Crafting good characters is one of the most important–if not the most important- factors of a screenplay. As Syd Field explains in “What Makes a Good Character”, everything in a story happens through the characters, whether the characters themselves are passive (the action happens to them) or active (they drive the action). So, if you don’t have good characters, you don’t have a good story. And if you don’t have a good story, then you don’t have an audience and your screenplay will never find success. Therefore, before one even begins writing a screenplay, it is essential to ask what a good character is and how to build one that fits those standards.
In reading this chapter, what stuck out to me the most was that there is not really a one-size-fits-all approach to creating characters. Instead, characters are meant to reflect humanity. Humanity isn’t perfect; it’s flawed, it’s complex, and it’s unique. Thus, we as screenwriters must work to capture that in order to convey a sense of “humanness” that readers or the audience at large can relate to. My personal favorite recommendation for doing this is found in the quote from Harold Pinter on page 82, which advises writers to flow with their characters. A blueprint can be handy, but it should be used sparingly when it comes to characters because they are meant to change as the story develops, and sticking to a rigid plan forces them to bend in ways that aren’t natural and, consequently, that don’t reflect the human spirit. Fields writes, “Creating good characters is essential to the success of your screenplay,” and it is essential to the process of creating good characters that we allow them to evolve naturally with the story so they can develop into a unique reflection of humanity.
Field says that characters are to be known inside and out. A writer should know everything about their characters, even the things that will never be shared with the audience or even with other characters in the film, so that we are able to understand why they make the choices that they do, or why they say or do the things that they do. A character’s background is their motivation and shapes their understanding of their environment and the world around them. Characters are defined by what they do rather than what they say, which is why it is important to show instead of telling. Bad characters make for bad films, which is why it’s so important to bring an authentic character to the table—someone with layers, with conflicts, with feelings, with opinions. These things are important in making a watcher root for the characters, or even to understand why they should like or dislike them in the first place, or maybe something in between. Understanding the context of the character is crucial in understanding the purpose of the film or the story in the first place.
Syd Field’s “What Makes Good Character?” seeks to answer the very question in its title, specifically what aspect of character makes them so unique. Field brings up a variety of potential qualities, but ultimately hones in on action. After all, “Life consists of action,” as Aristotle said. In screenplays, action determines who a character is. For example, in Field’s example of The Bourne Supremacy, Jason Bourne seeks to avenge the death of his girlfriend and find out who is after him. As he discovers his past misdeeds, he accepts responsibility for his actions and decides to find the daughter of the people he killed. He is defined by his actions throughout the story. A story should be told through characters to engage the audience to experience the universal emotions that drive and fuel creativity and storytelling. Field also discusses how there is a conflict between a writer and their characters. Trying to depict the characters in a way that is true to who they are often means that a writer’s blueprint becomes obsolete until they can readjust it to match their characters.
Creating a good character means knowing them inside and out, complete with fears, beliefs, hopes, likes and dislikes, and personal history. They must have context— qualities of behavior that make them unique so we can root for them or identify with them— so we can then establish characterization through the actions the characters take. At the end of the day, four essential qualities are necessary for building a good character: dramatic need, point of view, attitude, and change. Dramatic need defines the want of your character, their motivation. It powers the character through the story line. Point of view, which is essentially your character’s belief system, determines how they experience the world, not just how they see it. The character’s point of view will reflect in their characterization. An environmentalist may wear a conservation or anti-climate change shirt, a pious character may dress more modestly if that’s what their religion suggests. The third thing that makes good character is attitude, which encompasses a person’s behavior. Attitude is often most visible in dialogue, where exchanges between characters reveal character. The final quality is change. People are constantly evolving and changing, so a character must undergo an arc to reflect this. Characters can remain static if it makes sense for them, but this is incredibly rare.
The idea throughout this chapter that really spoke to me was the idea of author vs character, and how in order to create a compelling story, you must put yourself and the plot at odds with your main character. Conflict is the driving part of a story, especially a good one, and in most stories the main character is at odds with the conflict. Part of knowing your character inside and out is knowing what upsets them, what drives them, and using that to further the dynamic and drama between the character and the plot. A good screenplay, in most situations, will not have everything come easy to your main character. Action is necessary and thusly is conflict, and thusly the author must be an antithesis to the character. We must write against what they want so that the character has reason to accelerate the plot/story, without that dramatic need to overcome the conflict placed before them, there is no story.
As an, albeit amateur, artist, i appreciated the analogies to paintings throughout. The idea of building up a character as a painting helps visualize what is needed before I get down to writing them. I cant paint in the highlights of the eyes if I haven’t structured the face yet. I cant rouge the lips if I don’t know what my subjects skin tone is, everything builds upon itself in a painting just as a well written character does. Planning is key, and while the process is never done, you can always add another highlight to a tree or a leaf in the foreground, you must start from the ground up. My characters dramatic need is my undercoat, the point of view is the blocking, the attitude is my outline and the change is the base color. The details that make the painting complete come after, but are just as important in making my vision come to life.
What spoke to me in this chapter, was how you as the author should really focus on making your characters as a real person, and not just some character on paper, or on a screen. Even though you may want to make your character most relatable to you, it is important to distance yourself from the wants of the character you created, to what you really need to put into them. For instance, I could want to make my character from a small town in New Hampshire. But that wouldn’t fit into the story at all. Especially in my case.
I also find it interesting/agree on the subject that your character needs to have wants, needs, emotions, and also flaws. You need to have your audience see through your character’s eyes, not the eyes of the screen, just mindlessly watching a movie. You need to have emotion.
There should also be growth for your character. They shouldn’t just stay as they were at the beginning of the story. You should let them do stupid things! It gives them development!
5 thoughts on “JOURNAL # 7”
Crafting good characters is one of the most important–if not the most important- factors of a screenplay. As Syd Field explains in “What Makes a Good Character”, everything in a story happens through the characters, whether the characters themselves are passive (the action happens to them) or active (they drive the action). So, if you don’t have good characters, you don’t have a good story. And if you don’t have a good story, then you don’t have an audience and your screenplay will never find success. Therefore, before one even begins writing a screenplay, it is essential to ask what a good character is and how to build one that fits those standards.
In reading this chapter, what stuck out to me the most was that there is not really a one-size-fits-all approach to creating characters. Instead, characters are meant to reflect humanity. Humanity isn’t perfect; it’s flawed, it’s complex, and it’s unique. Thus, we as screenwriters must work to capture that in order to convey a sense of “humanness” that readers or the audience at large can relate to. My personal favorite recommendation for doing this is found in the quote from Harold Pinter on page 82, which advises writers to flow with their characters. A blueprint can be handy, but it should be used sparingly when it comes to characters because they are meant to change as the story develops, and sticking to a rigid plan forces them to bend in ways that aren’t natural and, consequently, that don’t reflect the human spirit. Fields writes, “Creating good characters is essential to the success of your screenplay,” and it is essential to the process of creating good characters that we allow them to evolve naturally with the story so they can develop into a unique reflection of humanity.
Field says that characters are to be known inside and out. A writer should know everything about their characters, even the things that will never be shared with the audience or even with other characters in the film, so that we are able to understand why they make the choices that they do, or why they say or do the things that they do. A character’s background is their motivation and shapes their understanding of their environment and the world around them. Characters are defined by what they do rather than what they say, which is why it is important to show instead of telling. Bad characters make for bad films, which is why it’s so important to bring an authentic character to the table—someone with layers, with conflicts, with feelings, with opinions. These things are important in making a watcher root for the characters, or even to understand why they should like or dislike them in the first place, or maybe something in between. Understanding the context of the character is crucial in understanding the purpose of the film or the story in the first place.
Syd Field’s “What Makes Good Character?” seeks to answer the very question in its title, specifically what aspect of character makes them so unique. Field brings up a variety of potential qualities, but ultimately hones in on action. After all, “Life consists of action,” as Aristotle said. In screenplays, action determines who a character is. For example, in Field’s example of The Bourne Supremacy, Jason Bourne seeks to avenge the death of his girlfriend and find out who is after him. As he discovers his past misdeeds, he accepts responsibility for his actions and decides to find the daughter of the people he killed. He is defined by his actions throughout the story. A story should be told through characters to engage the audience to experience the universal emotions that drive and fuel creativity and storytelling. Field also discusses how there is a conflict between a writer and their characters. Trying to depict the characters in a way that is true to who they are often means that a writer’s blueprint becomes obsolete until they can readjust it to match their characters.
Creating a good character means knowing them inside and out, complete with fears, beliefs, hopes, likes and dislikes, and personal history. They must have context— qualities of behavior that make them unique so we can root for them or identify with them— so we can then establish characterization through the actions the characters take. At the end of the day, four essential qualities are necessary for building a good character: dramatic need, point of view, attitude, and change. Dramatic need defines the want of your character, their motivation. It powers the character through the story line. Point of view, which is essentially your character’s belief system, determines how they experience the world, not just how they see it. The character’s point of view will reflect in their characterization. An environmentalist may wear a conservation or anti-climate change shirt, a pious character may dress more modestly if that’s what their religion suggests. The third thing that makes good character is attitude, which encompasses a person’s behavior. Attitude is often most visible in dialogue, where exchanges between characters reveal character. The final quality is change. People are constantly evolving and changing, so a character must undergo an arc to reflect this. Characters can remain static if it makes sense for them, but this is incredibly rare.
The idea throughout this chapter that really spoke to me was the idea of author vs character, and how in order to create a compelling story, you must put yourself and the plot at odds with your main character. Conflict is the driving part of a story, especially a good one, and in most stories the main character is at odds with the conflict. Part of knowing your character inside and out is knowing what upsets them, what drives them, and using that to further the dynamic and drama between the character and the plot. A good screenplay, in most situations, will not have everything come easy to your main character. Action is necessary and thusly is conflict, and thusly the author must be an antithesis to the character. We must write against what they want so that the character has reason to accelerate the plot/story, without that dramatic need to overcome the conflict placed before them, there is no story.
As an, albeit amateur, artist, i appreciated the analogies to paintings throughout. The idea of building up a character as a painting helps visualize what is needed before I get down to writing them. I cant paint in the highlights of the eyes if I haven’t structured the face yet. I cant rouge the lips if I don’t know what my subjects skin tone is, everything builds upon itself in a painting just as a well written character does. Planning is key, and while the process is never done, you can always add another highlight to a tree or a leaf in the foreground, you must start from the ground up. My characters dramatic need is my undercoat, the point of view is the blocking, the attitude is my outline and the change is the base color. The details that make the painting complete come after, but are just as important in making my vision come to life.
What spoke to me in this chapter, was how you as the author should really focus on making your characters as a real person, and not just some character on paper, or on a screen. Even though you may want to make your character most relatable to you, it is important to distance yourself from the wants of the character you created, to what you really need to put into them. For instance, I could want to make my character from a small town in New Hampshire. But that wouldn’t fit into the story at all. Especially in my case.
I also find it interesting/agree on the subject that your character needs to have wants, needs, emotions, and also flaws. You need to have your audience see through your character’s eyes, not the eyes of the screen, just mindlessly watching a movie. You need to have emotion.
There should also be growth for your character. They shouldn’t just stay as they were at the beginning of the story. You should let them do stupid things! It gives them development!