I decided to look at writer M.A Fortin, who has written a few short mystery drama films that, although worked on a very small budget, was still successful and enticing to the audience.
I was really intrigued by the short film 'Dawn' directed by Rose McGowan and written by M.A Fortin. The short film is a mystery drama that has a very twisted and confusing ending but is still interesting.
The short film follows the story of Dawn, a submissive, sweet and 'easy going' girl. Her mother is very strict with her, and her father ignores her. She is desperate to explore the world around her, and when a boy comes along, she instantly is attracted to him.
The writer has cleverly shown a distinct change of Dawn throughout the film. At the beginning of the film she's very sweet, quiet, polite and innocent. Dawn wouldn't dare drink, or disobey her parents. She is portrayed in pastel clothing and very girly hair and clothes. During act 2 of the film, Dawn becomes friends with the boy's friends and is pressured into drinking and disobeying her parents by going out on the night to see a movie, and ends up in a car with the other characters driving around.
One of the female characters persuades Dawn to trade dresses with her, to try confuse the boys. Dawn is easily influenced and goes along with the idea as she wants to fit in.
The man she likes, throws a rock at her, but then convinces her to follow him into the tree's, which she does - showing she is a very submissive character. Dawn is shouting at him, which she wouldn't do at the beginning of the film, and is now shown looking scruffy and tired - completely different to the original image. The man shoots Dawn in a twist ending, and the reason behind it was 'he just wanted to try it out'.
I liked how the characters are quiet relatable to mine, in the sense that Bethany changes throughout the film, she starts off as a shy girl and ends up paranoid, and loud. Bethany is also a very submissive character as she always does what Francis says and even though he says hurtful things such as 'the role is too much' for her, she still has respect for him and his opinions, trying to convince him that she can do it, even though in reality, she doesn't need his approval at all, and she can go and do whatever roles she wants.
I decided to look into screenwriter Dennis Palumbo, a man who has written a variety of stories such as MIRROR IMAGE, FEVER DREAM and NIGHT TERROS.
Dennis always captivates readers with his puzzles, fast paced narratives and intriguing dilemmas.
In an interview he tells us his techniques behind writing and some advice for new writers.
Dennis,
''I usually start with a character or situation in mind, and then just start
https://www.writersstore.com/taking-the-mystery-out-of-writing-mysteries/
In an interview,
''I usually don't know who the bad guy is until about halfway through. Then I have to go back and seed in the kinds of details that make the reveal of his or her identity credible. On the plus side, I figure that if I'm surprised, the reader will be too.''
Although this is a really different way of writing, I think the idea that the writer is surprised and shocked by who the suspect is, makes it more intriguing.
In an interesting read on https://www.writersstore.com/taking-the-mystery-out-of-writing-mysteries/ Dennis gives a very detailed overview of what do's and don'ts to put in mystery stories.
''Viewers of mysteries and thrillers like tightly-plotted narratives, clever red herrings, and a certain element of surprise. And you should always strive to weave as many of these aspects into your whodunit or crime story as possible.''
Looking in my script, I realised I was trying to make everyone look suspicious, but I didn't actually show an interesting subplot. My main subplot was George planning his and Bethany's wedding, and he would eventually propose to her. However, I felt like this lacked depth. I introduced Lucy to the situation with George and wrote in that Bethany see's them together. In my mind this was a red flag as I didn't want it to look like George was cheating on Lucy. However, after a tutorial going over my script, Simon told me that the idea that George was cheating on Bethany, especially with her sister, would make an interesting subplot to make Bethany's character even more paranoid and anxious about what's going on. I feel like this now add's the element of surprise as Dennis discusses and hopefully will make the viewers intrigued into the stories that each individual character has.
''The best clues in a classic mystery involve misdirection. A clue usually seems to point in one direction, when actually, looked at from a different angle, it reveals something else. A typical example is the clue that appears to confirm a certain character's guilt, when in fact it's been planted to frame that person.''
I think Dennis makes an interesting point here, as in my script I have made Daniel look guilty right from the beginning, however, obviously he is a red herring or the story would end there.
''If you're stuck on a difficult scene, write it anyway.
Write it badly. Write it in verse. Write it as a journal entry, a Dennis Miller rant. If you're frustrated at being stuck, write about that. I don't care. But write.
If you have angry, self-critical feelings, give them to a character in your story.''
I often struggle to write difficult scenes, even if I have already pictured what it will be like. So reading this advice from Dennis definitely helps. I never thought to throw my feelings into a characters life, which may help develop characters more, as it's coming directly from my emotions. I think just writing out the difficult scene will definitely help, as I will at least have it on the page, and I can have a fresh look on it the next time I write, instead of still stressing about still not having the scene written.
Stephen J. Cannell was an American writer, producer and novelist. Although he was dyslexic he scripted more than 450 episodes and produced more than 1,500 episodes. He has written sixteen bestselling mysteries including The Prostitues' Ball, The Pallbearers, and On the Grind.
In a lecture that has been posted on http://www.writerswrite.com/screenwriting/lecture5.htm
Stephen has given some tips and advice on writing.
''A screenwriter should look for places to integrate his/her screenplay with toe-to-toe, eyeball-to-eyeball CONFLICT: social conflict, emotional conflict.
Conflict is crucial in maintaining the reader's interest in the story and in the characters.''
Whilst writing, I have been trying to always make sure there is conflict between the characters as when adding it in, it does add another dimension to even the characters. When Bethany confronts the Agent, it shows that as a character she is developing. Before all the stress, Bethany wouldn't have ever confronted a complete stranger. Another conflict I wrote in, was when Bethany and her boyfriend George, have a heated argument over Bethany looking through his things. Bethany has always admired George, she is very timid around him, and although has an intense love for him, she wouldn't ever raise her voice as it's just generally not in her nature. So when she finally breaks down in front of him, I feel as though the audience will also see how she's changing, and so will George.
''In good stories, you start out with a likeable Hero(s) who have psychological and moral flaws. He/she must be likeable enough to entertain and intrigue us, but flawed enough to have the potential to learn and grow. Remember, "perfect" people are not likeable!''
Reading this, has made me want to develop the character Francis deeper. Although I feel he is one of the most detailed characters, I want to make sure he's likeable to the audience, not coming off as an ignorant person. In the script I've tried to make him 'charming' although, reading back now, I've noticed he does come off as quite arrogant and ignorant - which I intend to change, as I don't want the audience to not like him and assume he is the stalker.
Overall, I feel watching short films on low budgets, and reading q and a's from writers has really developed my thinking as a writer. I am going to carry on writing my script and make sure I remember what I've learnt from these writers as it will definitely help my characters and story develop in an intriguing way.
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