I know that creating characters is not as easy as it sounds. 

If you are stuck on character creation and don’t know how to continue, or even if you have an idea in mind but you don’t know where to start, this article is for you.

I will give you 4 easy steps you can follow to guide your thinking process and create engaging characters!

What is an engaging character?

Whether you think of characters like “The Dude” from The Big Lebowski or Hannibal Lector in The Silence of The Lambs, there’s one thing all great characters have in common…

They captivate us. 

Whether that is because of their carefree, happy-go-lucky attitude or their cold, sadistic inner world it doesn’t matter. 

Even though you may not have much in common with your average super villain, I’m sure at one point or another you found yourself thinking… 

“You know, I kinda get where they’re coming from.”

You don’t agree with how they do it but on a base level you understand how they came to their conclusion. 

So how do we create characters that demand attention? Here are four quick ways to help develop and create engaging characters.

Step 1 – Name Your Character 

Darth Vader. Ellen Ripley. Donnie Darko. Snake Plissken. 

You want a simple, cool name that isn’t over-the-top but packs a punch. 

There’s lots of different factors to take into account, where your character lives, what they do for a living, their familial background… 

Nobody hires an accountant named Ace Ventura — but a rodeo clown named John Thompson would raise a few eyebrows too.

If you can’t think of anything good, steal something better. 

Here’s a list of five places I’ve found character names in the past. (Don’t judge me.) 

1. Facebook
2. Phone Books
3. Obituaries (Morbid, I know…)
4. Family Ancestry
5. College Graduation Programs 

Just mix and match until you find something you like. 

You can also look up name meanings that match the theme of your story.

Maybe it’s a comedy about a woman winning the lottery. 

The name Felicity means “luck or good fortune”, might be a cool easter egg for people paying attention. 

Step 2 – Find Your Character’s Voice

Nobody wants to watch a film where everybody sounds the same. 

A good test to determine whether there is enough diversity in your dialogue is to remove the character names from above the dialogue in a conversation. 

You want to be able to know who is speaking without being told. 

Here’s a quick example from Breaking Bad: 

“Three entire bags of Funyuns?”

“What? Funyuns are awesome.” 

“God.” 

“Hey, more for me.”

“How about something with some protein maybe? Something green huh?”

“Man, I’m not getting no service.”

“How are you even alive?”

This is a very basic scene but you can still pretty much tell which character is which because of the unique way they speak. 

A great book to check out on this subject is: 

How To Write Dazzling Dialogue: The Fastest Way to Improve Any Manuscript

Another thing to keep in mind is that characters should always have a goal and intention in each and every scene. 

No matter how small of a goal it is, dialogue should be driving action and moving the story forward. 

But people don’t always say what they mean so remember not to be too forthright and make use of body language and expression. 

Don’t forget you’re writing these words for an actor, who acts for a living. 

This means most of the time, you don’t need as many words as you think to convey the correct emotion. 

Sometimes silence is the best dialogue. 

Step 3 – Dress Your Character 

Some people dress to express themselves and convey an image — others dress purely for comfort or utility. 

However, an outfit always says something about the person who’s wearing it. 

So when you’re planning your characters think through their wardrobes, where they shop, and what their attitude is towards style. 

Say you see a person who’s wearing a Tom Ford suit, has a bluetooth glued to their ear, and pulls out a gucci wallet. 

You’re probably going to assume different things about them — as opposed to someone wearing neon crocs, cargo pants, and a tie-dye shirt. 

Wardrobe can also contribute to the theme of a film. 

Say a character feels invisible, what better way than to see them walking in a crowd of people all wearing similar outfits? 

Maybe they’re an odd duck, so you make sure their style is in contrast to everyone surrounding them in their scenes.

Even if your character’s wardrobe is generic doesn’t mean that you’re not making a statement. 

So go ahead and think it through before you tell your actors to wear whatever. 

Step 4 – Build Out Their Environment

(This is the last one. You can do it!) 

Lastly, I am going to talk about your character’s environment.

Specifically the ones that they have created themselves. 

Try to picture exactly what your character’s world looks like through their eyes. 
What kind of vehicle do they drive?

Do they hang a specific type of art on their walls?

Maybe there is a favorite meal they like to cook for themselves.

Is their house squeaky clean or disorganized? 

Do they have any keepsakes they keep with them at all times? 

All of these things can have a major influence on your character building.

These can also be reversed to find ways to apply pressure to your character.

They might be a control freak and anytime something is out of order it causes them to panic. 

Or they don’t really have anywhere that feels like home so you surround them with foreign environments where they’re unrelaxed.  

Every single aspect of your story and it’s environment can reflect aspects of your characters.

So before you create another John or Jane Doe remember…

You can do better. 

About the guest writer

The post Create engaging Characters Using These 4 Steps appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

In this post we will present 8 scriptwriting and directing techniques that are used to make the audience like immoral protagonist.

These 8 techniques are inspired by a psychology theory called Moral Disengagement.

So, we will be driving a new film theory from a psychology theory!

We will be explaining the anti-hero, the moral disengagement theory, and finally our new film theory.

If you wish to skip the psychology and jump right to our 8 directing and screenplay techniques to make the audience root for the bad guys… just click here.

What is an anti-hero?

An antihero is when the main character is actually the bad and immoral guy.

In other words, an anti-hero is when the protagonist has the traits of the antagonist in the story.

An antihero is a central character in a story, movie, or television show that lacks conventional heroic attributes you’d find in a traditional hero.

Jason Hellerman, What is an Anti Hero

Why Do People Root for the Bad Guys?

We are not talking here about the obvious reasons… Because they are the main character because the audience identifies with them, or because they actually have good in them…

First, the protagonist should be relatable. The viewers need to identify with the characters to be able to like them in the first place.

Let’s dive deeper into why the audience root for Dexter and Walter White.

Why they wanted Frank Underwood to reach his goal in becoming the president in House of Cards.

Why we want the members of a mafia to win over other members of the mafia? Talking here about The God Father, Peaky Blinders, Sons of Anarchy…

Theoretically, the audience should not root for criminals, thieves, and mafia members. And the viewers should not fall in love with drug deals, manipulators, and serial killers.

The answer to why we actually root for the bad guys is that we don’t regard them as bad.

The audiences don’t register the criminal acts of the protagonist as immoral or entirely wrong.

So there must be some filmmaking techniques that seem to work in disguising the immoral acts of the protagonist.

Let’s see what psychological mechanisms make us disregard an immoral act.

later, we can use these psychological mechanisms in our screenplay, and even convert them to directing techniques.

Maybe a little vague? bare with us.. we will get there eventually.

Psychology Theory: Moral Disengagement

Moral disengagement is a self mechanism that lets people do immoral actions without feeling the guilt.

There are 8 psychological devices that a person can use to look at an immoral act in a different way.

Through these devices, people can mute their moral censorship. Or, morally disengage.

Briefly, the 8 tools are:

1- Labeling: That is when we give a different and positive name to the action.

We are not lying, we are telling a white lie.

2- Justification: We think that our action serves a bigger moral purpose.

We lie to spare the feelings of others.

3-Diffusion of Responsibility: When many people are responsible for a “bad” action it becomes more acceptable.

Come on.. everybody lies.

4- Distortion of Consequences: When we don’t see the result of the immoral action. Or the outcome of the action is minimized.

My lie did not hurt anyone.

5- Replacing Responsibility: When we blame other people for pushing us to do the action.

My friend made me lie to her.

6- Blaming the Victim: When we see ourselves as victims and that the actual victim forced us to do the action.

7- Favorable Comparison: We look at our immoral act as fair when we compare it to worse action.

He has been cheating on her with her best friend. It’s Okay to lie on him this time.

8- Dehumanization: We don’t see the victim as human.

Filmmaking Techniques: Make the Audience Root for the Immoral Protagonist

We have an idea about these 8 moral disengagement devices.

Now, let’s see how we can use them as directing techniques and scriptwriting tools that filmmakers can use to manipulate the audience into rooting for the bad guys in movies and TV.

1- Labeling

Lead the audience to label these actions in a more positive way.

Or simply let the characters refer to the immoral actions in a different way.

Our first trick to make your viewers/readers accept the bad actions that the protagonist does is a screenplay technique that you can use in dialogues.

For example:

 Dexter is not killing, he is restoring justice.

Walter White is not selling meth, he is making money to provide for his family.

Thomas Shelby is not stealing weapons from the government, he is protecting his family.

2- Justification

Direct the viewers attention to an advantage for the immoral act.

For example:

Let’s say that the main character killed another character (X). The expected reaction from the audience would be dis-like the protagonist.

But, to avoid this reaction and maybe reverse it, you can emphasize the advantages of killing X.

So, let’s make this character X a rapist. He is about to rape a girl. Then, after X is killed, show that the girl is now safe.

1. Highlight that the girl is saved.
2. Show less of the negative effects of the killing. Such as the mourning of the family.

3- Diffusion of Responsibility

Another way to make the audience accept immoral acts done by the protagonist is to involve a group of characters in the action.

This way your main character will not be the only one to take the blame.

We say that the responsibility is diffused.

For example: Let’s say the main character is involved in a bank robbery.

To make the act seem less immoral, the robbery can be done by a group of characters including the main.

In this example, a character could threaten the workers with a gun, and another one takes the money. A character makes sure that no one is looking and another waites in the car.

This way, the main character’s action will be more acceptable because he did a small action that lead eventually to the bigger immoral act.

4- Distortion of Consequences

The audience could be lenient towards an immoral act if the negative consequences were misrepresented.

For example:

If the character is selling drugs to another character, don’t directly jump to a dark scene where the buyer is using or struggling from from a drug related problem.

You can choose to show the buyer high in a comedic scene. That is highlighting the positive outcome.

Or

You can show your protagonist/antagonist making use of the money he made. Going on a nice date, paying a debt… That is under representing or even neglecting the actual consequences of the action.

By that, you will be making the audience concentrate on the positive effects, and disregard the immoral act. Thus they will still be liking the immoral character and rooting for him.

5- Replacing Responsibility

Show that another character or organization is responsible for the bad action.  

Your character has to commit an immoral act. And you want the audience to still like him and root for him.

Then, lead the viewers to displace the responsibility on the authorities rather than the character who committed the act.

Example:

The protagonist killed another character in the movie or TV series.

Then, you can make the main character a member of a gang, and the gang leader ordered the killing.

But wait… This would not be enough to totally replace the responsibility.

It will help to have a scene where you show that the protagonist disapproves the killing. And that he is obliged to do it.

So imagine that the gang leader threatens to hurt the protagonists’ love interest if he did not follow the killing order.

At this point, the options of the character are very narrow and the killing order must be obeyed.

Finally, and to seal the deal, let the character show some hesitation and internal struggle while committing the act.

6- Blaming the Victim

This technique is to turn the “bad guy” into the victim.

It is actually used almost all the time in movies and TV series. The easiest example is any scenario of revenge.

If a character X inflected severe hurt on your protagonist, the audience will not only accept it when the main character acts immorally towards character X, they will actually be cheering for it.

7- Favorable Comparison

When the antagonist does an immoral act, have a different character do another bad action that results in much worse circumstances.

This way, your viewers will see the crime of the antihero smaller. Thus they will root for the bad guy.

For example, have 2 scenes in the screenplay where the characters are stealing a house:

The main character breaks into the house and restrains the members in it, and steals their belongings.

On the other hand, the opposite character breaks in, kills the members on the first chance, and steals their belongings.

When the viewers compare between these two actions, that of the main character would appear minor and even may seem moral.

In order to promote that comparison, it would help to have the action close in time so that the audiences can easily recall them and compare them.

8- Dehumanization

The audience may excuse an immoral act conducted on an “inhuman” character.

Of course we don’t mean animals when we was inhuman!

Establish within your scenes that the victim is heartless, a criminal, let other characters refer to him with inhuman names (a beast), or let it be a corrupt organization.

To Answer The Question: How to Make The Audience Root for the Bad Guys?

Lead the audience to believe that the “bad” or immoral actions are not really bad.

This can be done using some screenplay techniques such as giving a reasonable motivation, blaming other characters for the actions of your protagonist, making the immoral action seem minor in comparison to what the antagonist did. You can also play on words by referring to the crime with a positive description and referring to the victim with non-human adjectives.

The post How to make the audience root for the bad guys (A new theory using psychology) appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

In this post, we will be giving 9 screenplay writing tricks you can use to make your characters more relatable to the audience.

We say relatable, NOT Likable.

This is a common mistake many screenplay writers make. Don’t waste time making your characters do good things so the audience or readers like them. Such “angle-like” characters turn out to be flat and predictable.

Whether your protagonist is a mother, teacher, police officer, drug dealer, serial killer, or even a robot… They should be relatable so that the audience would root for them and feel the urge to continue watching to see what will happen to them.

Okay.. let’s get to the point: Here are some screenplay writing techniques that you could use to make the protagonists of your script relatable:

1. Make Your Characters Grey

Characters in your script should never be just evil or just good (black or white)… they should be grey.

That is because you want to make them as human as possible. So even the protagonist should have flaws so people would relate more to them.

All-good or all-evil characters result in flat characters that will seem very artificial.

2. Let Them Save a Cat

Blake Snyder (the author of the famous scriptwriting book Save The Cat) suggests that the protagonist should do something good early on in the script.

Think of it as such: A character walking on the street finds a cat stuck in a tree, so he helps it. That does not have to do anything with the story… It just shows that the character has good in them. Snyder thinks that this would make the audience like the character more.

Of course, the character doesn’t always have to save a cat 🙂

Have the character do something nice and selfless at the beginning of the script.

In Netflix’s House of Cards, Frank actually kills a dog at the beginning of the first episode rather than “saving a cat.” But he kills the dog to save it from misery because it is in pain. Even this act is considered selfless according to the justification of the character.

3. Show Their Passion

To make the characters more human, you should give them something to be passionate about.

Passion can be towards the person the character loves, his dream, family, job, or cause…

In most cases, the character’s passion is naturally present in the script as the character’s goal. But we suggest showing and expressing this passion in the writing so the audience would know clearly about it and feel with the character.

4. Give Them Personality traits

When building your characters, you probably considered their traits: caring, OCD, introverted, funny, honest, sneaky…

Great! Now in the script, try to stick to the character traits you assigned, and to make the character more relatable, you should show them and be truthful.

This will, again, make the character more human.

5. Give Them a Backstory

A tragic or interesting backstory usually makes the audience care more about the character. It makes them interested in knowing more about him and how this backstory affected his life.

That is because they know him more and feel empathetic towards him.

This is how you can create an emotional connection between the audience and the character.

Most important is creating the character’s backstory naturally, without overloading.

6. Give Them The X Factor

To have your relatable characters, highlight the factor that makes them unique and cool.

If your main character has a superpower, show how cool it is.

If wise, show how he can use his wits to solve problems.

Or if he is a musician, show how the audience is fascinated by his music…

7. Show Them Struggle

This could be the oldest trick in the book of making the audience love and care about your characters.

People like to see the characters on the screen in their lowest stage. They want to see them struggle in their life before they achieve their great goal or overcome the main obstacle.

8. Make them Take Action

Lovable characters take action. These actions should move the story forward and affect the character arc.

If the character just neglects or complains constantly without taking any action, then the audience would be frustrated with the character and would not like him.

9. Let Them Learn

Use the struggles and back story to move the script forward. When your characters learn from their problems and mistakes, this will make them more human.

This will make the audience appreciate and like the character more.

Relatable Characters ARE Indeed Likeable!

If you want to audience to like your protagonist, the character should be relatable. All the techniques we discussed in this article revolve around a primary goal: Make the characters in your screenplay as human as possible.

This is more important than making the audience like the character only because he is good or nice!

The post 9 Ways to Make the Audience Love your Protagonist: Creating Relatable Characters appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

There are many narrative structures or formulas that tell us how events should be spread out in a movie. In AVfilmschool we have already talked about the three-act structure, Blake Snyder’s beat sheet, and the 5 plot points structure. 

Dan Harmon Story Circle Structure

This structure is a guide for building a compelling story. The theory consists of a loop of  8 steps:

You (the protagonist), Need, Go, Search, Find, Get, Return, Change.

To simplify Dan Harmon’s Story Circle Structure, the story of the movie can be summarized as such:

8 steps of Dan Harmon’s Story Circle

Step 1: YOU

You refer to the protagonist of the story. In this step, you establish and present the natural world of the story.

Step 3: NEED

The need is the main drive for the character and the story. This stage states what will be going to do throughout the story. He needs to get back to the girl he loves. She wants to save the world. They need to survive the zombie outbreak…

Step 3: GO

Here is where things start to complicate in the story. The protagonist enters an unfamiliar situation and starts to chase after his need.

Step 4: SEARCH

The protagonist will never achieve his need that early in the movie… The Go failed, now he needs to search for a new solution.

Step 5: FIND

Now the main character has found the solution… But things will not be resolved yet. This is the turning point of the story where things usually do not go as expected.

Step 6: GET

Reaching the goal is never easy. In this step, the protagonist will have to face the greatest danger or sacrifice the most important in order to get what he wants.

Step 7: RETURN

The hero’s journey is completed. The protagonist has returned to the starting point. Suffered great loss. But the movie is not over yet… Yes. He now has a new need. But this time, the characters are equipped with the experience they had in steps 5 and 6. This is the climax of the story.

Step 8: CHANGE

The resolution of the final conflict. This is the final showdown where the protagonist puts an end to the conflict once and for all.

Dan Harmon Story Circle Examples

To better understand this story circle we will try to pinpoint its 8 steps in popular movies and Tv series.

Story Circle Examples in Movies

Here is a video by StudioBinder where they used Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight as an example to Dan Harmon’s Story Circle Structure:

Another example of these 8 story steps: Lion King

Story Circle Examples in TV Series

These 8 story steps can be also applied to TV series.

We can look at the story arc of a single episode. Or the arc of a whole season.

For example, check out these Dan Harmon story circle examples of the pilot episode of Breaking Bad and that of season 1:

Why Use this Narrative Structure?

Dan Harmon Story Circle is a formula for an entertaining commercial feature film. It ensures that there are enough twists and turning points in your script.

When you follow this story circle and have good characters and story. You will also make sure that the hero’s journey in the screenplay is complete.

The audiences are more likely to stay on the edge of their seats when watching your movie.

But, I will say it again… this is NOT a formula to success. Use it only if you think it will help you.

The best uses of Harmon’s Circle would be in the brainstorming phase.

Use this as a template for Dan Harmon story structure:

The protagonist has a need. He goes to search for it. He finds what he needs, but in order to get it, he must face extreme challenges. In this journey, the protagonist returns to where he started, but he gained new experience which will help him change his world once and for all.

This will give you a clear idea about the journey of your protagonist.

After that just write.

You can mix things up, add or remove plot twists. Or even changing the order of events.

The post Dan Harmon Story Circle: Create a Better Movie appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

When learning the basics of screenplay structure, writers generally talk about stories having 3 acts. That is a beginning, middle and end with a turning point at the end of act 1 and act 2.

Although it’s important to understand how these two turning points work to drive your story forward, there are really five major plot points that dictate the full structure of your story:

The 5 act structure:

1. The inciting incident
2. The lock-in
3. The first culmination (or midpoint)
4. The main culmination
5. The third act twist

These five points are moments that change the momentum of your story.

This narrative structure helps screenplay writers turn the events in the script in a dynamic way. Often by setting the protagonists of the story down a new path or changing their objective.

There are exceptions to every rule but understanding how to use these five moments in your screenplay to help you build the necessary turning points can be key!

1. The Inciting Incident

The inciting incident occurs in the middle of the first act and at the end of your first sequence. It is the first moment that shakes up the status quo.

Before this moment, your protagonist has existed in their own world. But at this point in the story, conflict or big decision presents itself.

The character would not have to decide on what to do next or figure out how to solve the problem. But the audience would start suspecting that there is a big decision coming along the way.

To make this clear consider the movie: The Graduate

Mrs. Robinson asks Ben (a recent college graduate) to give her a ride home where she convinces him to come inside her house and then attempts to seduce him. She then stands in front of him naked and makes it clear that she is sexually available for him. Here, Ben did not give a clear decision about what he wants or what he is about to do… he just nervously tries to escape the room.

At this point, Ben has not entered into a relationship with Mrs. Robinson. However, the door has been open to that very opportunity.

We still have more to come in the first act, but we won’t be surprised when he later makes the call and begins the affair.

2. The Lock-in

The lock-in is the moment at which your protagonist can no longer return to the status quo. Backing out is impossible.

Often the character is literally locked up with handcuffs, stranded, or abducted.

The door which was open to the protagonist earlier at the inciting incident now slams closed behind your character.

This would not only establish your protagonist’s objective but also will drive them forward into the second act.

For example, In the Matrix, Neo meets Morpheus who explains The Matrix is a false reality. Morpheus then holds out two pills: if Neo takes the blue pill he’ll wake up in his bed and believe whatever he wants. But, if he takes the red pill, then he’ll stay in Wonderland and Morpheus will show him how deep the rabbit-hole goes.

Here is the inciting incident.

As we move to the lock-in, Neo takes the red pill.

Clearly, Neo is now locked in. There is no going back. He has liberated himself from the false reality of the matrix.

3. The First Culmination / Midpoint

About halfway through every screenplay, your protagonist achieves their first major success or failure.

This is the midpoint of the 5 major plot point structure.

When the midpoint is a success, then it’s an achievement of a smaller goal on the road to the main objective.

Alternatively, when this culmination (or midpoint) is a failure, it moves your protagonists even farther from their objective.

In Forrest Gump, Forrest accidentally ends up on the stage as part of an anti-war rally and is asked to speak to thousands of people filling the National Mall. Even though the microphone cuts out during a speech, Jenny hears his name and yells out from the crowd. Forrest and Jenny run to each other reuniting in the reflecting pool to the cheers of thousands.

Despite all of his other accomplishments, this is the high point in forest life because, in the end, all he really ever wants is Jenny. She was lost but now she’s found.

4. The Main Culmination

The main culmination can be thought of as the climax of the film.

It is the highest or lowest point for your protagonist so far.

The Climax is usually represented through a major success or failure that brings your character’s second act objective to a close and propels them towards a new goal in the third act.

for example, in The Shawshank Redemption: Andy Dufresne asks the warden to help him get another trial and promised that he won’t reveal the money laundering schemes that he set up for him. The warden reacts by throwing Andy in solitary confinement. Now not only is Andy refused the opportunity to prove his innocence but in the immediate aftermath of this scene, the warden sends the only inmate who can testify in Andy’s behalf to his death sentence.

This is the lowest low for Andy Dufresne. He really is an innocent man and now he has no hope to ever breathe the air beyond Shawshank Prison.

5. The Third-act Twist

The third-act twist occurs approximately halfway between the main culmination at the end of your story.

It is the bone thrown in front of the protagonist to help him achieve his third act objective. This is the moment that changes the trajectory of the character in the final act.

This third act twist is different from the other 5 major plot points because it actually changes the plot.

In Scorsese’s Goodfellows, Henry meets his best friend Jimmy in a diner only to realize that Jimmy plans on having him killed. This unexpected turn of events then forces Henry to cut a deal with the authorities where he rats on his friends and enters the witness protection program.

Importance of the 5 plot points

These 5 major plot points are the building blocks behind three-act structure and sequence construction. Mapping out these points early in your screenplay development process will go a long way to help navigate the writing of your script. 

You can check out the article about the 13 beats of the script that expands on these 5 plot points in more detail.

The post The 5 major plot points of a Screenplay appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

This post will discuss the beats in a script and the Save The Cat structure.

This narrative structure is also known as the Blake Snyder 15 beat sheet.

Blake Snyder is the author who wrote about this script formula in his book: Save The Cat.

So how can we use this structure to understand movies or write better scripts?

You may know it as the 3 act structure, the 5 plot point structure, or the 15-beat structure.

Mainly, the script can be divided into 15 beats or turning points.

We will list and explain them in this article. 

What is a “Save The Cat” Script Beat?

A script beat is an event that changes the character or the story.

Blake Snyder studied many successful movies and noticed that almost all have the same narrative structure.

So, he devised an outline from 15 specific beats or story points that every good screenplay should have.

Snyder even numbers the pages in a script that each beat should land on.

Save The Cat Beat Sheet Template

Keep in mind that this is not a rule or a formula!

This structure helps screenplay writers organize the script and helps the audience understand the movie and stay engaged.

The 15 Beats Explained

1. Opening Image

The movie starts with the opening image.

It is a visual that starts the movie and explains its tone.

In your script, this is usually on the first page.

For example, Home Alone is a Christmas movie that starts with bright lights, a tinkly soundtrack, and many decorations.

The Matrix starts with a computer screen and a blinking green line.

From the beginning, we already know that the movie is about tech and computer programming.

2. The Theme Stated

Next, the audience should discover what the moral of the movie is.

In your screenplay, the movie’s theme should be stated early on.

Usually, the hero speaks it out loud.

This can happen through dialogue.

The hero can state the theme: I will save my family, I will get revenge, I want to marry this girl…

In the Avengers, the theme is stated after the arrival of Loki and the destruction of the secret NASA base.

Agent Nick Fury calls Agent Phil Coulson and tells him they are now at war.

This is what the film will revolve around; the idea of conflict and the threat from outside our world.

Remember: Here, we know the theme or tone of the movie and not the central conflict.

3. The Setup

The setup is one of the most critical sections of your script.

It provides the essential context for the audience to become immediately engaged or lose interest within the first ten minutes.

Around page 10, your viewer should learn what the hero’s life is like before the inciting incident that will happen and change the course of events.

At this third beat, we also find out the needs of our hero.

Here, show what the life of the hero looks like before the conflict happens.

Also, introduce the character that will play the leading role in the story and hint at the upcoming adventure.

4. The Catalyst

Here is the event that sets the hero on their journey.

According to the Save The Cat beat sheet, the catalyst should be around page 12 in your screenplay.

The catalyst or the inciting incident is the event that shakes the harmony and everyday life of the protagonist and shifts it upside down.

This is the main event that will get your audience hooked on the movie.

In Avatar, the catalyst is when Jake gets into his avatar’s body and discovers he can control it and use his legs again.

In The Matrix, the inciting incident is when Neo discovers he is not safe in this computer-generated reality.

5. The Debate

Here the hero hesitates.

He debates internally or externally about whether to make the journey or not.

It’s the chance to bail out before the point of no return.

In The Avengers: The debate is when we are left to wonder if the heroes will come together to help stop Loki.

And here is when Act 1 of the movie is over.

Act 2

6. Break into 2

Breaking into 2 because, at this point, the second act of a three-act structure begins.

Here is where the hero decides to head on the journey.

This will put the plot in motion.

Blake Snyder believes this should happen around page 25 of the script.

The clearest example of this script beat is in The Matrix when Neo decides to take the blue pill over the red pill.

In The Avengers,  this beat is when the heroes decide to step into the upside-down world where they will have to work together.

7. The B story

Also known as a subplot.

This is a secondary story that holds the audience’s interest while the details of the main plot unfold.

It’s commonly a love story.

Whether between a man and a woman, a father and a son, or two characters destined to become best friends.

Typically, this is around page 30 of your script.

8. Fun and Games

At this beat, your audience should explore the world of the movie.

Here scriptwriters can take a short break from building tension and concentrate on showing the fun and exciting stuff about the world and characters they created.

The Invisible Man gets to see what listening to private conversations is like.

The kung-fu kid uses his new mad skills to win some tournaments.

Bank robbers can now swim in a pile of money.

Usually, these are the scenes that the audience is waiting to see in the movie.

From a marketing perspective you can think of it this way:

Fun and Games are the moments that make the audience decide to watch the movie.
But the hero journey and conflict make them continue till the end, and they later recommend the movie to their friends.

9. The Midpoint

This is where things are either at their greatest up or down point.

In the Save The Cat beat sheet, this beat is where the fun and games end, and we return to the high stakes of the main story.

The corrupt investment broker is doing more business than ever and seems untouchable by the authorities. [Greatest up point]

Or

The kung-fu kid is incapable of learning the secret ninja move and has his worst beating to date by the high school star quarterback. [Greatest low point]

10. The Bad Guys Close in

Few beats remaining till the end of the movie. Scriptwriters here should bring their A-game.

The fun ends, and things will start to escalate quickly from this point.

At this beat, the evil forces re-emerge.

Your audience may think the villain is defeated in the fun and games beat… But not yet.

These forces will close in on the protagonist and throw them off balance.

The antagonists can be either people, forces of nature, aliens, or the protagonist’s internal fears and conflicts.

11. All is Lost

At this point in the script, the bad guys deal such an utter defeat to the hero.

This defeat makes it seem impossible for a happy ending to come out of it.

“All is lost” is an essential beat. It will make the audience wonder how they will get out of it.

It raises the stakes, and the more the characters lose, the more pressure for the screenplay writer to deliver the expected ending.

Back to our examples:

The broker can here is caught for making a major illegal trade.

The prehistoric shark breaks through the electric barrier and is now free to pick off the remaining cast one by one.

The Invisible Man is sprayed with ink and loses his exceptional strength.

Usually, the movie’s leading and most devastating character death happens here.

The character that helped the hero of the story and gave him the tools to survive might be killed off, heavily injured, or put in extreme danger.

For example, In The Matrix, this is where Morpheus is kidnapped.

12. Dark Night of the Soul

This is the beat at which the hero recognizes their defeat and loses hope.

This moment sets everything up for the greatest sacrifice the hero will require to correct all the wrongs.

Act 3

13. Break into 3

The end of Act Two and the beginning of the climax.

In this narrative structure, this is the moment where the heroes find a possible solution to the impossible situation they are in.

This solution wasn’t there a moment ago. The heroes will find it by chance, through a sudden event, or thanks to the love interest from the B story.

But this solution they found won’t be easy to execute! It may cost their lives. It may be a long shot. But there’s still a chance that it could work.

14. Finale

This is where it all comes to an end.

The bad guys get killed or defeated from least significant to most important.

The Invisible Man finds the courage to defeat his enemies while covered with ink.

In the best stories, the whole world of the hero changes at this beat.

Things will never go back to the way they were. It’s a new day and a new dawn.

15. Final Image

This is a closing image that shows the audience that the hero’s world has really changed.

Maybe it’s a shot of the cubical office worker finally living his dream of being a ski instructor.

Or

The superhero going to a different universe, leaving the world a better place.

The opening image and the final image have to show contrast and change.

The hero’s journey throughout the movie should have taken them from point A to point B.

Look how the first and final frame of these movies could tell the whole theme of the movie:

Should you follow the “Save The Cat Beat Sheet”?

You don’t have to follow these beats by word. And surely you don’t need to abide by the suggested page numbers of each beat.

When you are writing a script, it will be very helpful to organize your thoughts using the Save The Cat beat sheet template.

These beats will ensure that your script is on point and that the audience will be engaged in the movie because there are many turning points and it ensures that a lot is happening.

If you did not follow this Blake Snyder beat sheet, there is a possibility that you will be taking too long to reach the interesting story points of your script. Or there may be a lot of pages where nothing is happening.

You might think that you are building up and preparing for a certain turning point, but the audience may lose interest if you lagged too long.

Finally, although almost all commercially successful movies follow the save the cat beat sheet, there are still good films that completely disregard it.

The post Save The Cat Beat Sheet (the 15 beats explained) appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

What is Final Draft?

So Final Draft is basically a script writing (or a screenplay writing) software that helps its user to write a screenplay that that meets the submission standards set by theater, television and film industries. It also helps organize the script and makes it easy for the script writer to leave ScriptNotes and it displays Characters arcs and story beats. The software gives other features such as the ability to run reports for characters and locations which can be handy when scanning your script for budgeting reasons. You can do re-writes and revisions and of course export your script is a pdf format. In the latest update you can also add images and do your story boarding in the software. Their website claims that Final Draft is used by 95% of film and television productions.

How to use Final Draft?

The best thing is the the software is very user friendly and easy to use. There’s no need to look up tutorial videos in order to start writing your script. It’s already formatted correctly.

Here is a video where they show how to use the software.

How much Does Final Draft Cost?

All of that does not come for free 🙁 The price of Final Draft 11 (Latest update till 2020) is $249.99. However, if you already have a previous version, then upgrading will cost you $79.99. You can buy and download the software for the website finaldraft.com which will be the best deal you will get on the software. And you can choose a version that is compatible with your computer and operating system (Mac or Windows).

Is Final Draft worth it?

The features of Final Draft do not come cheap. I think it is a pretty expensive software especially if you are a film student or have the hobby of screenplay writing. But if you are serious about having script writing as a profession, i think that it is worth investing in the software. Especially that it is used widely in the industry and it can save time and a lot of hassel when it comes to send your script to the professionals.

If you don’t want to spend that much on a script writing software, you can always format your screenplay manually using Microsoft word or google docs. and you can find cheaper alternatives like Celtx.

The post Screenplay Writing Software: All Questions about “Final Draft” Answered! appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

But if you want a professional-looking script you should know how to format your screenplay.

Actually, this is the easiest part.

There are plenty of softwares that do the formatting for you, but it is very helpful to be familiar with basic screenplay formatting rules before you start script-writing.

Why you should follow the screenplay formatting rules?

The format of your script is very important because almost all the film industry professionals and students follow this format and are familiar with it.

These rules make reading the script easier and more understandable.

It also makes your screenplay look more professional.

The screenplay format won’t change if you were writing a script for a movie, short film, or a TV series.

I will also give you a free script format generator to make your screenplay formatting easier!

Let’s get to the point, what is the proper format for a screenplay?

1. Font used in the script

The agreed upon font is 12-point Courier font.

This is because before screenplay writes began to use their computers to write, they used the typewriter which has a font similar to the Courier font.

So, 12-point Courier became the official font for scripts.

2. The Cover Page

The cover page includes the title of the script.

Then, on a new line the name of the writer.

Write: “written by” or just “by” then on a new line your name.

All centered.

In the bottom left you put your contact details.

And in the bottom right you put the date and/or the re-write number.

Margins

You should leave 1 inch margin for the right, top and bottom.

That is to keep space for handwritten notes later.

The left Margin should be 1.5 inches.

That is for having a safe margin when you bind your script, else, the first words of the sentence will be lost.

If you don’t have access to screenwriting software, you can format your screenplay on Microsoft Word or Google Docs to start writing.

Here is how to format a screenplay in word:

Select Layout, Margins, then Custom Margins. and enter the margins of the 4 sides of the entire document.

Elements of the screenplay

To understand the formatting rules of screenplays, you should be familiar with the elements of the script as well:

Scene Heading

This is a line that describes the setting of the scene. It should be all Caps. indent: left 0

Start with INT. for interior scenes or EXT. for exterior scenes, then the set followed by a dash and the time of day (DAY or NIGHT).

example: INT. JOE’S BEDROOM – DAY

Action

This is where you describe the narrative of the scene, what is happening. indent: left 0.

Note that whenever you introduce a character for the first time in the scene, his or her name should be written in ALL CAPS. This is to make it easier for your readers to know on a fly when the character is introduced and this will also make it easier to spot when a certain character appears in the script.

Character and Dialogue

When you want to write dialogue, on a new line you first write the name of the character followed by the dialogue lines.

The NAME of the character who will say the lines is always in capital letters.

The name of the character is written with indent: Left 2.0″

The dialogue lines come under the name with indent: Left 1.0″

Parenthetical

If you wanted to add additional directions to how the character is saying his dialogue, you write these notes in a parenthetical under the character name.

For example, your character might be speaking sarcastically, sadly…

Don’t overuse these parentheticals because it is the director’s job to give directions to the actors. But in some cases, it will make it easier to understand the meaning of the dialogue when you include parentheticals.

If a character says: “the food is delicious” the meaning of the dialogue would be different from saying that the food is delicious sarcastically.

Indent: Left: 1.5″ 

Transitions

As a parenthetical is a direction for the actor, a transition is a direction for the editor.

Again, you don’t have to use them unless necessary. Transitions could be: Fade to, Cut to, Dissolve to… and are written in the middle of the page (Indent: Left: 4.0″)

Now you are ready to start writing.

The first word on the first page should be: Fade in

Screenplayplay formatting Don’ts

All scripts should follow these screenplay format rules.

Don’t try to add anything from your own.

Don’t add photos to your script. This will make the screenplay seem amateur.

Binding The Script

The binding of the script should be done by having three holes in the left.

Then, use 2 pins to hold the papers together.

The middle hole is left empty.

That is because whoever will receive your script probably has many other scripts, and they will use this empty hole to hold stacking scripts.

Anyway, whenever possible try to send a digital copy and save a tree 🙂

Free Screenplay Format Tool

Now that you know these rules, you could use youmescript. It is a script format generator.

I found it while researching for this article and thought that it is very helpful. So if you don’t want to buy a screenplay formatting software, or download free/cheap ones, just use this online formatter.

If you have any questions about the screenplay Format Rules, leave me a message below and I will surely answer you or write a post about if it was a big answer. And if you have any topics you want me to cover please let me know!

The post How To Format a Screenplay (a Step by Step Guide) appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

Basically, this structure is the beginning, middle, and end.

So, Act 1 is the set up of the story. Act 2 is the confrontation. Act 3 is the Resolution.

Of course, not all movies follow this structure completely.

In this post, we will explain the 3 act structure film and give examples from movies to help better understand and apply this structure in your own scripts.

The first thing you have to keep in mind is that the movie acts should not be separated in the film. But rather the events should seem to flow seamlessly. One event should lead to the other in order to reach the resolution in the end.

This is the basic diagram that explains the three act structure.

So let’s dive in to every act while keeping in mind that this is NOT a rule that all films follow.

There are other narrative structures (such as the non-linear narrative of the french New Wave) that are completely opposite to these movie acts. And there are other detailed narrative structures such as the Save The Cat beat sheet template and the 5 point structure.

For now, we will go over the acts in the 3 act structure:

Act 1: Setup

The setup involves the introduction of characters and their story world. And some kind of inciting incident,  which is typically a conflict that leads into the second act. 

It’s usually the first 20-30 pages of your script. In these first 20-30 mins of the film, the audience should know who the main characters are, their personality, where the story is taking place (location and time).

In Fantasy or Science Fiction films, this first movie act should introduce the rules of the world we are in. For example, time travel, how magic works, what can technology do, what are the powers of the character….

Act I must also present a powerful hook. This exciting scene early in the script that captures the audience’s interest and hooks them up this is called the inciting incident.

This inciting incident takes place at some point at the beginning of Act I and often provokes a change in the routine of the protagonist. Something new they experience that could challenge or encourage them. T

This act ends with a plot point. It changes the course of the whole story and that presents a problem for the characters.

for example, In the movie Children of Men:

Act 1 presented the main character, Theo who is living a defeated life in a dystopian London.

Inciting incident: is when he is contacted by his ex-wife, and asked to help get travel papers for some refugees.

The plot point happens when the main characters are ambushed by an armed gang, and Julian is killed, and when Theo learns that his ex-wife is dead.

In Dead Man Walking

Act 1: Sister Helen Prejean (Susan Sarandon), a nun who spends her days helping poor children, receives a letter from convicted felon Matthew Poncelet (Sean Pen). Ths felon who is serving a death sentence asks her for help with legal problems.

Act 2: The Confrontation

In the second act, the stakes in the movie events are raised. The problem escalates, and new challenges for the main characters surface.

If we were to time each act of the 3 act structure, the second act will be the longest part.

Briefly, in this act, the characters will try to solve the main problem or work on reaching their goal but they will fail in doing so.

Usually, its towards the end of the second act. At this point, it would seem that the characters have reached a dead end and their goal would seem very far and hard to accomplish.

In many movies, the screenplay writers would choose to introduce a subplot in the second act. The sub-plot is an additional storyline under the main narrative of the movie.

In many cases, this subplot adds a new dimension to the characters. But the subplot can also be considered as a tool for the scriptwriters to spend some time from the movie in order to delay the third act.

Act 3: Resolution

The three act structure usually ends with the resolution. It is a conclusion or closure for the main conflict in the movie. Whether it was a happy or sad ending.

Some call this third act as the confrontation because usually at the end of the film the main character must face the villain (or the good must face the bad).

The confrontation might be between 2 characters. Like in superhero movies almost all the time the hero faces and fights the villain in the end.

Or the confrontation can be between the main character and his/her internal conflict. For example, they could face a situation where they have to overcome their fear of something or to make a great sacrifice.

The third act is usually the shortest movie act among the three structures.

Most importantly, the third act must give the audience a sort of resolution.

Almost all movies that follow the three act structure end with an answer to the question asked or the conflict raised in the movie.

For example, in the end of Citizen Kane, the characters in the movie did not learn the real meaning of the word “Rosebud” which was raised in the first act, but the audience were able to learn the answer in the final shot. In the ending shot, the camera travels from the house to reveal a slid with the word “Rosebud”. This explains the meaning of this word that we were trying to figure out throughout the whole movie.

Many critics praise Citizen Kane for this reason, they say the movie has 2 endings.

Conclusion

The three act structure is a very good tool for screenplay writers to organize their thoughts and it is a good tool to make a movie easier to understand and follow.

But in some cases, this structure could limit the creativity of the screenplay writers and may make the movie predictable. This is because the audience who know about this structure would be able to predict the conflict and that the events will keep on lagging until the end of the movie.

So, the three act structure should not be considered as a rule or a formula in scriptwriting. Many successful movies did not follow these three acts clearly. For example movies that did not follow the three act structure are:

Pulp Fiction, Memento, 21 Grams, Tree of Life, Vantage Point, Reservoir Dogs…

The post The Three Act Structure appeared first on AV FilmSchool.

Simply put, a narrative film is a movie that tells a story. So any form of film that follows a chain of events is narrative.

Many people think that only fiction movies are narrative. But documentaries and movies that tell a real story can also be considered narrative films as long as there is a beginning point that develops throughout the events and leads to a sort of conclusion.

In this post, we will be focusing on the 2 main types of narrative: The liniar and the non-linear narrative.

The Linear Narrative

Linear is pretty self-explanatory. It’s a story that follows one line of narrative.

So, imagine that the movie is a journey from point A to point B. Throughout this journey, the events will drive the story of the movie.

The movie first starts with the stage of exposition. This part is often referred to as the stage of equilibrium. Here the scene is being set to the audience, and the world of the characters is presented.

Then, the disequilibrium. This is when something disrupts the state of normal and causes the events of the story to happen.

As the events complicate, the events of the movie ultimately reach the climax. A point where the stakes for the characters are the highest.

When this peak point is reached, the main characters will try now harder to restore the equilibrium.

The movie ends with the resolution. Here, the main characters would achieve in returning to the initial point. They could also reach another point that better or worse from where they initially started at the beginning of the movie. But they learned their lesson and suffered the circumstances.

For example, let’s use Toy Story.

By the end of the movie, Buzz has accepted his fate as a toy and is welcomed into Andy’s group of toys. whereas at the beginning he wasn’t even there.

So, to put it short, a linear narrative goes like this:
Movies start where characters in their everyday life, something happens that shakes this normality. Then, things get worse as the characters try to fix them. The movie ends with the characters returning to where they started or learning something new or even failing hard at it.

As you might now be thinking: Not all movies follow this linear narrative structure… you are correct.. here comes the non-linear structure.

Non-linear Narrative

The non-linear narrative tends to break up this simple line and put it back together in a different order.

These are the movies that do not follow the three act structure.

All Movies have a begining, middle, and end… But not necessarly in this order

Godards

Movies that follow this type of narrative like to mix things up. And because the events are not told in a straightforward manner, it will be up to the audience to do the thinking and guessing in order to understand the story and figure out the chronological order of the events of the story.

This doesn’t mean that movies with a non-linear narrative are ALWAYS hard to understand…

Almost all French New Wave movies follow the non-linear narrative… But Let’s have more known and popular movies as examples in this post.

A good example of a complicated non-linear narrative would be Christopher Nolan’s Memento.

Memento has two sets of narratives running throughout the film. One in black and white and one in color.

These two narratives are broken up and mixed together! So you see a piece of one then a piece of the second and then back to the first… Scenes in black and white and other scenes in color.

Already the narrative is pretty nonlinear.

But memento takes it another step further. The colored narrative is actually being shown to us in Reverse.

The black and white sequence starts at the beginning and the colored sequence starts at the end. This completely screws up the narrative with the final clip transitioning from black and white to color showing the end of the first narrative and the start of the second. 

I think that is as much complicated as it can be for a movie. But there are many other examples for movies that do not have a linear narrative structure but are still easy to follow and understand.

let’s take a look at Forrest Gump as an example. The movie has a nonlinear narrative and it’s really easy to understand. 

Many people will argue that Forrest Gump actually follows a linear structure… After all, it follows Forrest from when he was a boy, we see him grow up to an adult. But the thing is it’s a broken story.

The movie starts with Forrest waiting on a bus stop, and the movie continues as Forrest is telling other people how he came to this point.

So, in a way, Forrest Gump starts from the end and takes us back to the beginning through Forrest’s stories.

In the case of Forrest Gump, the use of the non-linear narrative was not to make the movie more complicated or to make an artistic statement. The non-linear narrative can also be a convenient way for the writers to easily skip through all the boring bits that happen in between the events of a movie.

Conclusion

There is no better or correct narrative structure. Linear narratives are of course very successful. But it’s important to try out new things when writing your own screenplay.

If you are writing a screenplay, try messing up the order of events by having the end at the beginning or, putting bits in the wrong order. See if it makes your story more compelling and powerful. If it doesn’t add anything then leave it you’ve tried and that’s what’s important.

The post Film Narrative appeared first on AV FilmSchool.