[Virginia Tyson]

Virginia Tyson’s Big M.I.S.

What I learned from doing this lesson: Narrowing down the Big M.I.S of your film points you in the general direction the film should follow while providing opportunities to make your story compelling and unique.

Logline: After the untimely death of an old friend, a woman inherits scruffy, undeveloped land near the remote town she once lived in. When she rebuffs a purchase offer, she is harassed and repeatedly threatened and almost killed.

1.The conventions of the story

Unwitting
but Resourceful Hero: Maya Scott, a former resident who moved away to
pursue a writing career in the big city.
Dangerous
Villain: A charming real estate agent, Victor, tries to romance her into
selling to the small regional company he represents.
High
stakes: Possible loss of the land. Mysterious deaths. Repeated threats
against Maya.
Life
and death situations: The friend’s death seemed suspicious. The discovery
of the corpse of a missing geologist. Repeated near-fatal “accidents”
occur and finally blatant murder attempts.
This
story is thrilling because we want to discover what really is going on. Is
it really simple greed or could it affect more people than just Maya and
the townspeople?

2. The Big M.I.S.

Big
Mystery: Why would anyone want this land bad enough to kill for it?
Big
Intrigue: Who is actually behind the intimidation tactics aimed at getting
the land from Maya?

Big Suspense: We learn that
Maya’s friend’s death was not accidental. Maya is repeatedly threatened and
almost killed. Can she stay safe and not give up the land?

[Virginia Tyson]

“The Net” — Thriller Conventions ..

Unwitting but Resourceful Hero: Angela, a computer
programmer/beta tester.
Dangerous Villain: Jack, charming, handsome and
ruthless assassin trying to recover a computer disk in Angela’s
possession.

High stakes: Angela’s identity has been stolen. her
life is threatened and her mother’s safety is jeopardized.

Life and death situations: people start dying
immediately. The Defense Secretary mysteriously commits suicide. Angele’s
colleague dies in a plane crash. Jack befriends Angela, lures her away to
kill her but is distracted by her and seduces her. She narrowly escapes the
murder attempt but is injured in a boating accident and wakes up to find
her identity stolen. The computer disk has been destroyed. She returns
home to find her house is up for sale and narrowly escapes Jack again. She
gets help from an ex-lover. When he is killed, she flees but is eventually
captured as a car thief. Eventually she gets to her employer’s
headquarters and retrieves the disk she needs and sends the info to the
authorities. She manages to cause Jack’s death and is able to return to a
better version of her life.

This movie is thrilling because every time Angela
escapes death, she lands in more peril. Because she is able to think on
her feet, she stays a step ahead of the villain until she figures out how
to defeat him and take back her life.

What is the BIG Mystery, Intrigue, and Suspense of this
story?

Big Mystery: What is on that computer disk?

Big Intrigue: Who are the Praetorians and what is their
agenda?

Big Suspense: How will Angela save herself?

Another element contributing to this thriller is the isolation of the heroine: She works remotely as a computer geek, She does not interact with neighbors and her mother is an Alzheimer’s patient who is hospitalized and no longer recognizes her. Angela has few options for help because of her self-imposed isolation.

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[Virginia Tyson]

Virginia Tyson

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[Virginia Tyson]

Hi Everyone.

I am Virginia Tyson, an L.A. resident.

I have co-written 2 comedy feature scripts, written (solo) a horror script and a comedy script (which needs a rewrite). Also written short stories, a novel and a half-completed novel.

I hope this course will get me back into a writing routine and help me create a saleable script or a great script to showcase my writing.

Previously, I was a reporter and a newspaper copy editor.