[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Episode Descriptions for RUN ANGELITA

What I learned doing this assignment is that this is really helping the flow of the season and that excites me as a writer. A wonderful skill. It is also tiring.
I can also see where I am being a bit repetitive and will fix this going forward. I also want 12 episodes.

Episode 1:

Latina teen Angelita Alves witnesses the kidnapping of her brother Luis and the shooting of her grandmother by a cartel gang. She heads to America to find her estranged mother, with a medallion Luis gave her for her birthday.

Arrested at the US border, Angelita is sent to a Texas detention center for child migrants. She escapes during a riot and takes a high school student, Chance, hostage. She forces him to drive her to safety. Growing sympathetic to her plight, he takes her to Veronica, a journalist and retired marine.

Enrique – the cartel hitman Angelita thinks killed her family – arrives in Texas with orders to kill her and retrieve the medallion.

Episode 2:

FLASHBACK: Luis trains Angelita at shooting, noticing Enrique watching. Luis takes her home. Later, he locks Angelita inside the panic room as their front door is being bashed in by Enrique, and Daria. Daria shoots Nana when she walks in on them. They drag Luis away.

PRESENT: Not trusting Veronica, Angelita holds back on her story.

Chance’s father Tremblay him, accusing him of helping “the effing migrant bitch” escape. Chance and Angelita leave for LA to find her mother. She steals Veronica’s gun.

Enrique goes to the detention center, learns Angelita escaped, and kills the two boys who attacked her.

Veronica is ordered to publish her story online by her editor.

Tremblay shows up at Veronica’s. They argue, he threatens her and leaves. Enrique is sent the link to it and is on Angelita’s trail.

Episode 3:

FLASHBACK: A freaked out Luis drops Angelita home after shooting practice. Puzzled by his behaviour, she makes pupusas with Nana, talk about him, her upcoming birthday, and her dream of medical school. Nana goes out.

PRESENT: Angelita catches Chance taking medication for his cancer treatment. Angelita and Chance go to a fair and get into a fight with racist locals.

Veronica phones them and says the story is published; Angelita hangs up. Angelita and Chance argue.

Enrique turns up at Veronica’s, tries her door. Locked. She calls out to him, thinking it is Tremblay again. He shoots through the door, and she shoots back, nicking his face.

Another message tells him the teens are going to LA. He hits the highway.

Episode 4:

FLASHBACK: San Salvador – Luis, working for Moneda, has been siphoning money for his boss. He decides to take some for himself.

PRESENT: After Chance and Angelita kick racist butt she tells him more. He tells about his illness and his mother, who died of cancer.

In San Salvador, Moneda meets with cartel boss Aguila, who had a forensic audit done and has called in Moneda about missing money. Moneda blames Luis, who is dead, but tells Aguila they are after his sister.

At a diner/gas station, Chance orders food as Enrique eats nearby and is threatened by Moneda on his phone. He watches Chance leave and sees Angelita. He pursues. Enrique rams their car, both spin to a stop. He tells Angelita they need to talk. She drives in reverse as Chance shoots at him. Enrique’s out of gas.

The teens find Veronica. Angelita attacks her and runs off. She stumbles over the corpse of a migrant who died in the desert. Angelita drops the medallion; it bounced off a rock and a secret compartment opens.

Episode 5:

FLASHBACK: Luis talks to Angelita about dangers when she was 12. She guesses he is with the cartel. Angelita meets Enrique “for the first time” and doesn’t like him. She agrees to let Luis train her, and she gets better over time. At 16, they have a “nonsense” song they sing as they work out.

PRESENT: Angelita drops the medallion; it bounced off a rock and opens. There are etched codes on the side.

Angelita stops in her tracks, remembers the “nonsense” rap that she and Luis would do. He tells her it is to learn poetry. The etched codes are the rap!

FLASHBACK: Angelita’s escape from San Salvador. Through Mexico to Texas.

PRESENT: Angelita returns to Veronica and Chance because she needs to get to her mother in Los Angeles.

Episode 6:

FLASHBACK: San Salvador – Luis tracks down Angelita and her best friend Freya at a mall and gives her a birthday present, the medallion. He and Angelita go to shooting practice.

PRESENT: Veronica and Chance look for Angelita. They find her quickly. Angelita takes them to the corpse of the migrant.

Veronica apologizes, and surprises her with saying she has found an address and phone for Angelita’s mother.

Angelita and her mother talk on the phone. Emotional.

Angelita studies the etched codes but does not tell the Americans what happened.

As they arrive in Los Angeles, Angelita calls her friend Freya back home to tell her about her mother. Freya calls Enrique.

Episode 7:

FLASHBACK: US Border Services – Angelita finds out from the authorities she is being incarcerated and likely sent back to Mexico, despite being an unaccompanied minor.

PRESENT: Angelita sneaks away from Veronica and Chance, using instructions her mother gave her while on the phone. Before she goes into her mother’s apartment, she puts the medallion under a flowerpot.

Freaked out, Veronica and Chance think of going to the FBI or border services as they look for her.

The woman pretending to be Angelita’s “mother” is Enrique’s deputy Daria. What happened to her mother? Daria takes Angelita hostage. Angelita knocks Daria out after Daria tries to kill her, retrieves the medallion, and escapes.

Episode 8:

FLASHBACK: Angelita in the youth detention center. Noticing Tremblay watching her, she gives him the finger.

PRESENT: Angelita eats as Chance and Veronica tell her it is time to bring in Tremblay and US authorities. They are in over her heads.

Angelita is distraught that her mother is still missing. She agrees to meet with the authorities and after Chance calls, Tremblay promises her protection and help finding her mother.

They go to meet him outside the city at night, when Enrique arrives and takes Chance hostage. Angelita and Veronica watch them from a hill.

Then three anti-migrant vigilantes take Enrique and Chance hostage. Veronica makes Angelita hide while she negotiates.

She gets Chance released, and they meet Angelita at the car. As they drive away, they nearly hit fourth armed vigilante with three migrants they have taken captive. One young woman has been raped by him. Angelita kills him.

They call the police on the vigilantes and Enrique, and take the migrants to a refuge.

Enrique kills the three vigilantes and hears the police coming. He prepares for a shootout when Tremblay arrives, they are collaborators, and they drive away in Tremblay’s car.

Episode 9

DAWN: Angelita, Veronica and Chance pull into a small town and decide to have breakfast before going to the local police station. But they see Tremblay and Enrique together, going to the same diner. They hurry away

Chance is hit with pain. The story of his cancer treatment comes out. He was due in hospital to begin chemotherapy. They argue about dropping him off at a hospital.

Angelita decides to tell them about the money and to get him private treatment. With that in mind, Veronica makes the first payment for treatment. It costs almost everything she has.

Tremblay sees Chance in treatment but takes Angelita to Enrique. Enrique tells him they are now done, but Tremblay insists on taking her to Moneda as ordered. Enrique kills him.

Angelita learns that Enrique is her oldest brother, kicked out of the family. Enrique offers to take care of her. To use the money to help them get a new life, as paid hitmen in America.

Angelita tells him she is going to give the money away. She shoots him in the leg but won’t kill him when she has the chance. She escapes.

Episode 10

Angelita calls Daria and says she wants to talk to her about her family, she doesn’t know how dangerous she is. Daria calls Moneda, who tells Enrique she is now in charge. Daria tells Angelita it will cost her, if she wants the info. Angelita says she has no money and Daria laughs and tells her it is half a billion, just as Enrique turns up. Angelita kills Daria

Enrique is arrested, has no prior convictions, and is repatriated to El Salvador. Moneda is on the charter plane that brings him back. They come to an agreement.

Back in El Salvador Moneda and his team regroup, and he fears that his boss Aguila will find out he lifted the money. At that point, Aguila only blames Luis, and he thinks it’s for less.

Veronica gets fired from her small paper. Angelita tells Chance and Veronica that she has money, won’t say how much, and that they can come with her, but she is going to give it away.

Angelita (VO) remembers her dead Nana, as Moneda opens a locked door for Enrique, who sees that inside is Nana, who survived being shot and is Moneda’s prisoner. She is also Enrique’s grandmother.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Episode List Rough Draft for RUN ANGELITA

What I learned doing this assignment is to tell the story. And since I am adapting a feature into a series, I had a lot to move around

Episode 1: Run Angelita

· COLD OPEN: Angelita hiding in the panic room as Luis is being attacked by the cartel and Nana walks in on it, Angelita’s perspective (black, limited vision, sound)

· Angelita escapes the room after they go. Finds Nana wounded, tells her to head north to America because her (long-lost) mother is in LA. Asks about the medallion Luis gave her for her birthday. Take it!

· Angelita as an anonymous migrant walking to America among many others. In Oaxaca she thinks she sees Enrique, who killed her brother Luis. Enrique aims at her.

· Angelita awakes from this nightmare and is in detention in Texas

· She is attacked in prison by two boys, beats the hell out of them, which creates a riot and multiple escapees, including her

· Chance has a fight with his father

· Angelita takes Chance hostage

· He takes her to El Paso bus station – where hundreds of released migrants have just been dumped by ICE.

· Veronica doing story on migrant grape pickers and winery shows how unhappy she is

· Chance takes her to his ex-stepmother Veronica, journalist and retired marine, who listens promises to help her find her mother.

· Enrique arrives in Texas

Episode 2:

· COLD OPEN: Flashback – Target practice in San Salvador, Angelita and Luis

· Flashback: Enrique is waiting outside shooting range and talks to Luis. Angelita shows her contempt.

· Luis drops her off home and she helps Nana make dinner

· Nana goes out and Luis turns up and hides Angelita in the panic room. The door is battered down

· Present day – Angelita tells Veronica SOME of her story/Veronica promises not to publish it until after she has found her mother and is safe

· Veronica helps Angelita and Chance leave for LA, refuses to give Angelita a weapon

· Veronica’s editor freaks out that the winery story isn’t ready, she tells him about Angelita and Chance. He orders her to write it

· Enrique goes to the prison. Kills the boys who attacked Angelita

· Tremblay turns up at the bus depot, still packed with migrants now getting help

· Angelita and Chance avoid pulling over at checkpoint

· Angelita has taken Veronica’s handgun; Chance makes her show him she knows what to do

· Target practice in the desert

· Veronica publishes Angelita and Chance’s story as a feature

· Someone pings Enrique and he sees the story

Episode 3:

· COLD OPEN: Flashback – San Salvador. Comes home after shooting range. Makes pupusas with Nana, talk about birthday/present, medical school

· Angelita catches Chance taking medication for his cancer treatment

· Angelita and Chance go to the fair as they wait for Veronica and get into a fight with locals.

· Veronica tells Angelita and Chance that the story is published, asks them to wait for her

· As she packs her gear, her ex-Tremblay shows up for Chance. They argue, he threatens her and leaves

· Enrique turns up, tries her door. Locked. She calls out to him, thinking it is Tremblay. He shoots through the door, and she shoots back, nicking his face.

Episode 4:

· COLD OPEN: Flashback – San Salvador. Luis starts to steal from Moneda, siphoning the cartel’s funds away from him. Reveals why he wanted to do this.

· Angelita and Chance stop for food at a diner/gas station – Chance goes inside to order

· Enrique is inside, eating, and being threatened over his phone by Moneda. He realizes Angelita is with chance

· Enrique chases them having not filled his car up with gas and nudges their car, his spins hits rock. Face off. Enrique tells Angelita they need to talk. She drives away backward

· They meet Veronica in the desert. Angelita attacks her and runs off into the dark.

· Angelita drops the medallion; it bounced off a rock and opens. There are etched codes on the side.

Episode 5:

· COLD OPEN: San Salvador Flashback – Luis tracks down Angelita and her best friend Freya at a mall and gives her a birthday present, the medallion

· Veronica and Chance look for Angelita in the dark

· They find her quickly. Angelita has stumbled over the corpse of a migrant who died in the desert.

· Veronica apologizes, and surprises her with saying she has found Angelita’s mother.

· Angelita and her mother talk on the phone. Emotional.

· Angelita studies the etched codes but does not tell the Americans what happened.

· They arrive in Los Angeles

· Angelita calls her friend Freya back home to tell her about her mother.

Episode 6:

· COLD OPEN: The Border – Angelita finds out from the authorities she is being incarcerated and probably sent back to Mexico, despite being an unaccompanied minor.

· Angelita sneaks away from Veronica and Chance, using instructions her mother gave her while on the phone.

· Veronica and Chance can’t find her. Think of going to the FBI or border services.

· Angelita’s “mother” is Enrique’s deputy Daria. What happened to her mother?

· Daria holds her hostage. Angelita finds out that Luis had stolen money, then realizes that the medallion she has it the key to access it.

· Chance and Veronica track her phone.

· Angelita knocks Daria out, after Daria tries to kill her, and escapes.

· They escape together.

Episode 7:

· COLD OPEN: Angelita in the detention center. Noticing Tremblay watching her, she gives him the finger.

· Chance and Veronica believe it is time to bring in Tremblay and US authorities.

· Angelita is depressed and distraught that her mother is missing, too. She agrees to meet with the authorities and Tremblay promises her protection

· They go to meet him near San Diego and when wait at the location at night, and Enrique arrives and takes Chance hostage. Angelita and Veronica watch from a hill.

· Then three anti-migrant vigilantes take Enrique and Chance hostage, turning the tables

· Veronica makes Angelita wait while she goes to negotiate.

· She negotiates the release of Chance and they meet Angelita at the car. As they drive away, they nearly hit another vigilante with three migrants he has captive. One a young woman has been raped. Angelita kills him.

· They escape and call the police on the vigilantes and Enrique, then they take the migrants to a refuge.

· Enrique kills the three vigilantes and hears the police coming. He prepares for a shootout

· Tremblay arrives, they have been working together, and they drive away in Tremblay’s car.

Episode 8

· Dawn: Angelita, Veronica and Chance pull into a small town and decide to have breakfast before going to the local police station. But they see Tremblay and Enrique together, going to the same diner. They hurry away

· Daria calls Angelita and says she wants to talk to her about her family, and calls Moneda. Moneda tells Enrique to back her up. He and Tremblay hurry to meet her.

· Daria tells Angelita it will cost her, if she wants the info. Angelita says she has no money and Daria laughs and tells her it is half a billion, just as Enrique turns up. Daria shoots him in the leg.

· Angelita learns that Enrique is Enrique Alves, her oldest brother.

· Angelita kills Daria, Enrique offers to be her family. To use the money to help them get a new life.

· Angelita shoots him in the other leg and disappears.

· Enrique is arrested, has no prior convictions, and is repatriated to El Salvador. Moneda is on the charter plane that brings him back.

· Back in El Salvador Moneda and his team regroup, and he fears that his boss Aguila will find out he lifted the money. At that point, Aguila only blames Luis, and he thinks it’s for less.

· Veronica gets fired

· Angelita tells Chance and Veronica that she has money, won’t say how much, and that they can come with her, but she is going to give it away.

· Angelita (VO) remembers and misses her dead Nana as Moneda opens a locked door for Enrique, who sees that inside is Nana, who survived the shooting and is Moneda’s prisoner.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Five Seasons for Run Angelita

What I learned doing this assignment is – this is the first time I have ever tried to do an exercise like this, and I love it. It really helps me think about my plans and the story. Wonderful exercise.

1. Brainstorm to find the arc of the entire journey, from Season One to Five.

Season 1: Angelita on the run from cartel in America carrying digital links to $500m stolen from cartel. She kidnaps Chance and for his own reasons he agrees to help her look for her “mother”. Discovers the money and decides to be Robin Hood and give it away

Season 2: Angelita acting as Robin Hood, giving away the cartel’s money/FBI after her, Chance and Veronica/She learns her grandmother is alive but held captive.

Season 3: Chance and Angelita begin a serious relationship. Angelita finishes high school, but turns to Enrique when he says they can rescue her grandmother. They kill Moneda, but grandmother dies in the rescue attempt.

Season 4: Enrique is appointed underboss after Moneda’s death, by el Jefe (name: Aquilla). Chance finds Angelita with Veronica’s help, Enrique kills Veronica.

Season 5: Angelita finds out she is pregnant with Chance’s baby, decides to get rid of the remaining money ($400m) by xx. Angelita kills Enrique when he comes for the money. Angelita starts medical school (what her grandma wanted her to do). Angelita and Chance look into how much it will cost to “disappear” and do it. El Jefe swears he will continue to search for them, and just as they are about to hit the button to wipe out the money Angelita and Chance hesitate.

2. Brainstorm the Stair Step version.

Season 1: Wealthy, sheltered Latinx teen Angelita goes on the run to America from her brother’s cartel, unknowingly carrying digital links to $500m stolen by him. She is chased by Enrique, the cartel’s top assassin, who is her estranged oldest brother. Angelita kidnaps Chance and for his own reasons he agrees to help her look for her “mother”, who ends up being a plant by the cartel to catch her. When she discovers the money, Angelita decides to become a latter-day Robin Hood and give it away to those in need.

Season 2: Angelita – helped by Chance and Veronica – has turned herself into Robin Hood, giving away the cartel’s money. She starts to gather supporters who protect her. The FBI uncover the activity and go after her, even as the cartel sends Enrique to try again. Angelita learns her grandmother is alive but held captive and reaches out to Enrique, and they plan to rescue her.

Season 3: Chance and Angelita begin a serious romantic relationship. Angelita finishes high school, but turns to Enrique when he says they can rescue her grandmother. They kill Moneda, but Nana dies in the rescue attempt.

Season 4: Enrique is appointed underboss after Moneda’s death, by el Jefe (name: Aquilla). Angelita now goes to work for Enrique under an assumed name. Chance finds Angelita with Veronica’s help and they escape, Enrique kills Veronica.

Season 5: Angelita finds out she is pregnant with Chance’s baby, and they decide to get rid of the remaining money ($400m). Angelita kills Enrique when he comes for the money. Angelita starts medical school (what her grandma wanted her to do). Angelita and Chance look into how much it will cost to “disappear” and do it. El Jefe continues to search for them, starting an all-out war. Just as they are about to hit the button to wipe out the money Angelita and Chance hesitate.

3. For each season, brainstorm the Building Blocks.

RUN ANGELITA by Cathryn Atkinson

Season 1: (CREDIBLE FEAR)

Angelita’s life falls apart when she must run away to America to avoid the cartel, without knowing she has codes that access their money, and they want to kill her and get it back. America is not welcoming.

A. High Concept or major hook of the season:
Escaping the cartel and securing millions in stolen funds.<div>
</div><div>B. Big Picture Arc/Journey:
From a spoiled teenage migrant to a rebel fighting those who abuse refugees.</div><div>
</div><div>C. Main Conflict:
Finding safety while running away from a cartel mob trying to kill her.</div><div>
</div><div>D. Mystery/Open Loops:
Will Angelita succeed or be killed? What will she do with the money?</div><div>
</div><div>E. Cliffhanger: The cartel holds Angelita’s grandmother, who she though had died, and have leverage against her.</div><div>
</div><div>

Season 2: (LEGENDARY OUTLAW)

Angelita, Chance and Veronica hide in Point Roberts, WA, and start to build a pipeline that allows her to spend the cartel money. Enrique is told he must find them, and is shown a captive – Angelita’s grandmother (and his), who they thought had been shot.

A. High Concept or major hook of the season:
Angelita transforms herself into a kind of Robin Hood, taking from the rich and giving to the poor.<div>
</div><div>B. Big Picture Arc/Journey:
From a hideout in Washington State, Angelita – helped by Chance and Veronica – cartel money pours out to the poor and those who help them, as Moneda’s tries to track them down. <div>
</div><div>C. Main Conflict:
The FBI is now involved, and the cartel continue to hunt down Angelita, while her supporters grow in numbers. Angelita learns her grandmother is alive but held captive and plans to rescue her. <div>
</div><div>D. Mystery/Open Loops:
Will Angelita and her supporters be killed/stopped?<div>
</div><div>E. Cliffhanger:
Angelita needs to save her grandmother.<div>

Season 3: (Title? Thinking about it – I want them all to connect)

Angelita and Enrique try to rescue Nana and become cautious friends. Chance tells Angelita that he loves her and they start an affair, which crashes when he finds out about Enrique.

A. High Concept or major hook of the season:
Angelita and Enrique rescue Nana and get to know each other.<div>
</div><div>B. Big Picture Arc/Journey:
Angelita reaches out to Enrique to help her rescue her grandmother, and they get to know each other behind the cartel’s back. Chance and Angelita begin a serious romantic relationship that quickly falls apart.

C. Main Conflict:
Chance finds out about Enrique and is furious. When Enrique and Angelita find Nana, theykill Moneda, but Nana dies in the rescue attempt. Distraught, Chance reaches out to his old life and ex-girlfriend at home.

D. Mystery/Open Loops:

Will Angelita and Enrique stay together, brother and sister? Will they be pulled into the cartel by tempting offers?

E. Cliffhanger:
The FBI scoops Angelita up and jails her, but as she lives under an assumed name, they don’t know who they have.<div>

Season 4: (Title? Thinking about it)

Angelita is freed from prison after two months (or something) and starts to sit in on medical classes without being enrolled. Enrique convinces her that Chance has gone forever, and that family must stay together.

A. High Concept or major hook of the season.
Freeing Angelita from prison for robbery, Veronica has taken over the money and needs sorting out. In prison, Angelita starts studying medicine (what her grandma wanted her to do).<div>
<div>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>B. Big Picture Arc/Journey:

<div>Enrique is appointed underboss after Moneda’s death, by el Jefe (name: Aquilla). He works with Chance to get Angelita out of jail, but Enrique forces her to stay with him when she gets out. </div><div>
</div><div>

C. Main Conflict:

Veronica is abusing her position with the money, Enrique kills her.
Angelita fights Enrique, and also Chance. The FBI gets their hands on $100m.</div><div>
</div><div>D. Mystery/Open Loops:
How will they hang onto the money? Have they forgotten why they wanted to help people?</div><div>
</div><div>E. Cliffhanger:
Angelita’s hold over the money leads to corruption in a supporter and a catastrophe and the deaths of 200 people.</div><div>

Season 5: (Title? Thinking about it)

Angelita and Chance decide to get out of handling the money because if the accident that killed migrants, and Angelita learns she is pregnant.

A. High Concept or major hook of the season.Angelita finds out she is pregnant with Chance’s baby, and they decide to get rid of the remaining money ($400m).</div><div>
</div><div>B. Big Picture Arc/Journey:Angelita and Chance look into how much it will cost to “disappear” and do it, and their pipeline and supporters are furious.</div><div>
</div><div>C. Main Conflict:El Jefe continues to search for them, starting an all-out war. Enrique decides not to protect Angelita anymore and demands the money. She kills him after he shoots Chance (who lives).</div><div>
</div><div>D. Mystery/Open Loops:
What will the future hold for Angelita and Chance? Will they really offload the money? Who do they hurt with this plan? Who is angry?</div><div>
</div><div>E. Cliffhanger:Just as they are about to hit the button to wipe out the money Angelita and Chance hesitate.
</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Character Descriptions for RUN ANGELITA

What I learned doing this assignment is to narrow the focus on how this information will be used in the pilot and series.

ANGELITA ALVES

Role in the show:

· Migrant on the run, carrying digital access to $500m stolen by her brother from his cartel.

Noteworthy traits

· Teenage refugee/Weapons, martial arts expert.

Coping Mechanism:

· Running/ learning to fight back

· helping the weak

· intelligence training

· Revenge

Intriguing history:

· Lost her family,

· refugee not wanted in America.

· Cartel wants her dead.

· Wants to kill the man she thinks killed her family, who is actually her long lost brother (Enrique)

· Searching for this money she’s given access to, for her mother she didn’t know what alive

Intrigue? Mystery?

· Angelita learns brother Luis lied about his cartel work

· Luis gives her medallion with hidden codes

· Trust issues. Hides that cartel is after her, tells Veronica and Chance she is only looking for her mother in LA.

· Carrying digital access to $500m stolen by her brother.

· She was trained to be a killer.

· Angelita needs to figure out who she is and what she wants to do.

· She decides to use the money to become Robin Hood

How do they support or drive the conflict with others?
· Fights for herself

· Revenge

· fighting back/Learns how to

· helping the weak

Irony — Opposites or paradoxes that exist with the character

Paradox with opposite Traits/Motivations

Indulged “rich kid” Angelita becomes a migrant with people who suffered due to the cartel. She gets money, decides to help them.

To get X, they give up Y.

Angelita makes a deal – To get the money back to the cartel in exchange for reaching her Mom in LA. Angelita is betrayed by that woman anyway, who is a cartel plant.

Avoiding X, they cause Y.

Avoiding the cartel/Enrique, Angelita flees into a dangerous world for migrants.

Opposing agendas/etc. that naturally causes conflict with other characters
· Not everyone wants to give the money away. Not Enrique, Chance
· Moneda (big boss) wants her dead and can’t understand why Enrique is failing. Brings in his ruthless no. 2 hitman, Dario.
· Veronica reluctantly uses the Angelita/Chance story to further her journalism career. Pays a price and regrets her selfishness. Gives up her career

Unpredictable?

· A fighter who has never fought, but discovers she is a badass who will kill to protect those she loves and those in need.

Intriguing relationship with one or more characters
· Angelita and Chance are teens who might be dating if they weren’t on the run from the cartel and the FBI

· Enrique is Angelita’s (unknown to her) older brother, estranged family after junkie accident leads to the deaths of their parents. To A, he is Luis’s cartel associate/ murderer.

· Angelita and Chance drive across America to find safety and her mother, but find out it is the most dangerous place, because the woman there is in Moneda’s pocket.

3. Organize the answers and choose which you are going to use in your description of that character.

ANGELITA ALVES

Angela is a teenage refugee who flees to America in search of her long-lost mother after the rest of her family is killed. She unknowingly carries digital access to $500m stolen by her brother from his cartel. Trained as a weapons/martial arts expert, Angelita is an indulged “rich kid” who wants to help others by becoming a Latinx “Robin Hood”.

4. Sequence the info and write a START, MIDDLE, and END. Write a ROUGH DRAFT of the character description.

Start

Angela is a teenage refugee who flees to America in search of her long-lost mother after the rest of her family is killed.

Middle

She unknowingly carries digital access to $500m stolen by her brother from his cartel.

End

Trained as a weapons/martial arts expert, Angelita is an indulged “rich kid” who wants to help others by becoming a Latinx “Robin Hood”.

ROUGH DRAFT

ANGELITA ALVES

A frightened Latinx teenager flees to America after her family is killed to search for her long-lost mother, while unknowingly carrying digital access to $500m stolen by her dead brother from his cartel.

CHANCE TREMBLAY

A. Role in the show:

· American high school student

· Angelita’s first US friend/ guide/love interest

• Noteworthy traits

· Knows America

· Knows migrant system through dad

· Competitive rifleman, outdoors guy

· Hates injustice, tries to look at problems full-on. Problem solver

· Impulsive, have-a-go hero

• Intriguing history:

· Lost his mother to cancer

· Abusive father is a detention center guard.

· Doesn’t like “big government” (Texan)

• Intrigue? Mystery?

· May have cancer (gets sick)

· Guilt for losing control. Attacked racist kid after a party, accidentally killed him

· Falling in love with Angelita

• How do they support or drive the conflict with others?

· Motivated to right his father’s wrongs, and by growing love for Angelita (from not likely her much at first).

• Irony — Opposites or paradoxes that exist with the character

· Hot headed for the right reasons (fighting the good fight but in the wrong way)

· Angelita and Chance go from her taking him hostage (hostility), to collaborators, in part to spite his father, without knowing he works for the cartel.

• Opposing agendas/etc. that naturally causes conflict with other characters

· His father is a migrant detention guard for children, corrupted by the cartel.

• Unpredictable?

· Impulsive, have-a-go hero – doesn’t wait to find out what is going on.

· Suffering from a mystery illness.

· Rage led to fatal attack on horrible classmate.

• Intriguing relationship with one or more characters

· Angelita, Veronica and Tremblay

3. Organize the answers and choose which you are going to use in your description of that character.

Texas high school student

Angelita and Chance go from her taking him hostage (hostility), to collaborators, in part to spite his father, without knowing he works for the cartel.

Angelita’s first US friend/ guide/love interest, takes her to his friend Veronica

His father is a migrant detention guard for children, corrupted by the cartel. Motivated to right his father’s wrongs, and by growing love for Angelita (from not likely her much at first).

Impulsive, have-a-go hero – doesn’t wait to find out what is going on. Hates injustice

Suffering from a mystery illness.

4. Sequence the info and write a START, MIDDLE, and END. Write a ROUGH DRAFT of the character description.

START

An impulsive, injustice-hating Texas high school student collaborates with a desperate migrant girl who takes him hostage, helping her escape to spite his detention guard father.

MIDDLE

He takes her to his journalist ex-stepmom in order to keep the girl safe and tell her story.

END

He finds himself falling for the girl, and will do anything to help her find her mother and keep her out of the clutches of the cartel that wants to kill her.

ROUGH DRAFT

CHANCE TREMBLAY

An impulsive, injustice-hating high school senior collaborates with a desperate migrant girl after she takes him hostage, helping her escape. Taking her to his journalist ex-stepmom to tell her story, he falls for the girl, and promises to help find her mother and keep her out of the clutches of the cartel that wants to kill her.

Enrique Lopez (Alves)

A. Role in the show:

A cartel hitman with a secret past, accused of killing Angelita’s grandmother and brother

• Noteworthy traits

· Veteran assassin, no 1 guy

· Expert tracker

· “Good foot soldier”

• Intriguing history:

· ex-junkie

· Angelita’s secret oldest brother.

• Intrigue? Mystery?

· Angelita’s brother. He wants to find her and save her, not kill her as assigned

· He knows Luis was coerced by their boss Moneda to steal cartel money, But didn’t know Luis had siphoned it.

· He believes that years earlier he killed his parents, when he was high

• How do they support or drive the conflict with others?

· His public mask is that of a killer. The only person not frightened of him is his suspicious deputy Dario.

· Angelita hates him, knows him as her brother’s killer.

• Irony — Opposites or paradoxes that exist with the character

· Killer and brother

• Opposing agendas/etc. that naturally causes conflict with other characters

· He deceives his boss Moneda in order to save Angelita.

· He wants the money and wants to be in control of Angelita as her older brother. Wants her to go on the run with him as assassins-for-hire.

• Unpredictable?

· He is a coiled spring, full of violence and rage.

· He fears being betrayed and killed, and responds to this

• Intriguing relationship with one or more characters

Angelita, Moneda, Dario, Tremblay

3. Organize the answers and choose which you are going to use in your description of that character.

A cartel hitman with a secret past, accused of killing Angelita’s grandmother and brother

ex-junkie

Angelita’s secret oldest brother. He wants to find her and save her, not kill her as assigned. Angelita hates and fears him.

He deceives his boss Moneda in order to save Angelita.

He wants the money and wants to be in control of Angelita as her older brother. Wants her to go on the run with him as assassins-for-hire.

He is a coiled spring, full of violence and rage.

4. Sequence the info and write a START, MIDDLE, and END. Write a ROUGH DRAFT of the character description.

START

A violent cartel hitman is sent to retrieve digital codes worth $500m for his boss and execute the teenage migrant who has escaped to America with them after the death of her brother and grandmother.

MIDDLE

But he has a secret – he is the girl’s older brother. He wants to find her and save her and keep the money, not kill her as assigned.

END

So he deceives his boss and tracks the girl to Texas, knowing she hates him and blames him for the deaths of her loved ones, even though he didn’t pull the trigger.

ROUGH DRAFT

Enrique (Alves)

A violent cartel hitman is sent to retrieve stolen digital bank codes worth $500m for his boss, and execute the teenage migrant who escaped to America with them after her brother and grandmother were murdered. But he has a secret – he is the girl’s older brother. He wants to save her and keep the money, not kill her as assigned. He deceives his boss and tracks the girl to Texas, knowing she hates him.

Veronica Segundo

A. Role in the show:

· Chance’s ex stepmom

· Journalist

• Noteworthy traits

· Ex-marine

· American Latina

· Cares more about her story on Angelita, than about Angelita.

• Intriguing history:

· Chance’s ex stepmom, still loves Tremblay as the story starts

· Lonely, sacrificed life for career and gotten nowhere

Want / Need: Fame and work success / To be a good reporter, more than successful

· Dealt with misogyny (and raped in marines).

• Intrigue? Mystery?

· Rape

· Saved her squad in Kandahar, lost her closest friend, a young woman.

· She becomes Angelita’s adult guide to Los Angeles

• How do they support or drive the conflict with others?

· Analytical and military-minded

· Pushes her story at first, but empathizes with Angelita

• Irony — Opposites or paradoxes that exist with the character

· Ambitious Veronica writes Angelita and Chance’s story in an attempt at getting out of her dead-end town to national journalism, and becomes part of the story when she helps them get to Los Angeles.

• Opposing agendas/etc. that naturally causes conflict with other characters

· Veronica wants to write the story about Angelita and Chance helping her, and Angelita does not it

· Veronica is manipulated by her ex-Tremblay because she still loves him, and he uses that when he is searching for Chance and Angelita.

• Unpredictable?

· Veronica is not trustworthy for Angelita, making selfish/bad decisions, until Veronica saves her from Enrique’s first attempt at kidnapping her.

• Intriguing relationship with one or more characters

· Tremblay, He-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed (editor), Chance, Angelita

3. Organize the answers and choose which you are going to use in your description of that character.

Chance’s ex stepmom, who still loves his father Tremblay as the story starts, and an

ex-marine. A journalist who is frustrated by her career, she cares more about her story on Angelita, than about Angelita. She becomes Angelita’s adult guide to Los Angeles. Analytical and military-minded, Veronica is not trusted by Angelita until Veronica saves her from Enrique’s first attempt at kidnapping her.

4. Sequence the info and write a START, MIDDLE, and END. Write a ROUGH DRAFT of the character description.

START

A journalist and ex-marine is pulled into the cross-country escape of a teenage refugee by her ex-stepson who rescued the girl, but she regrets publishing an online story about them after pressure from her boss, and agrees to help the girl find her mother.

MIDDLE

Analytical and military-minded, she becomes Angelita’s adult guide to Los Angeles.

END

And when it is discovered that the girl has access to $500m in cartel money, she has to decide what her next story will be.

ROUGH DRAFT

Veronica Segundo

START

Journalist and ex-marine Veronica is pulled into the escape of a teenage refugee by her ex-stepson who rescued the girl, but she regrets publishing an online story about them, and agrees to help the girl find her mother. Analytical and military-minded, when it is discovered that the girl has access to $500m in cartel money, she has to decide what her next story will be.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Intriguing Concept and World for RUN ANGELITA

What I learned doing this assignment is that my unwieldy project is getting tighter and easier to see.

Present your concept and world.

Concept.

A. Angelita, an indulged, protected El Salvador teen,…

B. …becomes a migrant escapee after witnessing her brother’s cartel murder,…

C. …then discovering she carries access codes to $500 million of their money,…

D. …she becomes “a migrant Robin Hood”, determined to give it all away to those in need.

World of this show.

• Unique Sub-World: The dangerous, frightening world of migrants fleeing violence to an uncertain reception…

• Previously unexplored:

Staying free and surviving as she searches for her long-lost mother…

• The unknown:

How the cartel will come after them…

• The unseen:

The FBI, border agents/ICE, Minute Men/vigilantes, untrustworthy people

• Unheard of Dangers:

Ruthless killers, opportunistic vigilante attackers, and law enforcement that treats her like an enemy

• Reason to explore it:

Building a new life, with the help of $500m, when the whole world seems to be after you

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Yes, had no luck finding a link to send to Dimitri. I’ve messaged you on FB

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson has completed the BW Framework!

***I’ve pulled the important details together and would like Dimitri to assess it. How do I do this?

Nevermind, I found it — I’ll try to send on Monday.

What I learned doing this process is how to pull together a package of details for the next steps in the process. Very time consuming but so worth it!

Thanks, Cathryn

• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson Creating Irony!

What I learned doing this assignment is how irony, like twists, are attractive to viewers minds and keep them following a story.

ASSIGNMENT 1: MR ROBOT

Irony in season two, episode one:

Elliot the protagonist is working with Wellick the antagonist to bring down Evilcorp.

Elliot wants to save the world and Wellick only cares about himself.

Elliot reverts to Mr Robot internally, when his father was an abusive person.

Elliot is back at his mother’s, who abused him, to keep safe and on track – “She’s the strictest person I know”. Better the devil you know.

The hacker is without a computer – he tries to keep his life in a day-to-day loop of repetition.

The revolutionary is journalling as the economy is collapsing, and tech is failing across the country.

A Smart House is stupid.
Darlene uses a rich person’s house to hide out as a revolutionary.

ASSIGNMENT 2: RUN ANGELITA

Ironic situations that work well for the show.

Situational irony
1) Cartel money siphoned by Moneda via Luis comes from violence, drugs, is used to build lives after it is stolen.
2) The warden of the migrant youth detention centre Mac is meant to guard migrant children and teens, but instead he watches them for the cartel and gets pulled into helping Moneda track Angelita.
3) The migrant system is meant to keep America secure, but fails on many levels by rewarding violence, putting pressure on the desperate.
4) The US government fears the cost of the migrants but spends billions on a carceral system, and doesn’t change foreign policies and relationships with dictators and corrupt governments that lead to people fleeing their homes for the “peace and freedom” of America.

Character irony
1) Spoiled rich kid Angelita ends up a migrant with the people whose lives have been made harder because of the actions of the cartel.
– When she gets money, she decides to help them.
3) Dario is told to find Angelita and kill her, but he wants to rescue and protect her.
4) Ambitious Veronica writes Angelita and Chance’s story in an attempt at getting out of her dead-end town to a national journalism job, and then becomes part of the story.
5) Angelita and Chance drive across America to find the safety of Angelita’s mother, but when they get there Angelita finds out it is the most dangerous place.
7) Angelita tries to connect with her BFF back home. BFF betrays her to the cartel.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Plot and Character Layers

What I learned doing this assignment is how I can break down the layers in order to write them into the pilot and the season. Create the thread. This took a long time to complete, but so worth it.

ASSIGNMENT 1: MR ROBOT

PLOT LAYERS – Story beneath the story.

Major scheme revealed
The attempt take down evil corp, and capitalism/corporations by extension, was successful. But Elliott was not conscious for it, and he spends the episode trying to find out what happened and deal with a mental breakdown.
Mystery revealed
The fsociety hack on evil corp happens while Elliott is passed out.
Thought the story was one thing, but it is another
More is learned about Elliott’s reality.
Major shift in Meaning
Elliott is trying to find out if Tyrell took over fsociety and took down Ecorps and the financial system.
Hidden history
Elliott is in conflict with himself and this is the biggest example so far. He has no self control. His childhood family turns up, and guide him into what happens next.
Hidden plan
Whiterose turns up at a large house where the head of evilcorp is with many wealthy people discussing what happened.<div>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>CHARACTER LAYERS – identity beneath the identity.

Secret identity
-Micheal Hanson’s secret identity exposed – he wants Elliott’s psychologist Krista (his ex) to spy on Elliott. Michael tries to pull Krista into his plans and she says no.
-Elliott wakes up in Tyrell’s car after several days, not sure were he is. He goes to the fsociety hideout and finds out he executed the attack on evilcorp, and they are wiping the system. Elliott goes to Tyrell, but can’t find him.
Character intrigue
-Nervous Angela goes to her new job. No answers this episode
-Gideon is trying to save AllSafe. No answers this episode
-Ecorp EVP of tech Plouffe kills himself on TV, after saying the problems could not be fixed.
-Elliot and Mr Robot fight each other but it’s Elliot fighting himself. He is trying to find out where Tyrell is. Mr Robot gets punched, so Elliott gets punched.
Hidden relationships and conspiracies
Tyrell’s wife pumps Elliot for info on Tyrell, who is missing

ASSIGNMENT 2: RUN ANGELITA

Discover the layers that could exist for your show.

1. Brainstorm a list of possible PLOT layers.

PLOT SURFACE for RUN ANGELITA – Angelita joins the migrants going north to the US after her older brother Luis is taken by the cartel he worked for and her grandmother is shot, over money that has gone missing. She doesn’t know that she carries the digital codes to $500m. She wants to be with her long estranged mother in Los Angeles, but discovers she isn’t welcome in America.

PLOT LAYERS – Story beneath the story.

Major scheme revealed
-As a cartel accountant, Luis had been siphoning money from the cartel, but he was forced to do it by his boss, Moneda. Luis made a simple mistake that ended up transferring so much money that the scheme was uncovered, but Moneda said only Luis was a thief. </div><div>

Mystery revealed

-The hitman sent to follow Angelita, recover the digital access codes, and kill her is her estranged brother (or father) Dario, who she hadn’t seen since she was three and who she thought was dead.
-Luis and Nana had kept from Angelita the knowledge that their wealth and all the good things she had came from Luis’s work at the cartel. They spoiled her.
-Luis is killed but at the end of season one Dario learns that Nana (his mother, or the mother of his ex) is still alive and a prisoner of Moneda as they try to retrieve their money. </div><div>

Thought the story was one thing, but it is another

-Chance and Veronica at first think it’s a simple case of a migrant who has escaped detention in Texas. Much of truth is revealed over the course of a pilot, at least to viewers – ending with the attack on Angelita’s family. </div>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Major shift in Meaning

<div>
– Who is Angelita? What is the story of her escape from El Salvador? It’s not what others think.
– Angelita’s understanding of who she is, her whole life, changes early in season one. </div><div>

Hidden history

-Angelita was “protected” by those who love her. They didn’t want her to suffer violence. But at the same time, Luis trained her in martial arts and guns. </div><div>

Hidden plan

-Angelita has to decide what to do once she gets access to the money. Do a deal with the FBI? Run? </div><div>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>

<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Major betrayal

– Angelita’s family keeping her in the dark.

-Veronica, a frustrated reporter who would love to work on a big paper, using part of Angelita’s story (ie everything Angelita tells her) in an article and then forced to publish it immediately.
-Chance decides to dump Angelita as they are travelling because he is sick and he is falling for her.</div><div>

2. Brainstorm a list of possible CHARACTER layers.

CHARACTER LAYERS – identity beneath the identity – ANGELITA.

Secret identity
– Her precarious position and family identity was kept from her “to keep her safe”, “because she was a child”.
Character intrigue
– She was trained to be a fighter by her older brother
– Is she a potential killer?
– She doesn’t know the digital codes to millions was planted on her in a pendant her brother gives her
– She plans to find her mother in America and looks for her. </div><div>

Hidden relationships and conspiracies

– The man she thinks killed her brother and grandmother, and who is after her is actually her brother (or father) and wants to protect her.
– She decides to use the money to become Robinhood
Hidden Character history
See above.</div><div>

3. Organize them each into a possible sequence of reveals.

Plot Surface:

-As a cartel accountant, Luis had been siphoning money from the cartel, but he was forced to do it by his boss, Moneda. Luis made a simple mistake that ended up transferring so much money that the scheme was uncovered, but Moneda said only Luis was a thief.
– Angelita’s family keeping her in the dark. Luis and Nana had kept from Angelita the knowledge that their wealth and all the good things she had came from Luis’s work at the cartel. They spoiled her.
-Angelita was “protected” by those who love her. They didn’t want her to suffer violence. But at the same time, Luis trained her in martial arts and guns.

– Who is Angelita? What is the story of her escape from El Salvador? It’s not what others think. When she tries to tell the Border Services, she is not believed.
– Angelita’s understanding of who she is, her whole life, changes early in season one. She digests this in the prison.
-Chance and Veronica at first think it’s a simple case of a migrant who has escaped detention in Texas. Much of truth is revealed over the course of a pilot, at least to viewers – ending in the pilot with the attack on Angelita’s family (NOTE: the pilot ends with her talking to Veronica but the action is very different from what she is telling her).
-Veronica, a frustrated reporter who would love to work on a big paper, using part of Angelita’s story (ie everything Angelita tells her) in an article and then Veronica is forced by her editor to publish it immediately.

-Chance decides to dump Angelita as they are travelling because he is sick and he is falling for her.
-The hitman sent to follow Angelita, recover the digital access codes, and kill her is her estranged brother (or father) Dario, who she hadn’t seen since she was three and who she thought was dead.

Character Surface:

– She was trained to be a fighter by her older brother
– Her precarious position and family identity was kept from her “to keep her safe”, “because she was a child”.
– She plans to find her mother in America and looks for her.

– She doesn’t know the digital codes to millions was planted on her in a pendant her brother gives her

– Is she a potential killer?

– The man she thinks killed her brother and grandmother, and who is after her is actually her brother (or father) and wants to protect her.
– She decides to use the money to become a kind of Robinhood

CHARACTER LAYERS – identity beneath the identity – DARIO.

Secret identity
-He is connected to Angelita, but she loathed him even before Luis was kidnapped and her grandmother was shot.
-He is Angelita’s father </div><div>

Character intrigue

-Dario has been a cartel hitman for years and hates it. He is trying to find a way out. Will he be allowed? What will he do?
-Luis is killed, and Dario is agonized over the death of his brother. He thinks Nana, his mother, died after being shot.
– At the end of season one Dario learns that Nana (his mother, or the mother of his ex) is still alive and a prisoner of Moneda as they try to retrieve their money.
-Angelita’s mother escaped to America and Dario wouldn’t let her take their child. She left when his mother, Nana, was caring for Angelita for the day.
-He is the boss of the thug who killed Luis, and the thug is suspicious of subtle changes in Dario’s behaviour. At first Dario goes to America alone, but then thug is sent to follow him when he takes his suspicions to Moneda.
Hidden relationships and conspiracies
-Dario knows that Moneda was syphoning the money off the cartel, not Luis (who was the vehicle for the fraud). He has to be a “good foot soldier” in order to find Angelita to save her, not kill her.
-But he also wants the money. He wants to be rich and also have Angelita in his life. He wants them to be able to fight their enemies together. He is happy for her to become a killer.
-The Big Boss, Aguila, sees Dario as a potential head of the cartel. Mentors him (season two)
Hidden Character history
-He was a young petty criminal and just before his daughter, Angelita, was born he killed his first man, the father of his girlfriend. She left for America and he was banished from his family. The cartel trained him to become an assassin.

3. Organize them each into a possible sequence of reveals.

Plot Surface:

-Angelita’s mother escaped to America and Dario wouldn’t let her take their child. She left when his mother, Nana, was caring for Angelita for the day.
-Luis is killed, and Dario is agonized over the death of his brother. He thinks Nana, his mother, died after being shot.
-Dario has been a cartel hitman for years and hates it. He is trying to find a way out. Will he be allowed? What will he do?
-He is the boss of the thug who killed Luis, and the thug is suspicious of subtle changes in Dario’s behaviour. At first Dario goes to America alone, but then thug is sent to follow him when he takes his suspicions to Moneda.
-But he also wants the money. He wants to be rich and also have Angelita in his life. He wants them to be able to fight their enemies together. He is happy for her to become a killer.
– At the end of season one Dario learns that Nana (his mother, or the mother of his ex) is still alive and a prisoner of Moneda as they try to retrieve their money.

-The Big Boss, Aguila, sees Dario as a potential head of the cartel. Mentors him (season two)

Character Surface:
-He is Angelita’s father
-He was a young petty criminal and just before his daughter, Angelita, was born he killed his first man, the father of his girlfriend. She left for America and he was banished from his family. The cartel trained him to become an assassin.
-Dario knows that Moneda was syphoning the money off the cartel, not Luis (who was the vehicle for the fraud). He has to be a “good foot soldier” in order to find Angelita to save her, not kill her.

-The Big Boss, Aguila, sees Dario as a potential head of the cartel. Mentors him (season two)

CHARACTER LAYERS – identity beneath the identity – CHANCE.

Secret identity
-Wound – He is the son of a woman who died of breast cancer, and who is worried he has cancer. </div><div>

Character intrigue

-Chance is a competitive rifle shooter, Olympic skeet shooting and from horseback.
-Because his father works for the migrant detention system, Chance has a good understanding of the system that holds Angelita.
-He wants to join the FBI
-Wound – Because his father is violent, he has PTSD.
-He lets Angelita take him hostage after a fight with his father where his hits back, because he hates that kids are kept in detention, but then he starts to fall for her. </div><div>

Hidden relationships and conspiracies

-Wound – His father is violent, and when Veronica learned this she left him. Chance is close to Veronica and they stayed in touch.
-Secret Identity – His father’s boss, the Warden is a mentor for Chance, but is in Moneda’s pay to keep an eye on migrants coming through. This time it’s Angelita.
Hidden Character history
-Wound – When Chance’s mother died he began to abuse drink and drugs, but Veronica pulled him out of it.
-Hidden Agenda – He has been going to protests and volunteering with organizations that help migrants.</div><div>

3. Organize them each into a possible sequence of reveals.

Plot Surface:

-Wound – He is the son of a woman who died of breast cancer, and who is worried he has cancer.
-Wound – Because his father is violent, he has PTSD.
-He lets Angelita take him hostage after a fight with his father where his hits back, because he hates that kids are kept in detention, but then he starts to fall for her.

-Because his father works for the migrant detention system, Chance has a good understanding of the system that holds Angelita.

Character Surface:

-Hidden Agenda – He has been going to protests and volunteering with organizations that help migrants.
-Chance is a competitive rifle shooter, Olympic skeet shooting and from horseback.
-He wants to join the FBI.
-Secret Identity – His father’s boss, the Warden is a mentor for Chance, but is in Moneda’s pay to keep an eye on migrants coming through. This time it’s Angelita.
-Wound – His father is violent, and when Veronica learned this she left him. Chance is close to Veronica and they stayed in touch.
-Wound – When Chance’s mother died he began to abuse drink and drugs, but Veronica pulled him out of it.

CHARACTER LAYERS – identity beneath the identity – VERONICA.

Secret identity
-Veronica became a journalist after struggling as a marine after the massacre of a family in Afghanistan. She was wasn’t responsible but she helped cover it up. </div><div>

Character intrigue

-Veronica is a marine, weapons specialist and trained in fighting insurgents.
-She used to be a true believer but is now troubled by the system and the polarization. This came from Afghanistan and what she has experienced since.
-She is US Latina and has mixed feelings about the migrants.
-She is ambitious as a journalist, but not always ethical. This comes from frustration over the sort of stories she is forced to write.
-She uses Angelita and Chance (at first) because she wants the story. She knows it will be successful and could get her a better job on a better newspaper or magazine. She intends to hold it until they are safe, but her editor publishes it early. </div><div>

Hidden relationships and conspiracies

-She loved Chance’s father until he slapped her, and she broke his nose.
-She sees Chance as the son she doesn’t think she will have. When he confides in her that he is sick and may have cancer, she insists on getting him checked, even though it may mess up Chance and Angelita escaping. </div><div>

Hidden Character history

-She believed in conspiracy theories but pulled away from it. She still has “friends” from that time.</div><div>

3. Organize them each into a possible sequence of reveals.

Plot Surface:

-She loved Chance’s father until he slapped her, and she broke his nose.
-She uses Angelita and Chance (at first) because she wants the story. She knows it will be successful and could get her a better job on a better newspaper or magazine. She intends to hold it until they are safe, but her editor publishes it early.
-She sees Chance as the son she doesn’t think she will have. When he confides in her that he is sick and may have cancer, she insists on getting him checked, even though it may mess up Chance and Angelita escaping.

Character Surface:

-Veronica is a marine, weapons specialist and trained in fighting insurgents.
-Veronica became a journalist after struggling as a marine after the massacre of a family in Afghanistan. She was wasn’t responsible but she helped cover it up.
-She is US Latina and has mixed feelings about the migrants.
-She used to be a true believer but is now troubled by the system and the polarization. This came from Afghanistan and what she has experienced since.
-She is ambitious as a journalist, but not always ethical. This comes from frustration over the sort of stories she is forced to write.
-She believed in conspiracy theories but pulled away from it. She still has “friends” from that time.

</div>

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Big Picture Open Loops

What I learned doing this assignment is to plan out the open loops, see how they can fit into the pilot and beyond. How the characters’ relationships and actions create more.

ASSIGNMENT 1 – Mr Robot

Mr. Robot’s Big Picture open loops – to date:

Elliott’s mental health and drug use – How is effecting him? Since he is the narrator – how is it effecting the story we are getting?
Elliott is a cybersecurity worker who solves the problems of evil corp, but is also a lead hacker for a nihilistic hacking group. Will he get caught? How will the tensions tighten further? Who is Mr. Robot to Elliott?
Elliott and Angela’s parents died because of EvilCorp – What will happen?

Episode 9 – Mr Robot Big Picture open loops:

Elliott’s is Mr Robot? What is really going on?
Elliot started the Fsociety with Darleen – does he remember? What next? Why is Wellick at Elliott’s place after he is fired? They will work together?
Colby offers Darlene a job at Evilcorp. What’s next?

ASSIGNMENT 2 – Run Angelita:

Brainstorm big picture open loops for your first season

GOALS:

New goals?
Once Angelita discovers she carries the digital link for hundreds of millions of dollars, what will she do? (Not in pilot, but several episodes in)
Goals related to the big picture? Angelita decides to give the money away to those who need it most, which freaks out the cartel, and the FBI (the latter in season two).
Crushed goals?
The woman Angelita is running towards is not her mother. She is connected to Dario. Her mother is alive, maybe, but missing – later seasons.
Competition / conflict around goals?
Does Angelita help people with the money? Or use it to keep going? What does she think of Dario’s offer, does this change everything?

CONSEQUENCES:

Are they going to be caught?
By the cartel in season one, by the FBI in season two
Problems created from past actions?
She kills a (bad) man in season one. What are the ramifications?
Good plans gone wrong?
She has to break the law to keep herself safe, she uses violence in her search for peace.

SOLVING PROBLEMS:

What is the major problem for this character?
She just wants to be a teenage girl again and not worry about anything.
What are they trying to solve?
Get the money, find a place to live/hide, escape the cartel, survive
Major change imposed on character?
She lost her family and home, she became a refugee – the story of season one.
Previous solutions cause new problems?
She takes Chance hostage and they escape together. His problems are added to the mix, because his father gets involved.

RELATIONSHIPS:

Relationships in peril?
Can Angelita trust anyone? What about her best friend at home? What happens to her brother Luis? Grandmother?
New relationships forming?
Chance helps her, falls for her. Veronica helps her, uses them, feels remorse. Dario wants a chance with her, to be her brother.
Conflict inside relationships?
Luis wasn’t who she thought he was. Her life was fake (and dangerous) and she did not know it. Chance is falling for her and she for him, but she wants to leave him behind when she finds her mother.
Relationships changing?
Constantly. Dario/cartel, Dario/Angelita, etc etc

DANGER / SURVIVAL / RISKS:

Can they survive X?
The danger from the cartel? Running away? The US migrant system/racist vigilantes/border patrol/ICE?
Putting themselves in danger / making dangerous decisions?
As Angelita is on the run.
Who else is pulled into their danger?
Chance, Veronica, innocent bystanders
Internal dangers (drug addiction, need for medicine, inner demons)?
Angelita – panic attacks/PTSD; Veronica – drug addiction; Chance – has an illness (cancer?)

Tell us your top 5-8 Big Picture Open Loops that could be in your pilot.
1) She lost her family and home, she became a refugee – the story of season one.
2) Luis wasn’t who she thought he was. Her life was fake (and dangerous) and she did not know it. Chance is falling for her and she for him, but she wants to leave him behind when she finds her mother.
3) The danger from the cartel? Running away? The US migrant system/racist vigilantes/border patrol/ICE?

4) Putting themselves in danger / making dangerous decisions? Angelita goes on the run.

5) Who else is pulled into their danger? Chance, Veronica, innocent bystanders

6) Good plans gone wrong? She has to break the law to keep herself safe, she uses violence in her search for peace.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Module 1, Lesson 8 – Cathryn Atkinson Show Mysteries

What I learned doing this assignment is to think on several levels when it comes to bringing mystery/unanswered questions into my work.

ASSIGNMENT 1: Mr Robot

BIG PICTURE MYSTERIES

-Why does Elliott “peek over walls” (“I look”) and then stay as far away from people as possible?

-Why is AllSafe crashed? Elliot trying to figure out why the crash is a distraction – to set up a meeting with Whiterose, who tells him about the honeypot infected server created by Gideon. And won’t say why they are working on the hack. To give him a second chance.

-What is the power Tyrell’s wife has over him – is it a big thing to this story? Because she seems like the power. She induces labor??

-Why does Elliott forget who people are? Elliott realized he forgets who people are. Darlene – who is she to him? His sister.

-He has no identity. Who is he? He had erased himself. Mr Robot is Elliott’s father? Or himself? 5Ws and How??

SMALLER MYSTERIES

-Why is Darlene hooking up with a banker, who she despises? To spy on him.

-Why did he hurt Christa (his psychologist)?

-Why does Darlene think she and Elliott need to connect outside the society, White Rose society?

-Why did Tyrell kill wife of new Technology Officer? Wife doesn’t know.

-Why is Tyrell being denied access to the fsociety info, by them? Part of something bigger. He know Mr Robot How/Why?

-How will Elliott get Gideon’s phone? Darlene hack.

ASSIGNMENT 2: Run Angelita

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 5W and H, along with the part withheld.

Angelita learns that her older brother Luis, who helped raise her, wasn’t the head of finances for a grocery store chain, but the second highest “accounts manager” for a large cartel, and they are after him because he stole $500m from them.

A. Shocking Event: She learns about his job when Luis forces her into a panic room at the home she lives in with their grandmother, as the cartel tries to pound down the door.
B. Secret: What has Luis done?
C. Investigation: Angelita must search for the truth as she flees to save her life – Luis gives her an address in Los Angeles (or NYC, Seattle or Chicago), but she doesn’t know who for.
5W and How:
Who – Who is after Angelita and her family? Why? Luis’s boss Moneda, who sends two hitmen after then, including Dario.
What – What was taken? Access codes. What can they do to escape? Join the migrant train north.
When – The pilot goes from one day in San Salvador to weeks later in the US.
Where – San Salvador and the Alves home, to Texas and the detention centre, to the road, to Veronica’s home in El Paso.
Why – Angelita later learns that Luis had been skimming the money for Moneda, under orders, but that instead of the $500,000 at a time he had been taking, Luis messed up and it ended up being $500m in one go. And Moneda covered his ass by blaming Luis.
How – Angelita has a digital key imprinted inside a medallion Luis gives her as he is hiding her in the panic room.
Part Withheld: That the address is for Angelita’s mother in the US.<div>

2. Create the Over Time Mystery and tell us the 5W and H, along with the part withheld.

Dario has followed Angelita to the US, with orders from Moneda to kill her. But Angelita discovers Dario is her eldest brother, one of her only relatives left, who was thrown out of the family for his addiction that caused a terrible accident that killed Angelita’s father.

A. Cover up: Angelita’s Nana never told her this story.
B. Secret: Family secrets
C. Reveals: Dario doesn’t want to kill Angelita and retrieve the codes, he wants to leave the cartel, ask Angelita to join him as an assassin (he comes to this later, after she kills someone), and take the money along with her, and hide from the cartel.
5W and How:
Who – Dario is tricking Moneda into leaving his other assassin back at home as he hunts for Angelita.
What – Dario wants to connect with Angelita
When – A month after the attack on Angelita’s home in San Salvador (Season is over about a month)
Where – Southwestern US.
Why – Dario sees Angelita as hope for the future. Someone who belongs to him, who he can care for. He’s lonely and loveless.
How – To convince Angelita when he is able to tell her about their connection, even force her to go with him in the end.
Part Withheld:
Who: His and Angelita’s Nana was not killed when the cartel shot her and took Luis (who is dead). She is a captive. Dario does not find this out until the end of Season One.
Who: Dario does not know Angelita’s mother is alive in LA — but is she Angelita’s mother?
</div>

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Show Empathy/Distress

What I learned doing this assignment is to focus on the incidents that cause empathy/distress over the course of the season/series, rather than smaller incidents that impact a single episode. Also, to look at how the incidents happening outside the control of the main character create Empathy/Distress for that character and those close to them.

Mr Robot

A. Undeserved misfortune.
-Shayla’s murder
-Psychologist dumps him – “She wants more from me, but she doesn’t believe in me.” Would everyone be on her side?

B. External Character conflicts.
-Shayla’s murder – the thread underlying the episode for Elliott.
-Darlene searching for white flower with Cisco leads to a meeting that will pull in Elliott.
-Angela convinces Colby to testify about being at meetings where decisions were made regarding poisoning workers and a community. This is how Elliott’s father and Angela’s mother were killed. And she will be fired by AllSafe.
-Gideon tells Angela that AllSafe will go bankrupt and her colleagues will lost jobs, the family will suffer. She is lying and saying she is responsible for the hack and release of data that Colby was accused of stealing, when in fact it was Elliott. Gideon tells her to stop lying.

C. Plot intruding on life.
Shayla’s murder – Remembering Shayla and how they met. He blocked out for a month – “she died because of me”. He downloads all his digital info on a disk and wipes the rest “This is all I have left of her.”

D. Moral dilemmas.
-He cannot be honest with anyone and he trusts no one, but he pretends to.
-Elliott comes to his Psychologist’s to “be honest” and spills that he spies on her. He explains they both are lonely. He confesses that he hacks everyone, and says he helps people and that he wants a way out of loneliness.

E. Forced to make decisions they’d never make.
-Boss tries to reach out to Elliott. Wants him to take time off because of Shayla’s death, he refuses and boss says he needs someone who really knows him. Elliott then thinks about being real, would people want to see that?<div>

Run Angelita
A. Undeserved misfortune.
-Angelita flees as her uncle and grandmother are seized/shot by the cartel. She loses her family and way of life, becoming a migrant walking to America.
B. External Character conflicts.
-Chance brings Angelita to Veronica, a journalist and ex-marine, who doesn’t want to see him a year after leaving his dad. STEP MOM.
C. Plot intruding on life.
-Luis and Nana are dead.
-America doesn’t welcome or want her in an immigration/refugee emergency
D. Moral dilemmas.
-Angelita was trained by Luis to protect herself and can be violent, this goes against what she wants/who she is. She wants to be a doctor.
E. Forced decisions they’d never make.
-Angelita is forced to flee her home after her family is attacked.
-She fights for her life, takes Chance hostage and forces him to help her escape detention.
</div>

• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Show Relationship Map

What I learned doing this assignment is to plan out the interactions between the characters on multiple levels in order to have more to write about and with greater depth and richness

Assignment 1

Assignment 2

ASSIGNMENTS COMPLETED but I cannot add the box.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson – Character Emotions

What I learned doing this assignment is to slow down and think about the characters separately and in-depth. Their emotions are going to be so key as to how they behave in the stressful environment I am writing for them.

ASSIGNMENT 1: Example Show – Mr Robot

Elliott

• A. Situational: 
Hope: Take down evilCorp
Fear: Getting caught, killed

• B. Motivation: 
Want: Power
Need: Self-esteem

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Fear
Public Mask: Competence

• D. Weaknesses
Anxiety, addiction, loathing, paranoia, revenge

• E. Triggers
Interactions, outside, bullies

• F. Coping Mechanism
Drugs, intelligence

Tyrell

• A. Situational: 
Hope: Wants Elliott to work for him
Fear: That he loses control

• B. Motivation: 
Want: Power
Need: Dominance

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Sociopath
Public Mask: Corporate coldness

• D. Weaknesses
Hubris, his wife, submissive sexually

• E. Triggers
: Fear, losing control

• F. Coping Mechanism
: Violence, displays of power and wealth

ASSIGNMENT 2: Run Angelita

Angelita:

• A. Situational: 
Hope: To survive being chased by the cartel
Fear: To be killed

• B. Motivation: 
Want: Safety and family
Need: Control

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Terror, rage
Public Mask: Vulnerability, growing confidence

• D. Weaknesses: Was a spoiled princess thanks to cartel money, ignorant of her background, shame, lack of trust

• E. Triggers
: The killing of her brother and grandmother. 
Seeing others hurt

• F. Coping Mechanism
: Revenge, fighting back, helping the weak, intelligence and training

Chance:

• A. Situational: 
Hope: To survive
Fear: Death, losing Angelita

• B. Motivation: 
Want: To be a good man
Need: Love and Control

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Worthlessness
Public Mask: Hero

• D. Weaknesses: 
Obsessive, fear of losing control

• E. Triggers: 
Father’s abuse, police, cruelty

• F. Coping Mechanism
: Help Angelita, repudiating/nullifying his father’s choices in his actions, competitions

Veronica:

• A. Situational: 
Hope: Get the story and advance her career
Fear: Get killed, the kids getting killed

• B. Motivation: 
Want: Success
Need: Self-esteem

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Rage
Public Mask: Investigative journalist who helps people

• D. Weaknesses
 Ambition, insecurity

• E. Triggers
: Wound – raped when she was a marine, racism as a Mexican-American,

• F. Coping Mechanism: 
Exposing through her journalism, weapons practise

Dario:

• A. Situational: 
Hope: To find Angelita
Fear: Being killed for failing, his past actions in killing others and in family catching up with him.

• B. Motivation: 
Want: Power
Need: Control

• C. Mask: 
Base Negative Emotion: Shame
Public Mask: Killer

• D. Weaknesses: 
Leading two lives – Killer, Informant
Actually the last member of Angelita’s family – Her oldest brother. Cartel life, ex-addict

• E. Triggers
: Wound – Accidentally killing his parents/self hatred, rage

• F. Coping Mechanism
: Clothes and wealth, violence, EMDR and Cognitive therapy

• This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Intriguing Character Layers

What I learned doing this assignment is more about my characters, I learned to focus on their deeper motivations and created more intrigue that can develop a series further. Focussing on what can keep viewer interest.

Already in Mr Robot:

Hidden agendas – Elliot spies on people and manipulates their live “to protect them.”
Competition – He wants to be the best at hacking or fixing hacks.
Conspiracy – He is part of a conspiracy of hackers fsociety in order to fight corporate conspiracy by eCorp
Secrets – Family secrets, hacking, drug addiction, imaginary friends
Deception – Deceives lots of people to get what he wants and to stay hidden – boss,
Wound – Dead father, horrible mother.
Secret Identity – He keeps his background hidden. He is a secret hacker.

Character Intrigue in episode 4 is being used to create the need to see more episodes.

Character Name – Eliott:

Role: Cybersecurity expert, nihilist hacker.
Hidden agendas: Addiction and trying to get off, carry out destruction of evil corp’s servers,
Competition: Competes with Mr Robot,
Conspiracies: Hacking and destroying Steel Mountain with fsociety.
Secrets: Still on drugs, withdrawal. Social anxiety.
Deception: He knows the EvilCorp CTO.
Wound: Addiction, Mother’s abuse, much of the episode is heroin hallucinations about his life. He is alone.
Secret Identity: Carrying out sabotage but his junkie problems emerge.<div>

Run Angelita – Inner circle characters:

Character Name: Angelita

Role: Protagonist – Teenage migrant escaping from El Salvador to US.
Hidden agendas: She is running away from the cartel who killed her brother and grandmother. She wants to kill the man who killed them, who she thinks is Dario. When she finds out about the money she wants to keep it for herself, but then changes her mind. To stay alive, free.
Competition: Competes with Chance, to show she is badass.
Conspiracies: With Chance and Veronica, to secure the money and keep both the cartel and the FBI away.
Secrets: She figures out where the money is early on but doesn’t trust the others at first.
Deception: She hides information about herself, and her connections to Cartel.
Wound: Her parents are dead, she sees her remaining family killed, she loses her way of life/future and becomes a refugee.
Secret Identity: She is a trained killer.

Character Name: Chance

Role: The American teen who helps Angelita escape and goes with her.
Hidden agendas: He fancies Angelita, he is getting revenge on his father.
Competition: Anyone who looks like they might hurt Angelita.
Conspiracies: He doesn’t like big government. Doesn’t like his father’s role in locking up kids. A fugitive with Angelita.
Secrets: He beat up a racist kid at his high school after a party and accidentally killed him.
Deception: He lies to his father about what he is doing.
Wound: His mother is dead from cancer, his father abuses him.
Secret Identity: Has PTSD from the abuse.

Character Name: Veronica

Role: The journalist who helps Angelita and Chance, and travels with them.
Hidden agendas: To her this is the biggest story of her career.
Competition: Competitive as a journalist. Her boyfriend and editor is messing around on her and she suspects it, which makes her want to “win his love back”.
Conspiracies: Illegally helping fugitives.
Secrets: Wanting to write the story about Angelita and Chance.
Deception: Gathers evidence about Angelita and Chance as she gets to know them. Has a choice to make about handing them and the money in to the FBI.
Wound: Feels unloved because of bad relationships
Secret Identity: Former Marine is actually former CIA.

Character Name: Dario

Role: Cartel Assassin
Hidden agendas: He wants to leave the cartel. He’s burnt out.
Competition: Everyone in the cartel. His deputy, who wants to oust him.
Conspiracies: Everything about being in a cartel is a conspiracy.
Secrets: He is the oldest brother of Angelita, and the brother of Luis. He didn’t kill Luis and Nana, his deputy did.
Deception: He tells his cartel boss that he will kill Angelita and find the money digital key, but he really wants to find her and run.
Wound: He thinks he killed his parents when he was a teenager. He left the family because his grandmother thought so, too.
Secret Identity: Angelita’s brother, who wants her to work with him as a contract killer.
</div>

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Engaging Main Characters – RUN ANGELITA

What I learned doing this assignment – It’s really good for me to slow down and get details on “paper”. Some of my characters needed more thought and I made progress with them. My protagonist and antagonist I have over thought at the expense of others.

Slowing down made me also think about the stories and I have made some changes that will improves the series.

ASSIGNMENT 1: MR ROBOT

Elliot Alderson –

A. Role in the show:

Is a genius hacker being drawn away from cybersecurity into the world of cyberterrorism

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

Elliot is anxiety riddled, social phobic introvert who is a brilliant cybersecurity operative and is open to being pulled into this mysterious cyberespionage world by Mr. Robot.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

Elliot is a liar and manipulator who spies on his friends and his enemies. His perspective means this is always for a “good reason.” He hid a hack that he stopped in order to revisit it because it intrigued him, he is a morphine addict, and he is attracted to cyberterrorism because he hates the system he is a part of.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

Elliott spies on everyone and will manipulate people and situations based on what he has learned. He seems not to abuse this power as yet because his needs are relatively minor, he wants to be left alone. He would say he does bad to do good. He lies, hacks to destroy.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

Elliot is a “will he, won’t he guy” trying to decide if he is going to take down the corporations with the hackers. He finally decides to at the end of episode 3.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

He’s funny, thoughtful, fucked up. His father caught leukemia in a Ecorp accident and his mother was unstable and cruel. He wants to do better, wants to reach out. He secretly helps those he cares about.

Mr Robot –

A. Role in the show:

Is the head of a shadowy leader of a group of underground cyberterrorist who is tempting and manipulating Elliot into working with them.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

Mr Robot is the confident, anarchic head of a shadowy group of cyberspies, a group that is exactly what Elliot desires to be a part of.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

Mr Robot seems to be behind his group’s cyberattacks, but no details are released. He draws Elliot out, then abuses him. Keeps Elliot off kilter.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

He’s off the grid, respects no boundaries and wants to cause harm, almost for the sake of it.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

Dangerously unpredictable in harming Elliot, also socially unpredictable – in your face.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

There is interest in whether he will take down one of the world’s most powerful and nasty corporations.

Tyreill Wellick –

A. Role in the show:

He is a high executive at the corrupt company E Corp, acting chief technical officer, with skills as a hacker, who has secrets, and is a violent quasi-fascist.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

Tyreill craves power within Ecorp and will do anything to achieve it. He uses his skills to advance himself and is Elliot’s equal in cunning.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

Tyreill is not as in control as he appears on the outside, and his pregnant wife dominates him. He is relentlessly ambitious and this drives him to use people.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

He is unethical, violent, manipulative, callous, the worst kind of self-interested capitalist who doesn’t care what he destroys.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

Something doesn’t go his way at E Corp, it looks like he might not be appointed chief tech officer, and he beats up a homeless man that he has paid for. He will have gay sex with a lower ranking employee in order to steal data from him.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

He doesn’t create much empathy. He wants the job and is desperate. His wife mocks him. He seems lost in his own way.

ASSIGNMENT 2: RUN ANGELITA

The journey of the show.

RUN ANGELITA tells the story of a Mexican migrant – a spoiled 16-year-old girl who has been trained in shooting and martial arts, and who goes on the run after her accountant brother and grandmother are killed by the cartel he secretly works for. She doesn’t realize she carries the digital key to almost a billion dollars in cartel money, but when she discovers it, she decides it could do some good in the world.

Answer these questions for each of those characters.

Angelita Alves

A. Role in the show:
Angelita is a refugee trying to escape violence against her family.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

Her brother gave her the digital key to almost a billion dollars before he was murdered/He had been training her in weapons and martial arts so that she could protect herself.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

She didn’t know her brother Luis was an accountant for a cartel, her family has cartel history. She knows martial arts and how to use knives and guns, she knows the medallion Luis gave her was important, but not why. She doesn’t tell Chance and Veronica why she is on the run.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

She does not want to hurt anyone, but ends up fighting and then killing a man who is hurting her/others. She decides to keep the money instead of hand it over to authorities.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

As becomes more aware of her powers, and more aware of the dangers she faces in every direction, she had to make choices about how to fight back.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

At 16, Angelita lost her brother and grandmother, who raised her, and was thrust into the world of refugees, heading to the US, where she isn’t wanted. She is confused, lost, traumatized.<div>

Chance Tremblay

A. Role in the show:
Chance is an American high school student who is pissed off with his detention guard father and the system that employs him and helps Angelita escape when she breaks out of migrant detention following a riot.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

He is American and knows his way around the US southwest, he is a competitive rifleman and horseman. He becomes emotionally connected to Angelita and wants her to survive, so he goes on the run with her.</div><div>

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

His father works for the migrant detention system, and he used to help his father search for migrants in the desert to turn them in. Finding a dead family changed him. NEEDS SOMETHING ELSE.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

He is going against his father and against his country’s laws in helping a fugitive. He thinks he can never go back to his old life.

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

He will be violent because he thinks there is no other choice.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

He’s got a good heart but feels that gets him nowhere. He’s honest.

Dario

A. Role in the show:

Dario is the cartel’s hitman, and Angelita thinks he killed her brother and grandmother.

B. Unique Purpose / Expertise:

He is the best killer his boss Moneda has, and an expert tracker. He’s a veteran assassin.

C. Intrigue: What is secret beneath the surface?

He wants to get out of the cartel, and he has a proposal for Angelita and the money.

D. Moral Issue: What moral boundaries are they crossing?

He is a killer, an ex-junkie, he will use every tool at his disposal to track Angelita down.<div>

E. Unpredictable: What will they do next?

He is like a coiled spring, and prone to sudden violence. He wants to get out of the cartel, but he knows there is not simple way to do that. He dreads what he may have to do. He knows he has done things that are unforgivable, but doesn’t want to pay the price for them.

F. Empathetic: Why do we care?

He is trying to find his humanity again after having the cartel crush it for decades. He doesn’t know if he can be saved. He’s cool and funny. </div> </div>

• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson’s Three Circles of Characters

What I learned ­– Breaking characters into three circles is an excellent way to highlight how each character plays a part in the overall story of the series, where they are in the food chain. It’s a pyramid. It also helps focus on the connection of all characters to the protagonist (and antagonist). It solidifies the world and plot.

In watching Mr. Robot, you can see how characters who might be considered in the connected circle can move closer to the main circle when the narrative needs them. You can see how they bolster Elliot’s journey. I feel like we don’t have a full understanding yet of who is Elliot’s main character circle, especially in terms of the female characters. Shayla and Angela are the flipsides of each other.

ASSIGNMENT 1:

Three Circles of Characters for MR ROBOT

A. Main Characters’ Circle – Elliot Alderson, Mr Robot, Tyreill Wellick, Angela,

B. Connected Circle: Shayla, Darlene, Invisible friends, Terry Colby, Gideon (boss), Ollie (boyfriend), Cisco (musician/hacker), fsociety people, Fernando Vera (drug dealer), Krista (psychologist), father (not alive), Mr X driver.

C. Environment Circle: EvilCorp lawyers, Doggie, Allsafe workers, subway travellers, cops, New Yorkers,

ASSIGNMENT 2:

1. Three circles of characters for RUN ANGELITA.

A. Main Characters Circle:
Angelita Alves, Chance Tremblay, Veronica Segundo, Dario


B. Connected Circle: Luis Alves, Nana Alves, Rosalino, Moneda, Aguila, Warden Mac, Freya, The Minutemen (Cory, Simon, Buddy), The captive refugees (Estella, Older Woman, Teenage boy), Johnny Johnson, Waitress in truck stop, Waitress in LA, Lynelle, CBP Officer, Beck (guard), Matteo and Santiago, Good Ole Boys, Young Refugees, Rocky/He-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed (Veronica’s editor), Vintner, Grape Pickers, woman in truck, Judge, FBI agent Sloane, Two lawyers, CIA Agent, 


C. Environment Circle: Cartel henchmen, Walking migrants, Teacher at Angelita’s school, Eduardo (dead), Detained Migrants, Detention guards, Customs and Border Services Protection Guards. Texans, Arizonans, Mexicans, Californians. Detained refugee children, guard dogs, online trolls, restaurant patrons, nurses, doctor, hospital security, SUV driver, Police, FBI agents, DEA agents, El Salvadorean official, Patrons at The Refuge Coffeeshop, People on vacation.

2. Give us a one sentence description of each of the Main Characters.

Angelita Alves A spoiled 16-year-old El Salvador girl who has been trained in shooting and martial arts, and who goes on the run after her accountant brother and grandmother are killed by the cartel he secretly works for.

Chance Tremblay, 17, Texan with a cowboy’s honor and a way with rifles, who rescued Angelita after she escapes from detention and promises to help her.

Veronica Segundo, 39-year-old journalist and Chance’s friend, she is an ex-marine who agrees to help Angelita and Chance in exchange for the story of her career.

Dario – 45, A hitman with a secret who is sent to kill Angelita and anyone who helps her.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

MR ROBOT 5-Star Model

What I learned doing this assignment is to absorb the story once, and the second time look deeper. You can see beyond the obvious using the 5-Star Points and become a stronger observer of what is best about the show.

Big Picture Hooks – MR ROBOT
A brilliant but introverted, anxious cybersecurity tech saves the online world of a corporation he despises and is recruited by underground hackers to take down the same company and help others on a massive scale.

Amazing and Intriguing Character

Elliot keeps most of his inner world hidden from others, and wants to secretly protect the two women who are good to him – friend/crush Angela and psychologist Krista Gordon. He does this as he saves ECorp from losing control of their servers, and learns it was a message for him from mysterious hackers.

Mr. Robot has been following Elliot and reels him in after the latter discovers the message. Mr Robot shows him the best hacking operation he’s ever seen, and is a chance to take down the worst corporate abusers.

Empathy / Distress
Elliot has no one, apart from his friend Angela, who he works with, and his psychologist. He was an abused child. He fears he is hallucinating, that what he experiences is not reality. He’s anxious and introverted but still has a sense of humor. He wants to take down the worst people.

Layers / Open Loops
Who are Mr Robot and the hackers? What are their real goals? What will they ask him to do?
Will Elliot be able to protect Angela from her asshole boyfriend? Dr Gordon – Can she help him?
How much is reality and how much is fantasy for Elliot?
Elliot ends the pilot happy, but what’s next? Will society have their debts wiped out?

Inviting Obsession
Tons of intrigue and mystery. Conspiracy and conflict, clear antagonists who are really bad, but the protagonists aren’t great people. High stakes, people get their money back, will they?

SECOND WATCH while using 5-Star Point analysis.

1. Big Picture Hooks
This is a revenge series, compelling.

2. Amazing and Intriguing Character
The pedophile – Elliot wants to do right, but just enough to not be found out. He stays anonymous “Good isn’t allowed to exist without condition” – but he’s a vigilante at heart. But he still lets the women he cares for stay in bad relationships. Shades of grey. He doesn’t give a shit about money. Elliot’s rage comes out through his smarts. He may have social anxiety but he is very confident and he seems to know himself. He spies on people, can be manipulative. An easy liar, comfortable with being awkward.

3. Empathy / Distress
He’s very lonely. Elliot’s father died from leukemia he got from work. A source of his hatred. He was left with an abusive mother. Angela and Elliot have a good friendship – real. He rages against the things that many of us rage against: Late capitalism abuses, hypocrisy, cruelty to animals.
“I’m anonymous, alone, not special” – He can’t stop the abuse of the world.
Both Elliot’s and Mr Robot’s fathers died. They have connection.

4. Layers / Open Loops
Is the imaginary friend important? Why does Tyrell use Linux – hard the hack – and who is he? His boss being gay – that will come back later. How? Who is his partner?

Will Elliot set a revolution in motion?

5. Inviting Obsession
Music, world, tone, and scene cuts are also strong. Good character types. Troubled character trying to do the right thing, and can read others. Almost has a crystal ball into who is good and who isn’t, but the hackers/Mr Robot confound him. It’s like the hackers know him better than he does.

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• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Hi, I’m Cathryn Atkinson

I’ve written eight-ten scripts now, one was optioned. I’ve written and produced two shorts.

I am currently at the pitch level with one creative development producer in the UK on a historical thriller feature, with a producer in Jakarta on a murder mystery series series set in Indonesia, and I am a writer/co-creator for a children’s animation project with a producer-partner based in Miami.

I am also currently developing three other TV projects, and two features as spec scripts.

I hope to elevate my skills and establish my best work methods in a business-minded way.

Unique? Special? I’ve been a journalist in the UK and Canada for over 25 years, and I am trying to segue out of it. 🙂

• This reply was modified 2 years, 9 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn Atkinson agrees to the terms of this 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.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn’s Character Profiles Part 1

What I learned doing this assignment is to be focused. and put it at the top of your work.

Protagonist

Victim –
Charley has been torn from his family, who have all been jailed, and forced to fight for survival in a boot polish factory.

Antagonist

Predator –
Lamerte is Charley’s cousin by marriage, and who is a manager at the factory. He tell Charley’s parents he will care for the boy, but he instead uses Charley.

What other characters might be necessary?

Supporting characters:

Fanny, Charley’s sister. The pianist who everyone things is the genius, the one who will save them.
The rest of Charley’s imprisoned family.
The other boys in the factory.

Minor roles
The public who visit Charley
The music students at the Royal Academy of Music, especially Henry Burnett (the man Fanny marries)

Background characters
Londoners

Pick your genre

Drama – Historical drama to be precise

CHARLEY

Role in the story: Protagonist.
Charley is a 12-year-old dreamer who is forced to face harsh realities of life when his family is jailed for debt, he is abused by the man asked to protect him, and his sister seems to be heading for a perfect life.
Age range and Description: Age 12, a skinny boy, smart and creative, an enormous sense of justice.

Internal Journey: Charley seemingly loses everything and is broken and enraged, he must look outside of himself in order to recover his life and dreams. And he does this by saving his sister.

External Journey: He is crushed by being forced to be a factory worker and by losing his family. He fights for his right to have the life he wants, to leave the factory, to love his family, and to feel safe again.
Motivation: He wants to reunite his family and to leave the factory/He needs safety and love.
Wound: He has lost his family. He must get them back.
Mission/Agenda: **His Mission is to becomes the best factory boy in order to be too good for the factory/He wants to be the best storyteller, and to have that recognised.

Secret: He is hiding his true self as he works to save himself. That he is abandoned, living in squalor.

What makes them special? He becomes one of the most famous writers in the world. This is a true story.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

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• This reply was modified 3 years, 6 months ago by  Cathryn Atkinson.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

Cathryn’s Transformational Journey

What I learned doing this assignment is I let this story lie fallow for three years. And it wasn’t easy, but I am ready to writ it now. This was a great start.

My hero Is Charles/Charlie, a 12-year-old boy in London in 1824.

Internal journey: he is a people pleaser, he’s afraid of losing his family, of poverty, of lower standing, of losing his dreams. The transformation is that he loses everything, his worst fears come true, but he overcomes them and finds his voice. He starts to come into his power and define his life.

External journey: He is separated from his parents and younger siblings, who are jailed for debt, apart from his sister, who is sent to school and seems to get every opportunity he dreams of. Instead, he is forced to work in a factory. He works through this, perseveres, and starts to move into adulthood and his future.

Old Ways: A child – selfish, greedy for attention, takes things for granted, naïve, fearful, no self-control, didn’t believe in himself, accepted the dominance of others, jealous of his sister.

New Ways: Learns resilience, won’t let anyone stop him getting what he wants (a future, and control over his life), won’t be corrupted by bad people, admits when he is wrong (reconciles), more aware of world and promises to be a force for good in the world. Saves his sister.

[Cathryn Atkinson]

I, Cathryn Atkinson, agree to the terms of this release form

[Cathryn Atkinson]

I’m Cathryn Atkinson, I’ve written 10 scripts of varying sizes, made one short. I want to get my next project started and to develop better habits to get first drafts down quickly. I’m feeling pretty ambitious this year.
Something unique, special, strange or unusual? I signed a shopping/co-developer contract just before Christmas for a TV series with a really great Miami-based producer. She sought me out after we did a producing course together. I’m really looking forward to 2022.