At an impasse

[dohope]

Hmm. That's an even better suggestion.
Thanks.

[ScriptNurse]

How about a community theatre group?

If it lacks luster, you have a documentary. Call PBS. When you add conflict, you get drama. Call HBO or Lifetime.

[dohope]

Will attempt to find actors...however, past attempts have proved futile. The colleges want something to fit into their pre-planned scholastic program or else to mount as a production that can make money and the few real actors I know want $$$s for their services. I'm going to try calling one of the smaller playhouses to see if I can have any luck there.
Thanks for the "nudge" in that direction.
PS: The whole thing lacks living luster. It sort of feels more like a travelogue than a realistic "in person" happening. I'm enjoying the tour, but I don't know if anyone else will get turned on.

[ScriptNurse]

This is done all the time. Get a group of actors together to "cold read" the scenes ... close your eyes and listen ... and it's good practice for them, too.

[dohope]

Thanks Al B.,
Will try it, though it will all sound like me. Uggh! Maybe I ought to "buttonhole" some people to read through trying the different character "voices". Quien Sabe? It could work.
dohope

[uncle_al]

The struggle is getting them to properly express their inner thoughts and motivations in the script.

Here's a suggestion...  When you write their dialogue, try reading it out loud.  The ear doesn't fool you as much as the eye can, at least when it comes to dialogue.
If it's clumsy to say, it's clumsy.  The hardest thing to do is to refine each piece of dialogue until it shines like a pure nugget, instead of a common ore.
Oooooh, punslinging again...BAD boy!  No cookie!

Cheers!
Al B.

[dohope]

Hmmm... Good question!
The way I see it at this point it's somewhere in the range of sixty percent events and forty percent people/relational, though that could easily change when I become more familiar with the characters in the writing of subsequent drafts. The fact is, I'm pretty much a visual kind of person and it's more difficult for me to handle the inner qualities and expressions of the characters. Yet this is a screenplay that is supposed to reveal the growth of the protagonist through his experiences. It's a real challenge. I have written character sketches for the main characters. The struggle is getting them to properly express their inner thoughts and motivations in the script.
The more I work on my screenplays the more I admire the skill and proficiency of those who are experts in this field.
Thanks for your continuing interest.
don

[ScriptNurse]

If this is about the people, then the epic events serve as a backdrop against which the story is told. Until now, you've always talked about the events, not the people. An event story that comes to mind is THE TEN COMMANDMENTS where it's all about the events and the people serve to propel us to the next event. On the other hand, STAR WARS is about people and the events that occur because of them. Generally, I believe movie audiences would prefer stories about people they can relate to and not epic events. I think you need to decide who your audience is for this story.

[dohope]

There is an initial decision on the protagonist's part to go for the opportunity at hand that sets the course of action. This happens within the first five pages. From then on it's sort of a "hold on for the ride" as the events of his pursuits unfold, with him having to react to cope with them at every turn in the road. At the point where I'm at, he is having to provide a hospitality kind of service for a special guest from Mexico, an engineer who is there as a part of Roosevelt's "Good Neighbor Policy". This is the only opportunity he has to achieve his goals of learning the ropes. As the plot unfolds further, he and this engineer become good friends and he does learn about this project and future projects (Shasta Dam bid is in the works) along with helping to watch the son of the engineer (a fourteen year old). I guess this is as much of a people-relational kind of script as anything. So, there's a lot to the development of the interpersonal aspects... getting to know about and care for the many characters. 

Perhaps I should provide you with a plot overview containing all the main points so you can help me get a handle on the sprawling spectrum of it all. What do you suggest?

[ScriptNurse]

There's a problem ... all protagonists have them ... what is the hurdle that he must overcome? On what page of your script does he take on the challenge to overcome this problem?

[dohope]

A young man, in the pursuit of his life goals, discovers that the Divine Architect has a specific design and plans for him.

[ScriptNurse]

In one sentence, this is a story about ....

[dohope]

Thanks for the input.
I think the number one problem is what you described as far as preparatory information background. Actually everything so far boils down to three major sequences. 1. the establishment of the protagonist in the family background and relationship which raises a basic conflict of ideals between the young fellow and his father, resulting in his determination to choose a specific course of action as the opportunity presents itself. 2. The travel events that he must take in order to reach his destination. 3. The introduction to the project and the development of the relationships with the workers and the supervisors, including a set back to his ideals as the supervising engineer decides not to take him under his wing even though there is a letter of introduction from a Senator on his behalf. This sets the stage for an alternate solution that arises due to a situation where a visiting engineer from Mexico, courtesy Roosevelt's "Good Neighbor Policy", needs to be accommodated... and our protagonist happens to be in the right place at the right time.
Anyway, this encapsulates the first fifty pages. I can see when I put this down that there is probably a much more efficient approach. There is hope after all.
Again, thanks.
I hope you don't mind continuing with the process.
DoHope.

[ScriptNurse]

Several things come to mind ...

DISCLAIMER ... some or all of this may not apply to you at all.

I take it you think that the hero should meet the love interest before page 50. Often, this sort of thing happens because:

1. The prior scenes are too long, there's too much detail and historical background designed to guarantee accuracy is too deep.
2. You've started many scenes too soon, rather than at the last possible moment.
3. You're afraid to take "artistic license" to tell some events in order to condense time to serve your story.
4. The story has not been properly fleshed out in outline form, so it has taken root and grown to have a life of its own ... and you're not comfortable with that.
5. Are you "married and in love" with this story? If so, you need to get a divorce! It's possible to lose all objectivity for a story because you're emotionally involved in it.

Just some thoughts ...

[dohope]

Thank you for your desire to help.
There is a plethora of problems that are confronting me, from structure, to time line, to the many character developments - real and fictional - to period concept and dialogue, plus the linear progress of the plot (the protagonist, by his choice, has become involved in a certain historical event and is in the process of learning and maturing through the experiences that occur within that framework)
For example: Here am I in the fifty page spot and he is just getting settled in at the project (the construction of a dam). At this rate I'm fast running out of pages and he is not going to get to meet the love interest until the next picture...that makes it more of a saga...I need to keep a lid on the contents.
However, everything seemed to fall nicely into place when I did the summary. I don't understand. Where did it become a runaway?
I realize that this is a general rambling, but you can get the picture of my need to have some constructive dialogue.