JEFF KITCHEN - FULL DAY SCREENWRITING SEMINAR

LECTURE 4: THE CENTRAL PROPOSTION

The Central Proposition

What is it?
A tool that helps tie everything together in to a coherent whole. If a movie script has all these great elements, good story, characters, dialog, action - how could it not work? It uses the power of logic to pull them all together. Created by William Thompson Price, founder of the School of Playwriting in 1901. He has a book that is helpful. It works with the logic of ARGUMENTATION. Drama is an ARGUMENT - it is CONFLICT. Look at your script with just the PROTAGONIST and ANTAGONIST in isolation, and get that to work. If that works, everything around it will tend to work. If the central conict doesnt work, the stu around it certainly will not. It is based on a SYLLOGISM (or a PROPOSITION). It is TWO PREMISES, LEADING TO A CONCLUSION. That is A and B therefore C. ALL MEN ARE MORTAL. SOCRATES IS A MAN. THEREFORE SOCRATES IS MORTAL. It is a clear simple statement of facts. A plot has its own logic. You should be able to describe a PLOT with this level of simplicity and clarity.

The Dramatic Proposition

SETTING UP A POTENTIAL FIGHT AND TOUCHING OF A FIGHT TO THE FINISH WITH A DRAMATIC QUESTION ARISING. Drama should RISE to a FIGHT TO THE FINISH. People want to know what comes next. Setting up a POTENTIAL FIGHT can begin as a SHOVING MATCH, which then turns into a FIGHT TO THE FINISH, where only one walks away. If as a writer you have SET UP CONFLICT, and TOUCHED IT OFF (with a metaphorical SHOVING MATCH), you should be able to see the AUDIENCE on the EDGE OF THEIR SEAT. If youve done your job well.

CENTRAL DRAMATIC QUESTION

When your AUDIENCE MEMBER is on the EDGE OF HER SEAT, the thing in her mind is HOW IS THIS GOING TO WORK OUT? - that is the CENTRAL DRAMATIC QUESTION and it exists ONLY in her mind. Its not a line, its not a direction - it is the VIEWER who raises this question. It will be HIGHLY SPECIFIC.

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JEFF KITCHEN - FULL DAY SCREENWRITING SEMINAR

LECTURE 4: THE CENTRAL PROPOSTION

If you can FIGURE OUT what is in the MIND of the audience at this TOUCHING OFF moment, then you can EVALUATE IT for POWER. Either the CENTRAL DRAMATIC QUESTION is WEAK or STRONG. If it is WEAK, then the DRAMA you are PITCHING is WEAK. The TRICK is to be AS BRUTALLY HONEST WITH YOURSELF AS YOU CAN. Do not DECEIVE YOURSELF. Gauge the POWER of your DRAMA.

TRAINING DAY
This example is TOUCHING OFF a ght to the nish which will come later: Jake challenges Alonzo about ripping o the Sandmans cash under the fake search warrant. Jake goes to Alonzos girlfriends house to arrest him and take the money as evidence. Can Jake possibly stop Alonzo or will Alonzo destroy him? Alonzo raises to it, and says it takes a wolf to catch a wolf - thats how we do things. If you can do it, your own the team. If not, go back to the Valley and cut parking tickets. They are arguing - its a SHOVING MATCH, they are CROSSING SWORDS. Later in the movie after Jake escapes the hillside gang, he goes to Alonzos and tells him he is under arrest. That is the START of the FIGHT TO THE FINISH. Theres no way to PUT IT BACK IN THE BOTTLE. ONLY ONE WILL WALK AWAY. The AUDIENCE should come up on the EDGE OF THEIR SEATS. And the QUESTION should appear in our MINDS. And it should be something like Can Jake POSSIBLY bring Alonzo down? We want to KNOW WHAT the Question is, but also WHAT POWER IT HAS.

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