The Easiest Way to Build a Character Arc
Summary
TLDRIn this video, the speaker explores the integral role of character arcs within story structure, emphasizing the importance of choices that drive character development. They dissect the Dan Harmon Story Circle, illustrating how characters' beliefs and choices at pivotal moments shape the narrative. The speaker uses examples from 'Star Wars' and 'The Martian' to demonstrate how characters' initial beliefs are challenged and altered, ultimately leading to personal growth or a flat arc where beliefs remain constant. The video aims to guide scriptwriters in plotting character arcs that align with story structure, ensuring a compelling and non-formulaic narrative.
Takeaways
- 🎬 The script discusses the importance of character arcs within story structure and how they are intrinsically linked to the narrative's progression.
- 🔍 It emphasizes the concept of 'choice' as a pivotal moment in character development, where characters are at a crossroads and must decide between different paths.
- 📚 The video references Dan Harmon's Story Circle as a framework for understanding character arcs, including the stages of 'want', 'unfamiliar situation', 'adapt', 'get', 'pay', and 'change'.
- 🤔 The presenter suggests that understanding a character's beliefs is crucial for plotting their arc, as these beliefs guide their choices and subsequent actions throughout the story.
- 🌟 The script illustrates how characters hold initial beliefs that are often challenged and changed through pivotal choices, leading to character growth.
- 📉 The 'pay' stage in the story is highlighted as a critical point where characters face consequences or realizations that force them to reassess their beliefs.
- 🛑 The video uses examples from films like 'Star Wars' and 'The Martian' to demonstrate how characters' beliefs evolve in response to the challenges they encounter.
- 🔄 The concept of a 'flat arc' is introduced for characters who do not undergo significant change, instead maintaining their original beliefs despite challenges.
- 🚀 The importance of creating unique and non-formulaic belief journeys for characters is stressed to avoid clichéd narratives and create more engaging stories.
- 📝 The script encourages writers to think deeply about the philosophical conflict and belief changes their characters will experience, rather than relying solely on plot or structure.
- 👍 The presenter offers one-on-one consultation for screenwriters to refine their screenplays, indicating a practical application of the discussed concepts.
Q & A
What is the main topic of the video script?
-The main topic of the video script is the integration of character arcs within story structure, focusing on how characters change their beliefs throughout the narrative.
What is the Dan Harmon Story Circle mentioned in the script?
-The Dan Harmon Story Circle is a popular storytelling framework consisting of eight steps: character, want, unfamiliar situation, adapt, get, pay, return, and change.
How does the script define a character's initial belief?
-A character's initial belief is defined as the set of convictions they hold at the beginning of the story, which is usually tied to what they want and how they plan to achieve it.
What is the significance of 'choice' in character development according to the script?
-Choice is significant in character development as it represents the crossroads where a character must decide between different paths, revealing more about their character based on the decision they make.
What happens at the 'get' stage in the story structure?
-At the 'get' stage, the character achieves what they want, either exactly or a version of it, which may lead to a realization that their initial belief or goal needs to be reevaluated.
What is the 'pay' stage and how does it relate to character change?
-The 'pay' stage is when the character faces the consequences or the price of getting what they wanted. It often presents a second choice that can lead to a change in the character's belief.
How does the script describe the process of a character arc?
-The script describes a character arc as a journey where the character's beliefs are challenged and changed through a series of choices and experiences, culminating in a significant transformation.
What is the difference between a 'flat arc' and a 'change arc' as per the script?
-A 'flat arc' is when a character does not undergo significant change, maintaining their original beliefs despite challenges. A 'change arc' involves the character changing their beliefs and growing as a result of the choices they make throughout the story.
Can you provide an example from the script where a character's belief changes?
-An example given in the script is from 'Star Wars', where Luke Skywalker initially believes he can save the world by taking the ring to Rivendell, but later realizes he must continue the journey to destroy the ring himself.
What is the relationship between story structure and the character's belief journey?
-The story structure provides the framework for the character's belief journey, with key moments in the structure prompting the character to make choices that lead to changes in their beliefs.
How does the script suggest avoiding a formulaic story?
-The script suggests avoiding a formulaic story by focusing on a unique belief journey for the character that hasn't been seen many times before, thus creating a fresh and engaging narrative.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to Character Arcs in Story Structure
The speaker introduces the topic of character arcs within the context of story structure, emphasizing the importance of understanding how characters evolve throughout a narrative. They discuss the common struggle writers face in aligning character development with the structural framework of a story. The speaker references Dan Harmon's Story Circle and the concept of philosophical conflict, setting the stage for a deeper exploration of how character beliefs and arcs can be plotted within a structured narrative.
🔄 The Dynamics of Character Change and Choice
This paragraph delves into the dynamics of character change, focusing on the pivotal moments where characters are faced with choices that challenge their existing beliefs. The speaker explains how the first half of a story typically involves the character holding onto their initial belief, which guides their actions and decisions until they reach a point where their belief is tested. The concept of the 'payoff' is introduced as a moment that often triggers the need for the character to reassess their beliefs, leading to a critical choice that signifies the beginning of their arc of change.
🌟 The Climax and Resolution of Character Arcs
The speaker discusses the latter part of the story structure, where the character's journey reaches its climax and resolution. They describe how the character, after making a significant choice that reflects a shift in their belief, enters a phase of acting on this new understanding. This leads to the story's climax, where the character's true nature and growth are revealed through their actions. The paragraph highlights the importance of the character's final choice in solidifying their arc and bringing about a satisfying catharsis for the audience.
🎬 Applying Story Structure to Character Arcs in Film
The speaker provides examples from films such as 'Star Wars' and 'The Martian' to illustrate how character arcs are integrated into the story structure. They discuss how characters like Luke Skywalker and Rick from 'Rick and Morty' face unfamiliar situations, make pivotal choices, and undergo transformations that align with the story's structure. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of understanding the character's belief system and how it evolves in response to the challenges they face, ultimately leading to a unique and compelling narrative.
🛠 Crafting Non-Formulaic Stories with Unique Belief Journeys
In the final paragraph, the speaker addresses the challenge of creating non-formulaic stories by focusing on the character's belief journey. They argue that many formulaic stories follow a predictable pattern of belief change, and to create something unique, writers should explore less conventional belief systems and philosophical conflicts. The speaker encourages writers to think deeply about the philosophical aspects of their characters and to use story structure as a tool to facilitate meaningful character development and a fresh narrative experience.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Character Arcs
💡Story Structure
💡Philosophical Conflict
💡Choice
💡Unfamiliar Situation
💡Adapt
💡Get and Pay
💡Belief
💡Change Arc
💡Flat Arc
Highlights
The video discusses the importance of character arcs in story structure and the creator's recent clarity on the subject.
Introduces the concept of integrating Dan Harmon's Story Circle with character beliefs and arcs.
Explains the challenge of identifying the exact pieces and moments of character change within story structure.
Presents the idea that a character's change is often forced by a 'choice' at a crossroads in the story.
Outlines how character beliefs are established and how they influence the initial journey in a story.
Describes the 'unfamiliar situation' as the first critical choice that propels the character into the adventure.
Details the process of the character adapting to the adventure while holding their initial belief.
Explains the 'get' and 'pay' stages of the story circle as moments that lead to a character's belief change.
Discusses 'choice two' as the pivotal moment where the character's belief may change, propelling them into a new arc.
Illustrates how the character's actions in the 'seven' stage reflect their new belief post-change.
Uses 'Star Wars' as an example to demonstrate how character choices and changes follow the story circle.
Analyzes 'The Martian' to show a flat character arc where the protagonist's belief remains consistent despite challenges.
Contrasts formulaic belief changes with unique philosophical journeys to create non-formulaic stories.
Encourages writers to consider the philosophical implications of their characters' belief changes.
Provides a method to plot character arcs by understanding the choices presented at key story moments.
Ends with a call to action for viewers to engage with the creator for one-on-one screenplay assistance.
Transcripts
hey everyone and welcome to another
video so i'm really excited to talk to
you in this video because honestly i
really think this is a very important
video and i feel that recently i've had
a pretty
important moment of clarity in regards
to how character arcs play into
structure so
this may be where you are right so
you've you've looked at story structure
right you've watched me talk about dan
harmon's story circle you've watched me
integrate the story circle on to
um you know acts act by act you've
watched me look at it scene by scene you
watched my how to write a short film
video i looked at it and sort of stuff
and then also you've heard me talk about
philosophical conflict character beliefs
character arcs these sorts of things
and so where you might have ended up is
now you're sitting there right trying to
write your script trying to outline and
for some reason
structurally
you can kind of see it and maybe you
kind of have an understanding of what
your characters believe and where you
want them to end up
but you don't actually know where are
the exact pieces
in your story or where are those moments
of character change
innate within that structure right so
essentially how do you plot the arc
itself
as we're looking at story structure and
so this is what i want to look at today
because
i believe that you absolutely can plot
this out
so let's take a look at
what
you have seen i'm sure a million times
on this channel
this is your dan harmon story circle so
we have our character
right
just to get this quick we have the want
we have the unfamiliar
situation
new problem whatever you want to call it
we have the adapt
we have the get
pay
return
and the change is kind of tacked on to
the end here
or the having changed right
so
when we're actually looking at this the
question is where does the character go
through change and how do we create
character arcs
in structure okay so here's how i want
you to think about this right a big
thing that is gonna force your character
to change
is this idea of
choice okay so it's not necessarily that
they're doing a task but what's going to
happen is they're going to be in a
situation where they can where they're
at a crossroads right and they hold
their belief
and now they're they're sitting at a
crossroads and they have to either go
one way or they have to go another way
right and so in that moment we get a
better sense of who that character is
based upon the choice that they make in
that moment right so when we're thinking
about how a character arcs
we need to understand what they believe
present the moment of change
and see see what choice they make right
so when we're looking at story structure
this is pretty clearly integrated so
here's kind of how this
works okay
in
this
first half of the story okay your
character is holding
their initial belief
right
so they're holding their initial belief
right and so we set this up at the very
beginning of the story where we ask okay
what does our character believe right
what do they what do they believe in
usually this is tied clearly to what
they want right so usually they have
some sort of belief about what they want
specifically right so they want
something they have a belief about how
they get that thing or how they will go
about that whatever and then this kind
of sends them on their journey right
so usually what happens here
is the unfamiliar situation is usually
kind of choice
number one okay
so this is where the character makes a
choice that sends them out of their zone
of comfort up here into the adventure
world so we're under this this line here
into the adventure world and this is
kind of their choice to step into the
adventure right and that's kind of
choice one now what usually happens
is
with this choice they are still holding
their initial belief right so they make
this choice based upon the belief that
they initially hold and then they
continue to adapt still holding that
belief all the way to the point that
they get that thing right so a lot of
the times this is where
your character has gone all the way to
here holding their initial belief
without
really having the belief challenged so
at this point this is where we begin to
set up the actual change in the
character's belief okay so now when we
look at the six seven and the eight
really just the six and the seven um
this is where that change happens so
what happens is the character gets
either what they want exactly or a
version of what they want or
um
or they realize that the what they
wanted was not the full fulfillment of
the actual goal right all of these sorts
of things so essentially what happens is
they get a version of what they want
here and then there's a pay right
whether this is something goes wrong or
they have a realization a realization
that the problem is larger than they
initially realized that it was
something like this
from this moment this presents
choice two
okay
so this presents choice two and usually
this is where the character
is presented with
a way of changing their belief right so
they are presented with a choice and
then by making a ch that new choice they
are growing as a character right so
sometimes this is going to be super
duper clear and uh and sometimes this is
going to be like smaller pieces of
choice kind of on the way to the larger
big final choice whatever
but usually this is how this is going to
work and so when we're looking at a just
a story not even getting to screenplays
yet but when we're just looking at story
you want to think about it like that
this is like the second choice and then
they make
a choice based upon this and if they're
going through a change arc this is where
we see at the very least the
initial change of belief
and then we go into the seven which is
now the character is acting
on
their new choice right so sometimes you
can kind of see this in certain films
when the
you know sometimes when you have like
right before the final you know arc of
change or whatever right before that
sort of final moment like as we're going
into the end we're gonna go fight the
bad guy the character has pretty much
changed their belief
and then
usually what happens is you have that
final moment of will they really hold
true and then they do and then we get
our catharsis and then that's the end of
the movie and so then this becomes more
your
well then each of the circles then go
down into the acts and so what happens
is you then take this and then you say
okay this
is kind of so act one through act three
and you place
a circle for act one act two part one
act two part two act three and then
there are pieces of the chains that
slowly is made until you get to the end
moment where you know we have our sort
of final moment of of you know luke
skywalker in the cockpit is he gonna is
he gonna rely on the force is he gonna
actually
do this he makes a choice to do so and
we're good to go right um
but there are moments of change before
this that lead us to this moment right
so if we're thinking about star wars
just as i'm talking about it here we
sort of have the unfamiliar situation
with luke which is that
um
you know his his the or the big the big
the big pay excuse me the unfamiliar
situation would be more so that um the
droids come right c-3po and r2d2 uh come
to end up at luke's
farm um but he he's holding his you know
particular belief
up until
here where so
where he gets well here he gets uh uh he
meets with ben kenobi i'm kind of all
over the place here but he meets with
ben kenobi and this is kind of the get
and then the pay is that
his aunt and uncle die right forcing him
to make a choice right what choice does
he makes he says i want to grow up i
want to go with you and be a jedi like
my father okay boom that is choice two
sending us into the beginning of luke's
ark right that's not the end but that
sets us up to now okay now we're going
into the next part of the story luke has
begun his initial change
now we're going into act two
where more change is going to happen
until ultimately we get into the
situation where
we are at the death star and again he is
in a situation where he's going to have
to you know take this shot and he is
presented with another problem darth
vader is is you know coming down on him
this is kind of the six darth vader is
coming down on him it all looks hopeless
um you know and then he
uh
he gets the well actually if we want to
think about the scene-wise i'm just
rambling i i apologize i it would
probably be more so that this is darth
vader coming down on him at the three he
gets what he wants when han solo comes
in but he still has to take the shot
right so he's still
just because han solo has you know
momentarily saved him from getting
killed by darth vader he still has to
take the shot and make this thing happen
and so he's presented with the choice at
the pay do you follow your targeting
computer or do you rely on the force to
make this thing happen he chooses to
rely on the force sending us into the
seven he gets what he wants boom we have
our climax everything is beautiful in
hunky-dory we go from there there's some
other examples that you can look at this
working very very clearly when i did
that video on how to write a short film
um where i look at a rick and morty
episode and i'm essentially looking at
the the a plot of a rick and morty
episode as if it was a short film and
what you see in that is morty is
presented with the unfamiliar situation
of
um
of you know that rick is
uh
rick is selling weapons to this this
assassin right and so rather than just
allowing that to happen he adapts by
going and trying to save um
the assassin's target right he gets what
he wants right holding his initial
belief of there is you know an absolute
morality we can't kill people
indiscriminately whatever
um he gets his belief or he gets what he
wants when he saves fart right the alien
creature
and then
so
then he pays for it which
is suddenly everybody is
um
you know attacking them coming after
them all this sort of stuff and then
suddenly all these other people are
dying
because
he saves farts life you know all these
people in the in the city that they're
escaping from and then ultimately what
happens is the real choice that morty is
forced to make is at the very end where
far is it gonna go into his dimension
and then come back and destroy their
entire universe right that's kind of
what he says
and morty presented with this reality
makes the choice to kill fart
changing his view on the world changing
his belief
and and returning the story resolving
the
um conflict of the short or of the
episode
and then the episode is over right so it
follows this pattern so if you want to
really think about like what is story
structure right what is it
story structure is the journey of how
human beings change their beliefs right
there is a rhythm to how we actually go
from believing one thing about the world
to shifting and believing a different
thing right so there is a flow to how
that operates and ultimately that is
what we are looking at when we're
looking at story when we're looking at a
story we're not looking at a concept
we're not even looking at a plot as much
these are the dressing for what really
is happening here which is a character
changing their belief from their initial
viewpoint to a different view
another great example of kind of seeing
this
is in
you know lord of the rings
when we're talking about choice
specifically here right in lord of the
rings in the first lord of the rings
frodo he wants to take the ring he wants
to um save humanity or not humanity but
he wants to save the world by um doing
his part to destroy the ring and so he
believes taking the ring to rivendell is
going to
um do that it's going to he's going to
get it to rivendell and then the
higher-ups can take it from there so we
sort of go through an unfamiliar
situation he has to go on this journey
he makes the choice to go on this
journey to rivendell holding his initial
belief he adapts to the different
problems on the road ultimately he gets
to rivendell but then he pays a price
the ring cannot stay in rivendell it
must keep going therefore frodo is now
presented with another choice it doesn't
seem like anybody other than him is a
good candidate to continue bringing the
ring forward and therefore he makes a
choice to fulfill the true want that he
is holding which is to you know to save
the world to destroy the evil that the
ring is holding this sort of thing he
believed he was going to
do that by just getting into rivendell
that doesn't work so he's presented with
the new choice he makes the choice to
keep going and then obviously we have
the two other films that happen later so
that is how this is working hopefully
this is a bit clearer to you so as you
are
thinking about not only your story's
plot structure but also your character's
arc and journey of their beliefs i want
you to be thinking about okay what
choice is presented at the unfamiliar
situation
what choice is presented at the six and
how does the choice presented at the six
change what the character believes
because of the choice they make assuming
you actually have a change arc now let's
say you have a
flat arc a k or an arc where the
character does not go through change
they will be presented with some sort of
intense choice here and they will
stick with their original
beliefs right they may struggle they may
be frustrated these sorts of things but
ultimately they hold to their original
beliefs um
so you can look at this in something
like uh the martian is something i've
talked about a lot
unfamiliar situation he's stranded on
mars he wants to get home
um you know he believes that he must
persevere keep working the problems
and if he can just persevere and keep
working these problems he can get home
that works up until he has a full plan
for getting home he's in contact with
nasa everything seems to be working and
then the pay is that the hab explodes
his entire plan is shot his crops all
die and it looks like he is going to die
so essentially the choice being
presented here is he could give up and
say
well
it's no longer possible or he can
continue to work the problem looking for
a potential solution even if that
solution isn't there so essentially the
story becomes about you know not giving
up continuing to solve problems and
going forward and that is a big
that's such a big note right there
because
a lot of and martian does it so well
right the martian um
you know has a pretty pretty
uh standard you would say theme of you
know don't give up keep pushing keep
solving problems that sort of thing and
what happens is it does it well and you
can do it like that well but a lot of
the times
when we're talking about movies that
feel you know quote unquote formulaic
it's not that they it's not that they
have a formulaic structure as much as
they are talking about a formulaic topic
they're talking about a character going
through a belief change that is
formulaic to us right so a lot of movies
are handling this sort of belief change
idea of don't give up right don't give
up keep fighting right every time the
the the protagonist gets hit down by the
bad guy and he's like you know then we
have this moment of is evil really going
to win and the protagonist is like no i
must make the choice at the six to not
give up and then you take down the bad
guy that sort of thing right
that is where formulaic storage usually
come from because
while that works it's something we've
seen again and again and again and again
and so if you really want to write a
story that feels
not formulaic yet actually is following
structure you want to be thinking about
what is a story what is a belief journey
of change and beliefs these sorts of
things that i can send my character on
that's something we're not so familiar
with that's something we haven't seen 35
times right that is where you really
start to make a cool movie and that's
also the hardest
piece because most of the time people
have
not even begun to develop the
philosophical side of their brain
they're always just looking for what's
my concept what's my structure you know
how do i send
my characters through this or they have
this sort of reactionary version which
is
i hate structure it's only vibes i'm
just gonna
plod my way through it and do it all
quote unquote organically and that
doesn't really end up working super well
either so hopefully this is helpful the
goal of this and this is so important
i'm literally going to put this in my my
fundamentals of screenwriting playlists
because it's like this is what it is
right you want to attach
the beliefs
to the structure the the way that your
character changes that belief is innate
in structure because clearly they're not
changing you know they're not going
through change here right that doesn't
make sense it doesn't really make a ton
of sense that they're going through
change you know maybe here maybe a
little bit because or they make the
choice here right we make choices and we
change beliefs based upon the problems
based upon things not being integrated
in the way that we believe they should
be that's why the problem of the
unfamiliar situation and the problem of
the pay is where your character is
making a choice that changes who they
are
hopefully this has been helpful to you
if you're interested in working with me
one-on-one to fix your screenplay there
is a link below this video you can click
that and hop on a call with me to talk
about that other than that if you made
it this far please give it a like and
subscribe and i will see you guys in the
next video
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