Fringe Team

I now have a team of biology/neuroscience/engineer majors on call for any questions I might have during the writing process. They've already been helpful with the outlining. They've been warned that I'm going to throw some pretty absurd questions their way, but they are prepared and excited to assist.

Changes

When I was thinking of how to answer the questions I asked earlier on this blog, I thought of something that would make things easier...and hopefully better.

If Dr. Corryn needed someone to transfer her information to, what if she used her daughter, Wendy, when she was maybe five-years-old. At a young age, Wendy wouldn't remember that the experiment happened (unless she really tried, I'm doing a lot of research on Memory). After Corryn dies from the experiment, her lab partner Ardon, who was against the idea but couldn't stop Corryn, gave Wendy to another family to take care of her. She grew up never knowing what happened to her, and no one knew that, even though it killed Corryn, the experiment actually worked...with some problems. Not only did Corryn transfer the knowlege in her brain, but she also transfered her memories. Now Wendy is fifteen. She has dreams about Corryn, Corryn's life and sometimes sees glimpses of the experiment. She has no idea why she's seeing these things and starts to believe she has the ability to see her past life. That doesn't explain, however, why she is so smart. Wendy has enough knowlege in her head to be the youngest physicist known to man. She's so intelligent that she makes her teachers at school look pathetic. Her teachers send her to Harvard because they believe she will receive an adequate education, and she meets 60 year old Ardon. Ardon looks familiar to her. And the mysteries unravel.

Now I just need to unfold the story in a way that is interesting and makes sense. I like having Corryn and Wendy's stories told simutaneously because it shows how both character end up on the same path towards one thing...the mind uploading experiment. Corryn decides to go ahead with the experiment at any cost, even putting her own daughter's life at risk. Wendy needs to make the same choice, but she has completely different motives. There's another way I can tell this story though. Kind of like Bourne Identity, where she can remember things as they happen and use the flashbacks of Corryn's life to mirror Wendy's life (Wendy walks into a familiar room and the flashback shows Corryn in that room conducting an experiment). I like the first idea better, but the second is still an option.

One of the things I need to think about now is...do I want the stakes to be even higher and have Wendy start to die? I have to do more research on the brain, but my explanation now would be that I don't think a person's brain could handle processing information from someone else's brain. Too much information at once. Problem: I want maybe 5-10 years between the time of the experiment and Wendy's life now, before the results of the experiment start to kill her. But if her brain could handle it at 5 years old and she's been able to grow up without a problem (besides maybe some headaches) then why would it all of a sudden start killing her now? Was she dying all this time? Why didn't it kill her instantly like it did with Corryn? I need some answers...or a different way to tell the story so it makes sense. Contemplate on this, I shall.

Remember (New Script)

I really have to think of a better title because "Remember" is just horrible. But there are more pressing things to think about, so a brilliant title will just have to wait.

I'm super excited to have finally thought of a decent science fiction idea that's possible to write (all of my other ideas will probably take years to build the worlds and research). However, I'm well aware that my idea for this script will not be easy. Some of the thoughts in my head now that I'm debating with are...

1. How does the scientist, Corryn, choose who she is going to "send" the information in her brain to, and how does it eventually end up in Wendy's brain?

2. How old should Wendy be at the beginning of the script? When does she start seeing these images of what she believes to be her past life? Does it happen all at once (Phenomenon) or has she been able to remember since she was a young child?

3. Is there a love interest? If Wendy can remember everything about Corryn's past, does she also feel a strong connection to Corryn's lover?

4. Does Wendy die in the script? I was thinking that if an experiment like this took place and everything from one brain was transferred to another, would Wendy's brain be able to handle it? Wendy now has the brain power to continue with the experiment, and maybe she can make it better. If it's killing her, she doesn't have a lot of time to do this. What if she successfully accomplishes what Corryn did but with the same results...killing someone else. Is it moral if it's done in the name of science? Corryn was the scientist, so her answer probably would have been yes, but Wendy is not a scientist. Does she still have that obligation to continue? Will all of Corryn's hard work be in vain and without purpose if Wendy dies without doing anything to further the experiment?

These are all of the questions I'm in the process of answering. I like that this story asks a question that many people still ask today. How far is too far? With stem cell research, is it moral to conduct an experiment in the name of science. Should morality even be an issue? If we didn't cut open dead bodies when people thought it was morally wrong to do so, none of our medical advances would have been possible. But this story also shows the history of these two girls. One chose her path, and the other has to live with it inside her head, literally. Wendy did not choose to have everything in Corryn's brain transfered into her own, and she certainly did not choose to die so young, but she does have decisions to make, and she has to make them very quickly.

Deterrence

There are a lot of mixed emotions I feel in terms of what's happening in America right now. On one hand, I'm actually glad to see so many people finally concerned with bullying and the consequences. On the other hand, it's very disheartening to know that this problem didn't just begin. It's been a problem for many, many years, and it's unfortunate that it took so long for people to open their eyes to it.

I started writing Deterrence, my first feature script, last Fall. It's a script that is very dear to my heart because it was inspired by my sister's personal experience being bullied. I started thinking years ago when it was happening to her, 'Why aren't kids punished more severely for this. Bullying is a disease that spreads from person to person and no one wants to stop it because no one thinks it's that big of a deal; people grow out of it at some point.' What I've learned years later is that they don't grow out of it. The bullies get meaner and the victims get weaker.

If you read this (and my rant hasn't turned you off yet) I encourage you to read more of my blog articles and give me some advice on how to make Deterrence better. I'm always looking for feedback.

It's Been a While...

Even though I'm on co-op right now, and stopped blogging, that doesn't mean I stopped writing.

Currently, I'm working on a new feature "Retraction," about a man who helps people get rid of things after they've lost a family member/friend for a living. I'm now in the process of trying to make this as interesting as it sounds.

Also, I'm fixing (what I hope will turn into my award winning feature) Deterrece. Since I last blogged about this script, much has changed, hopefully for the better.

After these two projects, I already have a science fiction idea for a feature that I CANNOT WAIT to start. If you know me, you know I've been trying to come up with a revolutionary science fiction idea for two years. It will be a TOP SECRET project. My father Bill, who introduced me to the genre when I was very young and who knows more about physics and astrology than he would give himself credit for, will consult on the project (the next Arthur C Clark and Stanley Kubrick ladies and gentlemen).

That's all folks.

Final draft...for now

This script is definitely something I intend to keep working on. There are still many things that need fixing. The side love stories, for instance. Also, some scenes still feel awkward to me, like whenever Kate's sister comes up, especially at the end. I want it to be meaningful...not just a way to get exposition. And I need to keep researching courtroom procedure.

All in all, I'm proud of it.

What's next?

I'm writing a horror film with a friend in the major. He loves horror movies and I like good horror movies (the kind that actually have a purpose and not just meant to scare the hell out of you). It should be interesting to see what we come up with.

I'm also going to finally try comedy. I've been avoiding it because it's not something I think I'll be good at, but we'll see. I thought of an idea that I'm looking forward to fleshing out over co-op.

New Scenes

I kept thinking that something was missing in the script, so I added two scenes. One is Jayden in the hospital, having his friends come to visit. I did this for a few reasons. I wanted to show as much as possible in the beginning of the script that Limits is a "bad kid." I want the audience's affection for Limits and sympathy to grow as they read. So the hospital scene is meant to deceive the audience into believing that Jayden is a "good guy." It also introduces the idea of easy fixes, which is a theme throughout the script. And further, it shows that Father Crogan chooses which students to worry about.

Another scene I added is the back and forth between Aubrey going to the viewing for Mike and Limits in the Juvenile Detention Center again being bullied around by other kids. The close relationship between Brodie and Limits comes out in this scene because for the first time, someone (Brodie) helps Limits when he needed it. It also shows that even though the adults are standing in a church, they treat Aubrey like an outcast. This is also the Pinch I was looking for to give Kate a setback before she loses the hearing. After the hearing, the situation changes and what Kate was trying so hard to do (keep the case juvie) fails, so now the script switches to the criminal arena, the place Kate thought she didn't want to go.