Film Treatment: Bench Sitting
**Please note: This idea is an addition to the bench story discussed in class. It is meant to be one of the stories that could potentially be one of the students who would sit on the bench. I take no credit for the bench idea.
Logline: A senior struggling with the imminent coming of graduation and how that will look without their Dad. Also trying to find a job, not move home, and find the motivation to complete the very little homework they have left.
Market Research: The first question that we should ask in regards to our movie being a success is: Who is our audience? As we are showing the film here at Mary Washington I think that having something that relatable and close to the students would appeal. I also feel like it could bring a fresh perspective to everyday things.
Using bench sitting as the premise of our film is quintessential Mary Washington. We literally defined the term (see http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bench%20sitting ).
Major Scenes: One important scene that we might use would be finding out about the death of the father on the phone while on the bench. In order to add contradiction it could be a nice sunny day and friends or random people around smiling and laughing.
A scene could be at night after some time has passed. Perhaps the student is having a hard time adjusting to school after the funeral and needs time alone/wishes to speak with the missing parent.
I also like the idea of the student walking past the bench on the day of graduation and smiling almost as if the bench is a stand in for or makes them feel like their father is present. This scene would require extras.
Characters: I imagine this story to be a part of the bench story if we choose to use it; therefore, this would only be one student or this one with a couple extras.
This particular story could simply be this one character or it could include flashbacks or current friends of the student. I picture this particular student as a female who is typically introverted. In my mind she has dark hair and I have given her the name Morgan.
Discussions of Themes: As this would be one of a couple stories I see it bringing a few themes that could be reflected (or not) in other stories as well.
One theme I see in here is the theme of grief in a constantly demanding setting. This can be a deadly combination and seeing someone dealing with this could bring perspective. I also think this perspective of outside forces that are not typically associated with college adds an element to the story that forces “real life” into an environment that can be isolated.
Another theme I see is a common thread in all aspects of college life: change. No matter what year you are, what you are studying, or what else you are involved with you are always dealing with elements of change. Often times you go through many different kinds of change and the stories of students could all be different, but it is a good unifier.
Visual Aid: I picture using a bench that is around Trinkle or Lee Halls. That is usually a high traffic area, but is also on the main thoroughfare so it wouldn’t necessarily be a destination unless one was intentionally going to those benches.
