[MARY Wells]

I’m honestly not sure where to post assignments but I am still on module 1 here. Sorry if being slow!

1. Make a list of BIG PICTURE difficult situations and decisions your characters could make because of the main conflict of this series.

A. Undeserved misfortune.

BEING ORPHANED, REJECTED FROM UNIT, DEPLOYED TO NEW UNIT, ASSAULTED, INJURED IN COMBAT, MEDICALLY RETIRED.

B. External Character conflicts.

INTENTIONAL: NCO is too tough on the new women, pitting them against each other in the environment.

UNINTENTIONAL: Lani and Gabrielle fight each other and both are lonely, and have their friendships compromised with the men too who do not want to get involved. Fear of being told they are creeps too.

C. Plot intruding on life.

HER CITIZENSHIP ISSUE MEANS THAT SHE CANNOT BE PROMOTED UNTIL ITS CLEARED. HER SOVEREIGNTY TIES MEAN THAT SHE IS MADE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN HAWAII AND AMERICA. HER BROTHER’S HEALTH NEEDS MEAN IT IS DIFFICULT TO SUCCEED AND BE ACCEPTED.

D. Moral dilemmas.

TO REVEAL THE PEARL HARBOUR NOTE IN HER FATHER’S APARTMENT HE KEPT WITH A MISTRESS – KNOWING IT WILL BLOW APART HER GOVERNMENT AND HER FAITH IN THEIR DECISION? START WW3? SHE HIDES IT. IN COMBAT SHE CANNOT LEAVE ANOTHER SOLDIER BEHIND – ITS GABE – SHE HAS TO TO SAVE HERSELF.

E. Forced decisions they’d never make.

THIS IS KILL OR BE KILLED. A FELLOW SOLDIER WHO HAS ASSAULTED HER? A VETERAN WHO HAS A TBI AND A HANDGUN AND HOMICIDAL TENDENCIES AFTER A BANK ROBBERY WHO SHE ADORES?

[MARY Wells]

MRY JANE’S Show Relationship Map

What I learned is that this was the most successful exercise in brainstorming!!

[MARY Wells]

ASSIGNMENT 2: Your Show

Mary Jane’s Character Emotions. What I learned doing this assignment is…THAT IF I WANT TO CREATE HEROES AND I NEED TO CREATE REAL PEOPLE FIFST

LANI PROFILE

A. Hope: GETS THE JOB . / Fear: GETS THE JOB
B. Want: FEEL SAFE, FREE AND INVISIBLE / Need: MONEY AND SECURITY
C. Base Negative Emotion: RESENTMENT / Public Mask: SUBSERVIENT/ AGREEABLE
D. Weaknesses: WONT SPEAK UP AND SAY HER TRUTH
E. Triggers: MISOGYNY
F. Coping Mechanism: DENIAL, EXPLOSIVE RAGE OR FURTIVELY DESTRUCTIVE

GABRIELLE PROFILE

A. Hope: SHE CAN HAVE FAM AND CAREER / Fear: HER HUSBAND MIGHT WANT HER TO GIVE UP CAREER WITH A BABY – OR THAT HE WILL LEAVE HER TO PURSUE HIS
B. Want: REALISED AMBITION / Need: RESPECT FROM PEERS ON HER OWN TERMS
C. Base Negative Emotion: / Public Mask: WORTHLESS
/ WARM
D. Weaknesses: COMPETITIVE FOR HER PLACE IN THE SUN WITH OTHER WOMEN, E.
E. Triggers: BETRAYAL
F. Coping Mechanism: SHUT DOWN

[MARY Wells]

ASSIGNMENT 2

“What I learned doing this assignment is… that secrets and competition and intrigue are everyday behaviours and not huge stakes events in order to motor story”

[MARY Wells]

DAY TWO ASSIGNMENT

What I learned doing this assignment is… that your main characters inner circle need not be present, eg Hannah, June’s daughter in the Handmaid’s Tale. They can loom large as absent. Also, what makes them intruiging is not the high stakes of the events that happen to them necessarily but how much empathy we feel for their dilemma based on what is important to them.

A. Main Characters Circle: Lani, her flight mechanic BF, her NCO who trains her, Squad leader perpetrator.

B. Connected Circle: Lani’s brother, Army chaplain, flight surgeon, Master Sergeant, Commanding Officer, Pele

C. Environment Circle: JAG office, Battalion personnel, HI civilians who do and do not like the Military.

Give us a quick list for each circle.

Deadline: 24 hours

ASSIGNMENT 2:

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

LANI – DRY, QUIET, SUBMISSIVE, THE PHOENIX BEFORE THE FLAMES.

HAWAIIAN BF – LOUD, GOOFY, BRASH, WARM, SUPPORTIVE – BRINGS LANI OUT OF HER SHELL AND PROVIDES HER WITH BACK UP. THE BRAWN TO THE BRAIN?

NCO – ROBOTIC TO SOME, BUT WARM ONCE YOU GET TO KNOW HER. SHE IS TOUGH AND ENCOURAGES LANI TO DO HER BEST. BUT FINDS VULNERABILITY DIFFICULT AND LANI’S GRIEF and VULNERABILITY IS INITIALLY NOT WELL MET.

[MARY Wells]

MARY JANE’S Three Circles of Characters

WHAT I LEARNED:

The value of keeping things simple and going back over all the bones so far – to ensure I was being unique and economical with my cast creation.

ASSIGNMENT 1:

A. Main Characters Circle: Lani, her flight mechanic BF, her NCO who trains her, Squad leader perpetrator.

B. Connected Circle: Lani’s brother, Army chaplain, flight surgeon, Master Sergeant, Commanding Officer, Pele

C. Environment Circle: JAG office, Battalion personnel, HI civilians who do and do not like the Military

Deadline: 24 hours

[MARY Wells]

HANDMAIDS TALE: 5 Star Model

What I learned doing this assignment is…

Big Picture Hooks
Ask this: What is the big hook of this show?

ITS TOTALITARIAN SOCIETY. IT IS SET IN A WORLD SO EXTREME, WHERE THE STAKES ARE SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST, AND IS TOLD FROM AN INTIMATE PERSPECTIVE. WE LEARN OF JUNE’S WORLD THROUGH ONLY HER EYES, AND WHAT WE LEARN IS SHOCKING. WE SEE WHAT SHE HAS LOST AND HOW HARD IT IS TO REGAIN IT. HER DILEMMA IS TORTUOUS.

Amazing and Intriguing Character
Ask this: What makes these main characters intriguing and interesting?

HER MODERN SENSIBILITIES AND FIEST THAT LEAK THROUGH HER ‘DESIGNATED OFFRED” PERSONALITY, FLASHBACKS TO WHOM SHE WAS WHEN SHE WAS FREE. WE ARE SHOWN WHO SHE IS BY ACTIONS AND TORTUOUS SITUATIONS WHICH FORCE ME TO IDENTIFY AND ASK MYSELF, “WHAT WOULD I DO?”. SHE STAYS SAFE AND SILENT AND IS NOT AN OBVIOUS HEROINE. SHE SHOWS KINDNESS TO JANINE WHEN NO-ONE ELSE DOES, BUT RAGE FOR THE MAN SHE IS ALLOWED TO BEAT. SHE IS NEITHER HEROINE NOT MARTYR.

Empathy / Distress
Ask this: What situation causes us to feel both empathy and distress for this character?

HER CHILD IS ABDUCTED AND HER HUSBAND IS SHOT AT THE START. SHE HAS FEW FRIENDS AND THE ONES SHE HAD HAVE HARDENED: CREATING TRUTHFUL LINKS SEEM IMPOSSIBLE.

Layers / Open Loops
Ask this: What questions are created by this first episode that can only be answered by watching the entire season?

WAS HER HUSBAND SHOT? IS HE ABLE TO COME AFTER HER? HOW CAN SHE ESCAPE? WHO IS THE EYE IN HER HOUSE? WHAT ELSE DO THEY “DO REALLY WELL” IN GILEAD? WHAT ELSE WILL THEY DO TO TURN OFFRED INTO WHAT THEY WANT? IS OFFRED PREGNANT? WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE MOST VULNERABLE, LIKE JANINE?

MAINLY, HOW IS SHE GOING TO GET HER DAUGHTER BACK AND GET OUT OF THERE?

Inviting Obsession
Ask this: How does this pilot create the need to see every single episode?

THE STAKES FOR SURVIVAL ARE SO HIGH.

THE SENSE OF INJUSTICE AND REVENGE IS DEEP.

I HATE SOME OF THE CHARACTERS – LIKE SERENA AND AUNT LYDIA – SO MUCH FROM ONLY 1 EP. ESCAPE IS VERY NEEDED IN SUCH A TRAUMATIC WORLD, AND YET THERE IS NO OBVIOUS WAY OUT.

[MARY Wells]

MARY JANE WELLS

I AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THE BELOW RELEASE FORM:

GROUP RELEASE FORM FOR “BINGE WORTHY TV” CLASS

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 Binge Worthy TV class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, teaching a class, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the Binge Worthy TV 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 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. The easiest solution if you have similar ideas is to either not look at each other’s work or to agree to take your shows in different directions.

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 Binge Worthy TV class.

[MARY Wells]

Hi! I’m extremely late to this party. Sorry about that!

1. Name? MARY JANE

2. How many scripts you’ve written? TWO. ONE WAS A PLAY. IT WAS THE LAST SHOW ON AT THE KENNEDY CENTER LAST YEAR.

3. What you hope to get out of the class? BEING ABLE TO SCORE A DEAL WITH FOX 21!

4. Something unique, special, strange or unusual about you? ITS TRUE THAT I HAD FALSE TEETH FOR SOME YEARS. I’M JUST GOING TO LEAVE THAT THERE AND WALK AWAY..