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character motivations -

IT WAS A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME

IT WAS A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME

We read an article about Florida Man using a live alligator to hold up a convenience store, and we laugh. We laugh because this gator-stick-up is an absurd thing to do. It seems absurd because we can’t imagine how or why a person does something like that. So he’s alien, the other. We relegate him to character status. “He’s a dumb guy.” “He’s crazy.” “That’s just how Florida Man rolls.” Now let’s say we’re called upon to write that scene, put it in a script. We might start with the broad choice: He’s dumb, crazy, Florida Man, etc. But that’s...

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backstory, DO THE RIGHT THING, exposition, flashback, IRON MAN, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK -

THE VALUE OF MINIMIZING BACKSTORY

THE VALUE OF MINIMIZING BACKSTORY

“Backstory” is the term for any narrative that occurs in the past within the world of the script, chronologically occurring before the action of the A-story. In cinematic writing, backstory typically takes one of two forms: exposition, and flashback. With exposition, we’re telling the backstory; characters talk about what happened, or perhaps we’re “telling” via stuff like on-screen crawls, photos/images, etc. In flashback, we’re showing backstory; we’re cutting back in time to play out a scene. Backstory is like any other form of exposition: It should be treated like a necessary evil. We give the audience only so much as...

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Antagonist, BRAVEHEART, CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Darth Vader, DIE HARD, INGLORIOUS BASTERDS, STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE, THE EXORCIST -

MUSTACHE-TWIRLING

MUSTACHE-TWIRLING

The industry has a term for broad, uncomplicated antagonists: “mustache-twirling.” Mustache-twirling comes up, for example, if the script isn’t working to provide the antagonist with humanity or depth, if their motivations are just to be eeeeeeevil. The more likely it seems an antagonist might go “NYAH-HA-HA! NOW I’VE GOT YOU!” the closer we are to having a mustache-twirling antagonist. The best way to avoid mustache-twirling is to treat the antagonist with the same craft and attention with see with the protagonist. We should get a sense of personality, internal life, a background that has led the antagonist to these choices...

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antagonist, DEATH WISH, JOHN WICK, protagonist, sympathy, TAKEN, THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO, THE CROW, THE PUNISHER -

DEVELOPING SYMPATHY FOR CHARACTERS, PART 2

DEVELOPING SYMPATHY FOR CHARACTERS, PART 2

Here are some other common tools that are used to generate reader/audience sympathy for characters, especially protagonists and antagonists. They care for somebody. The character is taking care of someone, perhaps an elderly parent, a sick spouse, a child. Even a pet will do the trick. This shows us the character is capable of emotions we can get behind: selflessness, empathy, love. This is why we will often see the tired trope of the character doing X in order to get money for an operation for their sick child/parent/etc. We’re willing to excuse almost any X behavior because we understand...

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BREAKING BAD, DEADPOOL, DIE HARD, ERIN BROCKOVICH, flawed protagonist, fortitude, higher ideals, humor, sympathy, THE SOPRANOS, transgression, undeserved misfortune -

DEVELOPING SYMPATHY FOR CHARACTERS

DEVELOPING SYMPATHY FOR CHARACTERS

Very often, readers and talent (and audiences) are looking for characters who are sympathetic, particularly the protagonist. We need a degree of sympathy if we are to emotionally invest in the character’s story. Some writers take this desire for a sympathetic protagonist as a demand for a protagonist without vulnerabilities or flaws; it’s Captain America or nothing. That isn’t the case. We can and should be able to find sympathy for characters despite their flaws, in the same way we do for our flawed fellow humans. There are a few tried-and-true ways to develop character sympathy, even (or especially) with...

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