Hey Folks, I am working on a script. It is completed and I have all the beats, but I still feel like my protagonist is too passive. Things happen to him and it isn't until the half way mark does he actually do some "action". Anyone have any suggestions on how I can strengthen my character through his actions? Or, give him more depth?
I have some ideas, but I want to hear from the community.
For me (and I say this in general as I don’t know what your script it about) it’s about showing the character even in “inaction.” How they react to what happens, and what their impulses are, whether they give into them or not. Dialogue can be used to show, especially based on who the character is interacting with.
The rest, to me, is setup.
How can you prepare the reader/viewer for the moment the protagonist will finally act. What pushed them to do it vs what held them back before.
the best actions have subtle set up that still strike as unexpected and surprising, even though the ground work was previous layered in.
Not sure if any of my rambling helps… 🙂
if you want to give more specifics I’ll see if I can come up with something f to actually help. 🙂
best,
chris
Chris, thanks for that. You make excellent points and gave me a really good idea about something. I might share more later about specifics.
Great question. One of the drafts I do on my script I call it the "Make them active" pass. So I go through each scene and break it down literally asking myself "How do I make them active" in this scene. If I am unable to find a way to do it then I usually end up cutting the scene as it is more than likely superfluos and not actually adding to character or story development.
I love it! Especially knowing when to cut a scene as superfluous. Thank you.
Happy to help. 🙂