-
Day 3 Assignments
Reply to post your assignment.
-
12 Replies
-
What I learned doing this assignment is the beginnings of thinking about weaving in the characters exits into the “Dying Pattern.” I see lessons to come with assist with those steps. This early story foundation makes it easier to switch out characters and their identities to better fit the story as it develops. Quite fun!
Tell us your Concept and the Group you have chosen.
A group of ski resort guests must partake in a deadly white elephant gift exchange after receiving a visit from a malicious Krampus and his heartless, partner, St. Nicholas.
2. Tell us the Dying Pattern of this movie:
All but two guests will die. One will stay behind the other leaves with with Krampus, which may or may not be a good thing.
3. Give us an Identity and a sentence for each character that makes up your group.
Characters:
The complainer, Tina – Bar Tender, survived Covid shutdown and now this. Her constant complaining makes her an easy target.
Moral One – Reverend Gene – expert on Pagans and their weaknesses. Engages in apostolic debates only aggravating Krampus’s evilness. Gene may be the key to survival if he’d stop arguing.
The Leader – Susie , Ski Pro – way too competitive, she’s out to win (live) , no matter who else has to loose (die). Following her may not increase one’s probability of surviving Krampus’s twisted game.
The couple- James & Michael – a couple on their honeymoon, although a breakup wouldn’t be the worst thing that could happen to them. Michael discovers he has a sadistic side that James finds surprisingly attractive. Krampus finds them adorable, but still death may be their fate.
The Carrier – Ava – Daughter to Mike and Linda (Michael & Mike, designed for later comedic affect) Her teenage rants summons Krampus to the resort, as nothing please him more than meeting disruptive, misbehaving, children.
The Rescuer – Mike, he’s a dad therefore feels responsible for getting everyone out of here alive. Krampus enjoys toying with such an under matched opponent.
The innocent – Linda, wife to Mike, mother, housewife. She done nothing but goodness all her life, so she says. Krampus knows more about her than the rest. It will be her undoing.
-
What I learned doing this assignment is how to build up character types that will be the victims. The challenge is to do this without any of the characters appearing to be cliched or stereotypical.
Concept: Tourists get lost and crash their car in the middle of nowhere. An in-bred hillbilly caused their car to crash and for one of them to die. He takes away the body and he and his family feasts on it. His brother and sister warn him not to kill any of the others, but he says he’ll just keep an eye on them – a couple of them look fit to drop, so he’ll just pick ‘em up when they do. However, he tries to have them die in traps he has laid for him. His family has a twisted moral code whereby they can’t kill people, but if someone dies, they can eat them – so long as they are carrion. In Lonnie’s mind, if they die in one of his traps, it’s their fault, not his. Fair game.
Group: social group – this is a group of mostly friends, three couples, on their way to a remote cabin for a week’s vacation. They decide to take the scenic route, but this becomes far more scenic and remote when the main road is closed and they have to follow a detour. While Shania and Aubrey have been together for years, the other two couples are newer into their relationship: Justin and Brittany started dating a month ago (though they’ve been friends for years) and Bruno and Celine started dating a week ago – Celine used to date Justin and still loves him. She blames Brittany for their break-up and is using Bruno to get close to Justin.
Killing Pattern: Put six characters together and kill them off one by one (but two survive).
Character identities:
Leader: Justin, thoughtful, intense guy, likes to think he is an intellectual. Not remotely suited to the extreme situation they all end up in but is a cerebral alpha leader. When the shit hits the fan, he loses his nerve, and Cindy takes over.
Rescuer: Brittany, Justin’s girlfriend. She has been in love with him for years, but they only recently got together when he broke it off with Celine because she was too jealous and controlling. When Justin loses his shit, Brittany takes over as leader. She is tough as old nails, and even though she gets caught in a number of traps and becomes hideously deformed, she keeps on going.
Out of control/Obnoxious: Celine is Bruno’s supposed girlfriend, but she is just using him (he’s Justin’s close friend) to be close to Justin. She loves Justin still and wants to get back with him, by any means possible.
Rebel/Rule Breaker, also the Carrier: Bruno is a likeable idiot, doesn’t care that Celine is using him to be close to Justin. He’s happy to be shagging her (she is very attractive) even if she treats him like an idiot. Bruno is responsible for bringing the horror to the group by deciding to take the scenic route and driving recklessly. He is driving too fast when the car’s tires burst and they drive into a tree.
Innocent: Shania (and Aubrey, her boyfriend) are the outsiders of this twisted love quadrangle. Shania is a really good person – she is very empathetic, tries to see everyone’s point of view, to the point of ignoring her own. Always looks for the good in people, including the maniac trying to kill them.
Complainer: Aubrey is Shania’s uptight princess of a boyfriend. He didn’t want to come on this trip, he hates the outdoors, hates roughing it and hates maniacal killers. And lets everyone know it. When the shit hits the fan, he tries to shirk all responsibility, blaming everyone else for their predicament. When he dies, the entire audience cheers.
-
Madeleine Vessel’s Characters for Horror
What I learned doing this assignment is that the more I delve into the conventions of a horror movie, the more my idea fleshes out. This is so cool!
Concept: On a dark and stormy night, two twelve-year-old girls, riding home on their bikes from a friend’s birthday party, take shelter in a rickety old two-story house only to find that there may be no way out.
Group: Mine is a social group, consisting of two twelve-year-old girls who are best friends and an old woman known to the girls and suspected of being a witch.
Characters in my group:
Leader: Prompted by Max, the ghost of a teenage boy, Kathryn convinces her friend, to help her dig in the basement for his bones. According to Max, finding his bones and exposing that he was murdered will unlock the doors of the house. Hopefully, they can find Max’s bones.
Complainer: Kathryn’s friend, Mallory, just wants to cry and whine. She doesn’t want to cooperate.
Red Herring: Old lady Setter, who owns the house. Max says she murdered him, but did she?
Dying Pattern: Mine is this: No one dies, but the characters are brought to the very brink of death.
-
What I learned: This is fun! I am getting clearer on my concept.
Question: How to write a horror logline? I write a logline with the main character driving the action, e.g., what is her goal. But in a horror script, the monster usually drives the action. How do we reflect that in a concept?
1. Tell us your Concept and the Group you have chosen.
Concept: At an isolated farm, an evil ghost possesses the lesbian visitors and causes each to murder her own spouse. A NYC cop must stop it before it possesses her or her wife.
Group – Social Group. Friends/Colleagues
2. Tell us the Dying Pattern of this movie.
B. The characters experience the terror and survive together, but one or two die.
3. Give us an Identity and a sentence for each character that makes up your group.
Rescuer – Diana, 32, black. NYC cop. Protective. Skeptical about the spirituality. Discovers who the ghost is and how to stop it.
Love Interest – Jennifer, 35, white, Diana’s wife. Psychotherapist. Sybil’s protégé. Wants this retreat to work out.
Leader – Sybil, 55, white. A Psychotherapist and and author of spiritual/self-help books. Invited the group to the farm to discuss investing in a project to build an upscale lesbian retreat on the land.
Red Herring, Audrey, 58, white, lawyer and Sybil’s wife. She is the business end of Sybil’s ideas for a lesbian retreat on the land. When people focus on the strange things that are going on in the location, she poo poos them and talks about how great the retreat will be. Saleswoman.
Complainer – Regina, 50, black, standup comedian and actress. Complains about being out in the woods with no phone or internet service. Sarcastic. Makes fun of spiritual beliefs. Great comic relief.
Innocent, – Hattie, 35, black, [occupation] Regina’s wife. Spiritual and tries to get Regina to be more spiritual. Is very uncomfortable when the arrive. Feels like something is off in the location.
The Carrier: Esther, 28, modern day witch. Leads a séance to investigate the odd things that are happening and in that process the ghost becomes able to possess the women in the group.
Out of control – Tilly, 28, accountant. Esther’s wife. Terrified of what is going on. First to die.
-
This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by CLAIRE RILEY.
-
This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by
-
What I learned doing this lesson is that it’s important to think about the type of character group that works best for the story and to construct that group with a good mix of different types that fit the typical roles found in horror movies. It might have helped to have a bit more detail on each of the roles to better understand their characteristics or their purpose in the story.
My concept is a sentient fire creature terrorizing a group of people in a high rise.
The group is a TEAM OF PROFESSIONALS – they all work at Haven Development or in the building where the offices are located, and many of them know each other, or have seen each other before.
The dying pattern is 6-8 people who are killed off one by one.
Characters:
Leader: Osmond Deighton, CEO of Haven Development, 50’s, well educated and sophisticated, unemotional and direct, always calculating and strategizing. Enjoys power, influence and wealth. He is a typical business leader, but ultimately cares more about himself than those that work for him.
Obnoxious: Adrienne Tupper, Senior Vice President at Haven Development. 40’s, pretentious and phony, a name dropper, insulting and arrogant. Always needs to be the most striking one in the room, feminine but holds her own with the “boys club.” She always believes she is right and knows what to do.
Loner: Julian Fowler, Architect. 30’s, intelligent and nerdy, knows his stuff when it comes to design and science, awkward socially, with a dark sense of humor. He uses logic and fact to solve problems, but doesn’t like to impose his ideas on others.
Complainer: Carina Hernandez, Marketing Director at Haven Development, 30’s, saucy and brash, motivated and focused on doing her job, but seems to have a negative opinion on most everything and loves to make her thoughts known. She is always looking to put a spin on things.
Rebel: Dimitri Pierno, Owner of Pierno Contracting, builder for Haven Development. 40’s, surly and unsophisticated, always bucking trends. Wants to make as much money as he can, but refuses to apply himself, instead looking for quick ways to succeed. Utilizes shortcuts to get what he wants..
Rescuer: Keelan Finn, Security Guard, 30’s, ginger, charming and respectful but strong-willed. Brave but naïve. He tends to easily trust people, and is always looking for ways to help others,
Love Interest: Stanislav Zitnik, Janitor, 20’s, handsome and rugged, smart and easygoing with a strong sense of compassion and fairness. Dedicated to doing a good job and making the world a better place.
Moral One: Izumi Okumura, 20’s, Administrative Assistant, attractive but unassuming, quiet and funny, ethical and caring, with a desire to continually grow and improve herself. She is always trying to understand things and find meaning and lessons in them.
-
Kevin Mann’s characters for horror<o:p></o:p>
What I learned from this exercise- My concept doesn’t neatly fit into the formula. I need to rethink some aspects of my scenario to make it work. <o:p></o:p>
The Group- My group are outsiders that are also perceived to be sinners by The Admonition. These are people who refuse to conform to the beliefs of the extremists. Anyone who practices a non-Christian religion, LGBTQIA, non-sanctioned journalists/bloggers anyone trying to enact change.<o:p></o:p>
Dying Patterns –The closest pattern would be the one where 6 or 8 people are together and they die one by one. In my story, 2 people go into the salvation arena and 1 comes out and is sent back into society after conversion therapy. This happens a few times until things change. I could have 10 characters all held together and they go in 5 different salvation arenas 2 by 2, then the 5 survivors come out the other side.<o:p></o:p>
Characters –<o:p></o:p>
The lovers – Isaac and Riley. They are a gay couple forced to compete against each other.<o:p></o:p>
The Innocent- Jessica. Daughter of Martin. She is only there because Martin is her father.<o:p></o:p>
The Rebel- Martin. He is an antiestablishment underground journalist. When he is captured, they bring his daughter with him and force them into the arena together.<o:p></o:p>
The Leader- Rafic. Leader of an underground Muslim church<o:p></o:p>
The Moral One- Kahlil. Rafic’s younger brother who will do anything for him.<o:p></o:p>
The Rescuer- Natalie. A caring, loving Jewish teacher trying to pass her religion on to children.<o:p></o:p>
The introvert. Samuel. A young autistic boy.<o:p></o:p>
-
Julian’s Characters for Horror
What I learned doing this assignment is what type/tone of horror to aim for with the Dying Pattern question.
CONCEPT: Ghost of a gold miner terrorizes campers.
GROUP: Thrill Seekers. An internet celebrity and his followers. (Also, Social Groups – other families and couples are camping nearby and get caught up in the terror.)
DYING PATTERN: A. 6 to 8 characters together and get killed off one by one.
CHARACTERS:
Leader: Internet Celebrity that convinces his followers to meet him for ‘Night in a Haunted Mine’. He opens the mine but has no idea of the consequences.
Rescuer: Experienced Ghost Hunter that sees what is happening online and comes to the mine to help.
Innocent: Fan of celeb. Not outdoorsy. Has a crush that keeps them from making rational decisions.
Out of control / Obnoxious: Celeb’s partner. They don’t want to be there and let everyone know it. Has a competing Tik Tok account. (The first to die.)
Love Interest or lovers: Couple that are camping nearby. Thought time alone might help relationship.
Complainer: Friend of Innocent that tagged along for safety, but hates every second. Complaining keeps saving their life.
Rebel / Rule Breaker: Daughter of family camping nearby. Goes off with Celebrity group in the mine against parent’s wishes. Has to take younger brother with her.
Introvert / Loner: Celebrity follower. Only there for the ghost hunting, doesn’t interact with others. Doesn’t know what to do now that it is after them. Realizes they need others for help to escape.
Moral One: Younger brother of Rebel / Rule Breaker. They have to tag along with older sister and keeps telling her what she shouldn’t do.
Monster Bait: Several other online followers that live nearby. Excited that they got to meet a celebrity, and the only ones that know anything about the outdoors.
The Carrier: The one who brings the horror to the group: (Same as Leader.)
Sacrificial Lamb: ‘Tough Guy’ that tries to sacrifice the Introvert, but ends up becoming the sacrifice instead.
-
MICAH’S CHARACTERS FOR HORROR
What I learned doing this assignment is that staying true to the concept is a good way to start coming up with characters.
CONCEPT: a man is possessed by a spirit that causes grave misfortune to all those around him.
GROUP: Stranger – the guests on one floor of a hotel
DYING PATTERN: A) Put 6 to 8 characters together and kill them off one by one.
CHARACTERS:
The Carrier: Barry Long bears the curse that kills all those around him
Innocent: Eve, a pregnant woman
Aggressor: Adam, the pregnant woman’s husband
Comic Relief: Kay, a suicidal comedian
Lovers: Barry’s daughter June and her boyfriend Ned
Red Shirt: a man whose pacemaker malfunctions
-
Sie Khalil — Character for Horror — Lesson #3
What I Learned: To dig deeper, figure out the characters before I drop them into a situation. Give them a spine before I let them walk onto the page. This work helped me define my characters and situation more.
Concept/Group: Two brothers seek revenge on the local KKK chapter for the brutal attack on their father by a couple of their younger members.
Dying Pattern: We see the initial murder of the first victim that enters their space by chance. Wrong place. wrong time situation. The local members of the KKK are hunted and killed one at a time. Blood, decapitation, and gore, is just the start of it…
IDENTITIES: KKK Leader: Willy – born again, judgmental and critical, loud mouth with a big stick. His way is the only way, no ands, ifs or buts.
Josh – Willy’s 20-Year-Old Son: Much quieter than his father. Physically not as strong as his father, but smarter and more ruthless. He wants to step out of his father’s shadow and lead his own chapter.
Chris – Willy’s High School Classmate and Right Hand: Loyal to a fault, will go in blind because he is nothing more than an obedient servant. He’s a family man and a good provider.
Mark – Josh’s Best Friend and Partner in Crime: They are like two pees in a pod and want nothing more than to show up the older guys. Acts without thinking sometimes and that action gets him in trouble one too many times. It was Chris and him that attacked the two brother’s father. That hasty action is what gets them all killed.
Trevor (30s) – Chris’s Right Hand: Runs the local gym, muscle head with a flair for the dramatic. He’s the strongest of the group — tough, however, is a skill he hasn’t acquired. His motto, “Fists can resolve everything”.
Butch – A Chris Want-to-Be. He whines a lot and has to have things just right. He is too soft for this sort of thing.
There are about ten or more members; however they will just be there for the body count.
-
What I learned from this assignment:
I learned that characters, to be believable, have overlapping facets that influence their behavior. However, for an audience to fully identify with them and experience their struggles, they need a dominant theme in their character that permeates their actions.
Concept:
A small group of graduate students is victimized by a psychotic killer during an overnight school assignment on a remote, miniscule island.
The Group: Eight graduate students.
Dying Pattern: Students are butchered or tortured by a monster/villain wearing a blood-splattered slicker and goggles.
Characters:
Leader: Hank – Responsible, dynamic pacesetter.
Rescuer/Moral One: Vivek – Honorable, trustworthy white knight.
Red Herring: Zara – Unforgiving, vengeful spurned lover.
Love Interest (Timid): Billy – Weak-willed, cowardly love-cheat.
Love Interest (Aggressive): Chloe – Charismatic, seductive risk-taker.
Complainer: Krissy – Anxious, whiney bellyacher.
Rebel/Rule-Breaker: Joe – Cocky, reckless agitator.
Level-Headed One: Rae – Unruffled, cool-headed realist.
Carrier (draws the students to the island for their assignment): Professor – Unconventional, irresponsible intellectual.
Slaughterer: Lighthouse keeper – Possessed, demonic psychopath; the incarnation of sailors and recreationers who died tragically on the reefs.
-
This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by Kathryn Gerow.
-
This reply was modified 3 years, 3 months ago by
-
Tom Wilson’s Characters for Horror
What I learned doing this assignment is it’s fun to mix and match characters and improve things as we progress.
Concept: A motorcycle gang of ghouls break into at a family’s fortified desert mansion and tortures the family to force the father to confess his family’s crime against their leader’s great grandfather in the 19th century.
Dying Pattern: The characters experience the terror and survive together, but one or two die.
Characters:
Leader: Jonathan – Grandfather who learned about the swindle as a child and grew up with it.
Rescuer: Mary – Jonathan’s wife; generic mother figure who must save her family.
Moral One: Michael – son; resourceful, inventive, and with a strong moral compass. He makes the Horror more realistic by letting the gang leader in, and creates the horrible events.
Complainer: Clare – daughter; sullen teenager with a weird boyfriend, and an independent streak. He creates the Horror worse.
Out of Control: Marty – Clare’s boyfriend: Would be detective who hates the father, knows there was a swindle and wants the father to admit it.
The Carrier: Stranger – Wounded and hunted by the gang, the Stranger is let in by Michael. The Stranger has the plague but doesn’t care if everyone gets it and dies an unspeakably horrible death.
-
Tell us your Concept and the Group you have chosen.
La Llorona is captured by the government to be studied, experimented on and weaponized. There are rumors as to what the government building houses. On Halloween weekend, a group of high school students dare each other to find out what is in the building. I have chosen two groups; a team of professionals and a social group.
2. Tell us the Dying Pattern of this movie.
Most of the characters are killed off one by one.
3. Give us an Identity and a sentence for each character that makes up your group.
Example: Leader: Without much consideration, Mike sets a direction, then inspires or pushes the group to go there. Hopefully, he guesses the right direction.
I have not figured out all the characters. I envision the high school group bonding in detention, leading to their dare. Trouble maker: Tony.
Popular girl: Becca
Nerd girl: Jen
Jock: Christian
-Need to work on this. I’m unsure. –
Log in to reply.