Having just finished my first horrible draft for Klosterplatz 5 I have decided that I should map out my stories more before writing them, this seems silly because all I ever seem to do is map and never write, but when I did write my treatment it was much easier and much better having it mapped out well. So here is another short film that I wanna make that I've started a detailed mapping of:
The concept:
________________________________________________________
Job Interview
Jason (I have chosen him because of the Greek legend, where he was tested by his mother Hera to see if he has the compassion to help an old woman on the journey of his quest, similarly this is what our main character has to realise - that he should not just focus on his ambitions, but make the life leading to it worth living by being important to those around him, and not simply be a non-presence floating through their life. Their life should be affected by his presence).
So Jason is running a bit late for his interview, checking his watch we also hear his thoughts and its revealed that he’s late because of oversleeping - he fetishises sleep a bit as well, showing he prefers it to being alive - he rocks up to the reception and the lady says he’s just been replaced by someone, but it shouldn't be too long before he goes in. He’s asked to take a seat, he does this and waits, more applicants arrive and he becomes paranoid that maybe he isn’t good enough for this position, worrying about his appearance as well.
He goes in and his own insecurities take over the interview a bit, failing him and making him look bad in front of the boss. He has to ashamedly leave and feels very downtrodden, worse yet, his parents call during the interview and then again after to see how he did. He lies to them telling he didn’t even go, deciding to focus on his writing again as that’s what he really wants to do. They say that’s fine, asks him to come visit, at which he comes up with an excuse not to. They tell him he’d have to get on the doll cause they can’t support him anymore.
Home Life
He accepts this verdict and goes home, but is reminded of his ex and thinks about her a lot. He has to convince himself to be strong and not call her. He meets with his flatmates in the lounge, they ask how it went and shit and he gives them a similar spiel, one of them asks for help with a project and he asks if it can't be done later. One mentions a party and he says he has to finish his doll shit. He goes to his room and sits down, thinking of his ex and starts doing the doll thing but keeps procrastinating, the time running out to go to the party. He waits it out and gives in, going to the party.
Party
When he gets there he gets questioned about the updates in his life, which he doesn’t have many of, and he is sad to see someone else being more successful than him. His ex calls him and he’s very happy but embarrassed about being at the party, he goes back inside after and accepts the drugs offered previously. Every time that he is offered with a bad choice like the party or the drugs, he first refuses but then gives in when something gets his insecurity higher.
Limbo
Jason wakes up in Limbo and is immediately confronted with the personification of death. He questions Death and Death explains to him that he has to prove his life had meaning in order to enter the ‘good’ afterlife. He also shows him how his friends unceremoniously dumped his corpse in front of the hospital.
________________________________________________________
Work Interview
Jason is running, saying shit shit shit over in his head, he transitions to some other variations on this word as well as other swear words, until noticing what he’s doing, losing interest in looking dumb and says fuck it, just walking, he’s late already doesn't matter.
It’s an opening image perfectly describing our hero's main weakness and is also kinda funny, cause I find it very relatable and feel like everyone’s done that - decided something isn’t that urgent after having expended some energy that one doesn’t feel needs further expending.
This also immediately establishes how our main character is narrating constantly over his action. I originally got the idea from 1917, which is all one-shots, and thought it'd be interesting if in that style one could hear the characters thoughts because during the movies I became aware of how incredibly present my inner voice was as the character went through his adventure
.
The concept:
A man dies and is greeted by death, who asks him to prove that his life had meaning in order for him to be able to enter into a good afterlife.
Beat Sheet:
1) Our main character is going for a job interview but tries to chicken out last minute as he looks around and realizes that everyone else applying seems much more qualified than him. He isn't able to escape, although awkwardly tries to. He does the interview although it doesn’t go well and he tells his family that he decided against the job, not feeling it fit with his ambitions and such. That he needs to focus more on himself, he has to go on the doll now as his parents can no longer support him.
2) He thinks about calling his ex and talking to her as the emotions get too much, but he doesn’t. She checks up on him and he is so happy, he calls her and doesn’t tell her everything, letting her talk more. But obviously they still care for eachother.
3) He sits down to write what he just explained is the direction he’s decided to take his life, but he can’t get anything out, self-doubt mounting. He goes for a bit of a walk and gets invited to a party, which he’s all too happy to attend - even though he knows he shouldn’t.
4) At the party he gets questioned about his occupation, family and gf, but at the end of it all he does a new drug - a very strong one - which knocks him out. The people at the party slowly come to realise he is actually dead and drop him off at the hospital.
5) He wakes up in limbo and is approached by death himself, who explains that he has to prove his life had meaning in order for him to be able to continue on into a good afterlife. He inquires about his current state and death shows him that he’s lying unconscious outside a hospital.
6) He asks how he should prove that his life had meaning, death asks him what he thinks and he says that he guesses the good things he did in his life should stand up to this scrutiny, proving that he has had a positive impact on the world. Death agrees and takes him through the key good deeds in his life, he argues for the butterfly effect but realizes that most of the situations didn’t have a great positive impact because in each case he was too afraid to carry something through all the way. Death puts emphasis on this as well and he argues that his ambitions would have led him to do good things, or at least have a good impact on the world. Death parries with how long he’s had to make something of himself and how he hasn’t yet managed to do that, the chances of that having changed in the direction he was going is slim.
7) Defeated we see him in the hospital, the doctor says he’s in a coma of sorts, although he was dead for a while he is now alive, although unconscious. There are people there with him, family, friends and his ex even.
8) To make his point even more clear Death shows him how his death would change the lives of the loved ones around him, or the world as a whole, there is very little change in this montage and he is shown that he doesn’t have any presence in the world. He is now completely defeated and admits that he can’t prove that his life had meaning, in his speech he highlights how he was never even alive. Using this logic he convinces Death that he shouldn’t be able to die, considering that he never lived in the first place - using deaths’ own definitions against him. The last thing death asks him is why he wants to go back, he looks down and says that it's because he wants to live.
9) He wakes up and runs through the halls screaming how he is alive, making up with his friends and family and kissing his ex, asking her back.
________________________________________________________
Beat Sheet:
1) Our main character is going for a job interview but tries to chicken out last minute as he looks around and realizes that everyone else applying seems much more qualified than him. He isn't able to escape, although awkwardly tries to. He does the interview although it doesn’t go well and he tells his family that he decided against the job, not feeling it fit with his ambitions and such. That he needs to focus more on himself, he has to go on the doll now as his parents can no longer support him.
2) He thinks about calling his ex and talking to her as the emotions get too much, but he doesn’t. She checks up on him and he is so happy, he calls her and doesn’t tell her everything, letting her talk more. But obviously they still care for eachother.
3) He sits down to write what he just explained is the direction he’s decided to take his life, but he can’t get anything out, self-doubt mounting. He goes for a bit of a walk and gets invited to a party, which he’s all too happy to attend - even though he knows he shouldn’t.
4) At the party he gets questioned about his occupation, family and gf, but at the end of it all he does a new drug - a very strong one - which knocks him out. The people at the party slowly come to realise he is actually dead and drop him off at the hospital.
5) He wakes up in limbo and is approached by death himself, who explains that he has to prove his life had meaning in order for him to be able to continue on into a good afterlife. He inquires about his current state and death shows him that he’s lying unconscious outside a hospital.
6) He asks how he should prove that his life had meaning, death asks him what he thinks and he says that he guesses the good things he did in his life should stand up to this scrutiny, proving that he has had a positive impact on the world. Death agrees and takes him through the key good deeds in his life, he argues for the butterfly effect but realizes that most of the situations didn’t have a great positive impact because in each case he was too afraid to carry something through all the way. Death puts emphasis on this as well and he argues that his ambitions would have led him to do good things, or at least have a good impact on the world. Death parries with how long he’s had to make something of himself and how he hasn’t yet managed to do that, the chances of that having changed in the direction he was going is slim.
7) Defeated we see him in the hospital, the doctor says he’s in a coma of sorts, although he was dead for a while he is now alive, although unconscious. There are people there with him, family, friends and his ex even.
8) To make his point even more clear Death shows him how his death would change the lives of the loved ones around him, or the world as a whole, there is very little change in this montage and he is shown that he doesn’t have any presence in the world. He is now completely defeated and admits that he can’t prove that his life had meaning, in his speech he highlights how he was never even alive. Using this logic he convinces Death that he shouldn’t be able to die, considering that he never lived in the first place - using deaths’ own definitions against him. The last thing death asks him is why he wants to go back, he looks down and says that it's because he wants to live.
9) He wakes up and runs through the halls screaming how he is alive, making up with his friends and family and kissing his ex, asking her back.
________________________________________________________
Again I've applied hero's journey here, with him living his normal life (a man just graduated about to go into the workforce) who wants something (to escape the responsibilities of the adult world and remain in the college lifestyle that he enjoys) and enters another world (he takes a very strong drug that kills him and sends him to limbo), here he has tasks to overcome (proving to death that his life had meaning), he gets what he wants (to escape the responsibilities of adult life) but by doing so pays a heavy price (going to hell) and he finds a way to come back to life (return to the normal world) but now he wants to live his life, but now not only accepting the responsibilities of adult life but fully embracing them (having changed).
Okay so its not exactly, he doesn't really overcome the tasks set, but whatever, I think the story works as it is. Maybe I should change it so he has more wins, in the end he convinces death (to some extent) that he can't die already if by death's own admission he hasn't lived.
________________________________________________________
Job Interview
Jason (I have chosen him because of the Greek legend, where he was tested by his mother Hera to see if he has the compassion to help an old woman on the journey of his quest, similarly this is what our main character has to realise - that he should not just focus on his ambitions, but make the life leading to it worth living by being important to those around him, and not simply be a non-presence floating through their life. Their life should be affected by his presence).
So Jason is running a bit late for his interview, checking his watch we also hear his thoughts and its revealed that he’s late because of oversleeping - he fetishises sleep a bit as well, showing he prefers it to being alive - he rocks up to the reception and the lady says he’s just been replaced by someone, but it shouldn't be too long before he goes in. He’s asked to take a seat, he does this and waits, more applicants arrive and he becomes paranoid that maybe he isn’t good enough for this position, worrying about his appearance as well.
He goes in and his own insecurities take over the interview a bit, failing him and making him look bad in front of the boss. He has to ashamedly leave and feels very downtrodden, worse yet, his parents call during the interview and then again after to see how he did. He lies to them telling he didn’t even go, deciding to focus on his writing again as that’s what he really wants to do. They say that’s fine, asks him to come visit, at which he comes up with an excuse not to. They tell him he’d have to get on the doll cause they can’t support him anymore.
Home Life
He accepts this verdict and goes home, but is reminded of his ex and thinks about her a lot. He has to convince himself to be strong and not call her. He meets with his flatmates in the lounge, they ask how it went and shit and he gives them a similar spiel, one of them asks for help with a project and he asks if it can't be done later. One mentions a party and he says he has to finish his doll shit. He goes to his room and sits down, thinking of his ex and starts doing the doll thing but keeps procrastinating, the time running out to go to the party. He waits it out and gives in, going to the party.
Party
When he gets there he gets questioned about the updates in his life, which he doesn’t have many of, and he is sad to see someone else being more successful than him. His ex calls him and he’s very happy but embarrassed about being at the party, he goes back inside after and accepts the drugs offered previously. Every time that he is offered with a bad choice like the party or the drugs, he first refuses but then gives in when something gets his insecurity higher.
Limbo
Jason wakes up in Limbo and is immediately confronted with the personification of death. He questions Death and Death explains to him that he has to prove his life had meaning in order to enter the ‘good’ afterlife. He also shows him how his friends unceremoniously dumped his corpse in front of the hospital.
________________________________________________________
Work Interview
Jason is running, saying shit shit shit over in his head, he transitions to some other variations on this word as well as other swear words, until noticing what he’s doing, losing interest in looking dumb and says fuck it, just walking, he’s late already doesn't matter.
It’s an opening image perfectly describing our hero's main weakness and is also kinda funny, cause I find it very relatable and feel like everyone’s done that - decided something isn’t that urgent after having expended some energy that one doesn’t feel needs further expending.
This also immediately establishes how our main character is narrating constantly over his action. I originally got the idea from 1917, which is all one-shots, and thought it'd be interesting if in that style one could hear the characters thoughts because during the movies I became aware of how incredibly present my inner voice was as the character went through his adventure
.
Comments
Post a Comment