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Day 3 Assignment
Reply to post your assignment.
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13 Replies
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Kathy’s Hero’s Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is I can come up with plots.
Ask the Mission Track questions to discover your Hero’s mission.
What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds? Skill, determination, and hard work
What is the mission that would be an impossible goal? Stopping terrorists who want to blow up the UN Building.
What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? see below
What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain? Great difficulties but eventual success.
Use the Mission Steps to outline the mission.
Clear Mission: Danny must find and stop the terrorists before a hurricane hits the city.
Motivation: External: Danny wants to stop the men who are stealing antiques from museums. And he wants a permanent position as a NYC detective. Internal: He wants his wife and young children to be proud of him.
Inciting Incident: Danny overhears a conversation in a rug shop. The carpets are from Pakistan. A piece of sixth century Indian art is to be sold at a Christie’s auction. It has been stolen but was reported as sold by an art dealer in London in 1989. Ruthless art thieves from Pakistan need the money from the Christies sale to buy weapons for an attack on the UN building. It is just one of many art thefts.
First Action: Danny tells his boss but the boss tells him the case is low level. No proof. He can only handle it on his time off. The thieves have a secret operation stealing antiques and selling them at Christie’s auctions. They don’t tell the director of Christie’s that they are using the money to buy weapons. She takes money as a finders fee/commission from them so that she can pay her mother’s medical bills. She also is paying the mayor because he got her a job. Neither know that the money is from terrorists.
Obstacles:
1. He talks to the director at Christies and she denies everything and sends him packing.
2. Another heist is in motion: Cargo workers at LGA steal a painting from a secure cargo area and take it to a warehouse.
3. A hurricane is heading for NYC.
Escalation: 1. Danny goes to the rug shop but the owner denies everything.
2. He tries to track the stolen painting but the airline paperwork leads him to a dead end. The painting listed as being shipped is really on the wall in a museum. No one knows the identity of the painting in the shipping crate.
Overwhelming Odds: The rug shop owner tells the terrorists about Danny. He is ambushed, shot as he drives along a NYC street. He turns the car, chases the terrorists, but they get away. He tells his boss who again says no proof that the men who shot at him are terrorists. They plot against him and decide to kidnap his wife.
Twist: Director of Christies paying bribes to the mayor for her job.
Apparent defeat: They kidnap his wife. Rug shop owner takes the painting to Christies. Painting in shipping crate put into another auction. A bomb is planted in the UN building.
Apparent success, New Plan: Discovers leads to terrorists, shoots several, frees his wife.
Twist: The hurricane hits NYC. Danny must chase the terrorists through flooded subways.
Full out Attack: The terrorists faith is to an Islamic code which calls for a worldwide Islamic state. They will die for this. A suicide bomber threatens the UN. If all the UN delegates do not convert to Islam, he will ignite the bomb. Danny shoots him and several others in a gun battle inside the UN. He finds the other bomb and saves the building.
Success: Plot stopped. Mayor and Director of Christies fired/jailed.
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Janeen’s Hero Mission Track (Holiday Action/Comedy)
What I learned doing this assignment is that as long as you keep making things worse for the hero, the story writes itself. Lots of new details to determine yet and this is all plot, no detailed action scenes at this point.
1. Ask the Mission Track questions to discover your Hero’s mission.
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds? Former Army Ranger with PTSD from losing teammates in battle who is now a mall Santa with his tiny PTSD dog dressed as a reindeer. <div>
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal? Take the President’s parents (in their 70s) off the grid to protect them from what appears to be foreign agents working with the Secret Service.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? Internal: Having lost his teammates in battle, he’s not about to fail in another mission. External: Having seen how hard the parents took it when the Secret Service agent was killed, he is compelled to keep them safe (remember, they’re in their 70’s so not as mobile are more fragile than he is)
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain?
– He could see the woman he’s always thought was a Secret Service agent be killed by bad guys attempting to kidnap the President’s parents and realize he has to come to the rescue.
– He could subdue the bad guys and have the parents use his Segway to escape from the bad guys.
– He can overhear a rogue agent using FBI contacts reporting him as the abductor and one who killed the Secret Service agent and know that he has to take the parents off the grid to keep them safe as all of the surveillance and tracking resource fo the intelligence agencies are at the bad guys’ disposal.
– The hero could have a go bag hidden somewhere in the mall with cash, weapons and IDs that he can use.
He can escape with the parents and then trade vehicles to older ones that predate chips/GPS/OnStar/etc and are nondescript so they can hide in plain sight on the road.– He can take the parents on a road trip heading for a lakeside resort in winter where no one knows him or is likely to see the parents.
– As they head cross-country to the resort, they can be followed, accosted and finally joined by the assumed dead Secret Service agent who thinks he’s a buffoon (but will eventually become the love interest).
– He can rescue the parents and Secret Service agent when she is followed by the real bad guys.
– He can find clever ways to defeat technology/cameras on the road, at every food stop and store, in towns and cities to keep them from being followed by all of the federal, state and local agencies that are now looking for them.
– He can make use of the small resort’s social norms to hide the parents and Secret Service agent until he can neutralize the bad guys.
– He can rescue the parents and agent many times, use his cleverness and his little dog to save the day and prove himself at every turn.
2. Use the Mission Steps to outline the mission.
Clear Mission: Rescue the President’s parents and help them escape a double agent and foreign henchmen intent on using them to blackmail the President.
Motivation: A failed mission in a war (Afghanistan, Iraq?) and a chance at redemption and self-respect again if he can do his duty to protect the parents. </div>
Inciting Incident: A man who had identified himself as FBI to the mall cop shoots the Secret Service agent with the parents, teams up with some bad looking terrorist foreigners and kidnaps the parents.
First Action: He ditches the Santa hat and stashes his little dog in a handy pouch/backpack/carrier and chases after the bad guys, cutting them off and using his military training to knock them out.
Obstacle: He is able to knock out the FBI guy and one of the agents to get the parents away, pick up his go-bag and get them out of the mall, but now the FBI guy says HE is kidnapping the parents.
Escalation: Police and state troopers descend on the mall as he and the parents leave in his car. He has to get out of there, trades cars for one with no way to track or disable and realizes he has to head somewhere off the grid when he finds that the parents’ purse, shoes, etc., have trackers in them.
Overwhelming Odds: He thinks he’s safe when he stops at an empty house along the road, but the Secret Service agent joined the parents when he was getting food and she hid in the back of the vehicle, trying to decide if he’s a good guy or one of the bad guys.
New Plan: The Secret Service agent had a trackable phone with her so they have to change the plan and find an empty vacation home of a friend (no breaking in) so they can’t be tracked. They have to trade cars again too and are about out of money.
Full out Attack: The bad guys have been getting intel from people all over and have access to the best tactical info on where they might be. The bad guys issue the blackmail request to the president, planning to pin the kidnapping on the hero. The Secret Service agent gets a message to the president about his parents’ predicament and who the bad guys are, but the bad guys have found them and are attacking.
Success: The Secret Service agent, parents and hero work together to defeat the bad guys, tie them up and then use the comm devices to notify the President that they are safe and to call off the dogs — well, not the little PTSD dog. :->
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Action Class, #3
Denice’s Hero Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is that even if you think you know your story, you can create new scenarios that are more exciting. It opens more questions than it answers since the heroine is young and this is her first foray into a new life. I also want to make this an action comedy, so wonder about keeping the comic relief character and the mentor her father sends after her.
¥ Motivation: Triple is seventeen, a test-tube baby with telekinetic powers—confined her whole life to the penthouse of her father’s silver conglomerate. She’s been training to be a spy her whole life and is taking her last tests.
¥ Inciting Incident: In a confrontation, Triple learns her father has lied to her. She flees to be with her mother at a concert in Poland.
¥ First Action: Triple steals her father’s jet and flies to Poland.
¥ Obstacle: Her mother disappears from the concert before Triple arrives.
¥ Escalation: Triple fights villain’s Assassin in mother’s hotel room, almost dies. Assassin gets away.
¥ Overwhelming Odds: Villain sends a gang of assassins. First assassin goes after Triple at same time.
¥ New Plan: Triple follows Assassin, her only lead to her mother.
¥ Twist: Assassin steals Triple’s plane. Triple hides in hold.
¥ Apparent Defeat: Plane lands in Yucatan and villain’s stronghold. Triple’s mom tries to escape, dies in her arms. Triple is captured.
¥ Full out Attack: Triple kills Assassin, frees her father, goes after Villain.
¥ Success: Triple stops Villain’s plan in U.S. Kills him.
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Erin’s Hero’s Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is: Filling in the blanks really helped clarify what the story will be, since it had been very fuzzy in my mind, and I already have so many more ideas for scenes and conflicts than I had before
MISSION TRACK QUESTIONS:
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds?
They will face overwhelming odds to achieve their mission because the alternative is execution for himself and his SEAL buddies, all of whom were wrongly convicted and sentenced to death
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal?
To evade capture by the resource-heavy and multitudinous FBI, especially once the mission is headed up by his corrupt FBI sister, who has a personal vendetta
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero?
External motivation – to avoid execution. Internal motivation – to save his reputation; honor is extremely important to him.
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain?
Daring prison escape; pursuit without capture; gun fights with FBI; hiding out; fights with domestic terrorists who are also out to get him; breaking into places to get information; trying to find allies to help him; face-off with his sister
MISSION STEPS:
Clear Mission: To evade capture and prove
his innocence
Motivation: To avoid execution and to save his
fellow SEALS, also wrongly convicted, from the same fate
Inciting Incident: he escapes prison
First Action: finding a safe place to hide
Obstacle: The FBI is out to get him; he needs to
access high security documents to prove his innocence which means putting
himself in dangerous situations
Escalation: The domestic terrorists who have been
dealing with his sister start to pursue the hero and they have no rules to
follow or anything to rein in their behavior
Overwhelming Odds: He’s one man against two groups
of highly skilled, highly motivated people who want him captured and/or
dead
Twist: Hero discovers that he’s in prison
for a crime he didn’t commit because his sister framed him and his team
(whether on purpose or because of circumstances, I don’t know yet) in
order to cover up her own illicit dealings with domestic terrorists
New Plan: He realizes that it’s more important to
expose his sister and the corruption at the FBI which could do far more
damage to America rather than try to save his own life by proving his innocenceFull out Attack: Not sure yet; depends on what the
New Plan is; it will probably come down to a one-on-one face-off between
hero and his sister
Success: Hero wins the day, of course! His sister
may be captured but “commits suicide” while in high security prison, a la
Jeffrey Epstein -
Emmanuel’s Hero’s Mission
What I learned doing this assignment is to create a high-level action plan for the hero. Starting with the hero’s motivation, hitting obstacles, reaching goals and then finally success.
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David’s Hero’s Mission Track
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?”
From this assignment, I learned visualizing one scene in a movie leads to a second and in turn a third etc. Having some guides greatly facilitates the process. Even some characters solidify or appear.
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds?
Driven by unwavering revenge and a sense of duty.
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal?
Protecting Aliens who could annihilate mankind from a Cult supported by most of mankind.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero?
Internal motivation: revenge for death of his daughter and finding the right thing to do.
External motivation; it’s his job, he is under orders
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain?
Backstory:
Ten years before the story starts, Alien spaceships arrived. The Aliens were only concerned with protecting the Earth from the damages humans were doing to it. One-week later, tens of millions of sociopaths and psychopaths were exterminated and billions of others sterilized by mind-control. Peace and prosperity followed, but most people still resent the Aliens. The Cult is a terrorist group against the Aliens and anyone who protects them.
Shown indirectly through spaceships over cities, conversations, news, signs, demonstrations etc.
Motivation:
Revenge against the Cult who killed his daughter and other children, and crippled him.
Duty to carry out his job of protecting Aliens from Cult.
Uncertainty about character or truth of Aliens and Cult
Inciting Incident:
Saul’s daughter is killed and he is crippled by the Cult.
First Action:
Saul is a normal FBI agent and normal person. He goes to pick his daughter up at her school. The Cult is demonstrating against the Aliens. Some hate children because they are sterilized. They start shooting the children. Saul runs to rescue his daughter, shooting at the Cult and saving children along the way. Just as he gets to her, one of the Cult opens up with an UZI and kills the daughter and cripples Saul. Saul sees the cult member has an IDing mark.
Obstacle:
Saul recovers from his injuries. He learns martial arts that fit his injuries. Learns to use a weapons-cane. Assigned to an Agency where members hate Aliens, just like everyone else, but are tasked with protecting them. Most people are there because of higher pay and secretly support the Cult. Saul hates the Cult more than he dislikes Aliens.
Escalation:
Saul starts actively attacking the Cult as directed by the Agency. First assignment is to find a bomb being put on a shuttle to one of the Alien ships.
Second action:
Saul has a sexy, tough, prickly female partner of uncertain gender preference. They roughly interrogate a suspect. They go to the bomb-making site and have a shoot-out with Cult members. They find the time the bomb is set for and that it will be put aboard a shuttle to an Alien ship. They go to the airport and as they find the package they are fired at and pinned down. The timer is ticking. They break out and shoot up the Cult members. They get them all. As they stand up together, an easy target, a Cult member with a Tommy-gun jumps up. Just as he pulls the trigger, the bomb goes off and he gets blown to smithereens.
Overwhelming Odds:
The Cult has thousands of fanatical assassins who would willingly die to hurt Aliens or the people protecting them.
Saul becomes more of a threat to the Aliens. The mysterious leader of the cult orders him to be killed. An ambush is set up. A wild car chase begins with crashes and shooting. Saul and his partner must avoid injuring people and prevent the Cult from the same. This makes for some fancy driving and action. The chase rushes through one street after another with a new Cult car joining after the previous one is destroyed. Maybe, a helicopter and/or explosive drone too.
New Plan:
Saul decides that his plan of attacking Cult members isn’t working. Go after the leaders instead. Using surveillance, wire taps, trackers etc., he is led to people who might be the leaders. He finds evidence that one Cult leader is an entrepreneur-scientist who is developing mind-control to use against the aliens. Another is a mysterious person who has a white-hot hatred of the Aliens. Both, together or separately, are working through the second-in-command of the Agency.
Apparent Success:
Saul discovers one of the Cult leaders and captures her after a fire-fight with her bodyguard. He sees the ID mark on the person and makes her death very painful.
Then, Saul learns there is another, more dangerous, Cult leader. That person is a scientist about to attack the Aliens with a mind-control weapon, similar to their own. If he messes up, the Aliens would probably kill everyone.
Full out Attack:
Saul goes the scientist’s lab where he is attacked by Cultists and robots. After a lot of shooting, smashing and explosions Saul is cornered. But, he has figured out the way mind control is transmitted and uses the scientists machine to kill the Cultists and paralyze the robots.
Success:
The threat of the mind-control and the benevolence of the Aliens results in a mutual compromise between the Aliens and humans that protects the planet and benefits mankind.
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What I learned from this assignment is my hero needs not just a monumental and difficult mission, but a mission that is measurable and finite.
Aliyah’s Mission Track:
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds? She wants revenge on the bastard who ruined her honeymoon.
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal? She needs to wipe out an entire criminal gang in a foreign city in a week.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? Her parents died on their honeymoon so they never got to experience the joy of it.
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain? She and her husband could be tortured and killed; she may be kidnapped and trafficked for the sex trade.
Motivation: Revenge
Inciting Incident: Her bag with her passport and important documents is stolen, preventing her from going on her honeymoon.
First Action: Follow the airtag hits that are directing her to her stolen bag.
Obstacle: The bag has been dumped in a canal
Escalation: As she chases the man who stole her bag, he is killed by a truck. She and her husband realize they enjoyed that, and begin the mission to wipe out the entire bag theft ring.
Overwhelming odds: There are dozens of Romanian bag thieves, and they need to be tortured and killed one at a time.
New Plan: The Romanians mistake the newlyweds for members of a Moroccan bag theft syndicate, and our newlyweds get caught in the middle. They must now take out the head of the Romanian gang.
Full out Attack: They set out to kill the head of the Romanian Gang in Romania, but end up being the hunted.
Success: They win the battle with the Romanian gang leader and his henchmen on a river cruise ship on the Danube.
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Mark Dotz
What I learned form this assignment is that – A strong antagonist forces a writer to have a strong hero.
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds? – Our Hero Damian respects the king’s position, and he wants the respect of a father/king who doesn’t recognize Damian as his son but treats him badly and sends him off to train under another knight.
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal? Fight off the best trained knights in the kingdom, and get into the castle to warn a king who wants nothing to do with our hero.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? A duty to the king, and a desire for Damian to prove his worth to his father.
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain? – Damian has to fight an army of Knights and medieval soldiers just to escape the dungeon and then has to fight even more to get to the kings castle and save the king from a rebellion.
Basic Mission Steps
Escape – Damian must escape Archibald’s dungeon/prison. Archibald hopes to hold Damian as a bargaining chip against the king. (Damian needs to play up that he is valuable to the king although he knows he is not)
Clear Mission – Break out of the dungeon and get to the king.
Motivation – His father’s the king and his throne is being threatened by his close friend and Damian’s keeper, Archibald.
Inciting Incident – Damian is attacked and imprisoned by Archibald’s Knights during the knight.
First Action – Escape the dungeon to warn the king of Archibald’s plot
Obstacle – How to escape a dungeon = commanding the horses to break him free. how to get to the king = fight his way out of the dungeon and Archibald’s castle and through the deep forest to warn the king.
Escalating – More and more soldiers confront Damian. Damian has no idea how good of a fighter he is until he is confronted with no choice but to fight each knight. He is a natural warrior.
Overwhelming Odds – Archibald and his men are the best trained and skilled men in the kingdom.
New Plan – Travel light and fight smarter not harder. Damian’s biggest advabtage is that he is faster. Damian’s plan is to lay booby traps, build a layer of fire, command horses, use water dams, and finally a series of catapults to stop Archibald and his men.
Full out Attack – Damian discovers how good he is at fighting and fights his way through Archibald’s men and then carefully knocks out the Kings men to warn the king, while laying a series of traps to slow down his enemy.
Success – Letting Archibald and the king fight each other to the death in order to prove Archibald is a traitor; Damian steps in to make sure Archibald is dead and then the King gives Damian the crown.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 7 months ago by Mark Doddy.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 7 months ago by
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Ira Drower’s Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment was discovering the mission track involves a strong motivation as well as a hero capable to the task. In my track it was necessary to review the villain’s plan of attack first. Everything forced upon the hero was due to circumstances created by the villain. As an example, in The Godfather the motivation and actions by Michael Corleone were all forced by the actions of Barzini.
A. What is it about this hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds?
Frank is an ex-military tank commander and an expert with munitions, warfare, weapons, tactics, hand-to-hand combat. He also possesses enhanced animal-like senses which he used in battle.
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal?
Protect the secret Alien Prison housed in a former military complex.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero?
Internal motivation: Frank returned to prison if his mission fails.
External motivation: Girlfriend, co-workers, his adopted wolfpack are all in jeopardy if mission exposed.
D. What could happen if this hero went on this mission against the villain?
The military used Frank like the Romans sending Titus into battle. His task was to wipe out the enemy-period! He will use all the skills possible to eliminate the threat. Fighting off cattle rancher and his men working near the site, mercenaries hired by Captain Miller (villain), military and local police he misleads, Alien hunters and gold hunters he scares off with the wolf pack. His last obstacle is a mobster and his crew looking for Frank’s girlfriend. She stole from the mob boss, and he wants revenge.
Clear Mission: Protect the secret Alien prison from exposure at all costs.
Motivation: If Frank fails, he will be sent back to military prison to complete his sentence for war crimes. He will also can lose his wolf family and girlfriend.
Inciting Incident: Frank’s nemesis shows up in search of a lost military gold shipment he believes in hidden within the closed military site.
First Action: Frank uses his adopted wolf pack to scare off would be treasure hunters. He beats up Miller.
Escalation: Captain Miller brings in former commandos to deal with Frank promising them a big payday.
Overwhelming odds: Frank fights off the commandos using his innate senses and knowledge of the terrain burying them in the desert.
Twist: The Scientist working with Frank at the Alien prison conducts an unauthorized experiment causing an earthquake and an Alien escape.
Apparent Defeat: Frank is confronted by MUFON investigators as well as US Geological society. He is informed his wolfpack will be culled. Miller brings in the mob to kidnap Frank’s girlfriend.
Apparent Success: Frank fends off mob enforcers, outwits the inspectors and saves his wolfpack.
Twist: Franks’ girlfriend is forced to take Miller and mobster to back entrance to military site/Alien prison.
Full out attack: Frank goes after mobster, Miller and henchmen to save girlfriend and prison from discovery. He kills mobster while wolves attack and surround others.
Success: Another experiment by the Scientist at the prison transports the would be thieves to Siberia. The current Alien prison and site are destroyed by an earthquake crested by scientist. The Alien prison and wolfpack is relocated to another site. Frank feels a deeper connection with his girlfriend.
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Sung-Ju Suya Lee Hero’s Mission Track
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?”
I like the idea of having 3 tracks to be aware of. That they play equal roles. And, doing them will help you layer the story, and elevate it. The 2 examples, John Wick and The Bourne Identity, were good. Filling in the form helps a lot. Just concentrate on the major points right now to move it along. Action has a lot of crisis, escalation, trouble, etc. Put them in.
1. Ask the Mission Track questions to discover your Hero’s mission.
A. What
is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the
overwhelming odds? The 4 old time veterans have seen war before. They were
in battle. They were trained by the US government. Family is the most
precious thing in their lives. They will do anything to protect them. So,
it’s 4 old time veterans against 10 young pirates, with machines guns,
rocket launchers, technology. <div>B. What
is the mission that would be an impossible goal? How to fight 10 young pirates
with guns, who have nothing to lose, on an old, second-hand cruise ship. It’s
sinking now, they have no radio to call for help. They get their respective
grandchildren, and ask for triple ransom money once they find out that the
old timers have won the mega lottery.C. What
strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? They must
save their families that they love from being killed. They give the money,
but stall in order to kill the pirates. Then, the internet crashes. Or,
they break the internet box.D.
Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally
happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain? The old
timers are trapped at sea, in a sinking cruise ship, no radio, must give a
ton of money to save their families. They must fight the pirates since the
pirates decide to blow up the cruise ship with everyone on board.2. Use the Mission Steps to outline the mission.
Clear Mission:
Motivation:
Save their families, and kill all the pirates before the pirates kill them
on the cruise ship. </div>Inciting
Incident: The pirates come aboard the small cruise ship (holds 99
passengers). They pretend to seek refuge, but find out the old timers are
rich (won the mega lottery). One of the crew members have notified the
pirates of the mega millionaires on board, being in cahoots with the
pirates (and no longer with the cruise company).First Action: The pirates decide to kidnap the grandchildren, and demand the
veteran’s mega lottery winnings. They take control of the ship. Half of
the families are swimming nearby. Half are held captive. They must fight. Some
escape. Hide in places on the cruise ship.Obstacle:
Radio breaks down. Veterans can’t call for help. They are on their own. The
pirates don’t know the cruise ship is falling apart. The internet crashes
on the ship as the money is being transferred. The pirates threaten the
families to fix the internet to make the transfer.Escalation:
A fire starts on the ship, killing both pirates and family members (not
children). Since no money can be transferred on ship, some of the pirates
take some of the grandchildren. A cat and mouse game on the ship. Veterans
find out one of the younger pirates is the son of the lead boat pirate,
and kidnap him. There is a stand-off. The lead pirate radios in for more
back-up. One of the veterans is being blackmailed.Overwhelming Odds: Another pirate boat comes aboard. The ship sinks more. More people
on the ship. Some pirates have never been on a cruise ship, and get
confused. Veterans know the layout, and use it to their advantage. Pirates
shoot anything and everything, creating more destruction, and machinery malfunctions.New Plan:
The veterans decide to sink the ship while the pirates are on board. Trap
the pirates in various areas of the ship. Families get on the pirates
boats, and the tender boats as the ship sinks.Full out
Attack: As the cruise ship starts sinking, they fight in submerged water
inside the cruise ship. Families start escaping through the port holes and
escape hatches.Success: Ship
sinks with the pirates. Veterans and families use the pirate’s radio to
call a local fishing boat for help. -
Renee’s Hero’s Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is how to think about action movies in terms of setting up the mission.
Ask the Mission Track questions to discover your Hero’s mission.
A. What is it about this Hero that will have them go straight into the face of the overwhelming odds?
He’s a former special forces operative and a retired FBI agent.
B. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal?
One person up against a corrupt Thai government and mob.
C. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero?
Internal: he wasn’t able to save his daughter from human trafficking
External: the child he is trying to save might be his grandson.
D. Imagine that mission playing out across a story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against this villain?
He has to go into the fray unarmed, he is shown a young boy that looks just like his dead daughter, He has to try and free the boy. He goes into hiding. He is chased by the Thai mob, police, and government, while trying to keep the boy safe and escape. His cover is blown and his colleagues go dark. He must survive with no outside help.
2. Use the Mission Steps to outline the mission.
Clear Mission: To try and shut down a Thai sex trafficking ring while protecting a young boy that could be his grandson.
• Motivation: he wasn’t able to save his daughter from a human trafficking ring, so he goes into Thailand to try and save as many other children from the same fate as he can.
• Inciting Incident: When he is presented with a number of children to bid on, one boy stands out as the spitting image of his deceased daughter.
• First Action: bid on the boy in an effort to get him out.
• Obstacle: the ring leader become suspicious of the hero and sends a different child to the hotel room.
• Escalation: the ring leader sends a group of thugs to kidnap the hero and bring him back for questioning.
• Overwhelming Odds: the hero is trapped and surrounded by 20 thugs with weapons.
• New Plan: find the kid and hide.
• Full out Attack: leave the kid in a safe and secure place (with a new helper?) and find the leader, fight him, kill him.
• Success: With the leader dead, the ring breaks up, and the hero returns to the kid and they leave Thailand.
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Linda’s Hero’s Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is that thinking about the mission and what could go wrong helped uncover a few twists.
Mission Track Questions
A. Border Commissioner: Former special forces who is responsible for protecting the border from terrorists coming across.
B. Up against the most ruthless terrorist group that will stop at nothing, has the weapons and a decentralized plan that is impossible to contain, and is led by a man who blames him for his mother’s death. Is decommissioned and has to go rogue.
C. Internal Motivation: Feels like he failed the love of his life who was killed at the hands of these terrorists.
External Motivation: The terrorists are going to kill millions of Americans, have his estranged son, and will kill him as well.
D. Deadly conflict at the border, search for his estranged son, covert mission attacks terrorists, kills to rescue his son, hunts for the terrorist leader – torturing his minions to try to get information, military vehicle chase.
Clear Mission: To save his son, get revenge on the terrorists who kidnapped him, and kill them before they kill Americans.
1. Motivation for the Mission: If Americans die as a result of terrorists crossing the border, he feels their deaths are solely on him, including his son’s.
2. Inciting Incident: A deadly conflict at the border and terrorists cross into the US.
3. First Action: When he learns the terrorists used children and got them killed, he floods the border and hunts the terrorists who crossed over.
4. Escalation: His team kills the terrorists. In retaliation, they kidnap his son.
5. Overwhelming Odds: He and POTUS disagree over strategy. He goes rogue against thousands of terrorists sent to enact the plan to kill Americans in 50 cities.
6. Twist: Terrorists lead an army that overpowers the border.
7. Apparent Defeat: Terrorists run free and his attempt to rescue his son fails.
8. Apparent Success: Ex-military ops join him and kill who they believe is the leader of the terrorists.
9. Twist: Real leader of terrorists is his son he never knew he had. (Or the twist is that they think they killed him, but he got away).
10. Full Out Attack: Learn where they are hiding out and attack. Terrorist son is ready to kill his estranged son. He must choose one or the other.
11. Success: Defeat terrorists. Reunites with his estranged son. Frees all the children who were being radicalized by the terrorists.
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Dave’s Hero Mission Track
What I learned doing this assignment is the more impossible the mission the more exciting it is to watch the hero succeed.
Mission track questions:
1. What is it about the hero that will have them go straight into the face of overwhelming odds? The hero is a highly trained Army Ranger whose love for friends and family only intensifies his belief in honor and duty.
2. What is the mission that would be an impossible goal? The hero must protect his friends and rescue his family while fending off relentless thugs and evade corrupt law enforcement.
3. What strong internal and external motivation could drive the hero? Internal:
His wife and daughter are kidnapped. External: Mobsters and law enforcement are trying to kill him.4. Imagine this mission playing out across the story. What could naturally happen if this hero went on this mission against the villain? Finding and resuing his family, protecting his friends, fighting the Danallo crime family, and avoiding corrupt law enforcement all while avoiding death.
Mission Outline:
The Ranger’s clear mission – To make right his past by protecting his neighbor from an abusive relationship.
Motivation – The Ranger, attempting to move on from his past, goes too far while trying to protect a neighbor from an abusive relationship putting the victim, her son, and the Ranger’s family in peril.
Inciting Incident – The Ranger kills a “made man”.
First Action – The uncle of the “made man” sends thugs to return the favor. The Ranger easily dispatches them.
Escalation – The Ranger’s family is taken.
Overwhelming Odds – The mob boss sends several, more experienced thugs. The Ranger sends a message by incapacitating them all. He is told of his family’s situation.
New Mission: Find and rescue his family. Nothing will stand in his way.
Apparent Defeat: The Ranger lets his guard down and is taken captive (The Ranger is deceived by the woman he helped.)
Twist: A former Ranger shows up hired by Dino to take out the hero. (The Ranger tells his side of the story regarding his dishonorable discharge)
Escape: The Ranger disables his comrade and takes Dino’s niece and her child. (They are scared and reluctant but eventually realize they are better off far away from Dino.)
Apparent Success: Dino’s niece tells the Ranger where he can find his family. The Ranger kills the men holding his wife and daughter. They are all safe.
Escalation 2: The remote cabin is surrounded by Dino’s army.
Full out Action: The Ranger and his family fend off the attackers for as long as they can. There are only a few, highly trained adversaries left.
Apparent Defeat 2: Low on ammo and wounded the Ranger and his family prepare for the worst. Dino’s men close in.
Twist 2: The Ranger’s comrade arrives and takes out most of Dino’s men.
Success: Dino arrives expecting victory but finds carnage. The Rangers easily defeat his bodyguards and corner him. They decide to let him live after he gives them his word it is over. His niece knows better and kills him.
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