Screenplay Student: “But what about characters?” (Part 1)
And the struggle of creating the illusion of people; What makes characters compelling? How do we build them up?
One of the most foundational pieces of building a compelling narrative is filling that story with characters who draw in the audience.
Some narratives succeed in their attempt to enrapture the audience by building main characters with primal motivations that put them into conflict with the world around them. Or by pitting them against other characters with conflicting interests.
Oooh — CONFLICT- Let’s talk about that for a second.
Any storyteller will tell you that Conflict is key to building audience interest.
Characters that fit into the “nice” archetype, for example, are often uninteresting at first glance for the simple reason that they lack internal conflict. However, the compelling nature of their character is only drawn out when they are placed in a world that actively OPPOSES them for their kindness.
Which of the following ideas captivates you more?
- The story follows an employee as he climbs the corporate ladder, receiving rewards from the story and getting whatever he wants because he’s nice.
or…
- An employee struggling to attain the position he’s dreamed of because his kindness leads to him being taken advantage of by superiors.
The first concept could function as a sweet and simple “slice of life” kid’s show or book about the need to be nice.
But in the second concept, we’re not only given the source of conflict but also left to let our minds roam the possibilities of what could come next.
What people with opposing interests could stand in the way of our character on their road to attain that oh-so-coveted position in the company?
Will he hold onto his kindness, or will he compromise and attain his dream at the cost of surrendering the value he held so dear?
This is just one example, and I’m certain that your specific characters have their own advice that is more directly applicable to them. But if you leave this article with one thing, it is my hope that you are able to use your story’s characters in the context of your setting to their maximum potential, and reel in your audience successfully.
“Hey! Wait a second!” one may ask.
“For all this talk about how good conflict is, that kind of common sense advice isn’t so helpful when you don’t provide a way to apply it!”
And to that commenter, I say, “I completely agree! Let’s get into the HOW!”
Overall, there are FOUR generally efficient ways to insert compelling conflict into your narrative and build audience interest via your characters. The first of which is…
1. BALANCED BACKSTORY (And motivations!)
If you asked your best friend who their favorite character is, you might get a variety of responses. In this example, we’ll use Zuko from Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Airbender (I know he’s an easy pick, but stick with me here!)
If you asked someone why they like this character, they could respond a variety of ways: “He’s dorky”, “He turned into a good guy”, “He was relatable”, “He was realistic”, “He had funny moments”, “He had a good character arc”, “Uncle Iroh is the best”, etc.
But if you really interrogated someone, and I mean really sought to get to the source of why they like him, you’ll find that at the core of some of these superficial reasons (i.e; “He was realistic”, “Good character arc”, “uncle iroh”, etc.) actually link back to one specific part of his well-written character: His BACKSTORY.
While I’m sure most people never actually were banished from their tyrannical dictator of a father from their home nation, and probably never spent a portion of their lives tracking down a reincarnation of a reborn chosen hero, the core of Zuko’s character is founded upon the primal theme of ACCEPTANCE.
Throughout the course of the show, the grumpy cat known as Zuko goes from an angry teen to being humanized as a son desperately seeking the acceptance of his manipulative father.
The word “primal” refers to a theme that requires little explanation, and is understandable across cultural barriers. Through Zuko’s backstory, the narrative effectively communicates to its audience the theme of acceptance and what it means to grow into someone more independent, which is a trial everyone in the real world must confront at some point.
Moreover, Zuko’s backstory is riddled with time bombs that result in a series of inner conflicts throughout the show, culminating in a fully transformed Zuko, who is completely unlike who he was at the start of the story.
If a kid’s animated show can talk about growing up and themes of seeking acceptance in a way that reaches out to everyone in its audience, imagine what you could do if you applied this same technique to your own characters! The possibilities are limitless!
2. FLAWS WITH PURPOSE (But what makes ’em tick?!)
Imperfections add depth to characters, but when used properly, are also capable of serving an additional purpose for the narrative. As opposed to blindly flinging flaws to your character, I challenge you to choose specific flaws that contribute meaningfully to your story’s themes.
Each flaw is utilized to its max when said flaws create added tension and complexity without taking from the audience’s understanding. Storytellers looking for prime examples of this added layer of tension need to look no further than the well-known Marvel Cinematic Universe. For this point, let’s examine Marvel Studios’ Iron Man as an example.
One of the many reasons why Tony Stark was perfect for the role of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s central poster boy is due to his numerous flaws and bad decisions which contribute to the action-oriented story.
Stark’s carelessness and irresponsibility are especially shown in the first film of Iron Man, as Stark struggles to come to terms with what it means to be a hero. While Stark attains his first great triumph against the villain of Iron Man 1, his victory does not immediately make him a paragon. Rather, Stark’s problems are greater as he faces numerous threats in the future installments of the Marvel franchise.
Another example of Stark’s problematic carelessness comes in the form of Ultron during Avengers: Age of Ultron; when Stark’s careless creation of the “peace-keeping” android becomes hell-bent on destroying humanity.
In the end, Stark has to pay for his carelessness by sacrificing himself for the good of humanity after failing to defeat Thanos on the planet Titan during Avengers: Infinity War. Ultimately, the over-arching narrative of the MCU uses Stark’s flaws as a means to draw out its multi-movie-long narrative. Through Stark’s flaws, the narrative interrogates themes of heroism and what it means to be a good man — A theme that resonates with Marvel’s predominately male audience.
By stark contrast, Captain Marvel is a character seemingly without flaws and without clear motivations outside of saving the Earth from alien invasions. This isn’t to say that she is a completely unlikable character, as her strength is something for people to aspire to. However, the point remains that Captain Marvel’s existence contributes no greater theme to the narrative of the MCU.
Furthermore, her absence of a discernible character flaw to be overcome makes it hard to relate to or admire her. Her immense powers don’t do her character any favors either, as each fight she goes into is guaranteed to be won. (I would love to rewrite her character, as her blank slate presents a great opportunity to do more!)
Conclusion: To be Continued…
The hardest thing about characters is the complexity that goes into them. From backstory and interactions through dialogue to character arcs, I hope that you see how characters are your story’s ultimate tools for interrogating its themes.
But alas, my wordiness conflicts with my main goal to prevent myself from taking too much of anyone’s time — As you should be writing your material!!
But I do hope that these character studies have been helpful, and I will be sure to finish PART 2 of our study on characters, which will examine how dialogue can be used to your story’s benefit, as well as go into depth about what it means to claim “characters aren’t people”.
While I would like to start posting regularly, my film school’s finals week is coming up soon — meaning I will need to focus on studying and mentally preparing for the coming chaos. But I am determined to see this through! To assist you all in any way I can and keep up my schedule of uploading every two weeks on Thursday!
I will see you all in a few weeks, but until then keep writing no matter how tough it gets! And most importantly, indulge in stories that inspire you!
Blessings,
— The Screenplay Student