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THREAD: STORIES WITH HEART
This got me thinking about my process, and I wanted to share.
The reason this one hit me is that I don't *try* to do this, add heart to a screenplay. I don't focus on, "How can I make this emotionally resonant?"
1/8 https://twitter.com/JJSmithPrime/status/1320477838479257601
This got me thinking about my process, and I wanted to share.
The reason this one hit me is that I don't *try* to do this, add heart to a screenplay. I don't focus on, "How can I make this emotionally resonant?"
1/8 https://twitter.com/JJSmithPrime/status/1320477838479257601
Instead, my focus is on my characters and building relationships between them, whether the relationship existed prior to the story's beginning or develops within the narrative framework.
2/8
2/8
If it's pre-existing, I want to show the characters in their authentic moments of showing affection, implying as much backstory as I can so it doesn't come across as "Wait, this is a thing now?"
3/8
3/8
If it's new, I want them to come together (not necessarily romantically) in a way that is authentic to each character's core personality, which I've hopefully established early on in the script.
4/8
4/8
Usually it's a matter of finding common ground between two disparate personalities. Other times there's an instant connection before they even learn about each other. In that case, I want it to reveal something about the character we didn't know before.
5/8
5/8
It doesn't have to be a common goal. I feel like that's a shortcut many movies take. "Well, the protagonist wants this, therefore I want it, too, and we'll grow together through shared trauma."
6/8
6/8
I think of it as I think of how real life relationships work. Sometimes you meet someone, and you immediately "get them". Sometimes there's a navigation before you come together.
7/8
7/8
Either way, it's authentic and organic. It's never to service the story, rather it's a consequence of characters coming together and learning who they are.
Build relationships. Don't force them.
8/8
Build relationships. Don't force them.
8/8
