'Story and Character'
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by Jack Linsdell
1: From Idea to Screenplay
The art of screenwriting is a hard one, something which many believe they can master and one so very few actually posses the natural talent for. Indeed, there are so many writers out there that will, like me, sit in their homes and craft stories and characters which reflect a subconscious opinion, event or theme which has helped shaped their personality and life as they know it. In this post, I'll explore the initial steps for any writer (be it for film, TV or even creatively) in how they develop their initial idea into a story.
What many amateur writers fall into the trap of is not developing their idea properly, rushing into the screenplay and then spending the rest of their career scratching their heads as to why the story isn't working. I've been there before, I know and its a painful process. My first feature-length screenplay was based around this really interesting idea and I rushed straight into writing the script, planning and developing ideas and characters as I went along. The outcome was a 135 page screenplay and at the time that achievement alone was enough to satisfy me. However, although the elements are all there, the script is in actual fact an overly-long treatment in screenplay form. The reason for this is that I hadn't spent all those painstaking hours fully developing my idea to the point that I was writing a story I didn't know, at it's core, what I was about.
I'll explain. Every screenplay should start with what is called the controlling idea. This is the protagonists aim/object of desire for which they do or don't achieve/collect during the last act's climax, giving the film its ultimate meaning. This is not to be confused with the premise which is the initial idea that inspires the writer to create the story. The controlling idea is normally based around a theme or moral code in which is responsible for educating the audience. Stories have been told since Neolithic times for a reason. Cave men would tell stories of young boys being eaten by wild animals to warn their children of the dangers of wandering off unaccompanied. Why tell a story if their is no reason to tell it? And, no financial incentives or fan-boy excitement does not warrant a reason. Why is the audience going to sit and watch your story? What are they going to learn? A controlling idea could be that "opportunities come if we wait for them" or "what's right isn't always fair". Once you have this your film has a meaning and purpose.
From here, you can structure your plot and characters to reflect this controlling idea and you'll find that development of the whole premise will become easier. I was recently listening to a young student in my film class, who was struggling to come up with a story for his short film. He had a premise but had no controlling idea. So, I asked him "what is your film about?". He didn't know initially, but after giving him a few examples, he struck gold and found the meaning of his film. Once he had that controlling idea the rest of the story came together very quickly, to the point that he was able to start filming it earlier than he had planned. This clearly shows the importance of finding your film's meaning, which should come before any plot or character development. If you have ideas, note them down separately and they might be of use later - on the other hand they might not. But, the important thing is that until you've found the controlling idea, everything else is not your concern.
However, this on its own is only a start. You have to spend, at least weeks but more than likely months, developing and growing this idea to fit around the meaning of your film. Characters will come and go, plot lines will change and this is all healthy creative development - once this process has been allowed to fully be realised, the story will make sense and work. It means you can then 'just' write the screenplay, expanding on your months of planning and refining, cutting out all the hard work that comes with realising something isn't working. A useful tip is to keep questioning your work, asking "is this good enough?" or "does this work?" or "does this feel right?". These questions will iron out all the tiny issues in plot and character, helping you to build a quality screenplay.
2: Beating "Writer's Block"
When writing your first screenplay, every writer faces that antagonistic force we all know to be "writer's block" in which your creative mind freezes and seemingly everything you have written appears to be the worst thing known to man. And, you can always tell those that are "quitters" in life because they give up here, normally half way through a (roughly speaking) 120-minute script, leaving it uncomplete forever and swearing never to return to writing again.
I've been there too, so has every writer (working on the latest blockbuster or not) and "writer's block" is something that appears from the darkness on every project, normally when starting and finishing a screenplay. But, the key to surviving and persevering through this so-called invisible villain to complete your screenplay is something you should (and need) to learn to master if you want to achieve your goal of completing that awesome idea you've had into a feature-film.
So, how do you overcome "writer's block"? Well, firstly a simple writing schedule and a few rules surrounding dealing with your emotional feelings is key. Structure your day (or if busy with a job or family etc. your available free time) into allotted times when you will sit at your desk and write. This is important because it focusses your mind on the task ahead, prevents conflicting thoughts of laziness creeping in and actually allows you to stay on track/time which will be important later on as writer's must keep to the deadlines they've been given. Furthermore, have your "writing space" or 'the desk' in an enclosed space, somewhere isolated from activity. This not only prevents distractions but also traps you, forcing you to sit and work out what ever problems or "writer's block" you are suffering with. I've sat at 'the desk' many a time only to draw a creative blank or headache and after minutes (or sometimes hours) of forcing myself to stay in my room and beat it out, do I then hit productive gold, or in laymen's terms a solution, and get back on track.
Another thing to consider is your mentality around "writer's block". Instead of thinking it as your enemy, consider it your ally in making your precious script the best it could be. Indeed, "writer's block" only occurs deep inside our minds to warn us that something isn't right, preventing us physically from continuing on until it's solved. So, stay at 'the desk', analyse/re-read/plan/research, do whatever it takes to diagnose why "writer's block" is occurring, and eventually you will come up with a better approach than the one you had originally. You see, a positive mental attitude, and a sheer hunger/determination to write and finish that script will always give you one up on that amateur who rushes into writing, hits the first bump in the road and quits for good.
3: Be ruthless with what you cut
Most amateur writers will come up with brilliant scenes/sequences/ideas that make their way into the first and second drafts, but their utter distraction/irrelevance from the stories plot/messages is the hidden reason why their final drafts still feel incomplete. We've all come up with those and are reluctant to cut them from our precious screenplay. This shows in many blockbuster films today, in that ideas that have come from producers, directors, writers or studio heads themselves make their way into the final cut despite their utter irrelevance to the actual film. However good this idea or scene is, trust me is it worth sabotaging an excellent overall screenplay by keeping it in?
If a scene isn't either progressing story or character cut it. Yes, some narrative theorists and screenwriting experts will tell you that every scene needs to change the value of a characters life from either positive to negative or visa-versa and if it doesn't cut it. There is some sense in that, however don't let it define your screenplay structure. Many excellent films I've loved and cherished, both from this year and across my lifetime, have scenes that do nothing for the plot progression but are key character studies (or in an action/musical provide key entertainment through quality staging and the exploration of character through their dance/car chase). Look, learning the craft of screenwriting is key and learning from some of the best theorists (see the references at the end of the article) can really elevate and concentrate your writing talents into creating an excellent and unique screenplay. However, your own story instincts can tell you what will work in a story and if you have a scene that provides an important character study or key, high-quality entertainment value then don't cut it just because the theorists have said so. Do what's best for your story.
However, it's important to remain ruthless in what stays and what goes in your screenplay and training yourself on letting your most precious babies go can really improve your ability as a writer. Unlike a novel or play writer, the screenwriter is looking to tell their stories in the most concise way possible, so really interagate the purpose of why the scene is in the screenplay. Remember cutting is just a last resort. Try merging another scene/character beat or arc into the scene to give it greater relevance and purpose to the screenplay. Or try rewriting the scene from a different perspective. Or, how about when you cut in and out? You should always aim to start a scene at the latest possible point and exit it at the earliest possible point.
Here's a scenario. In one version we see our main character park his car, sign in at reception, ascend in a escalator before arriving at his job interview. We sit through the whole interview until it's over and we see him calling his wife telling her how it went as he walks back to the car. This is too long and unless specific plot/characterisation is happening in his walk to and from the interview or your setting up a gag/plot reveal, the audience will be bored and miss the key meaning/developments from the heart of the scene because it's surrounded by all this baggage. Now, here's version two. We cut into the interview towards the end, when it's clear our main character isn't making a good impression due to the behaviour/tone/facial expressions of the interviewers and their own panicked responses. We perhaps see them answering one or two questions before they end the interview by saying they'll be in touch. We then cut to a scene of the main character talking to his wife over dinner later that night by saying it didn't go well. This version is more concise and reliant on visual storytelling (remember film is a visual format) and allows the audience to extract the key meaning of the scene in that our main character is damaging his own chances of success and progressing the plot by preventing him getting a new job. By removing the "padding", we get a more potent and fulfilling scene. We could have cut the scene completely, but by improving it we've managed to craft something that really elevates our screenplay and hits both story progression and characterisation.
So, be ruthless with what stays and what goes in your screenplay. But remember that you know your story best and that cutting is only the last resort in trying to make your screenplays work. Happy writing, screenwriters!
Have a screenwriting question? No problem. We're happy to answer anything so let us know by email what you'd like to know at this address: jackthefilmcritic@gmail.com
Useful books include 'Story' by Robert McKee (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Story-Substance-Structure-Principles-Screenwriting/) and 'The Definitive Guide to Screenwriting' by Syd Field (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Definitive-Guide-Screenwriting-Syd-Field).
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