Mark Schwahn | Screenwriter

Mark Schwahn is an American screenwriter as well as a director and producer. He has co-written 'Coach Carter' 'The Perfect Score' 'Whatever It Takes' and '35 Miles from Normal'. He is best known as the creator, head writer and executive producer of the WB/CW drama series 'One Tree Hill'.

What is 'One Tree Hill'?

'One Tree Hill' is an American TV drama series with 9 seasons. It first started in 2003 and ended in 2012.
The main storyline of the show is two half-brothers start off as enemies but as the show progresses they become good friends and have a good sibling relationship. The show deals with real relatable problems such as teenage pregnancies, kidnapping, depression, death, school life, work life, and relationships.
Seasons 1, 2, 3 & 4 focus on the teenagers life at school starting at junior year to senior year. Seasons 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9 focus on the teenagers adult life's after jumping four years into the future in Season 5. In these seasons we see old characters leave and new characters joining the others while new stories are created and new problems are solved.
The original 6 main characters are called Lucas Scott, Nathan Scott, Peyton Sawyer, Haley James (Scott) and Brooke Davis. Other main characters include Lucas' mum, Karen, Lucas' and Nathan's dad, Dan, his brother Keith, and the basketball coach, Whitey Durham.

Schwahn had originally planned to make 'One Tree Hill' into a feature length film called 'Ravens' which is the name of the school's basketball team which is seen throughout all 9 seasons. However, he decided it would be more interesting as a television series.
The idea came from his own personal experiences as he went to a school in a small town and played on a basketball team. The title of the show and the town where the series is set are developed from the song 'One Tree Hill' which is named after the landmark in New Zealand. The majority of the episode titles are titles of songs, bands or albums. Fans used to ask Schwahn why the show was named 'One Tree Hill' when the town that they live is just called Tree Hill. But the question is answered by Karen to Lucas in series 1, episode 22, "There is only one Tree Hill...and it's your home." The same sentence is then said by Haley to her son Jamie in series 9, episode 13, which has made this quote very sentimental and meaningful in the 'One Tree Hill' fandom.

This TV drama series written by Schwahn interested me because the basic storyline of the two half-brothers having a rivalry was something I had never heard before. Throughout each season, the storylines and the written plots are all quite relatable to both teenagers and adults, and I felt I could relate to some of the minor storylines. Like a regular series, each episode was written to create multiple different problems that need to be solved throughout each season. Some of my favourite writing in the TV drama series was all of the season finales as they are always really emotionally and tense and most of the time it's left on a cliff-hanger which makes me want to watch the next season when it comes out.

This will help influence my project as I want to write about something fairly relatable as well as writing something interesting and attention grabbing. My short film is going to be a drama, so I will be using some of the same writing techniques as Schwahn has used in 'One Tree Hill' like the characters actions and the amusing but natural dialogue. I will also make sure there is a problem that needs to be solved and make sure it's clear through the characters actions.

Moments | Development

In Miss Congeniality, there is a scene of a beauty pageant. During this beauty pageant, the contestants get asked various different questions. When Miss Rhode Island gets asked to describe her perfect date, she answers with something quite unusual.

This is one of my favourite moments as you don't expect her to answer with what she did. It's a funny part in the film and also it shows the stereotype of pageant girls being quite dumb and not very smart. This part of the film is most memorable moment as it makes me laugh and really sets the tone of the comedy that is shown and used in the film.

This is a moment because it interrupts all of the chaos that is happening in the scene - trying to investigate who sabotaged the crown - and it lightens up the tense scene. 

Toby Whithouse | Screenwriter

Toby Whithouse is an English actor, stand-up comedian and screenwriter. He has written a few episodes of BBC One's 'Hotel Babylon' and 'Doctor Who'. He is known as the creator of the Channel 4 TV drama series 'No Angels', but he is best known as the creator of the BBC Three TV series 'Being Human'.

What is 'Being Human'?

'Being Human' is a British supernatural drama TV series with 5 series. It first started in 2008 and ended in 2013.
The main storyline of the show is three housemates, all in their twenties, living in Bristol, trying to live normal lives, despite struggling with unusual afflictions. One is a werewolf, one is a vampire and the other is a ghost. All three characters are attempting to live ordinary lives despite the pressures and the dangers that their situations have to offer. They are always threatened with exposure or persecution with pressure and problems caused by their own attempts to deal with their lives.
Series 1 & 2 deal with the characters becoming friends and dealing with their supernatural problems. In series 1 we see them take low-profile, low-status jobs to fit in with the normal world around them. Series 2 then deals with the aftermath of series 1 as the characters struggle to balance the responsibilities of managing his own urges and attempting to manage the community.
In series 3, the protagonists move to Barry Island in South Wales and they move into a former bed and breakfast hotel, to resume their 'normal' lives.
Series 4 mainly deals with the exposure of the werewolves, by the vampires, in order to take over the earth. This series then ends with the characters living together in Honolulu Heights.
Series 5 then shows one of the characters adjusting to life as a ghost while the others also take up jobs at the Barry Grand Hotel. They deal with a government agent whose job is to keep the truth about supernaturals from the public and a pensioner.
Some of the main characters in 'Being Human' are Annie Sawyer, George Sands, John Mitchell and more.

Whithouse was first approached by the production company Touchpaper Television to develop a drama series about a group of friends who buy a house together. It has been said that Whithouse wasn't that enthusiastic about this idea, but came up with three characters to start. The company liked the character so together they started to develop the project. It took a while for the team to come up with a storyline for the first episode and they decided that if they couldn't come up with an idea in the final meeting, they would scrap the idea. Whithouse then came up with the supernatural idea and the characters were changed to suit the new storyline.

This TV drama, written by Toby Whithouse, interested me because, although the show is about supernatural elements and I'm not that interested in that particular topic, I liked the comedy aspect of the show. The comedy is combined within the supernatural elements of the show, and that's what I found interesting and entertaining about the show.

Although I am interested in this show, I'm not sure it will influence my work too much, but some of the writing aspects might. Due to the show being humorous but also mysterious, I feel as if I could involve a slight glimpse of comedy in my short film. The genre of my short film is drama, and this show is also a drama series, so I can use some of the same storylines without the supernatural aspect of it.

Ideas | Development

My first initial ideas:

Idea 1

• A child meeting his biological father or mother for the first time.
• The child would have been a foster child after his parents gave him up after his/her birth.
• The meeting would consist of the child and the father.
• The meeting would take place in the father's living room.
• The child would have some questions he would want to ask about why he was taken into care.
• The child could possibly be nervous around his father at first, then angry due to some of his father's answers to his questions, and then forgiving after the father's emotions come out.
• The parent would be quite insecure and nervous at first, due to the fact that he felt guilty for not being there for his child's up bringing.
• After the child asking the father some questions, the father would feel extremely guilty and possibly even get quite emotional after regretting his decision to give his son away.
• After realising he made the mistake of letting his son meet him, he tries to convince him to leave, but changes his mind after seeing his son break down with emotions (almost as if they were building up inside him all his life, and now they have just crumbled down).
• The father would then try and calm him down and talk to him about stuff normal father and sons would talk about.
• The father would ask for forgiveness from his son, and suggest that they keep in contact if the son would like that idea, which he would.

Idea 2

• A guy has a mental disorder (possibly depression?) and meets a woman who needs some help finding a place or a lost object.
• The guy would be going about his normal routine - waking up, making breakfast, getting ready, go shopping, taking a stroll in the nearby park and sitting down on the bench as normal.
• The woman would either have just moved to that area or is visiting a friend who lives close by and gets lost in the area.
• The guy would be sitting down on the same bench in the same park as he usually would daily.
• He usually watches other people around him and makes up stories about them to pass the time.
• This woman would be walking around trying to find the right place to go, but gives up,
• Which leads her to find someone near her and ask them for directions.
• When the woman comes over to the man he would be quite nervous and not realise at first that she was talking to him.
• At first he would ignore her - unintentionally - and she would try and get his attention.
• Once the woman has asked the man if he could give her directions, he isn't really sure if he wants to help her but after plucking up a little courage he says yes and asks where she wants to go.
• They both get up to go and he leads her in the right direction.
• During the journey he doesn't really talks and just lets the woman lead the conversation but she keeps asking her questions to which he has to answer which makes him more talkative towards her.
• After walking around in a circle for a while they realise that they aren't really getting anywhere, and it turns out that the guy wasn't actually sure where she wanted to go, he just wanted to be nice and not turn her away.
• They then use the maps on her phone and realise the place she wants to go is about a half an hour drive from where they actually are.
• She decides to get a Taxi to where she wants to go, but she doesn't want to say goodbye to the new man she just met.
• The man also gets this strange feeling that he has never really felt before, and doesn't want to say goodbye either.
• They decide to exchange numbers at the end of their encounter.
• The man goes back home and the woman goes to get a taxi, and it's left on a cliff-hanger as to whether they will keep in contact or not.

Idea 3

• Two sixth form students (one boy and one girl).
• Boy is quiet, shy, and spends most of his time sketching.
• Girl is confident, friendly, but people tend to get the wrong idea about her because of her parents.
• The boy needs to escape from his house as his mother has her boyfriend round.
• His mum's boyfriend doesn't like her son very much.
• The boy doesn't like him back.
• He decides to go to his normal spot in the woods.
• This is where he likes to doodle and sketch to release his emotions and also to relax and have some quiet time.
• The girl needs to do some photography work for her course and decides to head to the woods to get some great shoots for her work.
• She bumps into him and after relaxing from the first initial shock of seeing him there, she  recognises him.
• They both go to the same school, and they both spend most of their time in the art department due to their courses.
• She tries to start a conversation with him, but he's quite rude and doesn't want to talk back as he just wants some quiet time.
• She can tell he isn't interested in a conversation so she slowly backs away and decides to carry on with her photography and leave him be.
• He then feels guilty for technically sending her away so before she leaves he says she can stay, which she does.
• She's quite interested as to why he is in the woods and also why he carries around the same notebook everywhere he goes.
• She asks him questions and he's reluctant to answer, but he does to make her quiet.
• As she asks him questions, certain points about her own lifestyle come up.
• He sees her as this snobby rich girl, due to her parents being rich, and decides to call her up on it.
• She declines all of those rumours and opens up about how she gets upset that people see her as a snob.
• When they first start talking, he's quite rude to her but as he becomes more open about his past and his life, and as she does the same, he becomes more friendly and is interested about her and her story.
• While they are knee deep in conversation she get's scared by a noise of a twig breaking and drops her expensive camera.
• She get's really worried and starts to panic as it won't turn on.
• He is confused as to why she is worried because 'surely she owns 10 of them', but after confronting her about her worriedness she reveals that her dad would kill her and that her life isn't a fairy tale.
• Due to his father being a camera-pro, he asks if he can help to which is very thankful.
• He get's it working in the end and they both exchange smiles and a big hug to which he did not expect.
• The girl decides that she should probably go back home, and the boy kindly asks if he could walk her home because he wanted to find out more about her.

Momento | Review

'Momento', the film, follows quite a simple story of a man not being able to make new memories due to damaging part of his brain through an accident he had. Due to the outcome of the accident, and due to the unfortunate fact that he no longer can make new memories that take place after the accident, he records down all the information he needs to know daily through pictures and notes.

The story of 'Momento' is the man trying to find the killer of his wife who he thinks has got 'raped and killed'. The man is looking for someone with the initials 'J.G', and eventually finds that person. However we soon realise that the man had already killed another J.G before killing the J.G he was trying to find and kill. He just doesn't remember as he cant make new memories. 

The storyline is pretty simple and basic, but the plot is quite complicated and confusing at times. The film works backwards in terms of the memories that he creates through the photos he takes and the notes he writes down. When watching this film I was slightly confused at the beginning but as the film carried on I got used to the confusing layout and worked out what was actually going on.

The flashbacks are shown in a black and white filter to show a clear difference between present day and flashback. I enjoyed this film as the plot is interesting and action packed, but it is quite confusing at times.

How has this influenced my work?

• The storyline itself hasn't really influenced my work, however the plot has.
• I know that if the storyline isn't that interesting or is quite basic and simple that the plot has to be quite interesting and maybe even complicated to keep the audience interested.

'Kid' | Short Film Review

Kid

Basic Storyline:

• Kid has to stay at his grandparents house while the mum works.
• The Grandma doesn't particularly like the little boy.
• The Grandma also doesn't think his mum is fit enough to raise him.
• Grandma isn't very nice to the boy.
• He tells him to stop playing with his and to stop doodling and to do some maths or something academic.
• An uncle drops by for dinner much to the Grandmothers dismay.
• The kid and the uncle get along through the doodles that they both make.
• The uncles doodles being more advanced than the kids.
• The uncle goes to leave because he didn't want to be a nuisance, but the kid wants to go along with him.
• At first the uncle refuses to let him come with him, but after a lot of begging he lets him come along.
• The uncle shows the kid an old go-kart that he had when he was younger, and they go for a ride.
• The ride was accidental as the kid was in the go-kart and it got pushes down a hill after the uncle jumped in behind him.
• The accidental go-karting ride takes them to an amusement park that the uncle was previously telling the kid about when they were exchanging doodles.

Characters:

• Child
• Grandpa
• Grandma
• Uncle George

Goal:

• I think the goal in this short film is to find some freedom from the kid's grandmother and to experience his childhood in the way that a childhood should be experienced.

Conflict:

• The Grandmother doesn't let the kid doodle and do child like activities. She thinks children should be learning and educated well. The Grandmother also doesn't like the uncle that comes to visit for a few  days. This could also be the clear age gap between the child and the uncle, and this could make it harder for them to communicate.

Change:

• The Uncle becomes more talkative and kind towards the child, while the child is allowed some freedom to explore and be a child when around the uncle.

How has this influenced my work?

• This has given me a few more ideas for my own work, and has helped me add some more variety to the different ideas.
• The storyline itself isn't something that I would like to experiment with, but I could play around with some of the personalities that the characters in this short film have and use that in my own work.

From the iloveshortfilms.com website.
http://iloveshortfilms.com/kid/

'Felly' | Short Film Review

 Felly

Basic Storyline:

• Guy gone missing.
• Says he's in big trouble.
• Got involved with a girl.
• She has been shown and is viewed as being quite mental and strange in her actions.
• His family is trying to find him which causes tension through the disagreements between the father and the mother.
• A family member or a friend knows something or finds something out about this guys disappearance.
• The girl dies.
• It is unexplained how she died, it's possible that the guy who is missing has killed her.
• It has been left on a cliff-hanger to make the audience want to know more.
• You see both sides of the story - you can see where 'Felly' is and what he's doing while you get the view of the parents and his family trying to find him. 

Characters:

• Felly
• Step-Brother
• Parents
• Sister/Friend

Goal:

• To find the guy, 'Felly', who is missing and is possibly in trouble.
• Not only to find out where 'Felly' is but also to find out how he went missing. 

Conflict:

• There is conflict between the parents arguing about the disappearance of their son.
• There is conflict between the missing person and the girl who seems to be acting quite strangely.
• There is conflict seen at the end between the missing person and the girl who has actually died but the audience is unsure how.

Change:

• There's a change in the relationship between the parents as they start to argue about who's fault it was that 'Felly' has gone missing.
• The relationship between the Step-Brother and the sister/friend becomes more negative as the film comes to an end due to something she has seen but won't share. 

How has this influenced my work?

• This has given me an insight on the different genre pathways I could go down, but also it's shown me how I can interpret multiple scenarios into one film.
• This hasn't influenced my work in a massive way as I won't be basing my screenplay off this type of genre but it has shown me how to make my work my effective by the dramatic build up in the structure of the scenes.

 

From the iloveshortfilms.com website.
http://iloveshortfilms.com/felly/

'Soft' | Short Film Review

'Soft' By Simon Ellis

Dad

• Insecure
• Passive
• Introverted
• Working
• Simple
• Everyday
• Organised

Goal

• To get on in life.
• Get the milk for the tea.
• Influence his son.
• Be a role model.
• Bond with his son OR Son wants to bond with his Dad.

Conflict:

• The thugs/gang.
• Got to protect his son, but he's a coward.
• No milk to make the tea.

Change:

• Father/Son relationship.
• Son can defend himself.
• Son has lost respect for his Dad.
• World around them (the neighbours).

Ideas of what could have made Ellis write this short film:

• Personal experience.
• Witness to the event.
• On the news.
• Scouting - seeing a gang.
• Regular routine.
• Part of the gang.

Some ideas of what words could be used within the short films pitch:

• Contemporary (present day)
• Conflicting
• Complex relationship
• Issues
• Inner conflict
• Gang culture
• Drama
• Father and Son
• Urban
• Working Class
• Masculinity challenged

The pitch I made up for the short film:

Contemporary Drama that witnesses a troubled father/son relationship as it crumbles because of the violent interruption of routine from the local gang.

Story-telling | Short Project

Location: Café
Characters: Photographer & Artist


Artist

Name: Hayley
Age: 21
Date of Birth: November

Personality:

• Shy
• Creative
• Insecure
• Sentimental
• Passionate
• Avoids
• Confrontation
• Panic when things go wrong
• Perfectionist

Appearance:

• Her hair is always twisted back with a clip.
• Hair colour is mousy brown.
• Wears minimal make-up.
• Sports rectangular glasses.
• Always wears a bird necklace.
• Was originally her mothers, and was given to her by her late grandmother.
• She wears blue flared trousers, a cream quarter length top and a 70s style western sleeveless jacket with dirty worn out cream converses.

Backstory:

• Lives in a first floor flat.
• To make her feel more secure as she lives in a rough area that is quite scary for her.
• Her parents died in a car crash when she was a baby.
• Her Grandmother took her in and raised her.
• She started painting because of the different stories her grandmother told her about her mother's talent as an artist.
• Painting was a way for Hayley to connect with her late mother.
• Her paintings are very sentimental and are based off her own personal experiences and emotions.
• When Hayley started university, where she studied art, she received a call from the hospital regarding her Grandmother who had had a fall and the damage was very serious.
• The Grandmother found out she had a blood clot in her brain, and didn't have much longer left.
• Hayley blamed herself for her Grandmothers fall and can't face going back to university, so she dropped out and got herself a 3-day a week job in a greasy run down café to support her rent.
• During her spare time she dedicates herself to artwork.

Photographer

Name: Matt
Age: 35
Date of Birth: March

Personality:

• Confident
• Outgoing
• Talkative
• Friendly
• Inspiring
• Creative
• Passionate
• Determined

Appearance:

• Rugged/untidy looking.
• Tall.
• Bald but wears a woolly hat all the time.
• He wears black ripped jeans and a plain dirty red hoodie with old black boots.

Backstory:

• Lives in a town house.
• In a friendly neighbour hood, a very homely area.
• He was once a shy child, but as he grew older he became more confident throughout his photography work.
• He had a very normal up bringing with both parents in a very faithful relationship.
• He started his hobby of photography because he enjoyed making memories, and also he enjoyed capturing his friends and family in a very spontaneous way that created a sense of mystery.

• Photography was a way for Matt to escape his boring 9 to 5, 5 day a week job.
• His photos usually show various emotions but are mainly portraits of strangers that he has previously met or seen in the street.
• He studied finance in university when he was younger, and gained himself a job in the bank  close to his home.
• He doesn't enjoy it very much but it helps him pay for his house, car and other daily life essentials.
• As well as his job, he runs a little photography business on the side here he sells his photos and makes some money by offering family portraits.

The Meeting

• Hayley heard about an art competition in a quirky café situated in a popular area of the local town.
• At first she wasn't sure whether to enter or not, but the photos on her beside table of her Grandmother, mother and herself together, which was resting next to her necklace, gave her the confidence to enter one of her most precious pieces of art.
• When she got to the café, the place was flooded with people, more than she anticipated, which caused her to question why she was there and panic resulting her into making a swift escape.
• As she was leaving she collided with Matt, the photographer, which caused both her and Matt's art folders, which they bought along with them, to fall on the floor, and the coffee in Matt's hand to spill all over his hoodie.
• In a panic she  picked up the first folder she saw and with an apologetic grunt she ran out the door leaving the man with a coffee stained hoodie and the wrong folder.

The Conflict

• Once Matt had realised that he no longer had his photography work and a strangers art work, he wanted to find the owner, but not before looking through her work and finding her chosen piece for the competition.
• Using social media he posted an image of the painting asking if the rightful owner could contact him so he could give it back and also so he could have his work back.
• When Hayley got home she pulled out what she thought was her artwork from her folder, but found that it was in fact the man she bumped into, Matt's photography work.
• Due to her anxious emotions at the time she didn't want to go back and just hoped that she would get her work back.
• A few weeks pass after the competition, Hayley checks her social media sites and sees a photo of her bird painting.
• The image not only has information from Matt about how to contact him, but it also has numerous likes and positive comments due to it being shared across the country.
• Hayley contacts Matt and they arrange to meet up with each other's art and photography work in hand.

The Change

• They both meet up in the same café that the competition was held at.
• Once they give each other their work back Matt compliments her on her work and tells her she needs to share more of  her work with the world.
• Matt also revealed that  he entered her painting under her name, as it was on her art folder, and she had won!
• Matt and Hayley got talking and starting sharing more of their work.
• They became good friends and met up regularly to share their artistic opinions on each other's work.
• Hayley entered more competitions and won quite a few of them giving her the confidence to share all of her paintings with the public and her social media followers.

An Introduction To Me | Summer Project

Here is my summer project titled 'An Introduction To Me'.