A suggestion to screenwriters
Charso Press: According to the public relations of the cinema museum, Ahmad Moraderpour said at the beginning about finding ideas and turning them into screenplays: When we talk about ideas in cinema, it means the summary and compact of the story we want to tell; Like when we write a one-line synopsis for a movie. Like the synopsis of the Godfather movie, “The youngest son of a mafia family takes revenge on his father’s killers and becomes the godfather himself.”
He added: Determining the idea of a movie line requires special skills and is usually less than 20 words, and after that, the idea enters other stages, such as sequences and larger drama units, and finally becomes a movie script. The remarkable thing is that there is a meaning and concept hidden in every idea that comes to mind. It is always the work of the idea that it introduces the shape and form of the story line and moves us forward towards the path that is the path of the story.
Muradpour stated that the concept is the next stage of finding ideas, and continued: the concept is hidden in the idea and if it manifests itself in the story, it is good, otherwise it is impossible to find the concept and bring it in the film, and if the story is on the path of the concept It cannot be called a story. In fact, the story evolves with meaning and concept and gains more value; That is why some stories have a deep impact on our lives.
Referring to the techniques of finding ideas for the story, he said: In the story, you may talk about a concept that is not the norm in one society, but is valuable in another society. The important thing is that when you develop a story, you can complete it. These are the things that should be paid attention to in the story. Sometimes, due to neglecting these things, despite the presence of a professional actor and face, the film does not attract the audience, while if the first step is taken firmly, it will definitely bring brilliant results.
In response to the question of how to find ideas, the director of the movie “Sajadeh Atash” said: One of the ways to find ideas is to pay close attention to your life and the people around you. Sometimes the idea is in our daily life and sometimes even dreams and wishes can be ideas. The events of human society, history, present, future and experiences can all be ideas, but until those events and resources that we have access to are not turned into stories, it is useless.
He stated that not every idea has the ability to become a story: for example, a short film should end when it has expressed the concept; In fact, the meaning of the story is complete when the main concept is expressed. Iranian stories are the best choice for short films. In the film, once the main concept is completed, it should not be continued because it repels the audience. The story ends when everything that was planned at the beginning of the film is realized.
Muradpour continued: Another way to find ideas is to turn ideas into questions; This is the golden key for idea generation. Instead of telling a story about any subject, it is better for the screenwriter to ask himself questions about it, this is a subject that I have come to as a result of my experiences and it is very practical because in this case the dimensions of that subject will become more apparent to you.
He added: Of course, the important thing is that we should not place value on asking questions, it is enough to ask ourselves about that idea so that many doors will open for us. We can also design a story for that topic so that the audience can decide whether that topic is suitable or not.
He pointed out: For example, for the godfather, we can ask ourselves, “What would happen if the youngest member of the family became the godfather?” Sometimes the idea makes the film more attractive because it disrupts the conventional situation and creates contrast. For example, we can ask ourselves, “What would happen if an innocent person was arrested and sentenced to death?” In the case of Sajjadeh Atash, we can ask the question, “What would happen if the commander of a battalion was killed at the beginning of the war and left the battle, and a young and inexperienced boy Was he chosen as a commander? Turning an idea into a question is the same as finding a story line. This method of questioning can be helpful in many cases where the mind has reached a dead end; In this case, you will find topics that should be turned into stories.
Moraderpour also said about how an idea turns into a story: “A story” consists of a character and a story; These two principles are the minimum you need for the story. The story lies in the heart of the question. We need to be able to tell a story first, and the next step is how to make that story interesting.
He added: When you witness the presence of a narrator in the film, it means that you are watching a story. In fiction films, the audience usually puts itself in the place of the character, and there is no need to constantly remind them to watch the story with the presence of a narrator, while fiction films do not need a narrator in most cases because the audience identifies with it. In my opinion, the story should be so interesting that the audience will follow him.
This director also said about the use of narrators in documentary films: In documentaries, you can use narrators because they do not have a cause-and-effect relationship, but in the film, whatever you describe must already have its own subjectivity.
This workshop was held yesterday evening in the presence of cinema enthusiasts and members of the cinema museum audience club for three hours at the Iranian Cinema Museum.