Lesson 7 Assignments

[Jack Young]

What I learned doing this assignment is that investigation can be useful in uncovering details in adding more depth and layers to the story.

Jack Young’s TV Pitch Bible Investigation for “STREAM”

Dig1: There is some bad blood between Michael and his father about his dead brother. His father blames him for his brother’s death. Michael was involved with helping his brother attain drugs for his habit. However, Michael’s wife apparently had a brief fling with Michael’s brother and may have been the last to see him before he overdosed. This needs further investigation and I wonder how it plays across dimensions (Earth, Ocean of Souls, and Planet of Seals).

Extrapolate1: If she was the one who saw Johnny alive before he overdosed, then why does she let Michael carry the guilt and blame to his death?

Wonder1: What if she wanted to hurt Michael because he had or was having an affair? Was this her way of getting even?

Backtrack1: How could Michael have not known that his wife had seen Johnny?

Forecast1: How could this get even worse? What if she feels so horrible for not having told Michael that it wasn’t actually his fault and that she too had cheated on Michael that she uses the Professor’s machine to go after Michael to tell him the truth? She could be plucked from the Ocean of Souls and end up on the Planet of Seals somewhere, unknown to the others.

She meant to tell Michael that she forgave him (His final request) but forgot. She also wanted to tell him the truth before he died but couldn’t. After he died, she confesses to the others that she let him go without letting him know that she forgave him. She also feels that she owed him the truth. This is what drives her to go after him.

UPDATE: (11/14/2022)

Dig2: Wow! I’m so excited that I continued digging and found a real gem that adds so much to the story layers and characters. As I investigated the Professor and his motives, I realized that he had been developing a new technique of Astral travel that disconnected the soul from the body. This would allow the Professor to journey into the Stream to look for his deceased wife in the hereafter….and return!

Extrapolate2: If he goes after her, does he end up where Michael is, or another realm?

Wonder2: You begin to wonder how this will affect Michael’s wife, Diane. After all, Michael had to actually die to go into the Stream.

Backtrack2: Why didn’t the Professor hold off sending Michael into the Stream until the new method was developed?

Forecast2: How could this get worse? If the Professor gets trapped in the hereafter or can’t get back, what happens to Michael and can he ever get back?

Dig3: This is probably the neatest dig that I did. When I did a dig into the Professor and how the government would react to his experiments, I realized or discovered that Homeland Security had gotten involved and had actually hired their own experts in the field of Astral travel and were investigating the Stream on their own. In fact, Home Security had assigned a team that was looking at their own excursion into the Stream.

Extrapolate3: Harry, a Homeland Security agent and husband, will lead a team of ten warfighters into the Stream understanding it’s a one way mission to save mankind.

Wonder3: We wonder if they connect up with Michael to help him or if they have a different take on the mission.

Backtrack3: Why didn’t the government believe the Professor in the first place? Or did they?

Forecast3: How could this get worse? The team will arrive in the Ocean of Souls (Like everyone). Will they understand where they are? Will they be separated from each other and begin to believe they are dead?

Use in TV Pitch Bible? I actually added this to Diane’s character profile in the TV Bible. I added the info about the professor’s own personal agenda and the Homeland Security because this adds some new and interesting story and character layers.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 6 months ago by  Jack Young.

[Eric Humble]

Eric Humble’s TV Pitch Bible Investigation

What I learned doing this assignment is: how to use the investigative processes to mine the story and find even deeper layers and more unique ways to express the essence of some of the key moments of the show.

Changes to concept 1: I discovered a layer involving the reason my protagonist initially goes to work for the Big Pharma company, which leads him into the cabal — it adds a layer of intrigue and answers a question about his motivation that I wasn’t able to solve until now. I also discovered that the relationship between my two main protagonists is strengthened by taking what I had assumed would be a “B” plot involving one of the supporting characters and the co-lead, Dres, and giving it entirely to my two leads. Most of the other ideas I generated from this process will be used in the episodes, and don’t really belong in the big-picture ideas included in the Bible.

Changes to concept 2: I took this opportunity and these investigative processes to look into a lot of the major plot elements and do a bit of research as to how the electoral process actually works. This will change much of the plot of the episodes and even the description in the summary — but by using the investigative processes, I was able to start seeing the story in a series of deeper layers than I had previously. I haven’t made the changes to this Bible yet, but I will as soon as I work out all the changes.

[Madeleine Vessel]

Madeleine Vessel’s TV Pitch Bible Investigation

What I learned doing this assignment is that digging deeper into the TV Pitch Bible and BW Framework, I can find new layers of intrigue and more open loops that could move into another season. Very interesting!

I did a complete investigation of my TV Pitch Bible and BW Framework to discover more depth, layers, and intrigue and divided them into the following categories:

All my new ideas create more open loops. I added the following to my BW Framework.

· Olivia is Sophie’s friend.

· Olivia starts an affair with Vitaly Burundukov.

· Olivia receives stolen paintings from Vitaly Burundukov and looks the other way.

· Will Olivia come clean to Sophie and admit her collaboration with Vitaly, or will she join the forces again her.

· Peter Mordin, who owns an art gallery in downtown San Francisco, has often relied upon Sophie to clean and restore artwork.

· He’s agreed to show Vitaly’s paintings, knowing they’ve been smuggled into the country.

· When confronted with the truth of what Vitaly has done and is about to do, will he take side with him or Sophie?

· Aimee La Roux is Vitaly’s girlfriend. What if she finds out about his affair with Olivia?

· Will Aimee betray Vitaly?

· Will Aimee warn Sophie about Olivia?

· Yelena Tebieva is the mother who let Sophie defect with Zhora, so she could maintain her lavish lifestyle.

· Twenty years later, she seems to want to reconcile with Sophie. Will she give up her lavish lifestyle to do this?

· Or, has her life tanked in twenty years, causing her to want out of Russia.

· Will she try to find Sophie and lead the FSB to her?

The following I added to episode 8 of Season 1.

· Olivia is Sophie’s friend.

· Olivia starts an affair with Vitaly Burundukov.

· Olivia receives stolen paintings from Vitaly Burundukov and looks the other way.

· Will Olivia come clean to Sophie and admit her collaboration with Vitaly, or will she join the forces against her.

[George Petersen]

George Petersen – TV PITCH BIBLE INVESTIGATION

What I learned doing this assignment is you can always go deeper.

Investigate by picking situations and characters and asking:

Tool 1: Dig: What’s beneath that?

Beneath Lincoln’s melancholy is his broken heart over his son Willy’s death. – Use in episode.

Pinkerton is subdued in nature because he’s homesick for Scotland, where he had help fight for workers’ rights. A lost cause that got him sent away to America. – Use in episode.

Tool 2: Extrapolate: If __________, then ____________.

If the Chief of Police in Baltimore refuses to sent officers to protect Lincoln in the carriage, under the guise that it’s not necessary, then it could be assumed that Lincoln will probably be killed while in transit from one train station to the next. – Use in episode.

Tool 3: Wonder: What if ______________?

What if Kate develops feelings for Ferrandini, her target, her enemy? – Use in episode.

Tool 4: Backtrack: How could ______________ have happened?

How did Kate discover the plot? Kate discovers the assassination plot when she confronts Angelina’s boyfriend, Rhett of the Black Snakes, after he comes home drunk. – Use in episode

Tool 5: Forecast: How could this get even worse?

The situation would deteriorate if the KGC got wind of a change in Pinkerton’s plan.

The KGC could get alerted to something being up if they were to take over a telegraph office. They might intercept a message, but misinterpret it. – Use in episode

[Eloise Healey]

ELOISE HEALEY’S PITCH BIBLE INVESTIGATION

What I learned doing this assignment is that there’s always something more to discover.

These are the elements I’m now including:

Ellen’s backstory is now an example of “make it worse”, being more brutal and relevant than before. (Use in episode)

Ellen is now gay, making her backstory rape a “correction” and meaning she will now secretly be in love with Mary. (Use in bible)

We now see Ellen steal her employer’s money, so the audience knows this will be a “bomb” to explode later. (Use in bible)

<font face=”inherit”>With Ruth being trans, it stands to reason that at some point she will become the target when women are looking for someone to </font>blame – she will now be at risk of expulsion, injury or death under Ann’s leadership. (Use in bible)

Make Ellen use a gun to kill James – the act ironically alerting the army to their presence. (Use in episode)

Make James conflicted about betraying the women to the army. (Use in bible).