The Realm of Darkness

[sharry]

i would disagree... if you work hard it will pay you off... but the thing is dedication and knowing your craft is a must... actually it is the key... i know a person he is independent and is living easily and comfortabaly and he is a filmmaking student... the thing is contacts matter no matter what.... but the thing is work hard.... there is very low scope of filmmaking here in pakistan but in india filmmaking is the industry... so padnar work hard and try to prove it to those people who say filmmaking will lead you no where.... i proved some people wrong a few months ago... including my stereotypical family... not including my parents and siblings... they know i have the eye...

thanks for your comments and do think over what i said... it is us blessed people who can do something to make a way for others by proving something!!!

[padnar]

Hi Sharry ,
what you say is true in India also, but we cannot blame the
parents also . It is very difficult to gain success in films unless
your father is in the film line or you are rich and have a lot of contacts .
I am not the breadwinner of the family so it is not much of a problem
as my family does not need my income . As I am passionate of writing
I continue to do so though I have not much of a success
padma

[uncle_al]

Yes, Don is, once again, absolutely right.  Isn't he getting at least a little tired of it?
If you do the absolute best you can, lead the audience (and the non-audience) by example, and show, don't tell (a true screenwriting maxim, if ever there was one) that this is a rewarding path, even if it's not so financially, you will at least change some minds. 

As has been said, "The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step."

Be that journey... make your step.

Cheers!

Al B.

[sharry]

thanks for the nice words scriptnurse... i have been making films for quite a few times now and now i do intend to take the audience and the general public out of the REALM OF DARKNESS!! thank you for listening to me!!!

[ScriptNurse]

Ah, your story also contains a message. I understand. You must make sure that the reader or audience also understands. In a way, you take them by the hand and gently lead them where you need for them to go ... as your story unfolds ... and never let go or they might become lost.

To resurrect film in your country you must simply be the best there is ... you must have principles that cut across political boundaries ... your work must have an honesty that cannot be questioned no matter what the political arena. Of course, this is not easy and I wish you much luck. You have conviction and that's a good start.

[sharry]

there is motivation for the boy to be an artist and there is a motivation for him to leave the house.... there is an incident which makes the father realize his mistake but it is too late... the boy has run away... the only thing that makes me wonder is the filmmaking question.... let me tell you why???

i live in pakistan... a country which has a very conservative... and by very.... i mean VERY!!!! in my university the strength of student studying filmmaking is only 40 and this is the whole department.... there is only one batch that graduated to this date.... the rest departments like fine arts, visual design, architecture and journalism has students like 120 in just one batch!!! the reason is parents don't like their children going in this field because according to them this is a place where the child will be mislead by different people!!! girls will become kind of prostitutes and boys well pimps!!! (excuse me for my language but that exactly is the thinking).... i love filmmaking... i am a rebelious kid... i forced my father to let me do this... he didn't talk to me the first semester... but when i showed him my first short film he was happy and said that son... i dont know if this is the right path or the wrong path... it is up to you to prove which one is it!!! and i said dad this is the BEST path for me!!!

in my country film has died... thought tv and music industry survives... this is the harsh truth and i accept it!!!! i want to make this people keeping those parents in mind who think this is a wrong field and to show them that the kid has to prove that it was the right path!!! that is the only reason why i chose filmmaking over any other art medium... though when the inital idea came it was that the kid wanted to be a game character designer but filmmaking was a better choice according to me!!!

what do you have to say?

[uncle_al]

Don is, as usual, absolutely right.

Motivation.  What motivates the boy to follow an artistic path?  What motivates the father to change his perceptions?  What motivates the boy to give up his plan to leave?

If the audience doesn't see the motivation, or doesn't believe it if they do see it, it isn't the right motivation for that character in that situation.

It may be true, but it lacks the ring of truth; believability.

Which is why, by the way, so many "ripped from the headlines" or "based on a true story" films don't tell the story in the exact way it happened in real life; the sequence of events wasn't dramatic, wasn't "logical" (in a cinematic way), or was too dependent on luck, coincidence, and stupidity, whereas what we watch on the screen has to be hero-driven, proactive instead of reactive, and, when seen in retrospect, inevitable.

Or, at least, that's the way to bet it...

Cheers!

Al B.

[ScriptNurse]

... for some reason he chooses to stay!!!!

Usually, this is the result of some event or incident that causes a character to "see" his own circumstance more clearly.

I would consider several things ...

Why did you pick filmmaking? The audience watching the film will likely not relate very well to filmmaking as most people know nothing about what the experience is like. If the son wanted to be an artist would be something more people might be able to relate to.

It's not very believable that just given some time, the father will reconsider his decision on his own and just change his mind. It's more likely something will happen to him to force him to reconsider his position. It can be a simple event that occurs in the life of anyone, but it needs to be unique for the father this one time so as to reveal to him his own error.

a friend of mine (female) said that the ending was depressing he should have gone back....

What your friend is saying is that she wants a happy ending and 80% of movie-goers also want happy endings.

[sharry]

this is a script that i wrote a week ago!!! basically it is a short film and is a drama. the concept behind this is that in the part of the world i live in is a man dominant society and there are professions which alot of people consider gender based professions... like art... people here consider art as a profession for females... i wrote a screenplay on this...

here is the concept:
i guy loves filmmaking. the only obstacle in his life is his father who thinks this is a waste of time. he scolds him and forces him to stop it. the guy doesn't listen and runs away from home... he goes to his friends to stay but they all have their own reasons for not letting him stay... meanwhile we see the father is kind of thinking over the matter of his son and he feels sorry... in the end when the guy has no hope he comes near a bus stop and sits down on the footpath... there he has to make a decision... whether to stay and live a life like this or go back and try convincing his dad... for some reason he chooses to stay!!!!

a friend of mine (female) said that the ending was depressing he should have gone back.... but what i think is in fight club tyler durden says:
only a blow can resurrect us (i am sorry this is not exactly the same dialogues but they go something like this) and i want to show that it was indeed a wrong path he choose and there is always an alternate... running away is not an opetion!!!!

help me out!!!!