WEEK 8 NOTES

DIALOGUE

DEFINITION: A conversation between two or more people

Functions of Dialogue:

v Effective dialogue moves the story forward

v Dialogue communicates facts and information to the audience

-   It conveys essential exposition.

-   Characters will talk about what happened, establishing the storyline

-E.g. “He should have known better. She’s nice but not blind. Sooner or  later, she’s going to dig out those roving eyes of his.” (meaning: the guy has been eyeing other girls and his girlfriend is wary of that fact and sooner or later she will not be so forgiving as before)

v Dialogue reveals character

- A character will talk about himself and other people will talk about him.

v Dialogue establishes relationships between characters (based on how formal or informal they are when they talk to each other and level of comfort) E.g. best friends: (girls) tend to complete each other’s sentence

- Once your main character’s POV is established, use his dialogue with other characters to show their differing attitudes on the same subject matter

- This dialogue exchange create varied and alternative POVs

- Differing POVs in turn, sustain the element of CONFLICT between characters

v Dialogue comments on the action on screen.

v Dialogue is used to tie various elements in the script e.g. characters, action, intention, etc.

IT IS ONE OF THE DEVICES THAT YOU AS A WRITER CAN USE TO EXPAND AND ENLARGE YOUR CHARACTERS.

Dialogue Writing Tips:

• Dialogue should be used sparingly. (don’t say it if you can do/show it)
• Never tell the audience what they can see for themselves!!

“If you can see it or hear it, don’t write it.”

- Neville Smith (British screenwriter)

MOST IMPORTANT:

<< DIALOGUE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR ACTION >>

*conflict can be displayed by contrasting actions between different characters*

WRITIING TIP

1. Eavesdropping

Pay attention to the expressions that people use in daily conversations. It’s helpful to get a sense of ‘authentic’ dialogue. (venues: public transport, toilets, lifts)

2. Genuinely Fake

In writing dialogue, remove words (that may seem realistic) that don’t contribute to the plot in some way

*record a 3 min conversation between someone to give an idea to show the authencity of a dialogue*

3. Reveal information sparingly

Don’t tell the audience everything up front. Trust them to remember details from the earlier points in the story. (Learn to stretch the suspense so that audience will be engaged)

4. Punctuated Dialogue with Action

For ease of comprehension, long periods of dialogue should be broken with action and vice versa.

5. Avoid stereostypes, profanity and slang

- cliché stereotyping (widely fixed but oversimplified view)

(e.g. Caucasians poking fun of Asians, etc.)

- profanities (vulgarities/obscene language)

- slang (informal phrases/words e.g blur like sotong)

THESE ELEMENTS MAY DISTRACT OR ALIENATE YOUR VIEWERS.

6. Read (scripts) widely

Think about at which point you taken out of the story’s action? Or when did you stop believing in a character? Does the character seem larger than life and how did dialogue help accomplish that?

7. Punctuate Dialogue Correctly

Take time to learn the basics. Viewers/readers should feel the impact of your words – not feel lost trying to follow your dialogue.

IMPORTANCE OF PUNCTUATION

• a woman without her man is nothing

e.g. A woman, without her man, is NOTHING. (wrote by males)

e.g.2. A woman: without her, man is nothing. (wrote by females)

 

ELEMENTS OF DIALOGUE

 

Good dialogue is the illusion of reality.

You’ve got to know how to edit what people say without losing any of the spirit.

 

Common Mistake: Students tend to create radio shows with images.

 

<<Film is a visual medium>>

A screenplay is a story told in pictures.

ASSIGNMENT SCENARIO:

A lady returns home late from work and finds that her husband who is supposed to look after their kids has not done what she expected.

They are still watching TV, their homework undone, the messy leftovers have been left on the dining table, dishes are unwashed and their pet dog has soiled the carpet.

-                Use the scenario given and script the dialogue between the couple

-              You can imagine 2 real life couple e.g. your parents, sister/bro-in-law etc.  to assist in writing the lines

-                Get two people(different gender) to verbally read the dialogue.

-                Record the reading

-                Post it to your blog (using YouTube, Multiply, etc.)

 

AND. REFLECTIONS.

ASSIGNMENTS

POST ALL NOTES WK 1-8 NOTES ON BLOG

DIALOGUE EXERCISE (INCLUDE YOUTUBE LINK ETC. ON BLOG)

 

WEEK 7 NOTES

Review: True & False Stories

 

Purpose of the exercise:

- A true story is not necessarily a good story

- Good stories have to be worked and re-worked.

- True life stories do not offer neat and relevant endings.

 

- Life is unpredictable.

- In a story, we can and must control the events and sequences so that it gives the appearance of being like life.

 

 

CHARACTERISATION: DEFINING THE CHARACTER

 

*WHEN writing character(s), must include human-like traits so that can connect to the audience.*

 

~ THE CHARACTER IS… THE HEART, THE SOUL, NERVOUS SYSTEM.

*Heart – emotional aspect. *Soul – essence of the character, is sensed not seen.

*nervous system – react automatically

~ It is through your characters that the viewers experience emotions.

 

<Without a character, there is no action>

<Without action, you have no conflict>

<Without conflict, you have no story>

<Without story, you have no screenplay>

 

*empty room = introduce person, germs into it. Slowly the person is infected by the germs and mutates. The conflict arises when he attempts to go out of the room.*

 

Developing CHARACTERS

ASK YOURSELF:

- Who is your character?

- What does he want? (something that character hopes to achieve at the end)

- What is his quest? (journey in attaining the ‘want’)

- What drives him to the resolution of the story? (motivation in moving forward)

 

ESTABLISH YOUR MAIN CHARACTER

Characters should have a 3 Dimensional Structure:

- Physiology (physical features- how he/she look, dressing)

- Sociology (social status, people you mix around with, what he does)

- Psychology (thoughts and beliefs of a person translates to certain behaviours)

 

Physiology

Defined as the physical appearance of a person

~ Sex, age, height, weight,

~ Colour of hair, eyes, skin

~ Posture

~ Appearance

~ defects, abnormalities, deformities, birth marks, diseases

~ Heredity

 

(*whenever people have defects or differences of others, people attain some qualities to make up for it*)

 

Sociology

Defined as the social status of the person

~ Class (lower, middle, upper)

[behavior is different]

~ Occupation: type/hours of work, income, condition of work, attitude towards

organization, suitability of work

- attitude contributes to how they behave

~ Education: amount, kind of schools, marks, favourite subjects, poorest subjects, aptitudes

(society acceptance also plays a part)

~ Home life: parents living, earning power, orphan, parents separated/divorced, parents’ habits, parents’ mental development, parents’ vices, neglect, character’s marital status

- affects the character’s behavior(society’s expectation)

~ Religion

~ Race, Nationality

~ Place in the Community; leader among friends, clubs, sports

~ Amusements: Hobbies, books, newspapers, magazines he/she reads

 

Psychology

Defined as a person’s perception, thoughts and beliefs.

 

~ Sex Life, Moral Standards

~ Personal Premise, Ambitions

~ Frustations, Chief Disappointments

~ Temperament: choleric, easy-going, pessimistic, optimistic

~ Attitude Towards Life: resigned, militant, defeatist

~ Complexes: obsessions, inhibitions, superstitions, phobias

~ Personality: extrovert, introvert

~ Abilities: language, talents

~ Qualities: Imagination, judgement, taste, poise

~ I.Q.

~ What is the deep and personal secret this character has which he is desperate to protect/hide?

 

Separate the components of his life into 2 basic categories

 

A) Interior

This takes place from birth until the moment your story begins (don’t see it, gathered/deduced based on what we see in the exterior)

*cheesy way of obtaining this: flashback*

B) Exterior

This takes place the moment your story begin till its conclusion

(see-able)

 

INTERIOR

It is a process that forms character

(when you start formulating your character from birth, you see your character build in body and form)

 

-How old is he when the story begins?

-Where does he live?

- Does he have any siblings?

- What kind of childhood did he have?

- What was his relationship to his parents?

- What kind of child he was?

- Is he married, single, widowed, separated or divorced?

 

EXTERIOR

It is a process that reveals character

 

-Who are they and what do they do?

- Are they sad or happy with their life?

- Do they wish their life was different? Another job, another wife?

 

Interaction between characters

Your characters’ personalities and traits are revealed through their interaction with other characters in the story world

Audiences must see your characters in relationships with other people or things

 

All dramatic characters interact in 3 ways:

1. They EXPERIENCE CONFLICT in achieving their dramatic need.

(e.g. Need money -  rob a bank, a store, a person?)

2. They INTERACT with other CHARACTERS

(Either in an antagonistic, friendly or indifferent way)

3. They INTERACT with THEMSELVES

(e.g. He overcame his fear of being caught by pulling off the robbery successfully)

 

HOW DO YOU INVENT CHARACTER?

Try turning your characters upside down…

 

E.g. A monk who is devoted to his religion……but is a football fanatic.

E.g. A serial killer……whose obsession is to kill other serial killers. (Dexter)

E.g. A common street rat……who loves to eat and cook only fine food. (Ratatouille)

 

ASSIGNMENT:

Letter to the past

- Select a person that means something to you in your past, but whom you no longer speak to now OR are unable to do so.

- Write a letter which expresses all the things you wish you could say to the person but can’t

- Communicate the memories of important moments you had together in the past, and how your time spent together has made you a different person now than you were before

- Password protect your page!

 

WEEK 6 NOTES

Title: Shawshank Redemption

 

- Why would we classify Andy as a tragic hero?

Ans: He was trapped in his current predicament because he was convicted guilty despite being innocent.

*some may think that he could be innocent, or guilty and killed his wife out of rage and jealousy

*when he was convicted, he lost almost everything – his career, freedom, reputation, family(wife), dignity/self-respect

- What was his flaw and how did it cause his fall from grace?

Ans:

He refused to be emotionally connected to someone. He felt he was responsible that by being cold to her, he wouldn’t drive her into another man. FLAW: miscommunication.

-

- What lessons did he learn from his mistakes?

Ans:

He realized that he needed to interact with the rest. If he didn’t, he would not have met and become friends with Red. He was less emotionally detached with others.

- How did he change and how did he change others?

Ans: He changed his mindset and looked forward to having a brighter tomorrow. He began to hope for change and did his best in trying to allow that change to happen.

 

<In WEEK 7>

- A movie with dual protagonist (two equally important people in the movie – one must exist with the other)

- What does Red’s narration have impact: necessary to support your sympathy for Andy

- Other characters also contributed to making the movie seem even better

 

WEEK 5 NOTES

EXPERIENCE

 

- A storyteller should be ale to identify the potential of every experience

E.g. journey of how one overcomes the ability to draw well through the help of someone (inspiring feature) , heartaches/heartbreaks

- Everything about you is unique – where you were born, what type of food you prefer, the birthmark, bump on your forehead, etc… (dramatize little incidents in your lives)

- The events in your life may be similar to others BUT your reaction to these eperiences are personal to you and irreplaceable (that’s the unique part and differs from others)

- Many of your experiences are universal and translatable and can be used in any location

E.g. New Year’s Day, weddings, funerals (changing only location, people and culture)

- Some experiences that would be common & relatable regardless of the culture/country:

~ 1^st day of school

~ first crush

~ moving house

~ school camps

- Why is the audience able to relate to your stories?

(able to connect with them because they can understand/go through similar experiences…)

- The writer must connect to his reader/audience through the most vital aspect of being human -  EMOTIONS!

 

- People connect with the emotions that are evoked in stories, (not the actors, not the location, not the camera angles/shot sizes, etc.)

 

TAP ON YOUR OWN PERSONAL BACKGROUND!

Things that happen to you as you grow up and the things that are currently happening to you make terrific story sources

 

Writing Tips

- If you are unsure how to proceed with your character development or don’t know what to do with him/her, imagine you ARE him/her

- ASK: How would you cope with the situation you’ve put your story character in?

What is his state of mind when he copes with the events in the story world? Is he afraid, angry, contented, etc.

 

- All people have fragments of stories (pieces/ short events)

- These potential ideas prompt your desire to know more

- Respond emotionally and intellectually to what you hear

- GOOD stories are born in the heart, not the head (impactful)

- What appeals to you is likely to appeal to someone out there

 

 

MEMORY

 

- Your memory is a delightful cabinet of past incidents which you have experienced or been told

*problem with memories: fade away as time passes and gets foggy with time

- These memories serve as points of references to your own past

*markers in your lives, some vivid while others not so (depends on impact)

- What types of past incidents tend to be embedded in one’s memories?

(Something touching/happy/funny/depressing/saddening)

 

Tip: Writing from MEMORY

- Be brave and write what you do not know as well

- How can writers write on topics they are unfamiliar with

- Through research

- Through interviews

- You will realize or discover some parts of you that doesn’t know (always room for personal discovery)

 

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MEMORY & EXPERIENCE

MEMORY: It can be ‘manufactured’, depending on our state of mind and emotions during that period of time (fabricated depending on how you interpret something)

EXPERIENCE: It is deemed as ‘more authentic’ and real (gone through it personally)

 

HOW do we use memory to build creative content?

They can be used as a spark to initiate new story ideas

 

WEEK 6 ASSIGNMENT

Write 2 short stories based on 2 different personal experience

-                One must be completely TRUE

-                One must be completely FALSE

-                Post these as a page ‘True/False’ by the next regular class (not Fri’s)

-                Write in past tense & in 1^st person

-                Go to 3 people’s blogs (names under your own on Ms Phuah’s blog)

 

REMINDER:

Date: Fri, 27May

Venue: Preview Theatre

Time: 10.30am-1pm

 

 

WEEK 4 NOTES

People watch – Follow-up EX

-                From directory, pick name & address for your character

-                Update ‘People Watch’ page with this new information

-                Select 1 character from the person above & below on Ms Phuah’s bloglist

-                Write a story about how these two people interact and how a conflict arises (20mins)

 

PRINCIPLES OF TRADEGY

 

WHAT IS TRAGEDY?

 

EG. Loss of: loved ones, valuables, innocence, familiarity, identity

~ Tragedy is NOT that something bad happens or that a character dies and the story ends

~ Tragedy means something bad happens as a result of a flaw in your character

E.g. his obsession with wealth & power leads him to neglect his family and they leave him

#How does this force your character to learn something about herself or himself?#

* Make sure how the flaw would make things worse

Eg. Too trusting- become subject of betrayal

Eg2. Honesty- similar to being too trusting

 

ASSIGNMENT: VISUAL TRIGGER

Find an image and ask questions about it.

Example: why does the character look sad? What is the context of the image?

Tell a story that comes to your mind as you look at it

DO NOT take new pictures for this exercise – use only pictures you can find

Tip: How does the character flaw cause him/her to lose everything that is dear to him

Incorporate principles of tragedy into the writing!

 

NEXT WEEK LESSON

DATE: FRI 27 MAY

TIME: 1030- 1PM

VENUE: PREVIEW THEATRE

 

 

WEEK 3 NOTES

-Restraints/constraints are useful: getting writers to be consice and straight to the point, having a structure

- As professional writers, they face constraints such as complete by deadline (delay production…), target audience, ability to execute written work(something do-able), budget, cast

*production budget for TV program: (writer: $800)

 

BE AWARE (level of observation)

-Why do we rarely observe others: DISTRACTIONS

DISTRACTIONS: good looking people, music, self-thoughts, gaming, phones

-Most people pass through the day with 20%-30% awareness level

 

STORYTELLING TOOL 1: OBSERVATION

Adopt a KEEN EYE

Develop a natural SENSE OF CURIOSITY (NOT KAPO)

*important as a writer: ask yourself questions about what happened, then make you views things in a different point of view

An observed event, subjected to simple questions, can set up a series of possible events that will develop into a story worth telling

-FACTOR AFFECTING JUDGEMENT IN DIFFERENT SCENARIOS: age

 

QUESTIONS derived from an observed scenarios:

A couple having a meal yet not talking… What questions come to mind?

Relationship?

Why are they not talking?

Feelings towards each other? What actions prove your conclusion?

Social class based on attire, manners, speech, etc.…? (first impressions)

 

-Observe consciously

-Be aware of what is NOT said but implied (How: actions, tone, eye contact, gestures)

-A thought can manifest itself through behavior

- Train yourself to see and record people’s:

MOVEMENTS

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS/APPEARANCE

BEHAVIOUR

-Does the SETTING/PLACE affect the overall manner of the person? How? Why?

Reasons for behavior: give good impression, BETTER during events – school, formal events (weddings, interviews, funerals), posh restaurants (music, lighting, noise levels) WORSER playgrounds, clubs

 

CREATING CHARACTER

Whom am I writing about?

Who is my character? Is he/she featured in most scenes?

What is he like?

What does he do? Occupation, etc. (different jobs require different behavior)

 

MINDLESS OBSERVATION VS. TRUE OBSERVATION

ABCs observational chart:

A- Attire, Attitute

B- Behaviour

C- Characteristics

D- Dialogue (might vary depending on the r/ship with an opposite party)

E- Expressions

F- Facial features

G- Gestures, gait

H- Height (height assume type of sports, tall people command more attention/respect while short people not taken seriously/pity)

I- Idiosyncrasies (peculiar/special characteristic/mannerism or behavior)

 

ASSIGNMENT:

1. Walk into a venue and watch people pass by.

2. Eventually, one will catch your attention

3. Write down as many details as possible through observation

4. Repeat steps 1-3 for a second character

5. Transcribe all these details into the “PEOPLE WATCH” page that you will create on your blog

*Venue must be relatively crowded*

*Person chosen can be anyone but someone you can see and for roughly 15mins*

*If person laughs, gestures, in conversation, even better! Got more things to say*

*WRITE LIKE BIODATA*

E.G.

Name:

Physical looks:

Behaviour:

Speech:

 

CRITERA

2 different:

-Genders

-Age groups

-Settings

-A photo* of person will earn bonus marks

 

ARISTOTLE

- A HOUR TO COMPLETE RESEARCH

- refrain from presenting just facts or theories

(support your answers with interesting anecdotes or tales about Aristotle)

-Present in class next week

 

 

WEEK 2 NOTES

Conflict

Definition: Opposition of persons or forces

Can result internally or externally

Is a interaction of opposing ideas, interests or wills that creates the plot

Dramatic conflict- main lead struggles against something or someone (TYPES: Man/System/Self/Environment)

 

Causes & Effects of Conflict

CAUSE: CHANGE – out of your comfort zone

May be minor(e.g. lifestyle changes-wardrobes, haircut) superficial

or major (pregnancy, gender, death of loved ones-people and pets alike, divorce-dependent on age to see the depth of effect) drastic

While change is universal and common, change is not always accepted

Examples: Seasons, lives, relationships, feelings, bodies, locations(*Orchard), technologies(fast-paced, expensive)

 

CAUSE: resistant to change

Intensity depends on reactions of people

Must learn to cope with change if want to survive (change to your surroundings e.g. hibernation)

Action in drama depends on conflict

 

Importance of Conflict

~ Plot cannot be constructed without conflict

Central feature of Screenplay (main foucs)

As characters attempt to reach their goals, they come into conflict with each other.

END: Protagonist and antagonist approach their goals and the conflict rises to generate maximum suspense & excitement (must have a FINAL SHOWDOWN)

 

Film Review: The Call Home

Conflicts: Revealing truth to his wife, to continue staying to work, environmental issue(lodging), succumbing to external temptations

~ In the end, he tells the truth to his wife because the demands from his family is too much to bear.

Suggestions: Pacing- quicken the speed, delete unnecessary scenes/ Evoke emotions- show facial expressions *draw more emotions*

 

Film Review: The Secret Garden

Conflicts: Forced to do something she hated (piano)

~ Piano is associated with classy

 

Writing for an Audience

The cinematic experience is not just your story on paper, but the audiences’ emotional reaction to it

Must feel something from the story, if not FAILED

Screenwriter= Storyteller

IN THE END: It is how the story connects to other people.

Writer’s purpose:

- Writes to connect readers to: themselves, his unique vision, highlight the issue pertaining to the story,  drama of the plot, other characters facing the same issue

 

WHERE DO YOU LOOK FOR A STORY?

~ Within yourself e.g. experiences, memories, emotions

 

ASSIGNMENTS: 5 Stories of exactly 50 words each, posted to your blog

Submit by next lesson

 

WEEK 1 NOTES

Storytelling occurs in everyday life and happens all the while (life skill)

 

<Introduction>

 

‘Storytelling’ and its purpose in FMS

Every concept eventually leads to a story

A story is defined as a ‘sequence of events’ (every individual event links up to a big story)

 

 

<Format>

 

Written assignments must be:

 

~ in present tense (movie scripts are usually in present tense- events haven’t happen)

 

~ in 3^rd person (give characters names)

 

~ visual (NOT EQUALS TO MANY ADJECTIVES- must be concise and precise)

 

 

<3^rd Person/ Present tense>

 

~ the style of the writing would appear as if a character is “narrating” the story as it is happening

(storytellers must be able to predict the future of the story)

 

~ we use this style, why?

leave room for readers’ imagination

leave us wanting more but give us enough to visualize

 

~ Commonly used in:

 

Screenplays

story/film unfolds as we read it, not too much dialogue

fosters a more urgent and immediate feel to the story (feel with the characters onscreen)

often in thriller & suspense genres

<Passive vs. Active writing>

 

Passive:

uses weak verbs

tells what the character is thinking (scripts CANNOT TELL FEELINGS, MUST BE EVOKED THROUGH THE WORDS)

increases distance between reader & characters in the story

delayed or non immersion into story world

 

Active:

uses strong action verbs

shows what the character is doing (*keyword: ACTION)

reduces distance between readers & characters in the story

immediate immersion into story world (write so that you can be fully feel and experience just like the character)

 

Passive: The canteen was crowded during the students’ lunch

Active: Famished students storm into the canteen to fill their rumbling stomachs during lunch

Indication of action: storm, rumbling

 

Passive: Mark was angry with Jane. (no indication of the degree of the angle, just general)

Active: Mark storms across the room to pour himself a drink. He slams the bottle down and gulps his drink. When Jane steps into the room, Mark turns around and smashes his empty glass at her feet. (here, the degree of the anger is shown here as he smashes the glass at the other party)

 

 

<Tips for writing>

 

Stop procrastinating (snowballs the stress)

Think of a title ( *important: it is the first thing that strikes you first, draws audiences)

Add a short description of your story (don’t need to be long)

Review who should be the ‘star’ in your story (*most important person in the story, need to craft him or her out into a story)

Task him/her with something to attain by the end of the story (this generates interest for the reader to read on)

Simmer your story idea (observe real life people of the profession/character of your story)

Try to stop your ‘star’ from getting what he wants (need obstacles for him to overcome

Observe what would this make him/her do then (think about what his character is like then how does he go about doing it)

Trust that he/she would eventually attain his/her goal or die trying to do so!

 

<Go easy on yourself>

 

Don’t bother looking for INSPIRATION, she will look for you when she’s ready to meet you (when busy, too much things on your mind, nothing comes to you)

She is shy and usually prefers to meet when you’re alone in a relaxed setting

A writer’s block is best handled with a break, fast! (not that everything you wrote is bad…)

Always solve the problem in your story before you turn in (you tend to experience and feel things differently and thus different emotions)

ALL first drafts are bad! That’s why 2^nd drafts was invented; and the 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and so on

 

<Openers>

 

Whose story I am telling? What is the next point of action? What is the point of this story? How can I engage the attention of the audience? (regarding development)

 

*instant results is NOT ADVISABLE in storywriting

 

Eg1: Jeremiah walks towards the closed door

Eg2: Juliet frantically scans her surroundings, hoping to…

Eg3: David rushes to the room and discovers…

Eg4: Cindy inhales a deep breath before she…

 

Stories work when:

 

It is credible

Readers can relate if they have had similar experiences (core issues pertaining in the story) you and others can relate

Readers are willing to suspend their disbelief to allow you to create artificial narrative events for their appreciation and enjoyment of your tall tale

*adjectives used here is useful so that it intensify the situations

*the opener must be very general, opens to many different situation

*should be varied

 

Welcome Note

Hi hi!