TO: Scott Abbott, Mark Jeffries, Jans Wager (tentatively), Dr. Julie Nichols (tentatively).
FROM: Benjamin Lewis
DATE: April 25, 2011
SUBJECT: Proposal to complete a finished screenplay that comments on genre and how expectation, not unique content, shape movie experiences.
Statement of Thesis and Project Summary
I intend to mix my studies of literature, film theories, and creative writing to create a script that will entertain, challenge genre stereotypes, and be accepted in a professional contest or other reviewing process. To achieve this, I have an expanding bibliography of sources that will help me investigate and emulate acceptable screenplay writing form and accessible genres. I will then attempt to comment on basic film genres through the script’s narrative to create an experience that makes the views (reader) aware of the genre at play at any given moment, and to create a new experience from that awareness. While the film theory involved may not be cutting edge, my research will be a valuable tool for strengthening my skills as a creative writer, and may give me more of a chance when trying to begin a professional writing life style, which is also goal in creative writing studies.
Review of Literature
The main goal of this project is to create a finished script. I entered into English as my major when I first entered college because I wanted to learn how to write stories. I haven’t yet lost that goal, but I have learned about many other important things that are incredibly valuable to me. Since academics have taken priority, I have only been able to focus on creative writing minimally. This is my attempt to marry the skills I learned as a writing student and the knowledge and concepts I learned as a critical literature and social awareness student.
I was first introduced to the academic side of mixing genres while in Jans Wager’s Film Theory class while discussing Film Noir. In class we discussed whether Film Noir was accepted as a genre or as something else. One of the most intriguing discussions was how Film Noir was used in the film Mildred Pierce (Michael Curtiz, 1945), and how Film Noir was contrasted with what we call a Domestic Drama, both inside the same film, but at different times. This marrying of themes and techniques made a film that was so powerful and lasting that it has been revived now, more than 50 years later, as a television miniseries on HBO (http://www.hbo.com/mildred-pierce/index.html).
I have since wondered how much genre affects a viewer’s watching experience. Audiences are aware of the genre of film they choose to watch, and they have basic expectations for what will be involved. When these expectations are met, the movie is received, but when they are exceeded, the movie is lauded. When these expectations are not met, the movie is not often well received. With this in mind, I wonder how much a casual viewer is aware of his own expectations in his viewing experience. Included at the end of this proposal is an annotated bibliography that outlines the sources I currently intend to use for my genre bases and my screenwriting techniques.
Preliminary Outline
I will examine different genres and place them along the three-act arc that most movies follow as they are most effective. For example, the fantasy genre is notorious, to me at least, for having obvious conflict set-ups from idyllic beginnings. This will progress to a thriller, to a gangster movie, to a war movie, and settle again on a domestic compromise conclusion. Not only do these progressions move through genres in a basic degree of rising action, but they also comment on, perhaps, the development in the perception of reality, taking us from make believe to the darkest sides of human nature, and finally settling on a compromise that can be lived with.
This will be accomplished during the next several weeks, reaching conclusion on May 31, when it will be prepared and submitted to The Film Makers International Screenwriting Awards 2011 competition. I don’t expect to create a major award winning script because my content will be fairly chaotic, but I hope to at least place in the top 100. Notification for that achievement will not happen until October, and is not my major concern with this project. Finishing and submitting the script is.
Works Cited
Berliner, Todd. "The Genre Film as Booby Trap: 1970s GenreBending and The French Connection." Cinema Journal 40.3 (2001): 25-46. Print. A critical review of the topic of genre bending. Berliner reviews how movie makers have tried to bend the system before and how they did. He even discusses how far a filmmaker goes before he is not just bending genres, but breaking them.
Cramer, Kris. "Kris Cramer – author & screenwriter." Kris Cramer – author & screenwriter. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2011.
Dancyger, Ken, and Jeff Rush. Alternative scriptwriting: successfully breaking the rules. 4th ed. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Focal Press, 2007. Print. A How-to book with alternatives to the three-act structure. Since I want to write a challenging structure, this will prove as a useful guide rail.
Eisele, John. "The Wild East: Deconstructing the Language of Genre in the Hollywood Eastern." Cinema Journal 41.4 (2002): 68-94. Print. Eisele discusses the "Eastern" and how Hollywood has stood by this stereotype. I intend to apply its principles to genre stand-bys.
Gates, Tudor. Scenario the craft of screenwriting. London: Wallflower, 2002. Print. "Presents a system of logical analysis of the basic structures of successful screenplays." I intend to use it as a measuring stick to avoid as much as I dare.
Gorman, David. "Modern Genre Theory." Poetics Today 22.4 (2001): 853-861. Print. An extended article on how genres have developed and been theorized throughout criticism. I can use this to help me further understand genre and how it is used.
Hauge, Michael. Writing screenplays that sell . New York, NY: HarperPerennial, 1991. Print. Has an extensive section on protecting written material, finding venues to sell, and the life style of a screenwriter. Though dated before the digital age, the copy writing and pre-sell prepping is still valid.
Landrum, Jason. "Rethinking Genre Theory." Framework: The Journal of Cinema and Media 48.1 (2007): 109-111. Project Muse. Web. 25 Apr. 2011. A review of Barry Langford's "Film Genre: Hollywood and Beyond," Landrum explains Langford's concepts. These will help me to understand how genre is being discussed.
Meyers, Ashley. "SellingYourScreenplay.com — Practical tips and advice about how to sell your screenplay." SellingYourScreenplay.com — Practical tips and advice about how to sell your screenplay. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2011.
Suite101. "Developing Memorable Characters:: 45 Questions to Create Backstories." Suite101.com: Online Magazine and Writers' Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
