Maybe this is a silly topic to bring up, but it is something I think of from time to time. In my last screenplay, the main characters had Ph.Ds in physics and were creating a time machine. In the screenplay I'm currently writing, the main character is a genius amateur detective. All these characters are much smarter than I am. Of course I do plenty of research and educate myself on what I need to know for what is needed for my script. That's not what I'm talking about. Do other screenwriters ever feel intimated by the intelligence of the characters they create?
Screenwriting : Writing Characters That Are Smart Than You by Carl Hippensteel
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The title should read, That Are Smarter Than You. LOL guess that just show how smart I am
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I'm not only amazed that my characters are smarter, yet even braver, stronger, better looking, that I'm envious!! But, that is the fun and beauty of being a writer, that we can be anything we want through our characters, is how I was able to survive my early teen years as a bullied, repressed boy. Great question, Carl!
I thought it was perfect!
No need to feel intimidated, you created them. Research is necessary as a bona fides for the character, but you create the moods and emotions that put the script over the top. Genius characters are flat without the emotion you instill in the writing. Put another way, everyone has emotions. The audience connects with emotions much more than details of intellect.