[JD Oppen]

JD’s Level 1 Horror Emotion Scene

What I learned doing this assignment is how these emotions start to make the scene feel more real, like a horror film. Cast is headed into something that’s not a great idea for them.

First draft of a scene from my outline:
EXT – HIGH SCHOOL BLEACHERS – DUSK
The goth couple suddenly pop up from under the bleachers. They startle the others. Their tattoos, piercings and overall looks are disturbing: SPIKE (Steven) with his mohawk and TRACE (Tracey) with a half-shaved head, both pale white and Trace with bright red lips.
SPIKE
We think all you little suck-asses should stay home.
BULL
What the fu–?
Bull snaps.
BULL
You little demons have been under there all this time?
He lunges toward them, but Jeff grabs his jersey, pulls him back. Bull makes a couple tough-guy gestures at the couple, a fist and a slice across his neck, then sits back down.
JAZZ
Maybe this isn’t such a good idea. Maybe we should go when the bears are hibernating.
Bull rolls his eyes.
JEFF
Suck it up. You play a wussy sport and now you want to wuss out on what will probably be the most fun we’ll have all year?
JAZZ
Anytime you want a one on one on the court…
Bull makes like he has Jazz on his hands and knees from behind, pulling hair and slapping his ass–
BULL
I’ll give you some one on one.
JAZZ
You really are a dick.
BULL
Maybe so, but I’m a ‘big’ dick.
JAZZ
Touche.
Bull looks puzzled.
BULL
Don’t worry crybaby’s, I’ll protect ya’s. From bears AND from Freakazoid.
Makes a Hulk Hogan muscle pose at Angelo.
Dina gives Bull a dirty look.
BULL
(refers to his school team)
Go Crushers!
He and Jeff high-five. Angelo shakes his head.
DINA
(To Angelo)
They’re assholes.
JAZZ
Okay. Fuck you, bitches. I’m in.
BULL
Party!
JEFF
It’ll be a blast. We’ll have the whole place to ourselves.
SPIKE
Well, yourselves and the bear that mutilated an entire fam—-
(apologizes to Angelo)
Sorry, dude.
Violet is frightened. Even Candace looks up from her cell phone, disturbed.
Bull points at Trace.
BULL
Why doesn’t whatever THAT is come along and ward off the bears for us.
Spike lunges at Bull. The others are shocked, expecting a brawl. Jeff and Trace grab them both.
JEFF
That’s enough.
TRACE
He ain’t worth it.
The others are a little uneasy, as Spike and Bull sit back down. Bull quickly reaches into his big football duffle bag, Spike and Trace keep a close eye on him. Bull pulls something out, the others jump! It’s only a bottle.
Bull holds up a fifth of rum. The bottle is passed around.
The bottle comes to Angelo.
ANGELO
I can’t. My medication.
VIOLET
It’s experimental anyway, isn’t it?
Dina gives her a look as if she had told Violet that in confidence.
BULL
You and your experimental drugs. You better not be a downer on this trip, Freak.
Dina gives Violet another dirty look, takes a swig of the rum.
JEFF
We’re always out a little early on the last day of school, so bring your shit with you. We’ll leave from here tomorrow, soon as we’re out.
They continue to pass the bottle around as Spike lights up a joint.
BULL
That’s what I’m talkin’ about. Yeah!

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Horror Outline Version 2

What I learned is there will be some holes in the story that need brainstorming/filling/changing, and that I need to keep from throwing everything I think of into my outline if someone will read. While I cut out some things in v2, it’s a few pages too long. Will attempt more clean up as we go.

Outline v2:
Title: Wicked Angel: Screaming In The Night
Logline: A teen receiving experimental meds for his panic attacks finds himself host to an evil entity that mutilates his bullies.

ACT l
EXT. VENTURE LAKE RESORT – NIGHT
SOMETHING attacks and kills an 18 year old boy, violently ripping him to shreds.
ANGELO’S HOUSE – LIVING ROOM TELEVISION:
Anchor talks about anniversary of a teen being killed at a now-closed-to-the-public cabin resort, Venture Lake.
NEW CONT’D – ON LOCATION:
A survivor talks. It’s Angelo’s mom. Angelo’s older brother was killed at the resort. They attribute the killing to a grizzly because the teen was badly clawed, bitten and mutilated. They never found the bear
In comes Angelo’s mother, yells at his father to shut it off.
EXT – HIGH SCHOOL BLEACHERS – DUSK
It’s Thursday evening. Champion football game has ended. A group of students, cheerleaders and a few of their friends hang out in bleachers post-game. The two cheerleaders are still in their uniforms. Candace texting on cell phone, Violet chats with Jazz, the school basketball captain and with her friend, Dina.
Angelo, an introvert and friend and neighbor of Dina’s, sits quietly next to her, listening to her conversation and nodding occasionally as if he is part of the conversation.
Jeff (Quarterback) and Bull (Linebacker) come to the bleachers with big duffle bags full of their sports equipment, they are still soaked from the game they just won, and tomorrow is the last day of high school for the summer.
Jeff comes up the bleachers. Candace stops texting and focuses on him as he puts a rest to the debate. Then Bull turns to Angelo as if he had not even known he was there and starts razzing him. Calls him a loser and teases him about being on drugs for his panic attacks. Dina tries to stop Bull’s bullying.
Jeff suggests they all go up to Venture Lake for the weekend. A goth couple, Spike and Trace, that have been making out under the bleachers all this time stop suddenly, and listen closely.
Dina, Angelo and Violet are apprehensive. They go on about the bear attack killing a family and how the place is still closed down. Bull says that’s what makes it such an adventure.
They all agree to go. Bull calls Angelo a Freakazoid, says he isn’t invited. Stay home and pop your pills. We don’t want you freakin’ out and spoiling our road trip anyway. Candace agrees and so does Violet. Dina says she is going, and that Angelo is, too. She puts her arm around Angelo.
The goth couple emerge – black leather, tattoos, piercings…. The group is startled. They say it’s not safe. Warn the group not to go.
DOCTOR’S OFFICE
Angelo’s father is upset, getting loud with the doctor about his son not trying any experimental drugs. Angelo’s mother calms him down. She wants Angelo to take them. The doctor says they don’t know the side effects, but if they work it will be a miracle. Angelo’s mother goes on to talk about how bad Angelo’s panic attacks. The doctor hands the drugs to Angelo’s father, he turns away. Angelo’s mother takes them.
INT – ANGELO’S BEDROOM – LATER
Angelo tosses and turns, can’t sleep. Sits up in a cold sweat. Takes a bunch of the new pills. Lays back.
Angelo is still fidgety. Jumps up again in a sweat, breathing even faster, tries to calm down. He can’t.
INT – DINA’S BEDROOM – CONTINUOUS
Dina sits at a desk in her bedroom. She’s on a laptop. She is watching a news clip on the death of Angelo’s brother and herself. They dated. She is startled when her bedroom door flies opens. It’s Angelo! She slams the lid down on her laptop. Holy shit, Angelo, you scared me.
NEXT MORNING
Dina and Angelo are walking out Angelo’s front door. His mom reminds him of his new meds. He says he has them. Dina asks how the meds are going. He says they are some new experimental stuff. As they walk out he says he is taking double what was prescribed because the dreams he has on them are incredible.
EXT. SCHOOL PARKING LOT – CONTINUOUS
School’s out. The classmates gather around Candace’s dad’s huge black Cadillac Escalade he let her take for the weekend. They throw their gear in and drive off.
EXT – GAS STATION IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE – LATER
The Escalade pulls up to the pumps.
INT – ESCALADE
Jeff says it’s they last stop for a few hours.
Some get out. Angelo and Dina, in the back row, stay in the vehicle. Angelo falls asleep.
Bull babbles about Angelo while he sleeps, Dina stands up for him. Bull and Violet both laugh. Jeff just shakes his head.
EXT – BARREN HIGWAY – DUSK
Dark clouds, lightning in the distance, and thunder seconds later as the Escalade pushes on through a more dense area.
INT – ESCALADE
Angelo, sound asleep, leaning on Dina. Jazz looks out the window at the brewing storm. Violet sleeps. Jeff shakes head as Bull snores, sound asleep.
Violet twitches slightly.
VIOLET DREAMS
It’s very dark. Violet is awake. Shadow passes by. She is scared. Starts running, frightened, as a shadow whisks by her from time to time.
INT – ESCALADE
Bull twitches slightly.
BULL DREAMS
Extreme darkness. Bull fights his way thru obstacles as a shadow passes by from time to time. The obstacles are unseen.
VIOLET DREAMS
She sees something bright in the distance. She is terrified, running in the darkness. As she runs towards the light in the dark. As she runs it appears farther away.
BULL DREAMS
Terrified, he fights his way through the obstacles as the shadow swiftly flies by here and there. The obstacles are football practice dummies. They can barely be seen.
VIOLET DREAMS
She is closer the the light. Closer. Closer. It’s very dim. The light is just huge cheerleading pom-poms. They are barely visible. Now she is tangled in them. Horrified, she claws through them. She gets through. There is barely any light, she runs faster and faster.
BULL DREAMS
Bull continues to smash through the football dummies. It gets harder and harder, until, finally he is through. Almost pitch black. He runs, faster, and faster, until… he runs by Violet running in the opposite direction. They quickly look back at each other, and in that instant –
INT – ESCALADE – DUSK
Bull and Violet both wake up instantaneously, in a violent frenzy and look at each other. Bull screams out, What the fuck!,” as a crack of thunder leads to a torrential downpour.
**I intend to add in more dreams later, maybe they will take turns driving so it works out where everyone gets a chance to doze off.
ACT 2
EXT – HIGHWAY
Rain pummels down as heavily wooded area.
thunderous lightning brings on a
the Escalade slows to turn into a Sign, VENTURE CABINS 30 MILES.
INT – ESCALADE
Jeff tells the others they will arrive soon. They are all looking out the window as the wooded area darkens their view. As light gives way to the dark, even Candace raises her head from her cell phone and GULPS. Jeff assures them it will be a much better day tomorrow.
EXT – MUDDY TRAIL
The Escalade bounces through the woods, down the muddy trail. Wheel hits a downed branch in the trail.
INT – ESCALADE
Screams as the vehicle veers off the muddy trail.
EXT – WOODS
The Escalade rolls upside down and broadsides a tree.
INT. ANGELO’S HOUSE
Angelo’s mom gets a call from the doctor. He says Angelo needs to stop taking the meds right away. There are some really bad side effects. As the doctor starts explaining she hangs up on him and tries to call Angelo.
INT – ESCALADE
Candace complains because she has no cell reception. The others look at their phones. None have reception. They can’t call for help. Violet says they can’t stay in a flipped over vehicle. Jeff says their best bet is to make the rest of the trip on foot. Angelo is really edgy, takes his meds.
EXT – WOODS – NIGHT
They walk a while, but eventually the trail ends. Signs warn them over the next several hundred feet, THIS AREA UNSAFE, TURN BACK, and CONTINUE AT YOUR OWN RISK. Angelo takes more meds. They continue on through the woods, fighting against the rainstorm, and the darkness.
Angelo’s anxiety is running rampant. Realizing they could have a medical emergency on their hands with Angelo, on top of the problems they have already, they all agree to stop for the night. Bull is against it and calls Angelo a pussy. Dina mouths back, and Jeff tries to control Bull. He says not everyone is cut out for the outdoors. Angelo hangs his head. Dina says they are asses.
Violet says they are right, and goes on to tell them of her cousin who went on a hunting trip and was hurt multiple times due to the rough environment and he was never the same after mentally. They all tell her to stop with her stories, they are making Angelo worse. Eventually they make a big lean-to and bunker down for the night.
INT – LEAN-TO
There are noises in the woods, and idle chatter becomes talk of the tragedy at the cabins and the fear of bears. Angelo get upset at everyone talking about his brother and his family.
Candace tells them all to shush. She thinks they’re being hunted. Bull says he’ll protect them, but not Angelo and not Dina because she is getting on his nerves. They hear noises. Angelo shakes in fear, takes more meds. Soon they all nod off.
Noises in the woods grow closer and closer. They all wake up startled at two blood-covered people screaming in front of the lean-to. They all freak out, except Angelo, whose meds make him sleep deep. It’s Spike and Trace. They intended to come to the cabins to scare the group, though not QUITE like this.
Bull freaks out and he and Spike start shoving each other. Jeff gets involved, too. Candace starts mouthing off to Trace and Violet backs her up. It’s Jazz that has to break things up this time. Their safety is in numbers if there ARE bears wandering around, so they better just work together to get to the cabins.
So Spike and Trace settle in under the lean-to. They explain the situation. With poor visibility they did not see the Escalade sitting upside down and half on the muddy trail. Trace was driving and slammed into it. They could not start their vehicle and also had to make their way on foot. They utter comments about Angelo sleeping through all this, but eventually they all fall asleep.
INT. ANGELO’S HOUSE
Angelo’s mom tries calling again. Angelo’s father suggests Angelo should be okay for just a couple more nights. Angelo’s mom says she will call the doctor tomorrow and get his opinion.
DREAM
Violet and Bull awake, but it’s a dream again, and they know it. Again a shadow whizzes by them. It’s very dark, and they cannot make out what the shadow is.
Violet is very frightened. Bull, not so much, but he is looking around trying to understand what’s happening.
The shadow passes by again and again, as if to taunt them. Violet grabs onto Bull. The shadow flies between them knocking them to the ground in separate directions. Bull is raised high off the ground. He kicks and punches but it’s just into air. He is dropped to the ground.
Violet runs over to help him up. They stand, but when they turn around, they see a bear. Just as the bear is about to grab them the shadow slips quickly by. They and the bear notice, but they cannot make it out. It’s too fast. The bear attempts to grab Violet and Bull again, this time the entity throws the teens out of the way, he wants them for himself.
The shadow, barely visible, faces the bear. The bear growls, ready to attack. The entity thrusts first, but the bear jumps out of harms way and the entity rips and tears at whoever in his path. It’s Dina, she’s in the dream. She had entered the dream and was behind the bear. Her lower body mutilated by the entity, she drops to the ground.
The shadow surrounds her, slowly. It circles her continuously. She smiles at it, then her life expires. The entity circles her faster and faster, growing more and more furious. It stops abruptly, turning toward Violet and Bull.
The entity is barely visible, no longer just a shadow. Almost man-like, but large, tall, long claw-like fingers and they get a glimpse of a mouthful of long sharp teeth as the entity lets out an eerie evil scream like they have never heard.
As if the scream was heard in real life, they all woke up, even Angelo. All of them except for Dina. Violet shakes Dina. She doesn’t wake. The others ask what’s going on. “This shit is fucked up,” says Bull. Violet opens up Dina’s sleeping bag. Her body is mutilated. They all run out of the lean-to, except Angelo. He’s over her, whimpering.
**Again, I intend to have more dreams with the others before Dina is killed.
EXT – WOODS
The group buries Dina in the woods as the rain barrels down. They tear down the lean-to and press on through the night to find the cabins. They finally find them in the middle of the night. There are three cabins. Jeff, Bull and Angelo take one, Candace and Violet take another, and Spike and Trace take the last one. They all get into dry clothing and try to sleep again.
EXT – DREAM – NIGHT
Violet and Bull are visited in their dreams by the entity. They are in the pouring rain. They barely make out the entity. Bull pulls Violet behind him, to protect her. The entity moves so fast he can barely keep his eyes on it. Then, he anticipates its movements, calculates and lunges towards it. Violet screams, “no, Bull!” He grabs the entity.
The entity bites into Bull’s flesh, tears at him with huge claw- like fingers, and rips him apart violently. Blood sprays everywhere, and covers Violet, who passes out. She wakes moments later to the monster still ripping away at Bull. Violet runs back to her cabin.
INT – CABIN (DREAM) – NIGHT
Violet opens the door and is startled by Candace standing there. Candace does not understand what’s happening. Violet tries to explain that it’s a dream, and about the monster. But, she can hardly catch her breath.
They hear commotion outside. Jeff is yelling for help.
EXT – DREAM
Everyone’s now outside standing over Bull’s shredded body. He is almost unrecognizable. The others do not understand what’s going on. Violet tries to explain.
“Where the fuck is Angelo?” Says Jeff. “How the hell can he sleep through this shit? Bull was right. He IS a freakazoid! Candace says maybe the monster has Angelo.
INT – JEFF’S CABIN (DREAM)
They all run into the cabin to find Angelo is asleep. “Well, at least we know he’s okay,” says Candace. “He has some kind of panic disorder. Might as well let him sleep.” Jazz agrees, “it would just be more shit we’d have to deal with.”
They decide staying in the one cabinet is best, but they are already asleep. Spike says they need to find a way to wake up. Jazz says they need to make some weapons. Violet is still trying to catch her breath. Candace tries to console her but she freaks out. She runs out of the cabin.
No one else wants to leave. Jazz decides to run after her.
EXT – DREAM
He finds her hiding outside, but convinces her to come back to the cabin. She is reluctant, but agrees. Demands Jazz protects her. He tells her she’s fine. They head back.
The entity attacks them and begins chewing Violet apart. Jazz manages to escape. He makes it back to the cabin. He pounds on the door to be let in. No one wants to open the door. Jazz pleads. Finally they open the door.
INT CABIN (DREAM)
As Jazz runs in, the entity flashes by him, ripping his arm from his socket. Blood shoot out everywhere. They pull him inside, help stop the blood from squirting. “Where’s Violet,” they ask? Jazz tells them the monster ripped her apart.
Topic turns to Angelo’s brother and sister. They are thinking he might have something to do with all this. They just cannot explain it. But Angelo is the only one that’s never around when these things happen. Trace says maybe none of this is real. Spike says look what happened to Dina, that was real. He says they must fight back. Jeff takes offense to the goth teen making suggestions as if he’s the leader. They argue.
Jazz agrees they have to do something. Spike has an idea: to keep the monster preoccupied while someone wakes Angelo, to see if he and the monster are one in the same. But they need a volunteer. No one does. They decide to draw different length pieces of cardboard from a writing pad. They decide to let Jazz hold the sticks they make so as not to include him.
They draw, one by one, until Violet has the shortest stick. She begins hyperventilating. Jazz steps up. “I’ll do it,” he says. He feels he might not survive this anyway, as he is losing a lot of blood still from his arm being ripped off. They all agree. Jazz leaves the cabin.
Jazz is attacked outside. While he is being mutilated the rest of them wake Angelo, which proves to not be an easy task. His meds are experimental and put him in to a coma-like state. Finally they wake him. He has a violent panic attack. He finally comes to. And at that instant the rest of them wake up from the dream, but when they do they are in their beds.
Candace runs into Jeff’s cabin screaming that Violet is in her bed and was mutilated in her sleep. Bull is a pile of guts strewn about his bed. They pull off Jazz’s covers covers to reveal his mutilated body and missing arm. They realize the monster is gone. Jeff freaks out and attacks Angelo, beats on him.
“It’s you, you fucking freak!” And with another blow to the head he knocks Angelo out. “That’s that,” says Jeff.

ACT lll
Spike says to Jeff, you knocked Angelo out, but if he is no longer awake there’s no telling what could happen. They pour some water on Angelo. He does not wake. Jeff starts shaking him. “Wake up, motherfucker. Wake up!” The cabin door smashes open. It’s the monster in plain view. And he is extremely angry. Thunder cracks!
The monster looks like a much larger and evil version of Angelo. They now see his long dagger-like fingers and his sharp teeth glistening like glass as he begins screaming again, an ear- piercing, horrific tone. *note to self, add all previous SCREAMS from the monster!!!
The monster is at full power. He pushes them all away from Angelo. He can now attack his victims while they are awake! Trace is mesmerized by the evil, finds the monster sexy. Spike sees it in her eyes. “What the fuck, Trace? Are you turned on?”
Just then a bear attacks the monster, yanks him out of the doorway and into the pouring rain. “No!” Trace runs out after the monster, to help him.
Spike goes ballistic. He runs out looking for a large stick. Jeff and Candace watch from inside. “Why don’t you help him,” she says? “Hey,” he says, “if they want to help or fight that thing let them have at it. I’m not getting ripped to shreds over those two weirdos.” “What if that was me out there,” she says? He is silent. They continue watching.
Spike attacks the monster, beating it with the stick. The monster lets out a scream and tears apart the bear. The monster turns to Spike. Spike lunges at him. The monster begins mutilating Spike. “Stop,” yells Trace. The monster looks at her. He jumps off of Spike and attacks Trace, an easy victim. She falls to the ground and hits her head on a rock. Her head bleeds.
Spike is up and cracking the monster over the back with the large stick. The monster screams and proceeds to rip him to shreds.
Jeff and Candace are terrified as the monster looks at them from outside. He turns his attention to them and slowly stands from Spikes lifeless torn up body. The monster tears Spike’s head off and throws it toward Trace, his head rolling up to hers.
INT – CABIN
The monster begins his attack on the two remaining victims. Just then in runs Trace with Spike’s stick. She’s still alive! She plunges the large stick into Angelo’s unconscious body – right into his heart. The monster screams, turns into a shadow-like entity and is slowly being sucked back into Angelo’s body. The survivors bolt for the door.
EXT – WOODS
They run, looking back occasionally, terrified of being chased by the monster, Angelo. They make it to the broken down vehicles. Jeff says they can push start Trace’s car. They do, and drive off, as fast as they can from this place.
INT – CABIN
The last of the entity is sucked into Angelo’s lifeless body. His eyes OPEN!
THE END

[JD Oppen]

If someone is up for an exchange, please send me a message. Cheers, JD

JD’s Horror Outline Version 1

What I learned is that following the steps as they are laid out allowed me to make my outline more readable than I would have trying to make it perfect early on. All the ‘pieces’ were there, just had to tidy things up. Great methodology of putting things together!

My readable outline:

Title: Wicked Angel: Screaming In The Night

Logline: A teen receiving experimental meds for his panic attacks finds himself host to an evil entity that mutilates his bullies.

ACT l
TELEVISION NEWS: ONE YEAR AGO
News footage, one year anniversary after a teen was killed at a now-closed-to-the-public cabin resort, Venture Lake. A survivor talks. It’s Angelo’s mom. Angelo’s older brother was killed at the resort. They attribute the killing to a grizzly they could never find, since the teen was so badly clawed, bitten and mutilated.
EXT – HIGH SCHOOL BLEACHERS – DUSK
Champion football game has ended. A group of students, cheerleaders and a few of their friends hang out in bleachers post-game. The two cheerleaders are still in their uniforms. Candace texting on cell phone, Violet chats with Jazz, the school basketball captain and with her friend, Dina.
Angelo, friend and neighbor of Dina’s sits quietly next to her, listening to her conversation and nodding occasionally as if he is part of the conversation. Angelo is always bullied due to anxiety attacks and always taking special medications for it. Dina is the only one who stands up for the introvert.
Jeff (Quarterback) and Bull (Linebacker) come to the bleachers with big duffle bag of their gear, they are still soaked from sweat from the Thursday night championship football game they just won, and tomorrow is the last day of high school for the summer.
Bull, big and obnoxious runs up the bleachers, “hey girls.” And to Jazz, “hey jock… strap, wannabe athlete.” He and Jazz quickly start debating basketball and football.
Jeff comes up the bleachers. Candace stops texting and focuses on him as he puts a rest to the debate. Then Bull turns to Angelo as if he had not even known he was there. “What the hell is Freakazoid doing here?”
“Really?” Says Dina. “Soreeeee, I forgot he’s your pet.” “You’re an asshole,” she says. “And a bully,” says Violet, “but he is a Freak.” Dina looks disgusted, Angelo just hangs his head. Bull laughs. Violet to Bull, “and you’re still a bully.” Bull starts pushing his own head into Violet. “They don’t call me Bull for nothin'”
“I thought it was because you’re full of it,” blurts out Jazz. Bull starts ramming Jazz, “you want some of this?” Jazz pushes him away, tells him to take a hike.
“Speaking of hiking,” says Jeff. I was talking with Bull and we decided to go up to Venture Lake for the weekend. “To The cabins,” blasts Bull.
A goth couple, Spike and Trace, that have been making out under the bleachers all this time stop suddenly, and listen closely.
Dina, Angelo and Violet are apprehensive. They go on about the bear attack killing a family and how the place is still closed down. Bull says that’s what makes it such an adventure.
Candace gives Jeff a big smile, “I’ll go.” Violet, a new cheerleader always seeking approval from Candace follows suit. “I’ll go, too.” Angelo looks at Dina. “What do you think?” He mutters to her quietly, “you know I have to take a bunch of pills and stuff at night.”
Bull overhears. You’re not invited anyway, Freakazoid. Stay home and pop your pills. We don’t want you freakin’ out and spoiling our road trip anyway. Candace agrees, “maybe it’s not such a great idea for you Angelo.” Of course, Violet agrees with whatever Candace says. “Besides,” says Violet, “are you really up to going out partying where your brother was killed?” Dina is offended by her so called friend, Violet. “Really, you, too, Violet?”
“I’m going,” says Dina. “We’re both going!” She puts her arm around Angelo.
The goth couple emerge – black leather, tattoos, piercings…. The group is startled. “We think you should ALL stay home, you little suck-asses.” Bull is like, “What the f…?” “You little demons have been under there all this time?”
Jeff simmers Bull down before things get out of hand. Jazz agrees. Maybe this isn’t such a great idea. Maybe we should go when the bears hibernate. Jeff tells him to suck it up. You play a wussy sport and now you wanna wuss out on what will probably be the most fun we’ll have all year? “Don’t worry, crybaby, I’ll protect you,” consoles Bull sarcastically, “even though you’re a basketball player, Sissy!” Okay, fuck you bitches, I’m in. “Looks like we’re all going,” says Jeff. It’ll be a blast. We’ll have the cabins to ourselves, hell, we’ll have the whole place to ourselves.
“Well, yourselves and the bear,” says Spike. Bull says maybe his girlfriend can come and ward off the bears. The two are ready to go at it. Jeff grabs Bull. Shut the hell up. Bull stops. “Last day of school tomorrow,” says Jeff. “We’ll be out around 12 or 1, we’ll split then.”
INT – ANGELO’S BEDROOM – LATER
Angelo tosses and turns, can’t sleep. Sits up in a cold sweat. Takes a bunch of pills from the bottles on his nigh stand, downs them with a big glass of water and lays back down.
Angelo is still fidgety. Jumps up again in a sweat, breathing even faster, tries to calm down. He can’t.
INT – DINA’S BEDROOM – CONTINUOUS
Dina sits at a desk in her bedroom. She’s on a laptop. She is watching a news clip on the death of Angelo’s brother and sister. She is startled when her bedroom door opens. It’s Angelo! She slams the lid down on her laptop. Holy shit, Angelo, you scared me. Sorry, your mom said just go on up. Dina: it’s ok. I just wan’t expecting you. Couldn’t sleep, huh?
NEXT MORNING
Dina and Angelo are walking out Angelo’s front door. His mom reminds him of his meds. He says he has them. Dina asks how the meds are going. He says they are some new experimental stuff and he’s taking double the dose to stop his panic attacks.
EXT – SCHOOL PARKING LOT – NEXT DAY
School’s out. The classmates gather around a huge black Cadillac Escalade. And it’s the ESV model! Jazz can’t believe Candace’s dad let’s her drive this thing at all, let alone take it on a trip for the weekend. “Where did you tell him you were going?” A cheerleader training camp. “Way to go, girlfriend,” says Violet, and the two do a couple CHEER moves. Dina rolls her eyes. Candace asks Jeff to drive. “I call shotgun,” slams Bull.
They throw in the rest of their gear in and drive off.
EXT – GAS STATION IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE – LATER The Escalade pulls up to the pumps.
INT – ESCALADE
Jeff: If anyone wants to get out and stretch or grab anything inside, now’s the time. This is our last stop and we won’t get to venture bay for a few hours.
Angelo and Dina, in the back row, stay in the vehicle. Angelo falls asleep.
The other’s get back in. Jazz, Violet and Candace take their spots in the center row.
Bull: What’s up with Freakazoid? Baby’s fall asleep in cars. Dina tells him to keep it down. “Why?” “Isn’t he on some Freakazoid meds. They said so on the news. He didn’t even wake up when his brother and sister were killed down the hall from him in the middle of the night.” “God, shut the hell up, asshole.” Bull and Violet both laugh. Jeff smiles and shakes his head.
They drive off.
EXT – BARREN HIGWAY – DUSK
Skies are clouded over. It’s going to rain soon.
INT – ESCALADE
“Talk about a baby.” Jeff points at Bull fast asleep in the passenger seat. “Same here,” as Jazz points at Violet. Candace is texting on her cell phone.
EXT – BARREN HIGWAY – DUSK
Dark clouds, lightning in the distance, and thunder moments later as the Escalade pushes on through a more dense area.
INT – ESCALADE
Angelo, sound asleep, leaning on Dina. Jazz looks out the window at the brewing storm. Violet sleeps. Jeff shakes head as Bull snores, sound asleep.
Violet twitches slightly.
VIOLET DREAMS
It’s very dark. Violet is awake. Shadow passes by. She is scared. Starts running, frightened, as a shadow whisks by her from time to time.
INT – ESCALADE
Bull twitches slightly.
BULL DREAMS
Extreme darkness. Bull fights his way thru obstacles as a shadow
passes by from time to time. The obstacles are unseen.
VIOLET DREAMS
She sees something bright in the distance. She is terrified, running in the darkness. As she runs towards the light in the dark. As she runs it appears farther away.
BULL DREAMS
Terrified, he fights his way through the obstacles as the shadow swiftly flies by here and there. The obstacles are football practice dummies. They can barely be seen.
VIOLET DREAMS
She is closer the the light. Closer. Closer. It’s very dim. The light is just huge cheerleading pom-poms. They are barely visible. Now she is tangled in them. Horrified, she claws through them. She gets through. There is barely any light, she runs faster and faster.
BULL DREAMS
Bull continues to smash through the football dummies. It gets harder and harder, until, finally he is through. Almost pitch black. He runs, faster, and faster, until… he runs by Violet running in the opposite direction. They quickly look back at each other, and in that instant –
INT – ESCALADE – DUSK
Bull and Violet both wake up instantaneously, in a violent frenzy and look at each other. “What the fuck,” Bull screams at her! She just throws up her hands like it was his fault. Bull turns around. “You all right there, buddy,” says Jeff. He manages to mutter a ‘yeah’ and sinks into the passenger
seat as the crack of torrential downpour.
ACT 2
EXT – HIGHWAY
Rain pummels down as heavily wooded area.
thunderous lightning brings on a
the Escalade slows to turn into a Sign, VENTURE CABINS 30 MILES.
INT – ESCALADE
Jeff tells the others, “it won’t be long now.” They are all looking out the window as the wooded area darkens their view. “All Offroad from here.” Jazz tells Candace her dad’s not going to be happy when he gets the muddy Escalade back. She doesn’t acknowledge. Jazz is like, “pft.” As light gives way to the dark, even Candace raises her head from her cell phone, “Damn, it got dark all of a sudden.” The others agree. “Some weekend this is going to be,” says Violet. Jeff assures them it will be a much better day tomorrow.
EXT – MUDDY TRAIL
The Escalade bounces through the woods, down the muddy trail.
INT – ESCALADE
“Oh my God,” Candace screams! She freaks the others out. Jeff veers off the muddy trail.
EXT – WOODS
The Escalade rolls upside down and broadsides a tree.
INT – ESCALADE
Dina: “Is everyone okay?” They all are. “What the fuck, Candace,” yells out Jeff. “What is it?”
“I have no cell reception.” Really? You’re screaming because of that? “We have no more truck either, thanks to you.” The others look at their phones. None have reception. They can’t call for help.
“Great, now what,” says Jazz. Bull says they MAN UP. Jeff says he’s right. They are about 20 miles into the woods and 10 miles from the cabins. Their best bet is to make the rest of the way on foot. They can’t stay in the flipped over vehicle.
EXT – WOODS – NIGHT
They manage to get all the gear out and start walking. Eventually the trail ends. Signs warn them over the next several hundred feet, THIS AREA ENVIRONMENTALLY UNSAFE, TURN BACK, and CONTINUE AT YOUR OWN RISK. They continue on through the woods, fighting against the rain, the storm, and the darkness.
Eventually Angelo needs to take his medication. He has very bad panic attacks at night. Realizing they could have a medical emergency on their hands on top of the problems they have already, they all agree to stop for the night. Bull is against it and calls Angelo a pussy. Dina mouths back, and Jeff tries to control Bull. He says not everyone is cut out for the outdoors. Angelo hangs his head. Dina says they are asses.
Violet says they are right, and goes on to tell them of her cousin who went on a hunting trip and was hurt multiple times due to the rough environment and he was never the same after. Eventually they make a big lean-to and bunker down for the night.
INT – LEAN-TO
There are noises in the woods, and idle chatter becomes talk of the tragedy at the cabins and the fear of bears. They have no weapons. Candace thinks they’re being hunted. Bull says he’ll protect them. “Well, maybe not you two,” he says to Angelo and Dina, “because you’re getting on my nerves.” They hear more noises. Angelo shakes as if in fear, but it’s just that his meds have not kicked in yet. Soon they all doze off.
Noises in the woods grow closer and closer. They all wake up startled at two blood-covered people screaming in front of the lean-to. They all freak out, except Angelo, whose meds make him sleep so heavy he has not batted an eye. It’s Spike and Trace. They intended to come to the cabins to scare the group, though not QUITE like this.
Bull freaks out and he and Spike start shoving each other. Jeff gets involved, too. Candace starts mouthing off to Trace and Violet backs her up. It’s Jazz that has to break things up this time. Their safety is in numbers if there ARE bears wandering around, so they better just work together to get to the cabins.
So Spike and Trace settle in under the lean-to. They explain the situation. With poor visibility they did not see the Escalade sitting upside down and half on the muddy trail. Trace was driving and slammed into it. They could not start their vehicle and decided to follow on foot. And, “here we are.” They utter comments about Angelo sleeping through all this, but eventually they all fall asleep.
INT. ANGELO’S HOUSE
Angelo’s mom on phone with doctor who tells her there is something wrong with the med Angelo is taking. He should probably stop taking them right away. She tries to call him, but Angelo has no cell signal in the woods.
DREAM
Violet and Bull awake, but it’s a dream again, and they know it. Again a shadow whizzes by them. It’s very dark, and they cannot make out what the shadow is.
Violet is very frightened. Bull, not so much, but he is looking around trying to understand what’s happening.
The shadow passes by again and again, as if to taunt them. Violet grabs onto Bull. The shadow flies between them knocking them to the ground in separate directions. Bull is raised high off the ground. He kicks and punches but it’s just into air. He is dropped to the ground.
Violet runs over to help him up. They stand, but when they turn around, they see a bear. Just as the bear is about to grab them the shadow slips quickly by. They and the bear notice, but they cannot make it out. It’s too fast. The bear attempts to grab Violet and Bull again, this time the entity throws the teens out of the way, he wants them for himself.
The shadow, barely visible, faces the bear. The bear growls, ready to attack. The entity thrusts first, but the bear jumps out of harms way and the entity rips and tears at whoever in his path. It’s Dina. She had entered the dream and was behind the bear. Her lower body mutilated by the entity, she drops to the ground.
The shadow surrounds her, slowly. It circles her continuously. She smiles at it, then her life expires. The entity circles her faster and faster, growing more and more furious. It stops abruptly, turning toward Violet and Bull.
The entity is barely visible, no longer just a shadow. Almost man-like, but large, tall, long claw-like fingers and they get a glimpse of a mouthful of long sharp teeth as the entity lets out an eerie evil scream like they have never heard.
As if the scream was heard in real life, they all woke up, even
Angelo. All of them except for Dina. Violet shakes Dina. She doesn’t wake. The others ask what’s going on. “This shit is fucked up,” says Bull. Violet opens up Dina’s sleeping bag. Her lower body is mutilated. They all run out of the lean-to, except Angelo. He holds her, whimpering.
EXT – WOODS
The group buries Dina in the woods as the rain barrels down. They tear down the lean-to and press on through the night to find the cabins. They finally find them in the middle of the night. There are three cabins. Jeff, Bull and Angelo take one, Candace and Violet take another, and Spike and Trace take the last one. They all get into dry clothing and try to sleep again.
EXT – DREAM – NIGHT
Violet and Bull are visited in their dreams by the entity. They are in the pouring rain. They barely make out the entity. Bull pulls Violet behind him, to protect her. The entity moves so fast he can barely keep his eyes on it. Then, he anticipates its movements, calculates and lunges towards it. Violet screams, “no, Bull!” He grabs the entity.
The entity bites into Bull’s flesh, tears at him with huge claw- like fingers, and rips him apart violently. Blood sprays everywhere, and covers Violet, who passes out. She wakes moments later to the monster still ripping away at Bull. Violet runs back to her cabin.
INT – CABIN (DREAM) – NIGHT
Violet opens the door and is startled by Candace standing there. Candace does not understand what’s happening. Violet tries to explain that it’s a dream, and about the monster. But, she can hardly catch her breath.
They hear commotion outside. Jeff is yelling for help.
EXT – DREAM
Everyone’s now outside standing over Bull’s shredded body. He is almost unrecognizable. The others do not understand what’s going on. Violet tries to explain.
“Where the fuck is Angelo?” Says Jeff. “How the can he sleep
through this shit? Bull was right. He IS a freakazoid! Candace says maybe the monster has Angelo.
INT – CABIN (DREAM)
They all run into Jeff’s cabin. Angelo is asleep. “Well, at least we know he’s okay,” says Candace. “He has some kind of panic disorder. Might as well let him sleep.” Jazz agrees, “it would just be more shit we’d have to deal with.”
They decide staying in the one cabinet is best, but they are already asleep. Spike says they need to find a way to wake up. Jazz says they need to make some weapons. Violet is still trying to catch her breath. Candace tries to console her but she freaks out. She runs out of the cabin.
No one else wants to leave. Jazz decides to run after her.
EXT – DREAM
He finds her hiding outside, but convinces her to come back to the cabin. She is reluctant, but agrees. Demands Jazz protects her. He tells her she’s fine. They head back.
The entity attacks them and begins chewing Violet apart. Jazz manages to escape. He makes it back to the cabin. He pounds on the door to be let in. No one wants to open the door. Jazz pleads. Finally they open the door.
INT CABIN (DREAM)
As Jazz runs in, the entity flashes by him, ripping his arm from his socket. Blood shoot out everywhere. They pull him inside, help stop the blood from squirting. “Where’s Violet,” they ask? Jazz tells them the monster ripped her apart.
Topic turns to Angelo’s brother and sister. They are thinking he might have something to do with all this. They just cannot explain it. But Angelo is the only one that’s never around when these things happen. “Maybe none of this is real,” says Trace. Spike says they can’t take any chances, they must fight back. Jeff takes offense to the goth teen making suggestions as if he’s the leader. They argue.
Jazz agrees they have to do something. Spike has an idea: to keep the monster preoccupied while someone wakes Angelo, to see if he and the monster are one in the same. But they need a volunteer. No one does. They decide to draw different length pieces of cardboard from a writing pad. They decide to let Jazz hold the sticks they make so as not to include him.
They draw, one by one, until Violet has the shortest stick. She begins hyperventilating. Jazz steps up. “I’ll do it,” he says. He feels he might not survive this anyway, as he is losing a lot of blood still from his arm being ripped off. They all agree. Jazz leaves the cabin.
Jazz is attacked outside. While he is being mutilated the rest of them wake Angelo, which proves to not be an easy task. His meds are experimental and put him in to a coma-like state. Finally they wake him. He has a violent panic attack. He finally comes to. And at that instant the rest of them wake up from the dream, but when they do they are in their beds.
Candace runs into Jeff’s cabin screaming that Violet is in her bed and was mutilated in her sleep. Bull is a pile of guts strewn about his bed. They pull off Jazz’s covers covers to reveal his mutilated body and missing arm. They realize the monster is gone. Jeff freaks out and attacks Angelo, beats on him.
“It’s you, you fucking freak!” And with another blow to the head he knocks Angelo out. “That’s that,” says Jeff.
Spike thinks otherwise. ACT lll
Jeff just knocked Angelo out. If he is no longer awake there’s no telling what could happen. They pour some water on Angelo. He does not wake. Jeff starts shaking him. “Wake up, motherfucker. Wake up!” The cabin door smashes open. It’s the monster in plain view. And he is extremely angry. Thunder cracks!
The monster looks like a much larger and evil version of Angelo. They now see his long dagger-like fingers and his sharp teeth glistening like glass as he begins screaming again, an ear- piercing, horrific tone. *note to self, add all previous SCREAMS from the monster!!!
The monster is at full power. He can now attack his victims while they are awake. Trace is mesmerized by the evil, and she finds the monster sexy. Spike sees it in her eyes. “What the fuck, Trace? Are you turned on?”
Just then a bear attacks the monster, yanking him out of the doorway and into the pouring rain. “No!” Trace runs out after the monster, to help him.
Spike goes ballistic. He runs out looking for a large stick. Jeff and Candace watch from inside. “Why don’t you help him,” she says? “Hey,” he says, “if they want to help or fight that thing let them have at it. I’m not getting ripped to shreds over those two weirdos.” “What if that was me out there,” she says? He is silent. They continue watching.
Spike attacks the monster, beating it with the stick. The monster lets out a scream and tears apart the bear. The monster turns to Spike. Spike lunges at him. The monster begins mutilating Spike. “Stop,” yells Trace. The monster looks at her. He jumps off of Spike and attacks Trace, an easy victim. She falls to the ground and hits her head on a rock. Her head bleeds.
Spike is up and cracking the monster over the back with the large stick. The monster screams and proceeds to rip him to shreds.
Jeff and Candace are terrified as the monster looks at them from outside. He turns his attention to them and slowly stands from Spikes lifeless torn up body. The monster tears Spike’s head off and throws it toward Trace, his head rolling up to hers.
INT – CABIN
The monster begins his attack on the two remaining victims. Just then in runs Trace with Spike’s stick. She’s still alive! She plunges the large stick into Angelo’s unconscious body – right into his heart. The monster screams, turns into a shadow-like entity and is slowly being sucked back into Angelo’s body. The survivors bolt for the door.
EXT – WOODS
They run, looking back occasionally, terrified of being chased by the monster, Angelo. They make it to the broken down vehicles. “Now what,” says Candace. “Neither of these things will start, and my dad;’s Escalade is definitely not going anywhere.”
Trace still has her keys. Jeff says they can push start Trace’s car. They do, and drive off, as fast as they can from this place.
INT – CABIN
The last of the entity is sucked into Angelo’s lifeless body. His eyes OPEN!
THE END

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Character Journey Track

What I learned doing this assignment is how I could shape these profiles and journeys to fit the story. I found that much of what I added to my profiles and journey’s was already built into my outline through some of the action and the previous tracks, and now I am really looking forward to expanding the outline further and getting into writing the scenes as my outline is still very much in Tracks mode/point form.

1. Character Profiles/Character Journeys

Quarterback: Jeff

A. Character Profile

Role: Survivor, methodical, makes plans
Traits: self centred, overly confident/cocky
Fears: disbelief
Wants/Needs: Wants a relaxing break from football season, needs to stop the monster, he has a need to survive, just like breaking thru an opposing football team
Likability/Rooting factors: Rational, level-headed, willing to help others
How they react under stress: keeps his cool, takes charge
Relationship with other characters: distant, reserved, but willing to help them when the going gets tough

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: Organized, follows plan during football game and brings his team to championship win, always put on a pedestal.
Denial: Doesn’t think anything will happen to them when they visit the cabins, believes the family that was attacked by a bear there must have provoked it
Their reaction at first horror: Tries to figure out a solution to keep everyone safe, maps out ideas based on surroundings
Relation to group after first horror: Takes control, offers suggestions based on football plays
How they fight back: Kills the monster
End Point: Survives, and gets the other two survivors away from the monster
Insight from Death/Survival: Keeping your cool and thinking clearly will help you get out of a bad situation

Linebacker: Bull (Bobby)

A. Character Profile

Role: First to fight
Traits: Bully, obnoxious, loose canon
Fears: none
Wants/Needs: wants to impress Jeff, needs to kick butt
Likability/Rooting factors: ?
How they react under stress: reacts too quickly, irrationally
Relationship with other characters: not liked, in the way, only Jeff can tolerate him

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: follower always seeking Jeff’s approval or attention, follows Jeff’s lead(s), but usually still does what he wants
Denial: in denial about the man not being able to save his family from a bear attack, says he would have, we see he has no fear, but at the cost of flying off the handle
Their reaction at first horror: attacks the monster
Relation to group after first horror: argumentative and accuses the goth teens of not stepping up
How they fight back: fights the monster, irrationally trying to tackle it like the linebacker he is
End Point: Dies
Insight from Death/Survival: Does not intimidate monster, this rushing linebacker can’t break his stance and is no match for it

Head Cheerleader: Candace

A. Character Profile

Role: Survivor, Likes quarterback Jeff, similar to him, sticks by his side
Traits: Daddy’s rich, self centred, always on cell phone
Fears: afraid of dying a horrible death, equally afraid of her hair being messed up or her cell phone being destroyed
Wants/Needs: wants to be Jeff’s girlfriend, needs (demands) Jeff saves her – says he owes her
Likability/Rooting factors: that she does not fully comprehend how horrific the situation is
How they react under stress: she mostly worries about herself and her own safety
Relationship with other characters: always telling them how they could be better, look better, do things differently

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: On Jeff’s side about going to the cabins, long as there is running water and clean bathroom, so she doesn’t have to rough it
Denial: thinks the whole monster thing is ridiculous and wants Jeff to get her out of there
Their reaction at first horror: says she knows the trip was going to be like this and says never should have come
Relation to group after first horror: gets demanding, that others should be doing something more
How they fight back: works with Jeff to help outsmart it, some cheerleading moves come in handy
End Point: Survives, Jeff gets her to the car, along with Trace
Insight from Death/Survival: shows the monster has limitations by her planning with Jeff to defeat it

Cheerleader 2: Violet

A. Character Profile

Role: Dies, A Candace wanna-be, new cheerleader, Dina is her friend
Traits: Dies, Can’t make decisions, Stuck between acting like Candace and being nice like Dina
Fears: run
Wants/Needs: wants to hide, needs to stick with the group and help in some way
Likability/Rooting factors: not like Candace, shows non-shallow side in friendship with Dina
How they react under stress: freaks out, tries to hide from it
Relationship with other characters: becomes a pain because they need to save her from getting herself killed

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: Reluctant to go on the trip, wants to be a brave new cheerleader, follow Candace, but has a received side shown through her close friendship with Dina
Denial: in shock
Their reaction at first horror: breaks down, screams, runs
Relation to group after first horror: turns on everyone in fear, accuses them
How they fight back: doesn’t – tries to escape on her own
End Point: Dies, tries to escape, we think she is saved by Jazz, but gets attacked
Insight from Death/Survival: shows the monster is ruthless and that it does not take kindly to trying to escape its wrath

Love Interest (Friend of Cheerleader 2): Dina

A. Character Profile

Role: Dies 1st, female classmate who likes the main character/monster, she is friends with him and hangs out with him
Traits: affectionate, rational, likes Angelo, friendly
Fears: fears for Angelo, fears he will never know how she really feels
Wants/Needs: wants to save Angelo/monster, needs to know he is dangerous
Likability/Rooting factors: that she likes main character and knows what is happening, wants to save him
How they react under stress: will enter the face of danger if it means saving Angelo
Relationship with other characters: other characters don’t really care to have her come on the trip with them, but she’s a friend of a friend, she’s grounded and not really like the other girls

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: likes Angelo, knows some of what he is going through with the experimental meds
Denial: in denial that Angelo could be such a monster, tries to help him
Their reaction at first horror: apprehensive but wants to help Angelo stop being a monster
Relation to group after first horror: turns on the others for how they treat Angelo, she warns them
How they fight back: she fights back trying to calm the monster down, believes he will not hurt her
End Point: First to die, inadvertently killed by bear when monster has a fight with it
Insight from Death/Survival: Shows the monster fights with some compassion due to Angel being host for the monster, and shows how angry the monster gets when the bear kills her

Basketball Payer: Jazz (Jason)

A. Character Profile

Role: Dies, Basketball team captain, competes with Jeff to take charge
Traits: Competitive, yet humble
Fears: fears dying when he has his whole life and basketball career ahead of him
Wants/Needs: wants to help stop the monster, needs to save Violet
Likability/Rooting factors: cool, calm and collected, willing to help others, competitive with Jeff as they are both on different high school sports teams, but he is smooth about it
How they react under stress: jumps into fight mode, and to help find a solution
Relationship with other characters: they look at him to help, come up with answers/ideas

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: Remains calm as he argues about basketball being a better more competitive sport than football, talks about what he has done for teammates
Denial: knows what’s happening is unreal but turns to fight mode
Their reaction at first horror: helps to save Violet
Relation to group after first horror: looked at as a hero until he is killed
How they fight back: makes weapons
End Point: Dies after trying to save Violet
Insight from Death/Survival: shows the monster is a persistent, master stalker

Goth Male: Spike (Steven)

A. Character Profile

Role: Dies, likes to shock others, Trace’s boyfriend, not easily frightened
Traits: Eccentric, brave, not worried what others think, a protector
Fears: not much scares him but being visited by an entity in his dreams was frightening, yet he feels special
Wants/Needs: wants the group to fear him, needs to protect his girlfriend Trace
Likability/Rooting factors: Not a bully, really close to Trace, likes to shock others
How they react under stress: reacts fast when it comes Trace being in trouble
Relationship with other characters: others stand behind him because he takes charge but they are happy to sacrifice him before themselves, they think because he is goth he has some connection to the underworld and can do something to stop the monster

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: shocks classmates with piercings/implants, looked at as a looser, but he is a sceptic leader
Denial: does not deny the unreal, but is frightened by it, making him look weak to Trace
Their reaction at first horror: disbelief, attacks the monster when Trace is attacked
Relation to group after first horror: they think he knows more than he does about the underworld and stand behind him as a leader
How they fight back: attacks monster when the monster attacks Trace
End Point: Dies trying to save Trace
Insight from Death/Survival: Shows monster cannot die from being hurt, regenerates injury

Goth Female: Trace (Tracey)

A. Character Profile

Role: Survivor, likes to shock, Spike’s girlfriend, not easily frightened, likes bad boys, likes the monster
Traits: Eccentric, brave, not worried what others think
Fears: the dark, stems from childhood, turned goth to combat her fear
Wants/Needs: wants an adventure, needs the monster to like her
Likability/Rooting factors: nicer than she looks, wild but with an innocents
How they react under stress: does not realize the danger, attempts to help the monster
Relationship with other characters: on bad terms with Spike because she likes the monster, and she is jealous it visited him in his sleep

B. Character Journey

Character Intro: likes to shock, likes evil and scary things, long as the lights are on
Denial: denies the monster is incapable of love
Their reaction at first horror: screams, needs light
Relation to group after first horror: looked at as even stranger than she is because she does not want them to kill the monster
How they fight back: tries to save the monster, to stop a bear from attacking it
End Point: Survives, we think she is killed but she was not dead
Insight from Death/Survival: Monster only cared for Dina, has no regard for the lives it takes or casualties along the way

2. Updated Outline with Character Journeys (Purple)

ACT 1 — SET UP FOR HORROR

Atmosphere of Evil established:

Group of classmates talks about going up to isolated cabin area that is closed to the public because a family was killed by a group of bears, all the while, the visuals are of the bear attack on the family, or just of the barren cabin location.

*Alternate Idea: News footage that is a one year anniversary after the family was killed talking about it, possibly a survivor, and discussing the fact the grounds remains closed to the public.

As well there is some chatter about bringing the main character, whose step brother and sister were mysteriously murdered in their sleep.

Horror Situation: Vicious bear attack
Reaction: News reel(s) of vicious bear attack

Horror Situation: Violent deaths of main character’s step brother & sister
Reaction: News reel(s) of their deaths

Horror Situation: Mother and doctor discuss Angelo’s experimental meds
Reaction: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication

Demand: Why do classmates not want Angelo to go to the cabins?
Monster Reveal: His siblings were mutilated in their sleep

Connect with the characters:

Champion football game ends. A group of jocks, cheerleaders and a few of their friends hang out in bleachers post-game. Candace on phone, Violet chats with Dina, Angelo is teased by Linebacker, Quarterback and basketball captain debate their sports. Topic turns t going away for the weekend as school is out in one more day. They discuss going to cabins a few hours away, but the area is closed due to a family being brutally attacked there by bears a week ago.

A goth couple, scary just to look at, are there making out. They overhear and decide to go to the same abandoned location for the weekend.

Horror Situation: Goth couple talk about violence, and what happened at the cabin location
Reaction: Characters are frightened, some reluctant to go on the trip

Demand: Why do Angel’s parents fight about him going. Father is fine with it. Why is his mother not?
Monster Reveal: Angelo’s mother and doctor discuss possible side effects or Angelo’s experimental meds

The characters are warned not to do it:

The more outsider characters, a friend of one of the cheerleaders, the main character, whose the cheerleader’s friend has a crush on, are all apprehensive about going to this place because of what happened. One of the cheerleaders is also apprehensive. The school basketball player agrees with the football players about how cool, fun and exciting the trip will be in the face of possible danger… bears. Again the main characters is teased/taunted. He really does not want to go, but is mostly talked into it by the friend of one of the cheerleaders.

The goth couple chime in about the dangers, then discuss amongst themselves how they should go just to scare the hell of the group of friends… then laugh about having to protect them. The goth female inquires about electricity. She’s afraid of the dark

Horror Situation: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication
Reaction: more of the brutal mutilation of his siblings

Denial of Horror:

The jocks are all tough guys, so they are not afraid and don’t think anything will happen. As well, one of the cheerleaders has a crush on the quarterback, so she goes along with what he says. Some of them laugh stating the only thing they have to fear is sleeping around the main character because of what happened to his siblings.

Horror Situation: Goth couple startles others, showing weird piercings & implants
Reaction: Characters are more uneasy, frightened about the trip

Safety taken away:

On the three hour drive, a couple of them fall asleep and appear to be visited by an entity while they sleep. As they get closer to the cabin area they are losing cell phone reception, it is intermittent. Even closer there are signs stating no trespassing, the area is closed to the public. The main characters is taunted again and the girl who likes him stands up for him.

The goth couple travel separately, they could care less about anything going wrong. They are not easily intimidated.

Horror Situation: Entity visits main characters while they sleep on the way to the cabin
Reaction: Those visited are intimidated by the entity, grow worrisome

Demand: Characters are visited in their sleep.
Monster Reveal: Monster can attack them in their dreams.

Monster: The nature of the beast:

The goth girl drives, her boyfriend falls asleep on the way and is visited by the entity. He wakes shaken and frightened, which is a little out of character for his look. His girlfriend laughs but is also a little excited about the entity her boyfriend dreamt of… maybe even a little jealous.

Horror Situation: Entity visits male goth character on the way to cabin
Reaction: While he is looked, his girlfriend is jealous, she is crazier than him

ACT 2 — THE POINT OF NO RETURN

Isolated / Trapped / Abducted:

As the main group gets closer their vehicle dies. They must make the rest of the trip on foot and sun is on it’s way down. Cell reception is pretty much non-existent. They reach the cabins at dusk, and there’s no turning back now.

It gets late and it’s time for everyone to sleep. Some of them are visited by the entity as they sleep. They wake in a frenzy. The football players tell them it’s nothing to worry about. Though reluctant to, they all go back to sleep.

Horror Situation: Weather takes a bad turn, wind, some rain
Reaction: starting to lose cell reception in an eerie place

Horror Situation: No trespassing/danger signs, warnings to keep out and weather turns to violent thunderstorm
Reaction: Main characters’ vehicle dies in eerie location from motor  getting wet – they must find cabins on foot in the storm

Horror Situation: All cell reception lost – relied on phones for navigation, cannot find the cabins, darkness falls
Reaction: Make lean-to with tarp(s), They must sleep outdoors and search in the morning

Horror Situation: Fear of noises,
Reaction: think it’s bears, they think they are being  hunted

Horror Situation: Goth couple do not see the broken down vehicle
Reaction: They plow into it

Horror Situation: Goth couple’s injuries look bad, they find the others and frighten them from their bloody injuries
Reaction: The others help them, take them in, clean them up

One of us killed:

Horror Situation: Through the night some sleeping characters are visited by the entity
Reaction: They need to wake up to search for the cabin

Horror Situation: Awake, They search the darkness for the cabins
Reaction: Again they think they are being hunted by bears

Reach the cabins and sleep. Dina tries to talk the monster down. Monster is attacked by a bear. Monster lunges at bear and it moves, monster kills Dina. When the others wake they realize this is really happening now, but no signs of anyone or anything entering the cabin.

Character Death 1: Dina
Why: Because she is the innocent one.
How: By accident by the monster lunging to kill a bear which moves out of the way, the monster and Dina had an affection for each other

Horror Situation: the entity attacks all victims in their sleep, they cannot wake, The characters who most taunted the main character suffer brutal deaths
Reaction: The linebacker attempts to fight the entity
Horror Situation: The character thought to be the toughest fights the monster
Reaction: Linebacker is mutilated

Demand: Angelo has night tremors.
Monster Reveal: His tremors happen when the monster attacks its victims

Character Death 2: Bull
Why: Escalates the horror as he is the first character to attack the monster
How: Charges blindly into action and is violently ripped to shreds

Horror Situation: The goth male takes control to make weapons, Got girl doesn’t like the idea because she is smitten with the  entity, and quarterback does not like him taking control and attempt to  stop him
Reaction: The quarterback and head cheerleader are attacked and barely escape; they survive  – for now

Demand: Intrigue… what is the monster, what does it look like?
Monster Reveal: The monster attacks with blazing speed and murders some of its victims virtually unseen

MIDPOINT: The monster is worse than we thought!

Full pursuit by the killer:

The monster is the main character. His experimental meds turn him into a psychotic killer who attacks his victims in their dreams. Now the group of them are all in the same dream and fighting to survive as they realize who it is that’s attacking them.

Horror Situation: The other cheerleader is hysterical – runs and hides outside,
Reaction: she is found by the basketball player, she is being attacked and almost dead

Horror Situation: The basketball player attempt to save her, drags her back to  cabin
Reaction They are both attacked in the attempt and the girl is dismembered in front of him

Character Death 1: Violet
Why: Because we think she escaped the monster by running, then saved by Jazz, brought to safety, so we think
How: Escape attempt takes her into it, and she is slaughtered by the monster

Horror Situation: Basketball player manages to escape back to cabin, pleads to  be let in
Reaction: They open the door and one of his arms is ripped off by the entity as he gets inside

Horror Situation: The girl who likes the main character is confronted and realizes who he is
Reaction: she warns the others

Demand: Why does the monster appear more violent when the bear attacks some of the monster’s victims
Monster Reveal: The monster demands it possesses its victims and needs to be the one who takes the life

Terrorized:

The killer wages a brutal assault on the classmates who had taunted him. They are hunted in their dreams while the others are terrorized but trying to stop it from happening. They cannot wake.

Horror Situation: They fight to wake
Reaction: They do, the quarterback wakes the main character and beats the hell out of him rendering him unconscious… They think they are safe

ACT 3 — FULL OUT HORROR

Fight to the death:

The victims are being brutally attacked. They are horrified, but must find a way to unite.

Horror Situation: Now that the monster is unconscious he attacks again
Reaction: this time his victims are awake

Hysteria:

Pandemonium ensues as the victims are being slaughtered, one by one.

Horror Situation: The basketball waits frightened in a tree with a weapon he made
Reaction: monster follows the blood trail from his missing arm

Character Death 2: Jazz

Why: Monster has it out for him because he could not kill him on the first try, after Jazz’s bad decision, saving Violet from the monster’s attack, now he is in a tree with a weapon he made.
How: Attempts something that fails (saving violet AND making a weapon to kill the monster) Initially has an arm ripped off and has to deal with it for a while, but the monster follows his blood trail, sniffs the blood, knows he is in a tree and gets his revenge by further dismemberment.

Demand: Why is Angelo never around during the attacks?
Monster Reveal: The victims realize Angelo is behind the attacks

The thrilling escape from death:

The goth boyfriend helps to unite the group in their dreams. They must find a way to wake the main character so the killing stops. Finally the last few survivors are able to wake and wake up the main character. One of the survivors is the quarterback. He is furious with the main character. Though they appear to be safe now that they are all awake, the quarterback beats the main character, knocking him unconscious.

Demand: The characters must find a way to wake up.
Monster Reveal: They do and beat up Angelo until he is unconscious

Horror Situation: The survivors must devise a plan quickly to kill the main character
Reaction: The goth girl tries to save the main character

Death returns to take one or more:

Because the main character is unconscious, he can attack his victims again. But this time the victims are all awake! They work together, deciding to kill the main character while he sleeps so he cannot attack them anymore, but now the entity is protecting Angelo as he sleeps.

Demand: The characters are safe because Angelo is no longer sleeping
Monster Reveal: Angelo being unconscious makes the monster more violent and now he can attack them while they are awake

Horror Situation: Bear attacks monster and Goth Girl tries to help the monster
Reaction: She is inadvertently killed (so we think)

Character Death 5: Trace
Why: Trace is the apparent death. She is infatuated with the monster.
How: Sacrificed – she sacrifices herself to save the monster. Trace tries to stop the bear when he attacks the monster and is inadvertently killed, so we think.

Horror Situation: Goth male attacks the monster out of betrayal.
Reaction: Quarterback seizes the opportunity and kills the main character as he sleeps – it’s over

Character Death 6: Spike
Why: Because he attacks the monster for killing his girlfriend Trace, who we don’t know is not actually dead
How: Betrayed – because the monster killed his girlfriend (so he thinks). Suffers a brutal death as the monster does not stand for being attacked.

Resolution:

Demand: Characters must kill the monster
Monster Reveal: They do and the survivors escape, finding one of the vehicle and fleeing

The surviving victims succeed. They kill the main character and escape as the evil entity is sucked back into the dead main character’s lifeless body.

Demand: As the monster is sucked back into Angelo’s body, it wakes him from death.
Monster Reveal: Angelo wakes from death

As they run to the goth couples’ vehicle to leave this place the evil is all sucked back into the main character… As the survivors flee in the car… the main character OPENS HIS EYES!

Horror Situation: Quarterback, head cheerleader, and main character’s girlfriend run for their lives
Reaction: the entity is slowly sucked back into the the  dead body

Horror Situation: They make it back to their vehicle but can’t get it started
Reaction: The last of the entity seeps into the main character’s dead body and the car starts, they drive away

Horror Situation: The main character’s eyes open!
Reaction: JD writes sequel, LOL

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Monster Reveal Track

What I learned doing this assignment is how is being made of my outline and story as I added the Monster Reveals and is offering me some ideas for scene arrangement.

A. Who is your monster and what is their terror?

Powers?
– Can enter dreams of his victims.
– Howling screams
– Sharp teeth and claws
– The strength to tear his victims to shreds
– Can move from place to place very fast
– Ability to regenerate when injured

Limitations?
– Monster’s distance from its host (Angelo) is limited

Weaknesses
Monster vanishes if host (Angelo) wakes
Monster weakens if host’s (Angelo) experimental meds wear off

Plan/Purpose/Appetite?
– To destroy anyone who bullies or threatens its host (Angelo)

B. Sequence the reveals.
– Discussions with Angelo’s mother and doctor about his meds
– Talk between Angelo’s mother and father about him, meds, doctor
– Talk of a bear mutilating a family at a cabin destination
– Classmates apprehensive about Angelo coming on trip
– Angelo’s step siblings are mutilated (monster unseen)
– Some characters visited by an uneasiness when they fall asleep on the way to the cabins
– The real monsters believed to be a bear when the characters are lost in the woods
– Angelo has tremors in his sleep
– Characters are attacked when they sleep
– Initial kills, while violent, monster is virtually unseen due to its speed
– As the master kills it is seen more
– Monster is attacked by a couple of the characters
– Whenever Angelo wakes the monster disappears suddenly
– When it’s learned Angelo is the host he is attacked and the monster becomes more violent
– Angelo is killed and the monster is sucked back into his body, and when he does, Angelo lives again

C. Create Demand for each clue/reveal.

Demand: Why do classmates not want Angelo to go to the cabins?
Monster Reveal: His siblings were mutilated in their sleep

Demand: Why do Angel’s parents fight about him going. Father is fine with it. Why is his mother not?
Monster Reveal: Angelo’s mother and doctor discuss possible side effects or Angelo’s experimental meds

Demand: Characters are visited in their sleep.
Monster Reveal: Monster can attack them in their dreams.

Demand: Angelo has night tremors.
Monster Reveal: His tremors happen when the monster attacks its victims

Demand: Intrigue… what is the monster, what does it look like?
Monster Reveal: The monster attacks with blazing speed and murders some of its victims virtually unseen

Demand: Why does the monster appear more violent when the bear attacks some of the monster’s victims
Monster Reveal: The monster demands it possesses its victims and needs to be the one who takes the life

Demand: Why is Angelo never around during the attacks?
Monster Reveal: The victims realize Angelo is behind the attacks

Demand: The characters must find a way to wake up.
Monster Reveal: They do and beat up Angelo until he is unconscious

Demand: The characters are safe because Angelo is no longer sleeping
Monster Reveal: Angelo being unconscious makes the monster more violent and now he can attack them while they are awake

Demand: Characters must kill the monster
Monster Reveal: They do and the survivors escape, finding one of the vehicle and fleeing

Demand: As the monster is sucked back into Angelo’s body, it wakes him from death.
Monster Reveal: Angelo wakes from death

D. Updated outline with Monster Reveals (IN GREEN – colors are for me later)

ACT 1 — SET UP FOR HORROR

Atmosphere of Evil established:

Group of classmates talks about going up to isolated cabin area that is closed to the public because a family was killed by a group of bears, all the while, the visuals are of the bear attack on the family, or just of the barren cabin location.

*Alternate Idea: News footage that is a one year anniversary after the family was killed talking about it, possibly a survivor, and discussing the fact the grounds remains closed to the public.

As well there is some chatter about bringing the main character, whose step brother and sister were mysteriously murdered in their sleep.

Horror Situation: Vicious bear attack
Reaction: News reel(s) of vicious bear attack

Horror Situation: Violent deaths of main character’s step brother & sister
Reaction: News reel(s) of their deaths

Horror Situation: Mother and doctor discuss Angelo’s experimental meds
Reaction: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication

Demand: Why do classmates not want Angelo to go to the cabins?
Monster Reveal: His siblings were mutilated in their sleep

Connect with the characters:

Most characters are classmates watching 2 of their friends playing a championship football game. We see the character’s traits and get an idea how they are and may react in horrific situations by how they are with the game and/or each other. Some are friends watching the game, a couple are cheerleaders and 2 are playing the game. A couple are friends of the main clique, so they are kind of outsiders. The main characters is teased.

As well, 2 other characters somewhat unrelated to this group listen in and decide to go to the same abandoned location for the weekend. They are a scary goth couple, frightening to some just to look at.

Horror Situation: Goth couple talk about violence, and what happened at the cabin location
Reaction: Characters are frightened, some reluctant to go on the trip

Demand: Why do Angel’s parents fight about him going. Father is fine with it. Why is his mother not?
Monster Reveal: Angelo’s mother and doctor discuss possible side effects or Angelo’s experimental meds

The characters are warned not to do it:

The more outsider characters, a friend of one of the cheerleaders, the main character, whose the cheerleader’s friend has a crush on, are all apprehensive about going to this place because of what happened. One of the cheerleaders is also apprehensive. The school basketball player agrees with the football players about how cool, fun and exciting the trip will be in the face of possible danger… bears. Again the main characters is teased/taunted. He really does not want to go, but is mostly talked into it by the friend of one of the cheerleaders.

The goth couple are sitting behind those watching the game and talking about their upcoming weekend, and they chime in about the dangers, then discuss amongst themselves how they should go too just to scare the hell of the group of friends… or protect them. They tell the main character they got his back, establishing some type of friendship.

Horror Situation: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication
Reaction: more of the brutal mutilation of his siblings

Denial of Horror:

The football players are all for it, so is the football player. They are all tough guys, so they are not afraid and don’t think anything will happen. As well, one of the cheerleaders has a crush on the quarterback, so she goes along with what he says. Some of them laugh stating the only thing they have to fear is sleeping around the main character because of what happened to his siblings.

Horror Situation: Goth couple startles others, showing weird piercings & implants
Reaction: Characters are more uneasy, frightened about the trip

Safety taken away:

On the three hour drive, a couple of them fall asleep and appear to be visited bu an entity while they sleep. As they get closer to the cabin area they are losing cell phone reception, it is intermittent. Even closer there are signs stating no trespassing, the area is closed to the public. The main characters is taunted again and the girl who likes him stands up for him.

The goth couple travel separately, they could care less about anything going wrong. They are not easily intimidated.

Horror Situation: Entity visits main characters while they sleep on the way to the cabin
Reaction: Those visited are intimidated by the entity, grow worrisome

Demand: Characters are visited in their sleep.
Monster Reveal: Monster can attack them in their dreams.

Monster: The nature of the beast:

The goth girl drives, her boyfriend falls asleep on the way and is visited by the entity. He wakes shaken and frightened, which is way out of character for him. His girlfriend laughs but is also a little excited about the entity her boyfriend dreamt of… maybe even a little jealous.

Horror Situation: Entity visits male goth character on the way to cabin
Reaction: While he is looked, his girlfriend is jealous, she is crazier than him

ACT 2 — THE POINT OF NO RETURN

Isolated / Trapped / Abducted:

As the main group gets closer their vehicle dies. They must make the rest of the trip on foot and sun is on it’s way down. Cell reception is pretty much non-existent. They reach the cabins at dusk, and there’s no turning back now.

It gets late and it’s time for everyone to sleep. Some of them are visited by the entity as they sleep. They wake in a frenzy. The football players tell them it’s nothing to worry about. They all reluctantly go back to sleep.

Horror Situation: Weather takes a bad turn, wind, some rain
Reaction: starting to lose cell reception in an eerie place

Horror Situation: No trespassing/danger signs, warnings to keep out and weather turns to violent thunderstorm
Reaction: Main characters’ vehicle dies in eerie location from motor  getting wet – they must find cabins on foot in the storm

Horror Situation: All cell reception lost – relied on phones for navigation, cannot find the cabins, darkness falls
Reaction: Make lean-to with tarp(s), They must sleep outdoors and search in the morning

Horror Situation: Fear of noises,
Reaction: think it’s bears, they think they are being  hunted

Horror Situation: Goth couple do not see the broken down vehicle
Reaction: They plow into it

Horror Situation: Goth couple’s injuries look bad, they find the others and frighten them from their bloody injuries
Reaction: The others help them, take them in, clean them up

Horror Situation: Through the night some sleeping characters are visited by the entity
Reaction: one of them is killed

Character Death 1: Dina
Why: Because she is the innocent one.
How: By accident by the monster lunging to kill a bear which moves out of the way, the monster and Dina had an affection for each other

Horror Situation: They search the darkness for the cabins
Reaction: Again they think they are being hunted by bears

One of us killed:

The group is again confronted by the entity and one of them is brutally killed in their sleep. This is really happening now. But no signs of anyone or anything entering the cabin.

Horror Situation: the entity attacks all victims in their sleep, they cannot wake, The characters who most taunted the main character suffer brutal deaths
Reaction: The linebacker attempts to fight the entity
Horror Situation: The character thought to be the toughest fights the monster
Reaction: Linebacker is mutilated

Demand: Angelo has night tremors.
Monster Reveal: His tremors happen when the monster attacks its victims

Character Death 2: Bull
Why: Escalates the horror as he is the first character to attack the monster
How: Charges blindly into action and is violently ripped to shreds

Horror Situation: The goth male takes control to make weapons, Got girl doesn’t like the idea because she is smitten with the  entity, and quarterback does not like him taking control and attempt to  stop him
Reaction: The quarterback and head cheerleader are attacked and barely escape; they survive  – for now

Demand: Intrigue… what is the monster, what does it look like?
Monster Reveal: The monster attacks with blazing speed and murders some of its victims virtually unseen

MIDPOINT: The monster is worse than we thought!

Full pursuit by the killer:

The monster is the main character. His experimental meds turn him into a psychotic killer who attacks his victims in their dreams. Now the group of them are all in the same dream and fighting to survive as they realize who it is that’s attacking them.

Horror Situation: The other cheerleader is hysterical – runs and hides outside,
Reaction: she is found by the basketball player, she is being attacked and almost dead

Horror Situation: The basketball player attempt to save her, drags her back to  cabin
Reaction They are both attacked in the attempt and the girl is dismembered in front of him

Character Death 1: Violet
Why: Because we think she escaped the monster by running, then saved by Jazz, brought to safety, so we think
How: Escape attempt takes her into it, and she is slaughtered by the monster

Horror Situation: Basketball player manages to escape back to cabin, pleads to  be let in
Reaction: They open the door and one of his arms is ripped off by the entity as he gets inside

Horror Situation: The girl who likes the main character is confronted and realizes who he is
Reaction: she warns the others

Demand: Why does the monster appear more violent when the bear attacks some of the monster’s victims
Monster Reveal: The monster demands it possesses its victims and needs to be the one who takes the life

Terrorized:

The killer wages a brutal assault on the classmates who had taunted him. They are hunted in their dreams while the others are terrorized but trying to stop it from happening. They cannot wake.

Horror Situation: They fight to wake
Reaction: They do, the quarterback wakes the main character and beats the hell out of him rendering him unconscious… They think they are safe

ACT 3 — FULL OUT HORROR

Fight to the death:

The victims are being brutally attacked. They are horrified, but must find a way to unite.

Horror Situation: Now that the monster is unconscious he attacks again
Reaction: this time his victims are awake

Hysteria:

Pandemonium ensues as the victims are being slaughtered, one by one.

Horror Situation: The basketball waits frightened in a tree with a weapon he made
Reaction: monster follows the blood trail from his missing arm

Character Death 2: Jazz

Why: Monster has it out for him because he could not kill him on the first try, after Jazz’s bad decision, saving Violet from the monster’s attack, now he is in a tree with a weapon he made.
How: Attempts something that fails (saving violet AND making a weapon to kill the monster) Initially has an arm ripped off and has to deal with it for a while, but the monster follows his blood trail, sniffs the blood, knows he is in a tree and gets his revenge by further dismemberment.

Demand: Why is Angelo never around during the attacks?
Monster Reveal: The victims realize Angelo is behind the attacks

The thrilling escape from death:

The goth boyfriend helps to unite the group in their dreams. They must find a way to wake the main character so the killing stops. Finally the last few survivors are able to wake and wake up the main character. One of the survivors is the quarterback. He is furious with the main character. Though they appear to be safe now that they are all awake, the quarterback beats the main character, knocking him unconscious.

Demand: The characters must find a way to wake up.
Monster Reveal: They do and beat up Angelo until he is unconscious

Horror Situation: The survivors must devise a plan quickly to kill the main character
Reaction: The goth girl tries to save the main character

Death returns to take one or more:

Because the main character is unconscious, he can attack his victims again. But this time the victims are all awake! They work together, deciding to kill the main character while he sleeps so he cannot attack them anymore.

Demand: The characters are safe because Angelo is no longer sleeping
Monster Reveal: Angelo being unconscious makes the monster more violent and now he can attack them while they are awake

Horror Situation: Bear attacks monster and Goth Girl tries to help the monster
Reaction: She is inadvertently killed (so we think)

Character Death 5: Trace
Why: Trace is the apparent death. She is infatuated with the monster.
How: Sacrificed – she sacrifices herself to save the monster. Trace tries to stop the bear when he attacks the monster and is inadvertently killed, so we think.

Horror Situation: Goth male attacks the monster out of betrayal.
Reaction: Quarterback seizes the opportunity and kills the main character as he sleeps – it’s over

Character Death 6: Spike
Why: Because he attacks the monster for killing his girlfriend Trace, who we don’t know is not actually dead
How: Betrayed – because the monster killed his girlfriend (so he thinks). Suffers a brutal death as the monster does not stand for being attacked.

Resolution:

Demand: Characters must kill the monster
Monster Reveal: They do and the survivors escape, finding one of the vehicle and fleeing

The surviving victims succeed. They kill the main character and escape as the evil entity is sucked back into the dead main character’s lifeless body.

Demand: As the monster is sucked back into Angelo’s body, it wakes him from death.
Monster Reveal: Angelo wakes from death

As they run to the goth couples’ vehicle to leave this place the evil is all sucked back into the main character… As the survivors flee in the car… the main character OPENS HIS EYES!

Horror Situation: Quarterback, head cheerleader, and main character’s girlfriend run for their lives
Reaction: the entity is slowly sucked back into the the  dead body

Horror Situation: They make it back to their vehicle but can’t get it started
Reaction: The last of the entity seeps into the main character’s dead body and the car starts, they drive away

Horror Situation: The main character’s eyes open!
Reaction: JD writes sequel, LOL

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Character Death Track

What I learned doing this assignment is, while strange to write about, how there can be a flow to writing about killing and death, almost like a dance. Even made some side-notes for myself about possible changes. There are so many ways this can go, lol.

Characters’ Order of Death:

Jeff, Candace and Trace survive

First to die: Dina
– She is the innocent one and in love with Angelo, the main character and monster
– Visited by the monster, he does not harm her
– she is attacked by a bear
– Monster attacks bear
– At last attack the bear moves out of the way
– Monster ends up killing innocent girl by accident

Middle Deaths: Bull, Violet, Jazz, Spike
– Bull is so gung-ho he attacks the monster is is killed
– After being saved by Jazz, Violet is slaughtered
– Jazz had arm ripped off, monster smells the blood
– Monster finds and kills jazz
– Goth Male attacks the monster because it killed his GF
– Goth Male dies brutally

*Apparent death: Trace
– Goth girl is killed, bear attacks monster
– She comes back in the end

Survivors are Jeff, Candace, and Trace*

****************************************

Character Death 1: Dina

Why: Because she is the innocent one.

How: By accident by the monster lunging to kill a bear which moves out of the way, the monster and Dina had an affection for each other

Character Death 2: Bull

Why: Escalates the horror as he is the first character to attack the monster

How: Charges blindly into action and is violently ripped to shreds

Character Death 3: Violet

Why: Because we think she escaped the monster by running, then saved by Jazz, brought to safety, so we think

How: Escape attempt takes her into it, and she is slaughtered by the monster

Character Death 4: Jazz

Why: Monster has it out for him because he could not kill him on the first try, after Jazz’s bad decision, saving Violet from the monster’s attack, now he is in a tree with a weapon he made.

How: Attempts something that fails (saving violet AND making a weapon to kill the monster) Initially has an arm ripped off and has to deal with it for a while, but the monster follows his blood trail, sniffs the blood, knows he is in a tree and gets his revenge by further dismemberment.

Character Death 5: Trace

Why: Trace is the apparent death. She is infatuated with the monster.

How: Sacrificed – she sacrifices herself to save the monster. Trace tries to stop the bear when he attacks the monster and is inadvertently killed, so we think.

Character Death 6: Spike

Why: Because he attacks the monster for killing his girlfriend Trace, who we don’t know is not actually dead

How: Betrayed – because the monster killed his girlfriend (so he thinks). Suffers a brutal death as the monster does not stand for being attacked.

***********************************

Character deaths built into my outline:

ACT 1 — SET UP FOR HORROR

Atmosphere of Evil established:

Group of classmates talks about going up to isolated cabin area that is closed to the public because a family was killed by a group of bears, all the while, the visuals are of the bear attack on the family, or just of the barren cabin location.

*Alternate Idea: News footage that is a one year anniversary after the family was killed talking about it, possibly a survivor, and discussing the fact the grounds remains closed to the public.

As well there is some chatter about bringing the main character, whose step brother and sister were mysteriously murdered in their sleep.

Horror Situation: Vicious bear attack
Horror Situation: News reel(s) of vicious bear attack
Horror Situation: Violent deaths of main character’s step brother & sister
Horror Situation: News reel(s) of their deaths
Horror Situation: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication

Reaction: These are really part of the opener

Connect with the characters:

Most characters are classmates watching 2 of their friends playing a championship football game. We see the character’s traits and get an idea how they are and may react in horrific situations by how they are with the game and/or each other. Some are friends watching the game, a couple are cheerleaders and 2 are playing the game. A couple are friends of the main clique, so they are kind of outsiders. The main characters is teased.

As well, 2 other characters somewhat unrelated to this group listen in and decide to go to the same abandoned location for the weekend. They are a scary goth couple, frightening to some just to look at.

Horror Situation: Goth couple talk about violence, and what happened at the cabin location

Reaction: Characters are frightened, some reluctant to go on the trip

The characters are warned not to do it:

The more outsider characters, a friend of one of the cheerleaders, the main character, whose the cheerleader’s friend has a crush on, are all apprehensive about going to this place because of what happened. One of the cheerleaders is also apprehensive. The school basketball player agrees with the football players about how cool, fun and exciting the trip will be in the face of possible danger… bears. Again the main characters is teased/taunted. He really does not want to go, but is mostly talked into it by the friend of one of the cheerleaders.

The goth couple are sitting behind those watching the game and talking about their upcoming weekend, and they chime in about the dangers, then discuss amongst themselves how they should go too just to scare the hell of the group of friends… or protect them. They tell the main character they got his back, establishing some type of friendship.

Horror Situation: Glimpses into horrific side effects of main character’s reaction to experimental medication

Reaction: more of the brutal mutilation of his siblings

Denial of Horror:

The football players are all for it, so is the BASKETBALL player. They are all tough guys, so they are not afraid and don’t think anything will happen. As well, one of the cheerleaders has a crush on the quarterback, so she goes along with what he says. Some of them laugh stating the only thing they have to fear is sleeping around the main character because of what happened to his siblings.

Horror Situation: Goth couple startles others, showing weird piercings & implants

Reaction: Characters are more uneasy, frightened about the trip

Safety taken away:

On the three hour drive, a couple of them fall asleep and appear to be visited by an entity while they sleep. As they get closer to the cabin area they are losing cell phone reception, it is intermittent. Even closer there are signs stating no trespassing, the area is closed to the public. The main characters is taunted again and the girl who likes him stands up for him.

The goth couple travel separately, they could care less about anything going wrong. They are not easily intimidated.

Horror Situation: Entity visits main characters while they sleep on the way to the cabin

Reaction: Those visited are intimidated by the entity, grow worrisome

Monster: The nature of the beast:

The goth girl drives, her boyfriend falls asleep on the way and is visited by the entity. He wakes shaken and frightened, which is way out of character for him. His girlfriend laughs but is also a little excited about the entity her boyfriend dreamt of… maybe even a little jealous.

Horror Situation: Entity visits male goth character on the way to cabin

Reaction: While he is looked, his girlfriend is jealous, she is crazier than him

ACT 2 — THE POINT OF NO RETURN

Isolated / Trapped / Abducted:

As the main group gets closer their vehicle dies. They must make the rest of the trip on foot and sun is on it’s way down. Cell reception is pretty much non-existent. They reach the cabins at dusk, and there’s no turning back now.

It gets late and it’s time for everyone to sleep. Some of them are visited by the entity as they sleep. They wake in a frenzy. The football players tell them it’s nothing to worry about. They all reluctantly go back to sleep.

Horror Situation: Weather takes a bad turn, wind, some rain

Reaction: starting to lose cell reception in an eerie place

Horror Situation: No trespassing/danger signs, warnings to keep out and weather turns to violent thunderstorm

Reaction: Main characters’ vehicle dies in eerie location from motor  getting wet – they must find cabins on foot in the storm

Horror Situation: All cell reception lost – relied on phones for navigation, cannot find the cabins, darkness falls

Reaction: Make lean-to with tarp(s), They must sleep outdoors and search in the morning

Horror Situation: Fear of noises,

Reaction: think it’s bears, they think they are being  hunted

Horror Situation: Goth couple do not see the broken down vehicle

Reaction: They plow into it

Horror Situation: Goth couple’s injuries look bad, they find the others and frighten them from their bloody injuries

Reaction: The others help them, take them in, clean them up

Horror Situation: Through the night some sleeping characters are visited by the entity

Reaction: one of them is killed

Character Death 1: Dina

Why: Because she is the innocent one.

How: By accident by the monster lunging to kill a bear which moves out of the way, the monster and Dina had an affection for each other

Horror Situation: They search the darkness for the cabins

Reaction: Again they think they are being hunted by bears

One of us killed:

The group is again confronted by the entity and one of them is brutally killed in their sleep. This is really happening now. But no signs of anyone or anything entering the cabin.

Horror Situation: the entity attacks all victims in their sleep, they cannot wake, The characters who most taunted the main character suffer  brutal deaths

Reaction: The linebacker attempts to fight the entity

Horror Situation: Linebacker is mutilated

Character Death 2: Bull

Why: Escalates the horror as he is the first character to attack the monster

How: Charges blindly into action and is violently ripped to shreds

Reaction: The goth male takes control to make weapons, Got girl doesn’t like the idea because she is smitten with the  entity, and quarterback does not like him taking control and attempt to  stop him

Horror Situation: The quarterback and head cheerleader are attacked

Reaction: they barely escape, they survive  – for now

MIDPOINT: The monster is worse than we thought!

Full pursuit by the killer:

The monster is the main character. His experimental meds turn him into a psychotic killer who attacks his victims in their dreams. Now the group of them are all in the same dream and fighting to survive as they realize who it is that’s attacking them.

Horror Situation: The other cheerleader is hysterical – runs and hides outside,

Reaction: she is found by the basketball player, she is being attacked and almost dead

Reaction: The basketball player attempt to save her, drags her back to  cabin

Horror Situation: They are both attacked in the attempt and the girl is  dismembered in front of him

Character Death 1: Violet

Why: Because we think she escaped the monster by running, then saved by Jazz, brought to safety, so we think

How: Escape attempt takes her into it, and she is slaughtered by the monster

Reaction: Basketball player manages to escape back to cabin, pleads to  be let in

Horror Situation: They open the door and one of his arms is ripped off by the  entity as he gets inside

Reaction: The girl who likes the main character is confronted and  realizes who he is, she warns the others

Terrorized:

The killer wages a brutal assault on the classmates who had taunted him. They are hunted in their dreams while the others are terrorized but trying to stop it from happening. They cannot wake.

Horror Situation: They fight to wake

Reaction: They do, the quarterback wakes the main character and beats  the hell out of him rendering him unconscious… They think they are safe

ACT 3 — FULL OUT HORROR

Fight to the death:

The victims are being brutally attacked. They are horrified, but must find a way to unite.

Horror Situation: Now that the monster is unconscious he attacks again

Reaction: this time his victims are awake

Hysteria:

Pandemonium ensues as the victims are being slaughtered, one by one.

Horror Situation: The basketball waits frightened in a tree with a weapon he made

Reaction: monster follows the blood trail from his missing arm

Character Death 2: Jazz

Why: Monster has it out for him because he could not kill him on the first try, after Jazz’s bad decision, saving Violet from the monster’s attack, now he is in a tree with a weapon he made.

How: Attempts something that fails (saving violet AND making a weapon to kill the monster) Initially has an arm ripped off and has to deal with it for a while, but the monster follows his blood trail, sniffs the blood, knows he is in a tree and gets his revenge by further dismemberment.

The thrilling escape from death:

The goth boyfriend helps to unite the group in their dreams. They must find a way to wake the main character so the killing stops. Finally the last few survivors are able to wake and wake up the main character. One of the survivors is the quarterback. He is furious with the main character. Though they appear to be safe now that they are all awake, the quarterback beats the main character, knocking him unconscious.

Horror Situation: The survivors must devise a plan quickly to kill the main character

Reaction: The goth girl tries to save the main character

Death returns to take one or more:

Because the main character is unconscious, he can attack his victims again. But this time the victims are all awake! They work together, deciding to kill the main character while he sleeps so he cannot attack them anymore.

Horror Situation: Bear attacks monster and Goth Girl tries to help the monster

Reaction: She is inadvertently killed (so we think)

Character Death 5: Trace

Why: Trace is the apparent death. She is infatuated with the monster.

How: Sacrificed – she sacrifices herself to save the monster. Trace tries to stop the bear when he attacks the monster and is inadvertently killed, so we think.

Horror Situation: Goth male attacks the monster out of betrayal.

Character Death 6: Spike

Why: Because he attacks the monster for killing his girlfriend Trace, who we don’t know is not actually dead

How: Betrayed – because the monster killed his girlfriend (so he thinks). Suffers a brutal death as the monster does not stand for being attacked.

Reaction: Quarterback seizes the opportunity and kills the main character as he sleeps – it’s over

Resolution:

The surviving victims succeed. They kill the main character and escape as the evil entity is sucked back into the dead main character’s lifeless body.

As they run to the goth couples’ vehicle to leave this place the evil is all sucked back into the main character… As the survivors flee in the car… the main character OPENS HIS EYES!

Horror Situation: Quarterback, head cheerleader, and main character’s girlfriend run for their lives

Reaction: the entity is slowly sucked back into the the  dead body

Horror Situation: They make it back to their vehicle but can’t get it started

Reaction: The last of the entity seeps into the main character’s dead body and the car starts, they drive away

Horror Situation: The main character’s eyes open!

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Horror Plot
What I learned doing this assignment is how simply filling in the blanks of the Plot Track has unfolded to what feels like a pretty solid plot as far as the main monster and killing goes, but still brainstorming more on the storyline of the experimental meds and main character & his family. Need to work that in.
ACT 1 — SET UP FOR HORROR
Atmosphere of Evil established:
Group of classmates talks about going up to isolated cabin area that is closed to the public because a family was killed by a group of bears, all the while, the visuals are of the bear attack on the family, or just of the barren cabin location.
*Alternate Idea: News footage that is a one year anniversary after the family was killed talking about it, possibly a survivor, and discussing the fact the grounds remains closed to the public.
As well there is some chatter about bringing the main character, whose step brother and sister were mysteriously murdered in their sleep.
Connect with the characters:
Most characters are classmates watching 2 of their friends playing a championship football game. We see the character’s traits and get an idea how they are and may react in horrific situations by how they are with the game and/or each other. Some are friends watching the game, a couple are cheerleaders and 2 are playing the game. A couple are friends of the main clique, so they are kind of outsiders. The main characters is teased.
As well, 2 other characters somewhat unrelated to this group listen in and decide to go to the same abandoned location for the weekend. They are a scary goth couple, frightening to some just to look at.
The characters are warned not to do it:
The more outsider characters, a friend of one of the cheerleaders, the main character, whose the cheerleader’s friend has a crush on, are all apprehensive about going to this place because of what happened. One of the cheerleaders is also apprehensive. The school basketball player agrees with the football players about how cool, fun and exciting the trip will be in the face of possible danger… bears. Again the main characters is teased/taunted. He really does not want to go, but is mostly talked into it by the friend of one of the cheerleaders.
The goth couple are sitting behind those watching the game and talking about their upcoming weekend, and they chime in about the dangers, then discuss amongst themselves how they should go too just to scare the hell of the group of friends… or protect them. They tell the main character they got his back, establishing some type of friendship.
Denial of Horror:
The football players are all for it, so is the football player. They are all tough guys, so they are not afraid and don’t think anything will happen. As well, one of the cheerleaders has a crush on the quarterback, so she goes along with what he says. Some of them laugh stating the only thing they have to fear is sleeping around the main character because of what happened to his siblings.
Safety taken away:
On the three hour drive, a couple of them fall asleep and appear to be visited by an entity while they sleep. As they get closer to the cabin area they are losing cell phone reception, it is intermittent. Even closer there are signs stating no trespassing, the area is closed to the public. The main characters is taunted again and the girl who likes him stands up for him.
The goth couple travel separately, they could care less about anything going wrong. They are not easily intimidated.
Monster: The nature of the beast:
The goth girl drives, her boyfriend falls asleep on the way and is visited by the entity. He wakes shaken and frightened, which is way out of character for him. His girlfriend laughs but is also a little excited about the entity her boyfriend dreamt of… maybe even a little jealous.
ACT 2 — THE POINT OF NO RETURN
Isolated / Trapped / Abducted:
As the main group gets closer their vehicle dies. They must make the rest of the trip on foot and sun is on it’s way down. Cell reception is pretty much non-existent. They reach the cabins at dusk, and there’s no turning back now.
It gets late and it’s time for everyone to sleep. Some of them are visited by the entity as they sleep. They wake in a frenzy. The football players tell them it’s nothing to worry about. They all reluctantly go back to sleep.
One of us killed:
The group is again confronted by the entity and one of them is brutally killed in their sleep. This is really happening now. But no signs of anyone or anything entering the cabin.
They realize another cabin is inhabited, to find it’s the goth couple. The group blames them for what happened.
MIDPOINT: The monster is worse than we thought!
Full pursuit by the killer:
The monster is the main character. His experimental meds turn him into a psychotic killer who attacks his victims in their dreams. Now the group of them are all in the same dream and fighting to survive as they realize who it is that’s attacking them.
Terrorized:
The killer wages a brutal assault on the classmates who had taunted him. They are hunted in their dreams while the others are terrorized but trying to stop it from happening. They cannot wake.
ACT 3 — FULL OUT HORROR
Fight to the death:
The victims are being brutally attacked. They are horrified, but must find a way to unite.

Hysteria:
Pandemonium ensues as the victims are being slaughtered, one by one.
The thrilling escape from death:
The goth boyfriend helps to unite the group in their dreams. They must find a way to wake the main character so the killing stops. Finally the last few survivors are able to wake and wake up the main character. One of the survivors is the linebacker. He is furious with the main character. Though they appear to be safe now that they are all awake, the linebacker beats the main character, knocking him unconscious.
Death returns to take one or more:
Because the main character is unconscious, he can attack his victims again. But this time the victims are all awake! They work together, deciding to kill the main character while he sleeps so he cannot attack them anymore.
Resolution:
The surviving victims succeed. They kill the main character and escape as the evil entity is sucked back into the dead main character’s lifeless body.
As they run to the goth couples’ vehicle to leave this place the evil is all sucked back into the main character… As the survivors flee in the car… the main character OPENS HIS EYES!

[JD Oppen]

JDs Characters for Horror

What I learned doing this assignment is… how real of a group of classmates my group feels after creating them utilizing the universal characters list.

Concept: High school introvert on experimental meds for anxiety that unleash an evil entity from the character which terrorizes his bullies (classmates) in their dreams.

Group chosen: Social group / classmates

Dying Pattern: 6 to 8 characters are killed off one by one with only a couple survivors.

Character Identities:

ANGELO (*monster host): An introvert who is teased a lot and new experimental anti anxiety meds turn him into a monster who kills his bullies.
CANDACE: Complainer – cheerleader, cell phone junkie, always texting, oblivious but with the help of Jeff she survives
VIOLET: Complainer – approval seeker, Candace wannabe, and just as susceptible
DINA: Moral One – not a cheerleader, Angelo’s neighbor, always sticks up for him, but she’s the first to die, it’s an accident, and the monster is more furious because of it
JAZZ: Rescuer – school basketball captain, cocky but set straight by the monster, dies
JEFF: Leader – school football quarterback, smart about the situation and survives along with Candace
BULL: Out Of Control – roughian, school football linebacker, sarcastic, thinks he’s tough, bit no match for the monster, dies
SPIKE: Rescuer – Tracey’s BF, goth, will do anything to save Tracey, but no much for the monster, dies
TRACEY: Out Of Control – Spike’s GF, she’s actually turned on by the monster, but she dies

[JD Oppen]

JD’s Terrifying Monster

What I learned doing this assignment is… there are no limits to what the monster we create can do; We get to control it.

Monster: It spawns from its host Angelo and attacks those who bully him, it’s his opposite, he’s an introvert taking experimental anxiety meds that have ‘created a monster’

Give us a few sentences for each of the following for your monster:

• Their Terror: Very violent, this monster stops at nothing to rid the host of bullies.
It’s a mist so floats around but it’s fast. While characters can be isolated in their dreams, it can attack more than just one person at once. The master rips people apart, slashes them, bites them, throws them. It slices them open and dismembers them. It’s fast, it’s hard to see, and it can penetrate people.

• Their Mystery: What is it? Who is it, or who is causing it? Why or how does it attack its victims in their dreams. How does it break free to attack in the real world?

• Their Fear Provoking Appearance: a black mist that floats, moves at high speed, Ironic that is has sharp teeth and claws

• Their Rules: The monster has no rules. Stops at nothing. Cannot be overcome. It will tear apart anyone who has bullied its host. Nothing is a match, not even an angry Grizzly bear. It has the ability to attack its dreaming prey. Eventually, it has the power to attack them while they are awake.

• Their Mythology: the monster and its host are one! The host is Angelo and the monster spawns from his experimental anxiety meds. Angelo is a quiet, mild mannered introvert, but the monster within annihilates those who bully him.

[JD Oppen]

Wicked Angel: Screaming In The Night – Horror Conventions

What I learned doing this assignment is…to look at a similar movie flow and brainstorm ways to elevate what’s already been done.

Conventions:
• Title / Concept: Cabin Fever / college students rent a cabin in the woods and are victims to an unknown flesh-eating disease.
• Terrorize The Characters: flesh-eating disease, visitors, workers nearby, dogs
• Isolation: cabin/woods
• Death: flesh-eating disease, dog attack
• Monster/Villain: flesh-eating disease
• High Tension: fear of the disease, other characters who visit the area or work nearby, dogs
• Departure from Reality: maybe not the biggest departure from things that happen today, but dog attacks, especially eating people, and killing people because they have the disease
• Moral Statement: treat others with respect/dignity

What made this movie a great horror film?
I think the concept itself makes it great film, plus it’s filled with the expected horror elements.

Conventions for MY story:
• Concept: High school student on experimental meds for anxiety that unleash an evil entity from the character which terrorizes its victims in their dreams
• Terrorize The Characters: Characters are attacked in their dreams
• Isolation: Group of students travel to a closed cabin resort on the first day of summer vacation; They are visited by the monster in their dreams
• Death: characters are ripped open, sliced apart, gutted, dismembered, bitten into; The monster even tears apart a grizzly bear
• Monster/Villain: Monster is a black mist-like energy with long claws and razor sharp teeth
• High Tension: monster visits in dreams, no cell reception, car crash, distant sounds in the woods, snakes/snake bite, and evil entity gets stronger with every kill – eventually can kill characters when they are awake,
• Departure from Reality: characters being being conscious in their dreams, and attacked and killed in them, fighting with an entity, being torn apart when they are already dead
• Moral Statement: don’t bully

[JD Oppen]

JD

I agree to the terms of this release form.

GROUP RELEASE FORM
As a member of this group, I agree to the following:
1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.
2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.
I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.
3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.
4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.
5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.
6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.
This completes the Group Release Form for the class.

[JD Oppen]

Hi all, JD here. Great to be here, again. Yes, I had taken the horror writing class before. I primarily write comedy and so my horror script was on the back burner and taking the class again will give me the push to get back to this one and I have plans to franchise. I am an optioned screenwriter and have written around 15 or so scripts. My optioned script is one I wrote during a previous course here at SU. SU has been stellar to my journey as a writer. As for something unique, special, strange or unusual about me… where do I begin, LOL. I toured and recorded as lead guitarist and vocalist with a popular 80s indie power-metal band, for over a decade. Other than that I mix and master music for bands and mix film sound – member of MPSE – Motion Picture Sound Editors (LA). Okay, gotta run. I have lots of people to kill… IN MY ASSIGNMENTS of course, HAHAHHAA. All the best to you all with this class. Cheers! JD

[JD Oppen]

1. JD

2. Many

3. Another good script!

4. I have a beard now, LOL.

[JD Oppen]

1. JD

2. I agree to the terms of this release form.

3. GROUP RELEASE FORM

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.

[JD Oppen]

1. JD

2. I agree to the terms of this release form.

3 GROUP RELEASE FORM

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.