Archive for the ‘Conflict’ Category

Four Ways To Foreshadow Conflict

To foreshadow conflict means to indicate or hint at the difficulties that will arise later in the story. Foreshadowing creates suspense and tension; the audience knows something’s going to happen – they just don’t know what or when. A story’s conflict is best foreshadowed in the first act, in the second and third acts, techniques for creating rising conflict are used to drive the story forward.

Here are four ways to foreshadow conflict in your script:

1. CREATE DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES
All scripts are driven by conflict. Setting up a story that is rife for discord and problems, with characters that must engage in struggles with one another or themselves in order to reach a final resolution, is the first step in foreshadowing conflict.

In the first act of the film Aliens, an inexperienced Lieutenant, a sleazy corporate guy, a creepy “synthetic person”, a group of young gung-ho marines, and a psychologically-scarred woman who survived a previous alien attack are thrown together on a mission to find why contact has been lost with a settlement on a remote planet – you just know something bad is going to happen.

2. SHOW CHARACTERS’ REACTIONS
When character’s react negatively to a situation – showing fear, stress, anxiety – it heightens the tension for the audience. In Aliens, Ripley’s response to being asked to become part of the group going out to check on the settlement (where she previously encountered the deadly alien) is immediate and emotional, “You want me to go back out there? Forget it!” We also see Ripley having recurring nightmares about the aliens.

3. SHOW THE UPCOMING OBSTACLES
Show the audience the problems, difficulties and troubles that lie ahead for the characters – doing so causes the audience to worry about what will happen to them. This is an especially effective technique when the protagonist is unaware of the obstacles but the audience knows what’s coming up (in Superman, the audience knows that Lex Luther has obtained kryptonite to use against the protagonist, but the hero is unaware of the trouble in store for him.)

In Aliens, screenwriter James Cameron provides plenty of foreshadowing using this technique:

* During the insurance investigation, Ripley tells the story of what happened to her and the crew of the Nostromo

RIPLEY
Look, I can see where this is going. I’m telling you those things exist. Kane, the guy that went in, said he saw thousands of eggs in that ship. Thousands… Just one of those things managed to kill my entire crew.

* Ripley retells the story to the marine crew to prepare them for what they may encounter

* While patrolling the med lab on LV-426, the crew discovers two living alien specimens in containers

* The crew finds a young survivor, Newt, who tells Ripley her family is dead and provides this foreshadowing dialogue:

RIPLEY
Newt, these people are soldiers. They’re here to protect you.

NEWT
It won’t make any difference

4. USE PROPS
When you show a dangerous item or an ominous situation – a gun, a knife, a walking trail alongside a steep cliff with no guard rail, a car that continually breaks down, a door that sticks shut – the reader will remember it and anticipate the conflict to come.

At the same time, if you use this device you need to pay it off. Paraphrasing playwright Anton Chekov: If you show a gun in Act I, you need to fire it in Act II. Props need to be set up effectively – not just for foreshadowing purposes but also for clarity and flow. If a character suddenly draws a gun to shoot her philandering husband in Act III, and the reader never saw or heard about the weapon until page 110, the reader’s going to be distracted wondering, “Where did that come from?”

In Aliens, the audience is shown numerous dangerous props
* Ripley learns how to use the loader prior to departing for LV-426
* Hicks gives Ripley a deadly weapon and shows her how to use it
* Ripley gives Newt a tracking device to wear at all times

YOUR TURN: What techniques do you use to foreshadow conflict?

5 Ways to Ensure Your Conflict Is Tracking

Conflict is an essential element of a successful screenplay. Conflict engages audiences and helps them relate to the story and empathize with the characters. To go along on the journey, viewers must clearly understand what the conflict is and why it exists. Good scripts set up the conflict early in the story, outline the cause and source of the conflict, and show the consequences of the conflict.

Your story’s conflict must develop and track. In other words, as the story unfolds the conflict should increase and escalate with direct consequences in a cause-and-effect manner.

Conflict “X” ==> causes problems and consequences ==> leading to a related, more serious conflict ==> and worse problems and consequences ==> which develops into another related even more difficult conflict ==> that results in increased problems and consequences. This cause-and-effect plotting of the conflict continues progressing, eventually culminating in the climax where the problems are extremely dire and the consequences are a matter of “life and death.”

If your conflict does not track then viewers have difficulty connecting with the story and caring about the characters. Here are five ways to ensure your story’s conflict is developing and tracking:

1. Present the conflict early in the story

2. Clearly define the cause and source of the conflict

3. Directly relate the conflict to the plot development

4. Intensify the conflict as the story progresses

5. Show the effect the conflict has on your characters

In the film Se7en, screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker clearly defines, develops and tracks the conflict – each conflict leads to a greater problem with even more serious consequences for the characters. As the conflict progresses it effects the characters’ actions and decisions, ultimately transforming the two protagonists.

Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman), exhausted and disillusioned, is retiring in 7 days – his job is to train his replacement, Detective Mills (Brad Pitt) ==> they investigate the first murder ==> the two men have different investigation styles ==> the Police Captain splits the two detectives up and reassigns Mills to another murder ==> Somerset connects the first and second murders ==> the detectives realize it is the work of a serial killer ==> Somerset asks to be removed from the case entirely ==> Mills is put in charge of the serial killer case ==> Mill’s wife intervenes bringing the two men together ==> Somerset is back on the case ==> the relationship between Mills and Somerset grows and strengthens ==> the detectives find fingerprints at the second crime scene ==> this evidence leads them to a third murder ==> more evidence leads to the killer’s apartment ==> Mills is almost killed by the suspect ==> the detectives are unable to identify the killer ==> the killer commits additional murders ==> Somerset continues to share his personal views with Mills and presses upon him to change his life ==> Mills rejects Somerset’s views and resists his advice ==> Somerset’s retirement date arrives, he commits to stay on and help Mills until the case is solved ==> the killer surrenders ==> the killer reveals there are two additional victims who have not yet been found ==> the killer leads the detectives to the final crime scene ==> culminates in the story’s explosive climax.

SOMERSET
Ernest Hemingway once wrote, “The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.” I agree with the second part.

The Four Types of Dramatic Conflict

CONFLICT IS THE BASIS FOR DRAMA
Audiences don’t flock to see a film where all the character’s play nice and live their lives free of obstacles.  Good drama shows characters in confrontation, in dynamic relationships that emphasize their differences and force them to transform.

CONFLICT MUST HAVE MEANING
If the conflict only consists of a problem that needs to be solved, the story will be flat and the audience will lose interest.  The audience needs to know what the conflict means to the characters – how does it affect their actions, their relationships and most importantly, what are the consequences.  Showing how a character responds and copes with the conflict helps the audience connect and engage with the story.  If the conflict has no affect on the characters, the story will stay stuck on a superficial level.  Good dramatic conflict pushes characters to express human qualities that reveal a deeper understanding of the story, ourselves and the world around us.

FOUR TYPES OF DRAMATIC CONFLICT
Good screenwriting weaves more than one type of conflict through the story.

INNER CONFLICT
Inner conflict occurs when a character struggles with himself (such as Johnny Cash in Walk The Line).  The struggle could be anything from a lack of self-confidence to addictive and self-destructive behavior.  Inner conflict is tricky to express on screen because… well, it’s inner.  The conflict is within the character.  For the audience to understand the inner conflict the character must reveal it.  The inner conflict must be projected outward onto something else – visually, or via voice-over, or through the character expressing his feelings to another character.

RELATIONAL CONFLICT
The most predominant type of conflict is relational, often the battle between the mutually exclusive goals of the protagonist and antagonist, though this also occurs between “buddies” and “couples”.  Examples include, Harry and Sally (When Harry Met Sally), William Munny and Little Bill (Unforgiven), Chigurh and Moss (No Country for Old Men), and Dillinger and Purvis (Public Enemies).

SOCIETAL CONFLICT
Societal conflict occurs between a person and a group and is usually present in films about corruption, justice, or oppression.  Films with societal conflict often incorporate scenes or subplots involving personal conflict.  Erin Brockovich, Hotel Rwanda, Star Wars.

SITUATIONAL CONFLICT
Situational conflict occurs when a character is in conflict with a specific situation – a woman trapped in a burning building, a man hiding in a married woman’s closet when her husband arrives home, a group of stranded adventurers trying to find a way off a deserted island.  In films containing situational conflict, the main conflict is still usually relational.  Audiences need a personal connection to stay engaged.  The Poseidon Adventure, Night at the Museum, Aliens, Castaway, World Trade Center.