Influences On My Story Idea

Just in case you were wondering, the current background picture is of movie icon James Dean. He famously was a rising star who had completed just three films by the time of his death in a car accident at the age of 24.

One of the influences/inspirations when coming up with my movie idea was a film he starred in titled "Rebel Without A Cause". It is one of the earliest examples of a modern "teen" film ala "The Breakfast Club" and "American Pie" however it takes itself much more seriously. Filmed in 1955 it clearly represents the time period it was made in but it is also very much before its time. The time
period as well as the realistic approach to its younger characters helped when constructing the characterisation of Tony and how he reacts to authority figures. (His manager, Sid in this case)

James Dean's character Jim is very troubled emotionally but he hides it behind a cool, relaxed demeanor. I thought it was interesting when watching how many sides their were to his character. I thought this aspect of his personality would be perfect to morph into part of Tony's persona.

You can watch a trailer for "Rebel Without A Cause" below...                                     

Story Telling Unit: "The Meeting" - Characters and Location

CAST OF CHARACTERS


TONY: The protagonist is a former alcoholic who is bitter about his fading stardom in the entertainment industry. He has a demeanour that is calm and cool to everyone who meets the celebrity side to him but behind closed doors he is a cold and angry man. He is only in his mid-late 20’s but he carries himself in a way that makes him seem far beyond his years. His personality is such that he has been entirely dependent on other people (his former wife, his manager) to take care of him.
TONY’S MANAGER (SID): Sid is quite young and cocky but he is already a major entity in the entertainment world as a manager for several film and TV stars of the period. He is credited with giving Tony is first major coup in show business when he got him a contract with a recording company. As much as he wants to look forward to new ideas he also has quite a conservative mind-set when it comes to managing his clients. He is around the same age as Tony but much wiser and more experienced than he is.
LOCATION
Tony’s bar room will be the main location for this screenplay, I felt this was an appropriate choice considering his struggles with drinking and because of the setting being in the mid-late 1950’s which means that a small set can be constructed to appear as if it is a part of that time period including vintage looking items such as particular brands such as Jack Daniels and through the use of old Vinyl records.

My Chosen Idea For "The Meeting"

For my 10 minute story titled "The Meeting" I decided to portray a Drama set in the mid-late 1950's, I feel this gives it a unique twist as well as through my idea to film in Black and White imagery.

A washed up singer and actor named Tony has been struggling to gain back the stardom and wealth that he received in years previous, when he was one of the biggest stars around, selling millions of records and starring in feature films. Beneath his calm and cool demeanor,  Tony is actually a demanding and obnoxious alcoholic struggling with the one last chance he's been given to resurrect his career.
This last chance is to feature in a film that his manager (named Sid) is trying to convince him to accept his offer for the role as one of the leading actors.

Tony and Sid meet up in the bar room at Tony’s house and discuss the situation with the movie deal. Tony is reluctant to agree to the offer because he hasn't been in the public eye for quite a long time. Sid discusses Tony’s lack of self-respect and falling stature to a man who is becoming increasingly cold and aggressive to his manager. Sid changes the subject and tries to get Tony to talk about why he would let go of his career in the first place. The audience then finds out that he started drinking because of a tragedy in his life four years previously when his wife in a car crash and he couldn't cope as he was totally dependent on her.

The Change in Tony's Character:

Tony has the realisation at the end that he can’t change the past and his deceased wife would be more disappointed in how he’s turned out and would want him to move on. The film ends with Tony making a call to the movie producers as the screen fades to black.