Day 5 Assignments

[Mary Ellevold]

.Mary Ellevold -what I learned: will come back to this one.

Action accomplishes multiple purposes. It isn’t just lots of activity on the screen.

Creates the adrenaline
experience for the audience.
Pits Hero against Villain (or
the Villain’s representatives).
Makes a change for the story or
Hero.
Gives us an insight into either
the Hero or Villain.
Is entertaining to watch.

Create a rough draft of your Action Track.

1. Answer the Action Questions:ZOOPHOBIA

A. Considering the concept from
Lesson 1, what action could naturally show up in this movie? Counter-conditioning, psych eval,
animal attacks
B. Considering the Mission and
Villain Tracks, what action could work for this track? VILLAIN AGAINST HERO, CRAZYMAKING
C. How can the action start
well, build in the 2nd Act, and escalate to a climax in the 3rd Act? START
WITH PSYCH EVAL, INDIV COUNSELING, GROUP THERAPY,COUNTER CONDITIONIN

2. Select the types of action you’ll use.

A. Chase/PursuitX
B. Fight
C. Shootout
D. RescueX
E. Escape/EvadeX
F. Competition
G. Dangerous SituationsX
H. Interrogation
I. Torture

1.DISCOVERY:

PURPOSE

2. FIGHT

PURPOSE

[jeffrey jeff glatz glatz]

Assignment 5:

What I learned doing this assignment is…? It was a good way to have an overview of the screenplay I have been working on. This exercise should help me see where the story may lag from an “action” standpoint. I added current page numbers to the action points as a guide for me.

Action Track:

Discovery (pages 1 – 4) – Trevor seen breaking into home and stealing valuable items and copies a document he has found

Purpose: Is hero a man of character or just a thief.

Fight (pages 5 – 7) – Must fight his way out

Purpose – showing unique skillset

Discovery/Terrorism (pages 8 – 9) – Terrorists kill an innocent man

Purpose – Demonstrate the world is a dangerous place

Shootout (pages 15 – 16) – Flashback on Trevor fighting as Navy Seal in Afghanistan

Purpose – Reinforcing skillset and showing character

Discovery/Terrorism (pages 28 – 29) – Terrorists kill an innocent family

Purpose – Demonstrate the world is a dangerous place, escalation in frequency

Interrogation (page 32) – Stephan, villains’ henchman, kills museum official

Purpose – Demonstrate evil of cartel and Stephan

Decision (page 36 – 39) – Trevor decides to work with CIA

Purpose – Took a while because not an easy decision for Trevor

Escape/Evade (page 45 – 48) – Trevor is doing recon on meeting and must evade guards and escape

Purpose – Trevor engaged in mission to stop Cartel

The Order (page 57) – Worthington orders Stephan to go after Trevor

Purpose – Wants any and all obstacles eliminated

Ambush/Failed Assassination (pages 60 – 63) – Team of assassins go after Trevor is sleepy hotel in France

Purpose – Trevor must defeat unbeatable situation.

Fight/Shootout/Standoff (pages 64 – 67) – Flashback as Navy Seal in Afghanistan attempting to secure a Taliban Warlord.

Purpose – Trevor and Stephan’s paths have crossed before and demonstrate morality of Trevor versus the pure evil of Stephan.

Discovery/Shootout (pages 70 – 73) – Trevor breaks into cartel members home seeking information in any means possible. Cartel member killed as Trevor escapes

Purpose – Trevor has no qualms using whatever methods necessary to stop this plan.

Ambush/Interrogation/Torture (pages 78 – 81) – Trevor is taken prisoner and tortured for information

Purpose – Trevor is not unbeatable

Escape/Chase (pages 83 – 89) – Trevor escapes his prison and a huge car chase ensues

Purpose – Trevor is clever, dangerous and a fun, but deadly, chase

Interrogation (pages 92 – 95) – Trevor interrogates Ashley to determine her full involvement

Purpose – Trevor has a dark side as well. Ashley is torn between right and wrong

Shootout (pages 99 – 112) – Climax event. Trevor must infiltrate compound and take down the Cartel once and for all.

Purpose – Trevor must use all his skills to stay alive against unbeatable odds. He kills the henchman, but must live with Villain escaping.

[Dennis Chrisman]

Subject Line: Dennis Chrisman, Action Track!

“What I learned doing this assignment is…?”. Action, like other scenes must have a purpose and sequenced properly to maintain the storyline and create an escalating feeling of suspense for the audience. Structuring the Action Track helps in the layout of the action scenes that correlate with the other scenes that support the action and culminate with the storyline.

1. Answer the Action Questions:

A. Considering the concept from Lesson 1, what action could naturally show up in this movie?

The Protagonist threatened with rape is the first act of violence and ended by her daughter. Next is the Protagonist, who defends a woman and her young boy at a bridge she needs to cross.

Next is when the fun begins. She embarrasses Machete at the Black Market. Machete sees her and her kids as a quick buck and maybe uses them for pleasure before selling them. The real action begins as the Protagonist evades Machete, ambushes the motorcycle gang, fights with them. The folks at the farm capture the Antagonist at some point in Act III.

B. Considering the Mission and Villain Tracks, what action could work for this track?

Chase/Pursuit, Fight, Shootout, Escape and Evade, Dangerous Situations, interrogation, Torture.

C. How can the action start and build in the 2nd Act, and escalate to a climax in the 3rd Act?

The script puts the Protagonist in a position where it’s fight or flight; she is naturally a fighter. She shows this by defending the woman at the bridge. This progressive violence escalates in Act II and culminates in Act III.

2. Select the types of action you’ll use.

Dangerous Situations, Fight, Chase/Pursuit, Capture, Interrogation, Torture, Escape and Evade, Shootout,

3. Sequence the action scenes to deliver your story. Give us your list of action scenes and the purpose of each scene.

Dangerous Situations

Purpose. This running gun battle between the Protagonist and the Antagonists begins in the Black Market, where the Protagonist embarrasses the Antagonist in front of his peers. The Antagonist follows the Protagonist and discovers she has kids and survival items. This is the catalyst that starts Act II.

Fight

Purpose. Associated with Chase/Pursuit is the fight before the capture. This also creates a winner/loser situation where the audience wants the Protagonist to fight the Antagonist skillfully, and just when all is lost, the Protagonist can flee.

Chase/Pursuit

Purpose. Chase/Pursuit adds a sense of nailing biting suspense. The audience watches the Antagonist’s chase and barely catch the Protagonist in several scenes. Each scene escalates the suspense by the Protagonist, who evades the Antagonist.

Capture

Purpose. The capture culminates the fight scene and adds more suspense to the storyline. The audience doesn’t know whether the Protagonist will escape, torture, or die. This adds to the escalating suspense.

Interrogation

Purpose. The interrogation begins when Machete captures the Protagonist and sees where she hides her SUV, goods, and the kids. At some point, the motorcycle gang discovers the kids. The gang torments the kids but settle on simple torture to get answers from the Protagonist.

Torture

Purpose While an unbearable thought, this would fall under the category of “soft” torture. Slapping around, minimal water torture, etc. The purpose is to show the Antagonist will do something like this to demonstrate their power over the Protagonist.

Escape/Evade

Purpose. It is necessary for the Protagonist to escape, gather the kids then evade the Antagonist to finish their mission. This permits the Protagonist to set booby traps along the way to maintain a respectful gap from the Antagonist.

Shootout

Purpose. Both the Antagonist and the Protagonist have weapons. A shootout will inevitably occur. How lethal is yet to be determined. We do know the Protagonist wins in a final shootout.

[BG]

Lesson 5: Create Your ACTION Track

ASSIGNMENT

BG’s Action Track!

What I learned doing this assignment: Coming up with types of events and the purposes behing them is helping me flesh out my ideas.

3. Sequence the action scenes to deliver your story. Give us your list of action scenes and the purpose of each scene.

MALDOVINIA ON FIRE

WEAPONS: Weapons of war being unloaded from a cargo plane at a remote airport in MALDOVINIA.

Purpose: Creates the mystery of who they are for and for what purpose.

BREAK IN: REPORTER climbs in through an open window and plants a listening device in the thermostat of the St. Michael conference room.

Purpose: Insight into Hero. He’s taking more risks, moving up the ladder of deception.

DISCOVERY: REPORTER learns about the aims of the conspiracy via the listening device he planted. He’s horrified.

Purpose: Insight into Hero. Now, he’s pissed off enough to want to stop them. He’s coming out of his funk!

FIGHT: REPORTER fights off ASSASSIN, a professional hitman.

Purpose: Gives us a glimpse into his skills — No training in fighting or weapons. Not his specialty. He’s a mechanical engineer-turned-reporter. Yet he can improvise and uses his engineering knowledge to topple him down.

SURVEILLANCE: REPORTER tails HOSTESS and catches her in the act of communicating with her control.

Purpose: Gives us two people who need each other.

THE ORDER: The CIA Deputy Director says, “Getting an American reporter would create legal issues. No such impediment to the abduction of a foreigner for national security purposes! I want HACKER in the safe house by tomorrow!”

Purpose: Insight into the Villain’s enablers. The Villain is not just the NORTHSTAR conspiracy. Major intelligence agencies support it! Increases the stakes for REPORTER.

ABDUCTION: REPORTER’s friend and ally, HACKER, is captured and interrogated (euphemism for tortured) in a CIA safe house.

Purpose: Insight into the rotten nature of Villain’s enablers. Increases the stakes for REPORTER.

TORTURE: At the CIA safe house, Hacker has been interrogated, he’s in bad shape, and he insists he didn’t hack or send any hacked materials to Reporter. STATION CHIEF does not believe. She tells DOCTOR to keep on trying.

Purpose: Insight into the rotten nature of Villain’s enablers. Increases the stakes for REPORTER.

BATTLE AT THE SAFE HOUSE: Using tools and a plan made by him, REPORTER, HOSTESS, and her allies rescue HACKER from the CIA safe house, and take him to an undisclosed safe house.

Purpose: Insight into Hero: REPORTER will take on great risk to rescue a friend! Plus, cool weapons and fight scene to watch;))

AMBUSH: ASSASSIN attacks REPORTER again, this time with a taser. HOSTESS, who is secretly following him to protect him, flies out of the shadows and flattens ASSASSIN! REPORTER asks her not to kill him!

Purpose: Hero against Villain’s representatives. But now, he has a guardian angel — who can fight and uses her weight as a weapon! Also creates intrigue: Is it just that REPORTER doesn’t want to kill anybody, or does he have a longer term plan that will need ASSASSIN’s services?

STOPS A KILLING: REPORTER stops HOSTESS from crushing ASSASSIN’s rib cage and lungs.

Purpose: Insight into Hero. REPORTER does not want to kill bad guys, he’d rather they kill each other.

HIT: BILLIONAIRE cancels ASSASSIN’s contract with ENERGY MOGUL regarding REPORTER, and instead, hires ASSASSIN to kill ENERGY MOGUL, his second-in-command.

Purpose: The Villain needs to do cleanup in order to protect his reputation and the rest of his plans. He’s not done yet!

[Dennis Chrisman]

Assignment 5: The Secret of High-Quality Structure

Dennis Chrisman Action Structure!

“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” It becomes easier to outline the storyline using the information and techniques from the various lessons. I toke longer than usually to rough a synopsis of the story.

Opening: (p, 1 – 10)

The United States (US)is bankrupt and announced the protocol Force Majeure is in place and the US is under Martial Law. Nancy (NANCY) (29) goes to the gun range to shoot her 9-millimeter (mm) Glock.

(Subplot A) She calls her dad (JAMES) (70) who lives on a self-sustaining farm. James invites Nancy and Tom to visit the farm this next week. They agree to go.

(Subplot B) Husband Tom (TOM) (32) tries to get gas and go to work. At the Gas Station a man named Machete (MACHETE) (45) kills the gas station owner. Tom leaves, but is abducted into the Army and is sent to the Pacific Front to fight the Chinese.

Nancy and Nikki, (NIKKI) (9) start out to the James’ farm. They were told by a stranger that the only place to get gas is at a renegade gas station called the “Last Stop” across the river that borders the town. Nancy comes across a woman Sara (SARA) (26) in distress at a security checkpoint. Nancy uses as M-45 adaptor to mount on the Glock 9 mm to shoot the guards. She saves Sara (Sara) (26) and her son Jamal (JAMAL) (12). She drives across the bridge to the “Last Stop”

Inciting Incident (P. 10 – 15)

At the “Last Stop” Nancy unintentionally cuts in front of the leader of a motorcycle gang, Machete. She apologizes, he is mean, but leaves her to pump gas. Unfortunately, Nancy uses the last of the gas. She hangs up the nozzle and apologizes. Machete insults her then grabs her. Nancy takes two steps back and levels Machete with a spinning round house.

She goes into the “Last Stop”. While she’s in the store Machete opens the back of Nancy’s SUV and stares into the barrel of the nine mm Glock. Nikki tells him to shut the door and leave. He backs up then takes a step forward, cussing at Nikki. She shoots him in the toes. He backs up howling; Nikki shuts the door. Nancy returns gets in the SUV and drives off.

(Subplot A) Nancy calls James and tells him the news to date and that they are on the way to the farm.

First Turning Point at end of Act 1 (P. 15 – 35)

It’s night; Nancy drives along an empty highway with the kids singing in the back of the SUV. The stop at a lone farm house to get some water for their SUV. An older couple lives there. They have a boy (Greg) (7) and a girl (Susan) (6), their grandkids. The are orphaned. The older couple gives them to Nancy for care. The gang stops; they light a fire and setup camp for the night. The bikers joke and make fun of Machete. He has his boot off; looks at the gap left by his two missing toes. He wraps a rag around the bloody wound, howling in pain. He vows to capture that woman and sell her and those kids at the “Last Stop”.

Nancy and the kids turn onto a sandy road and up the mountains to a Ranger Station at the end of the road. The are able to break in the station, eat and find comfort sleeping in bunk beds.

Back on the road Nancy and the kids drive down the mountain. She passes the gang’s makeshift camp. The motorcycle gang follows and catch up to her. Nancy takes another turn onto a sand covered road. The motorcycle gang can’t ride their bikes in the sand. She loses the gang; becomes lost herself.

Mid-Point (P. 25 – 35)

(Subplot A) James drives to a neighbor’s house to pick up fencing. The neighbor is dead. Next, he drives to the local town to find it’s in shambles. He runs across three young teenage boys trying to steal a rat from a young girl. He puts a stop to it, gathers them up and takes them his farm.

(Subplot B) Tom is soldering at the Pacific front. He sits in a World War I style trench in his dugout cubby hole. He’s visible tired, filthy, and appears to be malnourished. He hears a loud buzzer. He gets up, picks up his weapon and heads over the top then moves into to Deadman’s Land.

Nancy and has parked the SUV, she and Sara are outside leaning over the hood looking at a map and holding a compass. They hear but don’t see the motorcycles. Suddenly, Nancy points to the map then shows Sara the compass. They pile into the SUV and start down a steep rock incline. She ends up on the main road and drives forward.

Second Turning Point at end of Act 2 (P. 35-55)

(Subplot B) Tom is shot. He falls to the ground unable to get up. He hears the busser signaling retreat. He appears to be stuck in Deadman’s’ Land. A Chinese bugle sounds. Tom’s scared; he hears a rumbling near him. He pulls his rifle close and removes the bayonet and holds it in his hand. Medics with red cross bands on their arm and on their helmet pick him up and put him on a stretcher and take him back to the US side.

The gang is on the blacktop and behind Nancy. Various gang members pull along side the SUV and strike it with motorcycle chains. Nancy swerves to avoid the damage. At some point she drives off the road and becomes stuck.

The gang grabs Nancy by the hair and drags her out of the SUV. They grab Sara and the kids and pull them out of the SUV. They tie them up with zip cords. Nancy and the kids stand with their hands behind their backs. Machete walks to Nancy and slaps her in the face. Sara comes to her rescue. Sara has pulled her hands in front of her and climbs on top of Machete; chokes him with the cable tie that secures her hand.

Machete flings her off of him and hits her in the head with the butt of a rifle. Blood trickles from both her ears. Sara is dead.

Nancy is furious. She slips from her cable ties and runs to the SUV. Along the way, she uses karate chops, kicks and throws to keep the gang at bay. She makes it to the SUV, puts it into reverse and backs over several bikers and their bikes. She pulls forward, opens the doors and gets the kids into the SUV.

Crisis (P 55 – 85)

Nancy and the kids minus Sara are driving fast to get away from the gang. Various members of the gang ride up to the SUV and try and serve into to it off the road. The drive up and damage the SUV by striking it with motorcycle chains and clubs.

The are very close to the James farm. On gang member rides to the front of the SUV uses a club and smashes it into the SUV’s radiator. Nancy continues to weave and speeds forward to avoid the motorcycle gang. The SUV starts to over heat, steam rolls out from under the hood. She continues to weave to avoid the gang.

Climax (P. 85 -100)

(Subplot A merges with the Plot) The farm is in sight. She is on the phone with her father. There is a heavy gate to the entrance of the farm. At the far southwestern corner of the farm stands a guard post with in the fenced barb wire farm. The farm boys use various hand made weapons such a trebuchet to fire upon the motorcycle gang. The rest of the kids from the farm run to open the gate and provide a defense for Nancy and the kids so they can get into the farm.

James has issued weapons and the crew provides a formidable defense and eventually brings the motorcycle gang to its knees. Most of the bikes are inoperable. The entire motorcycle gang is wounded in some fashion. Nancy and the kids drive their battered SUV through the gate and around behind the fam house; they join in defending the farm.

Resolution (P. 100 – 110)

The motorcycle gang surrenders. They stand in a group outside the entrance gate. James tells them to get on what’s left of their bikes and move out except Machete. With two toes missing and a gunshot wound to the opposant leg, James takes his motorcycle colors gives him a gallon of water and sends him on his way on foot.

(Subplot B merges with the Plot) Tom dresses in civilian clothes. He walks with a limp, uses a cane and carries a backpack. He comes in sight of the farm. A young lookout sounds a warning cry. James and Nancy come running from the house. As the man limps closer. At some point Nancy recognizes him as James. She runs to him, hugs and kisses him.