World Building 101: Screenwriting, by John Lovett (GUEST BLOG!)
Welcome back, fellow travelers! I’ve got a special treat for you this week in the form of a special guest blog from screenplay writer, teacher and amazing human John Lovett! Up until now we’ve discussed general world building, but understandably the notion of world building applies differently for science fiction/fantasy, fiction, non-fiction and other assorted genres - - and it also differs between novels and screenplays. So, to address this directly, I was gleeful at John’s offer to provide some of his insights, and that’s what we get this week!
So, without any further lily-gilding, let’s get right into it!
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In screenwriting, world building is creating a balance between too little and too much for your story. Understanding that balance allows you, the writer, to create the world in which you intend. This balance also allows for the director and others working on the film to understand your world. Creating a universe from nothing can be as complex or as sparse as you want it to be. A screenwriter’s job is to make readers ‘see’ the movie before the cameras even start rolling. With that in mind, writing scenes with every bit of the liveliness and dimension they could have is critical.
Having a fleshed-out, organized, consistent framework for your world is essential in getting the buy – in from those who are producing the film. If the writer is heavy on exposition and drags all the story’s non – essential details screaming into the harsh light of day, inevitably they wind up writing trivia and not forward moving action. Above all, do not be boring. If the writer writes skeleton scenes, then the reader has to work to imagine the scene. Balance offers description and character movement, but not so much as to prove overwhelming or uninteresting to the reader. The writer needs to fashion a world for your characters to inhabit.
For some screenwriters, focusing on character creates a good plot. While great characters are necessary for good screenplays, they are not the only thing the writer needs for the story to be great. As interesting as the characters may be, if the world around them is not interesting, if that world does not set itself apart from other universes, and - most importantly - if that world does not challenge the protagonist, the story is not going to resonate with the reader. Also, all the skillful lines of dialogue in the world cannot save a script with the visual charisma of dried glue.
Along with meaningful brevity, there is tone. You want the readers to feel a sense of dread as the protagonist walks through the empty house? Include imagery of shadows and long dark hallways in your script. Looking to stir up feelings of shock and surprised anguish? Have your protagonist stroll through a perfectly mundane office, replete with motivational posters and bubbling water coolers, only to round the corner and find something horrific. The reader also does not need specific descriptions of the carpet pile, the temperature in the room, and the shade of ecru on the walls unless those things are important to the plot in some way. Be selective and purposefully constrained in your addition of visual details. And, importantly, do not be boring.
Establish early in the script a specific environment that has a true - to - life historic period or place that has a name. No matter what you choose, be definitive. Picking a specific setting can help to shape your characters and the challenges they face. Define clear rules for your world. Break the rules of your world only at your own risk; doing so is sloppy and results in reader’s cognitive dissonance.
Make the world challenge the readers. Establish that your world is chaotic, or volatile, or violent, or physically harmful. Don’t be afraid to make it as weird as you want. As long as you establish and maintain the world’s rules, weird things can happen; such as the protagonist breaking the fourth wall and directly addressing the audience to complain about someone while time freezes around him.
Make your screenplay go beyond commonly held tropes. Having a world with elves, magic, zombies, and cursed royal regalia, etc.; is fine, albeit a little boring and overdone. What can you write that makes your world a fantasy world that looks physically, geographically, socially, or something other than what readers have come to expect. Do not depend on a reader’s knowledge of fantasy tropes to convey the world build of the story’s imagery and character dynamics. Make your world exist in a parallel reality to our own. Every action is snipped and pulled into a shape more suited for the reader to ‘view’ even if the film is based on actual events. Writing a contemporary story so that the clothes are familiar, the people don’t have superpowers, and the plethora of pop culture references makes it pretty clear that this world is supposed to resemble reality. Yet, you do not want your world to be the real world. You want to emulate the real world in such a way that the dialogue is witty, the violence is a little too bloody, and the circumstances are pretty much out there.
The fantasy world is a type of world requires the most attention, and therefore can be the most difficult in terms of cohesion and continuity. However, these worlds are often the ones people fall in love with, so do not be afraid to write something daring if you want to create your world from scratch.
The hybrid world is a type of world building in which fantastic things happen in a reality that could possibly be our own. Writing the hybrid world allows references to pop culture but are also filled with things that definitely cannot happen in real life, such as kicking someone so hard that they explode into coins or seeing water tubes of non-chronological time. This world concept yields the greatest rewards and often garners a cult following.
Do not overlook world building. You can start your script with your world serving as a character, even if you just pin down your setting in a general sense, such as 1945 New York or 18th century Vienna. Whether you have written a sprawling sci-fi epic or a cloistered suburban drama, give your screenplay a consistent visual language that is non - negotiable if you want to absorb the reader. Do not overdo providing way too much detail as this will overburden an otherwise competent script.
Why are reading this? GO WRITE!