[Michael Davis]

What I learned doing this assignment, was that you find that your own story becomes more intriguing to you, as a writer, as it and the characters within the story are broken down into viable pieces of the whole, to be examined like a puzzle and then once the discovery is made of where all the pieces fit together, you have a correct path in putting together a masterpiece that the audience will love to watch. This really helped me to see my stories in a more diverse form of creativity.

Discovering Character Depth:

Ezekiel’s Profile:

INTERNAL CHARACTER DEPTH:

• Motivation – There is a need to right a wrong, help his daughter escape from a wrongfully imprisoned fate, feel vindicated, and help her to reclaim what was taken.
• Secret – The ones that Ezekiel hides from Apolyta, that he is her father and the Dark Prince of Hell is her uncle, that Ezekiel’s place in Hell is for a reason and serves a purpose, for defying the king and to Guard the others in Hell.
• Wound – Betrayal by a brother, a trust broken.
• Subtext – Unable to express the true love he carries as a father for his daughter and the need to feel the love that a father should from his daughter.
• Layers – The complexities of the roles he played as being the first angel created to guard the gates of heaven. The fear of discovery, of his role in the cause of the great fall, which is revealed as Apolyta reaches a mid-way point in her journey, and is granted the gift of insight into what has confused her since awakening in Hell.

Character to Character:

• Conflict – He struggles more with the darkness that has consumed him as he wanders through Hell, and in his wandering, his lust for blood and carnage forces him to kill others to satisfy his hunger.
• Hidden Agenda – For the time being he has tried to keep Apolyta from trying to change her current situation, in fear for her life, that on a journey alone she would be killed by the things that lurk in Hell. But he knows that there are lessons she needs to learn and he cannot teach her anymore, what must be learned has to be accomplished in her journey.
• Conspiracy – The lies that are weaved and told to him by his brother, once confronted, to convert others to his side and overthrow the true King.
• Intrigue – Ezekiel hopes that this journey will help Apolyta, for she is an Arc Angel, who cares nothing for the lives of others and all she wants is to return to heaven, but it is Ezekiel’s hope that she will grow and manifest a change within by helping those in need along the way of her journey.

CHARACTER SITUATION:

• Dilemma – He knows that her journey will lead to her death for she lacks the power to defeat the enemies that lie before her in the path she will take. He offers advice on who to trust and gives the very thing that has sustained his malevolent powers since arriving in hell. He bequeaths the very sword that created Hell, Naymere, to her so that she now has the power to stand against those that would threaten her life and the journey she has partaken in, but at the same time, it has doomed him to the manipulating forces of darkness that dwell in this black pit of torment.
• Secret Identity – Ezekiel made a king and protectorate in Hell and has now reclaimed the honor that was lost in the great fall, all has been revealed to Apolyta as she has forged a new destiny for herself and those that follow.

Discovering Character Depth:

Apolyta’s Profile:

INTERNAL CHARACTER DEPTH:

• Motivation – A need to escape from Hell and find answers to the question she has, to be vindicated and her honor restored, to return and rescue her mentor and the others that were wrongfully imprisoned here.
• Secret – The only one is carried when she discovers that the adolescent child that has tagged along with her on the journey is her nephew and a child of an Angel which in the case of angels having children has created another puzzle for it was thought that this was impossible.
• wound – A previous battle still haunts her and she is unsure of her powers and strength to make it through but encouragement is given from Ezekiel and she regains her courage.
• Subtext – She is reluctant to tell Ezekiel how she feels, she doubts her instinct and has lost a little of herself but wishes to find the lost part of herself in the journey ahead.
• <b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Layers – What and who she is, will be revealed to her and the honor she thought she had lost shall be reclaimed once she has crossed the gates of the Elysian Fields. It is here that Gaybriell will divulge the truth to her, the truth of her true origins that she thought were the same as everyone else’s.

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

• Conflict – There is none between the characters but there is an immense struggle that this journey will take physically from her as she fights a myriad of demons to make it to the Elysian Fields to seek answers to her questions. Having to fight the Dark Prince at the gates of the Elysian Fields.
• <b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;” class=””>Hidden Agenda – The return and possible rescue of the other fallen and to save Ezekiel her father.
• Conspiracy – It is made known to Apolyta of the lies told by her uncle the Dark Princes that caused the great fall and that which turned the mind of his followers against the great King
• Intrigue – Now fully aware of the Dark Princes’s agenda her true mission is to see he is sent a message.

CHARACTER SITUATION:

• Dilemma – The return is made possible but upon searching for her father at the place they once occupied, she now finds a great demon and combat ensues, followed by death to the demon, a final end, but a complication is discovered, for the demon was her father who had fallen to the swaying forces of darkness that dwell within Hell.
• Secret Identity – All is brought to light, no more secrets, a dying father reveals himself to his daughter, Apolyta reveals all to Thielen, and The Dark Prince is confronted with the truth and a day of reckoning is at hand as she forges a new destiny for herself and all that follows.

DISCOVERING CHARACTER DEPTH:<div>

Thielen’s Profile

Internal Character Depth:

• Motivation – To escape his bonds, find the family that was lost to him, and regain his true form.
• Secret: – He is unaware of the secret that Apolyta carries and knows nothing of his relationship with her and has none of his own for he is just an adolescent that only wants to find his mother, father, and little sister.
• Wound – He is haunted by the memory of his inability to work magic efficiently as his mother taught him and feels deeply responsible for his family’s capture and separation.
• Subtext – He is reluctant to reveal that he is capable of wielding magic but he can’t afford to fail now when freedom is given at the hands of Apolyta and now he must work with her to save his family, but convincing her to help him will be a problem since she has a mission of her own and does not want to deviate from it.
• Layers – He becomes a warrior and fights to protect those he cares about and in the process is granted ascension to heaven but declines in hope that he may use his power to serve those on earth.

CHARACTER TO CHARACTER:

• Conflict – There is a struggle of trust and the conflicts between Apolyta and Thielen are tolerable at best but she is persuaded to help him find his family and in return, he promises to teach her magic and aid her in her journey to return to the Kingdom of light.
• Hidden Agenda – Thielen is capable of seeing into Apolyta’s heart and she needs help in the realization that trust and love are things that strengthen you and open doors to powers that can be helpful in her journey ahead. So as they travel together he becomes her conscious, in doing the right thing and helping others, which in turn strengthens her magic abilities, for magic is more controlled through emotions and the intent of the wielder.
• Conspiracy – As time passes Apolyta finds more of a connection with Thielen and reveals that they are related and that as they journey together, it is disturbingly obvious that they must right the wrongs even in Hell and together they help those in need.
• Intrigue – At one point in this story the Dark Prince convinces Thielen to betray Apolyta by giving him the sword Naymere so that she will have no defense against him and can be captured easily but as he attempts to do so, he takes the wrong sword and before he could finalize the betrayal he has a change of heart and returns the sword, of which Apolyta knew for Naymere cast a spell over Thielen and it was all a dream.

CHARACTER SITUATION:

• Dilemma – As a battle eventually ensues with the Dark Prince in his Demon form Thielen is forced to make a life or death situation by sacrificing his own life to save his family and many others who live along with Apolyta. The right decision is made and he is dead but all is not lost for life is made new again and he is reborn.
• Secret Identity – None are forthcoming in Thielen’s case for he searches for his family and at the end of this journey, finds them.

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[Michael Davis]

What I learned doing this assignment is, that by forming a continuous connection of actions and dilemmas for the characters in the scene, you create a moving forward concept hook that captures your audience. I am finding that sometimes that is not always an easy thing to do but this lesson really helped me to think outside the box.

The Concept hook and contained setting:

1. Concept hook:

A. A warrior Arc Angel awakens in Hell and goes on a journey of truth and growth as she fights to returns to Heaven and then turns around to mount a rescue to save her mentor/father who is still trapped there.

2. The contained setting:

A. is a cave in Hell.

3. How does each main character enhance or cause that conflict?

A. Ezekiel 2nd Arc Angel of heaven the mentor and secret father to Apolyta

B. Apolyta daughter to Ezekiel but she is unaware of this fact, and Thielen the Nephilim child, Apolyta is also an Arc Angel, who seeks to leave Hell and return to Heaven and seek answers to their fall into Hell and return to rescue Ezekiel.

4. What makes these characters the “right ones” for this story, is that they are all connected by way of family and service to the higher kingdom.

A. Apolyta is the daughter of Ezekiel and the niece of the Dark King in Hell of that she is unaware as well, Thielen is her nephew of which she just recently found out for he is the son of her brother which is another Arc Angel. They are all connected and must play a part in the journey out of Hell by helping each other.

[Michael Davis]

A. How did this process work for me?

I am appreciating more and more each day in this class the methods in which I am forced to look at things from a different line of perspective. This process helps me focus more on the hook rather than the concept. For a while in my process of learning to write scripts for the first time, I found that wasn’t an easy process.

B. What did I learn doing this assignment?

I learned that I still have a lot to learn in becoming a better script and screenwriter. I am just now starting to see but not reaching but seeing the tip of the iceberg, and that is okay, for it only serves to fuel the fire that makes me a good writer. I have plenty of material to work with but the structural infrastructure put it all together is lacking and I am happy to say that this class is helping me in more ways than one to pull it all together.

Step 1: Brainstorming Key Components Searching for A Hook.

A. Intriguing Contained Setting: The Lower depths of Hell

B. Unique Device: The journey out of hell

C. Unique Monster/Villain: The Dark Lord of the abyss

D. Mystery: The real connection between the three main characters

E. Impossible goal/Unsolvable problem: Escaping an eternal prison which is Hell.

F. Unique Layers: She carries the key of escape but is unaware of its full purpose, also she is not on this journey by choice for it was chosen for her so she may become wiser at the end.

Step 2: Ask the High Concept Question.

[Having to do with a “Fallen Arc Angel”, what haven’t we seen before?

What is the integrity of this Character, why is this journey before her, what is her purpose or goal in leaving Hell?

Step 3: Components of the current concept.

A. A mentor/Father who counsels the Arc Angel on her journey.

B. A sword of unknown power and a key to solving a problem.

C. A mysterious child

D. A dark and powerful demon

Step 4: Brainstorm Alternatives

A. A magical Amulet that provides guides

B. Magic that has to be learned in order to complete the mission

C. A Baby’s crib and a clue

D. A Dark secret that will reshape the purpose of her quest to leave Hell.

The most interesting and engaging for me would be:

Magic that has to be learned in order to complete the mission

[Michael Davis]

Idea 1:

A. Contained Environment: A secluded island

B. Contained Characters: Two women, 3 men

C. Difficult situation: Demons try to kill everyone

D. Reason for containment: The island serves as a prison/hideaway

Idea 2:

A. Contained Environment: Space ship

B. Contained Characters: Science team, mother and daughter(6)

C. Difficult Situation: Alien Fued Trying to enslave or kill all inhabitants

D. Reason for containment: Can’t make a return trip home, old-world dying or dead

Idea 3:

A. Contained Environment: Hell

B. Contained Characters: Three people Two men, one woman, one boy(19)

C. Difficult situation: Must cross the vastness of hell to reach the Elysian Fields, death encounter with the Demon King.

D. Reason for Containment: Accidental imprisonment for all eternity

Idea 4:

A. Contained Environment: Island

B. Contained Characters: One God, Five men, Two women, demons

C. Difficult situation: A curse that will kill a God, who needs the aid of seven humans

D. Reason for Containment: Magic, battle hidden from the world of men, no outside interference.

Idea 5:

A. Contained Environment: Forest

B. Contained Characters: Two brothers, a wizard, otherworldly creatures

C. Difficult situation: Must repel Demon Horde that invades the homeland

D. Reason for containment: Cursed unable to leave the forest of enchantment