[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s 4 Act Transformational Structure

What I learned doing this assignment: If I just let go of overthinking this process and see the simplest answers or definitions of what I need to say and do in 4 Acts then the first draft and the overall story formation is much easier. Making it easier helped me to see exactly where the story needs to go, when and why. I returned to the simple answers that I wrote on first pass and the second pass was more focused, direct and accurate and absolutely the story I wanted to tell. Freaking awesome! Awesome process!

Concept A 17-year-old near Philadelphia, PA with no way of going to college will be able to do something no person in any form of law enforcement worldwide will be able to do over the next fifteen years, if ever, when he profiles, hunts and finds the Rain Killer.

Main Conflict Seven Thomas is 17 years old, living at home, working in a movie theater with no way of going to college, yet 15 years from now, he will be the only man alive that can profile, hunt, find and God willing, stop the serial killer known as the Rain Killer.

Old Ways Seven begins movie as young dreamer living at home with his parents, an aspiring writer with no life experience, fighting or hunting skills.

He dreams about being someone else

He puts off learning new things

He talks about being someone else with friends

He chooses to sleep every time it rains

New Ways Seven is the man who found and killed the terrifying serial killer known as ‘The Rain Killer’.

He decides to act on his dreams

He found and honed his psychic skills

He ruthlessly hunted the Rain Killer, calculating his every move during rainstorms

He kills the Rain Killer
without hesitation when he finds him in a rainstorm

Act 1

Opening Seven Thomas is talking to a friend about wanting to get home before the rainstorm starts so he can drift off to sleep. At home, he hears the news about the Rain Killer’s latest victim as he heads to his room, telling his mom he is going to hunt and catch the Rain Killer someday as he passes her.

Inciting Incident Friend laughs that Seven will be asleep when the Rain Killer comes for him, because he always sleeps during a rainstorm. Seven takes it to heart. The Rain Killer is killing at quicker rate and more viciously, publicly.

Turning Point Seven talks about his dreams and desires to hunt the Rain Killer. His friends kindly remind him of his age, his finances, his dependency on his parents and his actual ability to hunt, catch, fight or kill anyone let alone the Rain Killer. Seven is angry at the truth. The Rain Killer is changing MO and victim selection.

Act 2

New Plan Seven sets out to reading books, watching tv shows, online instructions of hunting and catching fugitives, physical combat, buying/using/firing a gun. Obvious police can’t catch him, may never do so. Feels it is hopeless.

Plan in Action With friends as witnesses and sworn to secrecy from Seven’s parents, Seven starts reading books, watching shows, practicing combat, critical thinking, profiling, buying and shooting his new gun.

Midpoint Turning Point Seven faces the reality of leaving house to carry out plan when he has never gone anywhere by himself before, he reflects on finances and how big the country really is if you are trying to find one man before he kills again, and he knows he has to actually try to ever succeed. That’s when his fears, reservations, emotions, desires, reflections, intentions, and thoughts good and bad become a distinct and separate voice.

Act 3

Rethink Everything With a complete surrender to the voice and all it tells him about magic and things both human and divine, Seven sees everything differently, more simply, more successfully and does what he is told. He has the profile and is ready to hunt. The Rain Killer eludes to being close to completing his purpose and never being found because he will stop.

New Plan Seven and the voice guiding him set out to find the Rain Killer, while telling no one he has left. Seven is totally sold on the voice belonging to the divine and has complete confidence he will succeed.

Turning Point Huge Failure Major Shift Seven finds the Rain Killer three times and fails to catch him. The third time he is almost killed, but the victim is the first victim to get away. He cannot give up, cannot go to cops and cannot fail again. Seven discovers the Rain Killer gets help from the divine as well and wants to make a statement out of Seven. The FBI does not know what to make of the victim’s story and not sure if it is true.

Act 4

Climax Ultimate expression of the conflict Seven finally uses all his skills and newly honed psychic abilities to pinpoint where the Rain Killer will be next and where he will choose to kill victim. He shows up, shocks the Rain Killer and leads him into the woods before he can stage the victim. Cat and mouse between Seven and his divine help and the Rain Killer and his divine help starts. This is the second victim to get away. Now the FBI believes, but still has no idea what to do, only where they might look. The Rain Killer is going to put it all on the line to kill Seven and knows exactly where to go. He needs his last victim.

Resolution After an epic battle, Seven wins this time. He kills the Rain Killer minutes before the FBI agents close on their location. He shows them the body of the Rain Killer and tells them his story. Media Coverage! Returns home.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Character Interviews

What I learned doing this assignment: As I asked the questions and attempted seeing Seven answer them, I began to realize underlying traits and motivations… a much deeper view of who Seven is and who he can become. What was interesting was the several different outcomes I saw.

First Protagonist Character Profile

Traits very likable, intelligent, honest, relentless for perfection, risk taker

Subtext He introduces serious thoughts or intentions with deflection to comedy or funny stories. After the truth is revealed, he grows in leaps and bounds.

Flaw fears criticism

Values love and safety of his family, friends and strangers, integrity, risk/reward, justice.

Irony what he fears most at the time is what propels him to learn, overcome, sacrifice and grow.

What makes this the right character for this role?

Anytime Seven appears to have a flaw or weakness, it is just an observation of what he needs to change about himself in order to be the man who will someday hunt, find and ultimately stop the Rain Killer when no one else can.

Changes

Traits deceptively intelligent, soft spoken, driven, spiritual, has a dark side, blind confidence

Subtext He introduces serious thoughts or discussions with deflection and with purpose as he is always seeking answers and direction from a spiritual and physical need to move forward with his quest to achieve what is deemed impossible for him to accomplish…to find and stop the Rain Killer.

Flaws Too secretive sometimes, an inability to be direct, and fears criticism.

Values being a protector, honesty, sacrifice

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Character Profile Part 2

What I learned doing this assignment: this lesson is making me look at the protagonist and antagonist in a more direct way, more than generalizations. I am enjoying taking a deeper cut to peel back both characters to answer these questions. Answering these questions is giving me a way to see them as they are according to my answers and who I want them to be is waving from the shadows and darkness of dialogue, subtext and high concepts.

What draws us to Seven Thomas?

Even though he appears as a dreamer, the underlying dragon beginning to learn how to breath fire is lurking and apparent. Seven is no different than so many young people who will go on to be great artists, medical, financial or military leaders of the times, however Seven is going to hunt and find the Rain Killer.

Traits very likable, intelligent, honest, relentless for perfection, risk taker

Subtext He introduces serious thoughts or intentions with deflection to comedy or funny stories. After the truth is revealed, he grows in leaps and bounds.

Flaw fears criticism

Values love and safety of his family, friends and strangers, integrity, risk/reward, justice.

Irony what he fears most at the time is what propels him to learn, overcome, sacrifice and grow.

What makes this the right character for this role?

Anytime Seven appears to have a flaw or weakness, it is really just an observation of what he needs to change about himself in order to be the man who will someday hunt, find and ultimately stop the Rain Killer when no one else can.

What draws us to The Rain Killer?

He is as much an absolute nut case as he is sane, vicious as he is empathetic or considerate, ignorant as he is intelligent, random as he is purposeful, organized as he is chaos, innocent as he is the Rain Killer.

Traits sole purpose oriented, psychotic, sadistic, showman

Subtext though he is selecting people randomly and killing them, he is driven by order and purpose, he considers himself an artist and showman and over time, a celebrity. He will never stop until he is stopped.

Flaw Believes his purpose can be fulfilled which will allow him to stop and go back to being a ‘normal’ person after.

Values perfection, divine purpose, showmanship, total commitment

Irony He considers himself sane and righteous, elevated above everyone for his conscious sacrifice of both.

What makes this the right character for this role?

He believes he is uncatchable because he is too intelligent, too scary and too close to fulfilling his purpose, but these are the same things that will propel a complete stranger to hunt, find and stop him.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Character Profiles Part 1

What I learned doing this assignment:

I can see the story forming as I fill in the choices, the roles, the quick statements and decisions. I can also see my protagonist and antagonist a little better. I’m starting to know who they are going to be and how awesome this process is in helping me get there.

Type of role my protagonist is: Hero

After a dramatic transformation, the dreamer Seven Thomas will become convinced he is the only one that can find the Rain Killer and when he sets out to do so, it will set off a chain of events that will having him needing to catch and kill the Rain Killer as well.

The role my antagonist will play is: Predator

The Rain Killer started by looking for victims every three months and now he is hunting his next victim on a daily basis. To say he is elusive is an understatement. The FBI and every other form of law enforcement is way too far behind and not even close to building an accurate profile. The Rain Killer is an evil like no other 10 years after his first victim was found.

Supporting characters, minor roles and background characters will all be necessary for this story.

Genre: Horror/Thriller

Seven Thomas’s role in this story is to reflect the audiences desire to have the Rain Killer stopped by any means necessary and at any cost as well as revealing who the Rain Killer is and why he is doing what he is doing, along with why law enforcement will never be able to identify him. Seven personifies the helplessness of the country, the victims and the law before transforming into the hero and showing us the Rain Killer is just a man after all.

Seven starts out in his late teens and ends the story in his early thirties.

Internal Journey – from hopeless dreamer, young, naïve to apex hunter and killer, cunning and brutal

External Journey – from aspiring writer to the one who tracks and kills the Rain Killer.

Seven’s motivation is becoming the person who can identify and catch the Rain Killer.

The wound is a second girlfriend saying he will never leave his parent’s house or truly fulfill his dreams.

Seven wants to prove his girlfriends wrong and do something no one else can do, especially a dreamer, loser and future failure like him.

Seven’s secret is the force or spirit helping him to become the only person who can identify, track, find, and stop/kill the Rain Killer.

The true scope of the transformation Seven will go through and his willingness to surrender to unknown forces helping him along the way.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Transformational Journey

What I learned doing this assignment is: the Character Arc and transformational journey is extremely important, did not realize how apparent it is in so many of my favorite movies and characters. Simplifying the acknowledgement and beginning the process/identification of my main character’s journey opens me right up. I can see what I did not see before! Almost immediately! I’m being introduced to my main character as if I never knew him. What I see for him is like reading a story or news article about someone extraordinary and the incredible things he went through or accomplished and how it was done! Awesome!

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

Seven Thomas loves the rain and lives to curl up and drift off to sleep during a rainstorm. He is an aspiring writer, loves fashion, music and art that is goth, metal and dark and often dreams of hunting and killing really bad people in vampiric style and brutality, but Seven is only a dreamer. He is not a hunter, lost his only three fights, and wishes he could be someone else. Ten years from now, Seven is going to be the man who hunted and killed the serial killer known as ‘The Rain Killer’!

Int Journey. from young, weak, naïve, dreamer to mature, strong, cunning, ruthless-is the dream

Ext Journey. From young and naive aspiring writer who loves the rain and all things Goth to the cunning, ruthless 30 year old man who hunted and killed the elusive, sadistic serial killer known as ‘The Rain Killer’.

What are the Old Ways and New Ways?

Old ways . Seven begins movie as young dreamer living at home with his parents, an aspiring writer with no life experience, fighting or hunting skills.

He dreams about being someone else

He puts off learning new things

He talks about being someone else with friends

He chooses to sleep every time it rains

New Ways . Seven is the man who found and killed the terrifying serial killer known as ‘The Rain Killer’.

He decides to act on his dreams

He found and honed his psychic skills

He ruthlessly hunted the Rain Killer, calculating his every move during rainstorms

He kills the Rain Killer
without hesitation when he finds him in a rainstorm

[Sean Barrett]

Sean Barrett

I agree to the terms of this release form.

GROUP RELEASE FORM

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.

This completes the Group Release Form for the class.

[Sean Barrett]

Good morning,

Hello, everyone. It ’tis awesome we will be in class together. My name is Sean Barrett. 50 years old/single/never been engaged let alone married/no children. I have loved film/tv and books my whole life. My favorite author is Stephen King! I have been gifted with an incredible imagination and the ability to communicate through words and pictures at a very high level. I am very excited to start this class! My mind works very quickly, so the opportunity to speed things up writing screenplays/ and possibly television has me stoked!! Nice to meet all of you in advance and I look forward to working with you all! ~ Sean

— I still have yet to finish a script to my liking

— I really want and need to move from ideas to concepts to high concepts to finishing a script through to the final draft and pitching it with success and absolute results such as optioned, produced and popping popcorn before I sit down with a room full of friends, family and complete strangers to watch the next potential winner of Best Original Screenplay! I know true happiness and fulfillment lies in finishing the process and smiling over a final draft I can be proud of and excited about pitching!

— I was almost in the original Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) as one of the kids running after Rocky Balboa as he ran through the streets (Italian Market) to the Philadelphia Art Museum … but I got the flu! Dag nabbit!

— I was top of my class in The United States Marine Corps in both Security Forces and Mortarman schools. I joined the Marines, because of Thomas Harris’s book, Red Dragon ~ I wanted to be an FBI profiler. Joining the Marines as a mortarman (Infantry) gave me a shot at being selected for Force Recon. I finished 2nd out of over 60 or more who took the initial testing (try out) while in infantry school. Unfortunately, there were no openings for Force Recon at the time. They did select me for Security Forces as a consolation.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 4 months ago by  Sean Barrett.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Terrifying Monster

What I learned doing this assignment

First, this take – seen the least and is the most important — the monster/villain. The other characters, the survivors, and victims, are the ones we go on the journey with

Second, a great monster is a combination of three things — unique, unknown, and terrifying and shows up in five ways: the first four (terror, fear provoking appearance, mystery, rules) and the fifth for a sequel (mythology).

Third, the questions used to create, brainstorm, and define such as How does the monster terrorize? How does the monster pursue? How does the monster isolate? What is the terrible thing they do? How does the monster cause death? What makes your monster look terrifying? –fear provoking appearance: Grotesque or Disturbing, Mask, Weapon of choice, Ironic Visual

Fourth, that the easiest way to create mystery is for the monster to be completely unseen, but that doesn’t mean it is the best way. For instance, when we do see the monster/villain: we don’t know what it will do- how it will do it- how to protect ourselves. So, the Main Monster Mystery: The secret, question, or puzzle that must be solved to survive (only discover it after it has unleashed a lot of violence.)

Fifth, there are two kinds of “Monster Rules” — the general rules and your monster’s specific rules that guide its behavior.

General Monster Rules ex. *The Monster is implacable; relentless. It cannot be bought off, negotiated with, easily overcome, or evaded. A Monster does not listen to reason or appeals to a better nature. The Monster has desires or motivations that are outside the norm. The Monster cannot be easily killed. It requires an effort above the norm to dispose of it. The Monster always survives the final confrontation, even after appearing dead. It, or an aspect of it, has characteristics that allow it to survive that final confrontation. To reappear again at the end of the movie and/or in the sequel.

Just like animals, monsters have basic natures. That implies a set of rules. Find/know the specific rules that govern your Monster/villain’s behavior.

Sixth, is the Mythology, which, usually shows up in the sequel. It is the monster’s history, origins, and reason for becoming a monster.

It is inviting for writers to create a complete mythology for their monster, but it is the least important.

Think of it this way: as you are watching a new horror movie, you are bombarded with shocking visuals, emotions, and the need to solve the puzzle. It isn’t until afterward that you start wondering about the monster’s backstory. That creates the need for the sequel. In the sequel, we discover what we wanted to know after the first movie — why the monster is the way he or she is.

If you have no idea about the character’s Mythology, leave it for the sequel. Focus on the parts that will get this first movie made and you’ll soon be a name in this industry

Assignment

Early version of my monster/villain

Monster/Villain is – The Rain Killer

Terror – Predominantly, the number of victims there are, the frequency, the horrible way the victims are killed and the amount of time they are tortured. Also, the victims are only killed and displayed during rainstorms and the victims are taken from all over the 50 states and other countries and found both close from their abduction and as much as 4 states away at random.

Mystery – What is the profile? The FBI can not come up with definite/helpful profile. Is it one killer or many? Where will the next victim be taken from, why and how do you stop something like this? We never see the killer’s face, only the shadow under black hooded clothing when victims are abducted and black hooded robe when they are being killed.

Fear provoking appearance – The rigid, violent demeanor of a gaunt looking, but healthy and very strong figure in very loose-fitting black clothes. We see the arms and hands (noting the violent tattoos and always wearing black fingernail polish). Various hooded black shirts and sweatshirts during abductions and the same black hooded robe (very expensive looking, ornate with symbols and writing) worn during the ritualistic killings.

Rules

Only abducts and kills during rainstorms. Victims are chosen due to their level/kind of innocence and the level/kind of evil/criminal things they do. The victim matches the questions the Rain Killer screams at the dark sky as it pours rain during the murder.

Mythology

The Rain Killer is trying to provoke answers from good and evil and keeping track of the answers after each victim, being born just like anyone else with a mother and father and appears to be just a ticked off human being who takes issue with the way the world is and the influence of good and evil on the world through beliefs, religion, and actual interaction. Knows spells, rituals, the occult, Christian religious beliefs, other religions, and their practices. However, takes issue with all of it and wants to unleash carnage to get answers directly from The Good and The Evil. Isn’t afraid of death, being caught or what will happen because of the carnage being unleashed. As the story escalates, the Rain killer is looking more and more invincible with knowledge of spells and rituals, promises of power and eternal rewards.

[Sean Barrett]

The Rain Killer ~Horror Conventions

What I learned doing this assignment:

It is easier to see the horror movie broken down in concept categories to have a start point for own idea. Putting together puzzle pieces is a great way to see it.

What smart horror is and what is not smart horror.

What the defined difference between Horror and Thriller would be to producers and audiences; Emotional experiences, who dies, and what the reality is great to know or reference.

Assignment

Title/Concept

Séance (2021)/Girls at an elite boarding school play a joke in summoning former student who died and one of the girls is killed. When a new student arrives to replace her, the girls perform real ritual (Séance) to find out if she was murdered and they start dying one by one.

Monster/villain

Figure in theatre mask/possibly the ghost of Edelvine Academy

Interesting Terror

What was supposed to be a joke may have awakened a vengeful spirit who kills one of the girls and after the girls perform real ritual they found online; they start dying horrific deaths one by one

Isolated/Horrific Environment

Girls are isolated one by one in different parts of the academy and their deaths are made to look like suicides and accidents, so headmaster and cops won’t believe they are being murdered.

People who will be terrorized

A group of 7 girls who attend Edelvine Academy

TERRORIZE THE CHARACTERS:

Girls receive message from Kerri saying she was murdered; ghost is real, and they start dying and disappearing one by one to point they don’t want to be alone.

ISOLATION:

Each girl is killed in a place she is alone; Kerri is alone in her room, Lenora is outside to talk to love interest, Rosalind is taking shower in bathroom and Yvonne is alone practicing dance recital.

DEATH:

Kerri is pushed out of window, Lenora is stabbed in gut with wooden stake, Rosalind is bludgeoned and made to look like she slipped on shampoo and hit wall, Yvonne has her throat cut.

MONSTER:

The Ghost of Edelvine/ A figure in a theatre mask

HIGH TENSION:

The deaths happen immediately after the ritual, another ritual says Camille is the murderer, only four girls left, and no one believes they are being murdered, they are seeing Kerri’s ghost, two girls are hit and knocked out then wake up tied to chairs next to each other,

DEPARTURE FROM REALITY:

Ritual that works summoning vengeful ghost and ghost of murdered girl, Camille and Helina seeing Kerri’s ghost, the killer turning out to be one of the girls, Bethany and her boyfriend, Trevor to cover up the fact that she stole Kerri’s paper, won a scholarship with it, and didn’t want anyone to find out.

MORAL STATEMENT:

The pressure of performing at such a prestigious school could cause someone to kill to maintain their image rather than tell the truth after they accidentally won a writing competition speaks volumes of pressures wealthy society puts on young girls or boys from birth to compete and remain elite.

The shock of the brutal, senseless murders and set up for one of the girls being the killer and why she was killing them was impossible to see coming.

My concept

Concept

A psychopath called The Rain Killer waits for long periods of rain to be forecast in chosen places to kill random innocent people to challenge good and evil, creating a supernatural spell over the world and an unlikely hero who will need to stop the killer and the mounting evil unleashed.

Terrorize the characters

Due to widespread media coverage like never seen before after a dozen murders, victims wake up in natural places that look creepy or evil and the rainstorm lets them know they are the Rain Killer’s newest victim and will tortured and posed.

Isolation

Natural places that look spooky in nature (forest, desert, decaying neighborhood, old warehouse still in use, old factory not in use) The killer chooses the places to honor what we see as spooky and evil looking.

Death

Long, well-planned, and horrific tortures specific to each victim and their type of innocence or life.

Monster/Villain

The Rain Killer/Evil

High Tension

The moments we see potential victims interacting with their family, friends, and community as news of potential rainstorms are broadcast and the moment they wake up in a spooky place with the sound of the rainstorm. The tension of their knowing no survivors yet, the kinds of torture described in media coverage, the intensity of warnings and safety measures broadcast to stay safe and how far police are from catching Rain Killer. The evil that builds with each murder and the frequency suggests Rain Killer’s challenges to good and evil are being heard. The introduction to an unlikely hero chosen by the ‘good’ to counter evil meeting the Rain Killer’s challenge. Hero zeroing in on Rain Killer more and more with each victim.

Departure from Reality

A psychopath that can evade capture and kill people in public places during rainstorms challenges evil to help him and good to stop him challenges reality or normal as does the mounting spell over the world created by evil meeting his challenge and good needing to stop him without conventional means like police or FBI.

Moral Statement

Even though we should not have to think of evil things like this happening, they do happen; so, all the things we are told to protect ourselves and stay safe should be taken seriously and followed ALWAYS.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean Barrett

I agree to the terms of this release form.

GROUP RELEASE FORM

As a member of this group, I agree to the following:

1. That I will keep the processes, strategies, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class confidential, and that I will NOT share any of this program either privately, with a group, posting online, writing articles, through video or computer programming, or in any other way that would make those processes, teleconferences, communications, lessons, and models of the class available to anyone who is not a member of this class.

2. That each writer’s work here is copyrighted and that writer is the sole owner of that work. That includes this program which is copyrighted by Hal Croasmun. I acknowledge that submission of an idea to this group constitutes a claim of and the recognition of ownership of that idea.

I will keep the other writer’s ideas and writing confidential and will not share this information with anyone without the express written permission of the writer/owner. I will not market or even discuss this information with anyone outside this group.

3. I also understand that many stories and ideas are similar and/or have common themes and from time to time, two or more people can independently and simultaneously generate the same concept or movie idea.

4. If I have an idea that is the same as or very similar to another group member’s idea, I’ll immediately contact Hal and present proof that I had this idea prior to the beginning of the class. If Hal deems them to be the same idea or close enough to cause harm to either party, he’ll request both parties to present another concept for the class.

5. If you don’t present proof to Hal that you have the same idea as another person, you agree that all ideas presented to this group are the sole ownership of the person who presented them and you will not write or market another group member’s ideas.

6. Finally, I agree not to bring suit against anyone in this group for any reason, unless they use a substantial portion of my copyrighted work in a manner that is public and/or that prevents me from marketing my script by shopping it to production companies, agents, managers, actors, networks, studios or any other entertainment industry organizations or people.

This completes the Group Release Form for the class.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Plot and Character Layers

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. As the progression from all the other lessons, this assignment was the easiest to jump in and create.

2. I was already preparing plot and character layers in the creative side of my mind through all these assignments. Once my practical/learning mind saw it clearly, it was easy to let go and create instantly.

3. Creating these layers gives so much depth and definition to the plot and characters. You can the why and the when, the what…HOW!! …so forth and so on, Very Cool!

Assignment 1

Plot Surface for Supernatural – There are evil beings, demons and ghosts doing evil things to innocent people, a secret world beneath our reality and one of them killed Mary Winchester, Dean and Sam’s mother, as well as John’s wife. John teaches his sons how to be hunters to find and destroy the evil that killed Mary.

Layer 1 – John and his sons hunt and destroy any and every evil along the way, until they find and destroy the one that killed Mary.

Layer 2 – Though many of the victims and law enforcement are oblivious to the other world, some are aware a little bit, some are interested, some become believers, and some are completely aware and help. Some of the victims and law enforcement can be more dangerous than the things they are hunting.

Level 3 – Serious sacrifices must be made to be hunters, which escalates the inner struggles the brothers are having whenever danger, unbelief, resistance show up.

Level 4 – Dad disappears, becomes elusive and pushy, leaving clues for the next ghosts to hunt. Makes for betrayal and mystery.

Character Surface for Dean – obedient to his father, does not mind or regret hunting.

Layer 1 – Dean is incredibly stressed, not as confident as he puts on.

Layer 2 – Dean is real interested in the single women, inner desires to have girlfriend, settle down, break his own rules.

Layer 3 – Dean wants to be more like Sam and push his father for answers and reasons.

Layer 4 -Dean loves hunting with Sam and comes into his own as a hunter absent of his father.

Layer 5 – despite all the good reasons they hunt even though they do not have to, noble and such, there are a lot of illegal and deceptive things the boys must do to support themselves financially and get things they need for cases.

Assignment 2

Plot Surface for… The SAT – A twelve-year-old-boy is challenged by the Devil to rid the world of him and evil. Circumstance leads the way for the boy to try to do so when he becomes an adult.

Layer 1 – This was not just a random challenge from the Devil without purpose. The Devil knows this boy from somewhere in his visions. The appearance of Caliel, a guardian angel from heaven confirms his feeling.

Layer 2 – The Devil and evil has gone too far in the world and though most do not realize it, they are at the end; they have had enough, and their subconscious is coming through loud and clear.

Layer 3 – Secret societies for good and evil surface when the young boy becomes a man, Cian Shea.

Layer 4 – Turns out the Devil has never revealed nightmarish visions he has been having since the fall and there is a prophecy about the one that brings those nightmares to pass.

Character Surface for Cian Shea – a normal boy pushed to the extreme through circumstance and the Devil’s keen interest in his older brother, Mitchell Dawe. Mitchell will go on to be the most vicious, evil, elusive, and connected serial killer the world has ever seen. Circumstance forces Cian to fight back.

Layer 1 – Cian is a little affected by the circumstance in his life – the fights with God, screaming at empty rooms and skies, words with the Devil all while working on cases as the world’s top FBI profiler.

Layer 2 – Cian kills more murderers than he puts behind bars.

Layer 3 – Cian turns out to be the fulfillment of prophecy, good and evil.

Layer 4 – He becomes a musician and celebrity to leave the FBI and pursue meeting the Devil’s challenge for real; ENTIRELY, using the influence of celebrity to push his agendas.

Layer 5 – Cian turns out to be just the man God needs to accomplish what needs to be done to rid the world of the Devil and every evil.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Big Picture Open Loops

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. There is a clear connection with the mysteries and the loops.

2. There is a clear difference between the Big Picture Open Loops and the Small Picture Open Loops, as well as their importance and their crafting.

3. It is these loops that keep the mysteries alive and obsessive to answer from episode to episode and season to season to end.

Assignment 1

The Big Picture Open Loops I have noticed in Supernatural so far are will they ever know who or what killed their mother and Sam’s girlfriend? And will they destroy it/get revenge or closure? Will Sam ever be at peace with being just a hunter or will he go back to pursuing a normal life? Will he get a normal life and be completely happy? Will Dean break out of his shell and pursue a girlfriend, a family and/or a normal life? Will their father destroy the evil that killed his wife, or will he get destroyed? Will either of the two brothers get killed by any one of the evils they hunt, including the one that killed their mother?

Assignment 2

My top five Big Picture Open loops will be:

Will Cian Shea get caught by the law or killed by the Devil or his brother?

Will Cian Shea persevere or lose his mind under the pressure?

Will Cian Shea reveal his agenda and who he really is in detail to Bridget after they become a couple/intimate? Will he do the same for Anastacia? Will he ask them for help/commitment?

Will the Devil figure out who Cian Shea is entirely sooner rather than later and to what length will he go to destroy/stop Cian? Will he let other demons or people in on his nightmare and the possibility of Cian being that prophecy?

Will Cian move and convince God to fully help/allow him to bring down the entire world of evil and the Devil through supernatural means? Will he get the Sillick? Will God allow this?

Will the desire to give up on accomplishing his dream because of the risks win once he is a celebrity and living the good life?

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Show Mysteries

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. With each exercise, it is after I push through and do the assignment that I see breakthroughs. Not only breakthroughs with how I write, use what I am being told and create, but the also with my characters and stories.

2. I can see the mysteries and how I need to write them to qualify as binge worthy.

3. I can also see how important this lesson and this knowledge is – how incredible the story is ‘with’ the mysteries and how lacking and incomplete the story would have been ‘without’ the mysteries.

Assignment 1

SUPERNATURAL

The shocking event that begins episode 1, the Pilot – is the death of Mary Winchester and how she died (being held to the ceiling by a supernatural force as fire consumes her). She leaves behind her husband John and two sons Dean and Sam. Her husband becomes a hunter of things supernatural and evil and teaches his sons to be as well.

The secret – who or what killed Mary this way and why?

Investigation – audience needs to know who, what killed Mary Winchester this way and why.

So far through episode 8 there are other mysteries – where is their father, John? Why did he disappear and leave clues? Is Sam going to be persuaded to help his brother Dean look for their father beyond the weekend because he has an interview for full scholarship to Stanford Law on Monday morning.

Another shocking event! – Sam gets back in time for interview just to find his girlfriend Jess being held to the ceiling and murdered just like his mother in a ball of fire. Who or what killed his mother and now, Jess in such a supernatural and heinous way? WE HAVE TO KNOW!!

Assignment 2

Two mysteries for my show The SAT.

Shocking Event Mystery

Shocking Event: Mitchell Dawe finds and kills his parents despite them being in top FBI relocation/protection program, as well as Cian’s new girlfriend. He would have killed Cian too, but he went out for pizza.

Secret: It is not just a random interest in Mitchell Dawe, the role The Devil plays in Mitchell finding them and killing them has definite purpose, so it is personal. The Devil’s reaction to Cian not being there is genuine unbelief and nervous consideration.

Investigation: We want to find out why this is personal to The Devil and who Mitchel Dawe and Cian Shea are?

Who – the Devil knows who Mitchell Dawe and Cian Shea are, even if they don’t.

Why – He is afraid of what they represent to him, the sooner Cian is dead, the better.

Where – Here in the United States, the world; here in Cian’s world more specifically.

When – The immediate future, withing their lifetime.

(Missing) The two being withheld are the:

What – A prophecy and fulfillment of a continuing nightmare, the Devil cannot fully see or comprehend.

How and How Long – The Devil does not sleep, but he can see visions of the past like dreams and sometimes different lengths of time in the future like dreams or nightmares. He has been seeing this nightmare since shortly after the fall and never told anyone or anything.

Over Time Mystery

Cover up: The Devil is not the only one that has had this vision, though it is a nightmare to the Devil, it is an alluring dream to his enemies.

Secret: Cian Shea is the only one that sees this vision from beginning to end, the finite details and meanings.

Reveals: The Devil is reflecting on missing pieces to a dream sequence, and we already saw Cian and the angel, Caliel as the missing pieces the Devil cannot see or figure out. The secret society Caliel introduces to Cian Shea is another reveal and so is what these people already know. Much like the Devil, they only have pieces, and we begin to see Cian connecting the pieces in his mind effortlessly, as if he were simply thinking them for the very first time. Soon, everyone has their own pieces running through their minds and more and more Cian is tying all those pieces together perfectly. Seems likely Cian is the prophecies.

Who – Cian Shea appears to be the end of the Devil and evil as we know it to be.

When – In his lifetime, which will be the end of a nightmare the Devil has seen coming since the fall.

Where – Here in the United States and the entire world.

Why – The Devil and evil are out of control, gone too far.

(Missing) The two being withheld are:

What – A network of secret temples and buildings throughout the world called the Sillick.

How – Cian needs God’s blessing and approval to
use supernatural powers to take down the entire world of evil and trap the Devil,
demons, and dead evil souls in the bodies of the living evil souls after the
are imprisoned within the Sillick.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Show Relationship Map

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. Seemed daunting task at first, then the importance and skills helped me see the simplicity and need going forward. I can get better at seeing these relationships : )

2. This assignment helped me see the layers and possibility of more layers in a profound way for first time.

3. Just pushing through and doing the assignment paid off big time!

Assignment 1

Relationship map for Dean Winchester

Surface Sam – Brothers with opposite views on hunting, obedience

Dad – Respectful without question, like views on hunting

Common Ground Sam – love each other and father. Great at hunting, together they are fantastic.

Dad – love hunting to help people, realize importance.

Conflict Sam – opposite views on obedience, life choices and importance.

Dad – John does not want brothers engaging the demon that killed their mother.

History Sam – fought like brothers on opposite views and paths, but love and proud of each other.

Dad – always obeyed Dad without question.

Subtext Sam – opposites that respect their differences, cannot do without each other.

Dad – felt way Sam did, but never acted on it or displayed it, represses how he feels.

Relationship Arc Sam – quarreling brothers on opposite paths to like-minded brothers together.

Dad – obedient without question, inseparable to suspect absence of father.

Assignment 2

Relationship Map for Cian Shea

Surface Bridget McCabe – Co-workers, attracted to each other.

Mitchell Dawe – Cian’s older brother, psychopath.

The Devil – Adversary.

Common Bridget McCabe – Both FBI profilers, equal talent

Ground Mitchell Dawe – Same mom and dad, grew up in same home, aware of the Devil.

The Devil – aware of the presence of Caliel and other Angels, close connection to Mitchell.

Conflict Bridget McCabe – Bridget obeys rules, Cian bends them, both intense in different ways.

Mitchell Dawe – is the most vicious, notorious and elusive serial killer to date worldwide.

The Devil – to the death adversaries, the Devil is Mitchell’s biggest fan and help.

History Bridget McCabe – aware of each other day one in academy, 12-year age difference, flirt.

Mitchell Dawe – brothers, Mitchell is evil, Cian is good.

The Devil – The Devil challenges Cian as 12-year-old boy to rid world of him.

Subtext Bridget McCabe – Cian’s greatest love and crucial to his success.

Mitchell Dawe – could have caught him long ago but wants him alive at the end.

The Devil – have similar views on people and God, worthy adversaries.

Relationship Bridget McCabe – enthralled at academy, to equals in FBI, to lovers and co-conspirators.

Arc Mitchell Dawe – brothers, to enemies, to world ending, new world results and revenge.

The Devil – nightmare in passing as child, to mortal adversaries and impossible revenge.

Relationship map for Bridget McCabe

Surface Cian Shea – Co-workers, attracted to each other, 12-years her senior.

Mitchell Dawe – another case file, killer she wants to catch.

The Devil – hardly believes he exists or does not care.

Common Cian Shea – both top FBI profilers who want to make ultimate difference.

Ground Mitchell Dawe – know each other exists and why.

The Devil – both completely interested in Cian Shea, sold out.

Conflict Cian Shea – Cian bends rules, mystery when he leaves FBI, reasons.

Mitchell Dawe – world’s most notorious and elusive serial killer ever.

The Devil – The Devil wants to destroy Cian; she becomes a target.

History Cian Shea – knew about him before she joined academy, Cian was famous FBI profiler.

Mitchel Dawe – the whole world heard of Mitchell Dawe before she joined academy.

The Devil – She saw the Devil looking at her with interest as child, serial killer neighbor.

Subtext Cian Shea – more alike than she realizes, will sell out to his ways and mission.

Mitchell Dawe – is one she wants to catch the most during every case she works; now kill.

The Devil – never considers the Devil until her relationship with Cian deepens.

Relationship Cian Shea – someone she admires from young to ultimate love relationship.

Arc Mitchell Dawe – serial killer she wants to catch, to need to kill, to Cian’s brother.

The Devil – never considers to knows she can destroy and make up for lost time, revenge.

Relationship map for the Devil

Surface Cian Shea – adversaries.

Mitchell Dawe – biggest fan, interest and help.

Bridget McCabe – aware of relationship to Cian, tracking and plotting.

Common Cian Shea – both despise God and His ways.

Ground Mitchell Dawe – evil interests and no filter.

Bridget McCabe – Interest in who Cian Shea really is and what he can accomplish.

Conflict Cian Shea – wat to destroy each other in unimaginable ways.

Mitchell Dawe – some rogue murders and independent agenda.

Bridget McCabe – relationship and importance to Cian and his mission or end game.

History Cian Shea – challenged him as 12-year-old boy for terror and fun.

Mitchell Dawe – impressed with his level of promise young, assigns Amii to tutor him.

Bridget McCabe – Saw her in a situation as a child when she lived next to serial killer.

Subtext Cian Shea – has been looking for this kid and man for centuries.

Mitchell Dawe – did not realize he was a prophetic evil come true until too late.

Bridget McCabe – does not realize how important she will be or her angelic protection.

Relationship Cian Shea – from mindless threat to 12-year-old to equal enemies in world ending battle.

Arc Mitchell Dawe – from mutual evil interest to master and teacher helping star pupil.

Bridget McCabe – from little regard to need to destroy her or relationship with Cian.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Show Empathy/Distress

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. It seems the connection is greatest to the main character through Empathy/Distress.

2. The main character is much more unforgettable through Empathy/Distress.

Assignment 1 – SUPERNATURAL

Undeserved misfortune – The death of their mother and Sam’s girlfriend, losing out on normal life to be trained as hunters.

External Character conflicts – Sam’s rebellion against Father, tension between Sam and Dean because Sam rebels, Sam wants normal life.

Plot Intruding on Life – Sam gives up everything he worked for at Stanford to go back to hunting following Jess’s death.

Moral Dilemmas – They have been arrested more than once and almost killed more than once due to scheming and illegal ways they support themselves and gain access to victims or information.

Forced decisions they would never make – giving up Stanford Law full ride interview, stop looking for father, not helping father find/destroy mother’s and Jess’s killer.

Assignment 2

BIG PICTURE Empathy/Distress for Cian Shea in The SAT.

Undeserved misfortune – older brother, Mitchell is a psychopath, evil and on his way to becoming world’s most prolific and elusive serial killer. Devil terrorizes and challenges Cian as a boy, because of who Mitchell is and who he will become. Older brother will kill their parents.

External Character conflicts – Cian needs God and hates God with supernatural intensity. Cian’s life is only a means to bring about new world. FBI profiler, famous musician, writer, actor, celebrity is all second to his goal. Tempted to give up challenge and live/enjoy his extraordinary life. Falls in love with Bridget and Anastacia equally, wants relationship with both.

Plot intruding on life – Cian takes on Devil’s challenge to rid the world of evil. Creates plan for new world.

Moral Dilemmas – Cian hunts and kills more serial killers than he catches and turns in to FBI.

Forced decisions they would never make – Is not home when his parents are killed, because Caliel led him away.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Character Emotions

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. Exercise helps me know my characters much more intimately, associate with how they feel, react, cope, respond, engage, and reason.

2. I considered things about my characters I would probably have never thought about or missed completely. As a result, these character emotions would have been absent from the character entirely as well as the story.

3. Helped me really think about who my character will be in every situation from beginning to end and for what purpose as it pertains to my story.

Assignment 1

Emotional profiles for Dean and Sam Winchester

Dean – Hope: He Can find his mother’s killer and destroy it.

/Fear: He is killed, arrested, or he never finds that evil that killed his mother.

Wants Retribution / Needs Acceptance and internal peace.

Base Negative Emotion/Public Mask: Angry Victim/Happy Hero

Weaknesses: Cannot legally support himself financially, unsatisfied, needs normalcy/love.

Triggers: threat of failure, threats against helpless victims, his character being questioned

Coping Mechanisms: Distracts, lies, schemes, acts unfazed/bold.

Sam – Hope: He Can find his mother’s and Jess’s killer and destroy it and try to have a normal life again.

/Fear: He is arrested, killed, or never finds the evil that killed his mother and Jess.

Wants Retribution / Needs Acceptance, to forgive himself and internal peace.

Base Negative Emotion/Public Mask: Victim/Unfazed Hero

Weaknesses: pain and regret losing Jess and normal life, blames self.

Triggers: pain of loss/being reminded of it, his choices being questioned

Coping Mechanisms: Hides, lies, deflects, attacks back.

Assignment 2

Emotional profiles for the main characters in my story: The SAT

Cian Shea – Hope/Fear: A new world without evil/being imprisoned or losing his sanity.

Wants/Needs: Everything he envisioned/love and to survive.

Base Negative Emotion/Public Mask:

Extreme underlying fear and unrest/ Extreme confidence, control, calm

Weaknesses: Indulgent, unrest, fear

Triggers: Seeing content in normal lives, pride in Devil and others, his dream is impossible

Coping Mechanisms: Deflects, ignores, lies, indulges sex/liquor/drugs/social.

Bridget McCabe – Hope/Fear: To make a difference/failure, becoming a victim.

Wants/Needs:

Be difference in lives of women, educate, protect them/love, normalcy, balance.

Base Negative Emotions/Public Mask:

feels inadequate/Overachiever, satisfied of successes.

Weaknesses: feels inadequate, overwhelmed with own ambitions/bar set to high

Triggers: told she cannot or its ok/more than enough, not taken seriously, ignored

Coping Mechanisms: Attacks back, overachieves, schemes, indulges sex/liquor/social.

The Devil – Hope/Fear: To make God powerless or not care/being punished before his time or right now.

Wants/Needs: to make God suffer or pay him back/unlimited, unending power.

Base Negative Emotions/Public Mask: Afraid, hesitant/Fearless, moves without hesitation.

Weaknesses: Self-indulgent, overthinks, impulsive

Triggers: Anything or anyone that despises him, disrespect

Coping Mechanisms: Attacks back above and beyond, schemes, deflects, indulges macabre.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Intriguing Character Layers

What I learned doing this assignment:

1. This assignment is crucial in discovering who your characters are and are not for your own sake as well as anyone that reads your story and the audience.

2. This assignment helps you pinpoint your character’s layers and display them for future reference when you are choosing the webs you weave when you write. You are now in better control of what, when, how much, and for what purpose you reveal the layers etc.

3. You can see the set-ups and payoffs more clearly from beginning to end, so you will have more success writing dialogue, scenes, beginnings, and endings. You know what you are writing and why you are writing it with a clear counter of when to begin, continue and end.

4. Most importantly, your characters become their own through this assignment and you will feel as if you a discovering these individuals and all they are as an observer, not the writer. These are no longer characters you made up for the story. They are characters you are reading about as you write, because you already know their destination…just like a sensational news story with a telling headline. You read it because you already know what happened from the headline and hooked, you need to know how and why it happened. Example. I already know the end for Cian Shea, these character layers help me see the journey and how they affect other character’s journeys to the same end. It is like I am reading the story because of the headline now, not writing it, because it is already written. The character layers are going to dictate what, when, how, etc.

Assignment 1

Sam Winchester

Role: To hunt down and destroy the evil that killed his mother and girlfriend and as a hunter to destroy every evil he and his brother encounter until they do.

Dean Winchester

Role: To hunt down and destroy the evil that killed his mother and Sam’s girlfriend and as a hunter to destroy every evil he and his brother encounter until they do.

Dean was exposed as having a hidden agenda when he went to Sam and asked for help to find their father. Dean showed he secretly wanted to get Sam back to help him hunt evil and help people.

There is the competition between the boys and the evil demons, ghosts, monsters, etc. as well as competition with law enforcement ‘that does not have a clue’ or do not believe.

Dean may have already known their father wanted to pass on the hunting to his sons before he disappeared.

You can see that they both have secrets that they are not revealing.

They both use deception to pose as law enforcement to gain access to crime scenes and interview witnesses. They both lie to relatives of victims to find out answers, clues and what happened.

They both have the wounds of losing their mother and their normal lives being taken by their father training them to be hunters. Sam has the wound of losing his girlfriend the same way as losing his mother and by the same evil.

The next episode of SUPERNATURAL revealed Sam was having nightmares of Jessica dying days before she died and well before Dean asked him to help find their father. He was holding on to the secrets, fears and guilt the whole time.

Assignment 2

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

Cian Shea

Role: Thinking, seeing, and believing past the impossibility of the Devil’s challenge to rid the world of him and making it happen.

Hidden Agendas: Everything he does is part of the end game and dream to change the world. He wants a world without the Devil, evil, governments, corruption, or currency. His renown as a FBI profiler, musician, writer, actor, entertainer and influencer progressively and systematically meet that purpose.

Competition: Competes with those having no intention to do what it will take to rid the world of evil, churches, religious leaders, and politicians for example.

Conspiracies: He is aware and part of secret societies with world agendas and knows to accomplish his dream he will have to remove every government in the world and all the corrupt people.

Secrets: He wants to give up his impossible dream and enjoy a normal life. He hunts and kills more serial killers than he catches through case files.

Deception: He is an FBI profiler to gain access to serial killers, he will decide which ones to capture and which ones to kill. He is an entertainer to influence the world to his dream of a world with no currency, no governments, and no Devil.

Wound: Lost his mother and father as well as his youth and future to his older brother Mitchell, now the world’s most known, prolific, brutal, and elusive serial killer as well as the Devil. God allowing it.

Secret Identity: Cian Shea’s real name is ooooo Dawe.

Bridget McCabe

Role: To help Cian achieve his impossible task or dream.

Hidden Agendas: Bridget will have the same hidden agendas as Cian in time, but before she believes he can truly accomplish his dream, Bridget is playing along and trying to help Cian let go of his impossible and crazy mission.

Competition: None.

Conspiracies: Bridget becomes the key conspirator with Cian to achieve his dreams.

Secrets: Bridget is keeping the same kind of secrets from Cian that he is keeping from her, only to a much lesser degree and the circumstances are different. She masks why she is such a great FBI profiler, what happened when she was a little girl,

Deception: Deceives her Director the whole time she is with Cian to cover up his plans and their relationship.

Wound: When she was a little girl, she found out her neighbor was a serial killer through her special gifts, dreams, and intuitions. Only, she knew of what he was from a child’s perspective and still innocent. Having intuitions of his own, he threatened to hurt his wife and daughter if she told anyone. She did not tell anyone and even believed him when he said he sent his wife and daughter to live with her sister for a whole year. He disappeared and left clues that he killed them because she knew what he was. If Bridget would have told right away, he still would have killed them and fled but she still wonders if she could have saved her friend and her mother.

Secret Identity: Bridget comes from a long line of witches and is the one they have foreseen for ages as accomplishing the task Cian is set on. Bridget does not know who she is and won’t realize until she needs help when the Devil becomes more aggressive and desparate to stop her.

The Devil

Role: To keep Cian Shea and God from meeting his challenge to the fullest implication.

Hidden Agendas: Wants to pay God and heaven back when he hurts humans. So, the more brutal and eviler he is, the better chance at getting an audience with God.

Competition: On occasion, there are battles between the Devil and other fallen angels, as well as evil humans.

Conspiracies: The Devil is always conspiring to destroy the heavens and God even though he knows he never will, and he can be behind countless conspiracies throughout the world to pay God back.

Secrets: The Devil helps human beings sometimes because he genuinely wants to and when he does, God fills him with so much love and desire to help more people that he gets sick as punishment.

Deception: The Devil is prone to any and every deception to get what he needs, wants or for the sheer pleasure of deceiving.

Wound: Being cast out of heaven and threatened with eternal hell according to God’s divine plan compounded with knowing God’s love and protection for humanity despite his impending doom.

Secret Identity: Takes the form of an angel of light sometimes as well as a human being or animal.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Engaging Main Characters

What I learned doing this assignment is:

1. I have already had a breakthrough with my Main Characters and see them differently. Meaning this assignment helped me narrow down and define Cian Shea’s journey and by doing so, I can see Bridget McCabe’s and the Devil’s journeys almost crystal clear. I knew what I wanted them to be or do (sort of), but now I know exactly why, how, when, to what depth etc. So cool, so awesome, thanks!

2. This assignment helped me pinpoint specifics about my characters that I was not able to define two days ago. By putting each through the Character Model, I know my characters better and where they are going, what they are going to do and why! Awesome!

Assignment 1

From the show SUPERNATURAL

Sam Winchester

Role in the show:

Sam is clearly defining his role as the more intelligent and intuitive of the two brothers and hunters. His success at Stanford is showing up.

Unique Purpose / Expertise

Sam is more tech savvy, better at research and more likely to keep both out of jail or worse.

Intrigue

Sam was the child in the crib underneath his mother when the evil killed her, and we are beginning to see a connection to this fact in the difference between him and Dean. Sam is more intense, intuitive, unpredictable, and complex. Dean is who he is already, but Sam has not revealed all that he is yet.

Moral Issue

Sam was going to interview to get full scholarship to Stanford Law, so he obviously knows impersonating law officials is unlawful and can harm his future after hunting more than Dean’s.

Unpredictable

It was Sam that saw his mother die as a child and it was Sam’s girlfriend that the same evil took to make him pass on his interview with Stanford, which is why he is even hunting now. Sam has become more urgent to find his father and is showing that he is now more unpredictable than Dean.

Empathetic

We saw the love and support that Sam’s girlfriend, Jessica showed, and we saw how much he loved her in return. Jessica was killed the same way his mother was killed by the same evil and both times Sam was underneath as the drops of blood fell. Before that shocking twist, we thought Jessica was with Sam the whole show. Now, we see the pain Sam carries underneath.

Assignment 2

The journey of my show… The S tories A ngels T ell

The SAT

The Devil threateningly mocks a twelve-year-old boy and challenges him to rid the world of him. The boy becomes Cian Shea, the man who will rid the world of evil and the Devil to its fullest implications and change the darkening world we know into a world he only dreamed about, a world with no governments, no currency, and the right to watch evil die.

The Main Characters that will sell my show…

Cian Shea

Bridget McCabe

The Devil

Engaging Character Model for the main characters

Role in the show

Cian Shea – Envisions the world without the Devil and evil to the fullest implication and becomes the driving force behind completing his vision down to the tiniest detail.

Bridget McCabe – Cian’s colleague, love interest and greatest help to push his dream through to completion, despite the enormity and reality of risk, failure, and consequences.

The Devil – To carelessly provoke Cian Shea as a child, unafraid and not considering consequence, then fight Cian Shea to the end to kill his relentless pursuit and prevent him from meeting the devil’s challenge.

Unique Purpose / Expertise

Cian Shea – the younger brother of the world’s most prolific and elusive serial killer, challenged by the Devil as a child to rid the world of him, sees and talks to angels and demons as an adult, first hand interactions with powerful secret societies, world-renowned as an FBI profiler, musician, entertainer, actor and overall social influence, making him the only one that can literally rid the world of evil and the Devil and change the world completely.

Bridget McCabe – Bridget is just as unique, intelligent, and powerful as Cian Shea in the FBI and in life, making her literally the only one that help Cian achieve his goal.

The Devil – The Devil terrorizes, influences, provokes, and even kills entirely with chaotic purpose and desire. His prolific and insatiable brutality to some is an endless lure and beauty to others by design.

Intrigue

Cian Shea – Cian is as innocent as he is vicious in his pursuit to rid the world of the Devil. He may sob violently to himself or scream violently to the heavens upon the same thought or realization on where he is in his secret mission, all while pointing his service weapon at you and trying to remember when band rehearsal is that night.

Bridget McCabe – very intelligent, ambitious, sensual/sexual for pleasure and business, and relentless when given a case as a FBI profiler. She will not fail considering everything at her disposal.

The Devil – The power, darkness, brutality, influence, ageless fallen angel. In this story, we will see most of that undone leaving the Devil powerless and almost mortal.

Moral Issue

Cian Shea – The more Cian leaves the normal world to live a supernatural mission to rid the world of evil, the less concerned Cian becomes with the laws and rules of the world he believes he will change.

Bridget McCabe – FBI profiler who does not break the law, but slowly finds she will have to do so to stay with Cian.

The Devil – the things he will do to stop Cian makes him more and more afraid of God.

Unpredictable

Cian Shea – Cian Shea goes from a terrified boy because of his psychopath older brother and the Devil to a man who sees and talks to angels and demons on a regular basis, being introduced to secret societies, good and evil and consumed with the need to meet the Devil’s challenge at all cost.

Bridget McCabe – no love for the Devil, but no knowledge of angels or what she will have to do to play her part. Bridget may bend rules to her will, but never breaks them. Cian will need her to break them.

The Devil – once he realizes that Cian may be part of a divine plan or simply able to meet his challenge like no one else ever could, the Devil will use every evil possible to defeat Cian.

Empathetic

Cian Shea – was a terrified 12-year-old boy challenged by the Devil to rid the world of him who loses his mother and father before he turns 20 because of that challenge.

Bridget McCabe – has no idea what she is getting into with Cian and how far she is going to have to go.

The Devil – it was the Devil’s challenge that drives Cian to meet that challenge to its fullest implications and beyond.

[Sean Barrett]

Sean’s Three Circles of Characters

— What I learned doing this assignment:

1. The main characters are on a journey, they are the smallest circle. (Main Characters Circle)

2. The other circles interact with them and only to be part of their journey.

3. Connected Circle will be closest to Main Characters with more frequent, deeper, and personal interaction.

4. Environment Circle is biggest circle and consists of characters that fill ‘standard’ roles (for your story) and for scenes, episodes etc. Also, this circle is where the “extras” and visual background roles.

5. It is particularly important to get these identified so you can focus on the relation to the journey and the story you are going to tell.

ASSIGNMENT 1:

In SUPERNATURAL, the

Main Characters Circle is Dean and Sam Winchester

Connected Circle is John and Mary Winchester, as well as Sam’s girlfriend Jessica. Also, the evil thing that killed both Mary and Jessica.

Environment Circle is both victims and survivors of (monsters, demons, and ghosts etc.), local law enforcement and background roles relevant to each place or episode.

ASSIGNMENT 2:

3 Circles for:

The S A T

Main Characters Circle

Cian Shea – an intense, highly gifted, and uniquely intelligent FBI profiler with a dark but destined past made that way by circumstance, the Devil and angelic influence alike and is now an obsessively calculating musician, writer and rising artist with a world ending purpose, namely the Devil’s world.

Bridget McCabe – a tenacious, dramatically unique, and larger than life FBI profiler with a prolific use of her stunning looks and sensuality to get anything she wants.

The DEVIL – an arrogant, mocking, and constant presence of evil in our lives, also the most powerful of the
fallen Angels, with a proclivity for the macabre having absolutely no boundaries where we are concerned.

Connected Characters Circle

Ana Stasia aka Anastasia Krovopuskov

Caliel

Mitchell Dawe

Environment Circle

FBI Director

SILLICK band members

Director of programming, HellRock.TV

FBI agents

Mitchell Dawe’s victims

Background extras

[Sean Barrett]

SUPERNATURAL 5 Star Model

— What I learned doing this assignment

1. I have a new show to Binge Watch!!… I never realized SUPERNATURAL was in my wheelhouse.

2. When you are looking for the 5 Star Points as you watch a new episode or show, they really shine through when it is a true Binge Worthy Show!

3. The 5 Star Points make perfect sense when you break them down…I cannot see a show being truly Binge Worthy without them being top notch.

4. I picked up some things that were not that obvious the second time I watched the episode or Pilot and made mental notations to scrawl them down for future reference when considering my own show.

~ Light outline of SUPERNATURAL S1: E1 “Pilot”

E1 Pilot starts out establishing the beginning (when, why, how etc.) of father – John Winchester , older brother- Dean Winchester and younger brother- Sam Winchester becoming hunters of demons, ghosts aka SUPERNATURAL beings that harm people. In Lawrence, Kansas 22 years ago a demon or evil force killed wife and mother Mary Winchester in a hellish way. In the present, we are introduced to Sam as a young adult at Stanford University, when his girlfriend, Jessica is getting dressed for a Halloween party. Sam is not in costume and does not want to go, Jess convinces him to go for his own good. At the bar, everyone is dressed in costume, but Sam. Jess talks about Sam’s high test scores and we learn Sam has an interview with Stanford for a full scholarship to Stanford Law School on Monday morning.

In the middle of the night, Sam is woke by sounds of person moving in living room. He investigates and attacks intruder, they fight. Turns out to be his older brother, Dean. Dean is introduced to Jess after she wakes to find both in living room. Dean says he needs to speak to Sam alone, but Sam refuses until Dean says their father has been missing after going on a ‘hunting trip’. Dean wants Sam’s help to find their father, but Sam is reluctant and not happy about the way they were raised as kids after their mother’s death. They were raised and trained to be SUPERNATURAL hunters. Though Sam sought a normal life away from his father and ‘hunting’, Dean has never stop hunting with his father. Dean talks Sam into helping him, but Sam reminds him he must be back by Monday for interview to get into Stanford Law. The two brothers follow the clues and evidence to Jericho, CA where a series of disappearances have been escalating recently and their father went to investigate. All white males along a 5 mile stretch of road in Jericho, CA.

A lone male is driving at night in Jericho, CA and sees a woman dressed in a white gown by the side of the road. He picks her up and she seduces him, asks him to take her home and he agrees. They arrive at a dilapidated and unlived in boarded up home. She disappears and he goes toward house to find her but gets spooked. He takes off in his car and ends up on a bridge, where the woman appears again in his back seat. She kills him. We see the blood on the windows as we hear him scream.

The next morning Dean and Sam stop for gas and we learn Dean and his father both run credit card scams to support them in the quest to find the thing that killed their wife and mother, Mary Winchester. As they enter Jericho, they see cops and the car from the night before, which the lone male who was killed was driving. Dean pops out all kinds of fake ID and chooses a US Marshall’s badge. He poses as Marshall and starts asking the officer questions about the scene. Male disappeared, no signs of struggle and the car is immaculate inside. As this plays out, Dean and Sam do their own investigating and end up finding where local legend behind disappearances occurred. Constance Welch committed suicide on the bridge they found the car of the man killed the night before, the same bridge they were on that morning. They go to the bridge at night and see the same ghost, Constance standing at the spot she jumped. Constance jumps and they run to the spot just as their car comes to life with no driver and tries to run them down. They narrowly escape and look for a place to wash up and rest and happen to go to same motel as father, John Winchester because clerk mentions Dean is using same credit card as father. They find their father’s motel room and it is littered with research on ‘Woman in white’ and details of local legend as well as evidence John used to salt to protect himself from something else. They gather John must have went to grave where ‘woman in white’, Constance was buried to end her terror from the other side. Dean is caught coming out of his father’s room by local law enforcement for fake credit cards and impersonating US Marshall. Dean is arrested, but Sam escapes and continues to try and solve ‘woman in white’ mystery. Dean finds out the he is a suspect, because of all the things found in his father’s room, but also gets a secret message or coordinates from his father written down in his father’s journal that sheriff found. Sam interviews Joseph Welch, the husband of Constance and finds out his father, John had been there days earlier asking questions about the event surrounding Constance’s death and the death of their children along with where Constance was buried. After a few questions, Sam explains the story of ‘woman in white’ and how they come to be.

Sam places fake call to police station to get sheriff to respond and leave, giving Dean opportunity to escape. The two brothers figure out Constance’s weakness and fear of going home to face her children, whom she had drowned in her grief before committing suicide after her husband was unfaithful. Her ghost is vanquished or put to rest.

Sam figures out the coordinates their father left for Dean as they are driving, which is Blackwater Ridge, CO, 600 miles away. Sam reminds Dean he has to go to interview for Stanford on Monday morning, 10 hours from now. It is important to Sam to make this interview because it is his whole life riding on him getting full scholarship to Stanford Law. Dean agrees to drive him home and does. They pull up in front of Sam’s apartment, where Jessica should be waiting for him. She would be happy to see him home in time for the interview. After leaving Dean’s car, Sam says, “Maybe I can meet up with you later?” and Dean says, “Yea, alright.” Dean stops Sam as he turns away and says “Sam, you know we made a hell of a team back there.” Sam responds “Yea.” Dean drives off, headed to Blackwater Ridge, CO to find father, John. Sam enters his apartment and calls out Jessica’s name, “Jess, you home?” He hears the shower running and sits on the bed. There is no response. As he lies back and closes his eyes, a moment passes as the sound of the shower still runs and then a few drops of blood hit his forehead. The same way the blood dropped from the ceiling near his head when his father looked up to see their mother before she was engulfed in flames. Sam’s girlfriend Jessica was pinned to the ceiling with blood coming from her stomach and she looked the same way his mother looked. Something evil was taking her life force and she was surrounded by fire. The flames engulfed her and Sam was trapped with terror underneath, yelling her name. Just then, Dean kicks in the door and helps Sam run to escape.

Outside the apartment, a crowd is gathered well after the fire with police and the fire dept present. The smoke from extinguished flames and Dean looking at the apartment window as he turns and heads to his car. Sam is going through the weapons in Dean’s trunk. Grief is being replaced by the need to find the one responsible for his mother’s and now his girlfriend’s SUPERNATURAL death. Dean is a little displaced Sam is going through his weapons. Sam says, “We got work to do.”

That is the end of Ep 1 Pilot.

~ 5 Star Points for SUPERNATURAL

– Big Picture Hooks
A father trains his two sons to become SUPERNATURAL hunters to find and destroy the evil that killed their wife and mother, Mary Winchester and they seem to be all alone on their path.

– Amazing and Intriguing Character
John giving up his life to become a hunter and try to destroy the evil that killed Mary. The fact he trained Dean and Sam to become hunters as well. Now, all three are extremely skilled mentally, physically and with weapons. They seem outside the scope of ‘normal’ life and are totally committed to their path.

– Empathy / Distress
The death of John Winchester’s wife, also Dean and Sam’s mother. And then Sam’s girlfriend dying the same way by the same obvious evil spirit.

– Layers / Open Loops
How Mary Winchester and Jessica died. What killed them, why and will John, Dean and Sam find and destroy the one that did? Where is their father, John and what kind of trouble is he in? What is he protecting himself from?

– Inviting Obsession
The hunt for the evil that killed Mary and Jessica the same way. All the other ghosts, demons and evil they will encounter along the way along with the stories behind them. Are they all connected to the death of Mary and Jessica and/or the one that killed them?

[Sean Barrett]

Hello everyone : )

My name is Sean Barrett

I have written one script and will be turning it into a Pilot and a Binge Worthy Show!

I currently live in southern Arizona, though I am from the Philadelphia, PA area.

I served in the US Marines, slept in a building being renovated on Hollywood Blvd. years back just for the experience and I have performed my songs on the streets of Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Hollywood, New Orleans and Nashville. I have graced a few stages as well : )

look forward to meeting you all and reading some amazing stuff if the class allows at some point!

Blessed Be and thanks.

Sean

[Sean Barrett]

1. Sean Barrett.
2. “I agree to the terms of this 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.

[Sean Barrett]

Merry meet, Lisa! Very exciting and interesting…I had a few psychic experiences when I was young in the form of wide-awake dreams or visions, two of which were in Los Angeles, CA. One while playing an open mic at a bar near Hollywood…I believe it was on Melrose. Vision ended up being the fire at the Great White concert. The other was while I was driving on 5 lane highway, maybe I – 5 or 105? Nevertheless, it turned out to be 9/11!

Awesome to meet you! The best of success to you, truly!

[Sean Barrett]

Hi Bonnie! Great to meet you and congrats on your successes! I am looking forward to working with you as well!

[Sean Barrett]

Exciting opportunity, Patty…best of luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

That is awesome, Rita! Good for you! Hope you achieve everything you want with this class! I hope I do as well…thanks for the encouragement!

[Sean Barrett]

LoL! Great to know, Connie! I hope I never need your special skills…best of success to you with writing!

[Sean Barrett]

Sorry for your loss, Holli…would have been cool to find out you could bring her back though! Best of luck to you!

• This reply was modified 2 years, 4 months ago by  Sean Barrett.

[Sean Barrett]

The best of wishes for your success and fulfillment, Karen! Storytelling is as old as humanity is!! Woo hoo! We are the chosen ones, lol!

[Sean Barrett]

Congrats, Marian! Have fun in Ireland! Sounds awesome!!

[Sean Barrett]

Here’s to being fearless, ambitious and relentless, you can do it, Wendy! Best of luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Congrats on all your success, Laura! Best of luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Awesome, Kevin! Massive respect to you as a teacher, thanks for caring! Best of success to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Hi, Tony! Good luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Incredible, L.D.! Congrats on being published…best of luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Best of luck to you, Lonnie! Sounds cool…love the drums!

[Sean Barrett]

Hi, Jane! The best of life to you and your animals!

[Sean Barrett]

Awesome, Allen! The best of success to you!

[Sean Barrett]

Congrats on being published already, Janis. Best of luck to you with achieving everything you want and need as a writer!

[Sean Barrett]

Very cool, JoAnne…good luck to you!

[Sean Barrett]

The best of success to you Alexandra! Have fun!

[Sean Barrett]

I hope you can get back on track, Karena. Congrats on being a finalist!

[Sean Barrett]

Good luck to you, Dominic! I’m really looking forward to writing scripts quickly as well…36 huh? Here’s to being a boxer, trainer, writer and a rapper from Detroit – cheers! Plenty of life left to add to it!

[Sean Barrett]

SAG Awards nominating committee sounds exciting, good for you. Best of life to you, David.

[Sean Barrett]

I always wanted to travel the world…wonderful that you have, Amy. I hope they were all great places to live and cool schools with a lot of incredible memories and creative ideas. You are very lucky! Good luck to you!

• This reply was modified 2 years, 4 months ago by  Sean Barrett.

[Sean Barrett]

Good luck to you, Luc. I hope you finish too. Sounds like you really want to…positively stoked you can!

[Sean Barrett]

That is awesome, Heather and a lot of ghostwriting, for sure… hope you achieve everything you want and need. ~ Sean Barrett

[Sean Barrett]

Very cool! Good luck to you, Frank.

[Sean Barrett]

Awesome, Roxanne!

It is a pleasure meeting you, thanks for sharing so much so quickly…very interesting, indeed. The best of success to you. ~ Sean Barrett