[Randy Weaver]

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[Randy Weaver]

Randy Weaver: Part one: Guidelines for: “Options for Living”

What I learned during this assignment: Our new reality can still result in creative movies

ASSIGNMENT PART 1: Title:”Options for Living”

• A a contained story.: On an Island

• B. You can write a pitch in one or two sentences.: An adopted young woman accidently “discovers” her biological family. The real nightmares begin.

• C. There is something unique about it.: In discovering her biological family, a desired hope becomes a reality nightmare with no escape on an island near a mainland.

ASSIGNMENT PART 2: Adjust a Produced Movie to Covid Guidelines

2. Pick a movie that is outside the Covid Guidelines and give us your thoughts on how they could make it in the current production environment.

TITLE: Passenger

AS THEY DID IT:

A. People: Passengers on a plane, passengers at the terminal, passengers at the hospital

B. Stunts: Plane burning on the beach, plane in a large terminal:

C. Extras: at the terminal and on the beach,

D. Wardrobe: simple every day, good as is

E. Hair and Make Up; everyday

F. Kids and Animals: one dog

G. Quarantine: Many people in airport and plane scenes

COVID GUIDELINE VERSION:

A. People: Can be made into a dream sequence

B. Stunts: Same dream sequence by characters

C. Extras: Not needed

D. Wardrobe: simple everyday

E. Hair and Make Up: simple everyday

F. Kids and Animals: one dog still needed

G. Quarantine: location at man’s residence and nearby rail station or therapy sessions in one building with dream sequences included

• This reply was modified 4 years ago by  Randy Weaver.

[Randy Weaver]

Lesson 6: Randy Weaver: Transformational Events

What I learned doing this assignment is… by processing and naming my arc
components, I see more clearly how each transformational event defines the story line.

Old ways:
Dependent on her parents.
Unknowing of how the world works.
Doesn’t know her strengths.
Reliant on others.
Untested

New Ways:
Determined to find the truth.
Courageous.
Trusts her intuition.
Accepts her new reality.
Finds the killers of her sister.

6-8 changes or steps that need to happen from the Old ways to the New ways: Easiest
to Most difficult:

1) Acknowledges that her past as others tell her is not the truth
2) Discovers that she may have had a sister
3) Decides to forge ahead to research her ancestry
4) Investigates murders and mystery in her home town
5) Becomes a threat to the murderer that still lives close by
6) Confronts the killer

Brainstorm dramatic events or tests that could cause those changes to the character:

1) An Ancestry DNA test result shows her ancestry DNA matches to others in her
town
2) Photo on the museum wall at the bird sanctuary depicts her holding another
young girls hand, who’s wearing a bracelet similar to hers.
3) Researches public records. Discovers possible ancestors who own most of the
town.
4) Finds out Emory, owner of the museum and sanctuary, had a brother with two
young daughters.
5) Adele speaks to a local Indian woman who owns a bookstore that supplies
information on the local lore
6) Speaks to her grandfather who has dementia and lives on the 2nd floor at the
museum. He tells her that he was at his granddaughters funerals, and they died.
7) Her adopted mother tells her the truth about her adoption. The Professor helped
them adopt her.
8) Confronts the real killer at the museum and narrowly escapes

[Randy Weaver]

Lesson 5: Randy Weaver: 4 Act Transformational Structure

What I learned doing this assignment is…It’s definitely work trying to put all the pieces together.

1. Give us the following:

• Concept: Adele is an adopted child who always felt she had a sister. When she gets an internship on Gull Island, she finds evidence of a sibling and becomes the target of a killer. Her dead sister guides her as a guardian angel.

• Main Conflict: Tied to her adopted family, Adele struggles with the possibility she was lied to, in order to hide the death of her sister. She fears losing them and learning the truth.

• Old Ways: Dependent on her parents, reliant on others, untested

• New Ways: Determined, courageous, trusts her intuition

2. Fill in each of these with the answers you have right now.

Act 1:

• Opening: Adele receives a letter informing her of a meeting on Gull Island for a final interview for an internship on the island.

• Inciting Incident: Adele sees a picture of two young girls as visitors to the habitat on the walls of the sanctuary hall. The girls have their backs turned to the camera. One young girl is wearing the same bracelet that Adele was wearing when she first met her adoptive parents.

• Turning point: Adele is visiting her adopted Aunt when she sees a photo of the day she met her adoptive parents. The photo shows she’s wearing the same bracelet as the girl in the sanctuary wall photo.

Act 2:

• New Plan: Adele is going to find her biological family

• Plan in action: Adele questions her parents and goes to the adoption lawyer from her past.

• Midpoint Turning Point: The adoption lawyer sends Adele a photo of her supposed biological father holding her, stating also that she was an only child. The man in the photo is a younger version of the sanctuary professor.

Act 3:

• Rethink everything: Adele now wants to find out at least who the two young girls were in the photo at the sanctuary and how the professor was involved.

• New plan: Adele does research into the past visitors to the sanctuary and the past of the owner and the professor.

• Turning Point: Huge failure/ Major shift: Adele finds a young girl’s diary hidden inside an antique radio at the sanctuary. The girl writes of her sister and also of the wealth and fighting among her father and uncle. Emory grabs the diary and fires Adelle.

Act 4:

• Climax/Ultimate expression of the conflict: Adele is invited back to the sanctuary for a meeting. She is confronted by Emory as her biological Uncle. He tells her he had to gain control of the family business and pushed her father into the Lake. He also tells her he set up her adoption. Adele escapes in a boat and goes to the mainland. She gets in her car and drives away. The Professor joins Emory and takes a boat towards the mainland. Just before it gets to shore, it overturns and they fall in the water. The professor hits Emory in the head with an oar and swims to shore. He gets in a car and follows Adele.

• Resolution: As Adele is trying to escape, her dead sister appears in front of the professor’s windshield. He then hits a large doe and then a tree. Adele looks back and keeps on driving. She sees a highway sign that points to her town and another to the freeway. She takes the turn that goes to the freeway.

[Randy Weaver]

Lesson 4: Randy Weaver: Character Interviews

What I learned doing this assignment is…by interviewing my characters, I saw more of the depth of their being.

· ADELLE

· Traits: Vulnerable, intelligent, likable, determined, intuitive

· Subtext: Amicable, charming, uses friendliness to thwart questions.

· Flaw: Wants to be needed

· Values: Caring, responsible, truth, animal rescue

· Irony: Dedicated to her adopted family, yet in discovering a cover up, she discovers who her real family is.

· What makes this the right character for this role? In animal rescue work she’s able to distinguish between truth, partial truth, and lies. She takes risks to help animals to have better lives. She privately does research and background checks on animal abusers.

· What draws us to this character? She’s a warm, likable 20 something woman

· Tell me about yourself:

· Why do you think you were called to this journey? Why you? I sense that I had more of a family than what my adopted family is telling me. I’ve always felt I had a sibling. I have dreams where I remember my father and sister. I sometimes feel like I get signs from a sibling.

· What is it about the antagonist that makes this journey more difficult: They are an unknown relative out to destroy my family.

· Stepping way outside your box, what changes are you going to make? I usually listen to others advice. Now, I’m going to go with my gut instincts.

· What habits will be most hard to let go of? Trusting others

· What wounds have you held back? Not knowing where I come from

· What skills do you have to face this conflict? I know how to read people. My intuition is very good. I feel like I have a guardian angel.

· What are you hiding from others that you don’t want them to know? I have dreams of people that seem to guide me. I can sense when something is not right. I want to know my past but am afraid to find out about it.

· What do you think of Emory? He’s businesslike, curt, distant

· My side of the story? I was adopted when I was 2 years old. My adopted family has always been vague about how I came to them or any mention of my past. My life changes when I meet Emory at the bird sanctuary.

· What does it do for your life if you succeed? I will finally know who I am.

· What are you curious about? Why did my parents adopt me? They don’t seem to be the loving, caretaker types.

· EMORY JONES

· Tell me about you: There were just my brother and I and my parents. My father did well in real estate and taught my brother everything. As the real estate business grew, my brother became his favorite. He was destined to take over a very lucrative business. My father purchased an island with a bird sanctuary as a family getaway. Our visits to the island were horrible for me. My father and brother went fishing while I strolled among the seagulls by myself. I hated it and soon began to hate them as well. I was envious of their talent and closeness.

· My strengths and weaknesses: I watch people and learn from them. What I can’t do, I fake, including my image of success. I’m a schemer. After Adelle’s father died, I persuaded cousins to adopt Adele in return for yearly payments. My weakness is not thinking far enough ahead. I never thought Adelle would try to find out about her past.

· I want Adelle to fail so that she doesn’t find out that part of the business is hers. I want total control.

· If I get rid of Adelle too, then I keep my money and my secrets are still unknown.

· I’m driven by greed. Money is the only thing that gives me self worth.

· No one must find out that I supposedly killed my brother.

· I’ve become narcissistic. I have no empathy for others.

· Adelle is a mistake in my well laid out plan of control. She needs to be eliminated.

· After my father died, the control of our Real Estate business went to my brother along with a majority of the income. I planned a Holiday on the island with my brother and his two daughters when they were young. One evening I got my brother drunk and pushed him off the end of the dock. He drowned. His oldest daughter Susan was 6 years old and saw what happened. I chased her back to the lodge and forced her to crawl into the old house duct work for punishment. To stifle her cries, I pushed an old upright antique Radio in front of the vent. The next day I took Adelle to a distant relative and told them a lie. I said my brother got drunk and forced Susan to go rowing on the Lake. The boat capsized and they both drowned. I told the relatives that if they kept Adelle, then I would be the sole inheritor of the business and I would pay them continually. I would tell the police that my brother took both children out on the Lake and that they all drowned.

[Randy Weaver]

“Randy Weaver: Lesson 3: CHARACTER Profiles Part 2

What I learned doing this assignment is: In developing the character, I develop the plot.

2. Fill in Part 2 of the character Profile for your two lead characters.

What draws us to this
character?<div>

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

Traits: Vulnerable, intelligent, likable, determined, intuitive

Subtext: Amicable,
charming, uses friendliness to thwart questions.

Flaw: Wants to be needed

Values: Caring, responsible, truth, animal rescue

Irony: Dedicated to her adopted family, yet in discovering
a cover up, she discovers who her real family is.

What makes this the right character for this role?

In animal
rescue work she’s able to distinguish between truth, partial truth, and
lies. She takes risks to help animals lives and to seek the truth. She
does research and background checks on animal abusers.

<div>

What draws us to this character?

EMORY JONES

Traits: greedy, deceptive, lies
well </div>

Subtext: He manipulates
everything to get what he wants at any cost

Flaw: His eager greed makes him
overlook details

Values: Stature, freedom,
control

Irony: He didn’t actually kill
Adele’s father. Someone else finished the job for him.

What makes this the right
character for this role?

He’s secretive, deceptive, always on the chase to
obtain money, lies easily.

</div>

[Randy Weaver]

Lesson 2: Randy Weaver: “What I learned doing this assignment is: Focus, focus ,focus

2. Pick the type of role your Protagonist will play and give us a few sentences on how they will fulfill that role.

Hero: Adele lives in a world of animal rescue and aspires to become a veterinarian. The animals she rescues fulfills a purpose of making a difference. She feels rescued but alone with her own adopted family.

3. Pick the type of role your Antagonist will play and give us a few sentences on how they will fulfill that role.

Predator: He already killed Adele’s father and sister years ago. He then comes in to contact with Adele. When he realizes who she is, he is determined to murder her to keep his secret and tie up loose ends.

4. What other characters might be necessary?

Supporting characters: Adele’s
boyfriend <div>

Minor roles: Workers at the
Rescue Agency, other interns at the bird sanctuary

Background characters: Adele’s
adopted parents, Professor at the Bird Sanctuary, The owner of the Sanctuary
property

<div>

5. Pick your genre.

Thriller</div><div>

6. Fill in whatever answers come to you about your lead character profiles.

Adelle:

Role in the story: Hero/dreamer. She wants to save animals to feel
needed<div>

Age range and Description: Female, mid 20’s,
fit, midwestern

Internal Journey: Naïve, trusting to questioning, determined, strong in
who she is

External Journey: From shy and trusting to purpose driven to find a
killer

Motivation: To find her
place in the world

Wound: Not knowing where she came from

Mission/Agenda: To save a bird habitat

Secret: She knows her life was different somehow yet she’s
scared to give up her everyday reality.

What makes them special? Her empathy for those struggling, especially animals. Her
intuition proves to be her major strength.

Emory Jones

Role in the story: Predator. Adelle’s biological Uncle. He murdered her
father to retain the family’s money for himself. He killed her sister
because she witnessed the first murder

Age range and Description: Male, 50’s,
always well dressed, avoids personal interaction with others

Internal Journey: Narcissist with no real change

External Journey: Living a posh life to living in desperation

Motivation: To preserve
his lifestyle

Wound: Always felt second best after his brother

Mission/Agenda: Money and a lavish lifestyle gives him value

Secret: He owns and has kept the bird sanctuary to hide the
bodies of his victims

What makes them
special? He feels no remorse
in committing murder in order to preserve his own lifestyle. He’s clever at covering his tracks.

</div></div>

• This reply was modified 4 years, 2 months ago by  Randy Weaver.

[Randy Weaver]

Lesson 2: Randy Weaver: “What I learned doing this assignment is: Focus, focus ,focus

2. Pick the type of role your Protagonist will play and give us a few sentences on how they will fulfill that role.

Hero: Adele lives in a world of animal rescue and aspires to become a veterinarian. The animals she rescues fulfills a purpose of making a difference. She feels rescued but alone with her own adopted family.

3. Pick the type of role your Antagonist will play and give us a few sentences on how they will fulfill that role.

Predator: He already killed Adele’s father and sister years ago. He then comes in to contact with Adele. When he realizes who she is, he is determined to murder her to keep his secret and tie up loose ends.

4. What other characters might be necessary?

Supporting characters: Adele’s
boyfriend
Minor roles: Workers at the
Rescue Agency, other interns at the bird sanctuary <div>

Background characters: Adele’s
adopted parents, Professor at the Bird Sanctuary, The owner of the Sanctuary
property

<div>

5. Pick your genre.

Thriller</div><div>

6. Fill in whatever answers come to you about your lead character profiles.

Role in the story: Hero/dreamer. She wants to save animals to feel
needed.<div>

<u style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>Age range and Description: Female, mid 20’s,
fit, midwestern<u style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>

<div><div><div>

Internal Journey: Naïve, trusting to questioning, determined, strong in
who she is

External Journey: From shy and trusting to purpose driven to find a
killer

Motivation: To find her
place in the world

Wound: Not knowing where she came from

Mission/Agenda: To save a bird habitat

Secret: She knows her life was different somehow yet she’s
scared to give up her everyday reality.

What makes them special? Her empathy for those struggling, especially animals. Her
intuition proves to be her major strength.

</div></div></div></div></div></div>

[Randy Weaver]

Randy Weaver : Transformational Journey

“What I learned doing this assignment is…I needed to define the character arc in order to define the journey.

2. Who is your Hero and what is their Character Arc that represents a transformation?

My hero is 20 year old Adelle. She feels safe in her own family and looking forward to a College internship. She discovers information that she wasn’t an only child and had a sister that disappeared. While searching for the truth, her reality becomes non-reality.

Internal
Journey: From naïve and trusting to determined and self-reliant.
External
Journey: While searching for the truth about her family, she loses what
family and life she had.

3. What are the Old Ways and New Ways?

Old Ways:

Dependent on her parents.

Unknowing of how the world works.

Doesn’t know her strengths.

Reliant on others.

Untested.

New Ways:

Determined to find the truth.

Courageous.

Trusts her intuition.

Accepts her new reality.

Finds the killers of her sister.

[Randy Weaver]

Hi, I’m Randy Weaver. I’ve written one Thriller Script. I finished the ProSeries 73 and also took the Thriller class. I’m currently enrolled in MSC 15. I hope to write/polish a sequel and prequel to my original script. Due to having Covid-19, and other unforeseen circumstances, I’ve had to stop classwork for a few months. I’m hoping to gain a quicker writing process to regain some of the learning I’ve fallen behind on. As an unusual point, my Aunt was married to one of the original Jesse James gang, while another relative was an Astronaut.