What does this video have to say about focusing your story? What are some key points it as to say about why scripts are too complex?
This video advises that your story should tackle one central concept which is communicated to your audience through your characters and themes. Some key points that Tyler Mowery talks about for why scripts become too complex is that a common misconception of good stories is that a good story should tackle a multitude of ideas in a complex way. Because so many people online equate difficulty to understand to quality, it creates a misconception for newer writers who are led to believe that, in order to create a good story, they must cover a ton of concepts at the same depth, which instead just leads to a confusing and unfocused story. Instead, newer writers should instead prioritize practice by focusing on one central idea and finishing their stories so that they could learn from the experiences.
After watching your selected script-to-screen video, how did the screen adaptation transform elements of the original script? What did you notice about the adaptation that you think makes the final film less or more effective?
The screen adaptation maintained most of the elements from the original script, but made the scene much more concise and eliminated some details. Specifically, the adaptation removed some of the extra shots and lines that directed the focus onto other characters and away from Elle. I feel that the choices that they made in this scene made the final film more effective as it condenses the scope of this scene to show Elle's growth specifically, rather than including extraneous information and adding a line which characterized another character to be even more of a bully than she already was at this point in the story. Specifically, the final product cuts a line from Vivian (who was named Sarah in the screenplay) where she mutters "The idiot speaks." which would've characterized her as someone much more negative and mean-spirited than she ultimately was in the film, which may have hurt the audience's perception of her and altered the dynamics between her and Elle when they become friends later on. Otherwise, the details changed made the scene's pacing better, such as eliminating the shot of Emmet walking in and instead including it as a reaction to Elle's answer. A minor detail that they also changed was that Elle's resume was scented rather than engraved, which makes for a more comedic moment as the professor Callahan then sniffs the resume.
Write an in-depth reflection on the input you got from pitching your hero's journey film project. What was some of the constructive feedback that you got? What were some issues with your story and pitch? What are your next steps in the process with it?
Some of the feedback which my group received on the pitch was concerns over how we'd fit the whole story within the allotted time, locations and set dressing, the issue of the mentor and shadow being in one character, and suggestions for locations and solutions. Some issues with our story and pitch was primarily the conflict as we combined the shadow and mentor, which is contradictory as the shadow is supposed to stop the hero from achieving goal whereas the mentor helps the hero achieve goal, and that the ordeal was unclear. Regarding the pitch, our character slides were too info-heavy and contained too much text, making the presentation much longer than it should've been and leading to added confusion. Some options for next steps are either to fix the issues with our story and pitch, or put the idea on the back burner and work on something new. In order to solve the problems with our story, we would need to alter the characters, either by simply reassigning the archetypes and exaggerating certain details (i.e., making the older sister the shadow and further leaning into her protectiveness and controlling personality to hinder the hero and be the primary focus of the conflict), or by creating new characters for each archetype that was previously rolled into one character (herald, shadow, and mentor) and changing the plot to fit around them. Additionally, searching for more locations which can better reveal the setting of the story, such as abandoned-looking buildings, rural-looking trails, roads, and neighborhoods, and/or different interior locations, would greatly improve the story. However, it is likely that we will ultimately produce a new story entirely.
Explain what each of the following parts of a script is and why they are essential: dual dialogue, day or night/dawn or dusk, camera notations, music cues, and notions. Which ones out of the video did you find interesting? Why?
Dual dialogue is a way of formatting in order to convey that two or more characters are speaking at the same time. In screen writing softwares, this can be formatted with an option, and it is shown by having both lines of dialogue next to each other. This is important because, when making natural sounding dialogue, there may be instances where characters talk over each other
Day and night are used to describe the time of the scene; however, if the scene takes place somewhere where it being day or night is irrelevant or not applicable, you can simply exclude it from the slug line. Dawn and dusk are more precise descriptions for the time of day, typically only used if having the scene take place at that specific time is important to the story. Including the time of day is important because it changes when you'll be shooting, the type of equipment you may need to bring (such as an ND filter, diffuser, or lights), and the context of the scene.
Camera notations should only be used when it is an absolutely necessary detail for the shot, such as POV shots. It is important for notation because it may alter the way that the story is depicted drastically if the notation is included, and if too much were included, it would impede on the cinematographer's job.
Music cues should be treated similarly to camera notations and using dusk or dawn; only include it if it's absolutly necessary to be stated for the scene. If the music happening at a specific part is important for the story, then that is when you should include it. To show it, all you have to do is say what plays at the top of the scene.
The ones that I find the most interesting is the dual dialogue as it feels a bit more unconventional and could be a creative choice in a film, if done well.
Explain what each of the following parts of a script is and why they are important:
The slug line appears for every new scene and any time the location or time changes. They state whether the scene is interior or exterior, the location, and the time of day. Slug lines are always all caps and located on the left side of the page, above the scene that they describe. An example of the format could be EXT. PARK - DAY. Slug lines are important because it informs you where you should be shooting and the time of day, which are important for understanding what equipment may be needed such as an ND filter, a diffusor, or lights.
Action lines are the lines under the header which describe, in more detail, what happens in the scene. These only include visual information, i.e., exactly what is occurring on screen and what they character is doing. When it's the first time a character is named, their name is put into all caps so that it is clear that this is their first appearance. This is important because it explains what happens in the scene, which dictates blocking, acting, and camera placement.
Dialogue is placed below the character's name and is written regularly, i.e., not all caps. This is important because it is what the characters in the film are saying. Different factors about dialogue, such as whether it is a voice over or the tone of voice, is dictated by parentheticals.
Parentheticals are used next to character IDs and before dialogue in order to convey info about the delivery of the dialogue. When the character is speaking through a voice over or off screen, it is marked with a (V.O.) or (O.S.) next to the character's name. When providing context to how the character is speaking, it is placed before the dialogue but below the character ID. These are important as they differentiate the way that characters are speaking, thus affecting how the dialogue is said or filmed.
What are the key mistakes short films make in their stories? How can these be fixed?
The key mistakes that some short films make in their stories are no philosophical conflict, no narrative structure, heavy exposition (no story or story only being told, not shown), and using montages poorly. Having no philosophical conflict makes the story feel unmotivated as the philosophical conflict is the foundation of storytelling. To fix this, you must go back to writing and build a viewpoint vs. viewpoint conflict that sets up the base of your story and apply beliefs to your characters. Another mistake made is the lack of a narrative structure, namely a lack of character wants and costs in the story, which are needed to maintain the momentum of the story. Giving your characters wants is crucial and making that want have a large cost to the character creates a compelling story. One of the biggest mistakes which are made that manifest in a variety of ways is the use of heavy, often excessive and unnecessary, exposition, which creates a less engaging and boring story. This could be in the form of the story being 90% exposition, meaning that there really is no actual story, and to fix this you should use a story structure to help the story be engaging. Another way that it occurs is when the story happens off screen and the characters simply say what happened. To solve this issue, you should follow the rule of "show, don't tell" so that the audience is actually engaged by the story and not just listening to characters talk. And one more method that leads to the overuse of exposition is the use of montages. Often times, montages are only used to quickly dump a ton of exposition or show unnecessary information which bogs the story down. When starting off, avoid using montages and instead focus on writing a good story within the time frame.
What are the key points to keep in mind when writing a short film? What is philosophical conflict? What is attaching beliefs and action structure?
The key points to keep in mind when writing a short film are the different types of conflict and how they connect with each other and the characters, the story's structure, and the characters. Philosophical conflict is the different philosophical, moral, and ethical beliefs which are in conflict within the story and is the backbone of storytelling. In order to build this into your story, you should create a viewpoint vs. viewpoint conflict where there are two opposing sides in response to a question of morality. After creating the philosophical conflict, you must then attach different beliefs to your characters Attaching beliefs is giving your characters beliefs and values which will influence the actions which they take and put them in conflict with one another. Action and structure are what takes place in the story and the structure which the story follows (whether it be strictly or loosely). The video recommends using Dan Harmon's Story Circle as a good structure to follow when writing the story as it is very versatile and scalable.
