Week 14

WRITING IS REWRITING:

-revision and rewriting

-rewriting is not Just Rewriting

-it’s rethinking, re conceptualizing and approaching new things

-perspective

-structure (sequence of things)

-obstacles whether there is conflict in between

-character’s behaviour, actions/ speech /goals

- everyone should at least try and rewrite their stories 5 times….( to keep the original story)

- you will never find out what is really in you until you write and rewrite

- this doesn’t mean just polishing phrases

TIP:

- study your story, see it with a new vision and changed values

- write it afresh

- then maybe scrap it, start all over again- don’t be afraid to do this!

- after this, then you can begin ‘polishing’

- finding expressions with character, dialogue that has rhythm

- it may take 2 or more versions to bring out the full colour of the characters or yourself

Reflect on this!

The inclination of the egoist is to get as much as he can, but at the same time not to change…….

-does not want to compromise

The FINAL DRAFT:

1) Read with a FIXED eye ( FOCUS)

- Re-read through your story carefully

- Focus on a particular aspect each time, location, character, action, etc.

Ask yourself:

- is the protagonist ALWAYS the focus of the story?

- is he/she doing anything or is everyone else always doing stuff around him/ her?

- passive and active protagonist

– is he/she even there?

The Chainsaw is your friend

- now is the time to look at script economy

- why have your reader dying to finish after 4 pages when they could be craving for more after 2?

Ask yourself:

-where do my scenes begin? where do they end?

- can six lines be said in three?

- can I trim the fat? can i cut the exposition? can i tell it visually instead?

Crank it up!

- the stakes are high-can they be higher?

- more to lose=more dramatic tension

Ask yourself:

- Does everything matter enough? Can everything matter more?

(Does the situation matter enough to the characters? If it matters more to the characters, the characters will matter more to  the audience)

- Am I giving my characters hell? Is it fun to see them squirm and satisfying enough when they get out of it?

Three elements:

- dynamic action

- vivid charaters

- interactive location

field:

-its big and public area …so both can feel jealous

bus:

- the first time they brought out their autograph book….bus is shaky as a reason

library:

- isolated area so she could vandalise secretly

- privacy, allows her to care for her friend without being obvious and embarrass

classroom:

- public, to tell the rest as well….

staffroom:

- private , dun’t want to embarrass the student

Final Draft:

-1.5 spacing, 3 pages,

- label final draft and date it, name, student no, tutorial grp….

- due on 29 jan by 5pm

- rmb to give first draft !!!!!!!!!

Week 12

Interactive location:

-allows you to participate in the environment

What is a location:

- a venue, a place,

- a physical place ( created or real )

- must allow events to take place

- the place in the story where events occur and characters interact

- may also represent the ‘villain’  in the story

What elements make the location interesting?

- geographical position, climates, rules ( unspoken & spoken)

INTERACTIVE LOCATION:

- a setting and surrounding that interacts with the charaters of the film by adding importance to their actions

- an environment which impacts the action and heightens the stakes

- threat of being in the location

-man-made or physical danger

- impact of a newly introduced character/ element

- E.g Norma Rae

- Jurassic park

location: Jurassic Park is a zoo/ amusement park located on an island off the coast of Centrall America

interactive location: the island is completely isolated, and anyone on it will be trapped until assistance from the mainland arrives

Week 9

Review Exercise 3: Dialogue

Purpose of the exercise:

-we write best what we know well

Dynamic Action:

-Story is action

-No action means no interaction therefore no reason for any conflict

Action encompasses any kind of movement, activity and interaction between the characters and also  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.

eg: illustrating emotion  -frustration-bang the table

-happiness- grinning

Film is behaviour

-action is the manifestation of behaviour ( conflict )

-the complexity of the human psyche and interaction is better understood when it is possible to watch the actions, nuances and 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

the process of making dodol

or

comparison between hand-made and  technology way of making food.

Purpose of the exercise:

-addresses the problem many newbies have to screenwriting:

How to convey visually any sense of inner conflict of emotion

Exercise:

In group of 3, students randomly selected a scenario and act it out

Rules of the game: translating emotional responses into actions without the use of dialogue

Review :Inja

Recall and explain some actions/ behaviour that was a result of emotions the characters felt.

- Thimbale love the dog so much that he made the collar  for him using the rope that he cut illegally.

- The boss ask Thimbale to kill the dog due to his desperation.

- Thimbale’s fear of being punished force him to obey the boss.

- The boss was afraid of the dog becoming close and more loyal to Thimbale, therefore he place it inside a bag and kick the dog.

- The dog was afraid and did not trust the boy due to the kicking incident.

- The wife try to stop him from kicking the dog for a short while.

Assignment:

1st draft of story due on Wed, 6 Jan 2010

Printed copy in class. Softcopy on SafeAssign.

Format: Courier 12, single  spacing

maximum: no more than 3 pages

minimum: 2 pages

Week 8

Elements of Dialogue:

-dialogue reveals character

-a character will talk about himself and other people will talk about him

-because we know ourself  best and ego

-Dialogue establishes relationships between characters

Once you have established your main character’s POV, you can use dialogue with other characters to show that they have other attitudes, creating opposite /alternative POVs

- This helps to create and sustain the element of CONFLICT between characters

Good effective dialogue will move the story forward

Dialogue communicates facts and information to the audience

- It conveys essential exposition

- Characters will talk about what happened, establishing the storyline

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

-only to reveal what’s to be reveal

-”Talk is Cheap”

Never tell the 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

Bad dialogue:

-cheesy

-unfocussed

-inappropriate tone and language

-long winded

If that was all there is to it, you can just push a button on the tape recorder and then go collect your 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

Common Mistake:

-students tend to create radio shows with images

(FILM IS A VISUAL MEDIUM)

A SCREENPLAY IS A STORY TOLD IN PICTURES

Writing Dialogue :

The Scenario:

-a middle-aged man returns home from work

-he had stopped for a few drinks with his friends and forgot to phone his wife to tell her he’ll be late

-the dinner is ruined

Exercise:

Husband: I’m back honey. What’s for dinner?

Wife: Have you forgotten what today is?

Husband:Oh its Sam bithday right?

Wife: Its 19 december. Our anniversary. How could you forget?

Husband: Im so sorry honey. i’ve been so busy with work that it slipped off my mind.

Wife: But you have already promised me to be home early.

Husband: Look I’ve already apologised. What more do you want me to do.

Wife: You’ve been drinking again, haven’t you?

Husband: What are you talking about? I stayed back with John to discuss about a project. Anyway, why are you complaining so much? I never complaint when you drove my car into the swimming pool.

The real exercise:

-repeat “the experiment” but:

-husband and wife are your own parents

-get two people to read the dialogue

-record the reading

-post it to your blog (using Youtube, Multiply, etc.)

Week 7

Purpose of the exercise:

-True life stories do not offer neat and relevant endings

-Life is unpredictable

-In a story, we can and must control the events and sequences so that it gives the appearance of being like life.

Characterization: Defining The Character

-Every story starts with a character

-those not human, have human trait

-The character is…

-the heart, the soul and the nervous system of your story

-It is through your characters that the viewers experience emotions

-WITHOUT A CHARACTER, THERE IS NO ACTION eg: landscape

-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:

-characters should have a 3 Dimensional Structure

a) Physiology

-sex

-age

-height, weight

-colour of hair, eyes, skin

-posture

-appearance

-defects, abnormalities, deformities, birth marks, diseases

-heredity

b) Sociology

-class (lower, middle, upper)

-occupation: type of work, hours of work, income, condition of work,

attitude towards organization, suitability of work

-education: amount, kind of schools, marks, favourite subjects, poorest subjects, aptitudes

-home life: parents living, earning power, orphan, parents separated/divorced, parents’ habits, parents’ mental development, parents’ vices, neglect, character’s marital status

-religion

-race, nationality

-place in the community: leader among friends, clubs, sports

-political affiliations

-amusements: hobbies, books, newspapers, magazines he/she reads

c) Psychology

-sex life, moral standards

-personal premise, 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: language, talents

-qualities: imagination, jugment, taste, poise

-I.Q

-E.Q

-what is the deep and personal secret this character has which he is desperate to protect/ hide?

2. Separate the components of his life into 2 basic categories:

a) Interior -everything that we don’t see on screen

- the interior life takes place from birth until the moment the 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)

-how old is he when story  begins?

-where does he live?

-does he have siblings?

-what kind of childhood did he have?

-what was his relationship to his parents?

-what kind of child was he?

-is he married, single, widowed, separated or divorced

b) Exterior -everything we see in the film

-the exterior life takes place the moment your story begins to its conclusion.

-it is a process that reveals character

-Who are they and what do they do?

-Are they sad or happy with their life?

-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 and bank, rob a store, rob a person?)

2. They interact with other characters.

(either in an antagonistic, friendly or indifferent way)

3. They interact with themselves.

-How do you invent characters?

-try turning them upside tdown

-eg; a monk who is devoted to his religion…. but is a football fanatic

-eg; a serial killer …whose obsession is to kill other serial killers

Storytelling Techniques Quiz #1

Review

-3 storytelling tools

-memory

-observation

-experience

-Aristotle’s storytelling techniques

-developing 3 dimensional characters

-writing for an audience

Week 6

Tragedy:

Flaws Result

-jealousy                 -death threat

-rage                        -violence

-impulsiveness     -misunderstood

-too kind                -being taken advantage of

-trustworthy          -being tricked

Review of shawshank redemption:

What lessons did he learn from his mistakes?

-Not to be trustworthy

How did he change and how did it change others?

-He was quiet at first, but then at the end he socialize more with the people

-He taught them bout hope, which can be dangerous and good at the same time

Letter to the Past:

-sparked off by an event/person

-reflect on emotions then/now

-most important thing you wanted to know/say  (mostly due to fear of confrontation)

-confrontation leads to having to deal with the situation

-revisit the past

Purpose of the exercise:

-the letter is a practical, personal example of how a character-YOU-undergo an inevitable process of change.

-this process of change is an essential ingredient of any effective story.

-in dramatic writing, the very essence is character change

-learn from:

-observation

-experience

-memory

Storytelling Tool 2:

Experience

-a storyteller should be concerned with the potential of every experience

-everything about you-where you were born, what food you eat, the bump on your forehead- your experiences are unique and irreplaceable

-many of your experiences are universal and translatable and can be used in any location

translatable ideas

-visit to hospital

-fear of going to dentist

-falling in love

-ghost stories

-death

TIP:

-if you don’t know what to do with a character, make him yourself for a while.

-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 make terrific story sources.

-record experiences

-diary

-blog

-reflect your past (colourful past)

-recall how you felt then/now

-all people have fragments of stories

-these potential ideas prompt your desire to know more

-respond emotionally and intellectually to what you heard

-we always respond emotionally first then intellectually

-good stories are born in the heart, not the head

-because initial ideas are sparked by emotions, memories (heart)

-development stage (in your head)

-remember the role of an audience

-after all, you ARE the audience

things to think about when writing a story:

1) take them on a ride of discovery

2) feed new info

Storytelling Tool 3: Memory

- 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 do not know because you will find some part of you that does now

-research

-imagination

-interviews

-there  is always room for personal discovery

-what is the difference between memory and experience?

-experience is what you really go through

-memory is manufactured (what you remember), may not be real

Assignment 1:

write 2 short stories

-one is completely TRUE

-one is completely FALSE

only author know which is which

-post on blog by wed, 3 Nov, 10am

Week 5

Review of Shawshank Redemption:

1) Why would we classify Andy as a tragic hero?

We classified him as a tragic hero because he is smart and has a successful career as a bank officer. He is also innocent of murdering his wife. However, because of his flaw, he had to serve the prison for his whole life and thus we felt that he was being heavily punished for his flaw.

2) What was his flaw and how did it cause his fall from grace?

I think that his flaw was due to his jealousy and thus causing him to be at the crime scene.

3)  What lessons did he learn from his mistakes?

He learns that since he has already made a mistake causing him to be in prison, he has to deal with it positively

4) How did he change and how did he change others?

He changes by adapting himself to the place and thus resorting to dirty tricks to survive inside. He changed others by being a good influence to them and making the prison a better place to stay in. He also believes in hope and thus tries to influence his friend to believe in hope.

Assignments:

Letter to the past

- select a person that meant something to you in your past, but whom you no longer speak to now

- then write a letter which expresses all the things you wish you could say to the person but can’t

- communicate the memories of important moments you had together in the past, and how your time spent together has made you a different person now than you were before

- password protect your page

Week 4

Assignments:

Visual Trigger:

-Find an image and tell a story that comes to your mind as you see it.

-Pictures should not be taken for this purpose-use only pictures you can find

Principals of tragedy

-incorporate principles of tragedy into your writing

What is tragedy?

Tragedy doesn’t mean that something bad happens and the story ends.

It means something bad happens as a result of a flaw in your character, and you show how this tragic fall forces your character to learn something about herself or himself.

Week 3-Observation

Storytelling tool 1: Observation

-Observe in a conscious way ( is aware of the act of observing )

-Observation

-behavior, attire, speech, stance/gait (posture, gestures), physical looks

- A- ATTIRE

- B-BEHAVIOR

- C-CHARACTERISTIC

- D-DIALOGUE

- E-EXPRESSION

- F-FACIAL FEATURES

- G-GESTURES

- Train yourself to see and record:

-movements

-physical characteristics

-settings ( affects our behaviour )

- Adopt a KEEN EYE

- Develop a natural SENSE OF CURIOUSITY

- curious vs intrusive

- An observed event, when subject to simple questions, can set up a sequence of possibilities that will develop into a story worth telling.

For e.g when you observe a couple having a meal yet totally not talking….What questions come to mind?

- Question to think about:

- 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?

Awareness level:

-People rarely observe familiar poeple or things closely

-Most people pass through the day with 20%-30% awareness

Mindless observation vs True observation

- Observe in conscious way

- Develop the ability to SEE and RECORD people:

-Their MOVEMENTS

-Their Physical Characteristics

-Their settings/places they are in

Exercise: People Watch

1. Walk into the canteen/library, etc.and watch people pass by

2. Eventually, one will catch your attention

3. Write down as many details as possible through observation.

-2 genders

-2 different settings

-2 different age group

4. Transcribe all these details into the “People- Watch” page that you will create on your blog

Week 2-Conflicts

Conflict

-serious disagreement

-hostile encounter

-struggle (mental,emotional,physical)

-opposition of persons or forces

-can result internally or externally

-it is the interaction of opposing ideas, interests, or wills that creates the plot.

Types of conflict

-dramatic conflict is the protagonist’s struggle against something or someone

-man vs man

-man vs environment

-man vs system

-man against self

-variations of conflict can arise from gender, age, religion and culture

Causes and effects of conflict

- conflict arises when there is change

- changes may be major or minor

- while change is universal and common, it is not always accepted

-Example of changes:

-seasons, lives, relationships, feelings, bodies, locations, technologies,

-conflict arises when people resist changes

-the intensity of conflict depends how people react to the change

-people must learn to cope with change if they want to survive

-the action in drama depends on conflict

Importance of conflict

- plot cannot be constructed without conflict

- central feature of the screenplay

- as your characters attempt to reach their goals, they come into conflict with each other.

- the end of the 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

-its people to people

-to connect audiences:

- themselves

- their unique vision

- the material/issue

- the drama

-others

-audiences want to be transported by a screenplay

-within yourself eg. experiences, memories, emotions

-practice observing, ‘listening’ and reading body language of people

-figure how to connect your viewers to your story through emotions, characters, etc

Assignments:

-5 stories of exactly 50 words each,

- do word count