Susan Everett - Writer/Screenplays/Director

Susan Everett came into College yesterday to discuss her work and processes when writing for screen as well as her directorial work.

I really enjoyed this talk, finding the process of creating characters and truthful stories interesting. The importance of research was highlighted a lot in the presentation, as it gives stories and characters a sense of realism and depth. Research can also lead you to new ideas visually and narratively, usually giving your work a lot more substance. A script based on assumptions and guesswork can come across as weak and effect the over all programme, film or play, by researching the way in which certain things and situations work, this can be avoided.

This sense of realism and depth is especially important in the characters and their development. Susan pushed the point that people are like onions, they have many layers that aren't initially seen, and that they should always have wants and needs and reasons for acting the way they do. The mark of a good story is choosing when and how to reveal those elements of a character in the most 'true' way possible, even if it's through an action or lack of one. Susan explained she 'pushes ordinary people past the line of normal' and imagines how they would act in that situation, which in turn creates the drama.

I think this process is a more interesting approach in narratives than just making up a whole new world and rules. By giving real people consequences there's a connection with the characters and an understanding to their actions, whether or not they're good or bad. This presentation has inspired me to think more about my character's development in my current responsive project as well as in future writing.