I had the wonderful opportunity to return home this weekend to join my fellow homeschooler friends in a performance of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing.
Which was awesome enough in itself, but I also got two 2.5 hour trips there and back, which passed surprisingly quickly this go around, mainly due to the fact that I spent the hours brainstorming, plot hashing, troubleshooting, and generally working through stories.
Now, all this work is cerebral, not actual pen-to-paper, but its definitely worth doing. (Especially when there's not much else to do). I ended up working through several different stories all told, but the one I spent the most time on was the umpteenth version of a story I now call Hoprerise. (To differentiate it from the dozens of other versions).
But to explain what Hoperise is, I have to go back to 2012, to a little story attempt called Deep Red. What started off as a novel, morphed into a Lego stop-motion, transitioned quickly to a Lego comic book and then sat on a shelf for a year, until late 2013, when I decided to try to write a script off the idea.
Substituting walking for planet-hopping, and shotguns for plasma rifles proved a unique challenge, but also provided a place to develop a particularly gritty, almost western-style of sci-fi I found immensely enjoyable to create.
Retitled Hopefall, and fresh off the success of filming Shadowland, I set out to film my new script with conscripted college buddies, locations in and around my tiny apartment, and costume and props gathered from my parent's old stash of military gear.
I actually got one day of filming in before the project flopped. Mainly due to scheduling issues, but there were also problems with the script and my innate tendency to try to do everything myself. After that, it sat on the shelf again until I returned to college in the fall of 2013.
Over the summer, I had written and shot with far more success a short film called Minefield, set in the same world I had created for Hopefall. Armed with that experience, and a shiny new version of the script with most of the bugs worked out, I set out to try again.
One week out from commencing filming, things fell apart once more. Scheduling a film in between multiple college student's classes and other commitments proved to be too difficult a task. After that, I set Hopefall back on the shelf, I thought for good.
However, in my recent forays back into writing, the elements and ideas I had begun working with in those multiple previous versions kept coming back, and I decided to give it another shot, starting completely from scratch instead of trying to retrofit the previous version to fit a new set of criteria.
One of my good friends, after reading many of the earlier versions, had given me his opinion that a story dealing with the Bible as an outlawed, drug-like substance in a dystopian society warranted a far more serious story than I had been giving it. My tendency as a writer is to epicfy things, in the process missing the true point of the tale.
Taking this into consideration has been key as I have re-explored the different pieces that make up Hoperise. And mulling through it over and over again in the car has made me see things I never saw before, as well as realize just how intense the story can be, without adding in action for action's sake.
It's still going to take a lot of work before it'll be ready to do anything with, but I certainly have a better grasp of what needs to be done than I ever had before. I've also realized that setting myself on one outcome will only end in disappointment. So whether the story ends up as a novel, comic-book, film, play or puppet show, or nothing at all, it shouldn't matter to me. My job is simply to tell the tale in any way I can.
Showing posts with label Filming. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Filming. Show all posts
June 24, 2014
June 12, 2014
Surety
I sound so sure of myself in blogposts. Perhaps it is because I tend to speak and think in absolutes and generalizations, and that flows through strongly into my writing. In other words, don't trust what I write... I tend to be wrong. Especially about goals and dreams.
In other words, things did not go as expected. They never do, I'm beginning to realize that now. For one thing, architecture school tends to get more intense as one progresses through it. Which means more time spent drawing and modeling in studio, and less time writing.
Despite that, my writing has continued, in tiny spurts and minuscule bounds, less of the slow and steady march I promised myself last January, and more of a spastic energy bunny who is slowly running out of energy.
Last month I had the great honor and privilege to be a part of a feature film production of The Scarlet Letter, turning my architectural skills to set design in what was possibly the most fun I've ever had. And considering The Scarlet Letter is a rather dark and depressing story by its very nature, that's saying something.
But the important thing as far as my writing is concerned was the three day trip up and back. Long hours in the car meant time for writing and reading, things I hadn't had time for in a long while. Christmas, to be exact.
Jumping back into three jobs while prepping for grad school has made writing difficult, but I continue to do so while I have time. And even if I'm not actually setting pen to paper, (or keyboard to document), I am constantly working through bits of story in my head, fixing problems, having lightbulb moments, and generally making sure I keep my imagination active.
All that being said, blogging is one more thing on top of all that, and I doubt I shall be able to continue with any sense of regularity, but sometimes it is good to simply sit down and verbalize the thoughts that have been running through my head, even if they are only read by me six months down the road.
In other words, things did not go as expected. They never do, I'm beginning to realize that now. For one thing, architecture school tends to get more intense as one progresses through it. Which means more time spent drawing and modeling in studio, and less time writing.
Despite that, my writing has continued, in tiny spurts and minuscule bounds, less of the slow and steady march I promised myself last January, and more of a spastic energy bunny who is slowly running out of energy.
Last month I had the great honor and privilege to be a part of a feature film production of The Scarlet Letter, turning my architectural skills to set design in what was possibly the most fun I've ever had. And considering The Scarlet Letter is a rather dark and depressing story by its very nature, that's saying something.
But the important thing as far as my writing is concerned was the three day trip up and back. Long hours in the car meant time for writing and reading, things I hadn't had time for in a long while. Christmas, to be exact.
Jumping back into three jobs while prepping for grad school has made writing difficult, but I continue to do so while I have time. And even if I'm not actually setting pen to paper, (or keyboard to document), I am constantly working through bits of story in my head, fixing problems, having lightbulb moments, and generally making sure I keep my imagination active.
All that being said, blogging is one more thing on top of all that, and I doubt I shall be able to continue with any sense of regularity, but sometimes it is good to simply sit down and verbalize the thoughts that have been running through my head, even if they are only read by me six months down the road.
February 9, 2013
Shadowland
Once upon a time, last August to be precise, I wrote a poem based on a concept borrowed from C.S. Lewis. The idea of earth as a Shadowland of heaven. Well, after writing the poem, I went on to do a series of lithographs inspired by the same idea. That was in the middle of last semester. And the idea still wouldn't stop knocking around in my head.
About a month ago I began to ask my college friends if anyone was interested in making a movie. I got enough interest to warrant me writing a script, but didn't have any solid ideas. Until late one night, after several hours of sleepless tossing and turning, God gave me the nudge to start writing. So after scrounging out my old glasses I sat in front of my laptop in the dark of a room lit only by its screen; and began to write. Two hours later I had finished a seven page script across which were scattered the verses of the poem I had written months earlier. A few days and helpful critiques (thanks, Director!) later I had a finalized script.
And we filmed it, less than a week later. And now, exactly one week after filming day, I present you the finished product: Shadowland.
January 5, 2013
Tonight
Tonight is the night.
The night all the work is done.
The night when the lights dim, the music starts and a story unfolds.
Tonight was the premiere of Ironwing.
The night all the work is done.
The night when the lights dim, the music starts and a story unfolds.
Tonight was the premiere of Ironwing.
Note: The url at the end of the trailer is to a private blog. Attempts to hack will be shot down by acid firing laser robots. :P
November 15, 2012
Mission: Abort
My readers and friends,
I have decided, after much consideration, to call off my NaNoWriMo attempt this year. The reasons are multiple, but being too busy with schoolwork or simply not feeling the story do NOT rank among them, I can assure you.
The problem is far simpler. It is impossible to edit a movie and write a story at the same time. One will naturally preclude the other. And seeing as I have only completed final editing on one out of three episodes for a December slated release, I'm in a pickle.
To misquote,
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve Film and novel."
Har har.
But seriously, I haven't been able to get much of anything done on either because I haven't the time or energy to work on both and be a full-time architecture student and still get sleep. :) So I must choose.
And as the film has a considerably higher number of people waiting expectantly on its December release (as opposed to my one for the novel), it takes precedence.
So, my November will be novelless, but who knows? I might do the last three-quarters in December! Or January... Or maybe never. But I won't stop writing, that's for certain.
As soon as Ironwing shows in theaters near you (not really :P), I'll switching from iMovie back to Pages and hitting the keyboard a lot harder.
Until next we meet (or I guilt myself in posting something here),
Farjag
I have decided, after much consideration, to call off my NaNoWriMo attempt this year. The reasons are multiple, but being too busy with schoolwork or simply not feeling the story do NOT rank among them, I can assure you.
The problem is far simpler. It is impossible to edit a movie and write a story at the same time. One will naturally preclude the other. And seeing as I have only completed final editing on one out of three episodes for a December slated release, I'm in a pickle.
To misquote,
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve Film and novel."
Har har.
But seriously, I haven't been able to get much of anything done on either because I haven't the time or energy to work on both and be a full-time architecture student and still get sleep. :) So I must choose.
And as the film has a considerably higher number of people waiting expectantly on its December release (as opposed to my one for the novel), it takes precedence.
So, my November will be novelless, but who knows? I might do the last three-quarters in December! Or January... Or maybe never. But I won't stop writing, that's for certain.
As soon as Ironwing shows in theaters near you (not really :P), I'll switching from iMovie back to Pages and hitting the keyboard a lot harder.
Until next we meet (or I guilt myself in posting something here),
Farjag
August 14, 2012
That's a wrap!
Filming has wrapped on Ironwing!
After a long, rainy and exhausting last Saturday of filming (during which I was beat up by girls multiple times...), we finished!
After a bit of trouble (including difficulties surrounding the procuring a suitable a boat, getting a means of transporting it, not being able to find any extras, and a thunderstorm) the last two fight scenes were finished, and some of the most lengthy bits of dialogue completed in record time!
The sky was steely, the rain intermittent, the water dark... all perfect for probably the darkest moment of the film. That valley at the very end when nothing seems to go right, when everything the heroes have worked for comes crashing down.
But fear not! The sun always comes out brighter when the storm clouds pass, and so it will be with Ironwing.
Now comes post-production, that lengthy, complicated process of editing, scoring, special effects, lighting, etc. etc. Fun stuff. :) Wish us luck!
After a long, rainy and exhausting last Saturday of filming (during which I was beat up by girls multiple times...), we finished!
After a bit of trouble (including difficulties surrounding the procuring a suitable a boat, getting a means of transporting it, not being able to find any extras, and a thunderstorm) the last two fight scenes were finished, and some of the most lengthy bits of dialogue completed in record time!
The sky was steely, the rain intermittent, the water dark... all perfect for probably the darkest moment of the film. That valley at the very end when nothing seems to go right, when everything the heroes have worked for comes crashing down.
But fear not! The sun always comes out brighter when the storm clouds pass, and so it will be with Ironwing.
Now comes post-production, that lengthy, complicated process of editing, scoring, special effects, lighting, etc. etc. Fun stuff. :) Wish us luck!
August 6, 2012
Filming
Filming continues apace on Ironwing, with only two days of principal photography left!
Sets have been made...
Sets have been made...
Props gathered...
And more sets made!
Lines have been memorized...
More stuff gathered...
And haversacks clothes-pinned with infinite care by yours truly.
We're almost done!
July 13, 2012
The Story of My Life
Get up. Take brother and his friends swimming. Take 4-hour driver's test online. Pick up pallets and other junk wood for set building. Head to church property to start work. Run out of pallets, drop by Lowes and Walmart for more. Realize I didn't bring any shovels or axes. Head home. Sleep.
Wake up. Go to beach with friends. Hook up trailer to van. Pick up kayaks. Unload kayaks at home. Load shovels, axes, and other necessary equipment. Head back up to property to work on set. Run out of nails, send friend to get some. Go pick up bed for college and try to back up 15-passenger van with a trailer in the pouring rain. Fail, let friend do it for me. Hut still needs work. Come back home. Think of character to come as for friend's birthday party. Sleep.
Get up early to reload kayaks. Take brother and friend kayaking. Get back home, and realize I need to write a blog post. And mail a tax letter thingy for college. And work on the score of a friend's movie. Still need to finish the driver's test. Tonight, work. Tomorrow, filming. Remember to make sure I'm off work.
It's my birthday.
I have such a wonderful life. And that's not sarcasm. I have a family who loves me, a God who watches over me, and friends who support me every step of my crazy, wonderful, story of a life.
May God remind me of that more often.
Wake up. Go to beach with friends. Hook up trailer to van. Pick up kayaks. Unload kayaks at home. Load shovels, axes, and other necessary equipment. Head back up to property to work on set. Run out of nails, send friend to get some. Go pick up bed for college and try to back up 15-passenger van with a trailer in the pouring rain. Fail, let friend do it for me. Hut still needs work. Come back home. Think of character to come as for friend's birthday party. Sleep.
Get up early to reload kayaks. Take brother and friend kayaking. Get back home, and realize I need to write a blog post. And mail a tax letter thingy for college. And work on the score of a friend's movie. Still need to finish the driver's test. Tonight, work. Tomorrow, filming. Remember to make sure I'm off work.
It's my birthday.
I have such a wonderful life. And that's not sarcasm. I have a family who loves me, a God who watches over me, and friends who support me every step of my crazy, wonderful, story of a life.
May God remind me of that more often.
June 25, 2012
Ironwing
Hey everyone! I apologize for posts between few and far between (and not that great to boot :P), but I have an explanation! Most of which involves scriptediting and planning for this:
Actual filming commences in five days, and I am super excited, to say the least. I mean, all the trailer is is me and my brother running around epicly in the rain with Breggo chasing us with the camera! So to begin actual acting against the other super talented actors will be a huge treat.
Now, if I can just perfect that tinge of a Scottish accent... :P
June 11, 2012
The Premiere
Well, I had my premiere for When Darkness Falls last night! Big screen, big speakers, and lots of friends! Add in plenty of popcorn, root beer floats, and chips n' dip, viola! A night worth remembering!
But since I couldn't cram everyone who knows me remotely into my already full living room, I'm giving ya'll a trailer so you can see what we alllaughed clapped at last night. :)
But since I couldn't cram everyone who knows me remotely into my already full living room, I'm giving ya'll a trailer so you can see what we all
May 17, 2012
It is DONE!!
In late December of 2009, I shot the first frames of my biggest film project to date.
Two months shy of a year ago, I shot my last.
Last night, almost three entire years after starting it, I can officially declare When Darkness Falls:
COMPLETE!!
A Dark-Ages-esque piece, When Darkness Falls is the tale of a kingdom rising up against the tyranny that has crushed the life out it's people for fifteen years. It chronicles the story of the outlaw Flaren, him named the Fellburn, and his efforts to ignite the people of Faerndell into revolt against their oppressors. But the true hero of the story is a young boy named Drelborn, whose true identity will topple the outcome of the fast-approaching war one way or the other.
Two months shy of a year ago, I shot my last.
Last night, almost three entire years after starting it, I can officially declare When Darkness Falls:
COMPLETE!!
A Dark-Ages-esque piece, When Darkness Falls is the tale of a kingdom rising up against the tyranny that has crushed the life out it's people for fifteen years. It chronicles the story of the outlaw Flaren, him named the Fellburn, and his efforts to ignite the people of Faerndell into revolt against their oppressors. But the true hero of the story is a young boy named Drelborn, whose true identity will topple the outcome of the fast-approaching war one way or the other.
April 18, 2012
Why Can't I Write Screenplays?
Oh, mine readers, alack and alay!
I cannae write meself a screenplay!
Bogged down afore three pages are writ,
Caught up in th' format, lines, an' bloomin' script,
Th' images be in me own expandin' head,
But I cannae write them if I be dead,
Kilt by Courier font, a true an' deadly beast,
O' all my problems, the plot is th' least.
Arrg. Tis true. I have had at least five screenplay ideas over the past two weeks, all of them fully filmable* with the resources I and my fellow filming friends** have . But I can't write a single one of them down to save my life! The dialogue and characters are floating around in my head, shiny and resplendent mallorn leaves falling softly to the ground, but when I try to put them down on paper, all that comes out are a faded handful of crumbled remains.
It's disheartening to say the least.
Perhaps I'll just have to try writing only the dialogue out, back and forth banter, with minimal action descriptions in between. If that doesn't work, I don't know what I'll do.
I mean, I write entire novels easily! Why can't I write a short little screenplay? Annoying. Anyone have any ideas to help me in my sad state***?
*I really got to stop using alliteration so much.
** See what I mean?
*** Oi.
March 10, 2012
Of Characters and Collaboration
Well, today I break my alliteration. Notice the C's instead of S's?
But that's not why you're reading... (I don't know, maybe it is). You're reading to find out about characters! Well, here they come!
When I and my fellow conspirators were brainstorming about this project, we wanted to make sure everyone was as involved and excited as the director and producer were. Not only does this mean less work for us (he he), but it means we aren't working with actors and crew who'd rather not be there. That gets old real quick, let me tell you.
So! What do we do? Seeing as this is a character-driven story, we decided to let each actor have a major hand in their own characters! Breggo wrote up this nifty character sheet with a score or so of questions which helped each actor peg down the kind of person they wanted to play. And hey, if someone's asking to play the bad guy (he'd been the good guy for the past three or so movies), by all means!
So, what sort of characters did we come up with?
1. Fengrid, an apprentice hunter. Recently returned from a journey in the lands beyond, he comes back to find his former master dead on his own hearth. Vowing vengeance, he sets out to bring his killer to justice. But his path will take him places he never expected. For 'justice' is not what it seems in these woods.
2. Adelyn, an apprentice hunter. When she finds her new master dead, she is immediately suspicious of Fengrid, and her suspicions seem to be verified when she finds that he has disappeared. Determined to find him, she sets out on his trail. But soon she finds that just as she is tracking Fengrid, so someone appears to be tracking her.
3. Jarl, the Marshall of the forest. The voice and hand of the law in the forest, Jarl continually finds his efforts to bring justice to evildoers hampered by the strict code of the law he upholds. And so he takes up the mask of a vigilante, dealing out to criminals their just deserts. But the code was put in place for a reason, and the power that comes from dealing outside of it soon turns him to even darker decisions.
4. Carldon, a young scamp and thief. An orphan whose brother is off patrolling the forest border. Left without a family, Carldon has been forced to take care of himself. His thievery, however, is mostly allowed, since he always pays... with small piles of feathers. Despite his faults, none know the paths of the forest and the quickest ways better than him.
5. The Lady of Glencott dale. Currently unnamed, this mysterious lady lives alone in a ramshackle hut and is known for not being known. No one ventures near her for reasons not exactly understood, but greatly feared. Except for Carldon, who has been seen trespassing with apparent impunity on the circle of forest she claims. Legend claims, however, that she talks to herself or her teapots, and that, of course, is fair enough reason to stay well away.
Well, those be the cast of characters we plan on bringing to life sometime this summer! And that concludes this short series on the necessary ingredients of a good film. But this film still has a while to go, so there'll be more info popping up here, including, of course, the name of the series... which we still haven't figured out...
What's next, you ask? Well, Breggo's working on the script, we've a few more names to figure out, and I've got some concept sketches I've got to dash off here soon. Maybe I'll put a few up here! Until next time, then;
Farjag
But that's not why you're reading... (I don't know, maybe it is). You're reading to find out about characters! Well, here they come!
When I and my fellow conspirators were brainstorming about this project, we wanted to make sure everyone was as involved and excited as the director and producer were. Not only does this mean less work for us (he he), but it means we aren't working with actors and crew who'd rather not be there. That gets old real quick, let me tell you.
So! What do we do? Seeing as this is a character-driven story, we decided to let each actor have a major hand in their own characters! Breggo wrote up this nifty character sheet with a score or so of questions which helped each actor peg down the kind of person they wanted to play. And hey, if someone's asking to play the bad guy (he'd been the good guy for the past three or so movies), by all means!
So, what sort of characters did we come up with?
1. Fengrid, an apprentice hunter. Recently returned from a journey in the lands beyond, he comes back to find his former master dead on his own hearth. Vowing vengeance, he sets out to bring his killer to justice. But his path will take him places he never expected. For 'justice' is not what it seems in these woods.
2. Adelyn, an apprentice hunter. When she finds her new master dead, she is immediately suspicious of Fengrid, and her suspicions seem to be verified when she finds that he has disappeared. Determined to find him, she sets out on his trail. But soon she finds that just as she is tracking Fengrid, so someone appears to be tracking her.
3. Jarl, the Marshall of the forest. The voice and hand of the law in the forest, Jarl continually finds his efforts to bring justice to evildoers hampered by the strict code of the law he upholds. And so he takes up the mask of a vigilante, dealing out to criminals their just deserts. But the code was put in place for a reason, and the power that comes from dealing outside of it soon turns him to even darker decisions.
4. Carldon, a young scamp and thief. An orphan whose brother is off patrolling the forest border. Left without a family, Carldon has been forced to take care of himself. His thievery, however, is mostly allowed, since he always pays... with small piles of feathers. Despite his faults, none know the paths of the forest and the quickest ways better than him.
5. The Lady of Glencott dale. Currently unnamed, this mysterious lady lives alone in a ramshackle hut and is known for not being known. No one ventures near her for reasons not exactly understood, but greatly feared. Except for Carldon, who has been seen trespassing with apparent impunity on the circle of forest she claims. Legend claims, however, that she talks to herself or her teapots, and that, of course, is fair enough reason to stay well away.
Well, those be the cast of characters we plan on bringing to life sometime this summer! And that concludes this short series on the necessary ingredients of a good film. But this film still has a while to go, so there'll be more info popping up here, including, of course, the name of the series... which we still haven't figured out...
What's next, you ask? Well, Breggo's working on the script, we've a few more names to figure out, and I've got some concept sketches I've got to dash off here soon. Maybe I'll put a few up here! Until next time, then;
Farjag
March 8, 2012
Of Story and Setting
So, we got the structure and script last post; now story and setting!
Now, I have trouble writing scripts, (Just yesterday me and Breggo agreed to transfer scriptwriting responsibilities), for the simple reason that I find it hard to connect on an emotional level with a format that doesn't really allow a lot of room for moments of silence, eyebrow raises, withering glares, etc. I just find the formatting constricting. I can direct a movie, produce a movie, or act in a movie, but I just can't write the script. It's annoying, trust me.
But even though that's the case, I can still pitch a good story. And we need a good story, because with the rather strict structure we have to follow, (keeping the episodes small enough so they won't take up a lot of time or actors) there needs to be a very clear plot line and character arcs. Because when you cut down on scale, special effects, even time, all that matters is the characters. If the audience doesn't connect with the characters, or they are too flat, or never change, then the project is a failure. (Box-office flop! :P)
So what are we left with? A character-driven story set somewhere quiet. It's a lot like a design project in my classes, you are given certain requirements and restrictions and have to create a solution that solves all problems and does not go beyond the limits. And there's one final restriction; bad guy minions. Now this may seem to fall under the "Not too many extras" category, it's a little more complicated than that. Because what are minions for? Being beat up by the heroes. Which means you need a lot. And unless you mask them, you can't use the same actors over and over again. And how many movies have the generic "Black-masked ninja minions"? Too many. A few of ours, to be perfectly honest. So we must create a villain without minions. Tricky. But that's where designing comes in. To paraphrase a good friend of mine, "Use the restrictions to your advantage." In other words "Think outside the box, then use the box."
I mean, how many villains do you know who don't have some sort of minions? Not many. And that's what makes this story special. Because we are left with a villain who must turn the heroes on each other to accomplish his goal. And that's pretty cool, if you ask me.
So, what's our plot? To summarize (Without spoilers!):
When a revered master hunter is found dead in his home, suspicion falls on his former apprentice. To prove his innocence, he sets out on the trail of the mysterious vigilante he knows is responsible. But when he finally catches up to his prey, he finds something he did not expect.
So now that we have a plot, we need a place to put it, a setting for our story. Well, we know we need to keep extras down, as well as sets simple. Now I don't know about you, but nothing is easier to film in than the woods. No worries about anything being in the shot that's not supposed to be there, there's nothing to set-up, and you can move a stone's throw down the trail and film an entirely different scene. So, we came up with a great Forest, whose folk live in on small farms scattered throughout. This creates a loosely tied society, where there are no towns, but perhaps a market, no taverns, but perhaps a watering hole. It also allows for a character interaction that works quite well in episode form. The heroes meet one person in the woods, he helps them out, then can disappear for a while before coming back. It's not like some shows you see where some random person (who's supposedly been living in town all this time) pops up for one episode, then vanishes without a trace (even though he never left town). When the people are scattered around a huge forest, it's less likely they'll meet up often.
Of course, this begs the question, who exactly lives in this great Forest? What characters shall we meet in this tale? Well, that comes next time! Try not to die of anxiety in the meantime :)
Now, I have trouble writing scripts, (Just yesterday me and Breggo agreed to transfer scriptwriting responsibilities), for the simple reason that I find it hard to connect on an emotional level with a format that doesn't really allow a lot of room for moments of silence, eyebrow raises, withering glares, etc. I just find the formatting constricting. I can direct a movie, produce a movie, or act in a movie, but I just can't write the script. It's annoying, trust me.
But even though that's the case, I can still pitch a good story. And we need a good story, because with the rather strict structure we have to follow, (keeping the episodes small enough so they won't take up a lot of time or actors) there needs to be a very clear plot line and character arcs. Because when you cut down on scale, special effects, even time, all that matters is the characters. If the audience doesn't connect with the characters, or they are too flat, or never change, then the project is a failure. (Box-office flop! :P)
So what are we left with? A character-driven story set somewhere quiet. It's a lot like a design project in my classes, you are given certain requirements and restrictions and have to create a solution that solves all problems and does not go beyond the limits. And there's one final restriction; bad guy minions. Now this may seem to fall under the "Not too many extras" category, it's a little more complicated than that. Because what are minions for? Being beat up by the heroes. Which means you need a lot. And unless you mask them, you can't use the same actors over and over again. And how many movies have the generic "Black-masked ninja minions"? Too many. A few of ours, to be perfectly honest. So we must create a villain without minions. Tricky. But that's where designing comes in. To paraphrase a good friend of mine, "Use the restrictions to your advantage." In other words "Think outside the box, then use the box."
I mean, how many villains do you know who don't have some sort of minions? Not many. And that's what makes this story special. Because we are left with a villain who must turn the heroes on each other to accomplish his goal. And that's pretty cool, if you ask me.
So, what's our plot? To summarize (Without spoilers!):
When a revered master hunter is found dead in his home, suspicion falls on his former apprentice. To prove his innocence, he sets out on the trail of the mysterious vigilante he knows is responsible. But when he finally catches up to his prey, he finds something he did not expect.
So now that we have a plot, we need a place to put it, a setting for our story. Well, we know we need to keep extras down, as well as sets simple. Now I don't know about you, but nothing is easier to film in than the woods. No worries about anything being in the shot that's not supposed to be there, there's nothing to set-up, and you can move a stone's throw down the trail and film an entirely different scene. So, we came up with a great Forest, whose folk live in on small farms scattered throughout. This creates a loosely tied society, where there are no towns, but perhaps a market, no taverns, but perhaps a watering hole. It also allows for a character interaction that works quite well in episode form. The heroes meet one person in the woods, he helps them out, then can disappear for a while before coming back. It's not like some shows you see where some random person (who's supposedly been living in town all this time) pops up for one episode, then vanishes without a trace (even though he never left town). When the people are scattered around a huge forest, it's less likely they'll meet up often.
Of course, this begs the question, who exactly lives in this great Forest? What characters shall we meet in this tale? Well, that comes next time! Try not to die of anxiety in the meantime :)
March 5, 2012
Of Celluloid, Scripts and Structure
Well, some of ya'll might know, and some of ya'll might not, but, in addition to being a writer, I do a great deal of dabbling in directing. As of right now, I am one credits song and some cg shots away from finishing my current movie (which I happen to have been working on for two years now), so it's time to start a new one!
I will actually not be directing this particular one, my good friend Breggo will, (He's the one who cowrote the Soldier's Words song with me), so I fall into my common role of Producer. Which basically means I'm responsible for making sure everything gets done and can be done. We don't have a castle? We'll build one! We don't have a waterfall? Switch it to a quiet pond.
However, I also happen to be the scriptwriter on this one. Which is tricky. Why? Because I am not a scriptwriter. I am a novel writer. Script formatting annoys me. In fact, even though I am writing in the script in a slightly organized way, I am absconding the usual formatting for my own invention, which basically reads like parts of the Old English Pilgrim's Progress. You know, where they have:
Christian: bla bla bla
Faithful: bla bla bla
Chris: bla bla bla
Faith: bla bla bla
Anyways... that's pretty close to how I'm doing it. Because, in the end, it really doesn't matter how the paper is set up, as long as the story is told well and comes across the right way. So, before I can even set about writing the script, we have to have a good story. But before we get that, we have to have a structure. Because not only does it have to be a good story, but we have to be able to tell it well. And that means we get a few practical limitations.
1. We have to be able to film most (if not all), in camera. Special effects and computer graphics can be done, but for a no-budget film... yea. It becomes hard to find free stuff there.
2. We have to have enough actors. When your extras are under twenty, you can't do a full-scale battle. Well, you can... but it won't look good. (Trust me, I speak from experience)
3. We have to have good locations. We don't have the luxury of Peter Jackson to be able to go to New Zealand. Which means any locations 1) need to be close and 2) have to look semi-realistic without too much modification. We can't exactly build Helm's Deep in the back woods.
4. We have to keep the time requirements down. Most of our actors are at least in high school if not college, probably have a part time job, and definitely have a family who takes first precedence. If we can do it just as well in a shorter time, then don't do it
So, what are we left with? A short movie, with minimal actors, minimal locations, and nothing too spectacular. And after much debate and discussion, me and Breggo think we have the answer. A series of short episodes focusing around four or five main characters, all set out in the woods. And because we can, and we love to, it's set in a middle ages period. Bring out the swords, baby!
What's next? The story! But that's coming next post. Hold onto your seats till then, folks!
Farjag, Producer/Scriptwriter
I will actually not be directing this particular one, my good friend Breggo will, (He's the one who cowrote the Soldier's Words song with me), so I fall into my common role of Producer. Which basically means I'm responsible for making sure everything gets done and can be done. We don't have a castle? We'll build one! We don't have a waterfall? Switch it to a quiet pond.
However, I also happen to be the scriptwriter on this one. Which is tricky. Why? Because I am not a scriptwriter. I am a novel writer. Script formatting annoys me. In fact, even though I am writing in the script in a slightly organized way, I am absconding the usual formatting for my own invention, which basically reads like parts of the Old English Pilgrim's Progress. You know, where they have:
Christian: bla bla bla
Faithful: bla bla bla
Chris: bla bla bla
Faith: bla bla bla
Anyways... that's pretty close to how I'm doing it. Because, in the end, it really doesn't matter how the paper is set up, as long as the story is told well and comes across the right way. So, before I can even set about writing the script, we have to have a good story. But before we get that, we have to have a structure. Because not only does it have to be a good story, but we have to be able to tell it well. And that means we get a few practical limitations.
1. We have to be able to film most (if not all), in camera. Special effects and computer graphics can be done, but for a no-budget film... yea. It becomes hard to find free stuff there.
2. We have to have enough actors. When your extras are under twenty, you can't do a full-scale battle. Well, you can... but it won't look good. (Trust me, I speak from experience)
3. We have to have good locations. We don't have the luxury of Peter Jackson to be able to go to New Zealand. Which means any locations 1) need to be close and 2) have to look semi-realistic without too much modification. We can't exactly build Helm's Deep in the back woods.
4. We have to keep the time requirements down. Most of our actors are at least in high school if not college, probably have a part time job, and definitely have a family who takes first precedence. If we can do it just as well in a shorter time, then don't do it
So, what are we left with? A short movie, with minimal actors, minimal locations, and nothing too spectacular. And after much debate and discussion, me and Breggo think we have the answer. A series of short episodes focusing around four or five main characters, all set out in the woods. And because we can, and we love to, it's set in a middle ages period. Bring out the swords, baby!
What's next? The story! But that's coming next post. Hold onto your seats till then, folks!
Farjag, Producer/Scriptwriter
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