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Characters: Creating Characters | ||
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Character levelsThe development of the character depends on what part they play in the story. There are four levels that characters work on:
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Sources of characters
In all, moving from one medium to another is not just a matter of adding the missing elements, it may require rethinking the whole concept of the idea. It is easy to take Donald Duck and make him into a toy, but less easy to take a toy like Donald Duck and make him into a movie character. Try to imagine your characters in various other forms to see how they might work. This will give clues on development. You can also do this with existing ideas. Would Mickey Mouse or Sherlock Holmes work as a computer game, comic strip etc?
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Main charactersFor a character to be in a story, they must have something about them that is worth telling. What is worth telling will always come down to two things:
Mickey Mouse is not a very interesting character himself, but he represents 'Mr Average Man' who is put into interesting situations. On the other hand, Donald Duck is more interesting. He is someone who goes about his work normally but someone or something is determined to upset him. Because he is irascible, it does not take long for things to get out of hand. His attempts to resolve the situation provide the interest. Sherlock Holmes is an interesting character who seeks out interesting events. James Bond is the same. They are the 'adventure seekers.' In fairy tales there are examples like Red Riding Hood, Goldilocks, Cinderella and the like that are not particularly special, but events change their lives. On the other hand, Robin Hood, Sinbad the Sailor, Captain Ahab (Moby Dick) go out of their way for adventure.
Whichever it is, they will have certain things going for them and certain things that hinder them. Talent, money, friends, power, contacts, luck, intelligence, good looks, etc. They are hindered by bad habits, bad friends, bad luck, lack of insight, psychological aspects, bad goals.
Main characters should be so well defined that they sum up a particular type of person. Popeye is a good example. He dresses as a sailor, has an anchor tattoo, has a pipe that he can blow like a ship's horn, and a gruff uneducated voice. He has no pretensions about himself, and sings "I yam what I yam...Popeye the sailor man." Popeye is a stereotype character in that he sums up all those separate elements that have been associated with sailors. |
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Email: stan@makemovies.co.uk. Page last updated:
© 2002-2009 Stan Hayward. All rights reserved.