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
