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Day 5 Assignments
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Lisa’s Character Arc
“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” that the further we go into this process the deeper my story and characters develop. It’s slowly building my confidence.
CHARACTER ARC (Mary Winters in “Mary’s Christmas”)
Issue –
Mary admits she hates the movie It’s a Wonderful Life; she’s a realist who thinks it’s fantasy. Mary is tainted and sarcastic about the world she’s living in because of disappointments. Mary takes on the organizing of the festival not just because her mom did it, but mostly because her nemesis Violet was the only other person who wanted the job…and Mary couldn’t have that! Mary can’t commit to Joseph because of her fear of being disappointed again. Mary still cares for Peter, her ex-husband/high school sweetheart, and wants to help him, but maybe if she wasn’t so preoccupied with Peter’s messes, she could move on with Joseph. Mary desperately wants to be perfect in everything she does but is far from it. No one knows it, but since her mom has passed, Mary has decided it’s time to move to a bigger city. She plans to move with her daughters to Albany right after the festival.
Challenges –
Challenge 1: In the opening scene, Mary is afraid of heights but goes over the George Bailey bridge anyway because she has a duty as a volunteer firefighter to save lives. But because of her fear she chews him out after she saves the man.
Challenge 2: Mary is overwhelmed with the festival and juggling all the different components. She almost loses it in the community meeting to assign all the festival tasks. She gives up her only joy in the festival…playing Mary Bailey.
Challenge 3: Mary keeps ignoring her children’s cries of missing Santa on the NORAD site.
Challenge 4: Mary can’t get in contact with Peter. And we find out that the person she saved from the bridge that night was Peter. Now she’s got to find him, so he doesn’t hurt himself or someone else.
Challenge 5: Mary is forced to give up her “I have to do it all myself” attitude and enlist the help of the townspeople to find Peter and still pull off the festival at the same time.
Challenge 6: Mary again must confront her fear of heights by climbing on the roof to save Peter. After protecting Peter, Mary falls off the roof where Joseph catches her, and she starts to think about him differently…he has always been there for her even when she’s rejected him.
Challenge 7: Mary gathers her courage to forgive Peter everything from the past so that she can move into the future with Joseph.
Transformation:
Mary sees the amazing heart of the town when they come together to make the festival a success for her and save Peter from losing his business by giving him the festival money. Mary starts to rethink leaving Seneca Falls…and has decided to say yes to Joseph the next time he asks.
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Cameron Martin’s Character Arc
What I learned about this assignment is…Well, my day 7 outline for OPEN WIDE tells a completely different story than what it is today. The day 7 assignment still has the spy as the main character, and everything takes place inside the bunker until the midpoint, not the other way around as it’s told in this version. The other thing I remembered when revisiting this specific assignment was that I used a plot structure “cheat sheet” with the assignment. So, I finished the assignment’s character arc requirement, but also included 30 plot beats. Honestly, while the 30 plot beats helped get me started for the follow up lessons, it kinda defeated the purpose of this assignment’s requirements in that the outline doesn’t solely highlight the character arc’s plot points themselves. Still, it was helpful to look over the previous assignment’s requirements and what I had written then in order to get ideas for how to execute this one. Ultimately, this assignment was helpful for identifying the exact scenes and challenges that drive the transformation in the story. Without this precision, it’d be very easy to gloss over the character arc and hint at it, instead of taking an honest journey of self discovery.
Sully’s character arc – From desperate to regain control to recognizing he was never in control of anything other than himself.
Sully’s revised character arc (action oriented) – From hiding his son away to embracing his son.
Part to be Changed: Sully hiding his son away or keeping him “out of the way”
Biggest Fear: That he’ll have to choose between himself and his son.
Completion of the Arc: Sully relies on his son to succeed.
(Note: Coming back to this after my Day 7 notes was really fun. In there, I talked about needing to find something simpler or more primal than the political conflicts involved with the initial concept. I think this father/son dynamic hits that mark, especially after watching films like Pixar’s TURNING RED and COCO as well as Disney’s ENCANTO (sometimes the only films you can study are the ones that your child is allowed to watch, per your wife). There seems to be a trend of films taking a hard look at the different struggles families face, and I’m hopeful I can build off of that.)
Issue:
Sully is a confident, creative engineer, but an unsure and reluctant father. He struggles to see his son as more than an obstacle outside of home life. This is reflected in the opening when Sully is quick to pass his son off on someone else to get him out of the way. Even though Sully has a point and the worksite is dangerous, Sully doesn’t want to leave what’s comfortable for him and just wants his son to go away until he’s ready for him. He’s still a caring father, and shows it by making a pair of ear muffs to help his son cope with the loud alarm. But as soon as he does that, he grabs his son and runs with him, not listening to any other request, as though his son just needed a quick tuneup and is good to go.
Challenges:
Challenge 1: Sully is locked outside of the bunker with his son. There’s no escape.
Challenge 2: Isaiah tells Sully to stop running and to be gentle with him, but Sully sees a worm and ignores his son’s advice.
Challenge 3: There’re a couple of other residents who didn’t make it to the bunker. Isaiah tries to say something about the worms, but Sully hushes him as they hide. Isaiah throws something to distract the worm. It works, but a resident runs in the opposite direction and the worm catches him and slithers down his throat.
Challenge 4: Isaiah asks to help fight the aliens and host, but Sully declines.
Challenge 5: Isaiah asks to help guide Sully to the bunker, but Sully lures him into a closet and locks him inside.
Challenge 6: After Isaiah saves Sully from the bunker, Sully still doesn’t listen to him, and it leads to Isaiah falling into a spore nest and getting infected.
Challenge 7: The exterminators arrive, the hosts and aliens are frantic, and Sully and Isaiah are surrounded, hiding, and Sully is completely out of ideas.
Transformation:
Sully turns to Isaiah and tells him he needs his help, both to save themselves and to try and save Isaiah from his infection. Sully stops trying to take everything on himself, and relies on his son from here on out.
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Additional lessons…practice, practice, practice. Also, keeping things light and moving (not being overly critical). Focusing on showing the character arc through action (among other story elements) is helpful for both making discoveries about your story and it lends itself to a more engaging product.
POSSESSING EDEN
Janus’ character arc – Guilt Ridden to Self Forgiveness
Janus’ revised character arc (action oriented) – From asserting her will over others to healing and uplifting others.
Part to be Changed: Janus seeks moral validation through rules, as opposed to empathy, and by extension uses her powers to control and manipulate others.
Biggest Fear: That she can and will kill again. That she’s a monster. That everything she knows is wrong. That she can’t make things right.
Completion of the Arc: Janus uses her powers to empower rather than take control
Issue: Janus uses her power to possess machines without a second thought, even flaunting her power.
Challenges:
Challenge 1: She creates a copy of herself and unintentionally kills the man she saved years ago when they were still children.
Challenge 2: When she’s told there’s no way to bring him back, she convinces her Copy to help break in and steal from her creator.
Challenge 3: When her siblings and creator try to stop her, she possesses them and other machines, creating chaos on route to her escape to the underworld.
Challenge 4: Copy raises questions about Janus’ leadership and morality, but Janus assures she won’t copy herself again or use others as collateral.
Challenge 5: Copy and Janus are captured by slavers and forced to compete in a gladiator ring. Janus recruits the help of an underworlder, something forbidden in hers and Copy’s faith. Janus insists the ends justify the means.
Challenge 6: Janus fights in the gladiator ring and possesses different machines, but can’t overcome Alrick and Adam’s forces and dies.
Challenge 7: She reincarnates, a master of her own afterlife, but Copy, seeing this as cheating justice, makes a deal with Adam
Challenge 8: Janus’s siblings attack a village, and Janus uses her powers once again, this time to alter the world itself, but struggles to avoid casualties.
Challenge 9: Copy attacks Janus, copying herself over and over again, challenging Janus to break her promise and copy herself again.
Transformation:
Janus uses compassion, rather than force, and heals herself. She then carries this newfound ability to Adam and uplifts him, repairing his code, rather than exploiting it and taking control.
GRAND THEFT ROAD TRIP
The Kid’s character arc – This Kid goes from hiding her passion to embracing it…from lying to her father to being honest with him…from shirking responsibility to accepting it…from being afraid to go slow (impatient) to cruise control (patient/waiting for things to happen)…from repressing her desires to respecting them…from hating her father to loving her father…from blaming others to accepting responsibility…
The Kid’s revised character arc (action oriented) – The Kid goes from trying to outrun accountability to stopping and accepting responsibility
Part to be Changed: The Kid is like a bus that can’t slow down.
Biggest Fear: She’ll be trapped in a life that she’ll never get out of.
Completion of the Arc: She accepts parole and assists the Lieutenant she was running from.
Issue: The Kid is living a double life, lying to her dad while trying to get out of a life of perceived mediocrity.
Challenges:
Challenge 1: Dad insists on a defensive driving course for a speeding ticket.
Challenge 2: Cops try pulling over Dad and Kid.
Challenge 3: Kid tries escaping, but Dad is also in control of the vehicle.
Challenge 4: Dad insists on Kid turning herself in and going into witness protection, because Boss will kill them both. Kid doesn’t believe him and tries getting away.
Challenge 5: Dad keeps up with her, tracks her down to an old stomping grounds of theirs. She’s not going to lose her dad.
Challenge 6: Lieutenant catches up with dad and kid. Kid tries escaping, but her crew comes and sees she and her dad were conversing with a cop.
Challenge 7: Crew and cops engage in back and forth, and Kid tries getting both her and her dad out of the crossfire.
Challenge 8: Boss sends hitman to deal with the two of them.
Challenge 9: Hitman finds Kid and Dad. Janitor reports Kid and Dad, so the cops find the two of them, and Dad is killed.
Transformation:
Kid accepts that her actions led to her dad’s death, and she makes a deal with the Lieutenant to help capture her boss and go on parole.
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Dev Ross – Arc
What I learned from doing this exercise were the many paths/choices my character can take depending on the specifics of his arc.
1. The Issue: Clay Caine greatest fear is being powerlessness. He lives in denial and suffers from an extreme form of self-righteousness. He needs his world to be black or white, good or evil, with no shades of gray.
1. Escalating Challenge:
a. WS groups call him a SINO – a Supremacist in Name Only. This serves to further entrench himself in his old beliefs. He must be STEADFAST. He must convince his KKK members to be steadfast. He believes he is the STANDARD BEARER.
b. Cross burned on his lawn – His fear of being powerless is hit hard. His response is BLAME and ANGER over forces he’s unable to control. He feels unfairly MISUNDERSTOOD.
c. Elijah is introduced. Clay’s COMPASSION and HURT bubble up. He feels EMPATHY.
d. Rise of Lincoln’s power seduces Clay to BURY COMPASSION, EMPATHY and RETURN TO THE DARK SIDE. He convinces himself this is God’s will. HE’S ON A MISSION FROM GOD. SAVIOR COMPLEX
e. At his sister’s proclamation, his DENIAL peaks. His fear is replaced by HATE FUELED REVENGE.
3. The Transformation: Transformation comes – only when it is too late. He’s refused to change only to discover the hate he had was at his own expense and was his doing all along. REVELATION, ACCEPTANCE, DEATH
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June Fortunato’s REVISED Character Arc Day 5 for Retirement (March 20, 2022)
Note: I’ve noted new scenes and transformations in bold
What I learned – I’d already done this work- the most difficult thing about this assignment was to find and compile my information through my many notes and postings and outlines. I would
prefer to go forward instead of backtracking so often.
4. Protagonist Character Arc: Issue: Roy fears showing any weakness because of the shame and emasculation. In the war, his unintended collateral damage of killing an entire village haunts him, so he declared himself dead, and vowed to never have a comfortable life or steady place to live.
Challenges: Roy’s body is trashed and he has to stop living rough. He has to ‘become alive’ legally, and get a place to live to receive his earned SSI and veteran’s benefits. For the first time in his life, he meets someone- a soulmate- and longs to take care of her and be with her- to live.
Transformation: A car crash, huge debts, meeting Kim, and the slow release of information because of her- by the end he has had a melt down, a cathartic weeping, and accepted his flaws, and learned to believe in forgiveness.
4.
Revised 3/20/22
Opening
1,2,3. EXT. SUZY’S RENTAL – LATE AFTERNOON
Roy waits outside until he realizes that his girl, Suzy, moved out. He crashes there but the
landlord shows up so he steals the cleaning crew’s van and, wanting a place to sleep, he decides
on “jail” and deliberately smashes the van into a Wawa.
4,5. INT. JAIL HOLDING CELL- EARLY AFTERNOON
The food sucks so he decides that jail is not a good retirement plan. He baits his cellmates and
gets pummeled so that he can go to option 2: the hospital – where coincidently his (ex) girl
works.
6, 6a, 6b.6bb. INT. HOSPITAL ROOM- OSTEO UNIT – EVENING
Roy is in traction. Doctors inform him that he can’t live “rough” anymore- his body is ruined.
His ex, Suzy, hooks him up with a lawyer to represent him because he faces criminal charges,
hospital debts and he owes her money, too.
First bit of Roy’s transformation- he needs to come to terms with his life and his very identity.
Lawyer works with Suzy because he’s attracted to her and she agrees to a date.
6c,7, 7a,8,9.INT. HOSPITAL HALLWAY- OSTEO UNIT – WEEKS LATER –
LATE AFTERNOON Roy meets another patient, Kim, who’s healing after a horrific ‘accident’
Kismet. Later, Roy rescues her from her oppressive (visiting) brother. Kim steals keys from the
nurses’ station and bolts. They are Suzy’s keys. Suzy accuses Roy of taking them but he’s
innocent.
Meeting Kim has given Roy hope. Kim is clearly special and resonated with him.
10. INT. COURTROOM – MORNING
After the war, Roy had himself declared dead and his lawyer figures out how to change that
status so that he can collect his SSI and Veterans’ pay boost. His backpay covers all of his recent
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debts but he must get a bank account to collect further payments. This is a dramatic change of
identity, and a catch 22- without an address- no bank account- no bank account = no address.
Meanwhile, Kim has Suzy’s car and she doesn’t want to be found.
10b. After the court date, Suzy goes to lunch with the lawyer while Roy is wheeled back to the
osteo unit, and stares in his room, alone.
End of first 10 pages
11. INT. PARKING GARAGE – MORNING
Kim parks Suzy’s stolen car in a parking garage where they park the car for you and give you a
claim ticket.
INT. BOUTIQUE – CONTINUOUS
Kim chats with another shopper, a kind woman, Marilyn, and swaps her parking claim ticket for
hers.
12, 14. INT. PARKING GARAGE – CONTINUOUS
Kim gets Marilyn’s car. Among the goodies in the car, she finds a gym membership. She drives
Marilyn’s car to a cabin near a cliff and stares at it. She sees her brother through the window and
drives away. She heads to Marilyn’s gym while
13. INT. PARKING GARAGE
Marilyn learns that her car is missing, she’s greatly delayed and worries about her pets at home.
15. INT. HOSPITAL HALLWAY – EVENING
Suzy’s car was found in the parking garage. Roy is still in the hospital under her watch.
16. INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE – EVENING
Marilyn gets home late, her pets are frantic, and one trips her and causes her to break a hip. She
calls a neighbor to pet-sit. The neighbor allows her kid to do it but he’s resentful.
17, 17a. INT. BELLEVUE HOTEL – POOL- EVENING
Intro to Bellevue Hotel- Kim talks loudly to herself at the adjoining club swimming pool to
express trauma from going to the cliff/cabin. She decides not to be like her brother, and to return
Marilyn’s car to the parking garage.
17b. INT. PARKING GARAGE – EVENING
Kim parks Marilyn’s car but keeps the gym pass. She walks to a nearby legit theatre.
17c. EXT./INT. THEATRE – NIGHT
Kim sneaks in as the house crew is locking up. Kim longs to be an actor and has a blast
performing on the empty stage and dressing in costumes in the dark theatre. (dark, as in “no
performances”)
18. INT. HOSPITAL ROOM- OSTEO UNIT – EARLY MORNING
Roy is released from the hospital. He’s reminded that he has 6 weeks to get his act together or
lose it all. He flirts with Suzy, and she finds No hard to say so this raises red flags. She’s got to
do something to get herself off of Roy’s radar.
18a, 18b EXT. BELLEVUE HOTEL – CONTINUOUS
Roy discovers a box of fresh baguettes as they’re delivered outside of the Bellevue. He grabs
one, and, dressed in his ‘court suit’ decides to explore inside. He finds a balcony above one of
the meeting rooms that’s used to run pipes. It’s a perfect place: food, restrooms, shelter- to camp
out and no one will find him.
19. INT. THEATRE – MORNING
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Clips of Kim, exploring and enjoying the theatre and theatre bar. The place feels like home until
crew enter to set up and she sneaks out. She sings on the stage and accompanies herself on the
piano.
19a, 19b, 19c EXT. PARKING GARAGE – MORNING
Kim passes the parking garage where she stole and then returned the car and overhears the
parking attendant apologizing because he couldn’t find Marilyn’s car and now has found it- he
gets fired. Kim feels incredibly guilty and as he’s walking out, head hanging, she approaches,
gives him a pep talk, a bottle of Jack Daniels from the theatre bar, and a handful of theatre
ticket she stole.
20. BANK
Roy is rejected for an account. He is ushered out the door.
21. INT. BUS – AFTERNOON
Kim returns to the cliffside cabin. She yanks out all of the flowers, smashes a window and
returns to center city.
22, 22a. EXT. APARTMENT BUILDING- AFTERNOON
Roy’s attempt at renting and apartment is rejected, so he sneaks back in, grabs the fire hose,
makes it into a noose and hangs it over the front door.
End of Act I
Act II Roy and Kim together
23. INT. BELLEVUE HOTEL – BALCONY
Roy returns to live on the Bellevue balcony.
24. INT. HOSPITAL ROOM- OSTEO UNIT
Now Marilyn is in the osteo unit. She’s frantic about her pets. Suzy tries to contact the kid/petsitter,
can’t and reluctantly promises to check in on the pets. She also recommends Roy as a bit
weird but a serious animal lover and trustworthy.
25, 26, 26a, 26b,27 INT. BELLEVUE HOTEL – HALLWAYS AND SUITE
Kim enters the Bellevue and goes to the gym. Later, she wanders the hotel and slips into an
empty suite to crash in. Roy, also at the Bellevue, with a big plate of brunch food, finds Kim in a
stairwell, also indulging. Kim invites Roy to her suite, they share stories and bond. Later, they
steal another meal, this time by ordering room service to another room & grabbing it- and share
the lux suite platonically.
This is a softening of Roy’s hard exterior. He has had many women, but this one is thrilling.
27a, 27b INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE
Suzy finds Marilyn’s house wrecked from a party. When the kid stops by with his friends to have
another party, she makes him clean his mess and then boots him out. Now she’s stuck.
27c. LOCATION TBD
Due to his smashed window and trashed flower beds, Kim’s brother reports her to be found and
since she owns part of the house and he can’t charge criminal mischief, instead, to be sent to a
psyche ward.
28. INT. BUS – PARKSIDE
Kim takes Roy to show him the cliff/cabin. They stay out of sight. He doesn’t know why they’re
there. Kim turns from sunny to strung out. He suggests going to a festival in Atlantic City. While
at the cliffside, a baby squirrel runs to him for protection. He replaces the fallen squirrel in its
nest, and she’s impressed with his gentleness and animal whisperer magic. He can’t believe that
he allowed someone to see this tender side.
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28a INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE
Suzy still can’t get ahold of Roy. She lets Marilyn know that she’ll stay for the night to take care
of the pets but she’s determined to find an alternative to this arrangement.
29, 30a, 31 EXT. ATLANTIC CITY- FESTIVAL
Roy and Kim have a great time at the festival/carnival until something triggers his PTSD, he
melts down, acts crazy and people haul him into a small room. Kim stays with him, sings to him,
calms him. It helps both of them. It’s emotionally revelatory. Roy asks her to be with him and she
flatly refuses. She speaks with police and then disappears. In the morning, Roy searches for Kim
on the beach without luck and he returns to Philly.
The melt down moment is a big step toward Roy’s transformation.
31a EXT. PHILADELPHIA STREET
On the way back to his Bellevue balcony, he runs into Suzy (and the lawyer) Suzy and the
lawyer convince him to meet Marilyn about pet sitting/and having an address for a while.
32. INT. HOSPITAL ROOM- OSTEO UNIT
Roy and Marilyn hit it off. She decides to give him a try. Roy resigns himself to it, as well.
Another step toward Roy’s transformation.
32a 32b INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE
Suzy takes her lunch to introduce Roy to the pets/house. They take to him immediately and
vice/versa.
33, 33a INT. ATLANTIC CITY – CLOSET, BUS, BELLEVUE, UNDERGROUND
CAR PARK CUBBY
Kim wakes in a closet in Atlantic City, looks for Roy on the beach, and takes a bus back to
Philly. She looks for him on his Bellevue balcony, but he’s gone. Her suite is occupied. She ends
up the underground car park- in a heating/cooling room/cubby or in an unlocked van.
Act II mid-point sequence
Roy slowly comes to terms with his past.
34. INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE
Roy sits alone with the dogs- not so comfortable with this new life.
34a. One of the dogs is particularly loving to Roy, and starts to break Roy’s heart. He struggles
accepting this innocent, sweet creature- and wants to punish himself and sleep on concretebut
he has made a promise. He’s so conflicted and hasn’t had to face this, at all, in 40 yearsbecause
in so many ways, it’s so much easier when everyone just wants you to die.
35. INT. HOSPITAL – OSTEO UNIT
Kim searches for Roy/asks Suzy about his whereabouts. On the way out, Marilyn sees her and
calls her into her room. Marilyn asks Kim if she’d be interested in pet sitting. Kim feels guilty as
hell for causing Marilyn’s grief.
36, 37. INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE & STREETS & REVOLVING RESTAURANT &
HOSPITAL
Roy is anxious. He cares for the dogs and goes walking. He eventually sleeps on the floor of a
tower / revolving restaurant and in the morning sees a film crew setting up below. He returns to
take care of the dogs, then drops the keys off at the hospital. (I’m out.) Now Marilyn and Suzy
are stuck again.
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38, 38a, 39. EXT. FILM SET
Roy helps himself to the free food and weasels his way onto a Pyro crew- his wartime specialty.
They love him and he’s good at what he does. His new friends let him stay with them, or he
sleeps in the honeywagon or a truck if he has to. On pay day, the boss learns he wasn’t actually
hired, doesn’t pay him and kicks him out. The friends give him some cash, and when he leaves,
he blows up the union boss’ trailer. The crew who are left behind, get blamed for the “accident.”
40. EXT. STREETS
Roy wanders looking for Kim.
40a. EXT. CLIFFSIDE & CABIN
Kim, at the cliff/cabin again, unlocks the door takes a shower, dresses in clothes that are clearly
hers and breaks as many mirrors and ceramics as she can when she leaves. Then she relocks the
door.
Act III
41, 41a, 41aa, 41aaa INT. DEPARTMENT STORE -DAY, INT. CITY HALL
TOWER
Roy discovers Kim shoplifting. They shoplift sandwiches; wine. Then they go to the top of city
hall tower for a picnic. Roy tells her about his pet-sit and she confides that she was asked, too.
They bond. They disclose secrets. This is big for both of them. They sleep in the tower, and
when Roy wakes, Kim is gone.
41b, 41c EXT. STREETS
Roy collapses on the street and people step over him. He breaks down. Follow up scene TBD.
The break down is a huge step toward Roy’s transformation.
42, 43, 43a, 44. INT. HOSPITAL HALLWAY & MARILYN’S HOUSE
Roy re-enlists in pet sitting. (Reenlisting is a step toward Roy’s transformation.) Suzy knows
how he is, but she takes him to Marilyn. Marilyn talks to him about pairing with Kim to cover
the house and pets. “It’s not for long. They two of you can alternate if you need.” Roy walks the
dogs to the hospital and sneaks them in to see Marilyn. She’s thrilled. While there, Kim, having
thought about the pet sitting idea, goes to the hospital and finds them there. Roy and Kim quickly
reattach.
The tour sequence
45,46,47,48,49,50,51 VARIOUS
Roy and Kim share their favorite crash pads, and spend time at each, daily returning to take care
of the dogs and to sneak them to see Marilyn.
52. EXT. CLIFFSIDE & CABIN
They visit the cabin/cliff and Kim discloses her plan to burn the place down and then commit
suicide there- which she’ll do in front of her brother.
53,54, 55, 56, 57 INT. HOSPITAL ROOM- OSTEO UNIT, EXT. STREETS,
INT. DEPARTMENT STORE, INT. MOVIE THEATRE
More touring to show each other the favorite places- and Kim also takes care of Marilyn’s
hair/nails. At one point, Kim feels so guilty that she admits to Marilyn that her condition is all
her fault. Instead of outrage, Marilyn forgives Kim. Kim’s never had that reaction or felt that
forgiveness before. Through this sequence, Kim often also disappears but ultimately visits
Marilyn and finds Roy again. Marilyn proposes that if Roy and Kim stay together, she might
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redraft her will to leave her pets and house to them. The deal would be legal and certainly she
doesn’t plan to kick the bucket anytime soon, but in actuality, she’s sinking fast.
60, 61 INT. HOSPITAL – DAY
Marilyn is moved to a Hospice. A minister visits daily, and she talks to him about marrying Roy
and Kim.
62, 63, 64 INT. BELLEVUE SUITE- NIGHT & INT. MARILYN’S HOUSE
Roy and Kim crash the Bellevue and get caught/chased. This time, however, they have
someplace to go. At Marilyn’s house, they hide in a makeshift location because a whole house is
still too normal for them. When Roy scouts for food, Kim finds his medal of honor. She asks
about it, and he gives up his past. Kim slips away once again. The next morning, the neighbor
barges in with police to kick him out. The police drag him to the same holding cell where he got
pummeled. He calls Marilyn/Suzy.
HOSPICE
Marilyn straightens it out and demands the return of her house key from her neighbor.
69. EXT. CLIFFSIDE CABIN
Roy is released from jail and goes to find Kim. Unseen, he witnesses the following scene:
69a. Kim’s brother, Brian and his wife, Ingrid corner Kim. They have a huge argument, a
blowout, threaten Kim with a psyche ward- and Kim finally speaks her mind. Roy witnesses it.
Now he understands how her home was taken from her, what kind of evil Brian and Ingrid
are- and finally, it crushes his heart. He rescues her. Brian is surprised that anyone cares at
all about Kim or is in her life. This moment transforms all of the characters- Kim, Roy, Brian,
even Ingrid. Brian and Ingrid get into a car and run.
CLIMAX
70. EXT. CLIFFSIDE CABIN
Roy begs Kim to stay with him and promises to keep her life exciting. Fiercely empathetic, Both
Kim and Roy blow up the cliffside cabin. They both laugh and weep cathartically.
RESOLUTION
74, 75, 76, 77 INT. COURTROOM- DAY & INT. HOSPICE- DAY
Roy and Kim get the legal deed to Marilyn’s house. They visit Marilyn often, and also sneak
Marilyn out for romps and visits to her home- and they always take care of the dogs.
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Matthew Frendo’s Character Arc
What I learned doing this assignment was how to make a character arc more dynamic. This will make the script more compelling and relatable.
Alicia – fearful follower to fearless leader
1. The Issue: Alicia has a fearful trait that shows up whenever faced with confrontation or in a situation she can’t find a way out of.
2. The Challenges:
Challenge 1: Alicia finds herself in the punishment challenges, but doesn’t know why or how she will survive.
Challenge 2: if she can’t make it, her long lost father could die.
Challenge 3: she watches 2 players die horribly, making her even more afraid
Challenge 4: she figures out a puzzle and enters another player’s game to help, but almost dies and is saved in the end by Chester.
Challenge 5: after working with other players, she makes a mistake and 3 of them die…including Chester, who was her protector.
Challenge 6: she is just barely able to help another player before panic attack kicks in
Challenge 7: Host offers her easy way out…if she’ll just let the others die.
Challenge 8: When Alicia refuses, challenges kill player unfairly, making it more hopeless.
3. The Transformation: At the last challenge, Alicia is put in a no-win situation that will cause everyone’s relatives to die. Instead, she faces her fear and decides to sacrifice herself for her father and friends. Before she can, the host kills everyone anyway. Alicia then becomes a warrior, fearlessly fighting against the games until beating the host and leaving him in a challenge. She walks off a victor with her friends making up a new family.
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DAY 5: Adding Character Arc
(Anita Gomez) Character Arc
What I learned from this: I think I have a good handle on my main character’s arc. But my story structure is a dramatic triangle and I need to work the arc out more specifically for the daughter, Dianna. My plan is not to change any personality flaws in Cyrus, the father, deliberately keeping him solely focused on his need for control and power (up the judgeship ladder, etc) until his past catches up with him and ruins his marriage.
Apply the Character Arc process to your protagonist and add the improvements to your structure.
1. Return to your structure from Day 7 of the Outlining Class.
2. Brainstorm potential Character Arcs. Look at your story structure and your protagonist character profile together. First look to see if there is an obvious change that will take place in your protagonist. Where does your main character start and end up? Does that imply a transformation? If not, brainstorm possible fears, flaws, or traits that could be changed. Remember, you are going to pick ONE to build your Character Arc around.
PROTAGONIST CHARACTER ARC:
Part to be changed: She doesn’t want a child / considers abortion / abandons her right after birth
Biggest fear: Having a child will ruin her career / life.
Flaw: Self-centeredness.
Completion of arc: Desires to meet her previously abandoned now-grown daughter for who she is, not what she can do (i.e. – help with a kidney transplant)
Basically: Going from having no maternal instincts to wanting a relationship with her daughter.
3. With the arc you’ve chosen, write up the Issue, Challenges, and Transformation. Please look at the example from THE HANGOVER to see how the challenges escalate.
Issue: Danica is ambitious and selfish and doesn’t want anything to get in the way of her career – especially not a baby.
Challenges:
1) Can’t go through with an abortion due to religious background
2) In denial about her condition while pregnant
3) Nearly dies during childbirth
4) Abandons baby at ‘Safe Haven’
5) Multiple awkward interactions between Danica and her niece and nephew
6) She avoids anything to do with babies or baby celebrations
7) Her sister dies from genetic kidney failure and Danica must face not only her own mortality fears, but what is the meaning of her life beyond work?
Transformation: She finally faces her fear of dying from kidney disease like her sister and is pushed to seek out her daughter for a possible transplant and perhaps a relationship / reconciliation.
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Kate’s Character Arc
What I learned doing this assignment is having a character with a very clear fear/need and tracking that character through that really helps focus and move the story. And it was a relief to see I had already kinda done that with my lead/protagonist.
1. THE ISSUE
Nia’s wants to believe her father is wonderful and but fears he might not be – she has been told he was so sad after the death of Amahla that he had to leave, that she reminded him too much of her Mother, that he is doing good things in the world. Deep down she has repressed memories of the terrible fight when he that threw Amahla out. She is fearful it is not a loving family and she is somehow the cause of it.
2. ESCALATING CHALLENGES
Challenge 1
Darrogh makes it clear that he doesn’t want Nia mixing with the locals, he wants her to himself making her feel special and loved. She agrees but sneaks off to meet Luciana
Challenge 2
Luciana tells Nia how Darrogh cheated her father out of the family ranch. Nia rejects the offer to stay at her place, determined to have a relationship with the father. She believes he is a good person and he loves her.
Challenge 3
Darrogh is going to develop a massive landfill, Nia promises will try and help, appeal to his humanity, sure her father loves her enough to listen.
Challenge 4
Nia tries to talk with him, he belittles her and calls the people in the town losers and worthless because they don’t know how to make good money. Says she is too much like her Mother.
FLASHBACK to parents’ terrible fight
Challenge 5
Luciana tells Nia more about the truth of her parents’ relationship
Challenge 6
Nia becomes involved in the ‘sting’ project but still believes her Father will change
Challenge 7
D loses it with Nia for seeing too much of ‘those town people’ and throws her out of the house. She goes back to the Troupe camp
FLASHBACK to when he kicked her Mother out.
Challenge 8
Nia gets the rest of truth about her parents and finds out she has been lied to by her grandparents/ father.
FLASHABCK to the pivotal memory she had suppressed.
Challenge 9
D invites Nia to lunch – he is sorry he threw her out. She doesn’t go.
Challenge 10
Nia comes up with the idea and then performs the play that exposes the sting/con and also calls him out on how he ‘killed’ her Mother.
Challenge 11
Nia forgives him but won’t take him in and leaves to go on with her life.
3. THE TRANSFORMATION
Nia faces her fear – and sees the truth of her father, he is not a good, loving man and her parents didn’t have a perfect relationship – and she realizes she doesn’t need that fantasy – she is strong and capable as herself.
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Anna Harper
Character Arc
What I learned doing this assignment was clarity and flow of the story through one character can show weaknesses in the script and strengths.
Protagonist DYLAN
Issues
Unresolved, complex grief for his mother. Dylan has stopped speaking as a coping strategy. As he cannot/will not speak, his common life challenges such as school bullying, are made near impossible to resolve. He believes that his father does not understand what he is going through. He is lonely.
Challenges
The bullying is making life unbearable. Dylan will not speak up until he observes his friend Daisy being bullied at school.
His father and the school administration want to send Dylan away to a special boarding school.
Dylan does not want to go.
Dylan tries to rescue his friend Daisy, however, due to the ‘no speaking’ rule, things go awry, as Daisy is also intimidated into silence by the school teacher.
A dog named Alfie makes friends with Dylan. Dylan wants to keep him. His Dad says no.
Transformation
Dylan begins the story as a victim. His caring about his friend and the encouragement of his telepathic dog friend, Alife help Dylan to risk talking to help his friend. He utters a couple of words which is very difficult and then things get misunderstood and Dylan gets into trouble again due to the mishap. Dylan retreats again into silence.
Alfie accompanies Dylan to the park where they encounter the bully boys. They are impressed with Alfie. Telepathic communication and coaching from Alfie get Dylan to speak a couple more words. Dylan and Alfie win over the boys, except for one. The alpha bully Victor holds back, as he is intimidated by Dylan’s very large dog.
Alfie continues to coach Dylan to stand up for himself.
Dylan makes an effort to communicate his problems to his father via drawings. At first, this does not work, and the misunderstanding continues.
Dylan reaches a breaking point when the school admin and his father decide the only option is for Dylan to be sent away to the boarding school.
Feeling desperate Dylan runs away.
Alfie brings the artwork to the attention of Dylan’s Dad who at last understands what his son is going through.
Alfie located a terrified Dylan. His Dad is beyond relieved to find him and explains he misunderstood, there will be no boarding school for Dylan.
At school, the day of the Christmas concert, Dylan and his Dad observe the mother of Victor shouting and slapping him. Dylan’s Dad notifies the principal.
Following the incident, Dylan and his Dad have a mostly one-way talk about the importance of communicating to trusted adults, and that bullies learn to bully
Dylan feels empathy for the bully.
Feeling more secure, Dylan starts to enjoy Christmas. Still mostly silent. Until they go to visit the Christmas tree in the village high street where Dylan feels more confident and secure, comments on the magic of Christmas.
While the Christmas dinner is cooking Dylan and Alfie go to the park where they meet Daisy and exchange presents with a few words. The alpha bully Victor is walking dejectedly in the park. Daisy and Dylan want to know how come he is in the park. Things are not good at Victor’s house there is a domestic argument. Dylan, Daisy, and Victor go to Dylan’s for Christmas dinner. This represents the completion of the character arc for this story. From victim to empowerment and empathy, taking on heroic elements in his life challenges.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by anna harper.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by
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Alice’s Character Arc
What I learned doing this assignment is
I found out, I’m kind of blind to Characters’ Arks, I used to be afraid of ChArk idea. And, I can see at least two characters arks, for main protagonists for each part. I wish I could see character ark for the Judge,or he is completely clean, just comes, sentences, and goes, though he Separates.
I was very happy to see, how characters’ arks were predisposed in my story. This makes me think, I’m simply blind to it. It’s good to know that, or I could turn action in the wrong way.
Apply the Character Arc process to your protagonist and add the improvements to your structure.
1. Return to your structure from Day 7 of the Outlining Class.
Alice’s Outline Version 1
MIROPOLIS
SEPARATION
Part 1
1. List the following key components of your story:
A. Concept:
In time of Separation, an artificial death protecting Advanced West society of Planet MIROPOLIS, workers of Research Institute get massacred, to create “new weapon”, interests clash, judge sentences wrongdoer at scandalous process, Separates, his subtle image reflected on video, his advice to filter people and expel outcastes is taken into practice…
B. Plot Choice:
7. The Riddle
9. Underdog
12. Transformation
C. Character Structure: Antagonist versus Protagonist
D. Lead Characters (*Name* is an *identity* who *does X in the story*.):
Protagonist: young talented scientist of Research Institute who’s girlfriend went missing, searching for who’ve done it
Antagonist: Anaupsh, head of development lab, who massacres RI workers to create animated monster
Protagonist #2 Judge who is to lead the process, finds Anaupsh guilty, proposes zones for outcastes, and Separates.
E. Dramatic Question: Creation of Zone at planet Miropolis
F. Main Conflict: social, in between of castes
G. Dilemma: of Protagonist #1 Would he find out, who’ve done it from those he works with?
H. Theme: Techno techno society, filtering of population, creation of zones, and self development
I. Character Arc of Lead Character (if any):
Protagonist#1
Part to be changed: He needs to find out, who’ve done it, and what happened?
Biggest fear: His biggest fear is what he sees in Anaupsh’s his lab
Completion of arc: His example as martyr changes social structure of the West. For separate-able humanity.
J. Structure of your screenplay (9 beats, one sentence each):
1. Opening
Representation (Visuals) of how SEPARATION (an artificial nano death, insinuated by signal from human brain of the bearer, whereas face and chest are separated symmetrically by vertical line), works. Inside perspective. Life stream as if moves on another rails. “What new qualities did you acquire?” “I can move walls apart!”
2. Inciting Incident
Protagonist returns from weekend spent offshore, and receives phone call from Director of Research Institute with urgent assignment. As he works on it, he encounters erased file that is exactly report for Anaupsh’s lab.
3. By page 10, you know what the movie is about.
This is going to be on the ground of Research Institute, where Anaupsh massacres its workers. But that’s also at another planet, named MIROPOLIS, and has to do with advanced science and discrimination of castes.
4. First turning point at end of Act 1
His girlfriend is missing amid lab personnel. “ Where is Kiat?”
5. Mid-Point
Journalist brother of Protagonist streams confusing news to illustrate the case of people missing on the ground of Research Institute.
6. Second turning point at end of Act 2
Protagonist gets contacted by secret service officer.
7. Crisis
Protagonist gets massacred. Officers who contacted him shot.
8. Climax
Anaupsh presents her work at symposium and lets monsters, created by her in a lab out, to float up to the sky. Aerial dispatch destroys it.
9. Resolution
Scandalous process. Judge gives a speech and separates right at the court.
Upstart with residences for outcastes.
Part 2
1. List the following key components of your story:
A. Concept:
…after reservations for outcastes are created, trained WARDS are to bring qualified back to society,
Born in reservation, LENA witnesses her Ward’s death, runaways, gets escorted by high rang military, becomes his lover, as anyone around undergo danger of being marked as “outcastes”.
B. Plot Choice:
5. Escape
9. Underdog
13. Maturation
C. Character Structure: Romantic or Dramatic Triangle
D. Lead Characters (*Name* is an *identity* who *does X in the story*.):
LENA, girl born inside of restricted reservation who runaways from it
WARD, who picks up at Le-na to liberate her
Son of Main Commander, top military who picks up Le-na outside and falls in love with her
E. Dramatic Question: How Miropolis would do with zones
F. Main Conflict: In between of advanced vision and old ways
G. Dilemma: How to bring qualified back from zone, or accommodate them outside
H. Theme: Liberation
I. Character Arc of Lead Character (if any):
WARD
What he wants: to love LENA
What he needs: to send her safely outside
LENA
Part to be changed: She wants to runaway, be liberated
Biggest fear: There is now here to run, no action to save it
Completion of arc: She reaches what she could’ve desire but crashes
J. Structure of your screenplay (9 beats, one sentence each):
1. Opening
Destruction of Black Archipelago by atomic weapon.
2. Inciting Incident
Ward choses residence to be dispatched to.
3. By page 10, you know what the movie is about.
MIROPOLIS seventy years after they started with zones.
4. First turning point at end of Act 1
Ward meets Le-na .
5. Mid-Point
He hides Le-na in his apartment behind locked doors.
6. Second turning point at end of Act 2
Ward is shot down.
7. Crisis
Le-na burns her stepmother who came back to kill her with acid from the barrel.
8. Climax
Le-na deposits report, fights her way via girl, picks up a gun, and deceives helicopter pilot.
9. Resolution
Le-na is picked up by high rang military.
ESCAPE story (above) as OPENING SCENE for Lena Outside of Reservation
(Lena Outside of Reservation, as a RESOLUTION to Escape story)
2. Inciting Incident: Lena tries to pull up his shirt, to check, if he is “marked” as maybe all special people from outside.
3. By “page 10”, you know, what the movies is about: it is now about Lena and Son of Main Commander evolving relationship
4. First Turning Point: They get intimate (Hotel #1)
5. Midpoint: His blackout.
6. Second Turning Point: Lena appears to be pregnant.
7. Crisis: They again are exposed (military come, as he is military), (Hotel#2, amid crowd)
8. Culmination: They discover dead body of ten years old daughter of hotel owner.
9. Resolution: They are in the room again. Woman across the street shoots another tenant. Absurd.
10 (9) RESOLUTION for the Part 2: Their young military friend gets matured, and gets sentenced as a ward who used weapon inside of habitation on civil ones. Son of Main Commander SEPARATES.
2. Brainstorm potential Character Arcs. Look at your story structure and your protagonist character profile together. First look to see if there is an obvious change that will take place in your protagonist. Where does your main character start and end up? Does that imply a transformation?
If not, brainstorm possible fears, flaws, or traits that could be changed. Remember, you are going to pick ONE to build your Character Arc around.
Part 1
THANAKH
Both he and his girlfriend Kiat are introvert. He doesn’t like pretty much to come into contact with services like police. By his position he might not too, or avoids them.
When Kiat gets missing, he is about to contact social service, by person and over phone, but drops out, choosing to speak with familiar to him Director.
Finally he ends up even befriending one of the officers who contacts him.
Part 2
LENA
She is at first such that when she undergoes martial training, Ward reminds her that blow is done to hit, it is for murder.
After she undergoes all troubles, she uses martial art to kill.
Ward manipulates with her the way he wants it, pulls her into shower.
When he gets shot, she gets lost. But after she gets hurt, she breaks. After murders she does to escape, she exchanges.
When she meets her soul mate, she does with him whatever, trying to manipulate, even though he is not a person to be afraid of it.
All this ends tragically, as it is obvious, he’s not a thing she just could keep safely in her pocket.
3. With the arc you’ve chosen, write up the Issue, Challenges, and Transformation. Please look at the example from THE HANGOVER to see how the challenges escalate.
Part 1
THANAKH
Issue
Thanakh is reserved man of science, who is independent, proud, hard working, and would rather avoid others but his contacts.
Challenges
As Kiat gets lost, he is pushed to contact people.
He would rather avoid contacting Social Service
He drops from phone talk with his ropes either, what if they are behind that?
He challenges his brother to put broadcast on the air
Transformation
He gets contacted, and starts to maintain this contact
Part 2
LENA
Issue
Lena is a better girl, who avoids other residents, who are outcastes. She only does martial arts as an exercise, not actively planning to use it.
Challenges
She gets terribly hurt, and can expect continuation.
Transformation
In a need to physically protected herself, she destroys her adversary.
To run away, she gets into fight with newcomer lady, and robs her of her gun.
EXT. RAINY STREET – NIGHT
Lena deliberately walks up to street’s corner, to free-phone booth, presses correct numbers, and receives support.
Lens tries to manipulate her husband, at least his mood, at least with words.
4. Now, look at your Day 7 Structure and add in key points from #3 — Issue, Challenges, and Transformation.
Part 1
OPENING SCENE:
Representation (Visuals) of how SEPARATION (an artificial nano death, insinuated by signal from human brain of the bearer, whereas face and chest are separated symmetrically by vertical line), works. Inside perspective. Life stream as if moves on another rails. “What new qualities did you acquire?” “I can move walls apart!”
EXT. TOP OF RESIDENTIAL – DAY
Fishing at the basin on the rooftop. Protagonist #2 family is introduced.
EXT. ON A PLANE
North of Planet MIROPOLIS. Protagonist #1 and his girlfriend Kiat are on a plane, coming home from weekend. Plane is crossing sea from resort area to West Shore.
Thanakh is reserved man of science, who is independent, proud, hard working, and would rather avoid others but his contacts.
INT. PROTAGONIST’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Protagonist #1 receives assignment to prepare for Monday.
INCITING INCIDENT:
File with data from Anaupsh’s lab is damaged.
EXT. CITY STREET – NIGHT
Hero takes night ride to Research Institute to recover damaged file.
EXT. BEFORE GATES OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – NIGHT
Front of Research Institute (RI is introduced)
INT. LOBBY OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – NIGHT
Lobby is guarded.
INT. OFFICE – NIGHT
Hero recovers file, but printer lacks paper.
INT. CORRIDOR – NIGHT
Getting paper from corridor cabinet, Hero encounters night watch man.
INT. OFFICE – NIGHT
Kiat sends him a message via radiophone. “I love you”
INT. SOMEONE’S BEDROOM – MORNING
Alarm man, one of small lab workers, is introduced.
INT. OFFICE – MORNING
Hero expects Kiat to come.
INT. CORRIDOR OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – MORNING
Hero accidentally passes by Anapush on the way of speaking on report.
FIRST TURNING POINT:
Hero notices his girlfriend’s absence.
INT. BACK ROOM – MORNING
Kiat is brutally murdered.
INT. OFFICE – DAY
Hero tries to reach Kiat by phone.
INT. PROTAGONIST’S APPARTMENT – NIGHT
Hero keeps missing her.
As Kiat gets lost, Thanakh is pushed to contact people.
INT. LANDING BEFORE KIAT’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Hero visits Kiat’s apartment and attempts to find out about her from her neighbor.
INT. LANDING BEFORE KIAT’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Second attempt. Her neighbor is not collaborative.
INT. KIAT’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Police breaks into apartment to find money, clothes, and documents intact. But don’t find enough reasons for missing case.
INT. AUDITORY – DAY
As Protagonist addresses Research Institute workers for support, other missing cases come out.
INT. RESIDENTIAL – DAY
Protagonist attempts to recover one of missing people by visiting his apartment.
INT. OFFICE – DAY
Hero is visited by man, searching for his wife who was working at Hero’s lab.
INT. SOCIAL SERVICES – EVENING
Hero lingers to contact Secret Service.
He would rather avoid contacting Social Service
EXT. STREET PHONE BOOTH – DAY
Hero attempts to contact his ropes.
He drops from phone talk with his ropes either, what if they are behind that?
INT. DIRECTOR’S OFFICE – DAY
Hero tries to persuade Director of RI to search labs. Director drops out of it for meeting with Anaupsh.
EXT. BEFORE DIRECTOR’S – DAY
Hero is shown leaving. City Street.
INT. DIRECTOR’S OFFICE – DAY
Director gets murdered by Anaupsh’s assistant so that she would wipe out files with info on her lab work.
INT. AUDITORY – DAY
Protagonist learns of Director’s disappearance.
INT. PROTAGONIST’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Hero attempts to contact Director by phone.
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Protagonist #2 family. To go fishing, or stay with family.
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – EVENING
Protagonist #2 family.
INT. LOBBY – EVENING
Hero notices night watch man is gone.
INT. POLICE OFFICE – DAY
Protagonist gets refused by policeman on account there are not enough of proofs people went missed.
INT. AUDITORY – DAY
Protagonist warns workers against area of local labs at Research Institute.
INT. LIBRARY OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – DAY
Protagonist accidentally runs on Anaupsh. He notices there is nor metallic plate stuck in her sandal any longer, which was electronic key she opened Director’s comp with.
INT. RI’S CORRIDOR OF HERO’S DREAM – NIGHT
Horrible dream about RI corridors.
INT. HERO’S BEDROOM – MORNING
Hero awakes.
INT. SOMEONE’S BEDROOM – MORNING
Alarm man gets late as his alarm clock went broken.
EXT. BEFORE THE GATES OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – MORNING
Protagonist warns alarm man against suspicious area, which is his home area.
INT. BACK ROOM – DAY
Alarm man is captured. This is witnessed by one scientist. They go with murdering him, but man has time to Separate. They cannot use his body, and must cover it up somehow differently.
INT. OFFICE – DAY
Protagonist’s friend mentions, he’s missing lab’s Head.
EXT. TRAIN STATION – EVENING
Protagonists friend is watched, as he is to board a train.
INT. TRAIN – EVENING
He boards train, deceived.
INT. POLICE OFFICE – EVENING
Protagonist is refused by police officer on account of his “better position”.
INT. CORRIDOR OF RI – EVENING
Protagonist recognizes his friend is gone.
INT. HERO’S APPARTMENT – NIGHT
Someone comes to Hero’s apartment at night.
MIDPOINT
EXT. STREET PHONE BOOTH – DAY
Hero calls his acquaintance at Secret Service, demanding they would say if missing cases were their job.
INT. HERO’S JOURNALIST BROTHER APPARTMENT – NIGHT
Protagonist visits his brother. He happens to be a journalist.
EXT. POLICE CAR – NIGHT
Police watches them over distance, listening to conversation with antenna.
INT. HERO’S JOURNALIST BROTHER APPARTMENT
Protagonist relates to his brother about missing cases.
He challenges his brother to put broadcast on the air
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – DAY
TV news. “In one of huge institutions people get disappear in one of the area of the lab works” Judge remarks that’s where his sister works.
INT. PROTAGONIST’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Hero watches the news.
EXT. STREET PHONE BOOTH – DAY
Journalist calls his brother to learn of impression. Hero is dissatisfied, saying, his report was misleading at broadcast.
INT. ANAUPSH’S LAB – DAY
Anaupsh answers the phone.
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – DAY
Judge drops it down, hearing her voice, as he cannot stand her.
INT. ANAUPSH’S LAB – DAY
Anaupsh’s assistant turns attention on herself, as that one remarks on the case. This sexy girl who always was so unreachable at meetings appears to be very naïve.
INT. VIEW OF CLOSET FROM INSIDE – DAY
She gets pranked by her boyfriend who places a date with her.
INT. CAFE – NIGHT
Girl is waiting for him, but he doesn’t turn out.
EXT. CITY STREET – NIGHT
As she leaves café, she is lured by Anaupsh in her vehicle, where there is her boyfriend, already killed.
INT. LOBBY OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – NIGHT
They pass by night guard, posing her boyfriend as drunk.
INT. ANAUPSH’S LAB – NIGHT
Anaupsh proposes as if to restore him and girl sees construction from parts of human bodies before dropping on a floor. Anaupsh’s male assistant is not to pass such a specimens unnoticed.
INT. OFFICE – DAY
In result of broadcast, control group, in amount of one aged man and young lady is sent by organization to check at what is happening at Research Institute.
INT. ANAUPSH’S LAB – DAY
As Anaupsh gets uncovered, her assistants capture both people from control group.
INT. BACK ROOM – DAY
They both are beaten up, unconscious.
INT. SOME LAB – DAY
Hero starts searching through labs, followed by his lab’s workers.
INT. DYNAMICS LAB – EVENING
Two guys in this lab do carry guns. They assure Hero they don’t lock the doors making a trap.
INT. CORRIDOR OF RI – MORNING
Protagonist discovers both weapon men from Dynamics Lab are gone.
SECOND TURNING POINT:
Protagonist gets contacted by secret service officer. He affirms they also lost a number of people on Institute’s ground, and that he was afraid to pass inside.
Thanakh gets contacted, and starts to maintain this contact
INT. SECRET SERVICE OFFICE – EVENING
Secret Service officers receive indications from above not to do much about the case.
INT. CORRIDOR OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – EVENING
Strolling along, Protagonist looks into open lab and sees there girl assistant of Anaupsh rummaging through documents. She says she had to sort that out.
INT. CORRIDOR OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – NIGHT
Walking past Anaupsh’s lab, Protagonist can hear noise behind the wall, something knocks. He is surprised.
INT. LOBBY OF RESEARCH INSTITUTE – NIGHT
Night guard confirms everyone from that lab are gone for the night.
INT. ANAUPSH’S LAB – MORNING
Hero waits for Anaupsh to come, to check her lab. She lets him in, saying it’s development nocking.
CRISIS:
She opens back room for him, and he can see huge animated construction, composed from human bodies, managed by DNA exchange. He recognizes it here and there. Passes out.
EXT. BACK STREET – EVENING
Officer who came to RI calls his top officer, saying, scientist does not answer his calls. He drops the phone and turns to go away, but is shot from behind a corner out of vehicle.
INT. SECRET SERVICE OFFICE – EVENING
Top officer gets notified, his employee went arrested for interest in this case. He is stunned. Upon consideration, exits office via back door.
EXT. OUTSIDE OF SECRET SERVICE OFFICE – EVENING
Top officer gets out, considers cars nearby, walks down, and is shot from behind.
CLIMAX:
Anaupsh presents her work at symposium. Two scientists at presidium get alarmed, but Anaupsh smartly lets her creation into outside world, to float at the sky. They sound alarm then.
EXT. CITY SCAPE – EVENING
Judge’s son witnesses monsters in the sky as he strolls fishing, falling from the edge of the roof in effect, encountered by helicopter, as aircraft dispatch destroys monsters spreading point-direct atomic weapon.
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – DAY
His son supports him, says to hold on.
INT. COURT – DAY
As Judge heads ahead to preside, hate is manifested toward him. Everyone blames Anaupsh, and yet believes they would let her clean.
RESOLUTION:
Judge sentences Anaupsh, and proposes creation of zones, to preserve society. He Separates under psychic attack, after what his subtle body walks out of court room.
EXT. SITY STREET – DAY
Journalist brother of late scientist watches street screens, streaming phenomenon. He immediately recognizes, zones are to be created.
INT. JUDGE’S APPARTMENT – EVENING
His son gets photo session for magazine.
INT. EDITORIAL OFFICE – NIGHT
Late Protagonist’s journalist brother gets criticized by his editor. What would people think of Separation after reading “Man after Separating, walked along the ail?”
RESOLUTION:
People with strict faces are at building construction, meant for outcastes.
“First Social Services were doing it, then when jails went full, they got that wasn’t enough, and called in military…”
Part 2
OPENING SCENE: Destruction of Black Archipelago by atomic weapon.
INCITING INCIDENT: Ward choses residence to be dispatched to.
INT. RESIDENTIAL ZONE – DAY
Ward unlocks his new apartment, belonged prior to his predecessor.
INT. WARD’S APARTMENT – DAY
Le-na visits him. She never takes a bath, to repel other residents.
Lena is a better girl, who avoids other residents, who are outcastes. She only does martial arts as an exercise, not actively planning to use it.
FIRST TURNING POINT: He hides Le-na in his apartment behind locked doors. They start to be intimate. They take shower together, but he only does superficial sex.
MIDPOINT: His window is bulletproof, but door has space underneath. After knocking at his locked door didn’t help, residents put smoke via this opening. Ward then streams water outside.
SECOND TURNING POINT: When Ward unlocks the door, he claims sending report for Lena, to be liberated. When he refuses to liberate some freak, he gets shot down, Lena hurt, and his apartment robbed.
Lena gets terribly hurt, and can expect continuation.
CRISIS: Le-na awakes and is directed by Ward to splash acid on her mother, pick up report and send it.
In a need to physically protected herself, she destroys her adversary.
INT. ATTIC – DAY
As Lena sends report, there is girl newcomer descending from rooftop. They fight, Lena shoots her down, and is directed by Ward upstairs, where there is still a helicopter, which brought the girl.
To run away, she gets into fight with newcomer lady, and robs her of her gun.
CLIMAX: Le-na runs up to the pilot and deceives him, saying she was brought down to restricted zone by mistake. She promises him some payment!
RESOLUTION: EXT. HELICOPTER CABIN – EVENING
They take into air. Pilot asks for her address. “Quiet Street, Small House!” Le-na says. Pilot gets he was deceived. “Point gun at him!” says Ward’s voice. Le-na puts gun on him. His radio works, and Le-na screams for pilot. Man on that end of the line hears female voice.
ESCAPE story (above) as OPENING SCENE for Lena Outside of Reservation
(Lena Outside of Reservation, as a RESOLUTION to Escape story)
INCITING INCIDENT: INT. TECHNO STATION – EVENING
Le-na is picked up by high rang military. She recognizes him being special, and tries to pull shirt away from his back, to see if there isn’t body mark as well.
FIRST TURNING POINT: INT. HOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
They become intimate.
INT. HOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Servant rolls in table with refreshment and some wine bottles, as he gets astonished, seeing Le-na standing totally naked amid the room.
INT. HOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Two officers come to expose her lover. They have a moment and exchange names. He says, he’s a Son of Main Commander, which is his rang.
MIDPOINT: INT. HOTEL’S LOBBY – NIGHT
Son of Main Commander descends with Le-na into lobby. He directs her to wait him at the glass doors. And tries to place a phone call, but line is dead. “You will pay me for that! “ he says to hotel’s owner. And receives a blow.
EXT. RAINY STREET – NIGHT
Lena deliberately walks up to street’s corner, to free-phone booth, presses correct numbers, and receives support.
INT. HOSPITAL COMPARTMENT – NIGHT
Son of Main Commander awakes at a Hospital, saved by Le-na. They get enconters from nurse and some man, and lock inside. They unlock to the military bunch, and after some conflict, are saved by requested by him regiment.
EXT. AT HELICOPTERS – MORNING
As they are on the go to helicopter, saved by regiment, he arguments with regiment commander.
SECOND TURNING POINT: INT. HOTEL ROOM – NIGHT.
As they are staying at the hotel, now a couple, he sits on bed in clothes. Le-na reacts and after pulling his socks away, washing her hands, picks up bottle and pushes inside sex organs. He catches at her and hits. “Why have you done it?” She explains, she no longer has blood (she’ s lacking, and he is indifferent). He laughs with joy, explaining that is a pregnancy.
Their activity is overlooked by man in bright lit window across the street. He threatens them, gesturing, and dresses up to go out.
CRISIS: INT. HOTEL CORRIDOR – NIGHT
Son of Main Commander is encountered by Hotel’s owner, and then military dispatch. All tenants get out of their rooms. It appears, Hotel was stuffed with video cameras to observe tenants, by agreement of that man across the street and Hotel owner. As Son of Main Commander arguments matter with Commanding Officer, that one freaks out and gets tied up by his own soldiers. Soldiers get all lost, but one, who starts giving commands, by birth right!
CULMINATION:
One of cameras made video of something white in dark lobby. Hotel owner suddenly gets ill and is escorted to his room by two soldiers. Others search the rooms, and uncover body of ten years old daughter of Hotel owner. Tenant of that room dies right there, poisoning oneself till foam out of the mouth, and slides down the wall. After they turn away two technicians coming to pick up someone qualified as outcastes, real psychologist comes. He turns to be an aged man, experienced and talkative. He exchanges addresses with boy with shrieking voice, promises to distressed woman degree in psychology and new job.
RESOLUTION: INT. HOTEL ROOM – MORNING
Le-na again looks into window. There is wife of that man, now arrested, who shoots woman at hotel room near theirs.
Lens tries to manipulate her husband, at least his mood, at least with words.
INT. HOTEL ROOM – NIGHT
Yet another hotel. They lie in bed as outside are sirens at the distance. He embraces her, tense. But cars run by.
RESOLUTION to PART 2, Wrapping Up: INT. FIGHTING ROOM – DAY
Their young military friend goes into grown up man, taking martial arts training.
INT. RESTRICTED ZONE – DAY
He endeavors to save a couple out of zone. As woman screams, closing her ears, hold by her man, he shoots back at a couple of people, shooting at him.
INT. TRIBUNAL – DAY
He gets sentenced. He doesn’t take it for real, but as a bad joke, as he really killed people. They then consent on him returning back to zone, now forever.
EXT. ROAD AND GRASS – DAY
Bus doors gets closed, and it leaves on its way.
INT. PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL – DAY
Le-na moves around the house, bearing sight of household, having kids, here and there, where they dropped clothes or toys, running for bus.
INT. GUESTROOM – DAY
Son of Main Commander sits as if thinking something over. Phone rings, but he doesn’t pick it up. Le-na awakes him from his thoughts. No, he not at all is going to go as a ward, this means imminent death. She worries, and starts to pull chain with pendant from her neck, as if to put on him as amulet, but he stops her.
He gets up, dons his military headwear and goes out. Le-na answers the phone. No, he is gone. She says.
EXT. OUTSIDE THE HOUSE – DAY
He goes a distance away, then stops. Wind blows into his face. He Separates. Narrow opening with even edges separates front of his face in the middle. His facial expression doesn’t change. He keeps standing same pose.
INT. HOSPITAL – NIGHT
As sentenced ward, here incognito, discusses with their friend psychologist his couple he brought back from zone, passing exam now, and Le-na, who went crashed.
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PS81 – Dana’s Character Arc
What I learned from this assignment:
I developed the general character arcs during the outlining phase, but this method helped he focus on the main character’s arc by excluding the other characters and events.
1. The Issue:
Ellen is a young psychiatrist struggling as a talk radio host. She has a desire to help people but avoids confrontation, preferring to be liked by her callers, which has impacted her ratings.
In her first scene, Ellen’s husband calls to asks is she can pick up their children after school due to a conflict with his work. She reminds him they agreed to a schedule and tries to hold him to it by explaining her responsibilities at work. He belittles her career, putting his work first, to which she objects. But she still accommodates his request to avoid the argument – while making faces at him.
2. Escalating events:
Challenge 1: In the meeting with her station manager, Ellen receives the news about her low ratings and reasons why.
Challenge 2: Ellen has an emotional moment with her producer, Claire, confessing her fears. She knows the problems, but she can’t seem to break her pattern. Claire tries to build up Ellen’s confidence for her show.
Challenge 3: During Ellen’s first call, she falls into her pattern, pleasing the caller rather than confronting the behavior. Ellen watches the station manager leave the control booth disappointed.
Challenge 4: Ellen receives a call from Jason who suffers with dissociative identity disorder. When she realizes Jason is her ex-patient, she explains taking his call would be inappropriate due to their past relationship – avoiding conflict again. But when Jason screams at her not to disconnect him, Ellen accommodates him and is forced to listen to Jason threaten her family.
Challenge 5: Ellen engages Ryan – Jason’s alternate personality who has kidnapped Ellen’s husband and two daughters. She pleads with him to harm her family, feeding his sociopathic cravings – accommodating his needs – until the moment he kills her husband on-air.
Challenge 6: Ellen engages Bobby – Jason’s protective personality – after her husband’s murder. She encourages Bobby to help her daughters, but when he refuses due to his fear, she tries to draw out William, a manic-depressive personality. She starts to confront her patient.
Challenge 7: Ellen puts Jason’s sister on-air to her plead with her brother to stop. She breaks down listening to their conversation, becoming more conflicted about her intentions to draw out William. Accommodating the sister vs. confronting her patient.
Challenge 8: When the sister fails, Ellen pushes to draw out the William personality. She is now in direct conflict with her patient but not yet fully committed to the result.
3. The transformation:
Ellen exposes the William personality, but when he refuses to help, she provokes his depression and pushes him toward suicide to save her daughters. The Ryan personality intervenes to stop Ellen, and she confronts Ryan hard, pitting the two personalities against each other until we hear a revolver fire. The William personality has killed himself. Ellen has saved her daughters.
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I did not receive the email lesson. Help!
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With appreciation to Kate Hawkes for timely “coming to the rescue” when everything else had failed.
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Antonio Flores’ Character Arc
What I learned doing this assignment
Indeed, screenwriting is a non-linear process. We must go back and forth looking for the coherence that makes things believable, exciting, entertaining. Because at the start I had selected the plot “discovery” for my story, I had conceptualized the “you were, you are, you will be” of the protagonist, but this structure makes the protagonist arc more believable. Only one flaw or one fear to be conquered. Less is more.
ASSIGNMENT:
- Apply the Character Arc process to your protagonist and add the improvements to your structure.
- Write up the Issue, Challenges, and Transformation.
I. Character Arc of Lead Character (if any):
The journey of a fearful cheerleader who becomes a fearless MMA fighter.
1. The Issue:
Parisa suffers of acute stress disorder, a type of anxiety caused by the traumatic experience of having watched her sister falling from top of a building and dying. Parisa re-experiences this traumatic event through recurrent images, thoughts, dreams, illusions, flashback episodes or a sense of reliving the experience, which could leave her totally vulnerable, say, in a fight.
2. Escalating Challenge:
Challenge 1: Anxiety accounts for Parisa’s sleeping difficulties. In the opening scenes, Parisa goes for a workout in the middle of the night.
Challenge 2: When brawny female underground champion, Ruthless, threatens Parisa to death, she gets numbed and unable to defend herself.
Challenge 3: When Ruthless blatantly kills her bosom friend Sandy in front of her eyes, Parisa experiences a flashback linking the falling of her sister with Sandy’s head hitting the canvas. A deep wound gets reopened.
Challenge 4: When Ruthless chokes Parisa in the opening match of the tournament, Parisa impersonates Sandy and falls inoperative.
3. The Transformation:
In the tournament final, Parisa fights Shanaz, the Ruler’s Favorite, on top of a high scaffold, where she envisions (we saw this in tho opening scenes) pressing the treadmill UP buttons and going for HIGH levels – something she has done all her life.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by Antonio Flores.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by Antonio Flores.
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This reply was modified 3 years, 1 month ago by Antonio Flores.
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email me – kate@wellnesswithkate.com
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Seducing Actors Day 5 Nancy Kates character arcs
What I learned from doing this assignment: I had done a similar exercise a while back, but it was a good reminder that every scene has to build on the prior one, in terms of the arc and transformation of the characters.
Zoe
Issue: she’s controlling and sometimes lacks empathy. She’s a perfectionist.
Challenges: She is literally put into someone else’s shoes when she magically switches bodies with Marilyn. Marilyn’s life is full of incredible challenges for Zoe: she has three kids, a messy home life, little privacy. She is not straight and doesn’t want to sleep with Doug, Marilyn’s husband (though, it turns out, neither does Marilyn). She is initially annoyed and freaked out by the kids, but then she starts to make an effort, such as going roller-blading with the eldest, until she falls and breaks her arm, which makes all the other things she has to do even harder (technically she has broken Marilyn’s arm, but it’s the one she is using during most of the film).
Things get worse and worse for her, until she is forced to go through the fire with Marilyn and learn from her.
Transformations
Zoe finds her inner nurturer, and compassion for herself, Marilyn, her partner Heidi, and Marilyn’s kids. She even finds some for Doug, though she sees the worst of him, at times.
She starts to accept the messy imperfections of life and those around her, whereas before she was frustrated by them.
Marilyn
Issues: she a bit of a doormat and “good girl,” ie she takes care of others but rarely even asks herself what she wants, instead of what she’s “supposed” to want. She thinks others might not like her if she asserts her wants and needs. She’s a successful lawyer at work, but doesn’t have a lot of agency.
Challenges: She sees Zoe’s life as a vacation, ie no kids, perfect apartment and partner, less stress. But she is forced to try to take actions to reverse their predicament, and grows in the process of doing so. She also acts in ways that are not her typical “good girl” behavior, such as sleeping with Zoe’s partner while in Zoe’s body. She argues with Zoe, instead of being a doormat.
Transformation: she discovers that she likes being with women, and wants to act on it. She becomes more empowered in her relationships, especially with her husband.
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Day 5: Setups and Payoffs – ASSIGNMENT
Mike O – Setup/Payoffs
What I learned doing this assignment is the set-ups and payoffs and their chains create the subliminal threads that the audience and reader grasp then marvel at. I am a big believer in setups and payoff. Used them from day one.
Create a scene with at least 2 setups and 2 payoffs. Setup/payoff is used in every genre. If you leave it out, the movie feels as if it’s just a bunch of unrelated scenes strung together. Your setups and payoffs are what hold the movie together.
1. List your character names along with each character’s traits and their subtext above the scene.
Brooklyn traits Trait 1- Workaholic – obsessed with her work, her art Trait 2 – Romantic Trait 3 – Indecisive and struggles w/ OCD Trait 4 – Yearns to be a successful artist
Subtext Character: Conflicted, In denial — unwilling to acknowledge her pain, her loss.
2. Look through your outline, find a scene that you could use today’s technique on. Preferably a scene where you can go to an extreme with the technique.
3. Write a brief outline of the scene. Whatever happens in the end of the scene needs to be setup in the beginning. Simply select one from each category below for your setup/payoff combination.
Setups:
A. Foreshadow upcoming events.
B. Mislead the audience.
C. Challenge the characters.
D. Be the basis for future solutions.Payoffs:
A. Surprise the audience.
B. Create excitement.
C. Add new meaning to the setup.
D. Twist the story in a new direction.
E. Provide closure.4. Once you’ve outlined it, write the scene.
INT. BEDROOM – CONTINUOUS
Brooklyn undresses and casts various articles of clothing onto her bed. As CAMERA PULLS BACK, we discover Brooklyn, besides being a creature of habit, is quite the interior decorator.
The room is warm and feminine: rich colors and textures transition into one another. Appealing. Tasteful.
Brooklyn shimmies into her holiday pajamas, furry slippers, brushes a stray lock of hair from her eyes.
She strides out of the room without out so much as a glance in the mirror. Inadvertently, she kicks the cat’s flickable, ping-pong ball.
Brooklyn watches it ROLL, mutters:
BROOKLYN “You’re safe, ping. Cat’s run off. Just you and me now.”
She walks down the hallway, stops, turns around and retrieves the ping-pong ball. Scarred, she turns it over in her palm feeling and seeing all the teeth marks the cat’s left behind.
BROOKLYN “Come, it’s time you saw the Christmas tree and got into the holiday spirit. Nothing bad is going to happen, trust me.”
TIME CUT: KITCHEN — BROOKLYN POURING WINE. ON THE COUNTER, A CUTTING BOARD; ON IT, SMALL WEDGE OF CHEESE, CRACKERS AND A KNIFE. IN THE BACKGROUND, KENNY G. CHRISTMAS MUSIC PLAYING.
Gathering up the mail and the cutting board, Brooklyn leaves the kitchen.
INT. LIVING ROOM — on a couch curled up in her favorite throw blanket. She stares out a window, into the falling snow.
In the corner of the room, her Christmas tree. As if on cue, the automatic timer turns ON. Tinseled and twinkling, it’s picture postcard perfect.
Resisting an urge to clap, Brooklyn salutes the tree with her wine glass. She ignores the fact there are no presents on the tree skirt.
She flips through the mail: pile for flyers and junk, another for bills.
Halfway through the stack, she is stopped by an envelop with a yellow, forwarding address sticker. HOLD ON return address.
INSERT – RETURN ADDRESS
“Mr. Alan Worthington, Esq. Worthington Law Offices 15 Main Street Wintergreen, Colorado”
BACK TO SCENE
She stares off a moment when it hits her. She TOSSES the envelope to the floor as if it were red hot. Struggling to remain calm, she takes several deep breaths: telling herself it couldn’t possibly be. No way.
BROOKLYN “I can’t take this right now.”
Brooklyn stares at the framed portrait of her mother on the coffee table next to a crystal candy dish.
INSERT – PHOTOGRAPH
Distinguished lady in a red turtle neck sweater striking a reflective pose for the camera. In the background, a fireplace with Christmas stockings hanging from the mantle.
BACK TO SCENE
Struggling to keep from tearing up, Brooklyn blows her mother a KISS.
BROOKLYN “Wish you were here, mom… I’m eating your favorite cheese. The fact she died in March from a brain tumor, doesn’t seem possible. “
BROOKLYN “Been nine months; it feels unreal.”
Brooklyn stares at the envelope lying on the hardwood floor, her expression conveys trepidation, even fear.
BROOKLYN “What do you want? You left, you abandoned me. Why now?”
Unwilling to face her fear, Brooklyn reaches for wine and the wedge of cheese on the cutting board.
She inadvertently knocks the ping-pong ball off the coffee table. Brooklyn watches the ball BOUNCE its way over to the Christmas tree and STOP at the edge of the green, felt skirt.
BROOKLYN “Guess I was wrong.”
The SETUP – Foreshadow of upcoming events
The PAYOFF – Twist the story in a new direction
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