How to Create Character Arcs

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Today I'm looking at creating dramatic character arcs off of the principles discussed in part one.
1:28 Change Arc
5:09 Flat Arc
9:14 Disillusionment Arc
11:10 Fall Arc
13:24 Corruption Arc
15:28 Open Ended Arc
Check out Part One here: • How to Create Dramatic...
Creating Character Arcs Book: www.amazon.com/Creating-Chara...
Films Used:
Iron Man
12 Angry Men
Paddington 2
Nightcrawler
The Great Gatsby
X-Men: First Class
The Godfather
Whiplash
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#CreatingCharacters #Screenwriting #CharacterArcs

[@TylerMowery]

Get Practical Tools to Write Your Great Screenplay: www.practicalscreenwriting.com

[@reelalexdagoat]

I’ve been waiting to join one of these 🤞

[@JonathanCrossland]

If it wasnt on fb

[@roctv100]

What type of arc would you say Jake Lamotta had in Raging Bull.

[@silverback7348]

Pertaining to your “Open-ended Arc”, it would be an interesting exercise to do a deeper dive into the the X-men/Magneto vs Whiplash comparison. One man’s Fall arc is another’s truth. When you rule out the Superhero construct of “develop more power to overcome progressively bigger obstacles” I think you will find that both movies are about dark truths/“Lies” in terms of the destructive nature of what is required. Both are fall arcs that leave the viewer unsettled due to the philosophical conflicts that leave the viewer unsettled at the end. It’s just that superhero movies are more black-and-white in general to give readers/viewers a sense of moral “comfort”. As good as Magneto is as a character, this is why I think Victor Von Doom is one of the greatest POTENTIAL characters in superhero myth yet to be truly explored.

[@ryankelly1840]

never thought I'd see Paddington and Lou bloom side by side in a video

[@TylerMowery]

I try to be full of surprises.

[@dorkle9085]

I love Paddington

[@insertname8506]

Your channel is extremely underrated.

[@TylerMowery]

Thank you!

[@plisskenetic]

He does a better job than Lessons frm the screenplay

[@thegreatestbharat_]

EXTREEEEEEEEEEMEEEEEEEEEELYYY

[@DirtyBobBojangles]

Its rated pretty correctly. Not terrible but nothing special.

[@avifor5772]

Best writing channel. It has grown and will certainly continue to grow.

[@cheesypoohalo]

Wrote this out to keep track of it, and for future reference for myself. This was just for me so the timestamps are off but I'm tired and need to go, maybe someone will find it useful. Good vid btw. 1:28 Change Arc (character believes lie -> encounters truth -> overcomes lie by finding and accepting truth) 5:09 Flat Arc (character believes the truth -> belief is tested -> character holds on to truth) 9:14 Disillusionment Arc (character believes lie -> overcomes lie -> new truth is tragic) 11:10 Fall Arc (character believes lie -> clings to the lie -> rejects new truth -> believes a stronger/worse lie) 13:24 Corruption Arc (character sees truth -> rejects truth -> embraces a lie) 15:28 Open Ended Arc [up for interpretation, basically]

[@TylerMowery]

Yea this was great! I may add this to the description.

[@randomsquidproductions4061]

Thank you for this!

[@j.p.4099]

@@TylerMowery do it! ;)

[@furyberserk]

What if believes lie -> lie is tested and fails -> finds another lie missing the truth.

[@maryianna912]

furyberserk flat fall lol

[@Cannonbo]

i'm not a screenwriter, but i watch your stuff to become a better gamemaster for RPGs. most of it applies to different kinds of storytelling. thanks

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to hear it! Most of what I talk about should transfer. Storytelling is the same across mediums.

[@FattyKung]

and I learn from him to become mangaka!

[@joshuashakir2772]

@@FattyKung same here, good luck

[@thesixfootsixexperience8781]

Never thought I’d find a video that drew comparisons between Paddington Bear and Louis Bloom

[@TylerMowery]

I gotta keep surprising you

[@dorkle9085]

Stolen comment

[@grossbrosparodies9610]

This 2nd part did not disappoint. Well done.

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it was helpful!

[@sadviolinproductions391]

What I love most about this video is that it doesn't just showcase different kinds of character arcs but also different ways to interpret and use them in the same film. I especially found it incredibly interesting how one's personal view on a certain subject can actually change what type of arc the character is going through. Great job! Really outstanding material comming from this channel! Keep it up!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you enjoyed that part! I was worried it would make it too long

[@sadviolinproductions391]

Tyler Mowery Glad you didn’t leave it out! To me it just took the video to a whole other level 😁

[@noranel-sherif1263]

In fact, even though I am not in this business ( just intetested in human behavior & story plots) , I wish it was longer.. maybe you would consider doing a video about it... Overall, a very Well Done video.. Thanks for sharing !!

[@KutWrite]

Had to wattch this a second time. I'm about to revise the first draft of my novel. As Arnold says: "I'll be back!"

[@timtitus7861]

Who is disliking this man’s videos? Just goes to show you that no matter how good your work is, there’ll always be an asshole ready to tell you he doesn’t like it - and he probably doesn’t like himself either.

[@BehindtheCurtain]

I'm coming back to this video every time I'm writing a new character. Super helpful!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it was helpful!

[@seaque.]

Your channel is amazing too

[@evilbritishguy3581]

I have a list of qualities I like to define when developing my characters. These include: Wants, Motives and fears; Priorities and Principles; Strengths and Weaknesses; Achievements and Regrets; Beliefs, Past experiences and Lessons learned.

[@niamscookery3442]

All of them matter !

[@dorkle9085]

They do

[@acidspittingllama1865]

Isn't priorities and motives kinda the same aswell as wants and principles. Please Explain.

[@evilbritishguy3581]

@@acidspittingllama1865 I suppose what a character wants can be motivated by the priorities or principles which are most important to them.

[@pollypumpkin13]

Interesting, also those qualities can be according to the lie or the truth and that's how we can change the character through the story

[@RoGersVision]

There's like 1 hour 20 min video on "How to Destroy Character Arcs"... Just watch GOT season 8 episode 4

[@dumbheadpolice]

That's exactly why I looked for videos on character arc's, especially after episode 5 where Jaime, and Aryas arc's are basically ruined. Jaime had one of the best arc's in the show imo and by the end he doesn't change at all because he goes exactly back to how he was at the start of the show.

[@RoGersVision]

Couldn't agree more...Jaime was my favourite character...so complex soaked in Gray but now...well expectations subverted

[@nunyabusiness776]

Dam

[@AndrewThoesen]

Five years later I’m still pissed

[@HoovyTube]

I love good essays. So much!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad you liked it!

[@HoovyTube]

@@TylerMowery Like, truth be told, when I was 14 and really got into filmmaking, such gems of filmmaking analysis, while now more and more obvious after reading 'Story', are just essential for filmmakers starting out. Keep that up!

[@JunebugPresents]

Great way in interpreting the lie of Whiplash's main character. You nailed it. Now I don't remember certain details about Whiplash. I loved it. But wasn't there a ghost about one of Fletcher's past students committing suicide. If so, that shows it is a lie, "you can build greatness through torment." The past student represents that. As long as the truth isn't adjusted to be "you can build greatness through tormenting for some," then the story works best as a Fall arc. Great analysis, great explanation, great conversation...

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it was helpful!

[@redrowlet5481]

i mean i heard that the truth in whiplash was self-care and taking breaks bc of andrew's car accident (and so it ends up being a positive change arc) but maybe i'm wrong

[@bonafide4874]

Rewatching this video and so may have commented this before, but the film Dinosaur is a really good example of a flat arc (and of showing philosophical conflict as well). The main character essentially believes in compassion, cooperation, and teamwork while the antagonist is more “everyone for themselves”. He literally says “if a predator catches you, you’re on your own”. The main character is tested throughout the story and at the climax, proves that teamwork or “standing together” is the best course of action (as this is the way the main villain/ carnivorous dinosaur is overcome).

[@VivienOge]

Though my current goal is writing a real life experience that I already know what the story is, I just need the basics to putting them down as screenplay. After which I’ll go into fiction and start applying all these wonderful studies😍 and thats why I’m going to stay glued to this great channel.😎 Tyler please if you can, kindly do a video on the basis/standard of a regular screenplay for novice like me🤦🏻‍♀️

[@paoerfulone1089]

How to Create Character Arcs: 1) Watch Avatar: the Last Airbender. 2) See Zuko’s journey from the beginning of the show to the end. 3) Do that.

[@FionaA17]

True.

[@jameswilliam2003]

Zucko's character arc is more interesting than Aang's

[@Anubis-xk4ht]

@@jameswilliam2003 because he changed and grew while aang never changed

[@crisromero7376]

@@Anubis-xk4ht he did change. Literaly the first episode is called "the boy in the iceberg" and the last one "avatar aang". That sums it up pretty well. He was a boy that keeps running away from his responsabilities, but he ended up facing his fears to bring balance to the world. Zuko is just more epic. 😂

[@Anubis-xk4ht]

@@crisromero7376 a character that with unwavering ideology cough captain america and wonder woman cough will end up in what you call the flat arc area, the way these characters develop is organic they may develope but they don't derail much from their original cores , they may go through an arc they may develope but later they go back to where they were at first like deadpool in his second movie then he came back to where h was at first well many characters have that, they don't change they change the world around them zuko didn't change by himself aang changed him.

[@raisou9750]

Eren is literally the quintessential example of a negative character arc Disillusionment: Believing a lie - Eren believes a lie that whoever sees the world beyond the walls will be the freest person Overcoming a lie - He then realizes that on the other side of the wall isn't freedom, but enemies, Eren isn't free at all, as of SPOILERS AHEAD, Armin says to him "What part of you is free", meaning, he is a slace ro something, in Eren's case, fate and his ideologies. The tragic new truth (This one is interesting) - upon seeing glimpses of the future, he realizes he's gonna commit genocide and what's worse, he's unable to do anything in his power, not even the power of the founding titan, to undo the future that's already decided Fall Believing a lie - Eren believes a lie that whoever sees the world beyond the walls will be the freest person, but in the current arcs, he believes that he is free, and sees Mikasa as nothing more than his "slave". Clinging to the lie - He said to Mikasa and Armin that he is free and his decisions are based upon his freedom alone, and breaks Mikasa by saying he hates "slaves" like her. Rejecting the truth - He outwardly rejects the truth that Mikasa loves him, by saying the statement above, that she's just a slave and he hates it. Believing a Worse Lie - He then Unleashes the Wall Titans to ravage what's outside Paradis island to "Protect" Eldians Corruption Seeing the Truth - Once Again, realizing the Ocean doesn't hide freedom, but enemies Rejecting the truth - He rejects the truth that Eldians will always be hated across the world, especially the ones on Paradis Island Embracing a Lie - He embraced the lie that he is the freest person in the world, which then cue to his Founding titan form leading the genocide of the outside world. IDK what can I say, he is just an interesting character in the whole Attack on Titan Series.

[@kendrinawaskoro3031]

Thank god i found this channel!! I'm very interested in film making and i had a list of ideas for a screenplay but don't know how to write it the right way beside i only knew simple things like ACT 1-3. This gives me a lot of perspectives because i don't go to film school! Thank you very much!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to hear it’s been helpful!!

[@OlgaKuznetsova]

Oh man, these videos are always so insightful! The moment you started talking about the corruption arc, I knew you were going to talk about The Godfather - such a well-woven arc!

[@salauddinsiddiqui150]

The channel is underrated/undervalued and deserves way more subscribers

[@nicwale]

After watching one of your videos, I think I should watch all your videos.

[@Tousicle]

I would also include from The Film Director's Intuition, that deep down, Michael wants to please his father. (another great reason the lie is so appealing) :D

[@TylerMowery]

Good thought!

[@carmencolado1926]

You just helped me write my book, thank you for this quality content

[@Demonamic777]

I don't do screenwriting, I did for a class once back in college but I mostly am writing short stories for D&D campaigns and it's been so long since I last wrote a story that I needed to study up more. These videos have helped quite a bit and are inspiring me to make more detailed and compelling characters.

[@FlackNCoke]

I actually disagree on The Godfather. I feel like Michael starts out believing a lie: “I’m not like my family,” is confronted by the truth “I can take a life as easily as anyone in my family” and eventually grows to accept the truth “I am the new Don of the Corleone Crime Family.”

[@TylerMowery]

Hmmm. Possibly. I think that may be true. Although I wouldn't think the truth is "I can take a life as easily as anyone in my family." Maybe it would be more like "I'm not like my family." But the truth is he is exactly like his family, and therefore accepts the truth and enters the mob.

[@sanaamogi]

@@TylerMowery Well put.

[@ryanfarrar9185]

Your theory sounds good, but you have to consider the fundamentals of the arc, which is that Michael has had a negative arc BECAUSE he has ended up in a worse place than where he started. Michael started off as a decorated war hero who wanted nothing to do with his family's business. He ends the film as the head of that underworld business.

[@JCDenten557]

@@ryanfarrar9185 It's definitely true that he ends up in a worse place than he started but I'd have to say at that point he either has a disillusionment or corruption arc

[@ryanfarrar9185]

@@JCDenten557 I don't think it would be disillusionment, because while his new truth is tragic, he embraces it.

[@Mark-rm9to]

This channel needs way more subscribers

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks for the support!

[@regentneo]

we're all waiting for the 3rd part till the 100th (:

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks so much! The support means a ton to me.

[@Stritex1]

SUPER SUSCRIBED!!!!! All my cheers and love to my screenwriting fellows - Don't give up this is a real career !

[@osareafallire]

It'd be fun to watch this development process in action - like how a writer pieces a character together.

[@mikebatie]

Thanks for breaking all of these different types of character arcs down for us!

[@vinkarume6205]

Woah!!!! Dude, that was very very brilliant!

[@TylerMowery]

Thank you!

[@Speed202]

Your videos have high production quality, are informative, and entertaining.

[@zackgravity7284]

Winter Soldier is another great example of a flat character arc.

[@Anubis-xk4ht]

the dark knight too

[@svenk5221]

In the beginning of the video I was thinking what about Nightcrawlers arc and you covered it a moment later. Awesome content. Keep up the good work!

[@Alyssa-lj7rf]

this was really helpful! anyone else also watch this to get a good watch list for quarantine?

[@gallerycatstudios8018]

I love how clearly you explained everything. It's so easy to absorb and apply.

[@clairebritton2122]

Just watched these videos, as they recently came up on my feed. Really enjoyed watching pt.1 & 2, I thought they were really insightful and engaging. The concepts were explained so well, and has given me a lot to think about when it comes to my own creating characters. Thanks Tyler!

[@christophermariorosario5639]

I feel more confident now...thank you 🙂

[@lancesolomons7581]

Super helpful, learning much in these short chunk, thanks so much. Actually more just quick refreshers because I used to love story a while ago so these short videos are great for that. Love from South Africa. Again, thanks.

[@movierepeater8537]

oh my god, you are so so so great, Give me a lot of solution while trapped in a screenplay.

[@joshliam1967]

Comparing and contrasting Paddington with Lou Bloom is kind of brilliant. Great channel!

[@TylerMowery]

Thanks!

[@harikapoor3022]

This is GOLD. You break it down so well. AMAZING VIDEO!!!

[@paulamoran645]

This so good it’s also applicable to real life stories. For example: Pablo Escobar I got to analyse his story was Negative Change Arc, might be corruption type within… It’s crazier if you use it to analyse your own life, mind blowing 🤯

[@GoldenSpoon109]

This is sooooo helpful rn, especially organized into a playlist. So thanks! :D

[@scribibbler]

This two-part video is more insightful and educational than my first year Creative Writing MA

[@madameversiera]

These videos are wonderful, showing the complexity of screenwriting with and easier explanation. I'm trying to write a character for the first time and this is incredibly helpful.

[@natalietadros980]

So helpful, this is helping me solve a current problem. Thank you so much!

[@Ouroboros_609]

Thank you very much for the insight on Character Arcs. I’m working on a story and I want to add a lot of depth into what I’m writing.

[@devaluswoty4018]

Hi! I am just happy that finally someone else also read john truby's book the anatomy of story 😆

[@davezbox]

Excellent essay! Thanks again!

[@wwop-wonderfulworldofpharm15]

Incredible interesting and detalled work for the movie writer i begin to be ! Thx a lot for your transmission :)

[@reynifilms]

Congrats. You made another brilliant video. Helpful and inspiring.

[@feelthescience7626]

This is very helpful. I was looking for batman. Instead got joker. It was good arc

[@SonOsman]

besides being a very good content, this can make a great watchlist !

[@cesarsoriapena5793]

Thank you very much. This video will help me at the moment to write the scheme of a story.

[@majidoujaa5592]

I never made a video, but i had this same idea about writing character arc and you went through all what i wanted to convey in a much better clearer manner than i ever could produce.

[@dominickmorales130]

Very Helpful...As a filmmaker sometimes you learn the rules to effectively eliminate them...the rules helped me so much. Thank You

[@fry8h]

This knowledge made me respect Whiplash even more.

[@vincentarceo7655]

this video just literally helped me fix my story problem for my short film right now... THANK YOU!!!!!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad I could help!

[@akshayjawajwar8585]

Great Essay Tyler😉 Will keep coming back to both the parts over and over, during my writing process. Thanks a lot!!!

[@TylerMowery]

Glad that it's helpful!

[@harbirsingh9473]

This is just crazy, it absolutely blew my mind! phew..... Great video!

[@navarag6894]

*He's a teacher...a perfect one...🎐♥*

[@iKadaj]

it was helpful because my only understanding of "character arcs" was just "make the character change so they're different from how they started" and it was hard to figure out what to do with that. characters who don't change were called "static characters" back when i was in school and taught to be something you should avoid but you referred to them as "flat arcs" and showed how they still work because they change others around them rather than themselves, and also gave some nice insight into how characters can change. it was interesting how everything was referred to as "truth vs lie" rather than "good vs evil" or "positive vs negative" cuz it made it easier to see the events in the story and stuff without bias which i think was really insightful and helpful

[@pharoahfinale1183]

Appreciate the insight 👊🏾 really helped me give my story I been working on for about year a better structure . Same with your “how to make good characters “ video

[@ike8072]

Really helpful and well put together video. 👍🏼

[@JacksonTaylorandTheSinners]

Great series of videos. Just f’ing great. Thanks so much.

[@aytothemm.1035]

I love all your videos...its helping me so much to write my script now

[@vmathew1609]

Exceedingly helpful! Thanks much.

[@m-hellothere4167]

A really amazing, informative, and insightful video. Thank you for your efforts and time. May God bless you all

[@andrewshakespeare2691]

Very helpful. Thank you

[@Marufresita]

Wow than you very much! This incredible video helped me to keep focus on my comic and characters development.

[@chitranshraj3016]

Something very very sensible and deep ...it makes easy to keep the chracter intrrsting thanks...

[@27MH]

This is a fantastic video, with even better examples to back up the concepts you highlighted. I know this took you a while to put together, but rest assured in the fact that this will be an invaluable tool for people who want to tell their stories.

[@TylerMowery]

That's great! That's really what I want it to be!

[@azamatshakirov557]

maaan, i am your fan. Every video is pure guidline on filmmaking. great job. thank you. sorry for my english

[@sunshinequotes1957]

Amazing content! Really eye opening.

[@iedazanotti188]

The video was great! Thank you very much - loved it

[@rebeccahergenrader1804]

Very helpful. I’m just a grandmother writing little stories for my grandchildren. But I still want to do a good job.

[@HM-xe3mq]

good luck! : D

[@SheilaPatterson]

This was super helpful and insightful. I appreciated the practical breakdown, now I feel like Neo seeing the Matrix code. Thank you!

[@mercurious6699]

Many thanks for this analysis

[@saarthaksj]

This channel is a treasure 🤝Thank you so much man♥️

[@cptmerc8347]

Phenomenal video bro. I was having a really hard time developing characters for my script. And now I have a way better understanding.

[@TylerMowery]

Glad to hear it!

[@maxnieves4641]

How come your channel doesn't have a Million subs? With such quality content, you deserve more bud

[@TylerMowery]

Haha I’d definitely love a million subs! Maybe one day

[@samcleaver3315]

Very good, well explained.

[@lgrace3239]

THANK YOU!! Your videos always open my eyes to a problem that I'm having in my story! :)

[@TylerMowery]

Glad it's been helpful!

[@BenFilmsArt]

I’m new to writing and I have a question. Is it possible for a character to have two story arcs simultaneously in one story? What I have in mind is that the protagonist would have a belief about thing A and the opposite belief about thing B. Thing A would be a flat arc for the protagonist, and thing B would be a change arc. The antagonist has the opposite belief as the protagonist about thing A, but by the end of the story the protagonist is able to change the belief of the antagonist about thing A, but in the process change their own belief about thing B. So, the protagonist ends the story by having the same belief about both A&B. By the way the thank you, your videos have really helped me learn things about writing.

[@malikabdullah8083]

Damn! that's creative

[@minchai2943]

Is creative so do it make sure is concise and easily understood

[@annk3532]

Thank you soooo much! This was extremely helpful, keep up the great work!

[@tajender_singh]

Amazing stuff... Learned a lot. Thanks:)

[@coreylee3378]

These character vids are cornucopias of info, holy shit. Took two pages of notes. These videos are so awesome.

[@gannahussein1863]

Thank you so much for this!

[@amorfatikhb]

Now to apply part 1 and 2 into an actual piece of writing. Thank you for these lovely videos!

[@TylerMowery]

Yes! Go apply them! Pumped to see what you create.

[@honnashankara3681]

I have to tell you my friend! This helped me a lot! Thanks a million for this 👍🏻

[@TylerMowery]

You're welcome!

[@tylower]

Your channel is amazing and so are you Tyler Mowery.

[@loveritas]

Hi Tylor, I'm the first time on your channel and I love the way you share your knowledge. Lot's of helpful information, clean and precise .... just what I need it. Thank you! Loveritas

[@DiggsLuciano]

one word, Mr. Mowery, "Wow".

[@puneetkhatri6432]

Thanks for the knowledge.

[@devasishyadav8308]

An absolute quality content your video explaination , video editing everything is way too point love it. I am a bignner its worthy !!

[@TmasterinoYT]

Great video! So helpful!

[@mridulkabraastrology]

Great videos, such a learning experience