Tadashi+Journal+Entry+1

Journal Entry 1: Tadashi – Scriptwriting

Our film has gone through a long process before it reached it’s final form. Starting out with the idea of a nuclear apocalypse based off of a stimulus found online from a series of photos we could choose from, the original idea was derived from a photo of potentially hung over new Yorkers on the stairs of a subway station on New Years Eve. The four characters were the inspiration for a dialogue-driven piece that takes place primarily in a subway station, each of them sharing their experiences and thoughts before the world ends. This idea then developed into a bunker, before the loss of the underground placement at all. The two main points that we kept were that it was to take place during some sort of apocalypse, and that it would be a dialogue and character driven piece. Our film will take place in a post-apocalypse place (no country or region specified), and will follow the journey of an anti-social teenager. The premise is that he has no friends, and is in the middle of a television show marathon when the electricity in his house gives out. He then goes on a journey looking for electricity, hitting a couple of speed bumps before he realizes that what he has been looking for is human companionship. We attempt to do this in the most genuine, most non-cheesy way possible. My job as the screen writer means that I am responsible for creating a coherent and entertaining story. I have attempted to reference many works that I find appealing to me both in character and story and dialogue. For much of the dialogue, I attempted to make it quick and snappy, not always completely coherent yet somehow making sense within the context of the film and it’s characters. Much of the dialogue style is derived from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s exchanges, particularly from //Shaun of the Dead//, but also from the other films from the Cornetto trilogy. The characters are all derived from different places. Joe (main character), is slightly influenced by the dude for his laid back demeanor, but his decisions to do ‘the right thing’ over what he wants to do are reminiscent of Simon Pegg’s character in several movies, including //Shaun of the Dead//, //The World’s End//, and his portrayal of Scotty in the new //Star Trek// films. My original inspiration for Charleston’s character was the little boy from //The Incredibles//, who is awestruck when Mr. Incredible lifts his car in frustration (‘that was awesome!’), however the character has evolved to also include some shock-value, thus his incoherent dialogue and character. Finally, Frank is strongly influenced by Christopher Mintz-Plasse’s character in //Kick-Ass//, Red Mist. His faux-badass character is highly comical, and allows for a lot of mood lifting in potentially serious situations. As the screenwriter, I put a large emphasis on writing the script so that it was grounded in the sense that there is a sense of doom and responsibility. However, as I didn’t want it to be bogged down by such scenes, and therefor the dialogue is made to be more comical. // Shaun of the Dead // is my largest influence for this film, as I think that it expertly hits all of the requirements for a buddy-apocalyptic-comedy, with some scenes being very emotionally powerful and taxing, others being extremely funny, and overall containing a lot of heart, making the film extremely enjoyable to a wide range of viewers.

__**Journal Entry** 2__ Despite not reading much, I found the introduction of the 'Overhearing Dialogue' book very overwhelming and eye opening. I have never thought of dialogue in the way that this writer explains it to be. For me, dialogue has always been important. Many of the films I like consist of mostly human communication, and puts a lot of importance in body language and dialogue, as opposed to other films that use film conventions more to tell their stories. I had never realized that dialogue was considered to be secondary to film language. Also, the writer makes a very interesting point about the dialogue in the example scene from Wuthering Heights. The 'corny' line "I //am// Heathcliff" is only corny because of the way it is presented in the film. Essentially, no matter how good or bad the dialogue is in the script, it comes down to the acting, directing, and editing to make the dialogue work within the context of the film. he writer's argument is that the script was written by some of the most well respected writers of the age, and that one line is also straight out of the original novel. Yet the line seems out of place and weird due to the director's emphasis on it. Lightning strikes as the actress pauses, and then the camera dollies in before she says her line. Also, the director made her stress 'am', making her sound even more pouty than she has been for the rest of the film. Essentially, as the scriptwriter, I have an image in my head of how all of these scenes will look. Similarly, the director and cinematographer also have their own images. All of our creative images must be on the same page for the film to work and look good. I find it sort of funny that my big 'epiphany' for this journal, after reading about scriptwriting, is teamwork. But there you have it.

I found several articles and videos on screen writing that actually go against a lot of misconceptions I apparently had. One article has thus far told me not to use words like 'uh' 'uhm' and 'like', beacuse these will seep into the speech either way, and writing natural dialogue and writing good natural dialogue aren't the same. One important thing that I have to learn is probably not to repeat information. I feel like the script may have been dumbed down a bit, but I need to have confidence that the viewer is going to understand the story without me giving it to them on a silver platter. I don't need to explain everything so that it's so simple even an elementary school student will understand it on first glance. One think I think I have succeeded in is creating unique characters. One article says to steer clear of stereotype film characters, and I have attempted to do so, although I'm not completely clear how well I have avoided it. What I do know is that our characters are based off of mixes of character from other films and television programs, thus rendering these new mish-mash characters completely unique and brand new. One thing I got quite confused about was the advice to hopeful screenwriters. Many writers say that aspiring screenwriters should watch as many movies as possible, while others say not to do so, as the script writing will become boring and end up falling into the same boring structure as all other hollywood films. One thing many of these writers did have in common is the insistence that reading is important. I feel lucky as I enjoy reading and read quite a lot, and therefor hopefully have a pretty strong foundation for writing. On top of this, I love films and I watch many, and hopefully my writing is positively effected by my influences. The most important information I have gained from reading and watching the videos and articles is the constant reminder not to over explain scenes. Film is a visual medium first and foremost, and that must not be forgotten. Even if I am writing a script that will then be adapted to the screen, I have to remember to allow the director and the rest of the team to show as much visually as possible, rather than keep having things be explained through dialogue. I enjoy writing a dialogue a lot, and therefor when I actually write full scripts they tend to end up rather dialogue heavy. I have to attempt to keep the dialogue entertaining and engaging, but not give everything away, allowing the film conventions and the editing to reveal more of the story through visual means.
 * __Journal Entry__** __3__

http://www.bluecatscreenplay.com/news/screenwriting_tips.php http://www.movieoutline.com/articles/how-to-write-a-professional-screenplay-tips-from-the-chair-of-the-ucla-screenwriting-program.html http://www.oscars.org/video/watch/screenwriters_advice.html http://www.oscars.org/video/watch/screenwriters_misconception.html (many other videos on the oscars website)

Journal Entry 4 I found the links that Lucy put up for script writing very interesting, but all for different reasons. The one I found most interesting was the interview with Quentin Tarantino, because I actually found many parallels with his writing style and his advice for writers with what I have actually been doing through the process of writing the script for 'How It Ends'. In the interview, he is talking about 'Jackie Brown', which I have actually never seen. However, it is mentioned several times that the writing style is different in this film from Tarantino's other films before Jackie Brown. Essentially, the pop-culture iconic dialogue is toned down, and the dialogue is made more natural for it because it is a book adaptation. Tarantino talks about when he is writing, he usually writes the dialogue without thinking too much about the motive and such, but rather gets into the character himself, and lets it naturally come out. "I really let the characters do most of the work, they start talking and they just lead the way." I really enjoy writing character dialogue, and I attempt to make each character have their own unique voice, and when I feel really lost I might try to think about their motives or the use of the dialogue, but often I understand my characters enough to let the dialogue come rather naturally while I am writing. The other link that I found particularly interesting was 'how to fix a plot that feels lightweight or predictable'. I don't mind our film being a bit predictable, as I think that there are elements that are not expected purely because the characters are not run of the mill everyday characters, but also because it's a bit of a parody and a homage of several films that we all enjoy, and scenes and characteristics that can be recognized can actually add to it's enjoyment. However, our biggest problems with the first few versions of the script were that they were over ambitious and had plots that were simply too large and unmanageable for us. It was very hard for me to cut it down, as we had worked hard to come up with these stories that had somehow become large and slightly out of hand. If I had read the 'how to fix a plot...' article earlier, I feel like I would have had a much easier time writing the script, and may not have had to write quite so many versions before we reached one that was both satisfactory and filmable.