So it’s Oscar time again, and the screenplays that have garnered nominations for the 93rd Academy Awards (2020) are indeed a diverse group. We’d all like to believe that they are the best screenplays entered – no strings attached. BUT if you’ve been around the block once or twice you will know that there are …
Who a character is on the inside is often not clear from their actions and interaction with the outside world at the beginning of a story. Often the inner-self has been suppressed so far inside of the character that they forget, fail to or are unable to recognise or express their true selves and it takes an extraordinary experience for them to initiate change.
Being aware of the tools you have at your disposal before starting to tell your story, and using them when you start writing, is much better than trying to utilise them to improve or fix your screenplay after you have finished your first draft. SURPRISE Surprise the dictionary tells us, is “a feeling of …
Each of the key character types plays a specific role in a story, and there are five which you need to carefully craft into the fabric of your narrative, when designing your story. The protagonist, the antagonist, the mentor, the ally and the love interest.
Being an adaption of a book, and even more than that a classic, and even more than that a classic book that has been successfully adapted for the screen more than once; there is added pressure on the writer to both be faithful to the original material and to craft a good screenplay.