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Day 11 Assignments
Post your Day 11 assignment here.
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Robert R. Smith Living Metaphors
What I learned doing this assignment: To find every place possible to use should work/but doesn’t as a major change element for the transformable character. What I also learned is that overuse of metaphors may be unreal.
SHOULD WORK BUT DOESN’T CHALLENGES
(1) Carlo doesn’t believe in ghosts, then, his comfortable skepticism doesn’t work for him when he sees the ghost of Lou Tasca, whom he had killed. Later, Carlo also becomes spirit-possessed by Lou. Carlo’s fellow long time friend and fellow mobster Sam is super-skeptical but then witnesses Carlo possessed by the spirit of his father (Rabbi Solomon) who warns both Carlo and him that their boss, Tony Rizzo, is on his way to kill both of them and …
(2) Sam and Carlo see that their old way doesn’t work for them. They become disillusioned by the challenge that their danger shows them: The Mafia ‘family’ is hardly a ‘family’ that protects them, as they had thought.
(3) Oleg, the Russian crime boss, convinces Tony that while he swore loyalty and silence to the mob and kept his promise, the Mafia superiors broke their end of the covenant, they had promised to care for Tony’s family. (Tony has a paraplegic son.) This sets-up Tony’s eventually flipping and joining Carlo, Oleg and Sam in the Witness Protection Program.
(4) Zoey the Psychic Stripper conducts a séance in order to contact the spirit of Lou Tasca, to find out the location of $200K. Instead, Lou possesses Carlo and tells Zoey to bud out of his mission to save Carlo’s life and soul and that the $200K is cursed and it’s blood money because it is Tony Rizzo’s gambling debt that he owed Lou and because Tony didn’t want to pay it, he ordered Carlo to kill Lou. Zoey stops the séance and warns Carlo to do whatever Lou tells him to do, i.e., leave the mob. Zoey was convinced the séance would do good, instead it exposed her own greed that blinded her to the ugly truth of greed and murder.
(5) Lou Tasca believes he can confront Carlo and right away and persuade him and Sam to quit the mob, he is thinking as a hitman (old ways), but it doesn’t work when he crashes Carlo’s birthday party, it backfires (as Rabbi Solomon, his spirit guide had warned him) and he makes Carlo look insane when he appears to Carlo (visible only to him) but in front of Tony Rizzo, Carlo and Sam’s boss. Tony immediately, plans to kill Carlo because his apparent insanity may draw heat from the police and destabilize the crime family.
METAPHORS
1. There are mob metaphors throughout: “Flipping” means to defect from the mob to law enforcement in order to inform or testify against former friends in the mob. “Garbage Business” and “Junk Business” are metaphors for drug-dealing.
2. The spirit of slain gangster Lou Tasca cannot make it to the world to come, i.e., Heaven, unless he does a supreme good deed to get him to go to heaven. The metaphor for good deeds is “Metrocard” and his going to Heaven is called “taking the uptown train.” (Terminology derived from the New York Subway System and as appropriated to the story it mean good deeds are the Metrocard you swipe through the turnstyle in order to get to the tracks and take the uptown train (to get to heaven). Lou is them sent on his mission to persuade his killer (Carlo Vizzini) to do what he should have done, i.e. quit the mob and enter Witness Protection.
3. Yankee Stadium as the Cathedral of Baseball. When Carlo asks Lou if he wants to watch the Subway Series on TV.. Lou says, “Why should I watch the game on TV when I can go to the Stadium and watch it for free?” Carlo asks does he beam himself up to Yankee Stadium or does he take the Uptown “D” Train. Lou says, “I’m lookin’ to take an Uptown Train to an even better place than the Cathedral of Baseball. Carlo says, “Why don’t you take that train.” Lou replies, “I can’t take that train until you flip and take yourself into Witness Protection.
4. As the script is about good and evil, I pepper the script with mention of objects that, I use metaphorically to subliminally draw the audience into the issues. For example, Sherrie serves Shrimp Fra Diavolo at Carlo’s Birthday Party. (Diavolo means Devil.) Shrimp is not kosher for dinner guest and Jewish apostate, Sam. Carlo only drinks Virgin Marys.
5. At the Séance, unexpected spirit-visitors are archaeologist Howard Carter and Pharaoh Tutankhamun whose appearance is metaphoric: They assert that there never was a curse on King Tut’s Tomb. The newspapers invented the curse story just to sell more newspapers. But there is a curse on the $200K. It is the money Tony owed to Lou that he didn’t want to pay him, so he ordered Carlo to kill Lou.
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This reply was modified 4 years ago by Robert Smith.
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This reply was modified 4 years ago by
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Mark Smith/ Day 11 Assignment
Brainstorm at least five of each of today’s challenges that you can put in your screenplay.
1. Go through your story outline or script and brainstorm the following:
– 5 Should Work, But Doesn’t challenges
Frank Hammond believes going through the “proper channels” to reporting abuses and possible crimes to principal and administration will work, but it doesn’t.
Robert Kennedy believes that if he does his schoolwork and earns his grades, everything will be fine. But learns he is blocked form graduating.
Gwen Brown stays quiet and lets the abuses continue, thinking it will go away. But it only gets worse.
Frank Hammond thinks that by doing his job, including ensuring more students enter college, he will be spared from retaliation by the principal and administration.
Gabby, a Hispanic student, overcomes her fear and reports sexual assault by star athlete, but only faces further retaliation from both principal and administration.
– 5 Living Metaphor challenges
Students visit a nearby shoe repair shop where owner shows them how to repair the worn-out soles of shows, and says the repaired shoes highlight how skills and hard-work can bring success.
Frank begins jogging every evening – with his runs getting longer and more intense – as tension at his job increase. His friend, Ashmore, believes Frank is running not only to take his mind off the job, but in a subconscious way may even believe he’s running “away” from his job.
A gold trophy given each week to top students becomes an important reward supplanting the total focus on athletic achievement by the corrupted teachers.
Big Mo’s cart carrying video games, music tapes and candy is blocked by Teacher Ashmore who won’t accept kickbacks like a group of corrupt teachers and challenges the old ways.
Frank brings attention to a monument by the school founder, who struggled to gain an education but pledged that his children would be educated.
2. With each, tell us the Old Way and the Challenge, and how you think it might play out in your story.
3. Answer the question “What I learned doing this assignment is…?” (place at top of your work).
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“What I learned doing this assignment is that there is more than one way to create profound moments.
Old Way – He will do anything to find out about what happened to his father including get himself thrown off his training
Should work but doesn’t – Instead of getting thrown out, someone dies at his hand.
Living metaphor – At the end we see him giving up the chance of that information to save his new partner’s life.
Old Way – He is going to toe the line to get back to Russia and find the information about his father.
Should work but doesn’t – Even though he toes the line, Russia switches side on him.
Living metaphor – In becoming a double agent and serving the Brits for the right reason and in giving up his chance at information – saves his new partner’s life.
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DAY 11 ASSIGNMENT – CHALLENGING OLD WAYS – LIVING METAPHORS
Joshua Doerksen’s Living Metaphors
WHAT I LEARNED DOING THIS ASSIGNMENT:
The importance of metaphor is largely through a “show don’t tell” premise which lends to much more profound tone than limiting the story to dialogue alone.
SHOULD WORK BUT DOESN’T WORK CHALLENGES
1. The Board of Directors recommend the reversal of a decision made by Bill on the Turing Tech Program.
OLD WAYS: Bill’s stubborn resolve.
CHALLENGE: Bill must defend his leadership.
2. Bill refuses the Board to reexamine the TTP Data.
OLD WAYS: Bill’s angry tirade. Fear.
CHALLENGE: Bill must defend his mental capacity.
Bill must agree to a psychiatric assessment to defend his leadership/protect his legacy.
3. Bill tries to impress upon Dr. Pratt his stature and genius.
OLD WAYS: Bill manipulates situations to his whim.
CHALLENGE: Dr. Pratt sees through the Bill’s façade.
Bill must truly be open to the process and trust another person to save himself.
4. Board of Directors litigate to remove Bill as CEO.
OLD WAYS: Bill fights to win the day in court.
CHALLENGE: The law is not strong in Bill’s favor.
Bill must accept the risk of losing it all.
5. Dr. Wilhelm provides a negative assessment of Bill’s mental health and capacity to operate as CEO.
OLD WAYS: Bill strategizes to out-maneuver adversaries.
CHALLENGE: Bill is out of time and options.
Bill must adapt quickly and settle his case before a judgement ruling.
LIVING METAPHOR CHALLENGES
6. The Psychiatric Dept. represents Bill’s genius – it is alive and present yet not truly understood by the outside world.
OLD WAYS: Bill’s standing “above” the masses.
CHALLENGE: Bill must realize his similarities to and join the masses.
7. Dr. Pratt is the personification of struggle. Her perseverance has won her position but there is the idea that as a trailblazer in her field, any satisfaction she may derive will come from herself. Others will benefit from her sacrifice before any recognition may be paid.
OLD WAYS: Bill recognizes in Dr. Pratt his own struggles – both old and new.
CHALLENGE: Bill is faced with the true meaning of legacy and selflessness in his struggles to gain relationship and understanding with Dr. Pratt. Each will learn from the other.
8. The Turing Tech Project is a manifestation of Fear, Guilt Pride and Failure to Bill.
OLD WAYS: Bill was friends with Alan Turing through his trials and ultimately to his untimely death. The two shared a genius that while different, complimented the other inexorably in the advancement of Artificial Intelligence.
CHALLENGE: Bill must come to recognize that the limitations of his friend are not his own, and that the Program itself does not define their friendship or his failure. Bill must grieve his loss and accept that even genius minds cannot escape its traumatic effect. Bill must accept his limitations, his reality, and his mortality through therapy.
9. Edward is the undying support and loyalty Bill does not have in his familial relationships. He will become the patriarch of a lasting legacy.
OLD WAYS: Bill left his family farm at a young age largely abandoning his responsibilities. Though successful and a good provider, Bill perpetuated the example for his wife, daughter, and son, where work and success came before duty to family.
CHALLENGE: Bill does not want his legacy to reflect his mistakes but the good that came of them.
10. B.E.R.T. – the experimental A.I. platform is a programmed statutory of every value held dear to Bill.
OLD WAYS: B.E.R.T. is the perfected vision of the values and morals that Bill wished he had come to earlier in life. The technology is advanced beyond anything currently known and presents a danger if allowed to be exploited.
CHALLENGE: Bill must learn to trust humanity if he truly wants to help humanity, and his creation, if protected from perversion, can work to that end.
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Frank Jordan’s Day 11 Assignment (Living Metaphors)
What I learned doing this assignment is that we can challenge Old Ways if we can get our audience to question their own beliefs, and that we can do this by using two models, “Should work, but doesn’t” and “Living metaphors.”
5 Should Work, But Doesn’t Challenges:
1. Setup: Training Camp is nearly complete. Freddie’s lifelong friend and comrade Moses is playing catcher at a platoon baseball game. As he watches Sugar Foot’s hit sail into right field he is blindsided/bowled over by Cpl. Thomas, crossing home plate. Later that night Freddie notices Moses is not in his bunk and finds him sitting outside the barracks, alone. FREDDIE “You okay?” Moses reflects, eyes welling with tears. MOSES “Them German folk. They never done us no harm, did they?” FREDDIE “Not that I reckon. The government want everybody to believe our very existence is threatened.” MOSES “Hell, our existence more threatened walkin’ into town on a Friday night.” Freddie nods. FREDDIE “Look at me.” Moses wipes a tear and glances at Freddie. FREDDIE “We gonna get through this. All of us. Together.” Reluctantly, Moses nods. FREDDIE “Listen, if we gonna get home in one piece, we just gotta do our job best we can. The rest’ll sort itself out, like it always do.” Moses wipes another tear. MOSES “This ever gonna end?” FREDDIE “We can’t control what other folk do, or say. Every man gotta search his own soul, colored or white, and be accountable for his own self.”
2. Setup: Freddie is home for Christmas leave. It’s late at night. Freddie is going to war the next morning. He is lying in bed, back to Pearl, gazing at the wall. PEARL “Please, talk to me.” Freddie is unresponsive. PEARL “It’s gonna be all right.” FREDDIE (snapping) You don’t know that. You got no idea. I got no idea.” Pearl puts her hand on Freddie’s shoulder, trying to comfort him. PEARL “You’ll get through this. I know you will. And when you get back, just think a the whole new world we gonna experience, together, as a family.”
3. Setup: Freddie is hanging out with his buddies on the deck of the ship, crossing the Atlantic. They are trying to figure out shuffleboard. It’s rather funny, and sad, at the same time. JONAH “Go on, Freddie. Try it.” Jonah hands Freddie a puck. He turns and flicks it like a frisbee. The puck bounces and slides past the board. Everyone laughs. FREDDIE “That ain’t right.” MOSES “You ain’t supposed to look. Watch.” Moses turns his back to the board and tosses the puck over his shoulder. The puck bounces and misses the board. Everyone boo’s. SUGAR FOOT “Nah, this how ya do it.” Sugar Foot turns his back to the board and bends over. He tosses the puck between his legs, like he’s hiking a football. It lands cleanly on number 8. Everybody cheers. Sgt. Heller comes into view, chuckling. SGT. HELLER “What the hell y’all doin’?” JONAH “Suga’s teachin’ us a new game.” SGT. HELLER “Let me show y’all how to play.” FREDDIE “We good sergeant. Just havin’ some fun.” SUGAR FOOT “Go on, sergeant, show us.” Freddie acquiesces, as Sgt. Heller walks over to the wall, grabs a cue-stick, and returns to the board. SGT. HELLER “Need a cue-stick. Then y’all gotta get behind this line. Gimme a puck.” Jonah hands Sgt. Heller a puck. He sets it down behind the line and, using the cue-stick, properly slides it towards the board. Sgt. Heller’s puck knocks Sugar Foot’s puck off the board and lands cleanly on number 7. Everyone cheers. SGT. HELLER “Lucky seven. You lose.” SUGAR FOOT “Damn.” Freddie cracks a wry smile.
4. Setup: It’s night. Freddie’s platoon are in their billets. An old barn. That morning, the regiment learned it had been loaned/transferred to the French Army. The men have already voiced their anger to Sgt. Heller (who is also upset). Some of the men are playing dice and all are drinking their first French Army wine ration. Freddie has had too much to drink, and he’s not done venting. FREDDIE “Y’all don’t feel betrayed?” SUGAR FOOT “You just gettin’ worked up for nothin’.” Moses picks up the dice and hands then to Sugar Foot. FREDDIE “Nothin’? Where’s your dignity?” SUGAR FOOT (shaking dice) “What you talkin’?” MOSES “We all need to settle down.” Freddie takes a swig of wine. SUGAR FOOT “Come on, Lucky Lady. Let’s dance.” Sugar Foot rolls his dice. SUGAR FOOT “Shit.” JONAH “Look like you dancin’ by yourself, Suga.” SUGAR FOOT “Story a my life.” Freddie takes another swig of wine. Sugar Foot picks up the dice and offers them to Freddie. He whacks the dice out of Sugar Foot’s hand. SUGAR FOOT “How that gonna help anythin’?” Enraged, Freddie grabs the wine bottle and stands. FREDDIE “Nigga ain’t good enough to fight with the white man army! (louder) We ever gonna get respect?” Freddie now has the entire platoon’s attention. SUGAR FOOT “Who say we ain’t good enough?” Freddie takes another swig of wine. MOSES “Best go easy on that wine. You gonna have a big head in the mornin’.” JONAH “Don’t get no wine in the American Army.” Freddie polishes off his cup. SUGAR FOOT “It don’t matter. American Army, French Army. We all fightin’ the same enemy.” FREDDIE (loud) “Are we?” As the men ponder that thought, Freddie hurls his empty cup against the wall.
5. Setup: Freddie has been promoted to corporal. His squad walks over to the next town, home of regimental headquarters, and joins another black squad enjoying their night off in a cafe. The men are having a great time, dancing, drinking, and conversing with the locals. Mostly young white women. Moses is playing Maple Leaf Rag on the piano. Suddenly, the front door is kicked open and a half dozen white American MP’s break up the fun. We pick up with the men being shoved out the front door. MP#1 “Get outta here! And don’t come back!” Meanwhile, Sgt. Heller and Cpl. (now Sgt.) Thomas are walking along the street, laughing. Sgt. Heller’s attention is drawn towards the commotion. His POV – MP#1 whacks Freddie on the back, knocking him to the ground. Outraged, Sgt. Heller quickly approaches and confronts MP#1. SGT. HELLER “Hey! Hey! What the hell you doin’?” Before MP#1 can respond, Sgt. Heller slugs him. He falls. SGT. HELLER “These are my men! These are Americans!” Sgt. Heller is quickly restrained by two other MP’s as the MP IN CHARGE approaches. Freddie steps towards the MP’s restraining Sgt. Heller, but Moses holds him back. MOSES “Stay out of it.” MP IN CHARGE “Sergeant, fraternizing with French women is strictly prohibited.” SGT. HELLER “You mean white women!” MP IN CHARGE “Just following orders.” SGT. HELLER (loud) “Whose orders?” MP#1 gets up off the ground and wipes the blood off his lip. MP#1 “You’ll pay for this.” SGT. HELLER “We all gonna pay for swine like you.” MP IN CHARGE “Get ’em outta here.” Dejected, Freddie peers at Sgt. Heller as he struggles to break loos.
5 Living Metaphor Challenges:
1. BASEBALL BAT. Same setup as #1 above. Freddie is taking practice swings in the on-deck circle when Moses is bowled over. As Cpl. Thomas picks himself up and dusts off, Freddie approaches, bat in hand. As he draws the bat back, Sgt. Heller flies into view and tackles Freddie. Determined to gain superiority, Freddie and Sgt. Heller roll over a few times. Eventually, Sgt. Heller pins Freddie down. FREDDIE “That son-of-a-bitch gonna get his!” Freddie struggles to get up. SGT. HELLER “Don’t be a fool. Wanna spend the rest a your life behind bars?”
2. TROOP TRANSPORT. The 371st Infantry is at the Newport News docks. Confined behind a tall chain-linked fence, dozens of men, women, and children, dock workers and local families, mostly black, are cheering as the regiment boards a large troop transport. Many wave American flags. The First Platoon, single file queue, advances slowly towards the gangplank. Freddie’s eyes wander up the bow of the massive hull and lock on the name of the steamer, ‘USS President Grant.’ FAMILY MAN (OS) “Good luck, boys! Give ’em hell!” DOCK WORKER (OS) Show ’em what we Americans are made of!” Freddie turns and fixes his gaze on a cute black girl behind the fence, age 6, excited, waving a tiny American flag. (Note: the 371st actually sailed to France on the USS President Grant. Can’t can’t make this stuff up.)
3. CANTEEN. While in the front line trenches, Freddie is selected to go on a German trench raid to obtain any information that might be found regarding enemy strength, positions, etc. Freddie kills his first man. When he returns, he’s in a very dark space. Sgt. (now Lt.) Heller tries to console Freddie. He eventually offers him his canteen. LT. HELLER “You must be thirsty.” Freddie hesitates. LT. HELLER “Go on, it’s clean.” Freddie wipes his mouth on his sleeve and takes a good gulp.
4. LETTER. After his leave in Paris and before heading back to the front line, Freddie receives a letter and photograph from Pearl. Freddie confides in Lt. Heller that when he was young he learned to read scripture and add up numbers, but never learned to write words, proper-like. LT. HELLER “You don’t know how to write?” FREDDIE “Not good enough to say what’s on my mind.” Lt. Heller glances at his watch, pulls out his small notepad and pen, then sits on the wall next to Freddie. LT. HELLER “Tell me what you wanna say.” FREDDIE “Serious? I can’t do that.” LT. HELLER “Go on.” FREDDIE “Nah.” Freddie hesitates, lost in thought. LT. HELLER “I’m ready.” Freddie searches for the right words,. FREDDIE “Okay. (shyly) Dear Pearl…”
5. AMERICAN FLAG. While gazing at an American flag, fluttering above the barracks, as he enters Camp Jackson, Freddie is tripped by a white recruit. Fast forward to France. Preparing to move up to the front line, Lt. Heller is reprimanded for carrying his American flag. CAPT. WHARTON “Leave it here. We’re fighting with the French.” LT. Heller disobeys orders and conceals his American flag under his tunic. Fast forward to Hill 188. Final battle scene. Lt. Heller is hit. Freddie tries desperately to save his life. He rips open Lt. Heller’s tunic and pauses. The tattered, blood-soaked American flag is still wrapped around his waist. Freddie removes the flag and stuffs it down the front of his own tunic. When Freddie is killed, Moses spots a piece of the flag under Freddie’s tunic and pulls it out. Moses clenches the flag with both hands, screams, then drapes it over Freddie’s body.
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Subject line: Birgit Myaard’s Living Metaphors
What I learned doing this assignment is there are amazing ways to challenge the old ways that are subtle and can work to help your audience experience the change without them even realizing it.
I also learned my project is way too big, and is still too much in its infancy, to focus on this assignment with respect to it. I just have too much information to distill before I can do this kind of “finessing.” I should have signed up for this course later in my process (and used it on a feature script before trying it on a limited series).
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Scott Richards’ Living Metaphors
What I learned doing this assignment is how powerful a metaphor can be when used against a character’s flaws.
Old Way – shutting herself off from help – There are multiple instances of “Should Work, but doesn’t”. This plays out in the various ways the protagonist attempts to escape. Only when she changes to a new way of asking for help does she find success.
Old Way – Self-loathing and a belief that love is unimportant. – A dying plant in her mother’s old apartment needs love and care to survive. This plays out as she attempts to revive it, but her efforts are useless without sunlight (another metaphor for outside help) until she lets it go, and by doing so, finds a rescue.
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Brenda Lynn’s Living Metaphors
What I learned doing this assignment is that utilizing these tools is a great way to add depth and subtlety to the challenges. Though difficult to find, Living Metaphor is an awesome technique. These are definitely going into the toolbox. I plan to wear them out.
5 Should Work, But Doesn’t challenges
David points out to Father Sean that he is the best in his class and therefore should be going to the top prize location – Lascaux, France. Father Sean points out that because he is the top of his class, he is going to receive the most difficult challenge – a summer in the jungles of Tikal.
Utilizing his family’s clout with the University, David tries to get his place back. It backfires when Father Sean tells him either he goes or he loses his place in line for a PhD.
Thinking he is the best at everything, David picks a fight with his best friend who ends up going to France. He lose the fight to Frank who grew up fighting in the streets of the Bronx.
David tries to use the Cloud to get his report done so that he can get out of the jungle of Tikal. However, there is no access to the Cloud in the jungle. He is going to have to write his thoughts down the analog way – paper and pencil.
Arrogantly thinking that the world must cater to him, David attempts to spend one night alone in the jungle, but fails at it.
5 Living Metaphor challenges
Late for his appointment with Father Sean, David has to go down a spiral fire escape which becomes symbolic for the Maya belief system of space time called Najt.
David journey in the airport in Guate becomes symbolic of the different views of time.
Trying to time the fire ceremony, David learns the truth about time and the fire of life.
Spending a night in the jungle, David has to learn to rely on himself and not his gadgets to survive a night in the jungle.
David, after learning that Appo is dying, must choose between fulfilling his dreams of becoming the youngest Ph.D at Columbia University or study with this man who knows the ancient ways of living a fulfilled life. David lets go of his dreams in order to fulfill his destiny.
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