Letter to Christina

Dear Christina,

In my film studies class I have learned much, much about film, film techniques, styles of film, and how to write a film. I have acquired skills that I thought I would never learn. I know how to properly create a screenplay. I also know the basic steps on how to write a film. I believe that with the skills I have attained by taking this screenwriting course and by reading your book, I would be able to create my own short film if I wanted to. I'd like to thank you and congratulate you for writing a great book.

Sincerely,
Vidal Yanez

Concept 99

I would not give James Cameron the script and I would stick to the small independent production company because that way the script will go the way I want it and it wont be severely changed. If I give the script to a famous producer then I'd have to accept any changes that they'd want to do.

Concept 90

My favorite music video is the music video to the song Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds. This video takes the viewer through foothills with "tangerine trees as marmalade skies" each hill is a different color and has pictures with in them. The entire video is essentially like a trip on LSD, what the song is about.

Concept 89

The most important trait I would give Jack Sparrow in an animated series of The Pirates Of The Caribbean is the power of incredible fighting skills.

Concept 88

I'd say the most controversial subject at our school currently would have to be the elections. Many people are running for office and the halls are littered with propaganda.

Concept 87

I believe it is easier to write an action film in the future because it opens so many doors to the amount of technology and settings used. Using a future time period, one can make space travel as common as driving is now, opening up doors for intergalactic conflict.

Concept 86

The most thrilling movie I have seen is Man On Fire. The movie always has different outcomes and uses foreshadowing and dramatic irony in order to keep the audience guessing about the outcome of the film.

Concept 85

I think that it is better to have loved and lost than to never love at all because when you have loved you have felt those feelings and one of the greatest feelings in the world is to know that somebody loves you.

Concept 84

Insidious is probably the scariest film that I have watched. The immediate transitions, scary music and thrilling concept all attributed to the films overall scariness. I also have a fear of the unknown, something that is hugely represented in Insidious.

Concept 83

I think that a mortal will have a tough time coping with living in an enchanted realm. The mortal would feel like a second-class citizen in this enchanted world. It would be more difficult writing a script in which one person is normal, than when one person is super.

Concept 82

Buffalo Bill Cody, how are you doing?
I heard you were a soldier, whats the scariest battle you've been in?
Your nickname, how was it earned?
You're most famous for your showmanship, how did you come across making Wild West Shows?
We'll go back in time a bit, your childhood, how was it?
How did you come up with the concept of your show? Any tips for young showmen?
Out of all the places you've traveled, where has been your favorite?
How'd Europe treat you? How'd they react to the Wild West?

Concept 81

I was surprised at the ending of the third Star Wars movie, the Twilight Zone episode that had the pig looking doctors working on the girl, and Terminator. I didn't expect any of these endings and was appalled at the twists.

Italian Neorealism

Do The Right Thing has many traits of Italian Neorealism. The film doesn't have a clear sequence of events, the characters are very complex, and the film relies heavily on dialogue, more than most hollywood films.

The movement began when Italian filmmakers were tired of seeing a fake paradise on film which was influenced by American culture.
Italian filmmakers wanted to show the reality of life in Italy after the wars and after the reign of Mussolini.
Italian Neorealist films often include non professional casts, real sets, and almost unedited footage.

Italian Neorealism inspired American Independent films in many ways, first Independent films focus on the realities of life, something that Italian Neorealists were huge on. Independents also keep the ending true, meaning they don't always have a happy ending.

Concept 80

The saddest thing that I have ever experienced is having to watch my uncle pull the plug on my cousins life. His facial expression stuck with me. It was an expression of helplessness and extreme sadness. I now live my life to the fullest because you never know when your time is up.

Concept 79

Anger Management, You Don't Mess With The Zohan, Mr. Deeds, Borat, Bruno, The Sitter, 30 Minutes or Less, Dickie Roberts, Dumb and Dumber, Bruce Almighty.

Concept 78

I think it is harder for a writer to stay on message with a comedy because a comedic film has a lot of outlets that drama doesn't have. A drama film can focus on one thing while comedies have to have a lot of different scenes and skits in order to make it funny.

Concept 77

2. The techniques that I would use in order to reduce the costs of making a film would be to shoot in a rural area, hire amateur actors and get a very small but dedicated film crew.

Do the Right Thing

I liked this movie. It was very interesting. It brought up an issue that was very realistic in reality. The Italians and Blacks have always had trouble and this movie makes it clear. Also this movie brought up two very prominent quotes made by two of the most important civil rights leaders of the world, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King Jr. It shows how Malcolm X is for violence in self defense, while Martin Luther King Jr. is totally against violence.

Concept 74

The films that I enjoy the most are films that are thought provoking. I like to leave the movie thinking about the problem the movie presented.

Concept 73

My favorite film hero is Superman and my favorite movie villain is Dr. Octopus. The plot for a movie about these two would include fighting for control of the world and for control of the people. Superman would emerge as the victor because if not the whole world would perish.

Concept 72

The last tv drama I saw is a show called Burn Notice. The episode had to do with an elder lady who got scammed by a young man out of all her wealth. The main character fights and goes through many trials in order to find the con artist and get the woman's money back.

Concept 71

My favorite historical figure is Ernesto Guevara. The most significant thing about this persons life is the part he played in the Cuban Revolution. I would begin the plot in the days before the Cuban Revolution.

Concept 70

My favorite movie is Man on Fire. Creasy's point of view mainly governs the movie. If it was given to another character the story would be less informative and actiony. It could tap into the inner feelings of the other characters though, as their feelings are made prominent in the movie.

Concept 69

Resources I would use in order to ensure that my wording and slang expressions are accurate in writing a film are google, personal experience and interviews. I would go to the location where that dialect is spoken and I would observe the people and their method of speaking.

Review of Characterization

Concept 38 talks about how conflict arises and is fueled by the character's traits. It is impossible to continue a conflict without any character conflicting traits.

Concept 68

2. The delivery of each line would be pretty self explanatory, not much context clues or background information would be needed.

Guess Who

African-Americans are represented in movies almost the same as other races are represented. The representation of African-Americans has improved vastly in the history of film. There are movies that are mainly full of African-Americans, mostly Tyler Perry movies. In the early beginnings of film it was rare to see an African-American, now they are as common as whites.

Suspense Techniques

Dialogue Means Nothing - Use facial expressions, have one character not listening to each other, have the dialogue contradict what is going on.

Keep the Story Simple - Keep the story linear and streamlined. Story should remain simple but the characters should be complex.

Characters Must Break Cliches - Lisa breaks into the apartment in order to gain evidence. Thorwald is a respectable murderer.

Use Humor to Add Tension - Characters in ironic situations, worst possible situations.

Two Things Happening at Once - Used primarily to distract audience, Thorwald hides the knife. Miss Lonelyhearts is just a distraction, no major part in movie.

Suspense is Information - Dog returns to the garden.

Surprise and Twist - Son is the killer and dresses up as his mother in Psycho, Thorwald has instances where he looks innocent in Rear Window.

MacGuffin Effect - Item or subject that drives the storyline, rosebud in Citizen Kane, briefcase in Pulp Fiction.

In Rear Window the story is kept simple, the characters break cliche, humor is used to add tension, and multiple things happen at once. Thorwald pushing Jeff out of the window is a form of Surprise and Twist.

Using humor to add tension

Practical jokes can be used to build tension. By setting up the main character in the most ironic situation, tension is built. Tension can also be derived from a coincidence, an unexpected gag, or from the worst possible thing that could happen. All of the proceeding can be humorous at the same time it builds up tension.

Hitchcock and his Suspense

Three techniques used in Psycho and Rear Window are simple storylines, Surpris and Twist, and the characters break cliches.

Concept 66

Scary movie, Halloween, and The Great Gatsby are all movies in which the weather and environment plays a role in evoking emotions into the viewer.

Film Festival

I watched the movie No Look Pass at the Cinequest film festival. I thought the movie was really enjoyable. I liked it. I liked how the filmmaker followed the basketball player through her college career and all the way til her professional career in Germany.

Concept 65

1. Give me my food!!!
2. Hurry up!!!
3. Get some more tacos!!!!
4. We need food!!!
5. We're hungry!!!!
6. Where are the tacos?!?!?
7.

Concept 63

My favorite music video is cat daddy by the rejectz. The video evokes happy emotions. The emotions aren't that consistent with the lyrics

Twilight zone

The twilight zone writers created suspense by utilizing suspenseful music. They also included many variables that the audience didn't find out about until the end of the show. The audience never once saw the face of anyone until the bandages were taken off of the patient.

Concept 62

I would use cutaways, voice overs and reenactments in order to explain the event that took place.

Concept 61

Three films in which VoiceOvers were used are : the punisher, rashoman, eternal sunshine.
The VoiceOvers help the audience understand what is going on within the movie.

Cinequest

Three films that I find interesting are Faust, Best Intentions, Code 2600

Concept 55

In the film I want to write, the motivating factor is the money. The main character wants to steal from his boss because he is Greedy and wants more money. Most people follow their bosses orders, the main character challenges that by stealing from his own boss.

Concept 54

The biggest plot surprise in my film would be the fact that the main henchman is the person who steals from his longtime boss.

Concept 53

1. Three films that the audience knew more than the character are titanic, insidious, and Fast Five. The screenwriter used the fact that the characters didn't have sufficient knowledge of the event in order to provide the irony.
2. The secret is that a girl likes him. The way I would drop clues is by stating they should go out, hang out, and talk more.
3. One secret I will have in my film is the fact that the boss doesn't know tht joe stole the money. I will hold it infill one of the henchmen is tortured and spills the truth.

Concept 51

My superhero name would be fight man. This name would would tell the world that he is an extraordinary fighter.

Concept 50

I live in a small, four bedroom home. It is one story and is colored black and white.

I have a large room with a television, desk, nightstand, carpet, windows, and a bed.

I am a young Salvadorian male raised in San Jose.

Concept 49

Dear Vidal,
I met this strange person. I didn't catch his name. He scared me a bit. He spoke of his theories on life. He told me some things that really opened my eyes. He told me how the US is slowly declining. His theories were alarming. He said that he wants to reach more people but he is afraid of getting his name across the wrong persons desk. He wants to keep his identity unknown so that he won't attract bad attention. He asked me to reach out and I have. I'll tell you all that he told me at a later date.
Cheers

Concept 48

In the film that I want to write there are only 3 key characters. The rest are minor characters. The main character, the thugs, and the boss are all key because without them the story would not be and it would be very bland.

Concept 47

One show that had a powerful hook was Lost, two films were In Time and Deja Vu. These films got straight to the action. In my script I also plan to start off with action drawing my audience closer.

Concept 46

Superman, Spiderman, and Batman are three examples of movies where extraordinary characters function in ordinary environments.

Rio Bravo

1. This film did follow the conventions of a western film.
2. The call to adventure happens when Joe is arrested.
3. The main characters are Chance, Dude, Colorado, Feathers, and Stumpy. These characters are very stereotypical western characters.
4. The movie took a long time to get the action going. The real action of the movie took place in the last quarter of the film. I like this pace because it lets the viewers actually gain a feeling for the main characters.
5. The action sequences were basically all shootouts that are very typically in western films.

Concept 45

1. Cowboys and Aliens, Harry Potter, In Time

Concept 44

My favorite good guy sidekick in the movies would have to be aziz azari in 30 minutes or less. He serves as a backup as well as gives comedic relief.

Concept 43

The trait I dislike the most in the person that I care for the most is the fact that person has an attitude. This trait evolved from anger and ignorance.

Concept 42

In the movie X, Malcolm goes from a young teenage criminal to a leader of the civil rights movement. This transformation was due to his conversion to Islam.

Concept 41

1. My character sends a follow up invitation to his wedding to his ex wife. The character divorced his wife about four years ago and she has been stalking him ever since. He knows that if she comes to the wedding, she will ruin the whole event and police intervention would be necessary to remove her from the event. He knows that there is no return from this invitation unless he changes the entire date of the wedding.