CLASS 6
PLOTTING, WRITING SCENE, DIALOGUE AND SUBTEXT. OPENING.
COMMERCIAL CONSIDERATIONS.
PLOTTING – Entire script
No irrelevant scenes – Every scene must reveal new details of character or move
story forward.
Increasing Conflict – Obstacles get bigger, tougher – OPTIONS FOR SUCCESS
ARE REMOVED.
An accelerated pace – Very little conflict in Act I. Build in Act II. Almost all
conflict in Act III
Emotional Peaks and Valleys – Softer and funny or romantic after serious pain
and tragedy.
Jeopardy – Danger of loss is very involving. What’s at stake must be clear.
What has your character got to lose? Why is it important to them?
Echoing – Repeat three (or more) times to emphasize a change in a character.
How does the character REACT to similar situation to show GROWTH?
MAKING THE STORY CREDIBLE
Only one fantasy per movie – One “in-credible” moment. MUST HAVE
INTERNAL REALITY.
Consistent with Character’s background – There are rules in your world. Do
the characters behave within the rules you’ve created?
Foreshadowing – Give background BEFORE to make believable LATER. Gives
credibility to characters actions by justifying them earlier in the story.
If you SET IT UP, PAY IT OFF. And vice versa.
USING TIME EFFECTIVELY
Expanded time – Lots of action packed into an impossibly short time.
Condensed time – Hours, days, weeks, years, decades, millenniums, condensed
into two hours.
Announce time remaining – “Prom is only two weeks away.” “The Titanic hit
an iceberg two and a half days out …”
A race against time – TICKING CLOCK.
INFORMING THE READER
“Make them laugh, make them cry and MAKE THEM WAIT.”
Anticipation – Story tension revolves around ANTICIPATION. “What’s gonna
happen next?” SUSPENSE – THE ANTICIPATION OF VIOLENCE.
Superior Position – We know what’s coming before the characters do.
Curiosity – Puzzles are interesting. Don’t always have to explain what characters
are doing. “Why are they afraid of heights?” It’s alright to let it remain a
mystery sometimes.
Surprise – Jump out and go “BOO!” Don’t lull audience into complacency.
Give them a JOLT once in a while.
SATISFYING THE READER
Ending must be consistent with the story – Inevitable but surprising. You get
what you want but not in the way you expected. Give audience most
appropriate and satisfying ending. It’s what people remember most about
your film. It’s how the audience feels when they leave the theatre.
NO “DEUS EX MACHINA”
No ambiguity to the resolution of the VOM – You’ve spent the entire movie
setting up your VOM - NOW PAY IT OFF!
No DEFEATED endings – If you WANT to satisfy. Life must be worth living,
the torch passed, humanity enhanced, redemption achieved.
SCENE WRITING
GOALS:
Create a movie in the mind of the reader that keeps them emotionally
involved.
Fast, easy and enjoyable to read – White space. No lengthy descriptions or
monologues.
ALWAYS SEND A CLEAN, WELL PRESENTED SCRIPT.
PLOT
Determine the goal of scene – Conflict is usually the goal. Some scenes are just
for expositional information and must be SHORT.
VOM moves scene forward, moves characters forward, and OPPOSITION
to VOM creates the CONFLICT.
Give each character a goal
Put characters goals in opposition – Because it creates CONFLICT, which
creates EMOTION in Drama and Comedy.
Enter scene LATE, leave EARLY
Scene must play out in REAL TIME – No “He exercises for five minutes.”
“She walks a couple of blocks then …”
Lead the reader into the next scene – Most of the time. Transitions, matching
action, segues. Next scene happens because the previous one happens.
Beginning/Middle/End structure – The whole is structured. The part of the
whole is structured. Beat, scene, sequence, Act, script, trilogy, series …
STYLE
Language is simple, concise, and easy to read – High School reading level.
Tell the reader only what the audience will SEE and HEAR – Do not interpret
the scene or moment for us. No internal thoughts, realizations, etc.
DESCRIPTION
ALWAYS AFTER A SLUGLINE
Draw the reader into the seting first – Where are we? What’s important to the
story about this place? Who is in scene?
Describe all settings and characters in DETAIL – Give us the
ESSENCE of what we see on screen.
Reveal the ESSENCE of the characters – How they move. How dressed. What
accessories IF IT HELPS US UNDERSTAND THE CHARACTER.
Maximize casting possibilities – A “Jim Carrey-type” can only be Jim Carrey.
DRAMATIC ACTION (ACTION)
What characters do in scene to reveal character or desire
Writing must be clear, vivid, emotionally involving – Active voice: She
stands. Not: She is standing. He creeps. Not: He walks slowly. A large
nail is a SPIKE.
Keep paragraphs short, broken by dialogue and double spaced – One image
per description. Four-line “rule of thumb.” WHITE SPACE!
Describe everything that happens in detail – Not general or generic, but
SPECIFIC. “They chase each other through Manhattan” provides no
visuals, no sense of place, no drama. PLAY IT OUT IN REAL TIME!
DIALOGUE – Hardest thing to write
Is poetry. It has cadence, rhythm, iambic pentameter.
Reveals character
Advances the plot
Explains the past
Articulate feelings that can’t be conveyed visually (Internal Thoughts)
Characters must appear in scene before speaking
Dialogue should reflect each character’s background – Be consistent with
speech patterns. Avoid how YOU, the AUTHOR, speaks. Avoid
Formality. Use contractions, etc.
Vary dialogue among the characters – Give each a unique voice.
EMPLOY SUBTEXT – Most difficult part of writing dialogue – Opposite of
“on the nose” (Direct/Explaining) writing.
Keep the dialogue interesting, original, succinct
Complement, don’t duplicate the action
Use dialogue to create Hero Identification, Re-inforce structure and theme
READ ALOUD – ALWAYS!
OPENING (TEN PAGES FOR FEATURE – 1-2 FOR CLASS PROJECTS)
Must grab or seduce reader through EMOTION – Avoid exposition. Should
be more questions than spelling things out.
Move the reader out of the real world – Transport them into YOUR world.
Establish your WORLD OF STORY. What are the rules?
Introduce your Hero and establish ID with Hero – Sympathy, Jeopardy,
Likability, Humor, Power
Take Your Time - Feature Only – MAKE US WANT TO TURN PAGES!
Outside Action Opening – Open with Antagonist, then introduce Hero living
everyday life. TERMINATOR, INDEPENDENCE DAY are Outside
Action Openings.
SCREEN DVD ON “SUBTEXT IN DIALOGUE”