Screenwriting : Today's Wish and Creative Tip by Laurie Ashbourne

Is your world big enough for the big screen? Regardless of genre, one thing that makes a script stand out is, how well it pulls us into the world of the story being told. This can be achieved any number of ways but ideally it is tied to the POV of your main character(s). Think AMERICAN BEAUTY as we fly over suburbia, Kevin Spacey narrates and tells us his fate. That makes this, what would be normally boring world, interesting enough to be a movie going experience. There is a short snippet of Jane and Ricky talking about killing her father prior to the flyover so it, sort of, gets a set-up, but whenever I envision the opening of this film I seem to forget that bit. BOTH OF THESE SCENES MAKE UP THE FIRST PAGE. So, worlds we are familiar with, need very little explaining. Story worlds should be different enough to warrant making a feature film, but at the same time they need to compare to the world your audience knows, either through character, hell and high water obstacles or happy places. Details matter to the extent that they define the rules of the world as they pertain to the plot or the characters’ personality. But the details should not be a laundry list that has to be referred to often for clarity sake. They should be presented in a way that almost has them fade into the background – creating a staged tone. Or if you must, think of the details as things with a price tag, assets that will have to be acquired for your film from money that comes out of your pocket. Pretty quickly, you'll determine what is crucial to the story and what you can cut out. Never seen before worlds are admittedly harder, (which is why sci-fi, dystopia, etc., isn’t for everyone). If you are creating an imaginary world, consider envisioning it as a board game. Here is where the characters start and this is the path they have to travel and these are the detours – all that yes, but also how does the rest of the characters live and impact this world and what are the rules to winning. For instance, let’s take THE WIZARD OF OZ (because everyone has some awareness of it.) This is a simplistic game based on the movie we’re most familiar with. Looking at the image attached, you can sort of see how the story unfolds. But if you were to look at the original board game that is more closely tied to entirety of the world(s) that Frank L. Baum created, you will get a better idea of what I’m getting at: http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_vault/2014/04/01/wizard_of_oz_story_based... Before you think, I write indie dramas or horrors, this doesn’t pertain to me, refer back to AMERICAN BEAUTY or take a look at how the worlds of last year’s ROOM and the undeniably successful world of THE SIXTH SENSE. (links to all of these at the end) You only have to read the first few pages of either of these to be immersed in these worlds, mainly because the writers understood: minimum details, maximum effect. Granted ROOM goes into more detail but even so, it becomes part of the action, and is broken up to pace that creates cadence – that again, creates tone and moves the story. Regardless of genre, but most importantly, how does the world change once your character gets to the end of the game? In the old Wizard of Oz game, the winner got to enter the emerald city but of course in the cinematic story, the home Dorothy left behind became a place she returned to with new perspective and love. The cold air of the basement in THE SIXTH SENSE became the cold reality of Bruce’s realization that it was cold and dark because he was dead. In ROOM – the magic of the world dies, but Mom and Jack get to say goodbye for the magic of the real world that awaits. http://a24awards.com/film/room/room_script.pdf https://1st10pages.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/sixth-sense-1999-1998-5-1... http://mypage.netlive.ch/demandit/files/M_BFNO38KLSZ567NYSJ29/dms/modul_... It’s a big world in the eyes of your characters but it’s a small world in the brains/time commitment of your readers – don’t make them work for it. May your day take you out of your world.