Two Big Mistakes Screenwriters Make When Developing Characters by William C. Martell

[@joshuavansoest221]

Seriously I needed this. Firstly let me state that I don't write screenplays I've been trying to write a novel(s). I've spent the last 9 years writing a specific novel that just hasn't clicked. I've got at least 30 drafts for this and I haven't been able to figure out why it just feels out of sync. After listening to the interview in it's entirety I've found that I haven't been analyzing my characters, dialogue and story in the way that has needed to be analyzed. Guess, it comes down to knowing your characters better than you know yourself in a more truthful way then you're willing to be with yourself. Being honest with the fact that no matter how all powerful your character might be, he/she still has flaws that your reader/audience needs to be witness to. This seems to be the only way to really connect with an audience whether they be on a couch, in a cinema or just reading your work under a tree in some dandelion filled meadow. When you can get your audience to question, if they were in the position your character were in, would they do what you character has done? Or I'm talking a load of bullshit and need to go back to the tool-shed. Either way I still have a lot to learn, about myself to further understand my characters.

[@ThatCreeNative1]

Nine years!?!?! Damn dude, that is scary. I've been working on something for four years.

[@hamidrazavi822]

He is one of the most genuine and knows his stuff and shares it.

[@slameba]

"By the time you're 18 - you can write a bunch of novels". But... but... I just saw a video with Lee Child, who says that writing before 40 is hollow, because you haven't live enough to have something to say... And Steven King said you don't necessarily need something to say, it's enough that you're passionate about writing, for whatever reason you're doing it... What a time to be a writer XD Seriously though: great time, information everywhere, free, of all types. Also great channel.

[@thesavantart8480]

Writing before 40 is hollow because you haven't lived enough to have something to say? What an ignorant and full of shit statement. Albert Einstein was below 30 when he published his theories, Isaac Newton wasn't even 25 when he started developing calculus! Knowledge and experience isn't necessarily age based. You can be 20 and have had way more experience and knowledge in life than someone in their 40's or any other age.

[@alpkuzu1546]

@@thesavantart8480 classic case of "this is what happened to me so it must be the same for everyone else."

[@howardkoor2796]

Lots of perspectives. Don’t let that stop you from writing…

[@slameba]

@@thesavantart8480 As much as I agree with your point of view, I have never read the novels of Einstein and Newton.

[@freddyrodriguez1968]

love listening to William Martell in these interviews. Good advice and easy to understand.

[@bluestack6990]

I have not seen anything that he made but I love him as teacher on this Channel, everytime i listen to him I have this feeling like he is giving me puzzle pieces to solve this huge puzzle called writing.

[@exxmormon]

I really like the idea of exploring the baggage the characters are bringing into the script. Also, I really love exploring the hero's flaws and the villain's goodness. Someone once pointed out that even at the worst of criminals have their good sides, and most of them think themselves as good rather than evil. This video was extremely helpful for me, thank you!

[@StayFractalesque]

the value of this channel and the work y'all do is invaluable for anyone wishing they had a mentor

[@MariWakocha]

As always, he is the best~ I've started writing scripts recently and the thing that made me able to come with stories that were worth writing at all was the realization that they were all about me and that all the flaws necessary was already inside me, both in things I'm thinking and in things I've done in my past. Many of those are flaws that I have gotten over, but some of them are not. I liked the part about heart breaks. I've always wanted to write about that, but never been able to. Not until I had experienced happy love I could finally grasp what the heart break actually was and was able to write about it. Ofc, meeting a lot of different people and getting really close to them has also helped me, because sometimes I have had to write characters that aren't me. But, when you have a real person to base that character on, it is also easier to find the parts within that person that you can understand, that is you too. Very good video, thank you!

[@MenTalThePoet]

I love this guy's way of teaching. Excellent

[@filmcourage]

It's fun listening to Mr. Martell

[@MenTalThePoet]

@@filmcourage I'm a writer. Wish I had him as a real life teacher or mentor in my craft. I just gravitate to his calm and clear teaching

[@coloaten6682]

Another great video, thanks Film Courage and William Martell :)

[@MADDMOODY516]

He should host shit....get him on here PERMANENTLY

[@LiliWhiteWorld]

My characters seem boring after listening to you on this - even when I thought they were great. I now know how I will make them sooo much more interesting. thank you:-)

[@inconspicuouscrab3355]

so excited to learn about film writing! these videos are really clicking with me.

[@WolfieboyMachi]

This guy sounds eerily similar to Neil DeGrasse Tyson. O_o

[@ignaciobastias6162]

SYNDICAIDRAMON woah

[@aaronlinnemann5655]

Mixed with Seth Rogen

[@MenTalThePoet]

Wow you are so right!

[@crypastesomemore8348]

That’s racist

[@WolfieboyMachi]

@@crypastesomemore8348: It most certainly is not.

[@andrewdomville3663]

This is sound advice! As a storyteller in my own right I greatly appreciate this video. Thank you for the upload!

[@icarusdei6592]

I have to disagree with the notion that every character, especially protagonists always have to be flawed. That may certainly be the trend in modern storytelling, but there are plenty of timeless and beloved stories that have "perfect" characters. An audience doesn't always need a character to be flawed like we normal people are. Often we use perfect characters and want to see them overcome challenges. Take even a somewhat modern movie like Gladiator. Maximus is essentially a perfect character. He's a skilled general. Beloved. Honorable. Has no lust for power or anything. Just wants to go home and retire to his wife and kid. The only real flaw is that he lives in a world with imperfect people, such as Commodus, who's jealousy and greed put Maximus in a terrible situation he must battle through. And by the end of the movie, guess what? He does! Maximus doesn't really change at all. He just accomplishes his goal. And it's a beloved movie that won best picture and a character that men everywhere love.

[@mariams1031]

Agree - Cinderella /fairy tale heroes had no flaw either- why must we see a flawed person be our hero - aren’t we looking for perfection in a hero and flaws in the villain. Also Dont we have to love their flaws to love the hero /protagonist , it’s hard to love flawed selfish liars etc!

[@Maerahn]

I'd argue that Maximus' flaw is that he's consumed by revenge - he even states that, openly, in the movie - "I will have my revenge in this life or the next." It's what drives everything he does throughout the movie once his wife and child are killed. The mistake is in thinking 'flaws' are what make a person 'bad' somehow, or 'less likeable.' A 'flaw' could just as much be a lack of knowledge or insight about something, that would've made that character behave differently had they known that information before. It's not their FAULT they don't know that information, and it doesn't make them 'less of a person' for not knowing it, but if they then change their behaviour once they DO know it, then they have, on some level, acknowledged that they were doing things wrong before as a result of not knowing that information, and are now working to fix that. Even a perceived 'virtuous' quality can become a 'flaw' if it's pushed far enough - always wanting to think the best of people is a lovely quality, but taken too far it morphs into gullibility, and stoically defending morally dubious people just because you want to believe you're right about them. In that vein, Ned Stark's flaw in 'Game of Thrones' IS that he is honourable, and he sticks to his code of honour every time, even when dealing with people like the Lannisters and Littlefinger, who are absolute snakes with no regard at all for honour. We can all agree that such a strong code of honour makes Ned a stand-up awesome *person* - but he was still not at all smart for thinking his honour would be enough to win the day against Cersei and Littlefinger!

[@ethanbrunt7755]

Perfect characters are not good

[@plisskenetic]

@@ethanbrunt7755Then you haven't seen enough films bruh. So-called perfect characters are meant to be the idealistic ones and their obstacles are dealing with like, the 'perfect' antagonist

[@plisskenetic]

@@MaerahnMaximus' revenge is not a flaw at all bcoz the flaw (in scripts anyway) is meant to be the element that holds the hero back from achieving their goal and supposedly they gotta face their flaw/ fear only then they figure out a solution. That's totally not Maximus now is it? That said, I think you're right on the money when it comes to Ned Stark!

[@scottylost01]

This guy is great!!

[@1805movie]

*Mary Sue:* I'm too perfect, that's my biggest flaw.

[@JayCarver]

I see Bill Martell in the title and I automatically click “like” first and listen second.

[@TheDude-vx6wn]

I like him, always great advice and explanations.

[@jackillin]

This guy is amazing! Thank you! And what a strange question, 'Would a person under 35 have a lot to pull from?' Well many, many people in the world have had horrendously complicated, difficult, painful or astonishing lives from birth...not everyone in the world is born in a cookie cutter world of school, friends and average joeism or protected by loving parents, money, a home, peace...there are people born into poverty, conflict, trafficking, abuse etc...age has nothing to do with whether u have had experiences significant enough to tell stories from.

[@faibabernard]

This makes me know I aint outta ma mind... Ever since I begun writin' professionally, I always do well to make my "villain" have a tangibly logical reason for his/her action... Like makin' their case to God why they need to live and is justified of their acts... And Many a times, the Protagonist is at least partly to blame for it... Nice to see that I ain't aLone with that formular

[@TheNefastor]

This ties in with the idea that the villain should see himself as the hero of the story. As far as he's concerned he's doing the right thing.

[@KyleRyanFilm]

impossible to give that a down vote

[@producerbeatabuza]

I love this guy man. Genius!

[@IamCatharinemme]

Agreed... He's got the low down writing tips for sure

[@R.P.McMurphy]

Most authors write villains as they should write heroes and write heroes as they should do with villains. A great example of this is the unpopular 2000's series X-Men: Evolution.

[@geniosityfilms]

I think what made X-Men evolution unpopular was the character design and making some of the original X-Men into students and the whole thing felt like X-men: Saved By the Bell. That being said, I think it's underrated and got better as the show progressed.

[@pikiwiki]

this guy understands character development

[@deesplayworldtv]

L. Leonard...4th grade. When the rumor went around that she like Wayne C....HEARTBROKEN!I caught up with her last year on facebook and asked her about it 18 years later and she said 'I don't remember ever liking him!' Really? It was a rumor, but I liked her so bad I won't believe that she didn't like him. I think she's just sparing my feelings...lol talking about material by the time I was 9. I could write a book about how painful it was to go to nursery at 4. They put me on that bus everyday and I cried my eyes out and my auntie says to this day, how it pained her to watch my mother put me on that bus everyday. I just wanted to stay with my aunt and grandmother instead. I was a bit of a brat:) Not anymore Film C.

[@DungeonFreak79]

Great advice. Thank you!

[@silviemonk5556]

good for him. Characters, like people, are nothing, if not contradictions.

[@undead890]

What I like from this comes from Stan Lee, I believe, when he describes his heroes and villains in his comics. He says he wants to make the bad guys good and the good guys flawed.

[@finsoto]

You're so good Martell. Ty also FC. :)

[@inconspicuouscrab3355]

thank you!

[@oludascribe]

Thanks Bill

[@PatrickFoxGaming]

This guy is awesome...

[@lsaf6573]

This one was great!

[@MelanieAnneAhern]

This guy is great 👌 I think a good example of a beautifully flawed character is Scarlett O'Hara. I love her, I hate her. But I always find myself rooting for her, nonetheless.

[@avivastudios2311]

Why is the villain right, why is the hero wrong? That is a great question, thank you. I'm gonna use that from now on.

[@thetramp123]

Great stuff.

[@fudgepopdog3854]

he sounds a bit like Seth Rogen

[@wiseauserious8750]

Haha goddamn good call

[@lonewalkerproductions]

I can't unhear it now

[@thengatv9254]

Is a villain must for a movie

[@TheGeoDaddy]

Great conversation but I disagree with the last bit... and 18 year old is interesting to an 18 year old... a 60 year old is interesting to a 60 year old... roughly and superficially speaking, you don’t want some Old Fart messing with the Romanticisms of your Youth and you - when you reach your 60s - don’t want to relive the impracticalities of your youth. Personally, I found it MUCH easier to write when I started back at 50 and actually had more interesting Life experiences than raging hormones... but I don’t deny that writing about hormonal kids can be fun... but I can only do it looking backwards. Kids don’t look forwards (even if they profess they do) because the Future is unknown and unknowable.

[@johnnhoj6749]

I think as you get older it gets much harder to write contemporary stories which star contemporary youth. It is a very atypical older person who can convincingly write, say, 2020 teenagers (and this would be the same for a writer in 1969 who was 50 years old trying to write about the Woodstock generation). However, I think it's much easier to write such a film if the story is set nearer the time when the writer was the same age or when it's a period piece from before they were that age. It tends to have more resonance than the lives of present day youth to the older writer and they will understand it better. The very specific problems, attitudes, speech, interests etc of contemporary youth get harder to fully empathize with and really know inside-out as you mature. I think it's no accident that, given the choice, an older writer, if they do write a contemporary-set film, will tend to write mature adult starring roles.

[@ashaizawa6987]

I just finished the final draft of a script. It's a pilot pitch for a television series I want to make. I thought it was fantastic. Now I think I need to go over it again. My biggest problem is I'm too close to it. I can't look at it objectively. Any advice?

[@Scipio12345]

Let somebody else read it. Different people and get their opinion

[@coloaten6682]

Take a couple of weeks off from that script. Just let it percolate in your unconscious mind. Don't go back to it even if you think you've figured it all out after a day. Wait the full 2 weeks then see how you feel about it after that. Good luck Gregory! :)

[@trickledown808]

He is describing all of the problems with Rey as a character.

[@sheppardscott13]

Delete the worst outcome LOL that's how we make, actually how our characters make the path.

[@christopherpurcell490]

I'm starting to take a lot of these with a heavy grain of salt. Most of these writers are people who haven't written a film since around 2000. So essentially they're information is 20 years out of date.

[@algovorus]

And who told you writing changes?

[@Z3k3997]

This guy’s voice is identical to Neil Degrasse Tyson

[@crystalwolfer4117]

what happens when you know your characters too well

[@IDrinkAndIKnowThings]

I need to know how to age a character throughout the movie and also do multiple age changes of a single character hurt the movie at all?