Unit 13 – Technical Research

The technical research is where I put the rest of my research and the more technical side of things, such as the screenwriting process itself and the various techniques that I found out about and used throughout my script.

Celtx

The app that I am going to be using to create my script is called Celtx, and is a very basic but easy to use app specifically made for writing scripts. Below is a screenshot showing the files where I am writing all the episodes of my Bouncer series script including the pilot episode.

 

Writing Characters

One book that I read to help me make my characters seem more realistic and relate-able was the ‘Developing Characters Creative Writing Masterclass‘ book by Irving Weinamn.

This book details not only how to set up characters, but also how to give them a decent character arc and also gives good examples of how characters have been utilised to tell compelling stories. Below I have detailed a list of the key details I have been able to take away from this piece of work;

• “The writer’s life is the ultimate source of fictional characters.” – This essentially means that the writer should take inspiration from those they know for the characters they write as it would be easier to write about and would hopefully help give them more ideas. Personally I feel like this is quite a good point as going off people you know means you not only have an insight into them but also
• “Flat characters react rather than think or reflect and they remain unchanged throughout the tale.” – Flat characters are those with little to no character development throughout the story and are there simply as a foil to the main characters and to help grow the central characters throughout the story. I will be using lots of these kind of characters to flesh out the world I am creating but I do disagree with the fact these characters do have to remain unchanged as I plan on trying to have these characters seem as real as possible to the audience and so some of them might go through their own little character arcs.
• “Action and conflict as well as showing deep emotion are all ways of developing powerful, fully rounded characters that have a profound impact on the reader.” – This is a quote that I always am going to agree with. That is because I strive to create well-rounded and empathetic characters in all of my scripts and I feel that actions and conflicts are consequential to succeeding with this and are the best ways to develop characters. Whilst dialogue is of course important, without conflict you can never see your characters grow and exhibit the emotions that make them seem more human and therefore more realistic.
• “Among the demands made of narration is the ability to depict character interiority. ‘Interiority’ means not only character’s inner thoughts and feelings but also the experience of the reader that unconscious emotions and ideas are being evoked.” – In scripts this is slightly harder than in books as unless you have a voice-over you can’t really portray the character’s inner thoughts. However, this can be done through having shots of the characters reactions to events and by showing their facial expressions, or even by including a narration where the character talks over it. So although I do feel that this is helpful, it also does have a lot of problems that come with it and so I feel that this is a point that much better fits books than cinema and so although the character’s interiority is important, the way the character reacts is much more important in my opinion in scripts.
• “In writing fiction, showing a character in action is a direct way of engaging the reader in the interior life and development of a character.” – This agrees with the point I made above that the best way to portray the character’s interior world was through conflict, and so this is a point that I can thoroughly get on board with. Not only does the reaction of the character to certain events tell you a lot about them, but also paves the way for character growth and so this is an integral part of portraying a character.
• “Showing a scene of action, long or short, fast or slow, is important to the development of character.” – This is another point that I agree with as action scenes are an essential part in developing characters as you see how they act in certain situations which can you tell you a lot about a characters’ moral compass.
• “The language used in dialogue can employ subtle differences in diction to convey important information about character. Shifts in tone and formality of speech can express different characters’ social background, mood and intention.” – This is yet another point that is very true as not only does the way a character speak allow the viewer to be able to tell what they’re all about, but also allows them to form an opinion on how the character is in general.
• “First-person narration and internal monologue enable a character to reveal his or her own qualities as well as aspects of the other characters.” – This is quite a basic point but one that I am going to utilise, especially around the Bouncer character as he is one that I plan on developing a lot and so although film is usually about show and not tell, I will still use a monologue at some point in order to reveal his qualities.
• “A symbolic character can represent the writer’s message and turn the story into a parable. Satire in fiction targets human weakness through the use of humour or wit and may be general or specific and be presented through narrative or dialogue.” – Whilst this is quite a good point, I want to develop my script-writing skills first and foremost and so I will not be using this as a full-on chance to put forward a message. However, throughout the story if I find a chance to put my own opinion into it then I will and maybe use a character in order to portray my own personal opinions on society and how the nightlife is like and gang culture in general. However, I will not be making it a parable.
• “A turning point in a story is where the character or characters involved must change and go in a new direction – yet one that is compatible with their earlier character development.” – Whilst I do agree that a turning point should fit in with a characters earlier development, I don’t feel that it has to and it can be something completely separate; but this only works if you’re going for some kind of parallel to throw off the reader with your character, and is very difficult to pull off. Therefore, I will not be going for this as I want to keep my story as simplistic as possible whilst having very conflicted and plausible characters.

 

The process of writing a script

Another book that I picked up from my local library and turned out to be very useful was “The Calling Card Script” by Paul Ashton.

This book goes through the entire process of making a script from beginning to ending and was very useful in giving me tips and information that I then can translate into reality and use to make my script better.

• Page 94: “The story should be underway straightaway. Page one, scene one, line one is where the audience touches down. The last thing you want them to do is then collapse in a heap of confusion, tedium, or emotional disconnection.” – This is all very true and actually I fell into these traps with my beginning opening line which was them just entering the club. This doesn’t show you anything about the characters and so to improve this I am going to add in much more dialogue so you understand at least roughly how these characters work and therefore can form at least a minor emotional connection to them, even if it won’t hit that hard when the character gets killed. It might also mislead the audience as they won’t be expecting a death this early and so the suddenness of it will shock them and make the audience aware about what kind if show they’re watching.
• This is quite a simple point but remember to show and not tell when it comes to writing a script so for example instead of having a character who’s mother just died say “I used to buy flowers for my mum because I loved her so much”, instead have a scene where they go to the grave and lay down flowers to show their love. That’s a weak example but that’s the kind of thing I need to do in my script.

 

Writing Dialogue

In order to help me to improve my writing abilities, specifically when it comes to dialogue, I watched this YouTube video:

 

This video is by ‘The Closer Look‘ who make videos about screenwriting. This video it explains, as the title says, how to write great dialogue. The key points from this video are:

• A lot of the best dialogue is when 2 opposing forces are clashing.
• The dialogue should aim to carry the story forward.
• Try and have a hidden message in the dialogue.
• Subtext is the most important part of the dialogue, they need good meaning behind what they say. Otherwise it’s just empty words and you don’t want to be too on the nose with what you say.

I agree with the majority of what this video is saying, as subtext is very important when writing dialogue. You also want to make the reader think about what is being said and so don’t want to spoon-feed them the information. For instance, if a character is feeling sad instead of them saying ‘I am sad’, it would be much better to have them say ‘I’m fine’ but in a trembling voice. This conveys the sadness but also means that the audience engages with them more as they realise that the character is sad instead of just straight up being told that the character is sad. In terms of the dialogue has to carry the story forward, whilst I think this is necessary some of the time, it is also important for character development too. What I mean by this is that the story can stay in the same place, as long as something else is being developed by the dialogue as otherwise the script just stands still and the pace of the story is too slow and off-balance. I do disagree with the first point however, as whilst I feel that dialogue is usually really good when 2 forces are clashing, it’s not the only time that dialogue is well-written. It is however the most crucial part of the story and so the dialogue needs to be good in order for the viewer to feel satisfied after watching it. Overall therefore, I found this video very useful when it comes to writing dialogue. However, I don’t feel it covered everything and so I am going to watch another video to help me get an even clearer idea of what makes good dialogue.

Another YouTube video that I thought would be useful in helping me to improve my writing abilities is the one linked below:

 

Having watched this video the key points that I have gathered are:

• Talking added to more realism and character development after being introduced in the mainstream in 1928 to replace the silent films.
• Exposition dialogue should give as much information as possible, but in a swift manner so it doesn’t become too boring. Voice-overs are often lazy ways of doing this as you are spoon-fed the information instead of having to work it out through the conversations being had.
• You should try not to say information too plainly, and instead should reveal it through what’s being said instead of straight up saying it. E.G. Billy Elliot did this better than Big Hero 6. In this Billy Elliot gives us enough information to work it out, but doesn’t straight up say it which Big Hero 6 does.
• Themes should be hidden in the dialogue but not straight up said. Instead should be suggested but not straight up mentioned.
• Sometimes dialogue seems pointless but sets up major plot points and conflict.
•  Make sure that all dialogue has a purpose in your story, even if it’s not that clear.
• Character flaws can be shown through dialogue, such as that which Tarantino uses in Reservoir Dogs.
• Make sure to use a mixture of dialogue and visuals to show your story.

Having watched 2 videos on how to write dialogue, I feel I have a solid foundation to build upon. When it comes to the differences between the two videos, I feel that the second video better explains how dialogue should be used. That is because it says that ‘all dialogue should have a purpose in your story, even if it’s not clear’. In the other video it says ‘the dialogue should aim to carry the story forward’ which suggests that it should be more story-based, and so there would be less character development. Saying all dialogue needs a purpose is much clearer and although it’s more vague it gives the writer more freedom as they write their story. It also means that you can develop things other than the story-line, such as the themes of the story. When it comes to the exposition points in the video I also agree with these and I am going to aim to give information through mediums such as conversations between the characters and not by straight up saying what they’re feeling etc.

In conclusion therefore the way that I am going to use this in my own work is by making sure to reveal information slowly through dialogue, reveal the characters emotions but never straight up state them, and to make sure that the dialogue in my script always has a good purpose.

Script-writing Terms I should know

Whilst on the City Lit course I mentioned in the primary research, we were given a booklet full of terms that we should know. The ones that are knew to me I have listed below;

• Beat sheet – List of the major story changes or beats in a screenplay.
• Development – This is when a story, idea, script, is rewritten many times based on notes and meetings between the story execs, producers, directors, actors and the writer. Each company works differently, so it’s possible at a small company that only the writer and story exec will be involved with a screenplay’s development. The studio or production company’s goal is to get a better script, but sometimes the script ends up in the dreaded ‘development hell,’ which means that each draft makes the screenplay worse and the movie or t.v. show is never made.
• Feature – another name for a full-length movie that usually runs from 85 to 130 minutes.
• Four Audience Quadrant – An audience that consists of men, women, young and old. Huge tent pole movies are designed to appeal to the four quadrants. This type of movie is what drives the studio machine.
• Logline – Short 1-3 line description that tells the reader concisely and succinctly what the movie is about, who the characters are and what they are going to experience. The logline is extremely important in the film industry, as many producers do not even look at a script if the logline doesn’t grab them.
• Outline – Summary of the major scenes in a script.
• Page One Rewrite – This is when the writer has to completely rewrite the script, usually because of plot or structural problems.
• Pitch – This is when you give a short summary of your script to a producer or someone else in the industry, with the goal of having them pay you to write a script based on the pitch, or read the script if it has already been written. The goal here, as with your script is, ‘less is more’. Give them just enough to arouse their curiosity, but not too much to turn them off. A high concept pitch is best if you are pitching to a company that has a deal with a studio.
• Spec Screenplay – Script written on speculation, without any deal in place. The writer is hoping to sell it upon completion. This is the opposite of a writer writing a script based on an assignment. The advantage of writing on spec is that the writer is writing an original story and not having to answer to anyone. Also, if the spec sells, the writer can make a lot more money than they would if they wrote this on assignment, but there’s no guarantee that it will sell. Writing on an assignment still doesn’t guarantee that the script will be produced, but it is a guaranteed pay-cheque.
• Screenplay Polish – Minor rewrite, but what is a minor rewrite to one, is a major rewrite to another. Usually includes changes to dialogue and action, but nothing that will affect the structure.
• Synopsis – Short summary of a literary property, written in prose form. Usually one-two pages that include the major plot points.
• Theme – This is the ultimate meaning behind any story. A good example is the Wizard of Oz, which one the surface was about a teenager trying to get back home, but it was more than that. It was also about how love of family and friends can enable us to overcome all adversity. A theme is a universal thing we can all identify with.

 

A look at the inter-cutting technique

One scene I want to have is a montage of the police interviews done on the teenagers. My inspiration for this is the film Knives Out which did a very comedic and quippy take on interviewing it’s suspects and I want to try and do something similar to that. My first attempt at it was a bit of a mess as I wasn’t sure how to format it, and so I decided that for my second draft I would look into how it was actually done so that I could do it to an actual decent standard. Here is a little look at how this was done in Knives Out;

 

Click to access knivesout-final.pdf

As we can see here, each time the scene would cut to a different person in the chair, they would write cut to, instead of setting the scene out all over again. Therefore I am going to use this much simpler technique for when I write that scene. On top of that inter-cutting they also did it to effect each time, whether it was to make a joke or to show that a character was lying. Each cut was done in order to further the story and so had a purpose being there. I feel like that is a very important part of dialogue and if it serves no purpose then it doesn’t need to be there. I am going to make sure that I also do that throughout my own script.

Therefore overall I feel that this is a very witty bit of dialogue and the inter-cutting is a very good technique that I am going to try and use in my own script. I will also try and make sure that each time I inter-cut has a purpose, whether it’s revealing new information in the case or to add some humour.

 

 

Examples of scripts that I looked at

Breaking-Bad-pilot-script (Breaking Bad Pilot Episode Script)

jojo-rabbit-final-script (Jojo Rabbit Script)

joker_new_final (Joker Script)

 

Screenwriting Techniques

In order to help me to progress in my writing, I decided to look through a presentation on the Show not Tell technique sent to me by a screenwriting course leader that I did. The link to the presentation is below;

Show Dont Tell_ How To Stop Relying On Dialogue In A Screenplay

Having gone through this presentation I did find it very useful and here are a few key things that I learnt;

Examples of “show don’t tell”:

1. Taking a character’s line and replacing it with a look.

2. Taking a monologue and replacing it with an action.

3. Taking a whole conversation and replacing it with a visual scene.

Why do it?

Not only does the show not tell mean that we can say so much more than dialogue in a much shorter space of time, but also it lets the viewer think for themselves and workout what’s happening which helps add to the immersive feel of a film. On top of that, it helps to avoid ‘on-the-nose’ conversations which can slow down the pacing of the script and feel fake and actually take away the atmosphere of a film.

Overall therefore it is very important to make sure that you remember to do ‘show-not-tell’ throughout a script and so throughout the editing process I will show where I realise this and then change it, like with the scene between Jaxon and his mother where I change it from the mum saying he was kind to Jaxon offering to clean up for his mum so she can go to bed. Not only does this show his kindness, it also moves the story forward and leads to Jaxon being able to have his quiet moment of reflection at the end of the script.

 

Conclusion

In conclusion therefore, I am happy with the amount of effort I put into finding out new screenwriting techniques and that it actually did make a big difference to my writing compared to previous scripts and hopefully has vastly improved me as a screenwriter.