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Dramatic story ideas


Best Dramatic Writing Prompts of 2021

The term “dramatic” can feel fairly vague. In this case, we use the term to describe fiction that’s intense, powerful, and exciting. The protagonist can be a regular person, with a regular life — but drama somehow finds a way into their world. And while everyone has the capacity to be a little dramatic, sometimes as writers we’re still left with a blank page. If you’re suffering with writer’s block, we’re here to help. The Reedsy team has put together this list of creative writing prompts in the hopes of inspiring authors to write stories that leave readers wondering: what will happen next? 

Don’t feel too tied to one genre — these prompts are to give you ideas for dramatic stories, but don’t be afraid to introduce elements of other genres. A dramatic story can be tinged with fantasy, science fiction, horror, the supernatural, and so on. All it requires to make it dramatic is a healthy dose of conflict, and enough tension to keep readers wanting more. Other than that, there are no rules!

Here are our top ten dramatic writing prompts:

  • “Stop!” you cried. But it was too late — the plan was already in motion.
  • You're pretty sure you've never been this scared before. Then again, anyone would be in your position.
  • You know a friend is hiding something and you need to find out what it is before it puts you in danger. How do you find out what their secret is?
  • Write about someone who decides it’s time to cut ties with a family member.
  • Write about a character discovering something new about their past that changes how they remember an important moment.
  • Write a story that spans a month during which everything changes.
  • Write a story about a teenager visiting the place where they grew up.
  • After a friend or family member's funeral, you come home to a stranger on your doorstep, who tells you that they're not really dead.
  • Two old friends meet to reminisce about old times and find out they have very different perspectives on a shared memory.
  • Write a story about a character who is certain the world is going to end today.

If you’re interested in writing dramatic fiction, check out these relevant resources for even more tips.

  • Character profile template (free resource) — Drama stories are especially character driven. If you want to get into your protagonist's head and see through their eyes, you’re going to need to know them inside and out. That’s where character development tools like our character profile can help.
  • How to Write Believable Dialogue that Develops Plot and Character (cree course) — Dramatic fiction can be pretty literary, and often relies on razor-sharp dialogue to convey the story’s plot. Luckily, anyone can write amazing dialogue — just sign up for our free, ten day course on the subject!
  • Story Structure: 7 Narrative Structures All Writers Should Know (blog post) — Climax, denouement, resolution — if all these terms may as well be Greek to you, we’ve got you covered. Our story structure guide runs you through all the major story structures you could ever need, to provide a framework for your story to form around.

Want more help learning how to write a dramatic story? Check out How to Write a Short Story That Gets Published — a free, ten day course by Laura Mae Isaacman, a full-time editor who runs a book editing company in Brooklyn.

Ready to start writing? Check out Reedsy’s weekly short story contest, for the chance of winning $250! You can also check out our list of writing contests or our directory of literary magazines for more opportunities to submit your story.

365 Story ideas to help you brainstorm — E.M. Welsh

/ Emma Welsh

Whether you're in a writing rut, need an idea for a new medium, or are tired of making excuses about finding the best story idea, this list of 365 story ideas makes it easy to find an idea that works for you and get inspired!

Almost all of these story ideas are interchangeable between different mediums. However, should you decide to take a novel idea and write it as a play, be sure to use my Storytelling System ebook and other resources to ensure you're making the appropriate changes for the new medium.

81 Novel Story Ideas

  1. A character believes she has committed a crime someone else knows she is innocent of.
  2. A hair stylist overhears something she shouldn't while cutting hair.
  3. A character wakes up knowing a new language, but forgets their mother tongue.
  4. A sailor banished to a year-long journey to atone for his crimes must reconcile with what he's done.
  5. A character buys a new coat, only to find a mysterious message sewn into the lining of it.
  6. A character falls asleep on an abandoned ship and awakes on a new planet.
  7. A family dynasty threatens to fall apart when an illegitimate child steps into the picture with a list of demands.
  8. A character is sold the "Best Year of Their Life" by an illustrious company, with the caveat that they must die afterward.
  9. A museum security guard witnesses someone stealing a painting, but lies about it.
  10. Two villages compete to have the best technology in the country.
  11. An elderly woman falls madly in love with a young boy and seduces him.
  12. An adopted child starts to receive tens of letters from people who claim they're her parents.
  13. A character's twin sibling dies, and the twin attempts to fill their shoes.
  14. A run-down city attempts to revitalize the area by introducing a monarchy.
  15. An estranged family gets together after ten years after their grandparents go missing.
  16. A mermaid lures a character into a life undersea.
  17. A middle-class family works to start the first intergalactic newspaper company using all the money in their savings.
  18. In the midst of a war, the women of a local town abandon their neighborhood only a week before their husbands and sons return.
  19. A lawyer gives up their practice to move across the country with someone half their age.
  20. A cheater starts a journal to keep track of their deceit.
  21. A woman decides to find and collect all of the dresses her grandmother designed.
  22. A parent steals their child’s invention idea and makes a lifelong profit they put into retirement.
  23. A character returns to their hometown and realizes they can never leave again.
  24. A computer threatens the privacy of a major city.
  25. A murder causes a town to turn against one another.
  26. A dictator forces an illustrious fashion designer to design the new military uniforms for the war.
  27. A hermit's caretaker passes away, forcing her to make trips outside to interview a new candidate for the job.
  28. A story about an ancient society where gender roles are reversed.
  29. A granddaughter attempts to connect with her long-lost grandmother by cooking through the family cookbook.
  30. Two separate families become one after a marriage unites them.
  31. A character sets out to sail the river from one end of their country to other.
  32. A character becomes the mayor of a new town that doesn't accept them.
  33. A character discovers they have the ability to visit the past and future, but at the risk that they'll lose something valuable.
  34. A Queen must prepare her son to be a proper ruler in his late father’s stead.
  35. During the railroad boom, a group of homesteaders tries to keep up with a changing society.
  36. A man moves to a rural town to get away from his troubles but trouble keeps finding him.
  37. An English billionaire decides to host a series of contests in order to choose a worthy successor.
  38. On board a broken down freighter in Alaska, a crew must survive a brutal situation.
  39. In a series of weekly sessions, a man recalls his experience of Vietnam to overcome his PTSD.
  40. In the midst of a plague-ridden Venice, an inspector begins a series of unethical experiments to find a cure.
  41. Humans discover a new sentient plant life deep in the rainforests of Brazil.
  42. The tales of a family that moved to the United States just before the War of Independence.
  43. A girl from India struggles to reconnect with her estranged family.
  44. Three strangers win a getaway vacation together
  45. A diver uncovers government secrets buried at the bottom of the ocean.
  46. A character confronts their illogical but deeply real fear of being sucked down by the bathtub drain.
  47. A family takes a cross-country road trip in the aftermath of a nuclear war.
  48. A group of orphans attempt to make a home of their own.
  49. A woman is called on a mission to save her lover.
  50. A scientist develops and sells a medicine that saves lives, but isn't legal.
  51. A story about immigrants during the 1920s and their move to the United States.
  52. A character attempts to establish a church devoted to the Greek gods.
  53. A family struggles to endure a heat wave and draught in the midst of a long summer.
  54. A mother manipulates her children into committing felonies on her behalf.
  55. A character decides to fail all their classes to make a statement.
  56. A town prepares for the election of its first-ever mayer.
  57. A character moves to a new town and pretends to be someone they used to know.
  58. Two characters fall in love with each other, when they shouldn't.
  59. A character finds a journal with half of the pages filled and works to respond to their story.
  60. A woman, posing as a priest, is elected to be the new Pope.
  61. The CEO of an insurance company deals with the necessary evils of his own trade.
  62. A robot becomes self aware in the midst of a war it was purchased to fight.
  63. A pawnshop owner faces the internal battle of selling items they know are valuable to others.
  64. A police officer confronts a mistake they made and hid while on the job.
  65. A hidden society figures out how to reveal itself to the rest of the world.
  66. A character attempts to uncover the lore of their village.
  67. A character travels back in time, where they realize they are more important than modern day.
  68. A daughter sets out to break out her family curse in an unconventional way.
  69. A feudal era story in which two long-distance lovers attempt to connect.
  70. A character attempts to experience every type of love possible.
  71. A scientist uncovers a secret portal that leads to a life changing future.
  72. A character is told a deep family secret that they must protect until their death, no matter how much it torments them.
  73. A fantasy character kills someone they loathe and must cover up the evidence.
  74. A character develops the power to alter their personality, but cannot control it.
  75. A group of characters attempt to explain their experiences traveling through a desert.
  76. A character looks to escape a life threatening situation in a foreign country.
  77. A matriarch deals with a rising male leader threatening her power.
  78. A retired couple navigates life in a new country abroad without family.
  79. A character confronts their perverted nature and struggles to change.
  80. A character lives on the border, across from a society and culture much different from their own.
  81. A war hero returns home and attempts to make connections with old friends.

77 Short Story Ideas

  1. A brother and sister uncover an old letter from their parents that makes them question everything about their family history.
  2. Two schoolkids break a character's window. She must decide how to reprimand them.
  3. A robot looks for a new occupation after being tossed into the trash.
  4. A character cleans out an old attic and must decide what to throw away and what to keep.
  5. A mailman begins to throw away letters a woman has been receiving from her husband.
  6. A cat witnesses its owner have an affair.
  7. A spaceship lands in a local town, offering the latest technologies from space at a discount price.
  8. A character finishes creating the first time travel machine, only to discover it can only move in two-minute increments.
  9. A bank robber has an existential crisis in the middle of a robbery.
  10. A character becomes obsessed with cleaning their home until it’s 100% clean.
  11. A student receives a grade they disagree with.
  12. A statue is commissioned that offends half the town population.
  13. A group of kids try to sell an alternative to lemonade and must face the neighboring competition.
  14. A character tries to convince their friend to become vegan.
  15. A nun begins to doubt her commitment to the faith after watch a boy band sing on television.
  16. A hypochondriac attempts to write off signs of an illness.
  17. A character can't stop crying, but doesn't know why.
  18. A lonely character laments the shrinking and soon-to-be-gone pimple on their chin.
  19. A young child asks their parents for braces and glasses for the fun of it. They give them to him.
  20. A character encounters someone they are sure is famous, and follows them home to make sure.
  21. A babysitter takes the kids to the zoo only to discover the giraffes are not out that day.
  22. A dog decides to answer to a different name after meeting another dog with the same name.
  23. A character who collects dolls notices one is missing from the shelf.
  24. A girl prepares for her first day of middle school with a new outfit and make up her mom let her pick out for the first time.
  25. Two kids compete in a bug-catching competition for the grand prize.
  26. An airplane pilot finds out mid-flight that his wife cheated on him.
  27. A young woman makes a desperate offering to a pagan deity.
  28. A bank teller deals with a robbery.
  29. An old woman tries her hand at cooking for a man again for her first first date in over fifty years.
  30. A young woman sorts through her possessions before going off to college.
  31. A dog witnesses a murder and struggles to alert the proper authorities.
  32. A rich businessman has a sudden mental breakdown during an important meeting.
  33. One of Santa's elve puts in his two-week notice at the beginning of December.
  34. A character adopts a stray cat off the highway.
  35. A character attends an A.A. meeting for the last time.
  36. A character attempts to enjoy a quiet day at the beach, without success.
  37. A parents realizes they missed Christmas by one day and must fool their children.
  38. A character realizes they are a part of a lab experiment in the middle of a test and desires to do nothing but escape.
  39. A kid attemps to ignore distractions during church after being promised an ice cream sandwich for good behavior.
  40. A coffee barista attempts to repair an order gone terribly wrong.
  41. A salesperson struggles to meet their quota for the day.
  42. A mutant ghoul looks for a beauty cure-all.
  43. A young woman finds the perfect dress only to discover its two sizes two small.
  44. A character overhears they’re going to be fired from their job.
  45. A character loses something sentimental in the rush of football crowd exiting the stadium.
  46. A cook finally finds the perfect ingredient.
  47. Two characters engage in a starring contest where the stakes keep rising.
  48. A mother uncovered illegal drugs in her daughter’s desk drawer.
  49. A kid is tasked with killing their favorite animal on the farm for dinner.
  50. A game of flag football goes wrong when the ball is thrown outside of the limits.
  51. A character comes to term with being deaf and blind.
  52. A hacker competes with another hacker to hack into a website.
  53. Two ballerinas carpool to their next lesson together and uncover some surprising information on the way.
  54. A student deals with unfair prejudice in an unorthodox way.
  55. A kid pets sits their neighbors dog only for it to escape.
  56. A space station hears bad news from their home planet and must decide how to react.
  57. A character is forced to confront their fear of bugs when they are cornered in a room with one.
  58. A construction worker is invited to a politician’s ball.
  59. A maid finds a terrible secret room in her employer’s mansion.
  60. An old fable from a girl’s youth comes to life.
  61. A shoemaker cherishes the last night they'll ever make a shoe before they retire.
  62. A character explains what it's like to be physically invisible.
  63. A parent works up the courage to explain sex to their kid.
  64. An unprepared runner powers through the last mile of their marathon.
  65. A character attempts to keep cool in a conversation with the police.
  66. A pastor, doubting their faith, starts to go through the motions of a service.
  67. A sister brushes her siblings hair when the brush gets tangled and stuck.
  68. A librarian encounters an unusual amount of noise at work and must figure out what the commotion is.
  69. A man on a business trip rents a child a to be his son for the day.
  70. A wetnurse recalls the time she served the then newborn Anti-Christ.
  71. The ambassador of a small country spends his final moments of life in conversation with his assassin.
  72. A peace treaty becomes a standoff when someone mistakenly makes an offensive gesture towards the other party.
  73. A professional gambler plays for highest stakes of his young life.
  74. A sparrow catalogues it’s day flying through New York City.
  75. A woman wakes up after a failed suicide and decides to visit her ex.
  76. The president of the United States gives a formal address to a group that he has actively oppressed his entire term.
  77. A newly homeless man goes through his first night on the streets.

63 Film Story Ideas

  1. A character's home is split in two by a sudden Earthquake. They must work to find a way to the other side, where something valuable is.
  2. A character finds lost paint cans from a famous artist.
  3. Three friends go on a trip to a foreign country together, only for them each to get lost.
  4. A character deeply embedded in a local drug cartel looks for a way out.
  5. Three pilgrims set off on a trail, but one of them questions their route.
  6. A ghost attempts to befriend a new person living in their home, but can’t stop scaring them.
  7. Two characters swear never to fall in love or date. One of them becomes disappointed the other kept their oath.
  8. A closed exit road sends a character on a six hour detour road trip.
  9. A character participates in a march for a cause they believe in when violence breaks out against the people.
  10. A princess is exiled from her country in the midst of a harsh winter.
  11. A young students starts a political campaign against her own school.
  12. Two incompatible people are sent on a blind date together and decide to get revenge on their friends.
  13. A character struggles with their weight after the loss of a family member.
  14. An underwater city's infrastructure—and the people who live there—is threatened by an environmental breach that must be resolved in 48-hours.
  15. A murder in an apartment complex sets the entire community on edge.
  16. After graduating high school, two best friends go on a road trip to discover themselves.
  17. A colony on the Moon finds a terrible secret hidden beneath the surface.
  18. A flock of Canadian Geese get lost while flying south for the winter.
  19. Two detectives investigate a series of related murders spanning a decade.
  20. Siblings struggle with their parents’ divorce.
  21. A teenager faces a troubling situation when coming out to her religious family.
  22. Years after a horrible accident, a woman tries to buy the home her family died in.
  23. A boy finds out there is a world inside of his TV.
  24. A group of teens investigate rumors of a haunted cabin at the edge of town.
  25. A renowned Russian composer is tasked with creating his most difficult piece yet; a symphony for his country’s dreaded dictator.
  26. A once noble Lord challenges the legitimacy of a new, ill-intending King.
  27. A girl runs away to join the circus two months before graduating High School.
  28. A small community puts aside their differences to resist a corporation looking to make some changes to their town.
  29. A small-time journalist uncovers a terrible plot spanning several government agencies.
  30. A character attempts to redecorate the bedroom of their deceased child.
  31. A character discovers a painting of themselves in a new friend's home.
  32. A group of friends investigates a haunted lake house.
  33. A preteen moves to a major city and finds they miss life in the country.
  34. A character loses their voice and must do whatever they can to "find" it again.
  35. A character attempts to escape an action movie they’ve realized they’re starring in.
  36. A feminine, girly woman attempts to make in the comedy scene.
  37. A mail person delivers a package to the local gang and has no choice but to become involved.
  38. A jeweler organizes the theft of their most precious stones and jewels.
  39. A dragon lays eggs near a small village and abandons them.
  40. A teenage girls enters into a beauty pageant with the hopes of failing.
  41. A prostitute meets with her family for the first time in 10 years.
  42. A group of backpackers get lost in the wilderness of Eastern Europe.
  43. Recent high school grads spend one final summer together before going their separate ways.
  44. An elderly man moves to a home and realizes it was cursed by the family that lived there previously.
  45. A defense attorney takes on his highest profile client yet; the president of the United States.
  46. A character takes drugs for the first time and has an awful, traumatizing experience.
  47. A character looks for a way to reconnect with a deceased lover.
  48. A god attempts to experience the day in the life of a human.
  49. A couple attempts to rekindle a romance they know will fail.
  50. A psychiatrist befriends one of their patients only to realize it was a fatal mistake.
  51. A retired lawyer decides to pick up their practice one more time to help out someone they know is guilty.
  52. A village takes shifts guarding the cemetary to hide something.
  53. An engineer reacts to a life-threating structural error they created.
  54. A demon terrorizes a school and looks for its next target.
  55. A botanist gets lost in their greenhouse and must fight for a way out.
  56. An enchantress works to give up her powers when a spell goes wrong.
  57. A character is captured as a prisoner when protesting a cause they believe in.
  58. A child attempts to prevent their parents' divorce.
  59. A slacker student finds a new purpose at school.
  60. A character struggles to decipher real life from their dreams.
  61. A group of boarding school students prepare for another summer back home with their families.
  62. A story about the people who built of the American railroads.
  63. A mystical spirit looks for a companion.

46 TV Story Ideas

  1. A mockumentary comedy series about a fantasy world with werewolves, witches, and other mythical creatures who've just had enough.
  2. A science fiction drama series about a hospital on Mars.
  3. A mini series about the construction of a home, who built it, who all lived in it, and who eventually destroyed it.
  4. A witch struggling to make ends meet starts to read tarot cards and sell crystals as a side hustle.
  5. A comedy series about a bus driver and the passengers he deals with daily.
  6. A comedy series about life in the fashion industry.
  7. A mini-series about the murder of a town's chief investigator and detective.
  8. An olympic boxer is out of a job and is reintroduced back into normal civilian life.
  9. An international organization fights against human trafficking.
  10. A small town woman moves to the big city to follow her dream of being a famed magician.
  11. The twelve apostles and their struggles after the death of Jesus.
  12. A summer camp youth group in Oregon tries year after year to be the best in the country.
  13. A group of fishermen in Maine and their everyday struggle of man versus fish.
  14. A mini series about the murder of the town's chief investigator and detective.
  15. A comedy series about people's relationship with food and health.
  16. A sitcom about a librarian's work life, with each story centered around a different book.
  17. A mockumentary about life working on a cruise ship.
  18. A drama about a post-apocalyptic society trying to return to their technological past.
  19. An anthology series about unknown women leades in history.
  20. The chronicles of a cult trying to survive the wrath of the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages.
  21. A family of ranchers survive the elements of the Wild West.
  22. A dramaedy about a magician trying to stand out amongst their peers.
  23. A drama series about a women's mental asylum in the 1960s.
  24. A comedy series about a large family living in a two-bedroom apartment, for what they think is "temporary."
  25. A sitcom about a secretary who works at a large legal firm.
  26. An anthology series about middle class families in different time periods and cultures.
  27. A mini series about a group of women investigating the crimes of an unknown serial rapist.
  28. A mini series about the various bastards of Genghis Khan.
  29. An anthology series about the assassinations of various leaders.
  30. A drama series about a haunted village in Poland and the people's struggle to survive.
  31. A comedy series about a half-zombie who befriends a human.
  32. A dramedy about women trying to make it in multi-level marketing.
  33. A comedy series about a dad who becomes a stay-at-home-mom.
  34. A mini series about Adam and Eve's temptation from Satan.
  35. A comedy series about an immigrant family's move to America.
  36. A drama series about a spaceship and its crew set out to discover new galaxies, and the many things they encounter.
  37. A dramedy about a separated couple raising their kids under the same rough, waiting for the day they'll all go to college.
  38. The chronicles of the people who run an adoption agency in South Chicago.
  39. A series about the experiences of an acid trip, and the ways it shapes people's lives before and after.
  40. A comedy series about a woman and her many sexual partners.
  41. An animated series about life as a werewolfe trying to do good.
  42. A meta comedy series in which the characters are aware they are in a television series.
  43. A drama series in which a group of children journey through a mystical land in their dreams.
  44. A drama series about life in Nairobi.
  45. A dramedy about a family of doctors running a business.
  46. A mini series about the Salem witch trials.

73 Play Ideas

  1. A character attempts to poison someone, only for it to poison themselves instead.
  2. A character discovers they have a terminal illness and decides to let people figure it out with a guessing game.
  3. A character re-examines their sexual preferences after a divorce.
  4. A couple addresses their relationship after the fifth miscarriage they’ve experienced.
  5. A soccer team goes out to celebrate their recent victory only to discover their coach paid off the other team.
  6. A couple attempts to recreate the day they first met exactly as it occurred.
  7. Five generations of a family debate which generation was the most successful at their reunion.
  8. A character is accused of adultery the night before their wedding.
  9. A parent and child finish building a tree fort together the night before a terrible storm.
  10. Two introverts meet at a night club and plan an escape route from their respective friend groups.
  11. A nail salon team deals with their relocation to the outskirts of town.
  12. A famous saying gets credited to the wrong person, but no one will believe them when they correct people.
  13. A character has a yard sale, but struggles to part with every item someone tries to buy.
  14. A couple encourages one another to have affairs to test their true love for one another.
  15. A church group attempts to induct a new neighbor into their congregation with various offers.
  16. A door-to-door salesperson struggles to make ends meet and acts out in a moment of desperation with the next person they talk to.
  17. A parent must bury their son before a thunderstorm makes the earth too soft.
  18. A daughter confronts her traumatizing relationship with her mother.
  19. An asteroid is heading toward Earth; people in a small town figure out how to spend their last day.
  20. A man meets his biological son for the first time and attempts to be in his life.
  21. A barber shop quartet reunites after a 20 year hiatus.
  22. Two married couples go on a trip to a resort in the tropics to fix their broken relationships.
  23. Two villains try and out-evil each other, trying to be a hero’s arch nemesis.
  24. When the law fails them, a group of townsfolk start a vigilante group to stop crime in their town.
  25. A man struggles to return to a normal life after his wife dies.
  26. A woman stranded on an island relives her scenes from her past as she struggles to survive.
  27. A group of activists are wrongfully imprisoned while protesting in a foreign country.
  28. Two hospital patients befriend one another through the screen divider.
  29. A model confronts her aging appearance.
  30. A suspicious family slips through the cracks of a murder investigation.
  31. A village makes preparations for their yearly storm.
  32. A president attempts to have a relaxing Sunday evening with their family.
  33. A character confronts three alternate realities of their life, and gets to choose one to live in.
  34. Russian nobles’ plot to assassinate Rasputin, but he just won’t seem to die.
  35. A father and daughter take a hunting trip every year together, but every year they grow farther apart.
  36. A pregnant teen faces the reality that her life is going to be much different from her high school peers.
  37. Two old friends reconnect in a hot air balloon ride.
  38. A department store sales person runs into an old high school classmate who threatens to reveal information that could lose them their job.
  39. Three couples spend a night on the town, attempting to outdo one another.
  40. A failed actress and an up and coming star have a frank conversation about the acting industry.
  41. A mother prepares for an arranged marriage she knows will bring her misery.
  42. A rich noble comes to term with their failed investments.
  43. A narrator attempts to tell a story about a plain, boring family.
  44. A pirate docks their ship on the wrong island, but doesn't tell their sailors.
  45. An alcoholic tries to overcome their addiction.
  46. A book club meeting becomes chaotic when someone spoils the ending of the story.
  47. An archaeologist forges the discovery of an ancient tomb.
  48. A taxi drivers deals with a night of various passengers.
  49. A roadside assistance technician stops to help a couple with their car, only to be roped into a strange affair.
  50. An acting coach attempts to create the greatest theater company around, looking to both the actors and the audience.
  51. A musical about the Black Power Movement.
  52. Two people receive a mysterious package and must figure out how to open it.
  53. A character hosts an auction for the items of a beloved neighbor who has recently passed, to most of the neighborhood's dismay.
  54. An instructor attempts to inspire a lackluster aerobics class.
  55. A character adjusts to life without one of their limbs.
  56. A group of miners get through another day of work.
  57. A family moves into a new, safer neighborhood, only to find that their past has followed them.
  58. A character confronts three different relationships that are holding them back in life.
  59. An interior designer attempts to redecorate a house for a family.
  60. A robot adjusts to life with a new family.
  61. A character imagines what their life would look like had they made different choices.
  62. A hypnotist is lured into a hypnotic sleep by their own work and must fight their way out of it.
  63. A midwife deals with another failed delivery.
  64. After a series of grizzly murders on full moon nights, a small medieval village must figure out which among them is a werewolf.
  65. A used car salesman slowly comes to terms with his sexuality.
  66. A war Veteran begins to feel the effects of PTSD a decade after her service.
  67. After their car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, a group of women spend the rest of their road trip waiting for help.
  68. A relaxing space cruise goes awry when the crew finds out they’ve accidentally flown into the outskirts of a black hole.
  69. A man finds out the tape worm in his body is beginning to take control of his mind; the other problem- he is too afraid of surgery to remove it.
  70. A struggling musician is still trying to achieve his dream at the age of forty-four.
  71. A family of farmers is rattled when a family of extra-terrestrials move in next door.
  72. A mother and daughter take a trip to their home town in an attempt to save their relationship.
  73. A circus clown wakes up one day to find out the circus moved on without him.

25 Video Game Ideas 

  1. A character must wander across a desert without becoming bored or dying.
  2. A character works to spread the worst rumor in school to the most people possible.
  3. A nihilist must endure a bright and joyous environment without becoming positive.
  4. A team of firefighters has to work together to put out a series of challenging fires.
  5. A fallen knight must avenge the House he once protected.
  6. A medic during WWII must save as many lives as possible.
  7. As a mad scientist, you create intricate puzzles for others to overcome.
  8. As a private detective in Victorian England, you must solve a series of serial murder mysteries.
  9. A mermaid gets separated from their family in a hurricane and goes on a mission to find them.
  10. A car breaks down in a road trip and you must work to survive the night.
  11. A royal family explores their family history by traveling through the past.
  12. You wash up on an island and must work to figure out what happened.
  13. A Western town is haunted and you must figure out how to get rid of the spirits.
  14. You move into a new mansion and start to explore each room.
  15. A family living in the jungle is murdered and you, a distant cousin, must exact their revenge.
  16. A game in which you must interview people, discovering their personal stories, to find the perfect candidate.
  17. As a petty thief in Renaissance Italy you must rise the ranks to become a crime Lord and steal the original Mona Lisa.
  18. A game in which you confront the reality of death and its closeness to your life and the life of those you love.
  19. As a lost cat you must find your way home by deciding who to trust amongst animals and humans.
  20. After spending a summer abroad in Europe, you come home to find your hometown in ruins and must uncover the truth.
  21. You and three other players solve a hotel murder mystery together, but the decisions you make change the story and survival of various characters.
  22. A wizard must use various means to enchant different settings and people to dominate the kingdom.
  23. As a ghost haunting a house, you must figure out ways to scare the families living there enough to make them move out.
  24. As a public school superintendent, you must build and get funding to achieve the status of greatest public school district in the world.
  25. As a myth hunter, you must hunt down and capture various mythical beings.

From idea to villain. Learning to Make a Story with Pixar – Dean Mowshowitz

Outlined a book about the key dramaturgical tools that a screenwriter needs to master and which of them are actively used by Pixar.

The peculiarity of the book is that almost every technique and tool is analyzed using a specific example of one of the Pixar projects.

There are unique ideas, like nuggets, and there are those that can be called a gold mine - understandable and consonant with many people. You can read about unique ones in material 5 Proven Ways to Generate an Original Idea >>>>>

These are the kinds of ideas that Pixar knows how to recognize and then develop into strong and catchy stories with a lot of emotional baggage. All this is what makes the studio so strong, and the stories it develops are powerful and at the same time understandable and attractive.

As you know, most good stories are built around the experiences of a character who has been pulled out of his comfort zone. When the hero is out of his comfort zone, he can act more actively, because he really wants to return to his normal life. This desire, as a rule, stimulates the hero, determines his actions, decisions and emotions.

It's even better if the main conflict in your story is preceded by a problem. For example, in Wall-E, it is an abandoned planet that was filled with garbage, and in Monsters, Inc., it is children who are no longer scared as much as they used to be.


If you're writing about a rat trying to cook in the sewer, it might seem cute, even original, but not necessarily interesting or dramatic. But if you're writing about a rat trying to become a chef in a gourmet restaurant, your storytelling capabilities are instantly enhanced.
What happens if someone sees it? What will happen if his cooking turns out to be really tasty? All of these questions lead to storylines that can be explored and developed. And all that was required for this was to place the character in the most difficult conditions that he could only get into.

Wally-E ( 2008 )

A compelling character is first and foremost one that has a unique personality. After all, the story, the events that you are talking about, happen to someone. This someone is the main link and the main key to the interest of the audience. The character should be interesting and should care about what is happening around him.

Pixar is trying to discover new worlds, universes in their films, which leads to the fact that the most unique and diverse characters appear. Not only are they interesting, they also have idiosyncrasies, like Dory has amnesia and Wall-E is obsessed with the musical Hello, Dolly!

Often the characters' unique traits are revealed through opposition, usually through different points of view of the characters. For example, in the cartoon "Up" the main character, Karl, finds himself between two fires: on the one hand, scout Russell, who is convinced that nature must be preserved and protected. And on the other hand, Mantz, who firmly believes that murders are justified if they help restore reputation. Carl is forced to choose which side he is on, and through that choice he reveals himself as a character.

Such strong beliefs of the characters are connected with their personal experience, often painful. After all, beliefs are conclusions that we draw on the basis of our education, personal experience, our mistakes, omissions, attempts. This does not mean that you need to describe in detail each character, their past, in order to explain their every action. Small references are enough to help the viewer understand the character and show its depth, the conditions in which the hero was formed. In Valli- And the role of such references is played by billboards, in Ratatouille the memories of the Ego.

Sometimes a single line is enough for a hero to describe the past.

In The Incredibles, Helen strongly opposes Bob's attempts to revive the glory days. She believes that they should pretend to be ordinary people and not demonstrate their super powers. During an argument, she says, “This is too bad, Bob. Move again because you want to relive a moment of former glory.

This phrase makes it clear what difficulties the heroes have faced in the past, as well as what prompts Bob to visit Syndrome Island in secret. And it is this action that moves the story forward.

These three elements—passion, beliefs, and past—make the events of your story more meaningful and dramatic for the characters and, at the same time, for your audience.

Soul (2020)

The first level of sympathy is external. But, it is unlikely that in the end you chose your friends based on their appearance. Your friends are those people with whom you are interested and have fun, who give you new experiences, teach you something. These are the people with whom you share experiences and emotions that help you grow. The more you learn about the world of heroes, the more interesting they are to you and the more attractive features in a person you discover. This is the second level.

And gradually you discover a strange, new world. This is the third level of sympathy, when you immerse yourself in someone's world and empathize with what is happening in it.

The same should happen in the relationship between viewer and character:

By allowing the audience to look at the character as if it were their best friend, the third level goes beyond the superficial attachment of the first two. The audience begins to identify with the hero, to understand his fears and hopes. It's called empathy, and it's incredibly important that your characters evoke it in the audience.

Empathy is one of the main distinguishing features of humanity, this ability to accept and understand the feelings and point of view of another person, even if it is very different from ours and makes us humane. And the strongest scenes, as a rule, are precisely those that evoke strong emotions, read about how to work them out in the material how to write a bright scene >>>>>

For the author, knowing what exactly drives the characters is not enough, it is important understand why the characters are moving towards the goal. For example, why is Remy of Ratatouille so passionate about cooking human food, although his friends, his father, laugh at him, mortal dangers and difficulties await him? Because he was born an outcast, with a special gift, and it is important for him to fulfill his dream in order to find a place in life.

Everyone understands what it means to desire something. When the author gives the hero purpose and motivation, they form a desire, and the viewer begins to empathize with the hero, because he knows his feelings.

Toy Story 4 (2019)

Conflict is an essential part of any dramatic work. At the heart of the conflict is the problem, the difficulty that the hero faces. The biggest of them is the struggle for one's life, so writers often put their characters in a state of struggle for life, because death is the only insurmountable obstacle.

But it is important to understand that situations in which there is a threat to life is only a starting point, because while death is the most terrible obstacle, life in itself as a goal is not interesting to us. What matters is why this life is important to us. And everyone answers this question in their own way. The development of personal goals based on the views and desires of the characters form an interesting character and an original situation. Pixar often places its characters in extreme situations where the stakes are constantly raised.

Another feature of conflicts is that they give the viewer great pleasure. Here you can draw an analogy with sports. After all, since ancient times, people have had a passion for sports games and events, and no matter what spectacular sport a person chooses, he also chooses who to cheer for. Likewise, the viewer "sick" for his character.

Characters must be in danger of being destroyed, but they must also have a chance to be "created". They must be able to survive the threat they face and come out of the fight stronger and more whole - perhaps resolving the conflict mentioned earlier. If an evil force is defeated but the protagonist remains susceptible to the same form and attack power again, then he has not actually defeated that force. In addition, such a film will be superficial.

The changes that happen to the hero play a very important role in the formation of stories, because both in life and in the artistic world they are difficult and bring the greatest pleasure, and also the opportunity to understand oneself. That is, it turns out that the beauty of the conflict is that it not only destroys something, but also creates something new, because without it, changes would be impossible.

The quality of the conflict in your script is measured by the plausibility of the changes that occur to your characters. Change is a measure of conflict.

Ratatouille ( 2007 )

If you don't know how the script is structured, watch the intensive, in which we analyze the plot and structure >>>>> in detail.

The structure of the work is built around the main event, answering the main dramatic question, and there are three to five main actions in it. To come up with a main event, you can, for example, answer three main questions: what happens, how it happens and why happens in history. So, in the cartoon "Up" Carl ties balloons to the house and flies away to Paradise Falls - this is his first decision, and everything that happened before tells about how and why he decided to do it. And, of course, it is these decisions that develop the conflict in the first place.

Pixar is also actively developing secondary and side storylines, as well as parallel and internal ones, so that there are more events that play an important role. Not a single detail is left without attention. This keeps the audience's attention and interest in the story.

Likewise, many films have a double climax, such as Toy Story: The Great Escape:

During the horrifying episode at the incinerator, the toys narrowly escaped death and got rid of Lotso. Now they are free to do whatever they want - return to Andy's house or go to where the grass is greener. By the time the heroes manage to overcome all the obstacles: escape from prison, win the fight with the villain, avoid burning, there is still 15 minutes left before the end of the film. Further, the whole story is devoted to their inner experiences.

Don't forget that it's one thing to work through every line and detail, it's another thing to overload the script. Each element must be a tool. If he is not, then he is redundant. For example, if your story does not involve adding "binding events", you do not need to insert them. The mechanisms that a knowledge of dramaturgy and an understanding of structure gives must be used very carefully, before inserting a new element into your story, make sure that it corresponds to your original concept. It is better to try to deepen and strengthen the characters, plots and themes that you have than to add new ones.

In Finding Nemo, Nemo gets stuck in an aquarium. The writers may not have developed this episode, but decided to use this new setting with humor and meaning. Here, each character is clearly drawn and highlighted by some kind of comic behavior. A special role is assigned to the escape-planning Moorish idol Gill with a damaged fin. He is the opposite of Marlin. Gill convinces Nemo to try his hand even though it's risky. And Zharba's damaged fin creates a kinship between them and draws a parallel. Nemo has been taught to think of himself as a frail invalid, but Gill refuses to acknowledge any hardship for both himself and Nemo. Due to Gill's different attitude towards their physical handicaps, Nemo gains self-confidence and courage.

In a good movie, the theme grows organically out of the story. So, Toy Story turns into a trilogy about the irreversible passage of time, because the characters face it. That is, as soon as the creators of the cartoon chose the characters and began to work with them, these important topics appeared, because we all understand what fate awaits all toys when children grow up.

Once the theme is defined, it is worth considering how you can enrich it, make it unique and vibrant.

A theme is an abstract and universal part of your story. It's not part of the plot. This is what you want to tell with the plot. Your topic should organically fit into the imaginary world that you have chosen to explore. Once you've found a theme, use the story, characters, locations, objects, and dialogue to bring it to life as best you can in your script.

So it's your job as a screenwriter to develop themes, from reflection and atmosphere to characters and events. So, for example, it happens in Monsters, Inc., where the film talks about what we need to know, giving up a dream. That, firstly, you can only give up if all the options have been tried, and secondly, that sometimes failures lead us to our true calling, even though it differs from the picture in our head. The effort we put into something is not in vain. This is what Mike Wazowski's line says.

Synopsis of the book on the dramaturgy of L. Nekhoroshev - Directing - ART and THEORY OF CINEMA - Catalog of articles - Media-Shoot - cinema and photo art

Summary of the best textbook on dramaturgy Nekhorosheva LN This summary can be used as a cheat sheet for the dramaturgy exam. Handy to brush up on your knowledge of dramaturgy.

Dramatic components of the picture:

1. Moving and sounding image

2. Composition (starting, climax, scene…)

3. Plot (conflict, motivation, twists and turns…)

4. The image of the whole

5. Idea

Form components and content components.

Composition - the form for the plot, but the content for the image and sound.

Art is thinking in images.

There is truth in an idea. Truth is the content of an idea.

Cinema motion: intraframe, cameras, film in camera, time, space, plot

Each director has his own personal rhythm.

Vertical time - eternal.

Detail - pictorial detail

PART FUNCTION

Showing the whole through its part

Plot function

Concept detail

Psychological detail (to convey a state of mind)

Detail metaphor (transferring the properties of one object to another)

Allegorical detail (allegory, idea in a subject image)

Detail symbol (polysemantic unlike allegory)

Multifunction part

Why:

Savings in figurative means

The mystery of what is happening

Great expressiveness: the viewer "imagines"

Help create the character's image

Reveal the meaning of the scene

SOUND

Voiceover:

Narration

Author

Inner monologue

The hero himself says

Song poems

Necessity Law . Speech only when it cannot be dispensed with

The law of complementarity. Speech should not repeat what is on the screen, but complement

The law of compatibility. The replica matches the image.

The law of direct proportionality. Sometimes it is possible for the hero to talk a lot, but that doesn't matter.

Speech, like background noise or revealing character: the hero is verbose. The main replicas are not highlighted - this is more realistic.

First the viewer sees and then hears.

Remarks: action descriptions

Theatrical drama

Narrative prose

Poetic-lyric

COMPOSITION

Species:

Structural (frames, scenes, episodes, acts)

Plot (exposition, plot, development, climax, denouement, finale)

Story-linear (story lines and leitmotifs) vertically

Architectonics (building art, deep semantic parts)

Composition structure elements:

Frame

Scene

Episode

Editing two frames: collision, blending

Connection of frames by time, space, meaning and contrast.

Signs of the scene - three unities: place, time and action (the main thing!)

Developed scene - it has a complete dramaturgy.

Scenes vary:

1. According to the level of development

2. By function

3. By level of conflict

4. By the nature of the scene

Nature and interior must be alternated! Hard mounted

Scene matching:

1. In contrast

2. According to match (continuation of event elsewhere)

3. Development

Episode - a large part of the film consisting of scenes, internally completed dramaturgically, but developing the plot and the idea of ​​the film as a whole.

Episode property:

1. Change of three unities

2. Dramatic completeness. There is an ending, but there is an interest in continuing - a bridge to the next episode. Complete unfinished. Often, at the end of an episode, a new character is introduced or the protagonist is recognized.

3. Structural complexity of construction

4. Proportionality of episodes

Episode types:

1. Prologue

Epigraph

Condensed background

2. Epilogue

Concise summary of subsequent events

Post epigraph

Completion of memories

3. Exposition (we do not give out all the information at once)

4. Development

5. Final

Laws of perception:

1. Timely excitation of attention - there are 5-10 minutes for this

2. Attention support

3. Increasing the tension of the picture

4. Tension to climax

5. Spectacular ending

Set-up - inciting event

The culmination of is not a powerful event, but an expectation (with bated breath). What will happen? Who will win? Not a jump from a cliff, but a jump when the hero is hooked and hangs over the abyss. The strongest tension, and then the denouement.

Suspense - unresolved, uncertainty, temporary stop before the surge. Artificial tightening of time to answer an exciting question.

American system. 3 acts. Mandatory 2 turning points. Turning points or plot points in scenes of the second plan. In the beginning: change of focus. Surprise.

Story lines and leitmotifs . Functions: fill with meaning and change; combine the parts of the story.

Ways of connecting storylines:

Heroes meet face to face

Heroes communicate by phone, letters

Talking about each other

With the help of details, photos, melodies.

In the soul of a hero

Time and action

The storylines must be extended, correlated with each other, completed.

Architectonics - division of the film into deep semantic parts. The idea for the part of the film: thesis, antithesis, synthesis.

PLOT

Plot - composition, chain of events, but not only events, but also their meaning, poetic design, motivations, moral justifications. The more superficial events, the less internal spiritual content.

The plot is the growth and development of a person, but not always. It is necessary to trace the plot in conjunction with the image and composition, with the image of the whole and the form. It is necessary to understand how the plot forms the image of the whole.

IMAGE

Image of a person, heads of heroes, minor, time, place, environment, image of the author.

An image is a transformed reality, the whole through the particular, the general through the small, most importantly, created by means of art.

The image is created only by visual means, the image is created besides them by the plot, composition, speech, music, acting.

The image combines:

Material of reality itself

Feeling and comprehension by the artist

Viewer's feelings and thoughts

Style and direction depend on the combination of these three elements.

Aesthetics - I perceive, I feel.

The plot of is the movement of the common whole in its self-disclosure to full disclosure. The appearance of the image in time.

Plot - a chain of events in sequential time in their internal connection.

Story - what's going on. The plot is how it happens, as the author says about it.

Cinema is a story and how it is told.

ACTION

Action - motivation - ups and downs

Action is what happens in a motivated, justified way - makes sense leading to the main idea of ​​the film. Not a physical action, but a movement expressing something. expressive movement.

Action is an external expression of feelings, thoughts, desires, relationships, aspirations of the characters and authors of the film.

Actions reveal character.

Ritual - a system of actions that have a symbolic meaning.

There are internal movements, even if we do not visually see them.

Subtext. Details, leitmotifs. Atmosphere, pauses, interruption of replicas.

Pending action.

Shortened action-subtext (dogs Andrey Rublev)

Simple and clear action, such as rescue.

Motivations - external (events, actions of other characters), internal (psychological reasons, purpose, character)

Sequence: external, internal, action. Action, external, internal. Conflict of external and internal motivations.

Peripetia . The end is unforeseen, but it is inevitable. Peripetia needs to be prepared. Open ending only after the main vicissitudes.


Options:

1. Nobody knows

2. The character knows - we don't know

3. We know - no characters

Anticipation effect: does or does not do something as the viewer thought.

An unexpected surprise.

Recognition. The transition from ignorance to knowledge, with positive or negative consequences.

CONFLICT

Conflict - plot engine.

Dramatically, the conflict is not vital, because it is realized and felt by the author and expresses a certain theme and idea

Dramatic and non-dramatic (passive) conflicts.

Drama is struggle, activity. There must be a winner physically or morally.

One major conflict. It is built on the attitude of characters to the same object or phenomenon.

There are usually several narrative main conflicts. They, their enumeration, lead to a contradiction.

External and internal conflicts. Internal - a large degree of deep content.

Open and hidden conflicts.

Plot motif. A stable formal-meaningful component of the plot.

Plot situation - motive with marked conflict forces. Specific characters appear.

Archetypes - motives inherent in human existence and consciousness. Biblical, mythological. Motives and their combinations.

People tried to explain the world with myths.

CHARACTER

The character and image of a person.

Character - material for the image. The image is deeper, because it still has: a portrait appearance, the attitude of the author and characters towards the hero, things and objects around the hero.

4 "I":

- what others think

- how the family and close people think

- what do you think yourself

- who are you really

Conflicts between them. They help to show all the depths of the human soul.

Abnormal people or abnormal world - question and conflict. "Shift" in the image of a person from the norm. "Removal" of the hero.

Character - a set of spiritual qualities of a person. Two properties: the possibility of change and the similarity of the characters of people.

Complex and simple characters (one exaggerated feature). Shakespeareization and Schillerization.

One passion, but a hero with a one-sided character must act once against him. Look for the bad in the good and vice versa.

Character display methods:

1. Consistent disclosure of character.

2. Development of character. His growth and development. An upbringing novel.

3. Sudden demolition, change of character

Personality, individuality - what we were born with, mental characteristics. Unique and unchanging. But character can change.

STORY TYPES

Dramatic

Epic

Narrative

Lyric

Image of the whole = object + attitude of the author. The plots differ in this ratio.

How the stories differ:

Activities

Ways of movement

Conflicts

Ways of revealing the identity of the hero

Time and space

Development rate

The plot and the plot are their rejection.

Action types.

Action - outwardly expressed movement of feelings, thoughts, ideas, desires, relationships.

Physical and verbal actions. The author in the cinema is a commentary, voice-over and cinema means: close-up, angle, composition, duration, mise-en-scene, camera movement, screen time and space movement, editing.

The objective action of the hero and the subjective reaction of the author.

Dramatic action: objective action without the author's relation to it. From the beginning of the birth of cinema and from the 30s.

Where the author is the epic movie poem battleship Potemkin. Developments. Plotless. Then after the war. Human community. General national consciousness.

Epic action. The movement of historical events, the feelings of the characters involved in them. Statement of facts to the maximum, attitudes towards them to a minimum.

Narrative action. There is no dramatic unified conflict, a hero striving for a goal, tense action, battles, rallies. There was an extreme lifelikeness, a subtly recreated atmosphere of the time and place of action, a look at the realities of life of an ordinary person. There is the lyrics of Ilyich's outpost, the July rain. A film without intrigue. Not only the thoughts and feelings of the characters, but mostly the authors. Private interests of an individual against the background of a specific time.

Author in the film. Methods: subjective author's active camera (dogma), intense contemplation (Tarkovsky: action is a form of existence of objects and the real world in time), voice-over, special ways of presenting dialogues (snippets, repetition), inscriptions and film title, editing techniques.

The second part of the techniques: non-normative composition, transformation of the plot, a figure from the author, love for the characters is conveyed in the content and indifference. Heroes must be loved. Remarks, narration in the first person.

Lyrical action - feelings and thoughts of the author, attitude to the film and to himself.

The lyrical hero is the artistic counterpart of the author.

Visions, dreams - instead of reasoning, pictures and ideas.

Retrospectives - what could have been.

What drives the story

Dramatic. Idea, passion, goal, interest, will.

Drama is a borderline state of the human spirit. The situation is unresolvable. And you have to do it. Everything depends not on the events as in the epic, but on the hero himself.

Each action is a consequence of the previous one. Action, counter action of the antipode, counter action of the hero, etc. Without the intervention of the author!

Epic. The hero is driven not by individual will, but by events.

The end is already known. Actions are connected by the chronology of the movement of historical time, by God's providence. Against logic.

Actions move the aspirations of the characters, their feelings and relationships, as well as time, its course. A whirlpool of events. And the author's understanding of actions.

Narrative plot. Causal relationship, chronology, the author's will is stronger.

Lyrical story.

Actions do not depend on the will of the author. Incoherent illogical plot.

In the epic there is not a single conflict, but a set between the masses, characters, internal. Deep spiritual contradiction of events.

In the narrative action, the contradictions are not historical, but of the time in which the characters live and how the author sees it.

Lyrics. Conflict with a hostile environment or with oneself.

Method of revealing the identity.

Dramatic. The character of the hero's target. The more, the sharper the character. Strong character

Epic. Human community with a certain spiritual and historical power. Character in perseverance, immutability of ideals. Immortality after death. Anonymity.

Story. Personality is revealed in relation to another personality. Respect or not see.

Lyrics. Attitude towards oneself as a person.

Time and space.

Drama. Present tense. Here and now. The concentration of time is not large Jumps in time. Conciseness one day is appreciated.

Space also strives for continuity, locality.

Epic. Broken past tense. Large geographic area.

Story. Broken time, but less than in the epic. For example, the change of seasons. Details of the life of a small group of people accurately depicting the time and place of the film. Detail is meaning, and detail is the veracity of place and time.

Lyrics. Present tense. Lots of memories, retrospecial, visions. But there are many temporal and spatial layers, but this is what the hero thinks about here and now. Not chronology, but the state of human consciousness at the moment. Vertical chronotope, spiritual.

The rate of development of film plots.

Drama. Swiftness. Characters and actions. Hurry. The novel is dominated by thoughts and actions. They hinder the development of the whole.

Epic. Unhurried regularity. Does not tolerate fuss. Don't rush to finish. It's not the end that matters, but how it happens. Delay of the decisive event.

Story. Slow. Not what will happen, but as in all details, so slower.

Lyrics. The tempo is changing. Impulsive. Spontaneous feelings.

Story and plot.

Plot - a set of events in their mutual internal connection.

A plot is an image of the whole as it moves towards full disclosure. That is, this movement towards the idea of ​​the work. And the plot is just a listing of events and their relationships. The plot is the context, and the plot is what we see, reality. The plot is what is told, and the plot is how the author tells it. What and how.

Drama. F and S together. F drives leads S.

Epic. The same. But transformation is possible.

- many storylines

- extra-fabule from attraction

- removal of causal relationships

Story. The plot is more important.

- compositional changes (chronology, different time layers, events different but at the same time, structural combinations of episodes within episodes, inclusion of pieces outside the plot, inhibition and transformation of the plot with the help of historical and documentary material, genre change)

Serial inconsistency.

The main thing is to change the sequence justifiably for the sake of an idea.

- other cinematic means (from the point of view of a third-party character, different points of view on one event, false moves and, for example, in detective stories, the interweaving of plots - one f slows down the other, thus moving the plot, an abundance of storylines, cutting off motivations and connections between events, extra details)

Lyrics. Another big transformation of the plot.

Drama - poles, but conditionality, no nuances, halftones, stereotyped.

Epic - great coverage, but no attention to personality.

Story. Detail. With steel, you look at a private person and at reality. Atmosphere. Amorphous, vague image of the whole.

Lyrics. The depth of the soul, but the escape from reality.

GENRE

Genus or species. The way they show the same objects. What angle are you looking at.

High (about people better than existing), medium (about the same), low (about worse people)

Melodrama - a low genre, irony over the characters. Schematically. The drama also has internal conflicts.

Love is ascending (to the heroes of the epic) and descending (to the simple points of comedies and melodramas).

Genre - the author's and audience's attitude to the characters' characters and events. The angle of view on the subject of the image. Film form, historically fixed.

Tragedy.

Developed in the era of the crisis of the human spirit. Tragic collision.

But there is tragedy in other genres: the insolubility of the conflict -> suffering or death.

Compassion and fear. Not against external power, but against your mind. To be or not to be. Tragic choice. Whether to break the moral law. They kill not an enemy but a friend -> compassion. Equivalent moral forces. Both sides of the conflict are justified, but each has its own truth. The tragic guilt of the heroes and their punishment, more often death.

Tragic conflict requires special personal qualities. The hero is not bad, but very deep. Defying fate.

Presence of catharsis. The outcome of the conflict does not suppress, enlightens. Reconciliation over fear.

Comedy.

- heroes' targets have low private rather than high interest, often mercenary

- if high goals - they contradict actions

- liveliness and swiftness of action, the plot strives to complete

- a lot of ups and downs, and short replicas, drops good bad.

- ridiculing stupidity and false understanding of life values ​​

- real comedy with bitter laugh

There is a danger that negative characters will be accepted as positive ones.

Comedy of characters. Comparing or contrasting them.

Comedy of positions. Plot confusion, coincidences, misunderstandings. Quid pro quo. Who instead of whom.

Household comedy of manners. Divorce in Italian.

An eccentric comedy. Cheerful guys, Ivan Vasilyevich.

Lyrical comedy. I walk around Moscow.

Satirical comedy. Garage, the great dictator. Grotesque - whimsical, exaggerated, ugly comic. Buffoonery - buffoonery, exclusively comic acting techniques.

Comedy vaudeville. Not burdened by events with music and songs.

Comedy of masks. Invented character from film to film.

Comedy-parody. Style and theme mismatch.

Drama.

The middle between k and t. Based on an acute conflict with oneself or with the surrounding society. Contradictions are initially resolved in drama. Necessarily developed internal conflict. Method of solving psychological problems. Drama is a tragedy with a happy ending.

If it is a conflict with society, it means social drama, if it is internal. - psychological. Usually combined. Or external out of the internal and vice versa. Violent conflict - a violent way out, but with hope for the viewer!

Adventure genre.

Film travel - a story.

- adventure movie

- thriller

- detective

Adventure.

Open mortal combat of the opposing sides.

- western

- gangster

- owl movies about civil war and border

- about intelligence agents

- policemen

- fantastic adventures

- horror movie

Thriller - a film based on the anxious expectation of the event - anxiety and fear. Not rapidly, but with stops, slowdowns - suspense.

Detective

Uncovering a mysterious crime. It's already happened. Mind game. The viewer thinks.

Tragicomedy. A comedy with a sad ending. Humor, not ridicule. Medium genre.

Style triumphs over genre in auteur cinema.

IDEA

The idea of ​​ is a figurative idea underlying the film.

A theme is a movement towards an idea, a problem, a question that the author poses and answers with his work.

Topic - about what, idea - what.

Idea Statement

Idea question

Idea-dual unity of meaning

Idea:

- the concept of the film

- embodied in the finished painting

- how the viewer perceived it

- the main idea of ​​the painting

Film as a person: body, soul, spirit. Schematicity as a geographical map, necessary for orientation in figurative space.

How low our consciousness can be, so can films be.

But the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, mercy, faith, meekness, temperance. Overcoming evil with love.

Dramaturgy is a struggle between good and evil in the form of external and internal conflicts.

FILM ANALYSIS

Components - genre, plot, composition, theme and idea. The conflict, the image and character of the character, ups and downs.

The plot is the completeness of the image of a work in its movement, in a consistent disclosure. How the image appears.

In addition to events, the plot is motivations, scenes, characters, details.

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