A Slight Setback...

Unfortunately, I'd forgotten that the deadline is actually the 22nd May, so the room that was booked from the 25th to the 27th is now no use to me. However, I've adapted the script, and personally think it is now a lot better than the last incarnation. The film is now a spoof documentary that focuses on Dr. Tipler's attempts to build a time machine, hosted by a Louis Theroux style reporter. The film starts off with the presenter stood outside a university, explaining that he's about to interview esteemed scientist Dr. Edward Tipler. However, Tipler doesn't really know what he's doing... The presenter knocks on his office door, finding him asleep at his desk. Then we get a bit of backstory on Tipler, framed through a talking heads style interview with him, interspersed with old footage of him and photos of him as a kid, etc. After this, Tipler shows us round his workshop, shows us some old, failed attempts at time machines, get's heckled by a group of students, and then finally shows the reporter his latest time machine, which is a chair like object you get strapped into. The reporter nervously straps in, and then the machine is turned on, causing a powercut. The lights go out, the screen goes dark, and we hear a large thud and the presenter in pain. Tipler manages to turn the lights on, and finds out that the time machine has disappeared into the past, however the reporter has not and has fallen onto the floor. The final shot is the reporter, back outside the uni, wearing a neck brace and summing up his experience with Tipler.
This will be pretty easy to film, and I think it has a lot of potential comic opportunities, the only problem now is whether or not the actors can make it at such short notice. If not, I don't really have time to find any more so will have to use people I know...!

Going Through Changes

After the feedback I received from the presentations at the end of last term, I've made some fairly big changes to the script. The story is fairly different now, but is definitely more suited to the 6 minute length, the original script was in danger of turning into a feature film!
In this version of the script, Dr Tipler is running a business to send people back in time to eliminate past regrets, for a small fee! Roger goes to visit him, we join them mid conversation as they’re discussing Roger’s regret, so we’re not entirely sure of what it is. Roger discusses it ambiguously but with enough detail for us to piece together a vague idea of what it was he’s done. Then, just as the Professor is about to pull the trigger to send Roger back in time, another Roger runs through the door, all battered and beaten up, a little worse for wear, and screams at Roger “Don’t do it! You’re making a big mistake!”, just as the trigger has been pulled and Roger disappears.
I'm in the process of scripting this out now, I have a first draft, the bare bones of the scene, so just need to flesh it out a bit. As the original time travel scene took around 4 minutes, I think this will fit nicely into 6.

The Problem Of Time (In A Film About Time Travel...)

In the presentation today the problem of my film's running time was brought up again. It seems my initial idea of splitting the film into three segments doesn't really sit too well with the brief, so I may have to do some severe editing.
Here's an extremely shorter version of the first half of the pilot.

I don't think this version is anywhere near as good, and doesn't really get across all the information you need to know. I think to shorten the script I will have to re-write large chunks of it rather than simply cutting some lines.

None Of Them Knew They Were Robots

I've been thinking more about the original script and how I would actually film it. Fitting the story into six minutes is gonna be pretty much impossible given it's complexity, but would split nicely into three short films, the first ending just after Roger goes forward in time, the second ending just as Roger gets into a fight with the robot, and the third part would be Roger returning home and changing his life.
I was talking to my flatmate Elliot about how much this film could end up costing, and Elliot estimated around £500-1000... I'm not sure if this guess is a little too high, but either way I'll have to raise a bit of cash to help build the set for 'Chuck Voyager' and the robot. The set will be appropriate if it's really cheap and tacky looking, so with a bit of imagination I'm sure this wouldn't end up costing a great deal. The robot, on the other hand, could be a little trickier. It's okay if it looks a little cheap, as after all it was made on a budget in the actual plot, but I don't want it to just look like a load of cardboard boxes...
The robot should be humanoid, and as non-threatening as possible. Maybe a robot that looks sort of like this would work -

It wouldn't be too hard to make a reasonable robot suit by sticking chunks of painted card onto a jumpsuit for added flexibility, and then modifying a bike helmet a little to act as it's head.
A robot like this would be quite easy to achieve too -

- but I'm not too sure I want the robot to look like this. It doesn't have much of a personality, and looks quite ominous in a way. Even the robot in this film is meant to be slightly incompetent, it's still supposed to be quite a lovable character. I want the audience to feel kinda sorry for it when Roger has a go at it, and I'm not sure a big chunky box would be able to convey things like this...

This is a kinda classic robot style, which I think would work really well given that 'Chuck Voyager' adheres to so many sci-fi stereotypes and conventions, so the film will be quite consistent stylistically. I also like the idea of robots getting more and more complex as the human race advances, then cheaper and poorer as it declines, meaning that the final robot that was produced does resemble something out of 'The Jetsons' rather than 'I Robot'.

This is a similar design to the last one, but I like the rounded head! If you were to make this into a costume, you could put eye holes in the mouth bit, and then put big LEDs or something in the eyes to give it a little bit more personality.

Another pretty classic design, this robot looks awesome and is actually quite a basic design - human body shape with dials and switches on the chest, and connections on all the joints, it's just the head that could pose a problem. However, I'm sure with the right lighting, and from the right angle, something like a bunch of bottle tops and old loo roll tubes stuck to a box and painted silver could look like a fairly convincing robot face...maybe?

Whilst searching about for robot examples I found this awesome picture too -

More Scripting Fun!

I had another idea for a script that may make a good film, about a guy who feels the music scene in his town is sorely lacking, and goes about putting on a gig to showcase local talent. However, the only venue he is able to secure is an old lecture theatre, which is less than ideal, and all the bands he wants to book are unavailable, leaving him with several poor, but well meaning bands. The gig looks like it's going to be an absolute disaster, with members of the different bands not getting on well, the music sounding generally terrible, deadlines looming and a mountain of logistical nightmares. Eventually however, the gig turns out to be shambolic fun and is enjoyed by all.
This is just the bare bones of the story at the moment, there needs to be several good obstacles in the man's way, and the bands also need to have their own distinct character, and be bad in a so-bad-it's-good kind of way. I was thinking sort of like the battle of the bands scene in Cheech and Chong's Up In Smoke mixed with Spinal Tap, but with contemporary sounding bands. At the moment, some of my ideas include an aggressive but woefully out of time straight-edge hardcore band, a drug guzzling drone/doom band that are more than happy to let a single sustained note ring out for about 50 minutes, an pretentious art-rock kinda band, and a kind of gabba or breakcore DJ. These characters would all find conflict with each other, but eventually find a kind of middle ground to all get along...possibly? Still needs a LOT of work, but I'll keep thinking about it!

I've been reading 'Adventures In The Screen Trade' by William Goldman to help me with the scripting, and it's been really useful. There's a chapter where he takes an old short story he's written, and then tries to adapt it into a screenplay. Seeing the thought processes he goes through and the changes he makes the initial story is really interesting, and I'll apply some of the questions he asks about his own work to my scripts. I'd recommend this book and it's sequel ('Which Lie Did I Tell? More Adventures In The Screen Trade') to everyone on the AV course!

Voyaged!

I just finished writing the first script, which ends with Roger finding out the robot is the time machine, and then being sent back to the point in time just before he made the phone call to apply for the time travel experiment. He takes Laura's advice this time and doesn't phone them, and instead asks her out for a drink, which she agrees to!
I'll bring this finished script along to the script workshops and make some improvements to it, but the first draft is now complete.
I also started writing a script for an idea tentatively titled 'Kebab Quest'. This would start off with two students out on the town, who decide to head to a kebab shop after going on a brief bender. Once there, they're disappointed with the menu, saddened by the staff's uncaring manner, and sickened by the grotty mess of a kebab they receive. The pair decide in a drunken stupor to start their own kebab shop, which would be the greatest takeaway of them all in their minds, out of their own window. They set about ordering large ammounts of cheap meat and make a massive sign that says 'Kebab Quest'. They wake up the next day, open for business, and gradually become incredibly popular. The pressure begins to get to them however, and rival kebab shops try to buy them out and sabotage them, before eventually they pack the whole thing in and decide to go get a cheese burger instead.
I kinda like this idea but also think it's pretty stupid at the same time, haha! It'd need a good solid script to actually work, and a good chemistry between the two lead characters. Regardless of whether I actually decide to use this idea or not, it can't hurt to script it out and see how it goes.

Alternative Endings

I've now come up with a few ideas on how to end my current script, and I'm going to try scripting them now and seeing which one works best. The one I'm liking the most at the moment, is that when the robot sent itself and the time machine forward in time, the two merged without the robot realising. The pair find out when the robot inadvertently points at Roger and they're sent back in time by a few seconds. However, once Roger finds this out, there are several possibilities for what could happen. One idea is that he returns to the exact spot where he left the studio, and comes to appreciate his life a lot more, kind of like Scrooge in A Christmas Carol I guess, heh! Another is that he goes back to the original audition for 'Chuck Voyager' and does his best not to land the role...? I'm not sure if that's really a solid, satisfying ending though.
As well as this, I'm also going to try scripting another idea as a back up plan. It's kinda hard to leap into a totally new project after putting so much thought into this one, but I think it'll definitely help having a few good scripts to choose from, just in case one of the ideas is too complex, expensive or ambitious, but also if any of them turn out to be kind of weak as stories.

Chuck Voyager!

Here's a little back story for all the characters included in the first part of the script. All of them are accompanied by crude sketches, which are for my own benefit rather than anything else, and should not be used as a definitive reference point for the character's appearance (especially as many of them are extremely poorly drawn, haha!) -

Chuck Voyger AKA Roger Tillsdale



Roger Tillsdale plays the part of Chuck Voyager in the TV show of the same name, although after initially showing interest in the project, after filming a few episodes become disillusioned with the show's formulaic approach, poorly written script and abysmal special effects. From an early age, Roger had been interested in science fiction, but more importantly, scientific research and exploration. Roger has a relatively short temper, dislikes small talk and hates the feeling of wasting time. He can also be quite unaware of the emotions of people around him. Despite this, Roger means well and is a good person, but often fails to entirely understand a given situation, and can be too 'gung-ho' for his own good. Roger doesn't really get on with the rest of the cast or crew, aside from Laura, who to some extent shares his view of the ridiculousness of 'Chuck Voyager'. Despite having a good chemistry together, Roger has never met up with Laura off the set, as he doesn't think she feels the same way towards him.

Lieutenant AKA Laura Stafford



Laura is a kind hearted, optimistic person. In her ideal world, she would be starring in theatre productions, rather than 'Chuck Voyager', but she tries to make the best of it, feeling it could lead to her 'big break'. She has a soft spot for Roger, and is the only cast member he gets on with. At the same time however, she can become frustrated by Roger's headstrong attitude and his apparent lack of feelings towards her.

The Director AKA Theodore Goldman



Theodore has supposedly worked with the best, although none of the rest of the crew are too sure of his credentials, or whether his frequent anecdotes about working in the industry actually happened. Goldman is irritable and hates slackers. His hard work ethic means he often doesn't treat his actors with much kindness. Goldman is fast talking and very business minded, and has a very clear vision for how he wants 'Chuck Voyager' to be filmed.

Dr. Edward Tipler



Edward is a very well spoken chap who is passionate about his work, to the point where he may seem extremely eccentric. Although Edward's scientific know-how seems to be perfectly articulate, he often overlooks or has trouble with normal, everyday tasks, leading experiment participants to feel quite uneasy. Edward can be distracted quite easily, but when working on some new theory or idea, can become very animated and involved.

A Trilogy?

Several good ideas came up in the script workshop today for my script. Even though everyone agreed that my script was going to be much longer than 6 minutes, it was suggested that I could split it into parts. This would give me a lot more space and time to develop the characters too, and the script could be cut into at least two, maybe three parts. However, I'm not sure if the brief will allow this?
I also need to make all the characters a little more solid. The character of Laura at the moment isn't able to extend much further than just acting as a plot device whilst Roger reads the newspaper aloud. I'll try and build more on their relationship, as well as writing up some character outlines to help me get a better idea of who they are too.
Another idea that was brought forward was that instead of a TV crew, the sci-fi series could be being made by an internet based company instead, filming in their basement, as a full film crew will be harder to film, and this will make the show seem even more tragic. I like this idea, but I'm not totally sure I need to make a point of it, as just seeing a smaller crew filming him will achieve the same effect.
It was also mentioned that when Roger goes to the time travel interview, the scientist could recognise him from the show. This could lead to some good dialogue and could potentially strengthen the connection between Roger's 'fake' sci-fi show and the reality of his time travel experience, but it could also make Roger out to be more famous than he actually is. I'm not totally sure whether this would help the story or hinder it yet.

Scripting!

Just came back from the first lecture and seminar of the year, and even though I didn't get feedback for my script as we ran out of time, it was still very useful. However, seeing the length of many of the scripts compared to mine has made me doubt whether I can actually squeeze this story into 6 minutes... I'm not going to totally discard the idea at all, but I'll try working on some other scripts tonight just in case. This will mean tomorrow I can gain feedback on all my ideas, and then choose which one is best to go with. I have a few other ideas for stories knocking about in my head, but at the moment none of them are as solid as the time travel one, which still isn't even totally solid as it is, haha!
I was also thinking of how I would design the robot. Building a plasticine robot, animating using stop-motion and then blue screening it into the film would look awesome, but may not be entirely feasible... I was thinking I could just build it out of cardboard boxes, and the robot explains that as he was created when the science department's budget was at an all-time low, he had to be constructed out of waste materials. It's a bit of a cop-out though. I also thought maybe the robot could have been built so well that he does just resemble a human being, but this is also quite a lame way of doing it.
Here are some sketches for the sci-fi idea -

First Script Idea

I've thought a little bit more about some of the ideas I had, and managed to flesh one of them out somewhat. It's still not entirely strong enough to carry a whole film though, so I'm thinking maybe if I write out a script for it, I'll be able to visualise it a bit better, but I'll still keep trying to think of different ideas in case I can think of a better one, or if this one doesn't work.

So, basically, there's a man who plays the starring role in an extremely cheap and cheesy sci-fi TV programme. The film begins with the crudely animated opening to the series, and then continues on with the episode. At some point our protagonist messes up his lines, at which point we hear the director yelling "CUT!", and the camera pulls back to reveal the set and film crew around them.
We then see the man talking to one of his co-stars about feeling like he's wasting his time working on this terrible show, and that he wants to actually do something with his life. He then sees an advert in the paper for a group of scientists looking for someone to test out a prototype time machine they've made. Our man thinks this is a golden opportunity to do something with his life, and to become the first man to travel through time.
He goes along to the interview, where he's told he will be sent several years forward in time, then when he's there will be sent back to the current time. He agrees, and is sent forward thousands of years into the future. Once there, he finds himself in a field with no traces of mankind or civilization anywhere to be seen. After a brief period wondering where he is and what's happened, a small robot appears on the horizon, running towards him. The robot tells him the scientists who sent him forward are unable to meet him, as the human race has been totally destroyed. The robot tells him (maybe through use of flashbacks?) that the governments of the world began losing more and more money and becoming more hostile towards one another, and withdrew all the money they'd put into scientific research and used it to build up their military, launching into a full scale global war which kills thousands upon thousands of people. The robot was one of the last models made, but due to the lack of funds has been built quite poorly. It's equipped with a device that allows it to see into (or predict) the future, but this doesn't work quite as well as it should, and is always missing a few key facts. The robot, sensing the inevitable destruction of mankind, sent himself forward to meet our protagonist and try and help him head back to his own time, but mistimed his arrival slightly, hence why he was a few minutes late. The robot tells him there is one surviving time machine somewhere on the planet, but he isn't exactly sure where. The man and his new found robot pal must try and find it to send him back, and try and stop the eradication of the human race!

I'm gonna try and have a rough script for this idea ready for the workshop on Monday, but I'm still not totally sure if I will use this idea. I have some thoughts on how to achieve many of the effects I've mentioned here, but I'm not sure whether the plot is solid enough to carry itself, or indeed whether it can do this comfortably within 6 minutes....but I'll give it a go!