Monday, March 3

Premise exercise for next week

A premise is a "natural law"
It is the way (you see) the world works
As a natural law, it does not need to be morally enforced:  it contains within it its own enforcement, like it or not.
It is easy to see this way:  If you do not brush your teeth, your teeth will rot.  It is a natural law.

Try this:
Good posture opens you up.  That is a natural law.
If I were to say:  "Stand up straight!" <-- that is a command.  It is not a natural law.

See the difference?

In your film (or your life), what premise do you see?  What "law" operates underneath everything that goes on.  A premise is NOT a plot.  Some people misuse the term.  They will say something like, "The premise is that the sailor came into town and met a pretty girl and they ran off together."  That is not a premise; that is a plot, a story line.  The premise is the natural law that lies under that plot.  It might be something like
"Love conquers all." or
"God pairs 'em."  or
"Chemical attraction trumps common sense."  or
"Girls like men in uniforms."  or
"Everyone has a mate." or
" ... well, you get the idea."

a premise can be negative:  e.g., "Life is unfair."  If you see through a negative premise, you see a negative world.  That is a natural law, the foundation of negativity.
a premise can be positive:  e.g., Hard work pays off.  Education is power.  Your time will come."

Think about your premise or the premise for your film.  State it, simply.
State at least two ways that you reveal it in your film:  dialog, action, resolution, costume, lighting, color, sets, symbols, music.

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