STORY OUTLINE

Hello, I'm back. Today I am going to be creating a story outline so I can write my script and storyboard next week!!

Before I began writing my story outline I checked out this article on writers.com called How to Write a Story Outline, to learn a little more about story outlines and how to write them. The article mentions something interesting about using different approaches to story outlines. There is a plot approach where you focus on the key plot points and write your story outline based on that, a scene approach where you focus your story outline on the different scenes in your story, a theme-based approach where you write about the themes you want to advance in your story, and there's Freytag's Pyramid approach which you write your story outline based around the Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution of your story. Since I am creating a film opening which is only part of a story, it wouldn't make sense for me to use Freytag's Pyramid, plot, and theme approaches. That leaves the scene approach which either way I found most appealing because it lets me also incorporate any ideas I have for possible shots and angles.

Now that I know a little bit more about story outlines I'm going to get writing! For the information in my story outline, I am going to use the character descriptions I wrote about in my last blog, my general idea blog post, and other information in my blogs that might be important to my story. After around 35 minutes, here is my story outline:

Setting: camping grounds (Markham Park bonfire area)

Premise: Friends on a camping trip, having fun until they are kidnapped by a cult and forced to convert.

Characters:


Asher- a 16-year-old boy who lost his mother at age 10. Since then he has experienced visions about past or future events which sometimes are irrelevant therefore he tends to ignore them. He is a kind, funny guy who despite his grief, lives a happy life.


Mark- a 16-year-old boy who has been Asher’s best friend since birth. Mark’s mom is like a second mom to Asher and he considers Asher a brother. He is not the smartest one in the group but he tries. He has a girlfriend Ruby who has changed him for the better he loves her very much.


Ruby- A 17-year-old girl who is dating Mark. She is in the top 2% of her school for academics, she is beautiful and kind, and she loves her twin sister Jade a lot. Mark and Ruby have been dating for all of high school, and they plan on staying together when they leave for college.


Jade- A 17-year-old girl who stands out in a crowd. She has a unique style and doesn’t care what anyone thinks. She thinks school is stupid and plans on pursuing music as her career. She has a band with her boyfriend which her friends don’t like so he isn’t part of their group. She is free-spirited and very caring, and although they are very different Ruby is her best friend.


Claire- A 17-year-old girl who had been best friends with Ruby and Jade since middle school. She is relatively shy and keeps to herself, but with her friends, she lets loose a little. She secretly likes Asher but would never tell him because she is scared of ruining their friendship. Ruby and Jade tease her for this.

Outline:

-Friends driving to camping sites and listening to music having fun

-It is late afternoon the sun is still out when the friends get to the camping site

-They get out of the car and start unpacking their camping gear

-Asher is the last one to get his stuff and as he is getting his stuff a picture is peeking out from one of his bags

-He takes the picture and looks at it, It is a picture of him and his mom and he gets a vision

-In the vision a heart monitor is beeping and it flatlines

-During the vision clip of the hospital lights and other things that infer the hospital appear

-His friends call to him and he is brought out of vision, he puts the picture away and grabs his stuff

-A shot from inside trees shows the friends setting up implying they are being watched

- Happy music as they are setting up different shots but happy music stops when the shot from inside the trees occurs

- Once the kids are done they are sitting across the campfire, the camera goes around in a circle showing the dynamics of the group (sisters, boyfriend, etc) shot stops on Asher as he is talking to Claire and mid-conversation he gets a vision

-During vision heartbeat in the background and flashes of the cross, the glove, the hut, and the wood crosses occur

-It is a slow zoom so when inserts finish it is a tight close causing discomfort

- Claire snaps him out of it and she asks if he is okay

-He said yes but that he needed to go to the bathroom

-Another shot from the other side of the woods shows Asher getting up and walking into the forest

-A shot from behind showing Asher’s back but peeing sound effects plays

-Handheld shots make it look like someone is behind Asher

-Asher hears something and turns around

-He sees nothing but a white glove

-He finishes peeing and goes to check out the white glove

-A shot shows his face as he realizes it is the same one from his vision

-Before he can do anything a hand with a white glove puts a hand over his face and pulls him

-the opening ends

This story outline will make my life 100 times easier next week when I begin to solidify my plans for my opening. See you soon!!