Setting is not story
This article from Sunday’s LA Times makes a great case study in the difference between an interesting setting and an actual movie idea:
Pagasa may be a 75-acre speck of sand and rock, but that hasn’t stopped a swarm of countries from battling over the hundreds of specks of sand and rock that make up the Spratlys, which may be the most disputed island chain on Earth.
So, in 2002, the Philippines decided to establish a small colony of hardy civilian settlers on the island, augmenting the two dozen military workers who earn special “loneliness pay” to live on the far-off spot — and bolstering its claim that possession is nine-tenths of the law.
The result is sort of “Cast Away” meets Plymouth Rock.
It’s worth reading John Glionna’s entire article, because it’s quickly clear that Cast Away is only one of many different kinds of movies you could set on the island.
Here are some elements I found compelling:
Isolated, together. The “volunteers” are far from home, but never alone. In fact, the island is so tiny you can’t get away from someone.
Primitive and modern. Despite the airstrip, most of their food comes from fishing. A bad typhoon can destroy them. Yet they keep blogs.
An international dispute over an unimportant piece of dirt. Is it really the airstrip the Philippines wants to protect, or its ego?
What is a Pagasa movie?
Is it a thriller? Most thrillers rely on something to isolate the protagonist, either literally (Panic Room) or figuratively (The Bourne Identity). Islands work well for this. In 2002, I pitched a version of Alien v. Predator set on an island in Maine during a massive storm; Pagasa could work similarly.
Is it a comedy? Pagasa is a military installation, so it’s not hard to envision a version of Stripes, cast with a bunch of funny younger actors.
Is it a romantic comedy? Given its isolation and lop-sided male-female ratio, it’s a natural and cinematic setting.
My point is that there’s a big difference between the world of a movie (the setting, the rules, the background color) and the movie itself. And that bridging that gap is what screenwriters do.
When you’re a newish-but-working writer in Hollywood, you get sent articles like this all the time. The producer or creative exec will say, “We think there’s a movie here. Come in and pitch your take.” Generally, they’ll give you some kind of direction, like, “We see it as The Piano, but, you know, funnier.”
As the screenwriter, your job is to come up with the characters, conflicts, goals, themes, reversals and set pieces that make the story worthwhile. (In TV, you call this breaking a story.) You’re not getting paid for this, even though it may take a week of your time. Rather, you’re auditioning for a job. You want them to hire you to write it.
Most of the time, you won’t get the job. But breaking story after story is amazing practice, and each pitch helps you figure out not only how plot works, but how the movie industry works.
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July 28th, 2009 at 7:43 am
first comment!
and great point, pitching a great setting can be fun but figuring out a great setup for a story that feels full of possibility is even better.
July 28th, 2009 at 7:58 am
I would start a civil war on that island.
July 28th, 2009 at 8:02 am
I’m sure this is the last thing you want to do right now, but have you ever thought about running a “break this story” challenge? In the same way that the scene challenges are good fun practice at a single moment in a script, maybe this would be good practice at creating the overall picture.
Or then again, that may cross into some weird space were people would get protective over their ideas, since essentially you could be giving them license to run out and write an entire script based on what you say. Maybe if the challenge stuck to a bio-pic or something where you had to get the rights, like break the story of Ron Popeil?
July 28th, 2009 at 8:02 am
Fascinating! Thanks.
July 28th, 2009 at 8:24 am
Great post as usual, John. But as a huge Alien fan, the one thing I’ll take from it is regret, knowing you could have been involved in (I assume the first) Alien vs. Predator movie, and yet we ended up with… well, something that makes me cry a little inside every time it crosses my mind.
July 28th, 2009 at 8:51 am
Without even reading the post, though I have, you succinctly crystalized my misgivings about Cameron’s AVATAR. All we’ve heard is about how amazingly realized the ecosystem of this alien planet is. Big deal. Has Cameron put the same amount of detail into the script?
July 28th, 2009 at 8:54 am
“We see it as The Piano, but, you know, funnier.”
Awesome.
July 28th, 2009 at 9:55 am
@ Rich Drees, if it was anyone else, I might have misgivings, too. Cameron, though, seems to understand the importance of story. Good dialogue, on the other hand…
I also read an interview somewhere where he reiterated his focus on story, and even discussed how he would cut out something amazing looking if it didn’t push the story forward.
Personally, I’m not head over heals looking forward to the movie, but that’s mostly because I have almost no idea what it’s really about.
July 28th, 2009 at 10:09 am
Great post. Succinct and informative!
July 28th, 2009 at 11:23 am
Nice post. Very true. Thus the “can’t copyright an idea only its expression” truism. (goes to Alex’s point, too. All entries would [I believe] be individually protected as expressions of a public domain idea. Doubt John wants to do another challenge anytime soon though.)
What I wouldn’t give for one or two of those “break this story idea” opportunities. My kingdom for a connection that gets me that. :)
July 28th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Is there a process or technique for “breaking a story” that screenwriters follow? It sounds a lot like we (novelists) do called pre-writing. GMC (Goal, Motivation, and Conflict) for example, which is based on a great book by Debra Dixon.
I’ve learned a lot over the years from books and articles on screenwriting techniques, so I was wondering if there was a sources (or sources) you’d recommend for breaking a story. I’m always trying to find a way to improve my process! :)
July 28th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
cool. spot on. as a newish/working writer who adores the story cracking process, this is a fun one to envision…my mind goes to the not too dystopian future. extreme wealth. blackwater navies patrolling ‘gated’ island enclaves… etc. etc. etc.
July 28th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
Great post John and quite true. Over the years I’ve heard any number of pitches from aspiring screenwriters and the most common first-timer mistake is just this: they don’t yet have a story but merely a setting or circumstance.
There will be loving detail about the environment but nothing denoting why we are there in the first place. There is also the issue of only having a circumstance, not a plot: two waitresses hate each other.
Two waitresses hating each other does not imply anything beyond just that. What they do about their relationship may lead to plot but until that day comes, the story is unknown.
July 28th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
Rich: “Has Cameron put the same amount of detail into the script?”
YES!
I was lucky enough to read the “scriptment” for AVATAR (basically the first draft of the script) and it’s an amazing work. It’s not just this big effects summer movie fireworks display: it’s a VERY well-written (on all fronts–plot, character, dialouge, subtext, pacing, structure) exploration of profound and moving themes. It’s artful. It may be the epic summation of the elements that Cameron has returned to again and again in his work: his LAST EMPEROR.
And mentioning Cameron segues nicely into a question about John’s AVP pitch. Was this story set on an island off the coast of Maine in some kind of contemporary setting? Or was it in the future era of Alien and Aliens? ‘Cause I’ve always felt the big problem with those films was that they tried to set them in the present day, which just totally screws up the existing continuity , and throws out a lot of cool chances to further explore the “Alien” future world…
I dunno. The Alien skull in the Predator’s trophy case in Predator 2 was enough for me.
July 29th, 2009 at 1:52 am
Why bother taking on the task of “breaking the story” if you’re not going to get paid for it? Even more so if they’re not going to hire you to write it anyway. So then what’s the point of “auditioning for the job?” And I bet they’ll still probably use elements of your pitch also.
July 29th, 2009 at 6:26 am
would someone please define/explain reversals? This is a term I am not very familiar with.
July 29th, 2009 at 7:24 am
@Ethan,
If nothing else, it’s good experience. Getting an audience of exeuctives or producers to listen to you while you pitch your take on the story can, at very least, help you improve and get used to the feel of the room. There’s ALWAYS room for improvement (in my opinion).
And if you’re lucky, even if you don’t get the job, perhaps they’ll like something you said/thought up and give you a call which leads to a paying job.
Just a thought, but: Most writers DON’T get paid for their work. They write for the sake of the art. Having an opportunity like this — no matter how it turns out — can be exciting and better than the alternative: nothing.
July 29th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
I would have a plane crash on the island. 48 people survive. Strange occurrences. A small army of ‘other’ island inhabitants show up, armed and in uniform…
July 29th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
“Are you there, God? It’s me, Margaret.”
Awesome!
(sorry, off topic)
July 30th, 2009 at 1:59 pm
“…It sounds a lot like we (novelists) do called pre-writing. GMC (Goal, Motivation, and Conflict) for example, which is based on a great book by Debra Dixon.”
I read this book yrs ago & it was a big help. The main idea is so simple, yet, it was extremely difficult for me to grasp. When i finally did, it was a kind of epiphany. Too bad the book is out of print.
July 30th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
@Laura, I had the same experience. Took me awhile to wrap my brain around thinking about story like that. But once I did, HUGE help.
I was lucky to stumble across the book at a convention a few years ago. My mentor recommended it, and I snapped up the bookseller’s last copy.
July 31st, 2009 at 12:17 am
Gilligan’s Island 2 anyone? This time with updated characters–a silicon valley entrepeneuer, a laid off Detroit autoworker and a Las Vegas wedding coordinator.
July 31st, 2009 at 1:48 am
“Yet they keep blogs.” Oh dear. The author is apparently young enough ton have never heard of the concept of keeping a diary…
July 31st, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Whenever any non-writing friends pitch me their movie ideas they are always setting and not stories.
“There’s this guy and it’s the 1930s and he’s a gangster but he’s gay”
Though people can tell a good story when they see/read one, mostly they cannot make one up.
August 2nd, 2009 at 7:53 pm
I just thought you’d like to know, at USC, they now have a class devoted to this topic called, what else, “Breaking the Story.” It’s basically a small group of screenwriters given very few details – a setting, a character, a news article, anything – and then told to go away and make something of it. On a weekly basis. It was amazing practice.