Every scene in your screenplay needs conflict. Okay, I know that sounds obvious, but it's not as simple as it seems. There are different types of conflict you can use to deepen a scene's action and make sure what your characters are doing connects with your audience. A working scene should contain three layers of conflict that operate simultaneously. When these elements combine, you create moments that push your story forward and force your characters to make difficult choices.Screenwriter Pedro Correa breaks down scene conflict into three essential components in a recent Film Courage interview. Check it out below. - YouTube youtu.be The Three Types of ConflictExternal conflict is what's physically happening in the scene. It can often be a very simple obstacle—your characters need to reach a mountaintop, but boulders block their path. Maybe your hero needs to defuse a bomb, but the villain's henchmen stand in their way.Emotional conflict connects the present action to your character's inner wounds and past experiences. We talked about this previously as "the wound" and "the misbelief." What, internally, is getting in your character's way? In the first example, maybe they see the boulders as insurmountable because a loved one once died in a rockslide, and they don't want to risk the same thing happening to them.Philosophical conflict deals with worldview and moral boundaries. It's about the lines your character won't cross. In our imagined mountain scenario, maybe they could use TNT to blast a path through the rock, but would endanger a...
Published By: NoFilmSchool - Friday, 14 November