Lesson 10

[mark.napier2022@gmail.com napier]

Napier Counterexamples

***FYI, content I am posting has been registered (as a Treatment) with the Screenwriters Guild and copyrighted through the Library of Congress. When I am done with the script too will be registered and copyrighted. I understand what we post here is to be treated as such in the same manner.

This is more like a “show me…don’t tell me” scenarios being unfolding in layers using Dialogue, Experience and Character to call into question or challenge to cause doubt.

1. Go through your story outline or script and brainstorm the following:
o 5 Question Challenges to an Old Way.
A. Are CIA Case Officers “the tip of the spear” in their profession?
B. Is the CIA above the law and untouchable?
C. Why does the CIA not prosecute those engaged in the sexual exploitation of children?
D. Is it not unusual to see operational successes of assets suddenly end in failure?
E. Why would you take on an enemy, if you do not intend to destroy them to the core?
F. Are not all homeless people just lazy or are drug addicts, perhaps even alcoholics that don’t not want to work or that is what caused them to be homeless? After all they want to be homeless, or they would have gotten off the streets!
o 5 Counterexamples to an Old Way.
A. DIALOGUE: “If that were the case, why are some unaware they are being controlled by their assets?
B. EXPERIENCE: Experience tells us that CIA answers to the executive branch and two Congressional intelligence oversight committees, but unlike the IRS it’s a rogue mafia element of the U.S. Government that instills fear even in congress.
C. DIALOGUE: “Where do we draw the line between national security and a predator’s sexual exploitation of children?”
D. EXPERIENCE: Under normal circumstances when the assets have been vetted, polygraphed showing no deception and demonstrate program verification the answer is NO! But when deliberate sabotage is applied….YES!
E. CHARACTER: Antagonist intentionally ignores the intended fate of Dasht-i-Leili Massacre.
F. CHARACTER: Some with perseverance and fortitude “Keep Standing.”

Important: This might be 5 questions to one Old Way or 5 questions to 5 Old Ways.
2. With each, tell us the Challenge and the Old Way, and how you think it might play out in your story.
A. CIA Case Officers sometimes think their assets are the greatest thing and fall in love (not literally) thinking they can do no wrong. The story reflects a couple of incidents where assets turned out to be a intentionally feeding misinformation, several from the same family or a double agent. Simple asset validation tests and done routinely would have exposed them. I intend to use these in ACT2 A demonstrating successes of the Hero in contrast to trained Case Officers with egos, just before the Hero is Blacklisted to demonstrate a contradiction of reward and punishment. Abuse of powers will be also addressed.
B. The CIA as the untouchable will be displayed in ACT 3 when addressing accountability regarding not just their failure in not prosecuting predators of children (until 2023…after being exposed) but the role of the CIA team during the Dasht-i-Leili Massacre.
C. This question will be theme in the Opening Scene, ACT 1 and Act 3 putting the CIA in an embarrassing position to respond. It was not until efforts in 2021 through 2022 that forced the CIA to change its policies in 2023.
D. This issue will be raised during Act 2A to show the audience a sharp contrast of successes that suddenly end in failure because of sabotage and retaliations that are clandestinely taking shape.
E. To be addressed in ACT 3 as a setup and payoff in the end closing.
F. This will be addressed in ACT 2B. When you become homeless for whatever reason you are not just bankrupted financially, you are bankrupted physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally. Over time you become an abandonment of self in self-worth and self-esteem as you join the ranks of ‘the walking dead.’ In time though with perseverance and fortitude, some of us despite getting knocked down always keep getting back up and “Keep Standing.”
3. Answer the question “What I learned doing this assignment is…?” (place at top of your work). This is more like a “show me…don’t tell me” scenarios being unfolding in layers using Dialogue, Experience and Character to call into question or challenge to cause doubt.
4. Post to the forums at https://www.screenwritingclasses.com/forums/
Subject line: (Your name’s) Counterexamples (place in first line)

• This reply was modified 9 months ago by  mark.napier2022@gmail.com napier. Reason: System appears to show my writeup properly but when posted its blocks the entire document as one paragraph. I tried to correct but keeps repeating. Sorry!
• This reply was modified 9 months ago by  mark.napier2022@gmail.com napier.

[Beverley]

Beverley Wood’s Counter Examples

I learned from this lesson that Questioning and relaying Counter Examples are tools to effectively introduce gradients of change from the old to the new ways.

Five Examples of Using Questioning to Challenge the Old Ways:

1. The supermarket checkout girl questions Matt’s old ways of eating nothing but cheese and bread (he is too consumed by his search for Lauren to care what he eats).

2. Lauren constantly questions why he doesn’t believe in her during the first act. “You can see me and touch me, why can’t you believe in me?”

3. Lauren questions his old ways of viewing death as “nothing” by asking if he ever did LSD back in the day.

4. Kim constantly questions his beliefs about death.

5. James (the shrink) questions his withdrawal and hermit behaviour from a psychological point of view.

Five Counter Examples of Relating Personal Experience to Challenge the Old Ways

1. Kim explains to Matt how she created a sacred corner for her grandfather when he died, which helped her feel close to him.

2. Kim takes him to a sacred ‘releasing of the spirit’ ceremony to challenge his old way of thinking you die, and then nothing happens.

3. Kim gives him very graphic examples of what will happen to Lauren if he doesn’t let her go.

4. James explains how Complicated Grief Syndrome can cause people to go to great lengths to deny death.

5. Lauren tells him how she thought about him when she was trapped in the urn when he was looking for her, and that she wanted him to succeed in finding her.

[Diane Keranen]

Diane’s Counterexamples

Brainstorm at least 5 Question challenges and 5 Counterexamples you can put in your screenplay.

Old Way: Getting young boys interested in hunting/killing as part of a family and societal tradition.
Challenge 1: When Jake shoots a rabbit and is very excited and he runs to get it. He is traumatized by the damage he did to the bleeding and suffering rabbit that is still alive and wide-eyed with pain. Am I really expected to enjoy this?
Challenge 2: Jake touches the rabbit to comfort it, its reflexes jerk away from his hand. How can I fix this?
Challenge 3: The rabbit, when it writhes in pain, turns over and Jake can see that she is a nursing mother. This is not at all like shooting at paper targets. What unseen damage have I done?
Challenge 4: Jake is ridiculed for getting emotional over the rabbit’s suffering. He is pressed to “man up” and “get tough” by setting aside the suffering he knows he caused the mother and the fear he feels for the babies who will starve to death. “They are prey animals. They know the score,” he’s told by his mentors. Is that true? Am I over-reacting?
Counterexample 1: Jake later declines to play a favorite video war game with his friend Cole who teases Jake for not wanting to pick up where they left off. Killing in the game is not as fun as before.

Old Way: Husbands and fathers are family protectors.
Challenge 5: Stewart protects his family by keeping himself at a distance from them. He sees himself as a threat to them (based on violence aimed a Claire in his sleep). How can I keep my loved ones safe if I can’t control my fighting responses? What if I hurt those I love most? (But Stewart is focused on physical hurt and doesn’t acknowledge the emotional hurt.)
Counterexample 2: Claire and Stewart love each other and remain married even though they have lived apart since Matt was born.
Counterexample 3: Matt’s own combat trauma allows him to break down the distance barrier between him and his father. He understands why Stewart was a distant father and now that he understands his father better, Matt seeks to heal some past wrongs by confronting his father.
Counterexample 4: Claire decides it’s time for her to move back in with Stewart (a long denied promise) because she signs over her house to Matt and Sara to raise Jake in a real home where Matt grew up. Claire presses Stewart to acknowledge the emotional hurt they both struggle with. They can work on this together.

Old Way: Sara throws a party for Matt’s homecoming with lots of friends, plenty of red-white-and-blue decorations, some firecrackers, and other traditional noise-making activities and, of course, beer.
Challenge 6: Sara is throwing the party against Matt’s request and demands he fully attend and spend time with friends in a “normal” social setting appropriate that others can welcome him home. Why can’t you see that this party is bullshit? I have buddies who are dead and some who are maimed. How can you celebrate that? How can you expect me to?
Counterexample 5: Matt is serious about not wanting a party and leaves.

[Angela Booth]

Angela Booth

What I learned doing this assignment is that both the dialogue and actions of the characters that may seem subtle in the beginning will direct the flow of the transformation.

Old Way:
1. Georgia believes she has to be the one to do everything because she can’t rely on her husband.
Question challenge (husband Martin to her):
i. Do you really think I’m incapable of looking after my own kids?
ii. Do you think I’m so full of myself that I don’t see how hard you work?
iii. You’re everywhere. You don’t leave any room for me to be a Dad.

Counter example: When she goes on the work conference, her husband and father in law do a great job of the following during her absence:
i. getting the kids where they need to be (sports, school, clubs)
ii. feeding them healthy, home-cooked meals
iii. providing stability and ensuring medication is taken on time
iv. providing emotional support for the kids

2. Georgia thinks she has no time for a hobby.
Question challenge:
i. There’s nothing stopping you from joining a club.
ii. You don’t work weekends – do something then.
iii. Do you even know what you want to do for fun?

Counter example:
i. She spends hours watching the boys play footie with her husband when she could be doing other things.
ii. She spends time wandering round the house aimlessly when they’re not there, not even motivated to watch TV. She feels listless and wastes time.
iii. She watches a lot of YouTube videos on artistic topics
iv. She continues with a mentoring program at work even though it is voluntary and she has been doing it for 5 years.
v. She has a massive number of hours of leave accrued that she never takes.

3. Georgia can’t think of anything she’d like to do.
Question challenge:
i. Do you want to do something sporty or arty or foodie or brainy?
ii. Do you want to learn a new skill?
iii. Do you want to do it just for fun or because you need to improve something?
iv. Do you want to learn a DIY skills?
v. What have you always dreamed of doing?
vi. What makes you feel happy?

Counter example:
i. She spends hours watching YouTube videos of people making abstract ink paintings
ii. She likes wandering in and out of Art Supplies shops (or Spotlight craft section)

[Mitch Haraguchi]

What I learned doing this assignment is that brainstorming old ways and their counterexamples is an effective way to deepen the characters, in particular, main characters.

5 Question Challenges to an Old Way

1) Questioning the prejudice toward Asians by mainstream Americans. Local people including Sheriff Russell Davidson believe that all Asians are similar and there are not much difference between Chinese and Japanese for example.
2) Questioning the peaceful but conservative lifestyle. A lifestyle that is NOT subject to change is actually a good thing for a human being?
3) Questioning the prejudice to people who love the subculture of anime/manga. Anime fans (those who love Japanese animation) are often viewed as a “nerd” and are not appreciated by people who are not familiar with anime/manga. Russell is one of those people.
4) Questioning the prejudice that a man from an Asian country has to a man from another Asian country. There are prejudices even among Asians as well.
5) Questioning the belief that a teenage girl should go out with a boy of the same age.

5 Counterexamples to an Old Way.

1) Counterexample by dialogue
Russell: Don’t they [Chinese and Japanese] speak the same language?
Asian woman: Just because sharing some characters, doesn’t mean they speak the same language. Look at European countries. Most countries use alphabet.
2) Counterexample by experience
Russell’s ultraconservative and yet peaceful life is disturbed by an Asian man (Taiki) who was found in the middle of nowhere.
3) Counterexample by character
Russell’s daughter, Katie, is a typical counterexample to her father.
4) Counterexample by character
Dr. Foreman takes care of the Asian man who was transferred to the hospital. She is young and more free-minded person who sympathizes with Katie and is a counterexample to Russell.
5) Counterexample by experience
The discovery of a photo where Katie enjoys “cosplay” shocks Russell who believed that he understood her daughter pretty well.