Internal/external - your process

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  • Internal/external - your process

    We all know that one of the ingredients is that what a protag wants and what he needs are often two different things - or that in order to satisfy an internal need he must achieve an external objective - ie: Rocky "wins" respect and self worth - "Yo, Adrian, I did it!" even though he lost the fight.

    My question is when do you develop this aspect of your script? I assume that for many the process for formulating an idea starts the same way:

    1) A basic premise springs up: "what if..."

    2) Development - fleshing out of basic plot details - inciting incident, who's who, a few action sequences etc.

    3) And then a decision is made whether the idea excites you, whether you think it's got legs to warrant further development.

    Is this when you devise the internal/external and/or the CDA? Or do you write the story and, as some pros say, this stuff just happens, even if they're not consciously aware of it?. Do you focus mostly on the I/E, mostly on the surface level plot, is it 50/50 for you, or do you juggle everything at the same time?

    On my first scripts I pondered the I/E shortly after my initial idea and then set about the script yet on my last script I focussed on a defined CDA (inspired by the CDA thread) and yet a clear I/E was borne without me even realising it until I analysed it after it was finished. Which both surprised and impressed me.


    Edit: focussing on the CDA led to sharper dialogue with richer subtext whilst when I previously focussed on I/E I had a clearer sense of character arcs.
    Last edited by SundownInRetreat; 09-06-2012, 03:28 PM.
    M.A.G.A.

  • #2
    Re: Internal/external - your process

    Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
    My question is when do you develop this aspect of your script? I assume that for many the process for formulating an idea starts the same way:

    1) A basic premise springs up: "what if..."

    2) Development - fleshing out of basic plot details - inciting incident, who's who, a few action sequences etc.

    3) And then a decision is made whether the idea excites you, whether you think it's got legs to warrant further development.
    Pretty close to the process I use -- except I always start with a scene, some idea I get from listening to a song, or something, and then just start writing it. From there I ask the questions, "Who is this guy?" "How did he get here?" "Where's he going?" "How's this going to end?" "How is it going to start?" "Does this have story potential?" (Most don't.)

    The internal conflict stuff is usually just part of the character when I see them in the scene. Sometimes I try to develop it a little. But, to me, the story and the situation dictate the character arc -- not the other way around.
    Last edited by Centos; 09-06-2012, 09:51 PM. Reason: Too much example.
    STANDARD DISCLAIMER: I'm a wannabe, take whatever I write with a huge grain of salt.

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    • #3
      Re: Internal/external - your process

      I just write and that **** comes together.

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      • #4
        Re: Internal/external - your process

        Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
        We all know that one of the ingredients is that what a protag wants and what he needs are often two different things - or that in order to satisfy an internal need he must achieve an external objective - ie: Rocky "wins" respect and self worth - "Yo, Adrian, I did it!" even though he lost the fight.

        My question is when do you develop this aspect of your script? I assume that for many the process for formulating an idea starts the same way:

        1) A basic premise springs up: "what if..."

        2) Development - fleshing out of basic plot details - inciting incident, who's who, a few action sequences etc.

        3) And then a decision is made whether the idea excites you, whether you think it's got legs to warrant further development.

        Is this when you devise the internal/external and/or the CDA?
        It depends upon the premise. Is the premise about a character like Rocky, or is the premise about an event like War of the Worlds? In a screenplay like War Of The Worlds you must at some point in the process create a protag through whom we experience the action.
        Last edited by jonpiper; 09-09-2012, 04:18 PM. Reason: Was going to elaborate, but didn't.

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        • #5
          Re: Internal/external - your process

          Day one.

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          • #6
            Re: Internal/external - your process

            Yeah, I think you gotta know this about a character from the jump. Pretty crucial. Sometimes you can get it wrong and rewrite, but, right or wrong, I don't see how someone starts a script without having those primary character elements down.

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            • #7
              Re: Internal/external - your process

              ETA: I don't always have CDA or theme or unifying element or whatever you wanna call it from the jump. I was just speaking on the character stuff.

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              • #8
                Re: Internal/external - your process

                Originally posted by BattleDolphinZero View Post
                Yeah, I think you gotta know this about a character from the jump. Pretty crucial. Sometimes you can get it wrong and rewrite, but, right or wrong, I don't see how someone starts a script without having those primary character elements down.
                BDZ, can you break down your approach for a better understanding? Do you think of a character that you'd like to tell a sotry about or do you get a concept first? Either way, then what?
                M.A.G.A.

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                • #9
                  Re: Internal/external - your process

                  Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                  BDZ, can you break down your approach for a better understanding? Do you think of a character that you'd like to tell a sotry about or do you get a concept first? Either way, then what?
                  Good questions. Would like to hear BDZ's and othe pro's answers.

                  For me it's relatively easy to come up with a concept first or a character with a problem first. But, not so easy to come up with a protag after comming up with a concept. How and when do pros create a protag after they first imagine an original concept.

                  Say I imagine an original Concept without a protag in mind: Scientists predict that fifty years from now the earth for some reason will be released from its orbit around the sun to travel through the universe perhaps to another galaxy. How do you create a protag for a story around that concept?
                  Last edited by jonpiper; 09-11-2012, 01:03 PM. Reason: Edit the concept.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Internal/external - your process

                    Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                    Or do you write the story and, as some pros say, this stuff just happens, even if they're not consciously aware of it?.
                    This is the best approach in my opinion. You can go back in the next draft and find these opportunities that 'just happened' and then begin working them into tighter story elements, connect them with other story elements, and sooner or later a solid story will begin to emerge. Along the lines of additive sculpture (as opposed to subtractive).

                    If this approach isn't in your comfort zone, however, then go fomulaic. Step one, step two, etc. Both are valid.



                    alex
                    Last edited by alex whitmer; 09-20-2012, 11:02 AM.

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                    • #11
                      Re: Internal/external - your process

                      Originally posted by alex whitmer View Post
                      This is the best approach in my opinion. You can go back in the next draft and find these opportunities that 'just happened' and then begin working them into tighter story elements, connect them with other story elements, and sooner or later a solid story will begin to emerge. Along the lines of additive sculpture (as opposed to subtractive).

                      If this approach isn't in your comfort zone, however, then go fomulaic. Step one, step two, etc. Both are valid.


                      Not sure why so many writers sweat the ridiculous minutia. Should I use BOY #1 and BOY #2 as opposed to SKINNY BOY and CHUBBY BOY? If you have a brilliant and original story, well crafted with a lot of your own writer's voice in it, nobody will give a crap if it's Boy #1 or Skinny Boy. Chances are nobody other than casting will even notice.

                      alex

                      Well, personally, I use Skinny Boy and Chubby Boy because otherwise, as I'm writing it, I forget which boy is which, and I figure if I forget which is which, there's a really good chance that a reader will do the same.

                      And that's never good.

                      NMS

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                      • #12
                        Re: Internal/external - your process

                        I consider all of this very early on generally and how it will evolve throughout the story, I also give some thought at this stage to the interaction with other characters, and how they will spar together and with the protag to reveal those qualities...

                        ...that's the idea anyway!

                        Doesn't always work.
                        Last edited by The Road Warrior; 09-23-2012, 04:35 AM.
                        Forthcoming: The Annual, "I JUST GOT DUMPED" Valentine's Short Screenplay Writing Competition. Keep an eye on Writing Exercises.

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                        • #13
                          Re: Internal/external - your process

                          My scripts won't come alive, until the protagonist does, and for me it is a bit of a touchy/feely process, usually involving lots of notes, thinking, (movie watching!), research, and daydreaming. Then, there is usually a moment, when suddenly, the protag starts to whisper in my ear, and the story gets written down. If I rush the process, I'll end up having to throw a lot of the writing out, because it will be s**T.

                          So, if I follow my process above, the character usually comes, fully formed, walks into the room, so to speak, and starts to talk to me. Then, I just have to type as fast as I can. Its almost like dictation.

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