Forever in days - Story Development

The following are new developments I intend to use when writing the script.

Character Summaries - more details about their character which will allow me to determine situations and events for the plot. I intend for both characters to be the complete opposite of the other as I feel this will work well for comedic purposes and also serve well to the change in both characters at the end. She is looking to break free from her demise while he is looking to put himself back together. Their respective journeys which will intertwine mid way will allow them to achieve their goals. 

Possible Locations

Tenterden town. I've chosen this area because it has this rural charm about it that I feel will work well for my story. My main character Mary Anne is quite the introvert and placing her in a wide and open space is one of the ways in which I intend to express that part of her personality. She and Jeremy come from two entirely different places and will find their answers where they least expected it. This location will be used for most of their dates/activities scenes. There are also a lot of lovely places that are great for sunset shots.

My Opening and closing scenes will take place in a more solar and open setting. I felt the white cliffs in dover/eastbourne would be good for the Voice over that will start the film. I intend for my character to be in the middle of all the emptiness to really captivate in viewers that feeling of abandonment or being left behind for another to peacefully move on.The open sky and sunlight will create the lens flare which will give the feel of another presence that isn't visible.

Below are some locations I have sourced online that I am hoping to use for this project. I took quite a while researching into this as I really want the story to be told visually rather than easily said.I feel the locations chosen will best represent my characters with a few props added here and there to make the characters even more relatable.

(Jeremy Scott's 'secret pad' in his aunt's garden)

I found this place online and instantly took a liking to it. It's fun, cosy and quirky like I intended for my character to be. This serves as a huge contradiction to where he is coming from and is a metaphor for the parts of him he is unwilling to accept until he meets Mary Anne. 

(Mary Anne's House)

I felt this was perfect because it was humble, Isolated and precise in its tones like MaryAnne. Homes reflect personality, flare and character. I want this to pertain to my story too. The house to me seems like a white canvas begging to be splashed with paint. It's bare and can still do with a little more colour. This can be seen as a metaphor for the excitement Mary Anne has been lacking most of her life until Jeremy.

StoryTelling Unit: The Meeting | Forever in Days

PITCH - Live every moment, love every minute. A tale of life and death and two souls caught in-between. 

MaryAnne and Jeremy share a love that sweeps them on an emotional journey through love, life and death. Living and Loving every moment they await their bittersweet end. 

Genre - Drama / Comedy 
Location - A village in the countryside - Home, Bedroom, Coffee Shop, Outside. 

Characters : 

Mary Anne - is a patient suffering from neuroblastoma cancer since the age of five. She lives with both parents in a cottage in the village. Given failure of various treatments over the years she has finally arrived at the end of her life With one month left to live. Her Illness robbed her of her happiness and stopped her from living a life that was ordinary and special in it's own way. Through discovering this tragic news Mary Anne Decides it's better to live in these last few days than to not have lived at all.

Jeremy Scott - A neighbour that has just moved into the residential area with his parents from a well populated and full of life city. He is eccentric, charming and spontaneous - Exactly what Mary Anne needs in her last few days. Through a first encounter he discovers she is very pessimistic and unbothered about life and takes it upon himself to help her find meaning in her life.

The Story Idea: 

Mary Anne is Twenty Two years Old and dying. Having been told she has a month left to live she sums up strength she's never had to live life fully in her last few days. Throughout the experience she learns more about life, death and a love which she never knew she could feel, allowing her to depart from loved ones and life itself peacefully.

Goal - To seek meaning in her life and do as much possible in her remaining days to avoid dying unhappy.

Problem - She falls ill before a major event with Jeremy causing concern and showing signs of her life quickly diminishing.

Change - She gains a strength she lacked most of her life and finally has found meaning in her existence. She has lived, loved and like we all must one day, died.

Storytelling Unit - What is a story?

''...A  story is first of all a chain of events that begins at one place and ends at another - without any essential interruption... ''

Other definitions of a story:

• A detailed description of a situation/event.
• Fiction/Non-fiction 
• Sequence
• Point of View/Perspective

What are the Ingredients of a story?

Theme >> Plot >> Story structure >> Characters >> Setting >> Style and Tone >> Goal, Change & Problem >> Climax

A theme is an important message the story is passing across to it's readers. It is effective it will touch an aspect of the reader's life in an emotional and thoughtful sense and in it's own small but sweet way help out in the lives of many.

The plot of a story can be considered as the detailed ins and outs of the journey that starts with the main character at the beginning and draws to a close at the end. The plot will consist mainly of conflict against other characters or a personal struggle. Throughout this journey, the character will grow and learn many things alongside the audience. This little piece of wisdom the character will earn when it is most vital can also be recognised as the over all theme of the film.

Story structure is all the methods used to piece all the ingredients together. Is the story in present tense or past tense? Does the use of first person narrative sell the story more? or does third person narrative allow your readers dig deeper into the characters as though to play God? Will the story be told in the eyes of one character or all characters? The choices made here will determine the outcome of the story.

Characters are who the stories are all about. Perhaps the main character who could be either an antagonist - the villain of the story, or the protagonist - the hero or main person of the story, has an obstacle to overcome, a goal to achieve or both. The build up of a character depends on your creative capacity as a writer somewhere between safe and spontaneous is always good it adds to the element of surprise in a story. A perfect character rarely ever works well in fiction, most times they have a flaw or weakness they overcome by the end.

Stories should be set in places and times that will be interesting or familiar. This contributes a lot to context - these are other events or issues that frame/influence the meaning of the story given that they happened during the same period of time.

Style and Tone are important when writing. If it's an intense drama some use of emotive language should be in effect to really capture the hearts of avid readers, if it's a thriller an in-depth but ambiguous telling of opinions might be a good way to show deception and lack of truth or confusion amongst characters. Plain or complex language can be used depending on the nature of the story and its characters. 

Goal, Problem and Change these are the various challenges the characters will face throughout the course of the story. Reflection of real life issues in narrative is a good way to draw in an audience as it is easy to relate to and understand.