Collect and prepare background materials

Competition submissions
I looked at a few screenplay compositions I could enter my short screen play in. Out of all of them I
picked BlueCat as it seems like the best for me. BlueCat is a screenplay competition that has an aim to discover and develop unknown screenwriters like me. Gordy Hoffman started this competition in 1998 which started with a grand price of $2000 if you won.  People that enter there screenplays to BlueCat get one written analysis which are then eligible to be re-submitted after reading the notes and point they got. The people that analyse your script are proportional scrip-writers themselves. I believe this competition would be good for me to enter so I can could improve my script and get some more feedback.When you enter your script you must enter it as a PDF.  Short screenplays must run between 1 and 49 pages. People that have won have gone on to be signed by big names and gone on to sell their work to major labels. If I won the short screen play competition I will receive $10,000 and the next three finalists will receive $2000. Even if I didn't win I would of received feedback on my script which other competitions don't offer.

Existing script

Exciting 10 minute short film
Black metal
   

This 10 minute short is called 'black metal' by Kat Candler from the short films competition Sundance. This 10 minute shot is about the lead singer of a metal band who is effected by one of his fans killing his teacher for the band. When reading the dialogue from a writers prospective, information is presented without being said. The dialogue has been used in such a way that the audience gets to decide the ending of the protagonist and if he believes he helps this boy to murder his parents with his music. This film has a difficult three act structure as there doesn't seem to be a resolution. But I believe this makes the film more effective by not having a strong resolution.

At the very start of the film there is very little dialogue and nothing about this killing is said between the main character and what seems to be his wife. When he goes into the store the way people look and act around him makes his body language small and rushed. This makes it seem like he is uncomfortable and wanting to get out of the situation he is in. This is very strange to see a strong character wanting to get out of the store a soon as possible. The characters dialogue is simple in the situation. When the man in the store is harassing him about the killing of the boy, he says 'I'm just trying to get home'. This shows that maybe he has people starting on him a lot and he is weary of the situation he is in. As soon as the man in the store mentions that it was probably his child and that did it he swings for the guy. What is not said but is shown to me is that the strong man who has shown no emotions as such into this moment, is in fact a caring man especially for his child and family.

In the next scene, the dialogue is incredibly strong. His wife has said that he should get some help and he replies 'I can handle it'. But is also the dialogue that hasn't been said in the scene that is also strong, such as the man not opening up to his wife and pretending to be strong. By having the women holding his husband we see this emotional man not the person who he was in the very first scene. In the very last scene of him talking to his daughter the language is crafted so sensitively. I chose to analyse this short film as I think it was perfectly written and in such short time there is this dark story. But also there wasn't that much dialogue to analyse so other elements of the script must of been strong. In this clip I can see the dominate impressions and attitude, and the world of the characters.

Stop

       

The second 10 minute short film I will be analysing is called 'Stop'. It is about a young lad who gets stopped by the police on his way home late one night. As he gets home he flushed some drugs down the drain. I chose this short film to analyse as it has a very deep message as you follow the main protagonist thought something life changing. Unlike the other short film this has more of a strong message which is shown through the visuals rather than the dialogue. From the point of a writer this short film used some very strong techniques and gripped me from the very start. I love the message that is in the short film and as an ending I thought it was unpredictable but very satisfying. It has a very strong three act structure and a very strong resolution.

The very first scene is just two lads talking about girls and other things. The other young lad talks about one of his friends getting in to Stanford university and the main protagonist being better then the other friend. This dialogue is strong in the way by not what is said but the reasons behind him not going university. Through the dialogue we can see the world of the character and some of his inner presence. You see from the scene directions that the police make him nervous which also makes the audience feel nervous. This is very strong as it tricks the audience into believing something different than the final outcome that is shown.

At the end of this short film you see the young lad flushing drugs down the toilet and see him looking in the mirror at himself. At the end of this short film you hope he will change and even go to university. I think the way that this has been written is to make the protagonist a social message about drugs and to make something out of a life and to follow your dreams.

Audience research

For the first bit of my audience research I did a presentation in front of my class and got their
feedback on my short film idea. All the class really like my idea especially having it as a light comedy. As a group we made my ending to my short story stronger than my original idea. This makes my screen play have a stronger resolution. By collecting the audience research I was able to make a clear pitch which made my idea clearer and stronger. I was also able to see what other people thought of my idea and get constructive feedback. It was also good to see what my teacher thought of it as someone who has experience of writing screen plays and was able to help me improve my three act structure. 

I also did a quick survey on Survey Monkey on my 10 minute short idea. I did this to get some more feedback of my final screen play idea. I sent the survey to my friends and family to get all different ages and different target audiences. This would be my primary evidence for my audience research. Below are my results which show whether people who had an interest in British comedy, would watch my short film and the gender/ ages of my target audience.



Main research

I did research into my theme, location and characters. But all ready I had a pretty strong idea as my love for British comedy. From my love for British comedy I was able to look at exciting media texts and take parts of them to make my idea stronger and even help me create my idea in the early stages. Most of my themes mainly came form British comedy. The main films I got inspiration is such films as 'Snatch', 'Weekender' and 'This is England'. These films has string charters and moral messages but in a way that is funny. I wanted in my 10 minutes short to have strong charters that through out the story make my audience laugh. I also basted my characters and other themes form the Tv series 'Misfits', 'Skins' and 'This is England'. These series have the same target audiences of my screen play idea. With my audience research was mainly based on getting feed back on my already planed idea my main research was to look at already existing texts to make my idea. 

With my location I chose to set it in Birmingham as I thought about stereotypes These films and Tv series I have based my idea off where form places that had iconic British accents and stereotypes. My charters are middles class people who are teenagers just looking to have a good time. I think with the hummer of my screen play also the Birmingham accents will go very well together. My characters are what you would call stereotypical 'lads' from Birmingham.

My characters are mainly based on people I know in really life as I think it will be easy for me to write about the people I know. But for my main research I looked up on charters and actors I would want to play my charters in my screen play. This helped my to pitcher each over my charters personally on also the ways they look. My protegines is called Jack who has a girl friend called Sara. Other charters are Sara's ex Dave and his girlfriend Daisy and Jacks friends Gazza, Sniffy and Ginger. I am writing about the things and people around me as I believe I will be able to write a better scene play.

Bibliography

http://www.bluecatscreenplay.com/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/scripts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReOEsec5qJM&t=203s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjaX3aiDNWA&t=183s

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/mp/lp/sem-lp-5b-brand-annual/