Lesson 20

[Laurie Stoner]

Laurie’s Character Relationships

What I learned doing this assignment was that I need to consider all five states when I am selecting my main character’s character traits and not just where they will have rapport or conflict.

Characters –

Hannah: expressive, dramatic, self-absorbed, sensitive

Demetri: driven, concealing, adventurous, charming

Erin: childlike, demonstrative, generous, stubborn

Prince: commanding, decisive, confrontational, vengeful

Hannah/ Demetri

Pair Hannah’s expressive and dramatic traits together with Demetri’s adventurous and charming traits and you have where they having a mutual attraction and romantic rapport.

Pair Hannah’s sensitive and self-absorbed traits together with Demetri’s driven and concealing traits and you’ve got constant fights because of their opposing values. Demetri tries to charm her into focusing on the business side of art but she is more concerned with her need to express herself authentically regardless of whether it makes economic sense. This is the main are where they compete, have conflict and subtext.

Hannah / Erin:

Pair Hannah’s expressive and dramatic traits with Erin’s demonstrative and generous nature and you have a recipe for building rapport.

Put Hannah’s sensitive and self-absorbed trait together with Erin’s child-like stubbornness and you’ve got competition, conflict, contrast, and subtext.

Erin / Prince:

Erin and Prince have no rapport or respect for one another.

Pair Hannah’s child-like, demonstrative and stubbornness traits together with Prince’s commanding, decisive, and confrontational traits and you have competition, contrast and conflict and subtext.

New character traits:

Hannah: expressive, principled, creative, temperamental

Demetri: driven, concealing, adaptive, charming

Erin: childlike, demonstrative, generous, stubborn

Prince: self-confident, impatient, confrontational, willful

[Audrey Gomes]

LESSON 20 CHARACTER RELATIONSHIPS

Audrey

What I’ve learned in doing this assignment was how to isolate Character Traits and see the interactions in detail either before I write or when I’m in the process of writing/revising. It’s a mechanism for how to adjust and sharpen my vision and write with precision. This will help me with being true to the characters’ behaviors/essence and true to their reactions to each other throughout the script. It’s another layer to writing a scene/script with the long game in mind. The whole process of this course from the beginning until now has been amazing!

TRAITS OF FOUR MAIN CHARACRTERS

Brenda: smart, insecure, self-absorbed, unpredictable.

Aunt Bernie: outspoken, grounded, impatient, daring.

Tamika: vivacious, fearful, irreverent, secretive.

Amara: Laid back, intelligent, caring, rigid.

BRENDA/AUNT BERNIE

Rapport: Brenda’s trait of smart finds refuge in Aunt Bernie being sensible.

Conflict: When Brenda’s self-absorbed trait surfaces and rubs against Aunt Bernie’s outspoken/inpatient traits, it’s a battle.

Contrast: Aunt Bernie being grounded, versus Brenda’s impulsive/unpredictability, makes Aunt Bernie work to keep Brenda on track for the sake of the family.

Competition: Brenda competes to have her position elevated in Aunt Bernie’s eyes, but she will never win. Nonetheless, Brenda always tries.

BRENDA/TAMIKA

Rapport: Tamika, being vivacious, works well with Brenda’s chaos. It’s a dynamic relationship, often humorous energy between them.

Conflict: Brenda’s insecurity clashes with Tamika being irreverent, nothing is sacred to Tamika, who just says what everyone will not.

Contrast: Brenda being smart helps with allaying Tamika’s fears/secrets being exposed.

Competition: Brenda, being the senior sister, can be overbearing and suck the oxygen out of any situation involving the vivacious Tamika.

BRENDA/AMARA

Rapport: Brenda’s unpredictability works well with Amara’s being laid back… who’s not quick to react.

Conflict: Brenda’s being self-absorbed wants what she wants. Amara’s rigid trait makes her immovable when she finally decides. Then, it’s stalemate.

Contrast: Brenda’s insecurity comes across as jealousy when up against Amara, but her caring trait quells Brenda’s anguish.

Competition: Amara has no interest in competing with Brenda. But Amara is so much of what Brenda wants to be.

[Tim Adeney]

Title: Andrew’s Character Relationships

What I learned doing this assignment was that a change to one trait, or simply heightening a trait to something stronger, can drive greater depth and drama in the dialogue.

Annie: compassionate, guilt-ridden, <s>stubborn</s>, impulsive, driven

Lewis: kind, <s>non-confrontational</s>, <s>possessive</s>, principled, ambitious, avoider

Tiwonge: resentful, controller, courageous, charming

Annie/Lewis

Annie’s
compassion and Lewis’ kindness has these two caring for abandoned orphans:
rapport
Annie’s impulsive and stubborn, and
Lewis’ principled and non-confrontational traits has Annie wanting to do
things while Lewis is concerned about the rules and the status quo; this
will cause some conflict and subtext for Lewis.
Annie’s guilt and Lewis’ principled
kindness results in contrast to how they respond to certain situations;
in others it evokes Lewis’ sympathy for her.
Annie’s impulsive and Lewis’
possessive [control] traits lead to competition.
Annie’s guilt and Lewis’ non-confrontational
[avoidance?] traits lead to subtext happening in how she reacts.
Annie’s stubborn trait puts Lewis
under pressure, challenging his avoidance trait: conflict

TRAIT CHANGE EMERGING:

Annie: driven instead of stubborn

Lewis: avoider instead of non-confrontational; and ‘possessive’ is not giving much… how about jealous, insecure, ambitious… ambitious instead of possessive

So, following changes lead to greater drama:

Annie’s impulsive and driven, and Lewis’ <s>possessive [control]</s> ambition lead to competition

Annie’s <s>stubborn</s> driven trait puts Lewis under pressure, challenging his avoidance trait: conflict

Annie/Tiwonge

Annie’s
driven and Tiwonge’s resentfulness, courageous and controller trait equals
conflict and competition
Annie’s compassion is in contrast
with Tiwonge’s resentfulness and controller.
Annie’s guilt leads to subtext
when dealing with Tiwonge’s controller trait
Tiwonge’s charm and courage may
find rapport when they have the same cause. Annie’s compassion
gives her some sympathy for Tiwonge = some rapport.
Annie’s impulsive nature comes
into competition with Tiwonge’s controller.

No change to Tiwonge – the traits provide enough strong drama.

[Only three main characters]

[Hilton Garrett]

Hilton Garrett CHARACTER RELATIONSHIPS

What I learned: It seems obvious now, but I never thought about character relationships determined through traits. I always had them as a function of story, but I like the depth and complexity available by pairing them. I learned that designing characters from the beginning based on their relationships as suggested by their traits, builds in stability and cohesion.

CHARACTER TRAITS

BEN:

Wounded, Loner, Obsessed, Fighter

Subtext – Wants to heal his wounds but lacks the trust necessary

ANNA LEE:

Smart, Supportive, Playful, Deadly

Subtext – Her playful demeanor conceals a fierce and deadly determination

MAD DOG:

Obsessed, Egotistical, Paranoid, Delusional

Subtext – Needs to prove his prowess

JENNY:

Greedy, Sexy, Calculating, Selfish

Subtext – A small-town girl with delusions of grandeur

TRAIT COMPARISONS

BEN/ANNA LEE

Wounded, Loner/ Smart, Supportive

Anna Lee sees through Ben’s defenses to his underlying wound, and naturally wants to support him

Rapport, Contrast, Subtext

Loner/Playful

She is playful in the face of his reluctance to engage with her

Contrast, Competition, Subtext

Wounded/Playful

Hiking, at the campfire, at their first meeting Anna Lee plays with Ben

Conflict, Competition, Subtext

Fighter/Deadly

When the shooting starts, they are both highly skilled and lethal

Rapport, Subtext

BEN/JENNY

Wounded/Greedy

Ben lays bare his wound to Jenny, and all she cares about is her ambition

Contrast, Conflict

Obsessed/Sexy

Ben’s old feelings remain alive inside him. Her sexy way stokes his desire

Contrast, Conflict, Subtext

Loner/Calculating

Ben is locked inside his past. Jenny is calculating her future

Contrast, Conflict, Subtext

Fighter/Selfish

Ben stays true to the mission. Jenny thinks only of herself

BEN/MAD DOG

Wounded/Egotistical

Ben sees the world through his wound. Mad Dog works from his ego

Contrast, Conflict, Subtext

Loner/Delusional

Ben won’t let anyone in; Mad Dog believes he can take over the world

Contrast, subtext

Obsessed/Obsessed

Their two obsessions clash

Conflict, Subtext

Fighter/Paranoid

Ben is a confident and highly skilled fighter. Mad Dog fears he’s not good enough

Conflict, Contrast, Subtext

MAD DOG/JENNY

Obsessed/Greedy

Mad Dog is obsessed with gaining power; Jenny will take all she can get

Rapport, Conflict, Subtext

Egotistical/Calculating

Mad Dog believes he is the greatest; Jenny feeds his belief and looks to profit

Rapport, Conflict, Subtext

Paranoid/Selfish

Mad Dog fears he’s not quite good enough; Jenny uses that to boost herself

Conflict, Rapport, Subtext

Delusional/Sexy

Mad Dog believes he can be king of the world and needs a cute, sexy woman by his side

Rapport, Subtext

MAD DOG/ANNA LEE

Obsessed/Deadly

Mad Dog is obsessed with killing Ben and Anna Lee; Anna Lee has other plans

Conflict, Contrast, Subtext

Egotistical/Smart

Mad Dog can’t see Anna Lee because of his ego; she’s ok with that

Contrast, Conflict, Subtext

Paranoid/Playful

Anna Lee pokes at Mad Dog’s weakness

Contrast, Conflict, Subtext

Delusional/Deadly

Mad Dog believes he can control the situation; Anna Lee kills her way to him

Conflict, Contrast, Subtext

CHANGES TO ELEVATE

Change Ben’s “Loner” trait to “Determined”

Change Mad Dog’s “Obsessed” trait to “Vengeful

[Shelley darling]

Shelley Darling Character Relationships

“What I learned doing this assignment was that refining our character’s traits strengthens the visceral expression of the character, making for a more compelling interaction with the other characters that enliven and elevate the script.

Original Traits:

Moses: Repressed, Dogmatic, Charmer, Virtuous

Mollie: high-spirited, forthright, indecisive, escapist

Emeline: dependable, strong-willed, fanatical, defensive

Dick: humorous, dedicated, down to earth, headstrong

Changed Traits:

Moses: (changed repressed to withholding)

Withholding, Dogmatic, Charmer, Virtuous

Mollie: (changed forthright to brutally honest)

high-spirited, brutally honest, indecisive, escapist

Emeline: (changed strong-willed to entitled)

dependable, entitled, fanatical, defensive

Dick: (changed from dedicated to uncompromising and headstrong to subversive)

humorous, uncompromising, salt of the earth, subversive

Mollie-Moses

Mollie is infatuated by Moses’ charm and rock-solid decisive presence, however, this undermines her attempts at self-discovery and unraveling the truth of the mystery of her dreams. His withholding and need to control continually clashes with her obsession with truth.

Rapport: High Spirited – charmer, virtuous-forthright

Conflict: dogmatic – indecisive & escapist, withholding-brutally honest

Contrast: forthright-forthright, dogmatic-indecisive

Competition: charmer-forthright

Subtext:dogmatic-indecisive

Mollie-Emeline

Knowing each other’s flaws, long-time best friends, Mollie’s reliance on Emeline’s dependability is at an end as Emeline is fed up with being taken advantage of and not getting the respect she deserves.

Rapport: dependable-high spirited

Conflict:, brutally honest-defensive, entitled -indecisive

Contrast:escapist-dependable

Competition: forthright- entitlement

Subtext: The need to be right-entitlement/forthright

Mollie-Dick

Dick is the salt of the earth father figure, in contrast to Mollie’s father. Warm, humorous, and makes her feel sweetly valued. Caught between Dicks subversiveness and Moses’ manipulative charm forces her to stand for her truth.

Rapport: humorous-high-spirited, salt of the earth-forthright

Conflict: uncompromising-indecisive,

Contrast: brutally honest-subversive

Competition: uncompromising-escapist

Subtext: humorous-high spirited

Moses-Dick

Adopted by Dick as a troubled foster teen, their shared love of old cars and nature create rapport. Moses’s angry resentment invokes Dicks uncompromising response, activating endless trouble.

Rapport: charmer-humorous, virtuous – salt of the earth

Conflict: dogmatic-headstrong, subversive – withholding

Contrast: withholding -uncompromising

Competition: dogmatic-humorous

Subtext: dedicated- salt of the earth

Moses-Emeline

Spokesman for the water bottling at the town meeting contrasts with Emeline as a water activist. They’re at odds for most of the time, till they find rapport in their underlying love of nature.

Rapport: dependable-virtuous

Conflict: entitled-dogmatic, defensive-dogmatic

Contrast: charmer-fanatical

Competition: dependable-charmer

Subtext: defensive-dogmatic

[Madeleine Gentinetta]

Madeleine’s Character Relationships

What I learned doing this assignment was, I think my persons’ trait were already well developed but it was still possible to elevate them.

From:

ALEX: self-absorbed, inattentive, dominant, and calculating

EVE: Rebellious, enthusiastic, confrontational, sensitive

CORRIE: Avoidant, whitewashing, scheming, understanding

To:

ALEX: Inattentive, rational, patronizing, narrow-minded

EVE: Rebellious, enthusiastic, confrontational, sensitive

CORRIE: Avoidant, whitewashing, scheming, opportunistic

ALEX/EVE

Rapport: It’s a classical father/daughter tension relationship.

Conflict: He wants it the classical way, she is rebellious whatever he does or want.

Contrast: Not just age, but the way the approach. He with knowledge and experience, she wants the opposite.

Competition: The competition comes more from her because she wants to prove herself. He does not have to prove himself.

Subtext: They want each other’s approval but it’s hard to show their affection and admiration for each other – it always turns into a concurrence.

ALEX/ CORRIE

Rapport: It’s an “old couple” relationship.

Conflict: He feels like being the head of the family and knowing where things go.

Contrast: He is the brainer, she is the heart and intuitive person.

Competition: They both want to be doing their own thing.

Subtext: After many years, they got their routines.

[Bill]

Bill Southwell: Character Relationships

What I learned doing this assignment was it is much easier to write dialogue using established character traits as well as develop dramatic scenes.

Charis: Believing, Needing to be loved, Ambitious with no name, conniving

Dale: Self-centered, Loves cars, Jealous, Lacks ambition

Jay: Shy, Friendly, Educated, Emotionally insecure

Casey: Intellectual, Seductive, Calm, Skeptical

Charis/Dale:

Put Charis’s Needing to be loved and Dale’s Self-centered and you have these two

establishing a relationship.

Put Charis’s Ambition and Dale’s Lack of ambition and you have reason for a breakup.

Charis/Jay

Put Charis’s Need to be loved along with her conniving and Jay’s Shy and Friendly trait and you have these two establishing a romantic relationship.

Put Charis’s trait of Believing in Jay’s future and Jay’s emotional insecurity and you have conflict arising.

Charis/Casey

Put Charis’s Conniving skill and Casey’s Seductive skills and you have a ready-made romance going.

Put Charis’s Believing spiritual strength and Casey’s skepticism and you have serious conflict.

Dale, Jay, and Casey never interact.

Change a Trait to Elevate state

Charis: Believing, Needing to be loved, Ambitious with no name, conniving

Dale: Self-centered, Loves cars, Jealous, Ambitious

Jay: Shy, Friendly, Educated, Confident

Casey: Intellectual, Seductive, Calm, Believing

Put Charis’s Needing to be loved and Dale’s Self-centered and you have these two

establishing a relationship.

Put Charis’s Ambition and Dale’s ambition and you have reason for bonding.

Charis/Jay

Put Charis’s Need to be loved along with her conniving and Jay’s Shy and Friendly trait and you have these two establishing a romantic relationship.

Put Charis’s trait of Believing in Jay’s future and Jay’s confidence and you have a situation where they might hit it off.

Charis/Casey

Put Charis’s Conniving skill and Casey’s Seductive skills and you have a ready-made romance going.

Put Charis’s Believing spiritual strength and Casey’s believing and you have hope for a strong relationship.