TRANSITION – a character who is on the threshold of a new life but not yet able to let go of the previous stage of their life. Eg adolescence to adulthood (Y Tu Mamma). Moments where a character is facing a different kind of adulthood – eg. The Good Girl is about giving up freedom, and About Shmidt is about to retire from his job, and Stand By Me is about a girl who is going to high school. All of the main characters here are facing a new bit of life and are reluctant to leave their old bit of life.
CHARACTERS. Rites of Passage characters have to face change that is inevitable – often it’s ‘time’ or ‘age’ bringing a new situation into your life that you aren’t ready yet to live. The characters ATTITUDE has to change.They have to learn what it is they want. They might not achieve moving on or have to accept they can’t have what they used to have. These characters are often taken away in order to learn what it is that they need to learn.There is often a section in a ROP they term ‘creating a space to learn’ – eg Y Tu Mamma – they go to the beach, About Shmidt – goes to Denver.
Rites of Passage characters are ‘incomplete,’ and active – they want to do things and are restless, searching.They are stuck at a moment in their lives but aren’t conscious and search around for something to do. They find somewhere to go, which is an actual journey. ROP characters make active choices but do something completely different. They usually do a form of ‘distraction’ which in some way connects. They are trying to hold on to something. They are heading towards a moment of understanding.
They don’t know what’s wrong – so they don’t know how to tell anyone what’s wrong.
HIGH STAKES
The stakes matter to the audience more than the character. We can see what’s really wrong. We care about them because we recognise something about them. We have to care. Not a surprise ending – we have to see where this character needs to get to.
JOURNEYS
Often take characters away from normal life – that is away from their usual reality (eg in The Good Girl she has an affair).
DEATH
Often literal sometimes metaphorical. ROP is as much about letting go as it is about moving on.
CATALYST – death is a way of allowing themselves to face up to what they need to face up to. Stand By Me – finding the body he needs to accept his brother is dead and that’s the way he is going to live – he is then able to stand upto Keifer Sutherland character. About Shmidt – finally he has to accept his daughter is going to marry and the death of his idea of what his daughter was. He has to face the fact that his relationship as it was, is dead. This is what allows him to face up to his wife’s death.
Death is often what most of us are trying to come to terms with and another (sort of) death is often a way they come to terms with it.
VOICEOVER
ROP often need a voiceover when they don’t have a confidant. Eg. About Shmidt letters.
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Drama and Rites of Passage 'Shapes"
At the one-day genre course at The Scriptfactory Kate Leys talked about how there are no tick boxes or formula etc to write in either of these dramas. However she suggests what can be useful, is to look at what 'shape' these genres take.
A group of people facing a crucial pivotal moment in their life. Change needs to happen, could happen, might happen.
Multiple protagonists (which spreads the goal across the range). Varied goals, several different people will have varying goals eg Little Miss Sunshine.
Conflict. Comes from part of the situation, not a bad guy. Comes from whatever it is that happened or is happening. Change. Some of the characters change and some don’t. There are a range of possible reactions. We can see that they've changed (or not).
Goal. People don’t usually begin with a goal – the goal comes along. The goals are met across a range. (often leaving an awful lot of room for what is going to happen after the credits).
‘Acceptance’ is often the ending. Resolution is often left with us. Eg. Little Miss Sunshine we can see how far they have come even if they can’t.
RITES OF PASSAGE SHAPE
Will generally have a single protagonist.
Goal – The goal is with us (we have a goal for the characters). They will typically have a goal but it will be nothing to do with what they really need ( their goal is usually a displacement activity, and this activity is usually related to the theme in some way). We can see the character needs something but they can’t.
Conflict. Is internal, generated by themselves.
Change. Will change by going through some kind of rites of passage. They reach a new part of their lives and let go of an old part.
Resolution. We see they’ve achieved their goal. Doesn't have to be a good end - somebody has gone through a rites of passage and now feel whole. They often know they have changed.
Rites of Passage – are usually set in the past, as the characters do not understand their situations and selves immediately. So for eg Stand By Me is a memory, About Shmitd told in letters.
* DISCLAIMER. I'm not the world's best note taker, but I wanted to make these notes available to folk who couldn't make the class or couldn't afford it etc, in the hope someone may find them useful. So if I've got anything wrong, TUFF.
DRAMA SHAPE
Is characterised by …A group of people facing a crucial pivotal moment in their life. Change needs to happen, could happen, might happen.
Multiple protagonists (which spreads the goal across the range). Varied goals, several different people will have varying goals eg Little Miss Sunshine.
Conflict. Comes from part of the situation, not a bad guy. Comes from whatever it is that happened or is happening. Change. Some of the characters change and some don’t. There are a range of possible reactions. We can see that they've changed (or not).
Goal. People don’t usually begin with a goal – the goal comes along. The goals are met across a range. (often leaving an awful lot of room for what is going to happen after the credits).
‘Acceptance’ is often the ending. Resolution is often left with us. Eg. Little Miss Sunshine we can see how far they have come even if they can’t.
RITES OF PASSAGE SHAPE
Will generally have a single protagonist.
Goal – The goal is with us (we have a goal for the characters). They will typically have a goal but it will be nothing to do with what they really need ( their goal is usually a displacement activity, and this activity is usually related to the theme in some way). We can see the character needs something but they can’t.
Conflict. Is internal, generated by themselves.
Change. Will change by going through some kind of rites of passage. They reach a new part of their lives and let go of an old part.
Resolution. We see they’ve achieved their goal. Doesn't have to be a good end - somebody has gone through a rites of passage and now feel whole. They often know they have changed.
Rites of Passage – are usually set in the past, as the characters do not understand their situations and selves immediately. So for eg Stand By Me is a memory, About Shmitd told in letters.
* DISCLAIMER. I'm not the world's best note taker, but I wanted to make these notes available to folk who couldn't make the class or couldn't afford it etc, in the hope someone may find them useful. So if I've got anything wrong, TUFF.
“Story”
(general notes)
Stories have to be…
Organized (structured)
Usually into a continuous narrative and they have an ending
About CHANGE – the impact of one thing on another.
Need characters for us to follow.
The journey a character takes is how we follow the story
Kate argues that there aren’t “7”, or “8” or “13” stories, but ONE. And that is “A stranger comes to town.”
You may need to kill this stranger, absorb it, deal with it, etc.
The stranger brings conflict, change, that the character will have to deal with in some way, usually by achieving some kind of maturity. Or the character deals with it by using skills they already have (but didn’t realise).
Stories have to be…
Organized (structured)
Usually into a continuous narrative and they have an ending
About CHANGE – the impact of one thing on another.
Need characters for us to follow.
The journey a character takes is how we follow the story
Kate argues that there aren’t “7”, or “8” or “13” stories, but ONE. And that is “A stranger comes to town.”
You may need to kill this stranger, absorb it, deal with it, etc.
The stranger brings conflict, change, that the character will have to deal with in some way, usually by achieving some kind of maturity. Or the character deals with it by using skills they already have (but didn’t realise).
Drama and Rites of Passage examples
Starting to type my notes from the scriptfactory...
Little Miss Sunshine
The Ice Storm
Little Children
All About Eve
One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest
Magnolia
American Beauty
The Queen
It’s a Wonderful Life
Breakfast Club
American Grafitti
Big Chill
Notes on a Scandal
21 Grams
In the Bedroom
12 Angry Young Men
Babel
You Me and Everyone We Know
Stand by Me
Tu Mamma Tambien
My Summer of Love
About Shmitt
The Good Girl
(The Virgin Suicides)
DRAMAS
The GodfatherLittle Miss Sunshine
The Ice Storm
Little Children
All About Eve
One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest
Magnolia
American Beauty
The Queen
It’s a Wonderful Life
Breakfast Club
American Grafitti
Big Chill
Notes on a Scandal
21 Grams
In the Bedroom
12 Angry Young Men
Babel
You Me and Everyone We Know
RITES OF PASSAGE
Stand by Me
Tu Mamma Tambien
My Summer of Love
About Shmitt
The Good Girl
(The Virgin Suicides)
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
British Films
According to some survey (think somewhere on UKFC site) we, as British audiences
LIKE
New talent
Authenticity/believability
Humour
Intelligent/amoral
Unsentimental
Clever
‘our voice’
DISLIKE
Up North dramaWorking class reality
Depressing/grim
“samey”
Predictable
Mundane
Films that look too much like TV
Monday, March 5, 2007
NewWriting NeWorlds festival – call for submissions
The NewWriting NewWorlds Festival in Glasgow is currently accepting script submissions for this year's new writing festival at Gilmorehill G12 in June, which will be part of the Glasgow West End Festival.
Plays selected will receive development with the festival dramaturgical team and a full production at the NewWriting NewWorlds Festival, said the organizers.
Performances should be less than 30minutes in length, require no more than six performers and have minimal set and staging.
All submissions should have a cover letter with the title, author's name and contacts. Post three copies with a cover letter by March 15th 2007 to: Suzi Simpson, Artistic Director, New Writing, NewWorlds 2007 Flat 0/1, 25 Belmont Street, Glasgow, G12 8ER or emailmailto:newwriting_newworlds
Brand Literary Magazine- Call for submissions
Brand is a new literary magazine edited by Guild Member Nina Rapi and published by the Creative Writing Programme, University of Greenwich. Poetry editor is Cherry Smyth. Contributing editors include Ali Smith, Yang Lian, Shaun Levin, Caroline Smith, Amarjit Chandan, Ersi Sotiropoulou, Alev Adil, Nina Steiger. Brand is bi-annual and the first issue comes out in June 2007.
Brand is looking for writing that takes risks formally and/or thematically; has a strong voice/is engaged and challenging; is culturally diverse. We welcome international work and translations. We are focusing on the short form and are looking for high quality writing in any of the following: short stories (max. 2.500 words); short plays or performance texts (max. 10 minutes); micro-fiction (up to five pieces and/or a total of 500 words); poetry (you can submit up to three poems and max of 40 lines each); creative non-fiction (e.g. memoir and literary essays, max. 2000 words).
Please submit work (2 copies) to: Managing Editor Michael Langan, Creative Writing Programme, EPS, School of Humanities, King William Building, University of Greenwich, Old Naval College, Park Row, Greenwich, London SE10 9LS. Please email m.langan@gre.ac.ukfor further information .The deadline is: 19TH of March 2007.
Brand is looking for writing that takes risks formally and/or thematically; has a strong voice/is engaged and challenging; is culturally diverse. We welcome international work and translations. We are focusing on the short form and are looking for high quality writing in any of the following: short stories (max. 2.500 words); short plays or performance texts (max. 10 minutes); micro-fiction (up to five pieces and/or a total of 500 words); poetry (you can submit up to three poems and max of 40 lines each); creative non-fiction (e.g. memoir and literary essays, max. 2000 words).
Please submit work (2 copies) to: Managing Editor Michael Langan, Creative Writing Programme, EPS, School of Humanities, King William Building, University of Greenwich, Old Naval College, Park Row, Greenwich, London SE10 9LS. Please email m.langan@gre.ac.ukfor further information .The deadline is: 19TH of March 2007.
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