Lesson 1

[Stephen Maynard]

Subject line: Stephen Maynard: Transformational Journey

“What I learned doing this assignment is…?” The way to go is to define your THEME and create a seemingly unsurmountable PROBLEM involving powerful ANTOGINISTS that allow you to illuminate the theme. Then you create a flawed and weak PROTAGONIST who is at the beginning of the desired arc. You then launch your protagonist on a series of failed attempts to solve the problem that ends up ENLIGHTENING or rocking your protagonist EMOTIONALLY giving him the courage and will to CHANGE and move to the opposite end of your craftily constructed arc.

Who is your Hero and what is their Character Arc that represents a transformation?

Two witty but self-centered and naive BOYS graduate high school and head for college.

Internal Journey: Two self-centered
BOYS who think life is a bowl of cherries learn the hard way that life is filled
with adversity and that only by confronting reality can they prevail.

External Journey: The two selfish
BOYS make a conscious decision to abandon their best interests so they can
work to outwit powerful ANTOGINISTS to save an old lady’s property.

What are the Old Ways and New Ways?

The Old Way: The BOYS are self-centered, naive, and out to exploit girls and snooker others for their benefit.

The New Way: The BOYS put childish things behind them and sacrifice all to save an old lady and her property.

[Steve Jones]

What I learned doing this assignment is a lot of things I hadn’t realised about my hero.

Harry is an Immigration cop on Mars determined to keep illegal Earth immigrants out.

Internal journey: From isolated, self-reliant and distrustful of others to supportive, embracing and inclusive of others.

External journey: From relying on his strengths to track and identify illegal immigrants and send them home to first, breaking the rules and letting one through and then working together with others to find their killer.

What are the old ways and new ways?

Old Ways

Self reliant

Ignoring his failings as a human

Alone and isolated

Determined to prove himself better than others

Has nagging doubts that the system is wrong

Devoted to following rules

New Ways

Determined to fight for justice

Building relationships

Trusting others with his life

Knowing he can’t succeed without others

Determined to bring down the system

[Mark Hammond]

Mark’s Transformational Journey

What I learned doing this assignment: Using this format will make fleshing out the rest of the script stress free.

Loglines:

An insecure rap group Project Manager scouting locations for a Halloween video, unaware, chooses a serial killer’s hideout to film in. He has to stay alive, save his crew and get the video produced.

Who is my hero? And what is their character arc that represents a transformation?

My hero is an insecure loser rap group production manager. This is his last chance to make a hit video or lose everything, including what little credibility he has left.

He transforms from a mouse to a lion. He becomes a well respected hero, studio head, and a man amongst men.

Internal Journey:

He feels unsuccessful, insecure and dejected, not good enough to attempt to produce a rap video.
His insecurities resurface when his crew starts getting killed.
He chooses to overcome his fear and faces the killer.
He surprises himself when he conquers his fear and kills the killer.
Afterwards, he sees himself as a winner – not a loser.
He is able to complete his task and make the video

External Journey:

1. He finds old mansion to try to produce a rap video.

2. Starts his project

3. People start getting killed.

4. Video production is threatened

5. Meets the bad guy

6. He has to kill the killer in order to shoot the video and become the hero in

7. The other important areas of life

8. He kills the killer

9. He gets the video done, big success and gets self respect and esteem

The Old Ways:

He was a coward

He never stood up for himself or to anyone

He was invisible to everyone around him

He failed in relationships

He failed in personal goals

He repeatedly failed at everything he did

The New Ways:

He’s a brave hero

He doesn’t back down from anything or anyone

Everyone wants to be around him

The girls love him and try to get his attention

He’s empowered – there’s nothing he can’t do

[Anahi Hoeneisen]

Subject line: Anahi Hoeneisen: Transformational Journey

1. What I learned doing this assignment?

I learned that I actually can control myself. I can prioritize speed vs quality. I relaxed and tried to move forward without judging myself and knowing that there will be things that can be changed later. I realized that the character´s journey is intimately tied to the story. It became clear to me that it is the character´s journey that makes us want to follow the story. And above all, I learned that I can enjoy writing by relaxing more.

LOGLINE

Marlena, a professional woman who has lived out of town for several years, reunites with her sister at their childhood home to mediate the acrimonious divorce of their octogenarian parents, an unexpected event that will bring the sisters and the family closer together than ever before.

2. Who is your Hero and what is their Character Arc that represents a transformation?

Marlena rejects, mediates and accepts her parent´s decision to divorce after 55 years of marriage.

Internal Journey: from selfish and self-centered to loving and generous.

External journey: from denial to acceptance of her parent´s separation.

3. What are the old ways and the new ways?

Old ways:

Selfish, practical, cold, lives in emotional denial.

New ways:

Caring, sensitive, warm. (In her own way).

[Jennifer Williams]

JENNIFER WILLIAMS – TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY:

1. “What I learned doing this assignment is…?”

I learned that breaking down the story in this way allows me to keep the story front and center and see the objective of my main character and that it is a building step-by-step journey that everyone is taking together.

2. Who is your Hero and what is their Character Arc that represents a transformation?

Hero:

Protagonist, Delores Chaney, a widower and single parent

Character Arc

Arc Beginning: The protagonist starts as a closed-off woman, hiding behind her job, unwilling to trust life or fall in love.

Arc Ending: Learns even with life’s uncertainty, she can live freely, trust life, and love again.

•Internal Journey: From feeling unappreciated, unloved, and insecure to admired, loved, and confident.

•External Journey: From a lonely woman without options to an in-control woman with choices and determination.

3. What are the Old Ways and New Ways?

Old Ways: Being alone, never going out socially, not dating, workaholic.

New Ways: Learned to have a work-life balance, became a social butterfly, and began dating.

LOGLINES:

(1) After losing the love of her life to cancer, a now middle-aged woman struggles with being a good parent and her biggest fear of loving again and then finds herself in the middle of a love triangle.

(2) While struggling with raising a teenage daughter alone, a young woman tries to balance the climb up the corporate ladder but is distracted when she ends up in the middle of a love triangle; however, the fear of losing love again causes her to doubt herself.

(3) A young woman harbors a deep fear of ever loving again after losing the love of her life and ends up in the middle of a love triangle that takes a turn that feeds her anxiety.

[Scott Sorgent]

Subject line: Scott Sorgent’s Transformational Journey

• This reply was modified 1 year, 7 months ago by  Scott Sorgent.
• This reply was modified 1 year, 7 months ago by  Scott Sorgent.

[Scott Sorgent]

Subject line: Scott Sorgent’s Transformational Journey

What I learned doing this assignment is to think through the changes in my character’s life from start to end, identifying behaviors, emotions and thinking patterns, internally and externally, thereby identifying possibilities for where the story can go and giving my character identification and transformation.

Who is your Hero and what is their Character Arc that represents a transformation?

Transformation: James is a Startup Founder who has been through numerous failed startups and employment experiences working for others. He turns his life around when meeting an old high school classmate who runs a growing startup that gives James numerous challenges to become a well-respected Innovator who helps save humanity from the takeover of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.

Arc Beginning: James is uncomfortable about how his life has gone.

Arc Ending: James feels great about his radical transformation.

Internal Journey: From vulnerable and overwhelmed to resilient and fearless.

External Journey: From failed Startup Founder to a well-respected Innovator who subverts the threat of AI and Machine Learning.

What are the Old Ways and New Ways?

JAMES OLD WAYS

• Comfort Eater

• Hoarding

• Unfocused

• Inconsistent

• Dependent

JAMES NEW WAYS

• Lives Healthily

• Embraces Minimalism

• Disruptive A.I./M.L. Innovator

• Affluent

• Independent