Firsts are key moments in the lives of millions of people every day. The first date. The first kiss. The first job interview. The first day on the job.
They are fraught with tension and tend to be nerve-jangling. Why? Because they can go horribly wrong.
The firsts in a script are no less scary. And there are 3 Big Firsts every script needs.
Before you can get to any executive or producer that can make things happen for you, you must run the gauntlet of ‘the readers’.
These are the guardians, the gatekeepers for that executive. They will have read hundreds of scripts. They will know exactly what that executive is looking for.
Experienced readers will have expectations of the first pages of each script. And those pages need to deliver everything the readers want.
This applies whether you are writing a feature script or a TV script. In fact, in TV, this is, even more, the case. This puts a lot of pressure on TV scripts.
It is essential to focus on those 3 Big Firsts Every Script Needs in those opening pages, especially if you want someone to continue reading your script past page 5.
Which is a nice segue into the first of your 3 big firsts.
YOUR FIRST 5 PAGES
Great opening pages deliver the story world, character, genre and tone in an engaging way. They also foreshadow knowledge or skills that the characters either already possess or will gain later, especially skills or knowledge that will help them overcome challenges later.
The first 5 pages need to captivate and hold your reader, drawing them inextricably into your story. If you fail to do this with your opening pages, you will lose your reader, who is your very first audience.
So, when writing the opening to your story – whether an outline, treatment or script- you need to think about how quickly you can get the essential elements of the story into place in an engaging and exciting way.
This is not meant to scare you or put you off. This is about letting you know what is expected. Forewarned is forearmed as they say.
Here’s another first;
THE FIRST TIME WE MEET THE PROTAGONIST
The way you introduce your main character is vitally important. It should clue us in on what they’re about and their status in the world they inhabit. You know the saying ‘you never get a second chance to make a first impression’? It could have easily been coined for scriptwriters.
A great way to introduce your character is what is called ‘medias res’, which means ‘in the mode of things’. This technique is often used to drop audiences straight into the plot without too much preamble. It’s a great tool in thrillers; such as the opening of Bourne Identity.
Another great way to introduce a character is by joining them during a typical day in their life – not the whole day, just a small part of it – where we get to see something of who they are before things change or go drastically wrong.
You should apply the same degree of work to your antagonist and, to some lesser degree, your support characters. The better you introduce your characters the more immediately engaging they are. The more engaging your characters the better the reception of your story.
One of the best ways to introduce characters is by using a characteristic that quickly pops an image into the mind of the reader. There is zero chance anyone else will envisage your character exactly as you do. So, don’t even try.
Instead, think of something that will pop a visual into your reader’s mind that serves your narrative.
Thinking visually
For example in the Matrix (1999), Neo’s home is used to give us an idea of his ‘skills’ when it is described as having cables like weeds winding around tables that are topped with cannibalized computer parts.
Neo himself is introduced as a man who knows more about living inside computers than the outside world. None of my students will be surprised by the fact that I would argue this is telling rather than showing but I’ll get to that in another post.
We don’t get a physical description of Neo. We are free to imagine whoever we like. Because having us all ‘see’ the same character is not important. What is important is giving us an ‘idea’ of the character.
Diablo Cody describes her character, Juno MacGuff as ‘an artfully bedraggled burnout kid’ in the movie JUNO (Fox Searchlight, 2007). Again, no physical description of hair or eyes or build but it nails an important aspect of the character in a single line.
In the script for Night Crawler the main character, Lou, is introduced as being mid-20s and ‘pure, primal, id’. He is described as being feral and driven by dollar signs. (Open Road Films, 2014)
Do we get a picture-perfect image of Lou from this description? Hell no! But we get what we need to know about him, don’t we? Enough to understand what drives him and influences his decision-making process.
You may have noticed that the examples I’ve chosen give no overly physical description of the characters. Most of what is given are characteristics or reflections on character.
This, in my humble opinion, is a far more engaging way to introduce your characters than, say..
‘Tall, blonde, athletic’ or ‘Handsome with striking green eyes’.
These are what’s referred to as APB descriptions – All Points Bulletins; Wanted “One I C 2 Male…(probably for delivering boring character descriptions!)
You want to avoid APB descriptions as much as possible because, well, frankly, they’re boring. Any studio reader will have read a thousand APB character descriptions in a day, for more days than they care to remember. Avoid delivering more of the same!
Invest the time to work out the best possible introduction for your characters, especially your protagonist. The same goes for introducing your antagonist, the other primary character in your script.
Having said all that, there are no hard and fast rules on how to introduce your character and you will need to find the way that works for you. But you should keep in mind that these descriptions need to work for your reader and the things I’ve mentioned here are great pointers for making an excellent first impression.
And here’s the third big first!
THE FIRST TIME YOUR PROTAGONIST AND ANTAGONIST MEET
What’s so Important about this first meeting?
Everything!
It sets up the dynamic between the two characters
It establishes the crux of their antagonism
More importantly it emphasizes the Protagonist’s weaknesses and the Antagonist’s strengths.
However, keep in mind that the Protagonist may not at first understand that they have met the Antagonist – Antagonists can be sneaky that way.
For example, in the movie The Fugitive (1993), Doctor Richard Kimble has no idea that his trusted friend and colleague is the true enemy.
At other times it can be clear to us immediately despite appearances that the person who has just appeared on the page is the enemy. And this works well too.
Sometimes the antagonist alerts the protagonist to their existence or instigates the first meeting.
Regardless of the way it happens, the point of this first meeting is usually so the antagonist can assert their superiority, whether it is physical prowess, intellectual ability, the resources they have available to them or their knowledge of the situation the protagonist finds themselves in.
In one way or another, the antagonist will choose this moment to assert their dominance and it is usually painful, either emotionally, psychologically or physically or, if your protagonist is really unlucky, all of the above!
Once this meeting has taken place the lines of combat are drawn and will become clear to the protagonist, who may not have been aware of the true extent of the battle they face up to this point.
SO, IN SUMMARY, MAKE SURE THESE 3 BIG FIRSTS ARE GREAT.
Your First 5 pages need to deliver the story world and tone so that your reader gets a sense of where they are, who they are travelling with and even who might be a problem.
The way you introduce your protagonist and antagonist should be given special attention. Avoid A.P.B descriptions and try to give the reader a characteristic that will pop an image into their head.
Remember, no one is going to see the characters the way you do, so don’t waste precious time and space trying the make that happen. If you introduce your characters well, we will all visualize a character that works for your script and that is exactly what you need.
The moment your protagonist and antagonist meet is a key beat that will set up the foundation not only for their relationship throughout the story but the trajectory of the narrative itself.
These aren’t the only firsts in your script but they are the ..um.. first. So, it’s worth focusing on getting them right before moving onto the others.
Get these firsts right and you will hold the attention of the reader beyond the opening pages and that’s a good start, (see what I did there?)
Happy Writing!