18 QUESTIONS YOU NEED TO KNOW THE ANSWERS TO
BEFORE YOU BEGIN WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT OF YOUR SCREENPLAY
1. Title: Blood Red Rain: The Rebellion
2. Genre: Drama
3. Tone: King Arthur in paradise
4. Logline: The youngest son of a king who usurped the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Hawaii must earn his right to inherit the throne and win the hand of his true love.
5. Who is the hero? Pono
What he wants: To be accepted by the chiefs and commoners as king. He also wants to win the love of Lani, the granddaughter of the murdered king and the most beautiful woman in the kingdom.
What is in the way: Pono’s older brother and reagent, Kanaloa, who covets the throne and is in an arranged marriage with Lani, with whom he has children.
6. Why do we care if the hero succeeds? Pono is hardworking and likeable and is in love with Lani. Moreover, he is the highest ranked son and works hard to develop all the talents required to be a Hawaiian king.
7. What is the theme? The life of the land is preserved in righteousness, that is, the land, which is a living thing to Hawaiians, will die if the wrong leadership is in place
8. Who is the intended audience? Adults
9. Type of movie: Studio
10. What is the inciting incident? Keawe, Pono’s father, kills his brother, usurps the throne, kills off the objecting ruling chiefs, and takes the wives and children of his murdered brother into his court.
11. Act One break: After falling in love with Lani and conferring with a prophet, Pono decides to take on the challenge of qualifying to become the king and a husband to Lani; his brother Kea (who is also Lani’s brother) agrees to train him
12. Midpoint (high point): Even though Kanaloa stacks the deck against Pono, Pono passes the tests, becomes king and a husband to Lani
13. Act Two break (low point): Pono and Lani are unable to have children and Pono apparently (but not actually) kills Lani in a fit of jealousy, inciting the chiefs, including his brother, Kanaloa, to revolt
14. Resolution: Pono, Lani and Kea quell the revolt and Pono and Lani forgive Kanaloa
15. What is the main character’s inner struggle? Pono is must learn how to deal with the guilt of his father’s usurping the throne and how to accept the “eternal triangle” set up when his father marries a young Lani to his older brother.
16. What is the main character arc? Pono initially resists his destiny, then takes on the required training to be king (in dodging spears, argument/riddling), and is tested and almost killed by his brother. He passes the tests and marries Lani but become jealous of her love, almost kills her, at her urging leads his supporters against the rebellion lead by his brother and in the end captures and forgives Kanaloa
17. Source of conflict: who/what is the villain? Kanaloa, jealousy
18. What is the ticking clock? The King of Maui hears of the “death” of Lani and the rebellion in the Kingdom of Hawaii and gears up to use it an a opportunity to invade.
BUT REMEMBER
M. Night Shyamalan said he didn’t know
Bruce Willis’s character in The Sixth Sense was dead
until ‘about the fifth or sixth draft.’