Script Writing

“All of our storytelling theories have one thing in common, all revolve around one central idea: the incomplete is made complete; sense is made.”

“Great characters are consciously or subconsciously at war with themselves.”

― John Yorke, Into the Woods: A Five Act Journey Into Story

I took these quotes and tried to apply them to my story, especially the second one. I really liked the idea of how true conflict is not through external influences, but rather internal. This is important to my story due to how it’s about the character’s internal dilemma about wanting to be a “man,” but also wanting to express his emotions.

When writing the script, I also considered greatly the pacing. It shouldn’t be too choppy or slow paced; there needs to be variation in pacing. I used WriterDuet to write the script, that has been extremely helpful as they have built in features to aid in the script writing format. I have also this platform for my AS project, so it was very easy to navigate.

Revised timeline based on script (V4): 

1. Gary is coming home from school, looking at a piece of artwork that got an F with tears in his eyes, his father scolds him disappointedly and telling him to “suck it up” and that “be a man” 

2. Blink cut 

3. Cuts to the older him being in a room where his name is called, he’s sitting on a chair outside an office, holding a piece reminiscent of the artwork from previously as if to pitch this piece to a client, he looks at the artwork before being called into the office 

4. He enters the office excited and energetic, then coming out with a deflated expression, looking way more haggard, sighing deeply as he holds back his tears, whispering to himself that “boys don’t cry” 

5. He throws the artwork into a rejected box when he gets home (living room), it’s dark and grey and gloomy, the shot is in between a doorway, and he walks out of frame to the left 

6. Then, starting from the right, the lighting has changed in his home (living room, a revised version of the rejected artwork hung on the walls) into something warmer and we see him carrying his newly wed bride into the home from the left, they’re giggling, it’s happy  

7. It cuts to a shot of them slightly older, in the living room. Gary walks in from the left and loosens off his tie, looking disheartened and solemn, not necessarily sad, just detached.  

8. He walks towards a bookshelf/shelf and takes out the white flower from his suit pocket. Placing it in front of a family photo (implying a funeral and death), there should also be an artwork of his near the family photo, illustrating a quiet rebellion (close up) 

9. His wife comes up behind him and places a hand on his shoulder, comforting him by saying “he was a good man...” and after a beat he says, "you know he always used to tell me toughen up..." and he lets out a dry emotionless chuckle. she adds, “you know you can feel sad with me hun... crying doesn’t make you weak...” (then fade out) 

10. Then the lighting of the home fades into something else (purple/pink maybe?) and we see Gary bringing boxes into the house as if the couple moved (new house and is not between a doorway anymore)  

    1. the open space setting also represents how he is no longer confined to these toxic ideals of masculinity

11. He comes in from the right, holding a box and yelling to his wife about getting something for her, putting down the box to frame up the rejected artwork again 

12. He unpacks the boxes sees the drawing he did as a child in the rejected box and chuckles, caressing it 

13. He holds the childhood drawing up, glancing between the two works and starts crying, ugly crying 

14. As he finishes, we hear a soft crying sound in the background (implying the second generation)