Creating Characters (page 2)

OK, How isn't technically a W, but it occasionally tags along for the ride. This is perhaps where non-fiction and fiction end their character-development similarities. You either have a script or not, so we'll look at both here.

Fiction demands a script. A script demands actors. Actors demand direction. Directors demand...oh well, you get the point. As the director, it is your job to keep the psychological underpinnings of the character alive in your actors, particularly if they are amateurs. We can all recall forgettable films where we've remarked, "They wouldn't have done that!" In fiction, every word and gesture must be believable and "in character." This means having a complete understanding of not just the words on the page, but the back-story as well. This back-story, sometimes called a character analysis or study, reveals all the mundane and sordid details that may not reveal themselves anywhere in the script but that give you, the director, the power to interpret how the character would respond in nearly any situation (see sidebar).

For documentary or reality projects, a staple of this genre is the interview. An interview is more than asking the right questions. Yes, you need to do enough research to formulate questions that elicit meaningful answers from your subject, but you also need to know when to simply shut up. This is much harder than it sounds, especially when you think you know what you want your subject to say. Always have a follow-up question in your head, but try letting silence, even an uncomfortable one, motivate your interviewee to volunteer an aspect of the story you hadn't even considered.

Stringing together a series of even inspirational interviews is usually not enough to develop a three-dimensional character. You must also show your character revealing aspects of personality and doing the things described, either through re-creations or other visual evidence. If your subject is anxious, be ready to grab closeups of wringing hands, fidgeting feet or darting glances.

Creating interesting characters forms the core of any successful story. The more a story deepens or broadens our understanding and empathy with human achievement and struggles, the more we become immersed in it, enjoy it and even learn from it.

Contributing editor Brian Peterson is a video production consultant, trainer and lecturer.

Answers to these questions may or may not become part of your script or outline, but they are important in developing believable characters.

• Physical qualities
• Psychological characteristics
• Likes/dislikes
• Relationships
• Education
• Past successes/failures
• Formative childhood experiences
• Good/bad habits
• Dreams/aspirations
• Strengths/weaknesses
• Morals
• Main motivation

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