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Dramatic Structure Crash Course
- 1. Character 101 Character MODULE Onstage MODULE Manifestation ONE TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE This is a crash-course in dramatic structure. I didn’t like how the textbook did it, so I am deviating from it. There are some definitions you need from the book, but otherwise, everything you need is on these slides.
- 2. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE All characters have goals. The character with the goal you’re supposed to follow for the whole play/movie/tv show is called the ‘protagonist’.
- 3. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The goal is something tangible that has an immediate effect on the protagonist. “Being happy” is a horrible goal. It is a piece of an Artistic Goal, but a very poor character goal.
- 4. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The goal is something tangible that has an immediate effect on the protagonist. “I will kill forty people and get away with it” is a GOOD character goal. It is very specific.
- 5. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The goal is something tangible that has an immediate effect on the protagonist. “I will ruin John’s life because he passed me up for a promotion.” Is a GOOD character goal. It gives a reason for the goal, but we are unsure of how we will achieve it.
- 6. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The goal is something tangible that has an immediate effect on the protagonist. “I will find the cause of the Plague and rid Thebes of it, because Thebes is my home and I love all of you.” Is GREAT. It is specific, and there’s a reason.
- 7. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE If there was nothing that got in the way of the protagonist, it would be VERY boring. But sometimes things get in the way, and it is STILL boring. Why?
- 8. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Because the writer didn’t understand conflict. Conflict is when two things are trying to exist in the same place at the same time.
- 9. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE We will be using the story of the Starbelly Sneetches, from Dr Suess: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v 3yJomUhs0g It starts at 50 seconds.
- 10. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The goal is to become special by getting a star and enjoy all of the great parties together. The goal for the star-bellies is to stay special, so they have to do the opposite of what the NS does.
- 11. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE They can’t exist in the same place at the same time. If one of the NS got a star, then the S can’t take it and something HAS to change. Conflict than escalates. In this case, with quicker and quicker enterings into the machine. We feel our pulse raising. This can’t end very well!!
- 12. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Or we can use another example. Football. Titans Versas the Bengals.
- 13. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Titan’s Goal: We want to win! Bengal’s Goal: We want to win!
- 14. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Can they both win? NO! So this is CONFLICT!! Perception MODULE Shift FIVE
- 15. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE In a bad game, you can stop watching after 30 minutes, because you know the outcome. A good game is a nailbiter!
- 16. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE The titans will start impossible far away from their goal. Then they have successes, then they have setbacks, then more successes, then more setbacks…
- 17. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE You’re cheering them on AND swearing at their incompetance! They can’t let you down!!
- 18. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE And it’s down to the last TWO MINUTES, They are 50 yards away and down by 6! They’re toast! But no, Jake throws a long-bomb, it’s received, and run for a touchdown.
- 19. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE And now they bring on the kicker, but he’s injured. Can he do it? He prays, kisses the locket that has his dead mother on it, bites thru the pain, kicks it, and….
- 20. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE His makes it! They win! Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE
- 21. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Now let’s talk about resolution… The resolution is when the protagonist has finally gotten what they want.
- 22. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE In a good piece, the protagonist ALWAYS gets what she wants. But in a way they didn’t expect it. This fulfills the artistic goal , or their secret intention behind their goal.
- 23. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE In the Sneetches video, all of the sneetches are messes up! It’s hopeless! Some of the NS have stars, and some don’t.
- 24. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE They thought that stars made them special. And that’s what they’d been working towards. But through their journey, they achieved their goal.
- 25. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Those sneetches are special, because they tried to get stars, and ended up back where they started.
- 26. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Finally. And this is important. Characters don’t change. I’ll say it again.
- 27. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Characters aren’t real. They don’t change. Our perception of them changes.
- 28. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE MIND = BLOWN
- 29. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE On the discussion board: Click on “Character” And your assignment is to identify a character goal, obstacles, and resolution on something you’ve read/watched.
- 30. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR How it needs to look: Subject: Your Name Perception MODULE Shift FIVE
- 31. Character Character MODULE ONE Onstage MODULE Manifestation • Character – Goal – Conflict – Resolution – Exercise TWO Dramatic MODULE Question THREE Artistic MODULE Goal FOUR Perception MODULE Shift FIVE Body: Title of Movie/Play/TV Show Character: Character Goal: Three Conflicts: Resolution: What the character Actually wanted: