Lecture 9: How do I Keep My Story Alive?

1. Lecture 9:How do I Keep My Story Alive? Professor Michael Green The Last Emperor (1987) Written by Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci (screenplay) and Henry Pu-yi (book)

2. Previous Lesson The Problem and Main Exposition Opening the Movie Writing Exercise #7 The Last Samurai (2003) Written by John Logan (story and screenplay) and Ed Zwick & Marshall Herskovitz (screenplay)

3. In this Lesson Writing the Middle Suspense Surprise and Reversals Writing Exercise #8 The Last of the Mohicans (1992) Written by James Fennimore Cooper (novel) and Michael Mann and Christopher Crowe (screenplay)

4. Writing the Middle Lesson 9: Part I The Last Detail (1973) Written by Darryl Poniscan (novel) and Robert Towne (screenplay)

5. The Middle • As in a feature, the middle section of short film can present great difficulties. • Once the story is set in motion, juggling the important plot elements – action, conflict, character and theme – so that the story keeps moving and has meaning can be frustrating. • The middle is usually the longest section of the film and the hardest to keep focused. • But the middle is where the battle is won or lost – where momentum is sustained or not.

6. Common Problems • The biggest problem most short film writers have with the middle is understanding how conflict informs and directs the flow of information that makes the plot. • Just when the plot should be tightening, many writers veer off, develop other elements and send the plot careening.

7. Common Problems (Continued) • Often they see this “development” detour as significant for characterization or theme. • But it’s more likely that the development isn’t connected in any meaningful way to the plot or action. • If the threads of the main conflict are ignored, or sidelined for action that has no bearing on the main conflict, the links between the scenes break down and momentum and meaning are lost.

8. Conflict as a Guide Since the middle must build tension to hold the audience, the key is to use conflict as a guide for the plot action. This goes back to basic cause-and-effect plotting in which the protagonist makes a move, draws conflict, and is affected, which leads to new steps and new conflicts. 8

9. Conflict as a Guide (Continued) This doesn’t mean that you have to use the same obstacle over and over to create dramatic opportunity. Even in a short film, this would get repetitive. But the obstacles and conflicts that your protagonist faces must reflect the main conflict on some level to be truly effective. Avoid lot of scenes of your protagonist going places, doing things and talking to people that are not related to the main action. 9

10. Suspense Lesson 9: Part II The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) Written by Nikos Kazantzakis (novel) and Paul Schrader (screenplay)

11. Suspense in Drama • Suspense is a quality of tension in the plot that sustains audience interest and makes viewers both ask and anticipate what comes next in the story. • The audience is always on the side of the protagonist, at least at the beginning. As she struggles to overcome the conflict she will gain the viewer’s interest and often respect. But as the story moves forward, tension and suspense need to be stoked in order to maintain them.

12. Suspense and the Antagonist • A strong antagonist contributes to creating tension and suspense. • Because the antagonist best represents the hero’s problem, the stronger she is, the greater the suspense as to whether the hero will succeed.

13. Bring in the Antagonist Early • A good rule of thumb is to bring the antagonist in at the earliest logical moment. No one wants to sit around waiting for the suspense to begin. We can only wonder what happens once the conflict has been introduced.

14. Jeopardy! • To compound suspense, put the protagonist in jeopardy and keep him there. • Jeopardy for the protagonist can be personal, as in losing love or respect. • Or it can be physical peril such as the possibility of death or the death of someone close to the protagonist.

15. The Dreadful Alternative • To add another layer of suspense to a character in jeopardy, create an obvious negative consequence that awaits the protagonist if she fails. • Some presentation of this negative consequence early on will lace your story with suspense for its entire length. The price of failure must be high. • George Lucas in Love • Powder Keg

16. Unexpected Complications • A sudden surprise, which complicates the situation or creates a new obstacle for the hero, can keep the tension mounting. • Ferris Bueller’s Day Off • Juno • There Will be Blood Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986) Written by John Hughes

17. Techniques for Suspense • Two great techniques for creating suspense are the “ticking clock” and crosscutting. • The “ticking clock” establishes a limited time frame for the protagonist to perform. Time is running out on the protagonist’s chances for success with each passing moment. • Crosscutting cuts between opposing forces in a story, showing the progress of the protagonist and the antagonist in pursuing their goals.

18. Techniques for Suspense (Continued) • As one gets closer, the other is in an inferior position and so forth. When the protagonist is worse off, suspense increases due to our worry that he won’t succeed. • Crosscutting can also involve cutting between the protagonist and an obstacle lying ahead of his path. This creates tension as the audience anticipates how the protagonist will handle the obstacles.

19. Suspense Killers • The enemy of suspense is predictability. If the audience easily sees what is going to happen, and their expectations are met without surprise, they quickly become bored. • The possibility of imminent crises needs to be foreshadowed. But it is the possibility, not the certainty of these crises, which give rise to suspense and anticipation.

20. Suspense Killers (Continued) • We know conflict is going to take place but if we can predict and how and when it is going to happen and who gets hurt, the story loses interest, momentum and value.

21. The Flawed Protagonist • Remember, a protagonist that is so smart and strong that he can solve any problem through might or intellect won’t engender much suspense. • The protagonist needs to be challenged. The greater the odds against the hero succeeding, the more the audience will root for her to prevail.

22. Sticking with your Antagonist • The early loss of the antagonist risks undercutting suspense. To keep suspense alive, the antagonist needs to be viable until the climax of the film. • If the antagonist is removed from contention in the story before the final crisis and climax, momentum will be slowed and suspense lost. • If you do remove an antagonist or obstacle, make sure to create another to take it’s place.

23. Surprise and Reversals The Last Picture Show (1971) Written by Larry McMurtry (novel and screenplay) and Peter Bogdanovich (screenplay) Lesson 9: Part III

24. Surprise • Surprise plays a major part in maintaining suspense. It helps stimulate our curiosity regarding the story, making us ask over and over again: what is going to happen next? • When a plot takes a sudden turn in an unexpected direction it can surprise the audience (as long as it is logical and not completely out of left field).

25. Surprise (Continued) • When a character behaves in a startling way or does something seemingly inexplicable, it can astonish us. • As the film progresses, the audience needs to be frequently surprised by the characters and action. As the end nears, the surprises should intensify. • The final surprise is often the revelation or epiphany that is the whole point of the story.

26. Surprise (Continued) • One way to think about generating surprise is to consider what would be the next predictable move for a character or situation and then write the opposite (staying within the logic of the plot). • This is especially true with emotional surprises. Remember, you can generate a lot of surprise when a character acts according to his buried needs rather than his stated wants.

27. Example Do the Right Thing (1989) Written by Spike Lee

28. Example Chinatown (1974) Written by Robert Towne

29. The Reversal • A reversal is an unexpected event that spins the story in the opposite direction. It causes the situation to completely change – good fortune into bad, bad fortune into good. • More often than not the new situation is not only unanticipated but also unwanted. • A reversal can be major or minor. A major reversal will force the protagonist in an entirely new and unforeseen direction. 29

30. The Reversal (Continued) • A minor reversal might make him reconsider his plan of action in favor of something else. • Most feature films have at least one major reversal, usually near the end of the second act. The major reversal in a feature has dramatic implications for the protagonist. • Pause the lecture, go to Learning Tasks and watch the clip from Say Anything. 30

31. Reversal and Midpoint • In a short film we find most often find a reversal at the midpoint of the film. Here, one of the characters, the antagonist or the protagonist, shifts course, and as a result the film changes direction. • George Lucas in Love • Copy 31

32. Reversal, Set-Up and Climax • Sometimes a major reversal can come at in the set-up or the climax, so that the film takes a dramatic turn just at the moment that we’re sure it’s going one way or the other. • Occurrence at Owl Creek • George Lucas in Love 32

33. Emotion and Reversals • Remember, emotion should underlie everything in your screenplay. This includes reversals, which work best when emotion connects with the action. • Emotion can either fuel and cause a reversal, or can result from a change in the situation. • Emotion adds depth to the reversal and enhances the drama. 33

34. The Pseudo-Solution • Another plot strategy for the middle section might be termed the pseudo-solution. • Here the initial story question is answered or solved but the repercussions are more unanticipated problems. • The pseudo-solution usually takes place at the plot’s midpoint. The second half then shows the effect of solving the problem for the antagonist. This can generate surprise and make a film more life-like.

35. Assignments The Last Kiss (2006) Written by Paul Haggis (adaptation) and Gabriele Muccino (original screenplay) Lesson 9: Part IV

36. E-Board Post #1 Watch the short film from the lesson, The Hire, and analyze the film’s middle section. How is tension sustained? How much of the plot is taken up by the middle? Where do the beginning and end fall? Is there a midpoint? 36

37. E-Board Post #2 Choose any feature film you have seen and briefly analyze a reversal in the plot. Where does the reversal fall in the story and how does it send the story and/or protagonist off in another direction? 37

38. Writing Exercise #8 Now that you have the rough draft of your opening, write the first two scenes of your middle. This may or may not lead up to a reversal at the midpoint, depending on how you construct the story. Pay close attention to how you develop the conflict. Ask yourself as you write, how can I get the audience to stay interested in my film? How can I use suspense and surprise? 38

39. End of Lecture 9 Next Lecture: How do I Fade Out?