This brief tutorial is about the [...]]]> I am working on a test film for creating a 3D animation movie in preparation for working on my Mars Station One film. This is a short silent movie that I will create to test out and learn animation and building items in Blender for use in Daz Studio.

This brief tutorial is about the scrip I am writing for use with this little movie.

I adore Open Source programs, and as a writer one of my favorites is Open office. I’m using Open Office to make my script, but you can use any program you prefer to create it.

The first thing you need to understand is how a script looks. Each script has different elements that help the people involved in the production to know what they need to do. There are actually several different items that are needed for the final production to start, but as far as I know, it all starts with a basic script and everything else (story boards, SFX instructions, etc) is built out from the script.

So, what does a script look like?

This is an example from Wikipedia of what a basic script looks like:

There are some elements that may need explained for those who do not know a little about scripts.

The names of characters are centered on the page and written in full caps. JOHN, MARY, MIKE, and so forth. What that character will be saying is indented under the character’s name. If the character’s talking is modified in any way it will be under the name in parenthesis and italicized. IE:

MARY
(whispering)
      Did you see that?

(O.S.) identifies the dialogue as being spoken Off Screen.

Anything that explains what the characters are doing, aside from what they say, is in normal left justified text on the page. In this decription area the first instance of names of characters are wrote in all caps, and any sound or special effects are written in all caps – such as CREAKS or KNOCK.

The right justified comments “CUT TO:” and “BACK TO:” are camera directions to show that the view is shifting from one location to another and back again.

Scene information is in all capitols starting with if it is inside (INT.) or outside (EXT.) and the location.

For my script I have streamlined it to let me easily sort out what I need to know about each scene:

PART ONE

SCENE 1: EXT – TAVERN                                                                                                                     NIGHT

Door opens and MARCUS, a swordsman, enters the crowded tavern, scans the room. Marcus moves to bar, sits and orders an ale.

As Marcus is drinking his ale he is approached by CORA, a barmaid, who drapes herself along his shoulder in a friendly manner.

Zoom in on Marcus’s money bag being stolen by Cora, who then walks away.

Marcus keeps drinking – follow Cora out back door.

And so forth for each scene, then for the next part and the scenes in it.

This tells me what scene it is, where it takes place, what time of day it is set to happen, and what happens. Note that the first instance of each character’s name is in all caps. This helps to locate the names of each individual character and identify who is used in the scene. I am going to try to tell my story without any dialogue, however, if I decide to add in dialogue I would indent the name and the dialogue and any other needed information.

When you are ready to create your 3D film, you can use each scene in your script to keep you focused and help you identify what you need to show in the scene to bring your story to life.

The Internet is a huge place, with uncounted writing opportunities, so [...]]]> We live in a age where everyone wants instant gratification. If you can not provide a reason to read on in the first few paragraphs, then chances are your reader will loose interest and move on to something that is more interesting to them.

The Internet is a huge place, with uncounted writing opportunities, so it is only natural to wonder just what the ideal length of an online article is. As a general rule online articles should be kept to an average length of 300 to 500 words, with some leeway for shorter or longer works depending on the topic.

Why 300 to 500 words? Quite simply because it is long enough to actually say something about the subject you are writing about, and brief enough that your reader can read it in just a few minutes. This is by no means a hard and fast rule, since online discussions have proven that even those who are writing articles for websites have a difference of opinion on how long an article should be. 250 to 11,000 words, less, more… It all focuses around one general rule. Write how much you need to write to inform the reader, no more.

Don’t create a dark shadowy figure that lurks in the shadows of an alley. Create a real character that watches your hero from the gloomy depths of the alleyway.

Rather than a busty blond or nondescript [...]]]> When you are writing a story, you want to create unique characters for it, not cookie cutter stereotyped characters.

Don’t create a dark shadowy figure that lurks in the shadows of an alley. Create a real character that watches your hero from the gloomy depths of the alleyway.

Rather than a busty blond or nondescript brunette taking your hero’s order in the cafe, maybe their order is taken by a young man that has traces of grease under his fingernails from his second job as a mechanic.

A danger zone is in too much detail, however, which can be just as bad as a character that is too classic a stereotype. Yes it might be stereotyping to have a meek bespeckled librarian, but just as dangerous is to toss out all of the traits of your stereotypical librarian. There should be aspects of the character that, while not what one might expect from the role, are also universally expected.

For example, a librarian might be different in their body builder physique, but they likely still love books or they would not have become a librarian.

A good exercise is to take a sheet of paper and write the kind of character you are creating at the top. Then draw a line down the middle. On the left write everything you think of when you think of that particular type of person, including and especially stereotypes for them. Then on the right side of the paper write all of the things you need for the character in your story. From these two lists you can create a character that has the traits of both what you need and what you expect, and from that you can create a non-stereotypical character or your story.

1) memorable characters that the reader will think about long after they have put the book down and want to read more stories about

and

2) Easily forgotten characters that the reader simply can not bring themselves to care about.

None [...]]]> There are, in the most basic of terms, only two kinds of fictional characters

1) memorable characters that the reader will think about long after they have put the book down and want to read more stories about

and

2) Easily forgotten characters that the reader simply can not bring themselves to care about.

None of us want the type two character, the ones that cause the reader to yawn and set the book aside, or worse, to roll their eyes and throw the book aside.

We want the memorable character. We want the character that has such a sense of reality about them that our reader is able to fully empathize with the character and wants to spend time with them.

How do you achieve that? You make the character as real as possible. You don’t simply decide that you are going to write about a computer nerd that is into conspiracy theories. You create a computer genius who lives in the back room of a bar, is precariously balanced between the sanity of knowing conspiracy theories are for nutcases and believing in them himself. You give him a phobia, a fear of going outside. Then you find out why he has it.

The character I am talking about here is one that my dear friend created years ago, one that came to life for all of us in the writing group. She laid the basic groundwork and handed me the character who then took on a life of his own.

We discovered that he is afraid to go out because when he was a small child his father went out for a walk to the corner store and was shot in a robbery. After that his mother began claiming that there was some kind of conspiracy behind her husband’s death, that he was assassinated.

The life and history of the character unfolded and with it came details about the histories of several other characters in our story world.

Try an exercise. Sit back with a notebook and write your character’s name at the top of the page, then start writing what you find most fascinating about the character and what you think might have caused that to be a part of them.