[C Holmes]

ASSIGNMENT 1:

Watch the next episode of your Example Show (The Diplomat) and focus on the mysteries that have been created in that show. Also, notice the difference between the big picture mysteries that are a big part of the plot across the entire season versus the smaller mysteries.

Tell us about the mysteries from this show.

The biggest mystery is why at the last minute is The Diplomat sent to Britain to be an Ambassador when she was supposed to go to Kabul. She finds out that they are prepping her to be the new Vice President.

The other mysteries are why her husband keeps setting up various inappropriate contacts politically when she does not want him to, and which is the reason she wants to divorce him. There past life of diplomatic work includes many examples of issues in this domain. Simultaneously she has to help solve the problem that Britain has when one of their war ships in the Gulf is blown up. The various political players in this drama also have their own mysteries and agendas so there is a lot going on in the area of mystery.

Subject line: C A Holmes Eddie gives his worst enemy his Estate even as he is ready for more success and then he dies mysteriously.What I learned doing this assignment is that there are so many mysteries in this story even I want to know why and how these mysteries occurred, so that makes it easier to write.

ASSIGNMENT 2:

Create two mysteries for your show — one that shows up strong in the Pilot and the other that is revealed over time.

1. Create your Shocking Event Mystery and tell us the WWWWW and H, along with the part withheld.

A. Shocking Event: The death or murder of Eddie
B. Secret: He has given his worst enemy his entire literary and financial estate. Why?
C. Investigation: The entire show is an investigation of Eddies enemies and why this happened.
Who: Eddie and His Enemies
What: Why give them the estate?
When: the moment he dies this happens.
Where: East Coast, United States.
Why: That is the big mystery
How: Mariah gives this enemy his papers, not knowing that he will betray her
Part Withheld: who are all the other people behind him and why does it take everyone else so long to even understand what has happened to Eddie.

2. Create the Over Time Mystery and tell the WWWWW and H, along with the part withheld.

A. Cover up: Why it was the estate given to an enemy
B. Secret: The jealousy of the enemy and another woman who also is an enemy
C. Reveals: The two of them are in cahoots and have ruined Eddies life and his estate for those who truly loved him
Who: Eddie and his family
What: have to search to learn who the enemies are
When: following Eddies death
Where: Up and down the East Coast of the USA
Why: for money and fame and to steal Eddie’s place
How: Through lies, trickery, illusion, and even occult black magic
Part Withheld: Why he did this? Total Jealousy

4. Answer the question, “What I learned doing this assignment is that there are so many mysteries in this show even I want to know why all this is happening” and put it at the top of your work.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes Module 1 Lesson 7 Show Empathy/Distress

What I learned from this assignment is that the big picture Empathy/Distress situations seem to repeat for main characters. Detail oriented empathy can be small issues or even humorous events which challenge them as a person.

For example, Kate in The Diplomat does not want to leave her post in Kabul or end up being with her husband in her own work, as she plans to divorce, but when she is transferred to London and he follows he manipulates everyone and everything knowing she is being vetted for the VP post, so everything she does not want or enjoy about diplomacy becomes a task she must overcome.

She is posted with her husband in London and thinks it’s just a vanity post
She is shadowed by her husband who lies and manipulates her every stop of the way
Plot intrudes on her life when a war ship creates this whole scenario
Moral Dilemma: when she goes back to DC on a secret mission she finds out that her old friends she had in Kabul are under attack, or tortured or dead or unable to help the people of Afghanistan. Meanwhile she has this plum post which she does not even want.
She is forced to contact old colleagues to get intel or to find info to foil those in power who are just playing games with peoples lives, or just waddling around in ego land while she wants to actually do something of value to help people. She also dresses all wrong for the post but when she dresses “right” her costumes all get ruined because she drops food on them and it makes her look insane.

OR

For example, Eddie in The Crux wants to be a great writer but instead ends up going into the military when his foster father throws him out without a penny.

Eddie gets posted and sees the world, which he uses later for characters and situations in his writing. He not really a fighting man, he just wants to be a writer and considers it his only gift though actually there are many things that he is good at.
He always has conflict with those in authority because they don’t like the fact he asks questions instead of just obeying orders.
When he gets into West Point, his fellow students try to support his writing life and he publishes his first book, but it’s a dismal failure and he is poverty stricken once again.
He starts to live with Mariah and Ginny but they hardly have enough to feed themselves. He wants independence but instead becomes a couch surfer.
He wins a writing contest but doesn’t even have clothes enough to receive the award. He is sort of a social pariah against his will, because he would like to be accepted and viewed well in society, but every where he turns people reject him because he is not really from the same class or social status.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes, Depth of Emotions, What I learned is how the mask covers vulnerability.

Module 1 Lesson 5 Depth of Emotions “The two main character’s emotional states do not mirror or even have anything to do with each other, they are not responding to each others emotions but to their own deep emotional needs?”

C A Holmes THE CRUX Character Emotions Eddies terror that Ginny is dying, Ginny’s surrender because she now knows she is dying.

ASSIGNMENT 1: Example Show I decided to do the diplomat because I was getting so tired of the senseless violence in Breaking Bad, besides the Diplomat is what made me realize I wanted to do a binge worthy TV series. The Diplomat is a sophisticated group of people, more fun for me to watch after too many drug cartel moments.

ASSIGNMENT 1: The Diplomat

1. Emotional Profile for Kate Wyler:

A. Situational: Hope / Fear Kate first time diplomate hopes to do good by the people of Afghanistan who she has helped before. Fear: That her husband Hal will manipulate and lie to her, as always. She loves him, but can never trust him.
B. Motivation: Want to help others in the world less fortunate, to make a difference / Need: safety in relationships, to trust and be trusted, someone she can tell the truth to, who will be just as honest back to her
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion: anger at Hal / Public Mask: serious and responsible diplomacy, pretending a semblance of order
D. Weaknesses: she is unable to get rid of, or let go of Hal, but when ever he is close to her, drama lies and manipulations ensue
E. Triggers: Hal being in danger
F. Coping Mechanism: She tries to separate her work from him, to not include him in her work at all if she can manage it.

Emotional Profile for Hal Wyler

A. Situational: Hope / Fear, The most powerful role he can play is his hope. Fear: that he will lose Kate.
B. Motivation: Want / Need, He wants to be president, VP or Secretary of State, give speeches, be admired in the public eye, be the smartest guy in the room. He needs Kate sexually and in every other way as a relationship, to be at his side, so he tries to do that for her.
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion / Public Mask, Ambitious Chaos, with the Public Mask of a superhero
D. Weaknesses: Lies, Manipulates, endangers others, plays the hero while other people are killed and their lives destroyed because he isn’t wise enough to notice the course of his actions will do these things as well
E. Triggers: He instinctively knows power when he sees it and gravitates to whomever he thinks has it, and then manipulates the situation to his advantage.
F. Coping Mechanism Manners, good looks, being what someone wants him to be until it does not fit with his idea of himself and it all goes to the wayside. He may be one of the smartest guys in the room, but he does not have deep emotional intelligence.<div>

Emotional Profile for Austin the Foreign Secretary

Situational: Hope / Fear He hopes to keep the country safe, he fears the Prime Minister will do something to endanger everyone.
B. Motivation: Want / Need He wanted to be Prime Minister, but he needs to learn how to fight against people who are manipulative, greedy, irrational, and maybe corrupt.
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion / Public Mask He is angry when people are not on the up and up, but does not know what to do about it, his public mask is integrity and dignity and a bit of an intellectual good guy.
D. Weaknesses: he is compassionate which is not a weakness at all, but can also be manipulated by a needy woman. He is an earnest knight in shining armor, with no street smarts.
E. Triggers: Authority he tries to obey, but does not know what to do when the person in authority is corrupt.
F. Coping Mechanism: politeness, patience, rules of order

ASSIGNMENT 2: MY Show

1. Emotional Profile for Eddie:

A. Situational: Hope / Fear Eddie hopes to be the greatest American Writer, He fears he will remain poor, lose Ginny, and never be known or able to share his genius
B. Motivation: Want / Need He wants fame and fortune, but needs love
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion / Public Mask, He is angry, snippy, jealous but his public Mask is that he is a southern gentleman
D. Weaknesses Alcohol
E. Triggers Feelings of loss, or being put down
F. Coping Mechanism: He writes and pretends he is in another world.

2. Emotional Profile for Ginny:

A. Situational: Hope / Fear Hopes to be a good wife and be creative like her husband is, fear is that she will die and never get to do any of it
B. Motivation: Want / Need She wants to love, but needs to be loved
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion / Public Mask, She is almost like a child so she behaves like one sometimes, her public mask is of a recluse
D. Weaknesses in denial about her Illness
E. Triggers goes into another world when Eddie tells her stories, she can then believe anything
F. Coping Mechanism: hiding, being quiet, being shy

3. Emotional Profile for Mariah:

A. Situational: Hope / Fear Hopes to be a good mother and mother in law. Fear she will not be able to protect the people she loves
B. Motivation: Want / Need She wants to useful but needs to be in control
C. Mask: Base Negative Emotion / Public Mask, She is almost like a slave to those she loves, Public Mask is that she is the Matriarch
D. Weaknesses does not really have a life of her own without taking care of someone, she is kind of at a loss when she is not in that caretaking position
E. Triggers: when anyone is ill or needs help she steps in and gives her very best
F. Coping Mechanism: cleaning everything they own

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[C Holmes]

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[C Holmes]

C A Holmes, Layers of Character Intrigue, Module 1, Lesson 4

What I learned by doing this assignment is that everyone is mysterious and secretive.

ASSIGNMENT 1:

1. Think about your Example Show. Make a list of the places you’ve already seen Character Intrigue in the previous episodes. Each program of breaking bad is like sinking into a lower and lower level of hell, meanwhile Walter and Jessie have to pretend everything is normal. Geal is murdered and they are about to be executed themselves but become very valuable again by selling their abilities as chemistry geniuses in order just to defend themselves. The other guy who was going to take over their jobs is killed right in front of them, their alive but not off the hook.

2. Watch the next episode and see how Character Intrigue is being used to create the need to see more episodes. Walter goes back to his wife’s house and when she asks him how he is, he replies he is fine, that everything is good. It is the most horrifying lie of all, after the violence and cruelty that he and Jessie have just seen.

ASSIGNMENT 2

1. For your Inner Circle characters, fill in any of the Intrigue items that apply.

Character Names: Eddie and Ginny
Role: Genius Writer and lovely singer/musician, but she will never develop because she is sick, she hardly has the energy to breath or eat much less follow her dreams
Hidden agendas: Eddie, To become the most famous writer in America, Ginny to simply survive or the most secretive of all desires, to die so she can be out of pain
Competition: Eddie’s nemesis is trying to be the most famous as well, Ginny is being torments by a woman poet who wants her husband for herself
Conspiracies: The woman poet is psychologically unstable, she has a heavy duty crush on Eddie, refuses to deal with the fact that he does not even find her interesting, when she doesn’t get her way she wants to destroy him and Ginny and does not care that she is tormenting a dying woman, she just refuses to believe Eddie will not soon be hers by helping to “murder” Ginny of grief, at first Ginny is jealous in a normal human way but as her disease progresses Ginny gives Eddie permission to remarry when she dies. It is the most horrible gift he can ever receive, he writes about it to get it out of his system.
Secrets: Eddie when he finds his wife so sick she could die, goes crazy, drugs and alcohol follow him everywhere to block everything out, his writing falls into a deep dark scary place, but then it also sells.
Deception: Eddies Male nemesis slanders him and in cahoots with the unstable women poet they together slander him and cause him great losses.
Wound: Eddies parents died of his wife’s illness, he’s absolutely terrified he will lose her too
Secret Identity: He walks the night going to desperate neighborhoods and getting alcohol and drugs and then writing about the people he finds there, then comes home in the morning wasted and weary but he can no longer sleep.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes, Layers of Character Intrigue, Module 1, Lesson 4

What I learned by doing this assignment is that everyone is mysterious and secretive.

ASSIGNMENT 1:

1. Think about your Example Show. Make a list of the places you’ve already seen Character Intrigue in the previous episodes. When ever Walter or Jessie go way beyond the norm of what they can do and who they have been. Killing, creating bigger and bigger drug amounts, cracking the code of the Drug Lords.

2. Watch the next episode and see how Character Intrigue is being used to create the need to see more episodes.

Deadline: 24 hours

ASSIGNMENT 2

1. For your Inner Circle characters, fill in any of the Intrigue items that apply.

Character Names: Eddie and Ginny
Role: Genius Writer, lovely singer and musician but undeveloped and because she is sick she has hardly the energy to follow her dreams
Hidden agendas: To become the most famous writer in America, Ginny to simply survive or the most secretive, to die so she can be out of pain
Competition: Eddie’s nemesis is trying to be the most famous as well, Ginny is being torments by a woman poet who wants her husband for herself
Conspiracies: The woman poet is psychologically unstable, she has a heavy duty crush on Eddie, refuses to deal with the fact that he does not even find her interesting, when she doesn’t get her way she wants to destroy him and Ginny and does not care that she is tormenting a dying woman, she just refuses to believe that Eddie will not soon be hers by helping to murder Ginny, at first Ginny is jealous but then Ginny gives Eddie permission to remarry when she dies.
Secrets: Eddie when he finds that his wife is sick and could die, goes crazy, drugs and alcohol follow to block everything out, his writing falls into a deep dark scary place that sells
Deception: Eddies Male nemesis slanders him and is in cahoots with the unstable women poet
Wound: Eddies parents died of his wife’s illness, he is absolutely terrified that he will lose her too
Secret Identity: He walks the night going to desperate neighborhoods and getting alcohol and drugs and then writing about the people he finds there

[C Holmes]

ASSIGNMENT 2: C A Holmes: Engaging Main Characters “What I learned doing this assignment is all my characters are very different from the rest of the people they are surrounded by, they do not fit in at all, though they try, it just does not happen.”

1. Tell us the journey of your show. The two young people Eddie and Ginny are about to marry even though everyone in their world is against it except Mariah. This relationship is the defining one for their entire lives, but they both do not know how short their relationship will be. Ginny will be dead in only a few years but as they marry they imagine they will live forever.

2. Who are the main characters that will sell your show? Eddie, a genius writer and Ginny a singer and musician so soon to die.

3. Answer these questions for each of those characters.

A. Role in the show: Eddie is a writer. Ginny is a singer and musician.
B. Unique Purpose / Expertise: Eddie is a true genius, ahead of his time, unbelievably smart, but penniless and has beenrejected by “society.”. Ginny is a bit too young to really even consider marriage, she has a very romantic almost childlike view of what it will mean. She is deliriously happy but also unrealistic. Without Mariah, they both would be alone in the world and also unable to take care of themselves.
C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface? Ginny has a family disease that will soon kill her. Her Mother Maria suspects this early but is afraid to tell either her daughter or Eddie. She is the secret keeper.
D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing? Although the law does not prohibit it at this time, Ginny is really too young to marry. She is only 13 but they put 21 on the marriage certificate. We may suspect Eddie of being a child molester, but he actually waits till she is fifteen to have sex with her, per his agreement with Mariah, so all of the is on the hush hush, but we the audience know all the background about it.
E. Unpredictable: What will they do next? They all move to Virginia where Eddie grew up, it is the center of the slave trade at the time. Maryland was a free state. It does not mean there was not slavery it just means that some blacks were allowed to be free. It had the largest population of free blacks in the US. With this move Eddie begins to write and edit a famous magazine and begins to be famous, at the same time he is completely dissatisfied.
F. Empathetic: Why do we care? They are a strange group of rebellious and cautious social rejects who will be famous soon. So this is that strange time right before fame rises to take them all into a different world. Meanwhile Eddie is beginning to write his strange stories, critique others writing, and lead the magazine industry in a new direction. Both Ginny and Mariah are keeping house but Ginny is also beginning to sing and make music. Mariah is trying to rise in society and provide a safe place for her family but she is awkward and very aware of their poverty and differences.

[C Holmes]

Subject line: C A Holmes Engaging Main Characters What I learned from doing this assignment is that sometimes though it looks like being a drug dealer is enough of a problem, going up agains the cartel pushes this entire scenario into the pits of hell, so the stakes are unbelievable high. In reality both Jessie and Walter are kind of ordinary middle class people pushed to the edge, this is what makes them engaging. Probably many of us know someone like these two people but could never imagine them doing what they are doing.

ASSIGNMENT 1: Breaking Bad

Walter and Jessies have the most engaging Roles in the show.

Walter becomes the god of crystal meth, but he starts out as a kind of Middle aged milk toast high school chemistry teacher, which he openly admits. He has never really done anything with his life, his talents, or in his relationships. Nor does he allow himself to truly express what he feels or thinks.
He is a Chemist so that is his unique expertise which allows him to consider a final purpose for his life, where he makes 2M for his family before he dies. By making crystal meth he is also inadvertently becoming a god on the street but does not seem to care.
Then Intrigue, because he has just been diagnosed with cancer Walter thinks he’s going to die, and suddenly he goes beyond all milk toast ways to act completely different, which then
Causes many moral issues to arise. Breaking the law, killing people, blowing up things.
Walter now orders Jessie around dominating the kid and forcing him to do what he wants. This would have been unthinkable before. I love how Jessie keeps calling him Mr. White and being surprised as in he can’t believe Walter wants to create meth, or kill people. Why is Walter running off the rails and why do we care?
Empathy. Because he has cancer and he is going to die, and he does not tell anyone, so that is the mystery which causes even more empathy.
Meanwhile Jessie’s Role is being forced to get it together and be a tough guy but he really isn’t . He’s a softy. A sensitive guy, an addict, but one who does not want to crush a bug.
But he is a salesman, unique Purpose/Expertise, and though he tries to get legitimate work he does not fit in there, so he returns to his low life scramble, but in sort of a middle class way which we see him struggle with due to his own family upbringing. He is not a big time dealer, he is a small fry just making enough money to have a “nice” middle class druggie life. He even has a sense of nobility and his own moral code, which though he admits later does not save him from being a bad guy, does keep his rep on the street in a strange way.
Intrigue, then Walter suddenly appears, an older and more dominant figure. Jessie is just an addict who sells to his crowd,
Unexpected, but now he is going in a completely new direction because of Walter. Will he blow it? Will he give it all up? Will he survive?
Moral Issue: Watching this 20 year old struggle to get it together would be completely ordinary if he was just growing up and getting his first job, but Jessie is going up against the Mexican cartel and knows it, so he is completely messed up in more ways than one.
Empathy: Jessie is interesting to watch because he does not really have the character at all to do any of this. His failings are legal and ethical, but not because he is trying to dominate the meth market. He is just trying to sell product in his own little world and is suddenly thrust into another bigger wilder world world because of Walter.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes Engaging Main Characters Eddie, Ginny, Mariah

THE ENGAGING CHARACTER MODEL

BREAKING BAD ASSIGNMENT 1:

What makes a lead characters engaging on multiple levels?

A. Role: Walter is the lead in the show, he is in a terrible situation facing his own death. After being so mild mannered all his life he suddenly becomes a new hidden part of himself, a chemistry maven and drug lord.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise He wants to provide for his family after he is dead, and though his Chemistry teacher career has been a flop, his actual chemistry skills soon make him the god of crystal meth:

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface? He is still pretending to be his old self, even to his DEA brother in law who could catch him and put him in jail and ruin everything.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing? The moment he goes down this path he is no longer a middle class guy with ordinary values. He is now a criminal mastermind and living completly outside the law after a lifetime of conformity.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next? We wonder will he survive in this tough situation. Will he be successful in getting a nest egg for his family, and finally we wonder if what he has done is really about destroying his family instead of contributing to it. It is like he thinks that money can buy their happiness and his own self respect before he dies.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care? Despite all his evil actions, his kindness and gentleness with those he cares about is truly amazing. He is so gentle with his new daughter and with his son.

It is the conflicting modes of being that is the diamond. To be so gentle and to kill others which he does do, is very conflicting. He is a criminal and just like every other mafioso or gang leader he can still can have a very “nice” affect. In fact it is one of the things that people who deal with criminals must learn, a real criminal can be very charming and appear so “nice.” It is part of the criminal character to be able to do these two things simultaneously.

ASSIGNMENT 2: Now on to my show.

THE CRUX BY C A HOLMES

1. Tell us the journey of your show. Eddie, an orphaned boy who has been raised as a foster child with a rich family, is suddenly thrown out into the street when he does things which anger his foster father. He is penniless and really does not know how to live on his own yet, still he struggles to do what he really wants to do with his life, despite all the odds.

2. Who are the main characters that will sell your show? Eddie and Ginny his girlfriend and later wife fall deeply in love and have a happy relationship but soon Ginny will be dead. Her Mother Mariah keeps them going when Eddie can’t find work. She has a deep secret that her daughter has a family illness, which they all fear, as it is a kind of curse. Only Mariah is realistic, both Ginny and Eddie live in a fantasy world most of the time about all this. She knows this will never work out really but tries to not destroy their happiness prematurely.

3. Answer these questions for each of those characters.

A. Role in the show:

Eddie is a genius writer who overcomes all odds to become a very creative writer, well known and incredibly famous.

Ginny, his wife, is so young that she doesn’t even realize her life is almost over, before it has hardly begun. She is a dreamy romantic, almost like someone from another planet. Eddie uses her as a muse for his work sometimes, but as death beckons their entire relationship is destroyed, and then goes beyond everything to a completely different level.

Mariah knows that this is a tragedy from the beginning, but because the two young people truly love each other, she allows them to marry and helps support them, even though she knows it will all end in death and disaster.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

Eddie is a great writer and thinks that being a success is the biggest issue he has to deal with, he is so unaware of what is about to happen.

Ginny plays the piano and sings, but in the end she just wants to love and be loved. Death comes too soon for her to do anything else with her life.

Mariah keeps the little family going in the most practical down to earth way. She has already lost so many people in her family to early death that she has the muscle to survive more, but she does not have the heart to watch the two lovers as they struggle against death itself.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface? Death is at the door from the very beginning.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing? Eddie does not believe in religion, god, or common moral precepts, though he is well trained as an upper class gentleman due to his foster parents. He sometimes writes about horrible moral predicaments and becomes world famous because of it.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

Will Ginny be able to overcome the illness?

Will Eddie be a success if he is unable to continue to live without her?

What will happen to Mariah if both of them die???

F. Empathetic: Why do we care? This is a tight knit little family sort of standing up agains the world. It is an impossible feat what Eddie is doing but he does it in the wake of Ginny’s illness. Mariah is very powerful but even she may not be able to deal with her broken heart because of what she knows.

“What I learned doing this assignment is…that all characters have secrets, and are at the very edge of what they are capable of dealing with, even when they plan “a very ordinary and settled life?”

• This reply was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes Circles of Characters What I learned from Assignment 1 and 2 Having character circles makes individual scenes easy to go back and forth and also to create a cohesive story line for a binge worthy series.

Assignment 1

Breaking Bad

1. Main Character Circle: Walter White, HIs wife Skyler, His Son Walter Jr. and Jessie Pinkman his cohort in Crime

2. Connected Circle: a few of his school students and staff, His brother in law and his wife, Crazy 8 and Emilio

3. Environmental Circle: His middle class neighborhood, the drug neighborhoods, and the various other characters like the Indian guy who pulls him out of a ditch, doesn’t say a word but is so funny and gives such a great performance as an environmental character

Assignment 2

The Crux

My Binge worthy tv series

1. Main Character Circle:

Eddie, genius orphan romantic who has been thrown out by his foster father without a penny and totally left to his own devices, he has been homeless and then tried a series of things unsuccessfully, before he begins to write in earnest

Ginny, his girlfriend and then wife, who is too young to know what she wants to do with her life yet. She plays the piano and sings, but unknown to them both she is soon to die.

Mariah, Ginny’s Mother, seems the most practical down to earth person, whose great gift to these two young people is to let them get married, when every bone in her body screams NO.

Kennedy, a well known successful businessman, writer and later politician, who discovers Eddie’s talent and kindly helps him on his way.

2. Connected Circle: Eddies parents, step parents, and his friends and enemies at school and later in his artistic working world up and down the East Coast

3. Environmental Circle: His family, step family, the family he makes, then the worlds of school, the military, then work and romance in different cities and locations up and down the East Coast. There is always this tension inside of Eddie between his relationship to the North and the South which gets expressed as part of each location.

[C Holmes]

Finally able to reply.

1. The Big Hook: Breaking Bad, Walt, An ordinary chemistry teacher learns he has cancer and decides to sell crystal meth, when his brother in law, a Drug enforcement agent allows him to do a ride along and Walt sees it is a fast way to make big money and leave his family taken care of financially as he approaches his own death.

2. Intriguing character and emotional hooks: Walt seems so mild mannered and somewhat milk toast, which he readily admits to, because he has always gone along with the crowd and never really rebelled or stood his ground. He is “good” kind, almost shy, and admits he has never done anything really with his life. But desperate to provide for his family he also falls into the most desperate world imaginable, drug lords and crystal meth production on the border of the US and Mexico. As the story progresses we see that he is a thinker, using his skills as a chemist. He rarely seems to care about his new business associate Jessie, who give him entry into this completely different world. He does not even seem to understand the politics of his decision. He is fastidious, calculating, and manipulative, to those he perceives as intellectually “stupid.” He is really smart intellectually, but has no street smarts. However he is courageous as things move forward as he faces most dangers with a kind of stubborn confrontation, as in, what can they do to him really, he’s already a deadman.

3. Jessie Pinkman, who is at the lowest street level of the trade, does understand so much more about the politics of the situation, but really does not have overview, nor does he want it. He just wants to be a small time criminal doing business in his drug neighborhoods with his friends and even lives like that old phrase from Bob Dylan, “to live outside the law you must be honest.” His intrigue is that he is even ethical in his pursuit of that kind of living, paying his dues, having boundaries, no child killers or killings, with a kind of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid sort of rebellion. That comes from his family of origin’s shadow side. So like the old movie Saving Grace, there is a line in the drug world that once past enters an oblivion of hells, going ever lower and deeper, till all that is left is a bunch of machos like crazed roosters sticking out their chests and screaming that they own their little piece of turf. Each drug level has its norms and rules of killing, or being killed. Jessie is the gateway character to that underworld. But because he has middle class roots he is not really ready for what he will soon find there either. He is a kind of noble innocent bad guy, able to distinguish right from wrong but unable to choose wisely. He also has been rejected by the regular business community which does not hold any options that really will ever interest him.

4. Inviting Obsession, so with these emotional hooks, and intriguing characters and this desperate situation for everyone all around, this strong admixture of middle class values, “everything for family” and underworld lack of values, but still including the “everything for the family” motif. But this is like the Mafia, kill or be killed, obey or be destroyed. So it creates an enormous curiosity about how all this will ever be resolved. It is the impossibility of any resolution that makes this a real tv addiction. LOL All puns intended.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by  C Holmes.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

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.

[C Holmes]

Hi, yes I agree to this confidentiality Agreement.

[C Holmes]

Hi I’m C A Holmes, you can call me Carol. I have written many scripts for both film and tv.

I love binge worthy tv and since I love watching it, I know I already will love writing it. I also think it is the wave of the future.

I think everything about me is weird but that’s because I think all people are weird if they allow themselves to be honest. One weird trait is I think about 40 years ahead of the curve, not in any snotty way, but just because I’m wired that way. And no Im not an android or anything! LOL

[C Holmes]

Title: STEAL BACK SECRET TREASURE, Hook: the mystery is inside of each and every person.

Written by C A HOLMES Genre: Mystery Adventure

Three buddies an “Artist”, “Scientist”, and “Realist”, have lost everything, till one of them finds a map to secret pirate treasure. Only problem is… his friends think he is stark raving crazy! He keeps going overboard. He’s a scientist so hey, they’re just going along with someone whose finally lost it completely!

They play along, but plan to put him to bed as soon as they have enacted his first ridiculous idea to solve the mystery in the map. Problem is, the map seems to be pointing to something that is beginning to look real. The Artist Buddy seems to know the answer to the second step of the mystery, which seems impossible, then finally the Realist solves the last part of the mystery. So the mystery is that they each have a part of the secret hidden inside the lives they once thought were lost forever.

Though they are now crazed with joy they realize they may lose their friendships, as it was only desperation and loneliness that brought them together during the lost time. The Realist assumes (since he’s a realist) that they won’t even share the treasure fairly with him, but then they do! He has to change his entire lifetime idea of what human beings are like to him. They’re still scared they’ll lose the closeness and realness they’ve experienced during their “lost times”. But then a new vista opens…

What I learned is how each climax comes with the solving of one of the three mysteries, by each of the three Buddies. So each hook illuminates each character while moving the plot forward. Only by working together can the mystery be solved. If any one of them was missing, they would never find the treasure.

[C Holmes]

ASSIGNMENT #5

Subject line: C A Holmes High Concept/Elevator Pitch

“When your life path is stolen, only pirates can steal it back.”

What I learned from this assignment is how short this can be and the by condensing the story down to a phrase is a challenge but also makes you consider it differently with is interesting. I have seen films based on a phrase too.

Dilemma: His friends think he’s crazy, no one believes him.

Main Conflict: to find pirate treasure

What’s at stake: All three friends will remain lost and never get their lives back.

Goal/Unique opposition: they need to solve a mystery in order to find the treasure and each of them has a different piece of the puzzle.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 6 months ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

ASSIGNMENT 4 Subject Line: C A Holmes 10 Most Interesting Things, and what I learned from doing this, is that the plot twists are inherently the most interesting part. It’s a structural way of working, which I really like.

1. What is most unique about the villain: She is a very demure and proper, even weak “looking,” but a viper underneath.

The hero’s uniqueness is that he is a foster child who really should never have even made it out alive.

2. Major hook of your opening scene? The Realist, a free black man asks whether he should beat up his former “Master,” to knock some sense in his head. His Artist friend says no, he thinks it’s impossible to create sense with violence. The Realist agrees.

3. Turning point: When three friends realize the treasure is real and they’re going to be rich.

4. Emotional dilemma? They have been through too much loss, so winning is overwhelming, it is almost too much to bear.

5. Major twists? The real pirates who stole the treasure originally are real murderers and big time thieves. The Artist friend is doing a play with pirates, but he presents them as funny engaging, almost endearing, singing fellows, when in reality the real ones are dangerous to the extreme. They all realize this when they find two skeletons buried with the treasure and realize how they were betrayed.

6. Reversals? The “Realist” begins to dream of home.

The “Scientist” begins to regain feelings he hasn’t allowed himself for decades. The Artist realizes he wants to do something in the real world instead of just fantasy, so he can make his dreams come true.

7. Character betrayals? The Scientist recalls a neighbor betraying him claiming it was due to religion, which forces him to leave his country, when really it was just to steal his land. This causes the Scientist to live totally in his head and lose all faith in humanity.

8. Big surprises? The Realist realizes he is getting a third of the treasure, and never imagined they would include him in the windfall. He thought realistically they’d keep it for themselves and is very moved as no one has ever been so generous with him.

9. Other things of interest to a producer. The three friends are so different in how they see the world, yet only together can they solve the mystery.

10. They really need each other, and realize it’s not a weakness and that because of this they were never really lost, even when they had nothing.

[C Holmes]

C A Holmes on Producer Manager Needs<div>

What I learned today is how producers and managers see me as a writer?” They both see our relationship as a business association, not the creative side, as much as the moneymaking side of the venture.

1. How to present myself and my project to a producer? Present as a professional who demonstrates marketable well written projects that fit their specific market, and which are easy to sell to actors/directors/funders/distributors.

2. How to present myself and my project to a manager? Present as a major talent, who will continue to write and sell scripts, plays well with others by listening and collaborating, and focuses on writing that gets us both produced and paid.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 6 months ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

ASSIGNMENT #2 Subject Line: C A Holmes, When everything is stolen from you, steal your life back!

Mysteries, ciphers and obstacles, inner and outer help three buddies overcomes everything and obtain Secret Treasure.

1. Tell us your current log-line. “When everything is stolen from you, steal your life back!”

2. Components of Marketability

D. Timely — connected to trend/event: Right now many people, (especially teenagers) feel their lives have been stolen from them.

J. Great role for a bankable actor. Two great actors expressed interest in this kind of story.

3. Three friends, who disagree on just about everything because they have been through too much, find secret treasure by solving a mystery through ciphers, and are pulled together to succeed beyond their wildest dreams.

Great roles 1. An artist who lives with their head in the clouds 2. A scientist who no one believes and a 3. Realist just trying to survive, go on a wild adventure to find a Secret Treasure.

4.“What I learned doing this assignment is how to create curiosity through actor/character and using the feel of our times. Timeliness.

</div>

• This reply was modified 2 years, 6 months ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

Steal Secret Treasure by C A Holmes (Carol Andrade Holmes)

1. Project: Steal Secret Treasure, Genre: Mystery Adventure, Market: Theaters then Streaming

2.Concept: Three Friends who’ve lost all, plot to Steal Secret Treasure and get their lives back The treasure is hidden, a puzzle inside an enigma. Each friend holds a piece of the mystery, based on the worst thing that’s ever happened to them. As they bumble along they begin to realize that they themselves are the answer to the enigma.

3.FIRST focus — Actors Production Companies: A few great actors have said they’re looking for a project like this.

4. I like the simplicity and focus of this task.

[C Holmes]

I Carol Andrade Holmes, aka C A Holmes, agree to the Confidentiality Agreement

[C Holmes]

What I learned is that I want it to be clear the incredible heroic nature of what Gilgamesh does at the epicenter of the story. He does not have to help Christina escape. He has suffered greatly to know what he knows. He will also suffer because of giving his help. But he does it anyway because he knows her soul.

[C Holmes]

An ambivalent character is what Cypher represents, though he is a cold hard sociopath killing others, and for what? A life as as a fashion plate eating great food! I think Skunk, one of the characters in my script, and his ilk, are always so strange to me, because it is always so important how they appear, not who they actually are. His insistence on eating in fancy restaurants, food so rich it can make you sick.

My scene where Christina can not eat, when she is pregnant and nauseous and throws up is similar. She then overhears what the two men are plotting to do with her baby, They have the same kind of character elements as the matrix scene, though the outcome is about something so different.

[C Holmes]

I love the weightiness in this first scene in The Godfather. In my film there is a scene that is similar in that two people are weighing each others awareness. <font face=”inherit”>Gilgamesh expresses this weightiness, the depth of his occult understanding, which he never uses casually. Even though Skunk is a fool, he does not treat him foolishly. He is a full human soul, that will now regress because he denied another’s humanity Skunk must pay that price. That is the weightiness </font>I<font face=”inherit”> am </font>committed to.

[C Holmes]

Clarice says does not scare easily, though she is a beautiful young woman, she does not appear to be what she is, which is a very intelligent agent, just not very experienced. This is her main character issue. She is about to get real life experience about what she has been learning so much about in the class room. She is also a kind of bait, as she is supposed to charm Lector and put him off his guard so he can give her insight into Buffalo Bill.

I never really believed this premise when I first saw the film. I remember kind of laughing in the movie when people were so scared. I really like and appreciate both of these actors so it was not them, it was the glamorizing of criminal cannibalism. Making glorified gore and fetishizing the body is not really all that interesting to me, but I think I may see the film again to see if it works better for me now, as I know much more about real criminality. But so long ago when I first saw this I was not impressed.

Lector immediately sees Clarice as his ticket out of prison, and because he is a cannibal she must appear delicious to him. He toys with her, and his insults are cutting close to her vulnerabilities, but the real vulnerable issue in the scene is that she is not really aware of his method of escape and thinks his invasiveness into her mind are the only escapes he has planned. He is subtle, astute, calculating, weighing her every reaction and all his options. She is the key to get him out of this cell. So as she is drawn into his world, he is drawn out into the real world. It is an exchange of position. She is making it into the inner most depths of depravity in the criminal mind. He is making it out into his hunting ground by using her.

Jacob in my film is also doing an exchange with Skunk. Skunk is trying to escape the occult outcome of his own stupidity. Jacob is trying to get Christina out of an occult spell. Both are using the charm of Cairo to do opposite things, which is very interesting.

One person has real occult knowledge and the other is a buffoon pretending to have Occult knowledge. Gilgamesh is the only person in the story who has the real insight to get things moving in the right direction, though he needs Jacob to do the active part of the story. So Christina is under a spell, bound up in black magic.

Jacob acts to free her using the correct method. Gilgamesh sets the entire story back into reality and knows all the layers of reality that he is addressing with consciousness. I think this relates to what I have learned because of the reversal.

[C Holmes]

Hi, I am having tech troubles and I put this through before but don’t see it now. I agree to the confidentiality agreement. Thanks.

[C Holmes]

Hi, I did put a reply in but it seems to have disappeared. I have been having technical difficulties so please pardon the lateness. I’m C A Holmes. I have written a feature film, a few tv series, a virtual reality story and lots of educational tv. I want to develop characters that mean something to the audience and have methods to do so besides my imagination. I also write music and would love to score films. Just know I will keep trying to get my work up on the forum, but I have had some trouble so bear with me. Best, Carol

[C Holmes]

His Wound: Abandonment / Her Wound: Loss of Love

– What causes both characters to reveal their wounds? Skylar wants to take their relationship to the next step and asks Will to come to California with her. She loves him and does not want to lose him.

Will is afraid that when she finds out more about him, he will be rejected. He’s also angry she doesn’t even notice his real life and friends are in Boston. He doesn’t want to leave them, then get rejected by her, when she ‘takes back’ her invitation in his imaginary future, which is based on his very real and horrible foster care experiences.

– How are those wounds motivating their emotions, actions, and reactions? Skylar does not really have a lot of information about who Will really is. She has to admit she didn’t know he was an orphan, or that he has been abused. She hopes he loves her enough to overcome his past, but that is asking way too much of Will.

Will has already been taking a risk by just being in relationship with her. Without the therapy he has done already he would just be having an imaginary girlfriend who is “perfect,” but only in his mind. He also is in the illusion that having money solves all problems and that her future is already decided without him, which is really hurtful to her.

– How is each character threatening the other’s wound? Skylar wants to go deeper with the relationship, but does not realize how vulnerable that makes Will.
Will criticizes her trust fund support not realizing it comes from Skylar’s father dying, which means she too is conflicted about the money, but for a completely different reason.

What drama was this scene built around? The end of Skylar’s time at Harvard, and the need for Will to start showing up in his life somewhere and finally make a decision, instead of just intellectually criticizing everyone and everything.

What traits showed up in these character’s words and actions? Skylar pushes Will at his most vulnerable so she really is not seeing him clearly at all. Will uses anger to distance himself and hurt her by saying he does not love her

Daily Focus – Searching for Breakthroughs: I have always liked this scene because even though it is clinically accurate in terms of the characters representing actual psychological diagnosis, it does not feel clinical at all. It just feels raw. The other thing is how quickly it is moving. A gesture which seems loving actually brings up a volcano of feelings in both of them.

“What I learned rewriting my scene/character…?” My two characters have the opportunity to love each other, and also to heal each others wounds. What I really learned by studying this scene is the quick reflexive defense of both of their wounds and the misunderstanding of how to heal them.

<font face=”inherit”>Skylar’s closeness is what actually is hard on Will. Will’s distance is what is hard on Skylar. I am working on creating a mirror actions and </font>verbiage<font face=”inherit”> because </font>I'<font face=”inherit”>ve seen this in life too, and it is a very </font>accurate depiction, so very valuable.<font face=”inherit”> </font>

[C Holmes]

What I liked most about the Secrets and Reveals class was the game scene. Both Kate and Sawyer end up revealing themselves. Kate does not look like a killer, but Sawyer gets her to reveal herself starting with her not having gone to college. So a game played in college, that she does not know about, shoves her into revealing her lack of education, and then with in minutes, so much more.

So Sawyer does something quite slick here. There is something competitive and challenging about how he sets it up. Meanwhile Sawyer also has to reveal that he too has killed a man, so it is a double reveal.

The actual murder scene with the explosion is not as tense as the game scene. And even the reveal to Jack with the wanted poster does not have the levels of tension that the game scene does.

How it applies to my scene is this: I have a seller of antiquities and a buyer of antiquities. One knows there is a curse on the object, the other knows, but does not reveal he knows. Meanwhile the person who is the victim of the curse, is saved by someone, who knows about all of the actions of everyone in the story but they don’t even know that he exists. So, what they reveal to each other is at all different levels. Also what they don’t reveal.

This has been very helpful and has been a breakthrough for me, because I had not been thinking of it in exactly in this way, but it applies directly to my script and also to the themes and character development.

[C Holmes]

Junah is frustrated but still motivated enough to go out in the middle of the night to take swings despite the fact that he has lost his natural ability to connect with the ball. <div>

Where is Bagger Vance coming from? Just wants five dollars guaranteed. He is not a gambler. He only wants to do something for a solid “repayment” and to carry the bag. But he also is a sage, so he knows Junah can’t really see him yet. He needs to be able to do more than just get some food and be on his way.

What makes them right for their roles? Bagger needs to teach. Vance needs to learn.

What drama was this scene built around? Junah is out in the dark, he can tell by the sound of the ball he’s not really hitting his mark. Bagger also hears he’s off his game, so can walk straight toward him without worry he’ll be hit. </div><div>

What traits showed up in these two character’s words and actions? Junah traits: frustration, impatience, kindness and trust that he can feed the man, but also blindness that he can’t really see who he is talking to.

Bagger likes to play old homespun, cornpone, half Mark Twain Americana, old fashioned polite. Playing one down. He knows he can hit the ball further than Junah can even imagine, but also knows his game is the making of people, not the winning of games. It’s like a Buddha acting as a chess champ to play checkers with a five year old, using sport to teach other things far more valuable.

Daily Focus – Searching for Breakthroughs:

I must admit I’ve never watched this movie because every time I try I feel it’s miscast. Smith, Damon, even Theiron just seem like movie stars pretending to be quaint folks from another era. I like these actors, but just don’t think they work here. That aside I’ll stay with the words. </div><div>

The fact that the scene it in the dark seems great to me as Junah is in the dark about his PTSD and the wounds of war. He was accomplished in the near mystically sport of gold but lost his swing in the trenches of World War 1 the greatest mechanized war in the history of the world up to that point.

I work with Vets sometimes so I know they don’t want to talk about it all many a time, because they don’t think anyone can ever understand the physical mental emotional moral and social effects of what they have been through. Junah has that I’ll feed this guy, but he couldn’t possibility help me with my swing kind of attitude. That comes out loud and clear in the writing.

Bagger meanwhile is deeper that Junah will ever be, and knows more about war than he will ever share. That sideways kind of healing is about going into the past the present and the future all at the same time which is the best line in the scene for me.

Read the other writers comments and make notes of any insights/breakthroughs you like. Will do it with replies to others.

Rethink or create a scene for your script using your new insights and rewrite that scene/character.
Post the answer to question, “What I learned rewriting my scene/character?” I think I am too direct sometimes with character words and action. Sometimes not saying what is happening is more mysteriously to the point, than pointing it out directly, which is the Bagger method.

</div>

[C Holmes]

I am writing on Terminator and its application to my scene. What it taught me was about was how when one character knows more than another, the story moves forward based on sharing that information. Because one person is in the dark, the other illuminates the future for them. They could not see as far, because they do not have that light. The unknown, the unknowable is still the issue but relationships between characters, as in life, we are all the unknown for each other, shining a light on things differently.

Also, I liked that the terminator scene had darkness, an actual flashlight. She illuminates his wound, just as he illuminates her unknown future. So inner and outer realities collide. In my scene I am dealing with a very sophisticated person who deals in antiquities, but underneath that there is raw history, the past before it’s captured and put in a museum, tamed down for general consumption.

[C Holmes]

Will is a genius with a perfect memory. He observes others in detail and protects the underdog skillfully both intellectually and physically, but he does not have the social skills to talk with Skyler.

Chuckie is comfortable enough to talk to the girls and creative enough to make up fun stories to charm him. They know he is out of his league but aren’t snobs, he is charming and friendly and flirting away when he gets taken down by a bully who attacks him and tries to move him out of his turf.

Skyler is amused by Chuckie, and attacks the bully herself which interests Will. So she can take care of herself and dose not fall for the bully and his gig, but she wishes Will would stay and talk with her. He looks at her several times but is not skilled in going after the person he wants.

What I learned rewriting my script is that venerability is the quality that allows characters to be scene, even if they try to cover it all up with defense.

[C Holmes]

Hi everyone, I’m Carol aka C A Holmes

2. I have written a lot, but really want to go for it, One Feature, some docs, a few TV series education Advertising, virtual reality story. LOL Always ready to learn more

3. I want to tackle a difficult character with a higher level of skill

4. I write songs and music and would love to do scores for film

I am so happy to be in this class!

[C Holmes]

Hi I already put this in, but I agree to the confidentiality agreement.

[C Holmes]

I agree

[C Holmes]

Hi, I’m Carol, (C A Holmes)

I’ve written on a feature, several series, documentaries, all produced

I’m using this time in lockdown to update writing skills. In a very strange way it has helped my writing because I’m also a producer/director and I like running around, actively making things happen, out in the world. This keeps my butt in the chair for longer periods, so it’s making lemonade out of this incredible time we are all living through.

Unusual thing about moi: I have another career, helped run a refugee clinic, and even now work on cold cases with a professional super sleuth group, so I use more than my imagination to write on this kind of project.

Glad to be amidst creatives, look forward to hearing from you.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 11 months ago by  C Holmes.

[C Holmes]

Thriller Conventions, Collateral by David Hare, Analysis by C A Holmes

What I learned doing the assignment is how to create ‘a systems’ Thriller, Systems (police, MI5, the military, refugee processing, even family systems) can create a sense of mystery, intrigue, suspense. Since this is the area I want to write about, it’s very helpful to analyze this step by step.

COLLATERAL BY DAVID HARE matches the model of A THRILLER because

it creates the “thrilling” experience of pitting our Heroine, a 6 month pregnant Detective Investigator against an ever widening web of lies and intrigue. She must solve the MYSTERY of the murder of a refugee pizza delivery man. It does not make sense. He is taken out by a very high level controlled hit.

She does not know, and can only guess at who would, or could do this, and unwittingly ends up revealing full MI5 involvement. She is resourceful enough to take on not just refugee issues going on in Britain right now, but also the involvement of the biggest and most secret of all of the security agencies.

Our heroine is pitted against a very dangerous villain: a Vet with PTSD who is hired by MI5 and committed to destroy anyone who gets in her way. The Vet has seen her best friend in war blown to bits in front of their face, and is being sexually preyed upon by her commanding officer. She fakes out her psychologist, and is abandoned by her narcissistic wasp mother. She wants to kill a ‘real’ terrorist as payback for this world gone topsy- turvy. Which in the end turns out to be an innocent refugee who just happens to know too much.

The plot brings the entire social web of modern Brexit Britain into play, the military, (suspense) the church, (mystery) government refugee agencies and their MP in charge of Labor Party (intrigue,) spies watching the border pretending to help refugees when their real job is to stop them, (betrayal.)

There is another murder, so different from the first, it can not be the same person, (twists.) The (tension) between the Heroine and policeman partner reveal his jealousy at her education, which stupidly has him leak info which gets to the press as fake news, creating a coverup, (increasing thrill state.)

The most thrilling scenes are Heroine working to extricate the refugees from the clutches of MI5, making promises she has no power to enact, then using the web of the entire system to crack the case. She makes an impossible exchange. At the very least she saves a few innocent people who literally would lose their lives if sent back to their country. (Life or death situation.)

Their country was destroyed by the false war the Vet was sent to win. This brings everything full circle, and takes it all the way to the closing scene, where the Vet is driven to suicide because she finds out she did not kill a terrorist (just a refugee pizza guy.) She can not live a life where there is no honor, (High stakes.) The Heroine tries to bring her in but can not, and the Vet shoots herself. The denouement is not worth a fig. The rest as they say… is history. The movie is thrilling because it shows the Heroine, Sherlock like, resisting obvious answers and digging deeper and deeper against all odds.

[C Holmes]

“Secret Treasure” by C A Holmes

Contained Environment Movie Assignment #1

A. One Contained Main Location, Hut on Beach with adjacent Wooded area, (plus two establishing stock video shots: Old Theatre, Pirate Sloop)

B. Contained Characters: 3 Friends, who’ve lost everything they love in life, bond together to survive. (2 small parts: Pirates who play artistic & historic mythic selves, 3 non-speaking Dream characters: the person each friend misses most)

C. The most desperate friend insists now is the time to hunt for buried pirate treasure, based on a myth it resides in the vicinity, so must ‘belong to them’. The others try to stop him, but he insists. To humor him, they go along with his ‘insanity’ fearing he’ll kill himself if they don’t.

D. Reason for Containment: They’re broke, lost, dejected, rejected. Two of them live in a hut on the beach, the other in the basement of an abandoned Theatre where someone he loved once sang. They don’t know how to start their lives over again. Digging for treasure creates a mythic world where dream, myth, history, and a new reality weaves together a ‘Secret Treasure’

[C Holmes]

Thanks Walter, I really appreciate it.

[C Holmes]

Hi Heather, I actually worked on this issue and it is so timely and important. Thank you for your courage and compassion. Carol