The Movies

Viki King suggests we begin with a "nine minute movie" that sets out what happens on:
Page 1: The opening image
Page 3: A line at the end of page three to tell us what the movie is about.
Page 10: A line to tell us what it is the protagonist wants.
Page 30: An event that throws our character a curve ball and shows us how he plans to deal with it.
Page 45: An idea for a scene that will show the start of the protagonist's growth.
Page 60: Something shows that it'll be harder than the protagonist thought to reach his goal, but the difficulty makes him want it even more.
Page 75: By this point, everything changes. The hero is about to give up but then he sees there's a goal he didn't even know he had and he simply cannot give up.
Page 90: This is the beginning of the end. Here we get an idea of the resolution.
Page 120: And this is the outcome. What is the protagonist's new life.

That's the format, and here are some of the movies I plan to write. Here are titles, loglines and the nine minute movie for each of the seventeen movies I intend to write.

1. The Mongol Gallery
How far would you go?

Page 1: Peter and a friend are drinking tea in the Mongol Gallery. Through the window we see Church Street on an overcast Sunday afternoon. Daniel runs away from a gang of skinheads before bursting through the door of the Gallery.
Page 3: Peter watches as Nick de Musca says to Daniel, "I don't buy souls any more, but I'm sure we can come to some arrangement"
Page 10: "Of course I know what you want, Peter", says de Musca, "You want a fame of your own that's nothing to do with your grandfather".
Page 30: Peter has placed Daniel's picture of Anna Kern in the Gallery and is shocked when a punter stands in front of it and begins masturbating.
Page 45: Peter is watching television and sees footage of Anna Kern's breakdown in the European Parliament. He knows it is linked to the pictures.
Page 60: Anna Kern visits the gallery and Peter realises that what Daniel has lost was his voice and his abilities with the language.
Page 75: "There are no guarantees", says Nick de Musca as Daniel realises that he has not got back Anna after all. Peter frowns
Page 90: At Daniel's funeral, Peter realises that he is not going to get what he wants as a gallery owner, but he recognises that he shares something with his grandfather, the desire to guard against evil.
Page 120: Peter walks away from the ruins of the gallery. We see de Musca call the fire brigade and the cops but Peter looks at him blankly and says, "you lose, de Musca."

2. Babylon Rule
If you wanna beat Babylon, you gotta play Babylon rule

Page 1: Black Mamba (Stan) is rapping in a club
Page 3: Stan cuts off his dreadlocks and changes into a suit. "Ever hear of Batesian mimicry?", he asks.
Page 10: (In answer to Dollman) Stan says, "I want a decent world for my kids and my sisters".
Page 30: Sunshine tells Stan, after he's hospitalised her pimp, "So now I'm your responsibility. You have to protect me".
Page 45: "I'm not just gonna replace him", says Stan. "I'm gonna make it better."
Page 60: Stan is woken at 5AM by police breaking down his door. They find nothing but that's not the point. The point is, they can do this any time.
Page 75: Stan sees a friend murdered in the street. The Police do nothing.
Page 90: Stan stands for the local council saying, "Babylon is powerful but it is corrupt, and one day it will fall"..
Page 120: It doesn't matter whether or not Stan wins this time, he has become a defender of the community. He is the one people will go to, and when a seat comes up in Parliament, Stan will win.

That's two of them but I need another fifteen. I have the ideas but plenty of time to work out the details before I have to start writing them. For now, here are some of the ideas I have that I'll work on later.

3. Chamberlainstrasse - in which Hans Oster, a loyal subject of Kaiser Wilhelm III seeks to defend the Reich against a threat from followers of the late fuhrer.

4. The Promised Child - in which a lovelorn blind singer travels through space looking for Rapunzel, the singleship pilot he once loved.

5. John the Bomb - in which a child, born in the teeming slums of the Undercity, is destined to wreak vengeance on the Shiny Ones.

6. What Would Lucy Do? - in which Alison, one of a generation of children severely psychologically damaged by a drug taken by their mothers during pregnancy is guided by the ghost of her unborn sister - but is Lucy real?

7. The Death and Resurrection of Moll Cutpurse - a horror story (with Rock 'n' Roll).

I'm sure I'll think of the other ten as the year drags on.

Wish me luck?