screenwriters toolkit

In the world of music, most bands, when asked what their style of music is, will say that it is “unique.” The same can be true for genre. Many independent films are mis-categorized by the mainstream genres out there. Your task: Make up your own genre. Give it a name and define 2 of its’ main characteristics. Now, write a 1 to 2-page scene in your genre.

Expository dialogue builds our characters personality. It gives the audience a chance to learn more about who our character is. For example, in the movie “Adaptation,” much of the voice over that is used is built as an internal monologue that gives the audience an idea of the main character, Charlie’s intense inner critic. Your Task: Identify one scene in a movie where expository dialogue is used. Now, write your own 1-page scene that involves this kind of dialogue.

Dialogue can be used as an exposition of character. It can also be used to advance action. Advancing action moves the plot forward from one scene to the next. Your task: Write a 2-page scene where dialogue is used to advance action.

Writing dialogue is not only an exercise in writing about the way people talk. It includes writing why we say or don’t say the things we do. Your task: List the last 5 conversations you had. Answer these questions: Did I say everything I wanted to say? Why or why not? What did I leave out? What is my general attitude when I talk? How does it change depending on who I’m with? Now, write a 2-page scene with you as one of the characters. Repeat one of these conversations as if you had said everything you wanted to say.

What defines the way you talk? Do people see you differently because of it? Your task: Make a list of 3 things that define your characters personality. List 2 ways this personality reflects in the way they talk. Now, write a 1-page scene with dialogue that represents their personality.

Adding depth and balance to your characters will create a richer story. Your Task: Take an over-the-top character from a hilarious comedy you’ve seen and write a one-page essay about their emotional life. Now, take a character from a moving drama that you’ve seen and list 10 things they do for fun.

Here’s a test on creating effective character descriptions. Your Task: Pick 10 characters you’ve seen in movies. Write a 1-sentence description for each of them. Make it as accurate as possible. Now, bring these descriptions to a friend who has seen these movies. See if they can guess who it is.

Using the people around us, let’s take a moment to practice creating characters. Your Task: Make a list of 15 people you know. Write a one-paragraph character description for each of them. Include at least one characteristic that is unique.

Do you know what’s happening in your character’s sub-conscious? Creating real characters means understanding issues from their past, deeper motivations and other thoughts that don’t lurk on the surface. Your Task: Consider the following situation: Your character was just caught lying and is being confronted right now. Now, Journal from your character’s POV with the following statement: “While my conscious thoughts are… My sub-conscious is saying…”

How revealing is your character’s diary? Your Task: Keep a personal diary for your main antagonist and protagonist for one week. Write at least one entry per day for each.