at a page and it’s got too much black, too much ink on the paper, they say :
“SHIT! IT’S FREEZE THE CAMERA TIME!!!”
- COMMON MISTAKE
- students sometimes never achieve a level of competence as they tend to reproduce conventional spoken language, long statements of “REAL TALKING”, and defend their decision by telling us that:
“It’s how the character speaks.”
• GOOD DIALOGUE is not somebody’s ability to write authentic speech as heard in real life.
• If that was al there is to it, you can just push a button on the tape recorder and then go collect yourself an Oscar.
• GOOD DIALOGUE is the illusion of reality.
• You’ve got to know how to edit what people say without losing any of the spirit.
• Students tend to create radio shows with images
<<FILM IS A VISUAL MEDIUM>>
A SCREENPLAY IS A STORY TOLD IN PICTURES.
WEEK 9 :
DYNAMIC ACTION
<<STORY IS ACTION>>
- Action encompasses any kind of movement, activity and interaction between the characters and their surroundings
- Talking about how one feels is not as powerful as illustrating why one feels the way they do through action.
<<FILM IS BEHAVIOUR>>
- Action is the manifestation of behaviour.
- The complexity of the human psyche and interaction is better understood when it is possible to watch the actions, nuances, and the reactions of the characters.
<<DYNAMIC ACTION>>
- Has the potential to enrich the experience of the audience by heightening the stakes and increasing the tension.
MOVING PICTURES
THE POWER OF ANY STORY LIES IN THE NARRATOR’S ABILITY TO PROJECT A MENTAL PICTURE FOR THE AUDIENCE.
<<MOVING PICTURES>>
EXERCISE : Translating emotional responses into actions.
- 2 students are to act out their emotion set a simple narrative according to the following :
→ the couple have just met. This is their first evening spent together. He is very shy. She desires him.
>> PURPOSE OF EXERCISE
- addresses the problem many newbies have to screenwriting
How to convey visually any sense of inner conflict of emotion.
