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Day 3 Assignments
Reply to post your assignment.
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30 Replies
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Lead Character
Name: Stefano Albino
Role: Antagonist
1. What about this role would cause an actor to want to be known for it?
Hot headed, but a charming young man who is calculating and ruthless
2. What makes this character one of the most interesting characters in your story?
He has a volatile relationship with the godfather, but he is willing to challenge the status quo Fails to prevent killing of Godfather’s wife, seduces and manipulates Lucia, seduces her into a relationship to kill Godfather, tries to kill Lucia, fails to estimate Lucia
3. What are the most interesting actions the Lead could take in the script?
Seduce Lucia and try to kill her husband, The Godfather
4. How can you introduce this role in a way that could sell it to an actor?
As a charming seemingly incompetent Mafioso who is willing to challenge the status quo
5. What could be this character’s emotional range
From seemingly volatile and
immature to calculating and ruthless.<div>AFTER 45 MINUTES OF TRYING, THIIS AS FAR AS i COULD PASTE ON THIS SCREWED UP SYSTEM!
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Joe’s Subtext Characters
My vision is to persevere and stay the course of building steady daily routine, and disciplines that produce consistent writing of exceptional quality. Ultimately, the fruit of those habits and disciplines will be a track record of great marketable scripts that will make other successful talented pros seek me out.
What I learned: This was a challenging assignment for me and I’m still not sure why. I totally understand the “characters with no subtext are ininteresting” but I found myself fighting the “choose that subtext now” task at hand. It’s like I’m still waiting for the characters to come alive and show me the subtext like I’m a member of the audience as opposed to the author. But I still did the brainstorming even if I still think there’s more I haven’t conceived/developed yet for these characters. This was one of those times when writing was less inspiration and more persperations; like the labor of childbirth after 9 months of injestion, or like the “cut open a vein and bleed” analogy.
2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: I Love You to Death
Character Name: Joey Boca
Subtext Identity: Hard Working Blue Collar Family Man, but also cheats on wife almost daily.
Subtext Trait: lying womanizer
Subtext Logline: Uses the excuse that he works so hard all day, he deserves to have fun on the side.
Possible Areas of Subtext: He goes out alone without his wife with excuses that he’s going to fix something in apartment, or he’s going to show apartment to new tenant. When confronted by his wife, he smothers her with affection and attention. When confronted by River Phoenix character, he rationalizes. When confronted by mother-in-law, he blames her for her own shortcomings and curses at her in Italian so she can’t understand what he’s saying.
3. For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Emily Wakefield
Subtext Identity: The Boss
Subtext Trait: Acting like she knows to cover up her naivitee
Subtext Logline: Emily likes to be the boss of herself, but when she is naive about something, she acts like she really knows it all to cover up her naivitee.
Possible Areas of Subtext: When landlord talks to her about extra costs for repairs, she’s thinking “what, what does that mean? did that really need to be repaired, etc.” but says “oh, yeah, of course that needed to be fixed, yeah yeah, those are totally expensive”… When Lorenzo asks her about proper thermostat settings, she does the same thing; pretends she wanted it on overnight for a higher purpose… When a student asks her about a unique quality of Lorenzo that she admires that she didn’t know about, she’s like “ohhh, yeah, that’s right, I forgot he’s like that” but all nonchalant about it.
Character Name: Lorenzo Locatelli
Subtext Identity: the Artist
Subtext Trait: Extremely house proud about having the best pizza in town, and he does, but he is in denial that he’s terrible at marketing and promoting and could use some marketing help.
Subtext Logline: Lorenzo is a culinary artist who is well aware that he makes the best food in town, but is in denial about his marketing struggles and inability to successfully compete with inferior competitors.
Possible Areas of Subtext: When anyone gives him business device, he gets extremely defensive until they regret saying anything. he goes back and forth between “we are the best kept secret in town, therefore me and my customers are the elite” to “its a damn injustice/crime that people are flocking to that inferior pizza place across town”. When customers ask him about what he thinks of the dance teacher upstairs, he writes her off as “prissy, artsy-fartsy” and “too fragile; like overproofed pizza dough” even though he feels intimidated by her ability to bring in new clients. When the landlord does things that raise his costs of doing business, it hurts him, but he’ll never show it to the Landlord. Instead, he’ll boast “bring in on, I can take the hit”. Later in the script, he will finally come to acceptance that there’s got to be a better way to live while honoring his passion for cooking great food, and his pride will be shot. Since he’s no longer using the boasting or the “c’mon hit me I can take it” language, it will be extremely clear that something’s changed in him.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Joe Donato.
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This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by Joe Donato. Reason: originally posted "day 2" instead of "day 3" here. Is there anyway Cheryl could edit the subject so instead of just saying "day 2, 3, 4, etc" it also has the subject of the lesson?
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This reply was modified 2 years, 10 months ago by
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Karen Crider Subtext Characters
My vision is to be a stronger writer.
What I learned: to focus on your characters as being the right ones for your movie. That they can carry the movie and exhibit their characters to give the movie credibility and entertainment value.
Movie Title: Solo Act
Main Character’s Name: Shadow, a spotted hyena
Subtext Identity: The victim
Subtext Logline: After being ousted from his clan, a depressed hyena, living from grub to grub, loses his laughter, but must win the Olympic Hyena Laughing Contest to gain survival in another clan.
Subtext Trait: Scared, traumatized, needy.
Shadow, a traumatized hyena, must find confidence in his own ability to survive no matter how big his predators…
Possible areas of subtext: Competitor, victim, coward
Shadow, the protagonist, is a juvenile, spotted hyena and a victim. He is haunted by Mortimer, a rabid wolf, who dug up his den and killed his brother. He also has competitive agendas with every predator in the forest, including his old clan for food, for protection, and survival. He practices being more like his brother, Brimsley, who he believes is brave and strong, but he only fools himself, because everyone knows Shadow is a coward, including Shadow. His true self will be revealed when he kills Mortimer, the rabid lion, and finds acceptance inside his biggest fear, a wolf pack where he becomes the Alpha hyena leading the pack. The one trait I will work on is the victim trait.
Movie Title: Solo Act
Character name: Mortimer the wolf, the antagonist who kills Shadow’s brother.
Subtext Identity: Mortimer is a criminal– a rabid wolf who contracts the disease from a marauding lion. A wolf who kills everything in his path, including humans.
Subtext Traits: Mortimer, gives rabies to others, except hyenas. He is diseased, shifty, mad, insane, blood thirsty, weaselly, prone to attack.
(Hyenas do not get rabies and serious infections that kill others. The scientists are baffled as to why…)
Mortimer’s traits are: diseased, treacherous, malignant, out of control.
Subtext Logline: A diseased, serial killer who maims or kills everything within his power without medical recourse, conscience or regret.
Possible areas of subtext: Something is off with Mortimer. He is not in control of his behavior. It’s the disease that makes up his character. His brain is full of negri bodies. Those formations that determine whether a person or animal has rabies or not. The results of his disease are not understood by the animals he infects. After all, a wolf can be as violent as a lion. It’s not out of his character. Thanks…
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<header aria-label=”Message”>
Victor Valleau <victorvalleau@yahoo.com>
To:Victor Valleau
Sat, Sep 3 at 11:40 PM
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<font size=”6″>Module 3, Lesson 3, Character Subtext. </font>
<font size=”6″>VISION: AS A WRITER, I AM AN ALCHEMIST, TURNING ORDINARY INTO GOLD. </font>
<font size=”6″>What I learned from doing this assignment is : Exploring deeply for subtext is most rewarding path to flesh and blood characters.
</font><font size=”6″><font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Movie Title Example: When Harry Met Sally</font>
</font><font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Character Name: Sally</font>
<font size=”5″>Subtext Identity<font color=”#343434″ face=”Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif”>- A Virgo on steroids. Very Loyal </font><font color=”#343434″>friend</font></font><font color=”#343434″><font size=”5″><font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif”><font face=”Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif”>, Picky eater, </font>difficult date<font face=”Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif”>, subdued expression of emotion. a </font></font>connoisseur. <font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif”> </font></font> </font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext trait: Doesn’t see her detailing her food order as an annoying habit of dining in elegant restaurants and </font>ruining the elegant mood. She orders food in an incomprehensibly, complicated and confusing. detail, guaranteeing upset. Note, the upset is overlooked but Harry comments too late.
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext logline: Actions She turned off or tolerates Harry’ bragging. </font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Hates his speeches, about women, but explodes with orgasm speech,
</font><font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>She justifies him to her friends when she’s not sure herself about him. Shows her loyalty. </font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Possible areas of subtext activity</font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Dates, dining, walking in park, both are repressed emotional cripples. Say I hate you </font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>but can’t say I love you.</font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>For your two leads, brainstorm these answers: </font>
<font face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Character Name: Mia</font>
subtext identity: Unappreciated wife
Subtext traits: She covertly gets revenge, withholds.
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext logline: Mia covertly accepts sperm donor names Bob Pits, to deceive her husband. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Possible areas of subtext: Formal dinners with husband’s important friends, arguments with Bob Pits at his work, girlfriends humiliating her at sorority dinners.</font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 1Unappreciated wife- H is mad at her for asking for sperm donation. Secretly, she gets donation. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 2 Gets revenge, struggles to hidi Bob, ends up doscovered. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>hides deception frotells husband who hunts down Bob. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 3. Bob negotiates with husband to stay away, give up any claims. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 4 </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Character Name: Bob Pits.</font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext Identity: Like Walter Middy, Bob lives movie star fantasy of his almost namesake. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext traits: Sneaky, in poverty and in denial, Evasive, private like character of Leonardo’s driver: Brad Pitt in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
</font><font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Subtext logline: Believes he is an overlooked movie star action hero or superman in street clothes, with a duty to donate sperm to help less fortunate. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Possible Areas of Subtext </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 1: He sets up action hero scenarios and personas, secret life where he’s needed to save everyone. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 2 at Work and butting into others problems </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 3 Getting kicked out of everything, including boy scouts, gets decked for his butting in. </font>
<font color=”#343434″ face=”bookman old style, new york, times, serif” size=”6″>Act 4 Stops himself from butting in. Is complimented by his mother. </font>
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Lynn Vincentnathan’s Subtext Characters
VISION: I am determined to become a great screenwriter capable of getting my screenplays in various genres produced into movies that inspire vast audiences to mitigate climate change.
I LEARNED to think about subtext potential before finishing an outline or beat sheet. Also this is difficult even though in real life we do use subtext a lot. I learned from another source that occasionally subtext blurts out as on-the-nose dialogue. Also that it should not be so secret that the audience never gets it. Natural, like in real life. It also makes me put in more conflict and tension (internal & external), out of which subtext arises.
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Movie Title: WEATHERING IT (Rom-Com): Two college students try to overcome family fights about global warming and get married during the worst ever Texas freeze
Subtext Identity: Ellie has a father abandonment wound and climate anxiety
Subtext Trait: She covers these up and tries to deal with them by helping other people and species and striving to save the earth, all the while thinking it is hopeless. She avoids relationships because she thinks/knows they are doomed to failure. When her helping save the earth runs up against others’ lack of interest, hostility or climate denial she loses her cool and flies off the handle — either open anger or harsh, sassy subtext.
Subtext Logline: Ellie is falling for Jim against her better (wounded layer) judgment, trying to convince herself that he would be helpful in her projects of helping Uncle Ely with his alt energy and helping to save the Earth, and healing the wound she has (abandonment, eco-anxiety).
Possible Areas of Subtext
Throughout the script Ellie expresses her underlying wounds/anxiety in subtext or subtle ways.
Act 1: Ellie gets upset with her mother and Uncle Rudy for their lack of eco-interest; she gets upset with Luz for suggesting she get romantically involved. She nearly freaks out giving a class presentation to a bunch of uninterested, hostile, and denialist students. She is upset with Uncle Ely for not being effective in his eco-efforts. When Jim kisses her and she responds with budding sexuality, she gets upset at the prospect of being sucked into a doomed relationship. She humorously relies on a ridiculous compatibility test to reassure her about Jim.
Act 2: Ellie continues ignoring her inner warnings about getting involved with Jim, convincing herself he’d be the best thing for her and saving the earth, until a final blow up over him not wanting to invite her Uncle Ely to the wedding (he’s afraid with his Uncle Fred there the whole thing would blow up) and they call off the wedding. Ellie throws a fit (he pushes all her subtext triggers), all is revealed about Jim’s obligation to Fred and Ellie’s commitment to Ely and they break up.
Act 3: Ellie cannot overcome her love for Jim and they decide to try it again, taking it slow. This time she is aware of the issues and has matured somewhat and knows she must mature more. She struggles to change herself to make a go of it, agreeing not to invite Uncle Ely. During her Xmas with Jim & Uncle Fred she has to fake not being an eco-activist and fake happy to move to Houston where Jim will be working for Fred’s Oil Engineering Consultancy. She with Jim’s coaxing keeps convincing herself they’d be able to change Fred & it would work out, but she knows deep down it won’t. She is losing her passion for life, but pretends all is okay.
Act 4: With the freeze and black-out hitting it seems all is lost and the wedding and marriage is really doomed to failure (better before vows than after), until Ellie pulls up her strength of character and recklessly insists they have the wedding at Uncle Ely’s off-the-grid farm (at least they’d keep warm). Here is where the subtext tends to surface and much is revealed to others. Ellie may have some subtext in coaxing others to go along with moving the wedding venue to Ely’s farm, and to Ely in getting him to agree.
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Character Name: JIM HIGSON (male lead)
Subtext Identity: Has a father bereavement wound and needs family and faith. He is most concerned about getting a good wife — someone committed, religious, and into areas of his interest, which are opposed to his Uncle Fred’s plans for him. He needs this to weather the obligations he has to Fred and figures Ellie is the right gal for it. He’s more into Ellie than he is into eco-things.
Subtext Trait: He covers these up to the guys, trying to fit in (regular guy after sex, not wholesome marriage); hides his obligation to Fred from Ellie, figuring it would push her away; and hides his deepest interests and needs to Uncle Fred, who would oppose them. When threats to his goals or needs arise he gets upset, backs out…. xxx ??
Subtext Logline: Jim hides his deepest wounds and needs, but finds Ellie may be the perfect woman to fulfill these, but he has to hide his obligation to Uncle Fred, fearing it may push Ellie away.
Possible Areas of Subtext
Throughout the script Jim expresses his underlying wounds/anxiety in subtext or subtle ways, even opposite ways (surface happy, self-assured, deep down hurting).
Act 1: Uses whatever means he can to lure Ellie into his arms, even taking her stupid compatibility test, hiding his disbelief in all the (mostly silly to him) rigmarole. He hides his obligation to Fred from Ellie (such as when Ellie is overhearing him speak to Fred on his cell) and his relation to Fred from Ely.
Act 2: A continuation of this in Act 2, up until at Uncle Rudy’s Marriage Barn in prepping for the wedding, Rudy and Jim are against inviting Uncle Ely (Rudy bec Ely’s obnoxious; Jim bec he’d get into big fight with his Uncle Fred). Jim explodes (she pushes all his subtext triggers), all is revealed about Jim’s obligation to Fred and Ellie’s commitment to Ely and they break up.
Act 3: Jim realizes he loves Ellie and knows she’s right for him, so overcomes stubbornness (with lots of subtext) to give it another try, this time slower… subtext re their passion. He hides from Uncle Fred his interest in alt energy and climate issues, and also tells Ellie he’ll be able to convince Fred to change and allow alt energy consulting in his business — though both know that will be nearly impossible. He knows Ellie is losing her passion for life and he is too (neither will be able to achieve their dreams and goals), but he pretends all is fine. He toys thru subtext with breaking up just to give Ellie a chance to pursue her goals, but she’s in love and won’t leave him.
Act 4: With the freeze and black-out hitting it seems all is lost, until insists they have the wedding at Uncle Ely’s off-the-grid farm. Jim thinks it’ll be disaster then Uncle Fred shows up (suppresses/subtexts this), but at least they’d keep warm). His inner needs and goals are shouted to Fred and he figures it’ll be disaster. He sticks up for Ely, betrays Fred – which actually propels Fred into revealing the truth about tricking Sarah away from Ely…. And Fred becomes amenable adding alt energy consultancy to his business.
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Character Name: ELY PEREZ (triangle character)
Subtext Identity: Deeply wounded by his love Sarah leaving him for Fred Higson, climate anxiety and a sense all is doomed to failure, but with a strong ethic of never give up.
Subtext Trait: Grumpy old recluse, hair-trigger temper.
Subtext Logline: Wants to save the earth and is trying to use grand-niece Ellie (the only relative who gets along with him, puts up with him) to help him do that.
Possible Areas of Subtext
Throughout the script Jim expresses his underlying wounds/anxiety in subtext or subtle ways, even opposite ways.
Act 1: Ellie wants him to allow club visit to his off-the-grid farm, but he is angling to get her to take it over and help him.
Act 2: When students visit he makes all sorts of grumpy subtext references to eco-disaster, hopelessness in relationships, etc. He flies off the handle when he hears Jim’s last name. He assumes Jim is Fred’s son out to do him harm, but also muses about Sarah (Of course, your mother, poor woman…). Jim says he doesn’t know what Ely’s talking about, that he’s not Fred Higson’s son (hiding that he’s his nephew). Ely: “Of course, you could be related to Fred and into alt energy.”
Act 3: Mainly references to Uncle Ely in Act 3.
Act 4: With the freeze and black-out hitting, Ellie begs Ely to have the wedding in his barn. Ely is pissed he wasn’t invited and hates having people there, but doesn’t want to push away Ellie on whom he’s relying so much of this is subtext – excuses, under-the-breath comments. He finally relents and allows it. As guests come he makes various negative subtext references to eco-apocalypse and marriage doomed to failure. When Fred arrives there’s a big blow up, followed by resolution. Ely finds out Fred had tricked Sarah away from him (lying about Ely having another woman) and that she left Fred due to his infidelity, which heals his feeling about Sarah.
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Ron’s subtext characters
Vision: I want the success and recognition of being an in demand, A-list screenwriter who writes successful films that are financially profitable, award winning and of enduring quality
What I learned from doing this assignment is that this exercise has helped me focus on my character in a whole new exciting way”
2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Casablanca
Character Name: Rick Blaine <div>Subtext Identity: Hard shell of indifference and
cynicism:Subtext Trait: covered by seeming toughness
indifference to things around him
Subtext Logline: Still suffering from the hurt of a
failed relationship, he covers by seeming indifference to things around
himPossible Areas of Subtext: relationship to LLsa,: refuses to accept
drinks from customers, treats his lover Yvonne without affection or
respect, and seems not to care that a war is being waged around him or
that desperate refugees have flocked to Casablanca. He makes a point of
broadcasting his aloofness, stating on several occasions, “I stick my
neck out for nobody.”A. Character Name:Lucia
Subtext Identity: Her insecurity and lack of confidence
allows her to be controlled by those around herSubtext Trait: Allows people to influence her even
though she realizes it is often not in her best interest and goes against
her wishesSubtext Logline:Lucia is a insecure, fragile women who
must summon the strength to operate in the violent and vicious world of the
mafia
PossibleAreas of Subtext:accidently kills brutal
boyfriend, flees with and marries mafia boss, manipulated by Sylvio,
decides not to kill husband, schemes to maneuver in mafia worldB: Character
Name:Stefano Albano
SubtextIdentity: chip on his shoulder because he feels
father doesn’t respect himSubtext Trait: Brutal toward people whom he believes
don’t respect himSubtext Logline: Sylvio is a violent mobster who is
driven by his feeling that he is disrepectedPossible Areas of Subtext plots to over take criminal organization, seduces Lucia, convinces to
plot against her husband, kills husband,, goes after Lucia when he believes
has betrayed him.</div>
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Module 3 — Lesson 3: Character Subtext
Subject: Monica’s Subtext Characters
Vision: I will continue to learn everything I can through all different media to apply what I learn to become the best screenwriter I can be. To be successful in getting my movies made and to win awards in the process.
What I learned from
doing this assignment is how important it is to build character sub-text before
you write the script.<div>2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: THE GRAY MAN</div>
Character Name: Sierra Six
Subtext Identity: The competitor
Subtext Trait: Dangerous
Subtext Logline: Six is a dangerous competitor
who covers it by being polite as he goes about his business as a CIA
assassin.Possible Areas of
Subtext: Defends the defenseless,
lets his actions speak rather than having to talk all the time, doesn’t
seem to have a plan.<div>
3. For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Conall Coffey</div>
Subtext Identity: Special Forces commander
with his own agendaSubtext Trait: Treacherous
Subtext Logline: Conall is a rogue
Special Forces commander who is a treacherous and dangerous man with his
own agenda.Possible Areas of
Subtext: Listening without saying
much, suspicious of everyone, plays both sides of the story, subtly
manipulates the “elites”.Character Name: Harry Bernham
Subtext Identity: Leader of the elites and lawyer
Subtext Trait: Deceitful, immoral
Subtext Logline: Harry is a lawyer and the deceitful,
immoral leader of the “elites” who knows the laws of every country to
achieve his agenda.Possible Areas of
Subtext: Control every situation, uses
immoral actions to get what he wants, doesn’t realize he’s being
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Module 3, Lesson 3, Character Subtext. Vic Valleau
VISION: AS A WRITER, I AM AN ALCHEMIST, TURNING ORDINARY INTO GOLD.
What I learned from doing this assignment is : Exploring deeply for subtext is most rewarding path to building flesh and blood characters.
Movie Title Example: When Harry Met Sally</font>
Character Name: SallySubtext Identity: Sally is a Virgo on steroids. Very Loyal, Picky eater, subdued expression of emotion yet a connoisseur
Subtext trait She orders food in an incomprehensibly, complicated and confusing. detail, guaranteeing upset. Note, the upset is overlooked but Harry comments too late.
Subtext logline: Actions She turned off or tolerates Harry’ bragging. Hates his speeches, about women, but explodes with orgasm speech. She justifies him to her friends when she’s not sure herself about him. Shows her loyalty.
Possible areas of subtext activity</font>
Dates, dining, walking in park, both are repressed emotional cripples. Say I hate you, but can’t say I love you.</font>
For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Mia Spitz
subtext identity: Unappreciated wife
Subtext traits: She covertly gets revenge, withholds.
Mia covertly accepts sperm donor names Bob Pits, to deceive her husband. </font>
Possible areas of subtext: Formal dinners with husband’s important friends, arguments with Bob Pits at his work, girlfriends humiliating her at sorority dinners.</font>
Act 1 Unappreciated wife- H is mad at her for asking for sperm donation. Secretly, she gets donation.
Act 2 Gets revenge, struggles to hide Bob, ends up discovered. </font>
hides deception fro from H, yet tells husband who hunts down Bob. </font>
Act 3. Bob negotiates with husband to stay away, give up any claims. </font>
Act 4 Bob demands to see child who says Daddy to Bob but also says Daddy to the next man who walks in.
Character Name: Bob Pits.
Subtext Identity: Like Walter Middy, Bob lives movie star fantasy of his almost namesa
Subtext traits: Sneaky, in poverty and in denial, Evasive, private like character of Leonardo’s driver: Brad Pitt in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Subtext logline: Believes he is an overlooked movie star action hero or superman in street clothes, with a duty to donate sperm to help less fortunate.
Possible Areas of Subtext .
Act 1: He sets up action hero scenarios and personas, secret life where he’s needed to save everyone.
Act 2 at Work and butting into others problems </font>
Act 3 Getting kicked out of everything, including boy scouts, gets decked for his butting in. </font>
Act 4 Stops himself from butting in. Is complimented by his mother.
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Module 3 – Lesson 3 – Character Subtext
Lisa Long’s Subtext Characters
My Vision: I will do whatever it takes to be comfortable saying that I am a writer by creating impactful stories with amazing characters in order to sell my scripts.
What I learned from this assignment is to think about the characteristics not just the dialogue of the characters.
2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie
Title: Ordinary People <div>Character
Name: Conrad JarrettSubtext
Identity: Criminal in his mindSubtext
Trait: He sees himself as evilSubtext
Logline: Conrad is trying to deal with guilt
and to connect once again with his parents and friends after a suicide
attempt.Possible
Areas of Subtext: Conrad
tries to appear “normal” to the kids at school and his old friends. He
seeks out therapy because he recognizes that he is still spiraling. Conrad
is afraid that he’ll never feel love again from his mother. He finds it
difficult to say what he means and so often lashing out instead.3. For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character
Name: Molly </div><div>Subtext
Identity: Abandoned child/VictimSubtext
Trait: Scared, Angry, Secretive, SneakySubtext
Logline: Molly has been abandoned and
must learn to survive in a new environment with people she doesn’t know by
using her wits and street sense, all while trying to dance.Possible
Areas of Subtext: Molly has
to push down her anger inside when trying to adapt by working in the restaurant.
Molly hides from others that she is learning dance from Mars every
afternoon. Molly hides from Mars that her father has forbad her to dance. Molly
figures out how to sneak out her bedroom window even though it’s on the
second floor.Character
Name: EdgarSubtext
Identity: Boss, LonerSubtext
Trait: Panicked, Shy, Angry, Covering
UpSubtext
Logline: Ed has had his daughter thrown
in his lap and he doesn’t know what to do or say or how to treat her…he’s
never been a parent.Possible
Areas of Subtext: Ed tries to
keep Molly busy by making her work in his restaurant, He cries alone in
his room at night after he sees April because he is hiding that he still
loves her. Ed is secretively panicking about how to control/parent Molly,
but he refers to the old adage “never let them see you sweat”. Ed has trouble
controlling his anger, so he’s always at odds with himself.</div>
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Andrew Boyd’s Character subtext
WIM2 Module 3, Lesson 3, Character Subtext
My Vision:
For Hitler’s Choirboys to be such a compelling screenplay that Steven Spielberg and Mel Gibson will battle it out to produce their best WW2 blockbuster since Hacksaw Ridge or Schindler’s List.
What I learned from this assignment is:
To write subtext into a character by demonstrating their compensating devices the leave an audience wondering about their wounds.
With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Bridge of Spies
Character Name: Rudolf Abel
Subtext Identity: Spying for the Soviet Union against the US
Subtext Trait: Secretive, scheming, with every suspicious activity buried beneath the surface
Subtext Logline: Rudolf Abel is an unprepossessing picture of shabby, middle-aged ordinariness. No-one would cast him a second glance. And that’s the way he wants it, because Abel is a Soviet spy.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Small, secretive gestures and sideways glances, as Abel goes about his assignments in plain sight. Passion, conviction and deep-seated determination to risk his life daily by flying under the radar.
For your own leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Henry Gerecke, Protagonist
Subtext Identity: Humiliated by his father
Subtext Trait: Overcompensating with kindness to figures he adopts as sons – including his sidekick Fuller and the Nazi defendants.
Subtext Logline: Henry Gerecke is a man of seemingly limitless compassion – yet with a reluctance to confront and get tough, which results in pulling his punches. Unless he can master tough love, he will never rescue those assigned to his care.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Gerecke must overcome his fear of humiliating others instilled in him by his father, if he is to challenge and confront and become a true father figure to those in his care.
Character Name: Hermann Goering, Antagonist
Subtext Identity: Abandonment by father and mother
Subtext Trait: Narcissism, vanity, manipulation, scheming
Subtext Logline: Goering regards the war as his personal vanity project. He must maintain his and the Nazi legend – even if it results in his death
Possible Areas of Subtext: Goering’s refusal to recognise the truth about what he has done, and so take responsibility; his relentless determination to force the other Nazis to ‘keep the faith’; his defiant last stand to defend his reputation and legend in court
Character Name: Samuel Fuller, Sidekick to protagonist, shapeshifter and trickster
Subtext Identity: Abandoned by his alcoholic father
Subtext Trait: Rebel, kicking against authority, especially father figures
Subtext Logline: On the surface, Sam Fuller is a wisecracking, piano-playing hustler. Beneath that, he’s just a kid in search of a father and testing the limits of his father-figure’s love
Possible Areas of Subtext: Kicking hard against his father figure Henry Gerecke who stands in his way, determined to win self-esteem by becoming the centre of attention in his own unique way.
Many thanks, Andrew
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Amy’s Subtext Characters
Vision: I want to become known as an expert in the family-friendly genre and make a full-time living as a screenwriter.
What I learned from doing this assignment is giving characters subtext makes them more interesting.
Movie Title: Home Again
Character Name: Alice Kinney
Subtext Identity: Alice is a single mom of two kids who allows three young filmmakers to live in her guest house.
Subtext Trait: party girls
Subtext Logline: Alice is a single mom who falls in love with Harry, one of the three young filmmakers living in her guest house.
Possible Areas of Subtext: She goes out with her two girlfriends and brings the three young guys they met back to her house. She sleeps with Harry, who is much younger.
Character Name: Stephanie
Subtext Identity: Stephanie is a princess who turns out not to be a princess.
Subtext Trait: suspicious, in denial
Subtext Logline: Stephanie is a princess who turns out not to be a princess and has to accept help from Prince Jack, who she hates.
Possible Areas of Subtext: She questions Jack about why he’s helping her. She refuses to accept that this isn’t going to all be cleared up and everyone will realize that she really is the princess. She won’t admit that this whole thing is making her miss her father more.
Character Name: Jack
Subtext Identity: Jack is a prince who can relate to commoners.
Subtext Traits: manipulative, tricky
Subtext Logline: Jack is a prince who is trying to help the former princess learn how to be a commoner.
Possible areas for subtext: Helping Stephanie while simultaneously ribbing Stephanie for the situation she’s in. Getting Stephanie to talk about her father when she doesn’t want to. Getting the commoners to accept Stephanie as one of them.
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WIM2 – Dana’s Subtext Characters
My Vision: I intend to perfect my skills to become a successful screenwriter, scripting acclaimed and profitable films, recognized by my peers, and living an adventurous life.
What I learned during this assignment:
These exercises make me focus on the motivations of characters and push their conflict to an extreme to drive the story forward. But subtext adds depth to characters, developing the humanity of both protagonist and antagonist and creating the emotional connection for the audience.
Movie Title: The Smelting Pot
Character Name: Ruth Griffin
Subtext Identity: Ruth is a woman of privilege who is kidnapped and held hostage for ransom by a serial kidnapper.
Subtext Trait: Manipulative, frightened, suspicious, determined
Subtext Logline: Ruth is kidnapped and held hostage in an abandoned steel mill and tries to manipulate her captor into releasing her while figuring a way to escape.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Confronting her kidnapper, begging/demanding to be released; pleading with the young gang member who finds her by happenstance.
Character Name: The Custodian
Subtext Identity: Kidnapper who never speaks and threatens his hostage with gestures and signals.
Subtext Trait: Treacherous, sneaky, violent
Subtext Logline: The Custodian is a kidnapper who keeps his hostage prisoner in an abandoned steel mill and uses the violence of others to threaten her into obedience.
Possible Areas of Subtext: At their first meeting when he reveals himself to his hostage; when he saves her by killing a drug addict; killing the young gang member who tries to help; holding a phone allowing her to briefly speak to her husband.
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<div>Dave Holloway’s Subtext characters</div>
My vision: I would like to be a successful writer in Hollywood, with a number of successful movies to my credit that put forward a core belief about environmental, political, or personal development.
What I learned doing this assignment is that exploring subtext possibilities for characters opens up possible new facets of them that make them more interesting and three-dimensional.
Movie Title: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Character Name: “Chief”
Subtext Identity: a supposedly “dumb”, i.e., non-speaking man who’s a resident of the asylum is actually able to speak and is much more intelligent than the people around him believe
Subtext Trait: is cleverly concealing how much he understands and how strong he is by pretending to be unable to speak and maintaining a passive facade
Subtext Logline: “Chief” is maintaining the illusion of being unable to speak to hide from others how much he sees and understands of what’s going on around him
Possible Areas of Subtext: Maintains silent persona and passive disposition so authorities at the asylum won’t see his strength; is silent so authorities won’t know how much he sees and understands about what’s going on around him; maintains silent, non-reacting persona so authorities won’t see him as a threat to escape
Title: The Last, Best Hope
Character Name: Nigel Williamson
Subtext Identity: is a lawyer who’s articulate and intelligent and passionate in court but has always been afraid of danger and physical conflict.
Subtext Trait: Uses his intelligence and persuasive ability to maintain a civilized persona and stay out of dangerous situations
Subtext Logline: Nigel tires to obtain his wife’s freedom by every non-violent means he can think of, but is thrust into a world where they will be insufficient, while knowing that if his courage fails him in trying to free his wife, he’ll never be able to forgive himself
Possible Areas of subtext: tries to argue his friend, Roger, out of becoming involved in a gun battle between Native Americans and hunters; tries various non-violent means of freeing her from the military prison she’s incarcerated in.
Character Name: Roger Darby
Subtext Identity: is a stockbroker who is unfailingly courageous and ready to fight, but wants to prove to himself and Nigel that he has is not simply tough and strong: i.e., that he possesses more emotional depth and intelligence than many others would believe
Subtext traits: possesses hidden level of human feeling and intelligence
Subtext Logline: Roger wants to show he possesses some of Nigel’s capacity to love and some of his intelligence.
Possible Areas of subtext: Nigel mentions how happy he was when falling in love with and marrying his wife, and Roger expresses uneasiness about never having felt so deeply for a woman. Roger undertakes a surveillance mission at the prison where Nigel’s wife is held, or some other job requiring quick thinking and observational skills in the final effort to free her.
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MODULE THREE LESSON THREE
FRAN’S SUBTEXT CHARACTERS
MY VISION: I want to write great movies. Movies that are magical, movies that move people and tell the truth. I want to write movies that stars will want to be in.
WHATI LEARNED: You have to get inside the heads of your characters. You need to feel what they feel, think what they think. This is a good way to get started on it.
Meredith Kerns
Secretive—she holds back
She hides thing from her husband, tries to hide them from her daughter
She tries to share at first, but then gives up
Does things without his knowledge or permission/support
Meredith Kerns has a secretive trait. She hides things and her feelings from her philandering husband.
She plays the dutiful wife to his face.
But the she buys the diary anyway against and despite her husband’s wishes.
She tries to work with him even though he’s abusive towards her. But learns things must change when he threatens her job.
She tries to hides things from her daughter, but her daughter knows.
She tries to hides things from her agent, but secretly her agent knows and tries to be supportive beyond the call of duty.
She hides things from herself, it affects her creativity.
She finally stops hiding things, admits she can’t go on this way. She gets honest with herself and finally gets the courage to leave her husband.
Jerome Kerns
Manipulative, abusive, immoral, deceitful
He deliberately picks fights with Meredith to feel superior and in charge. He finds ways to put her down, her talent down. He likes to overlord.
Jerome always must appear in charge, as when he’s buying a gift for his daughter.
Jerome likes to be dominating in his position as director and producer, and never in a kind way. His putdowns and his criticisms are putting an ever-increasing strain on the couples’ marriage.
His picking fights with her, fires her off their movie, his continual need to have affairs with his leading ladies finally wakes Meredith up to do something about it.
Meredith takes a new job behind Jerome’s back, without his knowledge, until at one point she confronts him and she quits.
Jerome gets jealous and angry over her success when she wins her Oscar and gets much praise for her work.
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Renee’s Subtext Characters
My Vision: I will work hard to become a well-respected screenwriter who has their movies produced and have enough work to keep me busy and keep the lights on.
What I learned doing this assignment is how to think about possibly areas of subtext for the characters to make the movie more interesting and keep the audience engaged.
Character Name: Claire
Subtext trait: deceitful
Subtext identity: the party girl
Subtext activity: covers by being sarcastic
Claire is a party girl who covers her deceitful behavior with sarcasm.
Act 1: when talking to her sister and brother-in-law (ex boyfriend)
When interacting with the antagonist and rest of the search and rescue team.
Act 2: When she is caught drinking at the camp.
When her ex (one of the antagonists men) starts asking her how she’s doing.
Act 3: when interacting with The boss. Most of this act she is alone with the creature and her unconscious niece.
Act 4: when she is questioned about what happened to the antagonist.
Character Name: Marc
Subtext trait: evil
Subtext identity: the boss
Subtext activity: covers by being overly attentive
Marc is the boss who covers his evil nature by being overly attentive.
Act 1: when dealing with the parents of the missing girl.
When giving orders to the team.
Act 2: When discussing his plans with his men.
When talking with the parents.
Act 3: when talking with Claire.
Act 4: he’s dead
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David’s Subtext Characters
My vision is to increase my skills to become an A list writer.
What I learned from this assignment is the importance of attracting top actors with terrific subtext.
Movie Title: The Big Lebowski
Character Name: Walter Sobchak
Subtext Identity: Ex-military bowling team member of the Dude
Subtext Trait: Soft, hypocrital
Subtext Logline: Walter’s a hard ass, always talking about Vietnam, but is still whipped by his ex-wife.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Cares for ex-wife’s Pomeranian. Stays a committed Jew after the divorce. Uses offensive racial slang after chastising The Dude. Says he can’t pick up the phone or drive on the Sabbath, but does both.
Movie title: PAST DUE
Character Name: Chas Chander
Subtext Identity: Deeply indebted, unemployed college grad who pretends to be a doctor to woo his dreamgirl.
Subtext Trait: Remorseful, altruistic, scared of reality
Subtext Logline: A deeply in debt sperm donor pretends to be a doctor, but feels guilty and likes to help others.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Big Brother to a Black kid. Gives his last food to his cat. See the guilt on his face when he lies to parents. Visits sick kids in hospital. Ghosts/breaks up with Christie because he feels guilty. Would rather die than tell parents the truth. Lies to his friends that he’s happy with his life.
Movie title: PAST DUE
Character Name: Keith Holmes
Subtext Identity: A ruthless student loan collector hellbent on tracking down Chas to get 10 grand to keep his childhood home.
Subtext Trait: Kind, nastolgic
Subtext Logline: A ruthless student loan collector who loves his mother and desperately wants to save his childhood home.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Takes care of cat. Keeps pic of mom in his wallet. See his fondness for old friends and (crappy) home town. Respectful to women. Dresses and acts like he’s still in 1980s. Fondness for his military days. Envious of college kids.
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<div>Nancy’s Subtext Characters</div>
My Vision: To create a polished portfolio and do whatever it takes to get a manager, and then sell multiple TV and or feature scripts.
What I learned during this assignment is that characters actions and words are only the surface of who/what they are. Subtext makes them much more interesting to watch.
Movie Title: Survivor’s Guilt
Character Name: Freya
Covert Identity: the victim
Subtext Identity: Investigative reporter with a Wound about being hurt by those close to her
Subtext Trait: Covers by being overly giving (triggered – suspicious, nosy to a fault)
Subtext Logline: Freya is afraid she’s unlovable so overcompensates by giving of herself, but when triggered she takes risks, attacks others verbally, punishes herself to prove she can sustain the pain.
Possible Areas of Subtext: trying to explore/investigate things she should leave alone, puts herself in danger to break into Caretakers home, cuts herself when she is down, fights, leaves her beloved job (that provided security and she hid behind) and flees to an uninhabited island, forces herself to be surrounded by water of which she is very afraid, to live alone which goes against her comfort, suspicious of the caretaker,
Character Name: Caretaker
Covert Identity: The spy/stalker
Subtext Identity: A caretaker who is in denial about the crime he committed
Subtext Trait: Manipulative, conniving/deceptive
Subtext Logline: The Caretaker, Noah, is a directionless caretaker who is in love with the woman that he killed in the past.
Possible Areas of Subtext: hides on the island, stalks Freya, fabricates stories about the crime, befriends Freya to trust him then betrays her, exploits her mental instability
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Paul Dees’ Subtext Characters
My Vision: I am a writer/director/producer that writes and makes films of all kinds, and I am recognized by the industry as both a highly successful filmmaker and as a person that’s easy to work with.
What I learned from doing this assignment is how to have a specific game plan for endowing lead characters in a screenplay with subtext.
Movie Title: The Invisible Terrorist
Character Name: Rick O’Brien
Subtext Identity: FBI Agent that’s trying to hold it together
Subtext Trait: In denial
Subtext Logline: Rick O’Brien is an FBI Agent that is in denial about the emotional trauma he’s carrying around, after his partner and a hostage are killed during a botched operation he was in charge of prior to the current events of the film.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Always upbeat, blows off inquiries if he’s all right when it looks like something’s wrong for just a moment, doesn’t sleep well or for very long, brief moments when he looks and acts like he’s carrying the whole world on his shoulders.
Character Name: Sean Gray
Subtext Identity: FBI Agent with a huge secret
Subtext Traits: Deceitful, subversive, diabolical
Subtext Logline: Sean Gray is an FBI Agent that is likeable on the outside, but is actually deceitful, subversive and diabolical due to his being the terrorist he pretends to help Rick bring to justice.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Studied biomedical engineering in college and understands how the masks the terrorist uses to control peoples’ minds in order to carry out his attacks are constructed and how they operate. Leads Rick to someone we think is responsible for the attacks, only to find it was a false alarm. Expresses admiration for the terrorist’s handiwork.
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Bice-Stephen’s’ Subtext Characters
2022 is my year to break through!
What I learned—This is a great way to deeen characters.
1. Title—Baby Dearest
2. Character:
Name—Brandy
Role—Antagonist, Female, 20s
Subtext identity—A psychopath who desperately wants a family
Subtext traits—Controlling, manipulative, liar
Subtext Logline—Brandy is crazy and has a wound from finding her mother murdered by her estranged dad, so she follows his lead trying to murder the ex who likewise rejected her.
Possible areas of subtext—
Pictures of families everywhere, fake pregnancy, fake paternity, kidnapped baby to manipulate ex, dresses girl baby as boy
Character:
Name—Alex
Role—Protagonist, male, 20s
Subtext identity—Adoption wound, never got over his mother giving him away
Subtext traits—kind and caring to everyone, especially kids
Subtext Logline—Alex has an adoption wound that causes him to overcompensate
Possible areas of subtext:
Volunteers at shelter, accepts father role without question, consistently taken advantage of, helps everyone
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Module 3, Lesson 3 – Character Subtext
Subject: Rob Ingalls’ Subtext Characters
MY VISION:
To be a Talented writer that delivers quality fast, with the film industry seeking me out.
WIL: I think this lesson needs to be REWRITTEN. Confusion between “subtext activity” and “covert character traits” and also “subtext identity” and “covert identity”. What are the four (4) types of character subtext? It lists only two.
The example lists “Acceptance wound” as a subtext identity. Where is this listed?
==========================================
Title: NIRVANA GOLD
Concept:
A giant Buddha statue made of pure gold is stolen by thieves who tunnel underneath and hollow it out.
Character Structure: Dramatic Triangle
==========================================
Character with Most Subtext:
Movie Title: NIRVANA GOLD
Protagonist
Character Name: Josh
Subtext Identity: The Fake
Subtext Trait: Secretive
Subtext Logline: (Name is a [Subtext Identity] who [main Subtext Activity/Trait]
– Josh is a Social Media Influencer Fake who keeps the truth secretive
Possible Areas of Subtext:
Josh’s fake adventures discovered, he continues his scheme, then confesses. In effort to prove himself, he’s on a REAL adventure. Acts like he has it all made, but reality feels deeply lacking. Loves his grandma, fears she is dying soon. Turns tables on Cashus. Josh has mixed feelings on Holly, but in the end realizes it was the right thing to dump her.
=======================
Antagonist
Character Name: Cashus King
Subtext Identity: The Competitor
Subtext Trait: Conniving
Subtext Logline: (Name is a [Subtext Identity] who [main Subtext Activity/Trait]
– Cashus King is a TicTok Competitor who connives to out-win his competition
Possible Areas of Subtext:
Breaks into Josh’s home, discovers map, takes photo of it. Creates problems for Josh to prevent him discovering statue. Finds statue first, then realizes too heavy to move. Plan to carve out inner gold and steal it. He feeds his followers his adventure and Josh’s failings.
==========================
Triangle Character
Character Name: Holly
Subtext Identity: The victim
Subtext Trait: Manipulative
Subtext Logline: (Name is a [Subtext Identity] who [main Subtext Activity/Trait]
– Holly is a victim of Josh’s seduction/dumping and manipulates Cashus to hurt Josh.
Possible Areas of Subtext:
Holly feeds Cashus with Josh’s secrets confided to her when she and Josh were together. Holly pretends to want to get back with Josh but really just wants revenge.
==========================
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WIM2 – Alan’s Subtext Characters
My Vision:
I do whatever it takes for me to be a true wordsmith that spins wildly original and entertaining screenplays that are passionately sought out by top industry professionals who turn them into critically and publicly acclaimed major motion pictures distributed by the top studios in Hollywood, all while writing from wherever I may be leisurely traveling the world at the moment.
=====================================================================
What I learned: This is a really important process that I don’t usually do outside of SU classes. I need to make this a regular part of my process. I know that’s the same thing I learned last time, but it counts here too!
=====================================================================
Title: Ninja Burgers
Genre: Action/Comedy
Concept: A down on his luck, thirty-something fast food employee finds a high tech bracelet that turns him into the world’s deadliest super soldier.
======================================================================
With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Kickass
Character Name: Big Daddy
Subtext Identity: A badass superhero/vigilante who is terrified about his daughter’s future and missis his wife.
Subtext Trait: Overprotective – gentle and loving father
Subtext Logline: Big Daddy is a disgraced former cop – framed for a crime he didn’t commit – turned superhero/vigilante who is terrified about his only daughter’s future and safety in a world without him to protect her.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Teaching his daughter how to fight, bringing down the guys who brought him down, getting his daughter everything she wants.
For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Protagonist:
Character Name: Tiberius Truman
Subtext Identity: Thirty-something, bullied, insecure, introverted fast food employee who is part of a group trying to become YouTube famous (he’s the camera man) but really dreams of owning his own fast food restaurant one day but won’t tell anyone that because they would ridicule him for it…and he always wanted to be a Ninja.
Subtext Trait: Believes in his dream but won’t share it because he knows everyone else would ridicule him for it. People always tell him his dreams aren’t big enough.
Subtext Logline: Tiberius is a bullied, insecure fast food employee and part of a group trying to be YouTube famous but really longs to open his own fast food restaurant one day.
Possible Areas of Subtext: His heart isn’t into the YouTube group but he does it to belong. Want’s to be a Ninja but his friends ridicule him for it cuz that’s cultural appropriation etc. Tells one person about his real dream and they laugh in his face, then he has to admit he was only kidding, but he wasn’t. When in training he gets the nickname Ninja when he lets it slip that has been a dream of his. And he shares his restaurant dream with someone in the group and they think it’s a good idea.
Antagonist:
Character Name: Crypto
Subtext Identity: Leader of an evil high tech organization who longs to live the quiet life on a tropical island.
Subtext Trait: Longing for peace and no stress. Tired of being the “buck stops here” guy.
Subtext Logline: Crypto is the leader of an evil organization dedicated to bringing the downfall of civilization through any means possible who feels trapped in his job and longs for peace and quiet and a simple life tending bar on a small tropical island.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Every time someone comes to him with a problem, verbal fights where he snaps for no apparent reason, general fatigue when others aren’t looking, moments alone pining for the simple life, photos on his tablet/phone of his true dream.
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Subject Line: Hari’s Subtext Characters
My Vision: I want to write screenplays that enable me to work with like minded creative people in the industry to produce profound movies that will have a long lasting positive effect on the world.
What I learned…Actors play the subtext!
With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Chinatown
Character Name:Evelyn Mulwray
Subtext Identity: A woman with a secret to hide and
someone to protect
Subtext Trait: Secretive, concealing
Subtext Logline: Evelyn tries to find out who killed her
husband while hiding a secret about her father and daughter/
sister.
Possible Areas of Subtext: She wants Jake’s help but is
hiding the truth from him throughout. She has to live with the truth.
For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Colt McBride
Subtext Identity: A disillusioned cop who believes the system and humanity
are corrupt beyond repair.
Subtext Trait: he copes by drinking and violent outbursts.
Subtext Logline: A cop who has been crushed by the system
can’t help but try and save humanity in the end.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Dealings with Beck, relationship with Jamaica and the truth.
Character Name: Del Beck
Subtext Identity: An alien forced to live among humanity as
one one of them while attempting to take over the planet.
Subtext Trait: Deceitful, manipulative, evil
Subtext Logline: Beck is in charge of the Alien Invasion and
must stay true to the plan, even though his disdain for the
inferior human race would have him crush them right now.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Dealings with anyone who might
get in the way and prolong his suffering.
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vision: Write memorable scripts actors want to portray.
WIL: It’s building with names, traits, faces, and schemes.
Module 3: Lesson 3
Movie title: CARDENIO
Protagonist : Cole Fairbanks
Subtext identity: Reluctant follower of the professor, Cole could be a disclaimer and overthrow new evidence that his professor plans to publish about Shakespeare’s possible identity challenges.
Subtext Trait: Intelligent loner, Cole is loyal and will go on a journey to find lost manuscript even though it may be contrary to his own desire to preserve Shakespeare’s legacy.
Subtext logline: Cole loses by choosing the short straw so that the rest of the class may graduate while he has to find the professor’s attacker and his manuscript by searching for the lost play,“Cardenio”.
Possible areas of subtext: Cole is sidetracked by the siren of the class for a while, but she dumps him before he goes to Europe to search for clues with Delaney. She is not generous with information. He suspects he must secure any clues they find in case she steals them.
Character name: Delaney Dorchester
Subtext identity: Secretive, Delaney gets the next short straw to assist Cole although she dislikes him.
Subtext Trait: She chooses to be unattractive and pursue a career without the burden of a husband.
Subtext logline: Some dynamic secret in Delaney’s ancestry goads her to assist Cole, more to keep an eye on him and stop him, if necessary, but also to find the manuscript and professor’s attacker.
Possible areas of subtext: Delaney may not share deep regard for the professor, but she will go along with the search for clues that may lead to his lost manuscript and prove historical fraud unless it is too politically dangerous to confront powerful people.
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George Petersen SUBTEXT CHARACTERS
My Vision is to direct one of my screenplays as a low-budget indie feature
What I learned from doing this assignment is subtext looks so easy on the screen but it’s not
With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: The Third Man
Character Name: Harry Lime
Subtext Identity: Harry is a CRIMINAL. He is the main suspect concerning a black market scheme to dilute penicillin in order to make lots of money at the expense of children’s lives
Subtext Trait: illusive, slippery, refuses to take responsibility
Subtext Logline: Harry Lime is a criminal suspected of diluting penicillin in order to make money off of children’s lives in postwar Vienna
Possible Areas of Subtext: The Ferris wheel scene, where Harry offers Holly a cut in the profits if he will only cross over to his side.
For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Longfellow
Subtext Identity: Longfellow is an amateur SPY. He is an attorney who goes undercover in the Haight-Ashbury as a kind of amateur detective in the quest to discover what has happened to his missing friend
Subtext Trait: Undercover, crafty
Subtext Logline: Longfellow willingly goes into the Haight as an amateur spy on a quest to find out what happened to his missing friend
Possible Areas of Subtext: In scenes where Longfellow and Youngblood clash and in scenes where Longfellow spies on Youngblood as he flails himself through the Haight
Character Name: Youngblood
Subtext Identity: Youngblood is a CRIMINAL. A hanger-on hippie who is suspected of murder
Subtext Trait: Secretive, devious, scheming
Subtext Logline: Youngblood is a hanger-on hippie who Longfellow suspects is a murderer. Youngblood is tight-lipped around adults but is loud and gregarious when among the hippies in the Haight. It’s his arrogance that will be his undoing. His sweet words barely hide his desire to kill anyone or anything that gets in his way.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Throughout his travels through the Haight he is constantly boasting and bragging about his virility. That nothing will stop him from getting whatever he wants. Little does he know that Longfellow is close by, hanging on every word. Ready to report back to Jonathan what Youngblood is really all about, despite his sweet words.
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Marcus’ Subtext Characters
My Vision: I have well-founded confidence that what I write is excellent and will be acknowledged as excellent by everyone who reads it.
This lesson taught me a good way to develop subtext for my characters’ dialog.
Movie Title: “Beyond the Faded Trail”
Character Name: Jake Barnet
Subtext Identity: traumatized by the violence of the (Mexican) war
Subtext Trait: The salesman, good-time guy, restless
Subtext Logline: He tries to escape his memories of wartime horror by focusing on making a quick buck. He’s a good time guy who’s secretly looking to settle down.
Possible Areas of Subtext: He leaves his building business to his foreman (Isaac) and spends his time partying with prospective clients. But he really cares about quality and bases his sales pitches on it.
Character Name: Isaac Castle (aka Holland Whitaker)
Subtext Identity: Secretive, former criminal, in love
Subtext Trait: throws people off by being an intellectual
Subtext Logline: Isaac is a former criminal who detests criminals. He must plan for covert criminal behavior to rescue his girlfriend.
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Dawn C Crouch’s Subtext Characters
Vision – In WIM, I will write a screenplay that will be optioned and produced.
What I learned from doing this assignment is to explore, experiment, and design the characters before I write a single word.
Nursing A Grudge – Suspense Thriller
Character Name: Kingsley Wells
Subtext Identity: The Victim – getting revenge
Subtext Trait: Scheming, secretive
Subtext Logline: Nurse practitioner Kingsley is a young widow who considers herself a victim of corrupt hospital administrators and wants to exact revenge.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Plays off her role as a young widow to elicit sympathy and concern; Lives her life as if she is already dead; Constant distraction of thoughts of revenge; Hate/Love relationship with Tallis develops because Tallis doesn’t buy her story or her motivations
Character Name: Tallis Porter
Subtext Identity: The spy; the advocate
Subtext Trait: Secretive- concealing
Subtext Logline: Tallis is a biomedical engineer who is secretive about his skills and is on a mission to discover who or what is behind the “accidental” deaths in the new hospital.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Tallis is self-contained; unwilling to share his time, feelings, and life with another human being; drawn into the hospital goings on but intensely uncomfortable with interactions; then he falls in love
Character Name: Carling Hearne, MD
Subtext Identity: The con; the competitor
Subtext Trait: Conniving, Unethical
Subtext Logline: Carling is a highly competitive con who connives in an unethical environment to rule the hospital.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Carling’s dad was the former administrator of the hospital. His dad was caring and devoted to his patients, yet he was blamed for the problems resulting from a natural disaster. Carling wants the money and Kingsley. He plays the part of the caring physician but is nothing like…
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Chris Blanchett’s Subtext Characters
I am a brilliant, massively successful, professional screenwriter who writes incredible movies in a wide variety of genres which become instant-classics. I am respected by my professional peers and bring genuine, thought-provoking entertainment and uplifting emotions to hundreds of millions of movie-goers.
What I learned from this assignment: A very useful template for creating more complex characters.
With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Network
Character Name: Howard
BealeSubtext Identity: Lost Soul
<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Subtext Trait: Is
bewildered by the changes to the world in general and the news industry in
particular.<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Subtext Logline: Howard
Beale is a lost soul who is bewildered by the changes to the world in
general and the news industry in particular<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Possible Areas of Subtext: On-air
rants, assumes the role of prophet, assumes role of teacher to try to
learn what is going on, He becomes leader to the masses but is easily led
himselfFor your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Movie Title: Unwoke
Character Name: Tim Walters
(protagonist)Subtext Identity: Stuck
behind enemy linesSubtext Trait: Conceals
his real thoughts and feelingsSubtext Logline: Tim Walters
feels like he is stuck behind enemy lines and is compelled to hide his
real thoughts and feeling, but when he is backed into a corner they emerge
with an explosive power he didn’t know he possessed.Possible Areas of Subtext: Attempting
to negotiate office culture without ruffling feathers, noncommittal answers,
enduring corporate sensitivity training that are akin to Maoist struggle sessions,
when pushed to his limits verbally crushing his opponents, tapping into an
inner strength that draws people to his cause.Character Name: Alyssa
Perino (Triangle)
Subtext
Identity: The Double Agent
Subtext
Trait: Continually playing both sides of every situation
Subtext
Logline: Alyssa Perino operates in her work and life like a double-agent,
playing both sides of every situation, keeping people in her life at
arms-length.
Possible
Areas of Subtext: Highly manipulative with ultimate subtlety, mysterious, fear
of committing. She and Tim
initially have a lot in common, the difference being Tim is pushed into
stating his true identity, Alyssa isn’t sure she has one.0 -
Erin Ziccarelli’s Subtext Characters
Vision: I am going to create meaningful scripts that leave audiences remembering my movies and leave me excited to keep writing and moving up in the industry.
What I learned from doing this assignment is: the “covert identity” part can give a character so much depth – I like the idea of giving main character and two supporting characters covert identities and then exposing their truths as the story progresses. This creates suspense and adds depth to the story and keeps the audience guessing if their conflicts will be resolved.
2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: Check in the Dark <div>
Character Name: Alex Donovan
Subtext Identity: a gambler and
recovering addict who is secretly trying to outwit his family
Subtext Trait: corrupt, shady,
evasiveSubtext Logline: a witty gambler with
a suspicion of his past and uncertain of his future. Tries to create
supporting hierarchical structures.Possible Areas of Subtext: won’t own
up to his past in front of Scarlett or Roger. Once the support structure
he built fails, he resorts back to the old one he’d been trying to leave
behind. Shows animosity towards rival family members in the beginning.3. For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Roger Tate </div>
Subtext Identity: a social worker
who hasn’t resolved his troubled pastSubtext Trait: critical,
perfectionistic, need to be usefulSubtext Logline: Roger is critical
of Alex and Scarlett’s pasts and present lives. He looks down upon them despite
having been there himself.Possible Areas of Subtext: Won’t
talk about why he went to jail until his last scene. Triggered every time
Alex mentions the family business. Triggered when Scarlett turns down a
chance to leave her old life behind.Character Name: Scarlett Brennan
Subtext Identity: a DMV customer
service rep secretly engaged in illegal activitySubtext Trait: immoral, “slow on the
job,” concealingSubtext Logline: Scarlett has a need
to belong that she covers by staying in a loveless relationship as a move
for powerPossible Areas of Subtext: need for
belonging and for family structures, can’t deal with the Act 2 twist,
resorts back to the old/established family structure even though it won’t
work for her anymore, clings to an unhealthy relationship for a need to belong.
Triggered when Alex’s identity is revealed.0 -
(Patty Ruland’s) Actor attractors!
Vision: To get better and better so that I may obtain representation and earn a good living in this profession.
What I learned from this assignment is: Keep moving! Also, don’t berate myself when I almost stall and doubt the worth of what I am putting on paper. The antidote is to stay open to alterations in prior plan that emerge during the process.
ACTOR ATTRACTOR TEMPLATE
Lead Character Name: Alexandra
Role: Protagonist
[Note: I am changing my lead characters in these ways: The older sibling, Alexandra, will be female, not male, as originally envisioned, the second child in the family, whose older brother is studying abroad. He is his father’s favorite (Alexandra’s deep wound). Her internal goal is to outshine her brother in her parent’s eyes via this mission. The second character, envisioned as an adopted daughter who is from an indigenous family, may be a best friend who surfaces after the storm separates the family and offers to find them.]
What about this role would
cause an actor to want to be known for it?A youthful actress, from 12 to 14 years old, would relish the chance to play a youthful, female swashbuckler character (the type usually filled by young to middle-aged men).
What makes this character one
of the most interesting characters in your story?She is a proficient survivalist, adept in the ways of her parents and older brother.
What are the most interesting
actions the Lead could take in the script?She can decide to try to find her parents or, first, find the pink dolphin, so they can collect on the prize promised. She can build a large floating raft with cabin and canoe, an improvement over the canoe she was originally provided before the storm.
How can you introduce this role
in a way that could sell it to an actor?When the storm hits, she is a wonder at preserving supplies and saving lives.
What could be this character’s
emotional rangeFrom a deep-seated envy of her brother she has never admitted to anyone, to a deep devotion to her parents, to a lust for life and for adventure, to a profound simpatico with the flora and fauna of her beloved rainforest, to a raging ambition to find Boto, to a deep devotion to her friend and companion she regards as a sister [name to come].
What subtext can the actor
play?Her heart still stings from being left out and left home when her father took her brother out on expeditions when she was a child [I was jealous of my own brother, who supplanted me as my own father’s preferred companion on trips to the family lake].
What’s the most interesting
relationships this character can have?She always wanted a sister, and she regards her friend, an orphan whose indigenous parents perished in a flash flood, as a true sister, one she would risk her very life to protect, and does. She can reveal her own fears to her “sister,” who is wise and competent way beyond her years, due to her upbringing in the wiles of the deep rainforest.
How will this character’s
unique voice be presented?She loves to sing and compose songs about the flora and fauna as they float down the river.
What could make this character
special and unique?She is an explorer extraordinaire, the caliber of Indiana Jones and other heroes of the genre.
Lead Character Name: Poacher, name to come
Role: Antagonist
What about this role would
cause an actor to want to be known for it?This character is a true villain, a sneaky, underhanded, opportunistic, ruthless foe to Alexandra, and once to her father.
What makes this character one
of the most interesting characters in your story?He is very charming and disarming, able to play on the parents’ heartstrings once again and confuse Alexandra, who must wonder—is he friend or foe?
What are the most interesting
actions the Lead could take in the script?He operates a poaching ring, collecting rare species for sale all over the world. He loves animals with a boy’s heart and loves exploiting them with a cruel man’s greed.
How can you introduce this role
in a way that could sell it to an actor?The father discovers him lurking in the forest after the storm is over. They reignite their animosity and final conflict, to the point the poacher draws a gun on the father, only to be struck by a stone from a slingshot fired by Alexandra. She sics vicious dogs on him, and they run him off, but only for a while.
What could be this character’s
emotional rangeFrom shame over his father’s drunken, criminal ways, to pride in his own budding criminal ways, to greed and avarice that only grow as he acquires money and power, to ruthlessness that makes him want to seek revenge on the father by going after the daughter.
What subtext can the actor
play?He despises the poor, the pitiful, the infirm because they remind him of family who made his childhood so difficult.
What’s the most interesting
relationships this character can have?The one he has with himself, whose ego and avarice take no prisoners.
How will this character’s
unique voice be presented?He talks to himself and non-human fixtures in his world, has pet names for his guns and other weapons, treats them as pets.
What could make this character
special and unique?He makes a turnaround of some kind—as does Jackson’s character does in Pulp Fiction. Problem is—his lust for revenge must turn to living a life of contrition and retribution.
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Drew’s Subtext Characters
MY VISION IS (living as if it is already fact): I am an award-winning produced Hollywood screenwriter with an excellent reputation that is represented by an outstanding manager and whose life is filled with creativity!
What I learned from doing this assignment is… seeing the process subtext being used to build character in a produced film helps develop ideas for my characters.
2. With your example movie, give us the following answers for the character with the most subtext:
Movie Title: INHERITENCE
Character Name: Lauren Monroe
Subtext Identity: Attorney and daughter of an ultra-rich businessman who recently died. She inherits his old problem… a man that is being held prisoner in a bunker on their property.
Subtext Trait: Cunning, Calculated, Ethical
Subtext Logline: Lauren is an ethical attorney who must do unethical things to protect an old family secret.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Suspicious of the prisoner. Struggles with whether she should keep her father’s secret or do what she knows is right. Investigates the prisoners background while hiding her actions from her husband and her mother.3. For your two leads, brainstorm these answers:
Character Name: Marc
Subtext Identity: Former military. Now works a dead-end security job. Suffers from PTSD.
Subtext Trait: Lacks drive, untrusting, secretive
Subtext Logline: Marc is an ex-military man desperately searching for his daughter.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Hides that he was abducted as a child. Doesn’t trust authorities. Doesn’t trust his wife. Comes alive again with the thrill of hunting his daughter’s kidnapers.Character Name: Jordan
Subtext Identity: Agent who needs to crack the case of Tyme’s kidnapping.
Subtext Trait: Commanding, Smarter than everyone else, Hunter
Subtext Logline: FBI Agent who is out to find Marc and his daughter. Will stop at nothing.
Possible Areas of Subtext: Always out thinking everyone in the room. Barks orders. Needs to solve this case or will be demoted and transferred. Has a strained relationship with her daughter.-
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