Week #13: The Writing Process

By taking this class, I've realized the true importance of developing structure and how having something as basic as the "Hero's Journey" can truly help in creating a phenomenal piece of writing. Of course there are many elements to cover, as everyones writing process is unique, some don't need Egri or Vogler, but I feel that learning about their work really has helped. Egri's view on premise as a whole has enlightened me on how to create motivation within a story, instead of thinking something is either "good or bad" I finally understand that whether something is "good or bad" doesn't really make a difference; instead, focusing on what something is truly about and why it is about "this" is more crucial.

     In any event, I'd like to learn more on the subject to not only make my writing better, but also make my analyzation technique better to find out what works in a story and how to give an honest critical opinion that my peers can utilize in further developing their stories. After writing our midterm development papers I realize that there were many things I liked and didn't like about the story itself. The problem being is that nothing really happens, a cautionary tale of love, slight folly and the transformation of a boy into an adult, but in the end, the ordeal happens too quick and doesn't really grab my attention. Melody has a drug problem and has to deal with drug dealers that seem way too nice for the story to seem real.  

Also, Chip suddenly just finds a "jewel" in his pocket paired with a small picture of his mother, its just too melodramatic for me, and the finding of the jewel just reminds of the scene in "Freddy got Fingered" where Tom Green presents his girlfriend with "Look, THEIR JEWELS, I GOT YOU JEWELS"! If Chip and Melody both fell into a drug problem the story would seem a little bit more believable, but of course the whole drug-related romance has been done before many times. Chip needs to get played over by Melody in some way, he's young and gullible, new to the whole "LA" lifestyle, he puts his trust in Melody, Melody uses him, Chip gets his heart-broken. Suddenly, Melody needs Chip and Chip, despite getting his heartbroken by Melody weeks prior, comes to her aid...love and true happiness ensues. 

   Although, I really do like how music is a major aspect of our story, music drives both our characters; however, it could also be used to really drive home certain scenes just as Wes Anderson or Quentin Tarentino do in their films. Music is our theme, which means it should be utilized as such, and complement each part of the story, aiding the cinematography, capture the emotion, and motivate the piece.  For me, the film score is just important as the film itself. Look at directors like Alfred Hitchcock, by using certain music in his film, true suspense could be achieved, and also help make his films more recognizable then and now.

Week #10: Master Shake and the Aqua Teen Hunger Force

    For as long as I can remember, watching Adult Swim until the wee hours of the morning has been almost a hobby of mine. Now that I am a college student its been pretty difficult to watch television, reason being, because my roommates and I can't even afford basic cable. Nevertheless, my favorite show in the Adult Swim franchise has to be "Aqua Teen Hunger Force" for its altogether surreal style of comedy and incoherent plot. Everything that happens in this show is strange, even when the characters are faced with conflict(which often results in their deaths) nothing really ever happens.
   As I'm sure we are all familiar with the characters on the show, of the three anthropomorphic fast-food items, I personally like Meatwad. Meatwad, as his name suggests, is a wad of meat that rolls around and conjures mischief. Sure, his happy-go-lucky attitude might seem cute or harmless to most; however, it is very much the opposite. Meatwad is incredibly intimidating and might just pull a gun out of his meaty back pocket if you threaten him. At 38 years young, Meatwad can really show you a couple of things; even though, its been confirmed that he does suffer from mental retardation. Of all the characters on the show, I think it is Meatwad that most avid watchers of the show have come to love, he knows how to have fun, manipulate Frylock and Master Shake, and is often unpredictable.
    According to his character bio on Adult Swim.com, Meatwad was originally a detective in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force, but I guess the creators of the show dropped this pretense; although, personally I believe this little aspect would've made the show even more ridiculous than it already is. We all know that Meatwad is currently unemployed and would rather watch television than work as a detective, but I thought everyone should know that he could've been a detective. Nevertheless, I feel like its always good to have Meatwad around, not just for comic relief, but because he can shape-shift into anything that he wants. If you need an Igloo, Meatwad is there to satisfy.
   As far as his importance in the show, provided there is anything important in the show, Meatwad is definitely a catalyst for the other characters in the show. He drives our characters, especially Master Shake, to do incredibly stupid things that he almost never regrets, most of the time he even thinks it was his idea in the first place. Meatwad is often bullied by Master Shake, as Master Shake always needs to assert his dominance over the "Force"; however, Frylock is always there to protect Meatwad and help him out on something.
   Honestly, this show is so fucking dumb, but maybe thats the reason it is so damn succesful and has developed such a huge following.  But seriously everything about this show is stupid and yet so hilarious.  Of course, it is mindless, it doesn't require for audience to look any further than the television screen, and for that, "Aqua Teen Hunger Force", I SALUTE YOU!

Week #9: Premise & "Without"

   "Since all men are mortal and Socrates is a man, Socrates is mortal." Quite a logical argument you might say, valid and true, but just as vague as any other statement. In the film, "Without" I believe that the premise might also be as vague, yet just as simple, as the statement above.  "Without" relies on this vague minimalism to create the distinct environment in which the main character has to live in. Our main character is simply trying to live her life and do her job; however, she is haunted by grief and utter loneliness which seems to grow exponentially throughout the film. At the root of her grief lies an extreme sense of confusion, mental imbalance, and vulnerability which manifest themselves as sexual exhibitionism on a broken webcam or to the catatonic patient that she is taking care of. 
   With that said, I believe that the premise of this film, in light of Egri, would be that "Loneliness & Grief, if left to itself, can lead to the destruction of oneself". Our main character is "without" so many things in her life, but most of all, it is love that she truly cannot live without. Every shot in the film seems to be up close and personal, illustrating in detail the activities of our main character's life. With every little activity, we as the audience, observe her breakdown take form. The problem with her environment is that she literally has nothing to sidetrack , or even delude herself from thinking about the death of her partner. Her soft-spoken attitude and overall shyness reveal an ironically overly sexual deviance which I think is also a symptom of the traumatic experience.
   As it goes, the premise of "Without" is very similar to that of "Juno and the Paycock" where "Shiftlessness leads to ruin". In "Without" although our main character has moved from her original environment, I feel that mentally and emotionally she has not shifted or changed.  Because she hasn't changed in this sense, her acceptance of all things begin to go a little haywire..the TV makes her angry and confused..she believes her patient is a con artist..she leads her neighbor on; even though, she is obviously not into that sort of person. True catharsis is nowhere to be found and eventually this leads her to ruin. Her breakdown at the end of the film proves that she hasn't accepted the death of her partner at all, and it translates in everything that she does.  
  She cannot live happily "Without" her love. Although it seems that she has so much, is able to work, and even able to exercise every morning, she has become a danger to herself and those around her. The vague nature of why and where the film comes from and takes place is crucial to how our main character forms. She, herself, is quite vague and unpredictable, and for this reason, our premise becomes even more versatile in the context of the this suspenseful film.

Week #8: Necessity of the Character Arc

As the observer, whether partial or impartial, we witness change in everything. Sometimes the change occurs in ourselves or in others, often manifesting itself outwardly, thus allowing us to truly understand the change that is occurring. It might be a change in our awareness, our dedication to something, or even our reluctance to change can take on its own form. As Vogler asserts, and as he is absolutely correct in his assertion, the internal journeys that our characters take in any given film directly correlates with how compelling or not the given film will be.
   In "The Writer's Journey" Vogler uses the seminal film "The Wizard of Oz" as one of the main examples in order to further develop his points. What I realized was that "The Wizard of Oz" is probably one of the best stories ever adapted for film since it literally follows each and every one of Vogler's Journey points, while showing how the character arc changes each time these points are met. Our hero, Dorothy, is thrown out of the Ordinary World where her Awareness immediately increases, and after meeting with the Good Witch, she understands that she must GET HOME and does everything in her power, despite totally being  at the disadvantage throughout the entire film, to overcome each and every obstacle, make some friends (which also despite their disadvantages manage to breach obstacles) and grow from a young, naive, girl into a master of adventure and hero for all those under the control of the Wicked Witch.
     Now there are films, such as (500) Days of Summer, which we screened briefly in class, where I feel there was a huge character-relationship arc.   Presented in a nonlinear format, they stuck to their same beliefs, same idiosyncratic behavior, and I felt that this was very much necessary to create the perfect climax of the film. Tom changes emotionally countless times in the film, thus his character arc follows a more complex route than that of his "soulmate" Summer.
  Obviously, there are exceptions to Vogler's assertion since not all movies even require true concrete, somewhat relatable, characters for a story to exist. Then again, these films aren't quite compelling either. In essence, the character arc is what allows the hero's external journey to flow. If our two detectives in Se7en didn't change in response to the external world as it was laid in the plot..then we would simply be watching two 2-D stoic characters act on screen, devoid of emotion and human qualities, and as the audience our willing suspension of belief would cease to exist and would make Se7en dead and uninteresting. Vogler understands the value of purpose. In film, the purpose is to do one of the following: inform, entertain, or persuade...but if our hero or supporting characters don't change internally or in anyway for that matter..that will leave the audience to watch an uttering boring film where all they do is simply Walk In and Walk Out.

Week #3: Regrets

There are many things in my life that I regret, some more than others. I'd like to think of people as they pertain to my regrets versus the particular events that I associate with them in my memory. Since memory isn't really pure fact, events don't usually mean much, because of this, I will use the example of the time I burned a bridge with my "best friend".
    Now heres some background, my "best friend" used to be a pretty awesome guy, a real "brother" I guess you could say, he was a true friend in its most pure form. However, as time went on, his ego started to get the best of him, he came from a wealthy family and never had to  work for anything, in school he could get away with anything, he could plagiarize work, never show up to class, hit on the underclassmen; he had no shame and it was as if he was classically trained in the art of manipulation. Of course, I didn't fall for any of it, it was all be neath me. But his antics quickly got the best of me as well, he began to steal my ideas, my personal taste, essentially everything I had when it came to self-expression. I started to grow an animosity towards him, something I always kind of felt, but now magnified to a degree I had never seen in myself before. He became cruel, self-absorbed, a prima donna that takes and takes but never gives back. So the day came where I basically had enough of this, I was wasting my time being friends with him.
     It was the beginning of my Freshman Fall semester at UCF; a time where new friendships and a new social foundation was to be made. My "best friend" asked me if I wanted to room with him for the semester, and I was truly happy that he asked me, but not because I actually wanted to, but because I now had the chance to tell him how truly pathetic he was. "You know what, I'm going to have say "No" on this one, not because I don't want to, but because its the right thing to do," I had said to him in an apathetic, but serious, manner. After I said that, I essentially told him everything that would back up my reason not to live with him, and apparently was very successful since his parents even had to call me, where I repeated the same thing except used "your son" instead of "you", which made it sound so much more effective. My regret was never burning this bridge sooner, hell, I could've made some great friends during that time too.
     This regret is and will always be a momentous story, as there are many details to include that would coincide with Davis's story structure. I am the main character, and my "best friend" is the antagonist. We are friends in the beginning of the story. Our departure from High school to College would be Act 1, and then in Act 2 would be crucial, where my hatred and reasons for the hatred begin to flourish exponentially, the ordeal itself is the way out. In Act 3 is where, the refusal of the return and the crossing of the threshold are one in the same thing, they become the Return itself. This is where I burn the bridge and catharsis ensues. The anguish, the hatred, and the pity are removed and my existential crisis is solved, I am moving forward, creating new foundations, and truly living my social life the way that I intend.

Week #1: "Insight"

My life in the 11th grade was one of suffering and complete disillusionment. At this time, the global economic recession was at it's peak and had now found its way into my family, putting us on the brink of poverty. There was no bright side, no light at the end of the tunnel, I felt a tremendous weight about to come crashing down upon me at any moment in time. The worst part: I had a crush on a girl, but I knew for certain that the feelings were, and would never be, mutual. Not only was going through an existential crisis, but the girl of my dreams was taken by the type of guy I could never be, a baseball player.
      I am certain of my good qualities, one could say that they are even unique; however, these qualities of eccentricity and love for good music and literature would never translate to this girl. Of course, she had substance, but with her type of "exotic" beauty, she could have had anyone she wanted. Hell! I didn't even want a relationship, I just wanted to be close to her, have that special moment with her where I wouldn't be thinking about anything else, and many other things I'd rather not disclose in this blog, but what could I do?
     During the Spring Break of 11th grade, my friends and I rode out to a party, nothing special, probably because they never were, and because there was nothing better to do, I mean there never was anything to do. Nevertheless, my star-crossed lover was at the party, and apparently she had broken up with her boyfriend earlier that night...this was my chance. I mean, I had to do something. That night, I somehow ended up in a room with her, alone. She was smoking from the hookah that was placed in the middle of the floor, the milky white smoke funneling perfectly from her pursed lips...my god, the sight alone left my jaw on the floor. Anyway, I tried to be as smooth as possible at this point, made a little small talk, gave as many compliments as possible without making my motives too obvious. Essentially, I told her how I felt, she listened, and just as I expected...rejection! Of course, she was nice about it, but the crux of the matter was that "I blew it," I told my friend Nick.
   I wanted to alleviate my anxieties and disillusionment, and I knew that getting somewhere with "her" would, at best, relieve it temporarily. Leaving the party, I told my friend Nick of my failures and all he could say to console me was, "Would you really have it any other way"? I thought about this response for a moment, and suddenly realized the fact that I really would never have "it", my life, any other way. I loved my life, even though, nothing seemed to go my way. I succeeded in not succeeding. There was something very Woody Allen-esque about my situation, and for some strange reason I really enjoyed that. My flux is different, and instead of having negative looming thoughts about it, I have learned to embrace it. As fate would have it, "she" got back together with her boyfriend that very night, and I'm sure he did nothing romantic or even tried that hard to do so. But as for me, I didn't really care where I fit in that equation, it didn't matter. I knew that..
     Somewhere, some type of "love", whether it be true or false, will find all of us in the end.