Scene Stream - Exercise

One of my goals for having this blog is to keep record of the exercises I do in order to become a better writer. So this is an intro of what I'm calling, a Scene Stream. It's basically writing a scene, that's timed, out of thin air without thought or any preconceived notion of where the play/situation/characters will take me. Of course, for a real play, knowing me, I NEED to have an ending for me to plot out where I'm going and how I'm getting there.

This is an exercise that we learned in class 2 weeks ago. 2 characters are in a situation and I have to write a script based on their conversation. To begin, I'll need character names which are RANDOMLY picked from my iTunes library and base the character's names from the artists I select. After the character names are set, I'll find a situation/event/dialogue snippet to place them taken RANDOMLY from the book, The Writer's Book of Matches). After getting the names and the event, it's fair game from there!

But there are objectives that I must try to achieve:
1) each character MUST have their own voice
2) there is dramatic action (drive towards one's goal) constantly happening with EVERY character ALL the time
3) each scene and/or beat must:
    - move the story forward
    - reveal something about the character
    - infer action
4) keep writing CONTINUOUSLY for the allotted amount of time.
5) after I'm done writing, give the piece a KICK-ASS unique title!

Oh, yeah... i'm not expecting these scenes to be any good at first! As I said, this is an exercise to get me writing. What sucks is that I don't get into a groove with the story until the last couple of lines when I realize just where the hell is this story going? But in a way that's the fun of all this!

My Destination Ends at You

My Destination Ends at You
a Scene Stream exercise

Character 1: Brian (Littrell - Jesus Loves You)
Character 2: Nelly (Furtado - Say It Right)

Situation:
While driving to work one morning, (Brian) decides to pass the office and keep on driving.

Time: 20 minutes (start: 11:34pm)

NELLY
Brian, what are you doing? You just missed the exit.

BRIAN doesn't say anything.

NELLY
You know that I have a meeting at 9:30 with the marketing person from Tokyo. I can't miss it.

BRIAN
You'll talk to him next time.

NELLY
You crazy? I've been prepping for this presentation for a month now. I even learned some Japanese.

BRIAN
Like what?

NELLY
Like, "I need this job!"

BRIAN
That doesn't sound like Japanese to me.

NELLY
That's because my Learn to Speak Japanese in 1 month book is on my desk where I need to go but you just missed the exit.

BRIAN
Let's just take this time off.

NELLY
What's wrong, Brian? This isn't like you.

BRIAN
But this is me.

NELLY
No, the Brian I know gets freaked out when he's 5 minutes late for anything.

BRIAN
Didn't you ever have one of those days when you just wanted to explore life and everything around it. You know not just the everyday stuff?

NELLY
Sure, who doesn't?

BRIAN
I don't. Every morning I get up at 5:30am. Put on a pot of coffee. Put on the Jogging shoes. Head out the door. Run until 6:30am. Take a shower. And get the clothes from the hanger that I selected the night before, get dressed. Read the paper with my coffee and jump in here and be at work by 8:45am. Every day.

NELLY
For the last 5 years. Every day.

BRIAN
Exactly.

NELLY
So, what's the change? What's different today than those other days in the last 5 years?

BRIAN
Kevin Sparber.

NELLY
Did this Kevin Sparber tell you to drive passed your work?

BRIAN
He couldn't have. He's dead.

NELLY
So if he's dead, what does he have to do with me missing my Japanese appointment?

BRIAN
Kevin and I went to school together. High school. He was a good guy but I never saw him really achieving much. He was always happy, but the thing I didn't ever connect with him on was that he never achieved. He was a slacker. I haven't seen or heard of him since we graduated from High School... like all high school kids did, we lost contact. We're from a small town, and all I ever wanted to do was move to the big city and make it big. Have the best car. The best Job. Respect. Power. Yeah, that's all I ever wanted... until this morning, in between sips of my Sumatra Blend, I read KEVIN SPARBER from Marina, CA leaves behind a wife and 2 kids ages 9 and 4. He's my age... and I came to think to myself. I don't have anything that I can leave behind. How sad is that? I clawed myself up the school and corporate ladder to travel the world and have this success and now not to have anyone to share it with is... sad.

NELLY
Uh... geez thanks. I thought I was something you'd... fine.

BRIAN
That's not what I meant. I meant that.

NELLY
Why are you stopping? It's the middle of the freeway.

BRIAN
That's why I wanted to drive passed the lives of us trapped in a building. Why we're here on 101 in the middle of the freeway during rush hour. Look, everyone's constantly moving with a destination in mind, when my destination is sitting right next to me. I want to end the crazy pursuit of what I thought was life. I want to have something to leave behind. I want you. Will you marry me?


DONE! time 11:57pm

I totally forgot the other objective to this exercise and that's to have the other person, NELLY, have a totally DIFFERENT voice!!! she has to sound different and I guess my character of BRIAN got too monologue heavy. Eh, it's an exercise, and I'll learn to get better with each one of these I do. Hmmm... now I gotta come up with a title....

Remembering Fermin Tobera

I started doing research about the 1930 Watsonville riot that claimed the life of Fermin Tobera. A play is in there somewhere. The weird coinikidinky in this research is that the riot started at The Filipino Club in Palm Beach which is 7 miles SW of Watsonville, so that would make it near Moss Landing. Anyways the club was owned by William and Charles Locke-Paddon. William Locke-Paddon bought the land called, Marina - My hometown! I can't believe all this Filipino-American history was only 18 miles from my home. here's where I started my research: Remembering the Watsonville Riots from a website called, ModelMinority.com.

The story is about two brothers: Venancio, aka Ben, and Fermin Tobera. Fermin is an idealist who believes in labor workers' rights. Ben just wants to have fun and is always trying to get the girl and having fun. One night when Ben gets in trouble, they come to their house at night where one of the girls' that Ben's has been messing with, anyways her brother shoots up the house killing Fermin. This play is based on the 1930 Watsonville Riots.

Garden Of Dreams

The cast of GARDEN OF DREAMS
Well it's over... for now. On Sunday, I had the first public reading of my play, GARDEN OF DREAMS. I was nervous as fuck, but i got through it okay.

LESSONS LEARNED
- LISTEN TO YOUR ACTORS - A concern was brought to attention by one of the actors. He was having some trouble getting out some of the lines because they read melodramatic. Unfortunately, being the writer with blinders on, I couldn't see it myself. He was absolutely RIGHT. What he calls 'melodramatic' I call 'barf dialogue'. You know when watch something campy, and we see someone saying something utterly romantic or over-the-top that it makes you want to throw up in your mouth. Well, that's what I had in my script by that character.
- OFFENSIVE ACCENT - An audience member came up to me telling me that 1) he liked the whistling device I used and 2) he found it offensive for someone to fake an Filipino accent. I told him that I appreciated his honesty. I'm not going to take that part out! but I will add on to Lisa's character as a reaction to the use of this accent. It's my hope that this is a powerful action by her as to how using this accent can be offensive to people. It was in the play for a reason, and I'm glad someone caught it, but lemme flip it on its ear to teach a lil sumn-sumn.
- DON'T BUTTER UP MY ACTORS - I did this. I'm not taking it back because whether they know it or not, they helped make one of my dreams come true. But moving forward, I'll try and refrain from doing this publicly, but to let them know of this in a more private manner will work just as effectively.

Luckily, I have the reading on videotape which I'll try to review tonight and come up with more notes to post here.

Six Degrees of Separation - Play Review

So I watched SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION tonight at the SF Playhouse and I really liked it. It's so weird now to watch a show from the playwright's POV. Being from the "actors" world before in another life, I would always watch the performances and analyze how they do what - but now, I'm so focused on ALL the elements that I've studied so far and see how this play, or any play I watch, adhere or break from those rules. SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION blew me away, except that I could've done without the naked guy with his thingy flopping around...

SYNOPSIS
Inspired by a true story, the play follows the trail of a young black con man, Paul, who insinuates himself into the lives of a wealthy New York couple, Ouisa and Flan Kittredge, claiming he knows their son at college. Paul tells them he is the son of actor Sidney Poitier, and that he has just been mugged and all his money is gone. Captivated by Paul's intelligence and his fascinating conversation (and the possibility of appearing in a new Sidney Poitier movie), the Kittredges invite him to stay overnight. But in the morning they discover him in bed with a young male hustler from the streets, and the picture begins to change. After kicking him out, Ouisa and Flan discover that friends of theirs have had a similar run-in with the brash con artist. Intrigued, they turn detective and piece together the connections that gave Paul access to their lives. Meanwhile, Paul's cons unexpectedly lead him into darker territory and his lies begin to catch up with him. As the final events of the play unfold Ouisa suddenly finds herself caring for Paul, feeling that he gave them far more than he took and that her once idyllic life was not what it seemed to be.Credit to the description page of the play at - Dramatists Play Service.

WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
There's just SO MUCH that I'm STILL trying to absorb from this play! But there are something things that I'll take from this experience:
- The characters would break the 4th wall and Narrate the scene as if they were telling the story to someone. e.g. After we got done with dinner, I cleaned up the plates, but Paul took them away from me and walked into the kitchen.
- Paul's monologue about IMAGINATION with allusions to THE CATCHER IN THE RYE is AMAZING!
- The beginning of the play began with the moment RIGHT AFTER the major event where Ouisa and Flan are shocked about what they just saw. They start telling the audience of how the evening started that led up to that point and then went back to that point. ie. say the play was from 1 to 10. 1 being the beginning and 10 being the end. The structure went from 4 to 1 to 4 then up linear to 10. I likes!
- Monologues are used very strongly in this play.
- Phone calls are handled by the person on one end of the phone facing the audience and the person on the other end of the phone behind a scrim that is lit up as they are talking. IMPORTANT: neither one of them are pantomiming that they are on a phone, but the fact that it's in the text (e.g. I got Paul on the phone) works and pushes the action through the dialogue instead of being literal.
- A true mystery play! I was on the edge of my seat wondering who was he going to con next and what would eventually happen to him.
- I recognized who the protagonist was at the end of the play, where I was seeking which of the characters had their own arc - it was Ouisa. The only thing missing was that I couldn't really see when Ouisa had that instance of connection with Paul as he was on the phone.
- The use of subtext is what's truly blowing my mind away. Sure there is the con plot that's above the play, but I was intently listening and trying to comprehend, WHY? why does this person who fools others into giving him money and a place to live do such things. At the core, Paul, the con, is lonely. He makes up this world to always have someone with him. And he is SO INTELLIGENT, yet so troubled that my heart bled for this cat all alone in the world. And it's in this dramatic action of him doing anything to have a place to call home, or for company, that I try to find any of the text that supports his drive, and it doesn't even have to be in his text, but overarching with other characters. It just opens up more questions about Kandinsky, JD Salinger, and South Africa. How do these appearing random subjects support this theme.

Yankee Dawg You Die - Script Review

I just finished reading YANKEE DAWG YOU DIE by one of my teachers, Philip Kan Gotanda. Again, I'm inspired by it. For some reason, I always thought the play was something that it obviously is not.

SYNOPSIS
Bradley Yamashita is one of the new breed of Asian-American actors. Highly political and outspoken, he will only take on acting roles that are dignified and unstereotypic. He has recently starred in a small independent film that is the darling of the art crowd, and he arrives in Hollywood full of himself and his politics. Vincent Chang is a survivor. He cut his teeth on the old "Chop Suey" circuit as a hoofer and went on to star in feature films, even garnering an Oscar nomination in the 1950s. Now, though still regal and debonair, Vincent is forced into taking often stereotypic and undignified roles. Through a series of quick-moving scenes, we follow the two men as they meet, form a tenuous friendship and together do battle amidst the often humorous and at times ruthless backdrop of the Hollywood film world. While maintaining the portrayal of integrity as all important, Bradley must face the reality of the same lack of work for Asian actors as Vincent faced in the early days of film. Vincent also teaches Bradley the dignity of survival as he learns to take on more of the cultural responsibility Bradley wishes him to accept.Credit to the description page of the play at - Dramatists Play Service.

MY TAKE
The play is about VINCENT and BRADLEY. 2 Asian American actors trying to make it in the movie industry. One is older, the other is younger. 2 very different views of what they see their roles are being an Asian American actor - yet the art of acting is what brings these two unlikely characters together. I saw these 2 begin at a party with the beginnings of animosity, to them working together, which bred true dislike for one another, and then eventual friendship and respect. Both of the characters had definite arcs and I was really happy to see their turns.

WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
- Philip uses Interludes, a monologue/short scene, to set up the next Scene. I've seen this done with COWBOY VS. SAMURAI by Michael Golamco. But I've never really seen this written on the page.
- Another thing I've yet to see in written form in a play is that Philip titles his scenes. I like this idea because it truly sets up the scene and structure wise, i saw the play as a series of individual scenes rather than all together. YET they still work perfectly all together.
- On these previous notes, he also ends each scene and interlude with "End of Scene" or "End of Interlude"
- Wraps things up nicely. Something I love to use and do with forwards. He'll mention something and will reintroduce it later on to make interject a point or use it in a different way to magnify the same or different subject. This technique of using the same lines and reintroducing them to mean something else happens a lot in this play. Effectively done so, without getting to the point of tiresome. Well maybe in some points, but because I'm usually slow at catching on that he's doing this for a purpose, as EVERY WORD in a script should be, I appreciate it more. The play begins and ends using this method as well!
- I love how the characters tell a story. One of the most challenging things for me to even wrap my head around are MONOLOGUES. How? Why? What? are mainly my questions, but seeing how Philip use them to tell stories and using sub-text between the lines to have meaning/lessons to these stories is a valuable lesson.

In summary, this play has affected me more than just reading it. I saw a lot of things I could use, and made me question how I see myself as an Asian American in this crazy world of succeeding and what, if any, personal sacrifices I allow myself to take. A definite goal of what I want to write.

Zoot Suit - Script Review

I just read ZOOT SUIT by Luis Valdez play and I LOVE IT! There's just so many great things that I've learned from reading it.

SYNOPSIS
In Zoot Suit, Luis Valdez weaves a story involving the real-life events of the Sleepy Lagoon murder trial — when a group of young Mexican-Americans were wrongfully charged with murder — and the Zoot Suit Riots. In the play, Henry Reyna (inspired by real-life defendant Henry Leyvas) is a pachuco gangster and his gang, who were unfairly prosecuted, are thrown in jail for a murder they did not commit. The play is set in the barrios of Los Angeles in the early 1940s against the backdrop of the Zoot Suit Riots and World War II.Taken from Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoot_Suit_%28play%29


WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
OMG! I don't even know where to begin...
- In wonderful surprise, well not maybe considering Valdez's history with SFMT, that it felt "like" at Mime Troupe production. There were songs and music and dancing to totally bring to life the era that this production takes place in. If I was in the audience, I'd me immersed in the chicano flavor.
- There was a court scene where Della is explaining what happened that night at Sleepy Lagoon and it switches between scenes of her giving her testimony and the actual night that her and Henry were there. Visually amazing even though this was written on the page.
- Pachuco was the inner voice of Henry. He was also the narrator. In a way that I've never seen, he controlled the play. In Act 1, Scene 9, when the judge says, "The zoot haircuts will be retained..." and then Pachuco, "You hear that one, ese? Listen to it again." (Snaps) The Judge repeats the line automatically. So cool!
- In the same way, he changes the end of Henry's story 3 times.
- Like Equus, when there's a scene where Alice writes the boys, she speaks what is in the letters, but also answers the letters as if they were having a conversation... through the letters.
- I really loved the Family aspect of the play.

How to write a 10-minute play

HOW TO WRITE A 10-MINUTE PLAY
copied and pasted from 10-Minute-Plays.com (http://www.10-minute-plays.com/index.html)

TWELVE RULES FOR THE ASPIRING PLAYWRIGHT

1) NO EXPOSITION! Just jump into your story. This presents a puzzle for the audience to unravel and allows them to play with you. Remember—we are fascinated by the unknown!

2) EVERY DETAIL MUST RELATE TO THE ACTION OF THE PLAY. You've got ten minutes—there's no time for anything extraneous. Nothing is random. (Although at first it may appear to be so!) If you are writing a play about dogs, the curtain goes up, and there on the stage is a bone.

3) KNOW WHAT YOUR PLAY IS ABOUT AND WRITE INTO THE METAPHOR. More than anything else, this will give your play a sense of unity.

4) A CHARACTER SPEAKS TO GET WHAT HE WANTS. All characters have DREAMS. These dreams are what make him unique. How are they fulfilled? How are they not fulfilled? How do they turn in on themselves?

5) A CHARACTER SHOULD BE OFF-BALANCE IN SOME WAY. Real characters are excessive in some areas. Deficient in others. If there is no disparity between what your characters are saying and what they are doing, you probably aren’t writing theatre.

6) DON’T WASTE TIME TALKING ABOUT ANYTHING YOU CAN SHOW. Images are more powerful than words!

7) EVERY GREAT PLAY HAS A POINT OF NO RETURN. The protagonist crosses the line. Now there is no turning back!

8) NEVER LET YOUR CHARACTERS OFF TOO EASY! If you do, what they’ve just been through won’t have meant anything. They may escape with their lives—but just barely!

9) EVERY PROTAGONIST MUST HAVE A JOURNEY. He should end up someplace radically different from where he began. BIG THINGS HAPPEN—not everyday life with endless pouring of coffee and lighting of cigarettes. LIFE-ALTERING EVENTS. If your protagonist ends up in the same place he started, he must go through Hell and back to get there.

10) FIND WHAT IS UNIVERSAL IN YOUR SCRIPT. These are windows that allow us to enter your world. Fuck Brecht! We want to relate!

11) REMEMBER THAT THE CLIMAX IS WHERE A PLAY WINS OR LOSES! The audience is rewarded for their attention. (The big pay-off!) The test of a great play is SELF DISCOVERY.

12) EVERY DETAIL COMES TOGETHER IN THE END. (See Rule #2) Somehow or another, we come back to that bone. Always pay off the bone!

Stories High Session 2 - Playwriting Notes

Here's some general notes that I took for me from the latest class.

- Beat:
  - building blocks of theater/play/script
  - each beat moves the story forward
  - can be seen when different tactics or strategies are used to develop the protagonist's Action (want)

- If you have a block, look at the play's Action, Conflict, and Event

- Event: the moment when a character either gets what he or she wants,
or definitively does not get it; there are normally many smaller
events in a play, but the main event is the result of action and
conflict; an event may take many different forms, but is always some
sort of change. (from Sam's notes)

- Reading/Listening tips:
  - write down beats
  - what sounded good
  - what doesn't make sense
  - what information is revealed by the dialogue/action

- Stakes:
  - goals should be high to make the protagonist NEED to get their want
  - explore what would happen if the character DOESN'T get what they want

- EACH character should have an action!

- All characters need a sense of history.

- Characters:
  - General Qualities: ie. how would you/others describe them
  - State of mind: ie. if they are lonely, how does this drive their action
  - Speech and Act: what do they say and do to define themselves and their drive towards their action.

Where's Your Brother?

Where's Your Brother
by conrad panganiban

Louise Parker - Mid 50's
Benny Parker - Late teens

Setting: Night, The Parker living room, Rural Kansas, Present

LOUISE and her teenage son, BENNY, are in their living room where BENNY is cutting his mother's toenails. There's an pizza box and a glass of wine on a table.

LOUISE
Don't cut my toe nails too close, Benny.

BENNY
Sorry, Ma.

LOUISE
Did you hear from your brother yet?

BENNY
No, Ma.

LOUISE
It's getting late out there.

BENNY
Yes, Ma.

LOUISE
Just one at a time Benny. You don't have to go so fast. Look at that. They're crooked.

BENNY
Sorry, Ma.

LOUISE
It's okay, Sweety. Did you eat all your slices?

BENNY
Yes, Ma.

(BENNY gets up to open the window.)

LOUISE
Look at you. So thin. Don't they feed you anything at that school of yours? I swear, this heat is killing me. Open the window dear. Let some air in. Doesn't it sound pretty out there? Me and your daddy used to sit under those stars and just wonder how our life would turn out. I miss him. While you're up, get me that glass on the table will ya? (BENNY gives wine glass to LOUISE) That's a good, son. Your brother shoulda come home by now.

BENNY
He'll be here soon Ma. He told me after he dropped me home. He always keeps... keeps his word Ma.

LOUISE
I wished your daddy did the same.

BENNY
What are you thinkin' Ma?

LOUISE
Just where the hell your brother's at.

BENNY
You... you don't have to worry about him Ma. I'm... I'm here. You don't need him to protect you.

LOUISE
I didn't mean it like that.

BENNY
I think... I think that you did. I'm a big boy too, Ma.

LOUISE
Oh Benny. I know you are.

BENNY
The you don't need... him... any more.

LOUISE
I love you both Benny.

BENNY
No... no you don't!

LOUISE
Now, don't get huffy and puffy.

(BENNY picts up the bottle of red wine.)

LOUISE
Benny. Put that down!

BENNY
You don't need him!

(BENNY throws the bottle of wine down causing the red wine to splatter everywhere.)

LOUISE
Look what you did! The wine's all on the carpet. That stain's going to be hard to come off. And look at your shirt. You got wine all over it.

BENNY
I'm a big boy, Ma. You don't need him.

LOUISE
Oh, my. I ran out of Clorox the other day. How'm I gonna get that red out of your brand new shirt? I told your brother to bring back some clorox on the way back from the store, and it's already late.

BENNY
No Clorox! No Clorox coming!

LOUISE
Okay, I'll call it bleach.

BENNY
Why do you love him more?

LOUISE
And I just washed the whites yesterday.

BENNY
Ma?

LOUISE
Take off your shirt, boy. I'll get rid of that stain.

BENNY
No! No Clorox coming! Never. Why don't you love me?

LOUISE
What's this have to do with this stain?

BENNY
The stain is Robert. Barn.

LOUISE
Robert? What about your brother? Where you two messin' with the barn paint again? No wonder this stain is so red.

BENNY
Robert... stain... love me Ma!

(BENNY starts to sob.)

LOUISE
Oh dear. Don't start cryin'. It'll come out. Look, it's a little red. Where is that brother of yours now that I need him.

BENNY
Stain... Robert...

LOUISE
You said that already. Robert this this stain on you at the barn.

BENNY
No! Robert is the stain. He's already home.

LOUISE
Well, why didn't you say that? Where is he?

BENNY
Behind the barn.

LOUISE
Well go get him.

BENNY
He's dead and I killed him.

LOUISE
What?...


THE END... for now.


NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment was to write a dialogue between two people. We were given the names and the setting with the rule that these two people would not be allowed to leave the room. Also, we had 20 minutes of continuous writing to come up with this scene.

So, I had no idea where this was going when I first started writing. Slowly, the characters started to open up and tell their story.

Every Character needs to have an Action

Before I run out again, I just got back from the Stories Hight Playwriting workshop and , for me, the most important lesson I got was that EVERY character that appears in a scene needs to have an Action defined as having a defined want and goal at that particular space in time. I'll write down my notes in a new blog. bye!

Defending A Treasure

This story is about... a young lawyer who is assigned a case to defend a recently retired U.S. Navy veteran for treason.

Write Actions to Show Character

I'm still at home waiting for the electrician to get back from getting things for my stupid doorbell and address light fixture. But I'm flipping through the channels and stopped on THE INSIDER on HBO with Russell Crowe.

Anyways, in 2 short minutes, there's a scene with Russell Crowe and his daughter as she's having a asthma attack. He hooks up a machine and she's cured. In this scene we can tell that this isn't current because it's a machine not an inhaler. and also, really briefly, before the scene started it looked like there was conflict between Russell's character and his wife. after the daughter's asthma attack subsided, the wife is sitting next to the daughter, Russell is in front of the daughter with the machine, and we see the wife put her hand on Russell's hand. The conflict is resolved. True, with the use of camera, we can see that the spouses give each other the 'understanding' look, but still it communicated.

I've been having an internal conflict of whether or not to write stage directions in my scripts. You can see examples of that from my previous posts labeled 'script'. but with this brief action, a hand on top of another, that direction spoke volumes to me.

Briefly, another direction/action that comes to mind is when I watched a production of MACBETH. Macduff, when talking about his wife, kisses his wedding band. Not written, but again, spoke volumes.

There are times when I'll opt not to use stage directions, which I'll feel the director can aptly take care of, but when it comes to an IMPORTANT action to reveal a character and move the story forward, I will. Huge lesson learned.

GARDEN OF DREAMS - A Play Reading

In a few weeks, the Sinag-tala Program of SFTPAA will be hosting a script reading of my first full-length play GARDEN OF DREAMS. No lie, I'm nervous as hell. In fact, I don't really know how to feel, since it kinda changes every day. Now, I'm really glad that we're having a quick rehearsal a day earlier. Also, luckily, at least I had the first read in February where hopefully I've addressed some issues, as well as take the feedback from PKG's workshop.

What I hope to gain from this is to see what works and what doesn't. I'll tape it cuz of my on and off memory for details.

I'm NERVOUS!

On The Page - A Scriptwriting Podcast

So I'm racking my brain about the best way to "attack" writing my next play. My biggest hurdle seems to be Research. I have my subject, but I think that I'm taking way too much time figuring out how I'm going research this subject instead of actually writing the play. I was, still planning to, write to my previous instructors on how they research subjects for their plays, but then this topic came up on a podcast that i'm listening to called ON THE PAGE hosted by Pilar Alessandra.

In the most current episode of ON THE PAGE, it was kismet that the topic of Research came up. What her and her co-hosts/producer advised to do was WRITE THE SCRIPT. All the research stuff can come up after the story is done. Which makes perfect sense to me, since that seems to have pinned the nail on my problem of not even starting to write the play - I've been spending too much time worried about how to research it.

Other advice from them regarding research:
- Use the internet. Luckily, with this medium, I can research different locations and thoughts even.
- Ask someone with knowledge on the topic. Spend a couple of bucks on a coffee or Jamba Juice and the information you get back might be ten-fold that amount - which is $20 - $30... but you know what I mean.

Thanks ON THE PAGE for the advice!

A Few Good Men - Script Review

As I type this, I'm waiting for the electrician to knock on my door to fix the broken doorbell. In an earlier post, I said that my next script will have something to do with U.S. Filipino Navy Veterans and their families. I'm thinking about wrapping that theme around a courtroom drama - something I have yet to see involving a filipino family, but an idea that's been floating around since that kid got busted for planning a Columbine attack on DeAnza JC in Cupertino. Anyways, in trying to figure out how to attack writing the play I'm starting with some research, which brings me to A FEW GOOD MEN by Aaron Sorkin. I love this movie and I also loved THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT which he also penned. But I needed to see how it read for the stage.

SYNOPSIS
In this dramatic courtroom thriller, Lt. Daniel Kaffee, a Navy lawyer who has never seen the inside of the courtroom, defends two stubborn Marines who have been accused of murdering a colleague. Kaffee is known as being lazy and had arranged for a plea bargain. Downey's Aunt Ginny appoints Cmdr. Galloway to represent him. Also on the legal staff is Lt. Sam Weinberg. The team rounds up many facts and Kaffee is discovering that he is really cut out for trial work. The defense is originally based upon the fact that PFC Santiago, the victim, was given a "CODE RED". Santiago was basically a screw-up. At Gitmo, screw-ups aren't tolerated. Especially by Col. Nathan Jessup. In Cuba, Jessup and two senior officers try to give all the help they can, but Kaffee knows something's fishy. In the conclusion of the film, the fireworks are set off by a confrontation between Jessup and Kaffee. Written by Matt Curtolo {curt@epix.net} Unfortunately, I didn't like the ending in the play as much as I liked the ending of the movie, however, I'll give it a pass since Sorkin wrote the screenplay as well. The movie ending was MUCH MORE taught including the moving of the famous 'You can't handle the truth!' line.

WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
- I LOVE Arron Sorkin's INSANELY quick humor and one-liners. But each one liner has a background to them as well as planted history. Example, we first meet JO (played by Demi Moore in the movie) in WHITAKER'S office because she wants to be assigned to the Santiago case. History is planted because JO made his staff handwrite court documents during Christmas. Almost 50 pages later, when ROSS (Kevin Bacon) first meets JO, he brings up, 'Ebenezer Galloway?' Genius. There's more examples of this in the link provided below.
- Like EQUUS and HYSTERIA, Sorkin used a device of "flashback" through a letter from PFC SANTIAGO.

WHITAKER
This letter that Santiago wrote wasn't the first.

JO
In fact, it was his twelfth...

(Lights up on SANTIAGO)

SANTIAGO
Dear Senator, My name is PFC William T. Santiago. I am...

FAVORITE LINES
here's a link with some of my favorite lines... which makes me think. I'll do this to moving forward - a new section with my favorite lines/stage directions pulled from the printed text.
A Few Good Men Lines

Hysteria - Play Review

On Sunday afternoon (aka the Blue-Haired Show), I went to see a play called HYSTERIA at the Aurora Theater, which is right next to Berkeley Rep. It was hilarious!

SYNOPSIS
Set in 1938, in the study of the aged and dying Sigmund Freud, in his Hampstead home in London, the peace of a wintry night is disturbed by an unexpected visitor. This is Jessica, a young woman who has a complex emotional problem to resolve. Upon further exploration it soon becomes apparent that Jessica is the daughter of a former patient of Freud’s. Freud is reluctant to engage in discussion with Jessica but she is persistent. As the action progresses, the suburban calm is further ruffled as a further two visitors appear. First is Abraham Yahuda, close but critical colleague and friend of Freud, and then the Spanish maestro of surrealism, Dali himself. In an attempt to take control of the situation and manage the meeting of the three very different visitors Freud becomes embroiled in the most ridiculous farce.

From then on nothing is what it seems. The clock on the wall seems to melt, the telephone turns into a lobster, files and manuscripts mysteriously change places, and Dalí begins to pursue the young Jessica with blatant advances. As the play unfolds, the audience is subjected to dark and disturbing stories, juxtaposed with hysterically funny mishaps and revelations that beg the questions ‘is this real, or the product of Freud’s unconscious mind?’ ‘Is Freud, dead or alive?’

WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
- this play used a bookend structure - it begins and ends with the same scene. Using this device made me question whether if Sigmund Freud was already dead or just about to die in his search to uncover the mystery of Jessica's Mother's death.
- In his final moments of life he continues to "cure" himself of his fears and questions his prior work if they indeed meant something.
- There was a clock UR on a back wall. Between Acts I and II, the lights faded on stage except a special on the clock, which forced the audience to see the clock's hands fast forward.
- Jessica starts to read from her mother's journal entry about her mother's session with Dr. Freud. She has committed it to memory whilst Dali read's Dr. Freud's part. While reciting, she becomes her mother in that moment as she describes horrendous acts by her father.
- In reciting this story, she uses ACTIONS of 1) constantly wiping her right shoulder while keeping her 3 middle fingers togther and 2) constantly gagging because of the saltiness she tasted in her mouth used in the beginning of the play. Also, these two ACTIONS were used to describe 2 different stories, first as a guise, second as the truth.
- Farce was used amazingly. I haven't seen a good farce since NOISES OFF at CSUS. a lot of switched identities, slamming doors, and absurd images abound!
- I guess that there's no limits to special effects: 1) the walls melted 2) clock melted 3) lobster phone 4) train smoke and lights at the door 5) rubbery door knobs...

Wanna see a play, but they're too expensive?

Hey, money's a grip which sucks cuz i really want to see as much theater as I can. Luckily I found a group that I was a part of a while ago, but I forgot my stupid password. So I signed up again, and I'm glad that I did. It's called Goldstar.com! I've noticed that I'll be able to save up to 50% on tickets. Hella stoked! something i'll be using a lot.

But it wouldn't be fun if it was only me using it, so if I'm passing the savings on to you too, if you want! click the logo above or this link to start saving: Goldstar Events.

Thanks!

Equus - Script Review

Here's my first Review of a script that I just finished reading. This is actually my FIRST review I've written about anything. But the more I do, hopefully I'll learn from the devices the playwright uses and adapt them into my writing.

The play is called EQUUS by Peter Shaffer. It was first produced at the National Theater in July of 1973. I think I messed up when I bought this version of the play from Borders. It wasn't until Act I Scene 5 when I realized the stage directions used in this production was used in the book. But when I was looking for an image to use for this blog, I saw a whole bunch of pictures that pretty much looked like they were from the descriptions in the play I read. That didn't make any sense...

MY SYNOPSIS
In my first reading, meaning that I really need to read it again, I was really taken in by how the play began: a monologue by the Narrator, Dr. Martin Dysart. There's an image of Alan Strang, the main character, as he is with a horse. Dysart reveals that Alan had just blinded six horses in a stable where he worked. Alan was sent to Dr. Dysart instead of prison because the judge felt that he is a little too looney for life behind the bars. So the play is about this Doctor deciding whether or not this kid is crazy or putting on an act to stay out of jail. When we first meet Alan, all he does is sing jingles from the tele (the play takes place in England). The play reads like a courtroom drama because the Dr. asks him questions about why he did this? The themes of religion and parent-child relationships hold strong with this play. We are introduced to both his parents and we see how they affect his outlook on life. Each parent is different: Mother, very religious; Father, not. We slowly get to see how screwed up this kid really is because he thinks that the horses are talking to him, and actually he thinks that they are Gods. When he is with a girl, Jill, in the stables "doing the do" he feels the horses are mocking him. This drives him crazy to do what he is accused of doing. Of course, there's more to this script, but you'll have to either read it or find a summary of it.

WHAT I'LL STEAL LEARN TO USE
- The play is about how the Dr. explores Alan's family and his past. One way this is done was having a character remember sitting in front of the television and from behind the actors playing the parents start to explain their case why television is bad.
- The set is minimal. The human actors are seated around the set and when they are needed they step into/around a light to designate a location.

My goal

My goal is to have a play produced in a state outside of California by the age of 40. Can I do it? Sana... But that's why I started this site. Hope you take this ride with me... like all good drama - will i succeed or fail?

Constant learning

So another thing that I'm doing aside from reading other scripts and writing is looking at other sites on the web to learn about the craft of playwriting. PLUS, I'm also compiling a list of blog sites of other playwrights. See if I could glean something from their experience. I'll post links on this site of the ones I really like and learn from.

Welcome to Conrad's Playspace

Hola! I've decided that I'd set up my own blog just for my plays, reviews, and randomness about my journey into being a playwright. I'll be transferring all of my entries from my personal blog onto here so I can officially journalize this trip, plus so I can have my personal space back to itself to comment about random things that happen in my life. I'm excited about this new blog/journal.

These are all the stuff I'll have on here:

• My Short Plays
• Links to my longer plays
• Reviews of Plays I've seen
• Reviews of Plays I've read
• Lessons I've learned about Playwriting from various sources
• Personal thoughts of Playwriting/Theater
• Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera

Thanks for dropping by.

Gabriella in the Hood

Gabriella in the Hood
by conrad panganiban

Mac G - early 20's
Gabriella - mid 30's

Setting: Sidewalk. East Oakland. Present.

GABRIELLA
What? You're cutting out. I said that I'm in East Oakland. It's near San Francisco. I'll be fine. What? Research. This will be good. I swear. Hello? Hello?

MAC G
Nice phone.

GABRIELLA
Thanks.

MAC G
Looks expensive.

GABRIELLA
Not really.

MAC G
Give it to me.

GABRIELLA
What?

MAC G
I said give it to me and your bag!

GABRIELLA
Are you in a gang?

MAC G
What?

GABRIELLA
Are you in the 12th Street Crew?

MAC G
Bitch! I ain't playin'! Does this look like a toy?

GABRIELLA
Crap. Hold up. Can you say that again?

MAC G
What?

GABRIELLA
Start off with 'bitch'! I like how you said that.

MAC G
Fo realz, I ain't playin'! Get that tape recorder out of my face.

GABRIELLA
Biatch!

MAC G
What you call me?

GABRIELLA
No. Can you say 'Get that tape recorder out of my face.' again? And add 'Biatch' to the end of that.

MAC G
What the fuck? Nobody says biatch.

GABRIELLA
What about 'bizzle mah nizzle'?

MAC G
Just give me your shit! Damn, this bag's heavy! What the fuck you got in here?

GABRIELLA
Just some books and paper.

MAC G
That's it?

GABRIELLA
Yeah.

MAC G
Then give me that too.

GABRIELLA
You can take everything but this. I have all my notes recorded on this.

MAC G
Imma bust a cap in yo ass if you don't give that to me!

GABRIELLA
Good stuff! 'Bust a cap in your ass!'

MAC G
In YO ass!

GABRIELLA
Right. 'In YO ass!'

MAC G
What the hell are you doin'?

GABRIELLA
Research. I'm writing a script about girl from the rich suburbs kidnapped by a gang and then chooses to become one of them to spite her over-protective parents. It's going to be called, "Chloe in the Hood." I haven't had a script produced in a while, and I really need this story to work.

MAC G
What? That story's hella wack!

GABRIELLA
Why? Because your gang wouldn't kidnap anyone, right?

MAC G
Stupid cuz no one chooses to be in a gang.

GABRIELLA
But it's to spite her parents.

MAC G
I'm just sayin' that shit ain't real.

GABRIELLA
Then what is?

MAC G
I'm warning you! Get that shit out of my face.

GABRIELLA
Research. I need to know what you know about the gritty life in the innercity.

MAC G
Told you this ain't a game out here! Shut that recorder off, before I permanently shut you off!

GABRIELLA
Oooo... that's good! What's your name?

MAC G
Fuck it! You're pissing me off.

GABRIELLA
Hey! Where are you going with my stuff?

MAC G
You wanted life in the innercity? Think of me as Ashton Kutcher of the hood. You just got JACK'D!

GABRIELLA
I need your name for the movie.

MAC G
Movie?

GABRIELLA
I might not give a shit about my things, but I believe in being fair. Do you want to help me out?

MAC G
With the movie thang?

GABRIELLA
I need to fly out to L.A. in a couple of days to show my boss what I got, but I can't leave without a story - a Real story. And I don't think I can do that without your help. So, are you interested?

MAC G
Marcus Gardley, but everyone calls me Mac G.

GABRIELLA
Gabriella Montez.

MAC G
Hold up? Like in Gabriella Montez from High School Musical? I meant, yeah, fuck. My little sister watches that shit.

GABRIELLA
Yeah... I get that all the time. My ex-boyfriend wrote the screenplay. And his name is Troy.

MAC G
No shit. Like Troy Bolton and the Wildcats?

GABRIELLA
Nice to know you like that kind of stuff.

MAC G
Yo... I said my little sister watches that. I just happen to catch it when I'm babysitting her.

GABRIELLA
So, do we have a deal?

MAC G
Will I get paid?

GABRIELLA
As a consultant.

MAC G
Fuck yeah, I'm interested! I mean. Yeah. S'all good.

GABRIELLA
Great! Thanks. Take my card from my bag.

MAC G
Oh shit. Sorry. Here's your shit back.

GABRIELLA
As I said, take this card and call me tomorrow and we'll make this story... real.

MAC G
Coo... I mean, Thanks!

GABRIELLA
Fo sho.


THE END

NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters. Character A wants something tangible from character B, and character B wants something intangible from character A.

Michael Jordan Killed the Fil-Am Mullet

Michael Jordan Killed the Fil-Am Mullet
by conrad panganiban

Will - Early 20's
Theo - Early 20's
Lisa - Early 20's

Setting: Theo's kitchen. Early 1990's.

WILL
Hey Theo. Theo! Lemme in fool! Open up! Hey... Waaasssuuup?!

THEO
Hey. 'Sup Will?

WILL
What's wrong with you?

THEO
Shhh... not too loud. Words of advice... don't ever something called a 'Tequila Popper!' Oh, my head.

WILL
That'll teach you to get drunk for the 3rd time this week.

THEO
It's Spring Break... It's what we're supposed to do. Speaking of which, where the hell was your ass last night? I kept paging you. Jocelyn Enriquez performed at DV8.

WILL
I'll catch her next week at the Fiesta, but last night, I was busy.

THEO
Too busy for (singing and dancing) I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT YOU, AND I DON'T Ouch! My head...

WILL
Where do you keep the aspirin? Take this. I was talking to Lisa last night.

THEO
If you're not talking about Lisa Lisa from the Cult Jam, I'm not listening.

WILL
No. Lisa from Chicago.

THEO
Oh, yeah (yawns) that girl you met at your cousin's debut.

WILL
No, she's my sister's College roommate.

THEO
Same thing. Hey, can we hook up a little later? I need my beauty rest.

WILL
I don't have forever to wait for your beauty to come around. She's on her way here and I need your skills.

THEO
Not now, man. I can't even think straight.

WILL
C'mon. She'll be here soon. My sister's picking her up from the airport and I can't have her seeing me with my hair looking like this!

THEO
Just put on a hat!

WILL
I want to impress her.

THEO
If you want to do that, why don't you just take her to the Warriors' game against the Bulls tonight?

WILL
Duh. That's why she's flying in. C'mon, Theo. Hook a brotha up.

THEO
You coulda hooked me up with a ticket to the game too.

WILL
One step ahead of you, Bro.

THEO
Sit down.

WILL
Thanks, man. Wait 'til you meet her. She's great!

THEO
Yeah. Yeah.

WILL
Remember the way I like it. Short on the sides...

THEO
And long in the back. I know.

WILL
We talked for hours last night about everything. Like the new BoyzIIMen CD and even the OJ thing in the Ford Bronco. You'll love her, Theo. Theo!

THEO
What?

WILL
Dude, you were falling asleep! I heard a snore!

THEO
If your story about Lisa wasn't so damn boring, I'd be awake.

WILL
Shut up and cut. She even told me that Filipinos are different out here than in the Midwest.

THEO
Yeah? (yawn)

WILL
Yup yup. She says that she's never even heard the word 'hella' before.

THEO
Yeah. (yawn) Hella interesting.

WILL
Remember. Keep in long in the back. Hey. Do you still have any more spray in the Aquanet can? I wanna spike my hair in front.

THEO
Yeah... I got.... .... Oh shit!

WILL
What?

THEO
Nothing. Nothing! I'm awake. I'm awake. You said that she's flyin' in just for the game?

WILL
Hopefully not just for the game, if you know what I mean. But, yeah, she got mad knowledge about basketball. Well, duh, she's from Chicago. Home of the greatest basketball player to ever live.

THEO
Bill Weddington?

WILL
No, fool! Michael Jordan. That's her favorite player.

THEO
Yeah. That's cool.

WILL
Are you done yet? Where's the mirror?

THEO
Not yet!!! Uh, almost done.

WILL
Everything okay?

THEO
Of course! Why'd you ask? Everything's fine. Perfect even. You just haven't... had a hair cut in a long while. Yeah. Lots of hair. Lots of it...

WILL
Dude. I'm a guy. I don't have that much hair... which is all on the... floor?! What the hell?! Where's the mirror?!! Where's the... What the hell did you do to my head?!

THEO
I told you I was tired... besides it's the new thang?

WILL
Short on the sides - not all the way around!

THEO
The Fil-Am mullet is going out of style anyways.

WILL
Then let me get rid of yours!

THEO
Now, let's not talk crazy!

WILL
I'll kill you! Where's the knife? You're dead! Come back here!

(Enter LISA)

LISA
Uh, Hi. I'm Lisa. Will's sister found a note saying that Will would be here. But I can come back later...

WILL
Lisa. Hi! It's me. Will!

LISA
I didn't recognize you without your...

THEO
Mullet?

LISA
I was going to say hair.

WILL
Uh, yeah. My EX-best friend and next door neighbor got a little carried away with the clippers, and...

LISA
No need to explain. I kinda like it. The shape of your head looks a lot like Michael Jordan's. I really like it. Especially, how it feels...

WILL
You do?

LISA
Hella.


THE END

NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters in which character A wants something from B, and gets it or doesn't get it, but in getting/not getting it, gets a third, unexpected thing.

Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing

Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing
by conrad panganiban

Harrison - early 20's
Marié (Mah-ree-yay) - early 20's
Mirabella - early 20's

Setting: Harrison and Marié's apartment

MARI´E
Looks like they got you good, Harrison.

HARRISON
Shh... you don't have to yell. How bad does it look, Marié?

MARI´E
Lemme see. I don't think that a penis on your forehead will come into fashion soon. Luckily, markers aren't too permanent.

HARRISON
Fuckin' Dino! He's always carrying around a Sharpie. Oh, my head. I swear I'll never drink again.

MARI´E
Sure you won't. Hey, I was wondering, didn't you have a class with Professor Lee?

HARRISON
Yeah. I'm glad I got that class out of the way.

MARI´E
Who'd of ever figured that a class called Business 319: Subliminal Devices of Microscopic Marketing would be so hard?

HARRISON
It really wasn't that bad.

MARI´E
Wasn't that bad? Did you hear about that one student a couple of semesters ago?

HARRISON
Jeremiah Splat?

MARI´E
That wasn't his name.

HARRISON
What else do you call someone who jumps off the fifth story of the Business building after failing one of Professor Lee's tests?

MARI´E
It wasn't just a test. It was a final. Not only that, it was the Final Final. The one all marketing majors need to pass to graduate. And you're saying that it wasn't that bad?

HARRISON
Eh...

MARI´E
So, what'd you do get through it?

HARRISON
I'm just naturally gifted. What? What? Okay, fine... with... where is that thing? Bingo! With this.

MARI´E
Big whoop. Everybody needs that for the course.

HARRISON
Open it.

MARI´E
What the...? Where'd you get this?

HARRISON
And you said that the only benefit for joining Zeta Omega Psi was the Raging Keggers!

MARI´E
Isn't it?

HARRISON
Well, yeah. But another thing is hookups from frat brothers. Dino gave it to me.

MARI´E
I love you, Harrison! The notes in here will so get me through to graduation.

HARRISON
Sorry. I'm giving this to Mirabella.

MARI´E
But you know how much I need this to graduate!

HARRISON
You can buy one from the bookstore.

MARI´E
Hello? I can't buy the Teacher's Edition at the store.

HARRISON
Sorry, muchacha. Yo no can-oh do-oh.

MARI´E
My dad will kill me if I don't graduate!

HARRISON
I already promised her.

MARI´E
I'm your roommate.

HARRISON
But you don't sleep with me.

MARI´E
I will if you give me the book.

HARRISON
Ew... you're like my sister.

MARI´E
You're right. I think I just threw up in my mouth. Okay. Okay. I'll pay your share of next month's rent.

HARRISON
You don't have to do that.

MARI´E
I'll also take care of the cleaning duties for the rest of the semester... including your bathroom.

HARRISON
The whole semester... No. I can't do it. I'm in love with Mirabella. She needs it to graduate too. And when she does, we'll both get good jobs at marketing firms, get married, and live happily ever after.

MARI´E
Don't forget to visit my rotting corpse at the cemetery with your wife, kids, and minivan after my dad kills me for failing that class because you didn't give me that book.

HARRISON
Guilt won't work on me, cuz you're not my mom. Besides, he's not going to kill you.

MARI´E
Yes, he will! When we went to the Philippines last summer, he did things with a bolo knife to a pig that would make Jeffery Dahmer proud of him.

HARRISON
Speaking of which, is there any lechon left in the fridge?

MARI´E
Didn't you even listen to a word I said? And No. Don't you remember what you did to it after the party?

HARRISON
Why? Did I do something inappropriate with it?

MARI´E
You kinda blew chunks all over it. You really don't remember anything from last night?

HARRISON
The last thing I remember was falling into the tub filled with Jello shots.

MARI´E
What about what happened after that?

HARRISON
I woke up naked in the laundry room. Don't tell me that you took a picture of me in there. What's that?

MARI´E
Dino borrowed my phone to take some pictures of ya! What else do we have here? Whoa. Uh...

HARRISON
What? Who is...? Give me that! Oh my God... Erase those picts, Marié!

MARI´E
Do you even know her name?

HARRISON
I don't even know her.

MARI´E
Looks like she got to know you very well.

HARRISON
Oh my God. What did I do?

MARI´E
I know what you will do and that's to give me the book.

HARRISON
That's blackmail.

MARI´E
And this is cheating on your girlfriend.

HARRISON
You wouldn't.

MARI´E
Apparently, you did.

HARRISON
(despondent) What did I do?

MARI´E
You can start by giving me the book.

HARRISON
Here. Keep it. Crap! What am I gonna do?

MARI´E
Harrison. I was kidding. Look. I'm deleting these. You know that I wasn't really going to show these to Mirabella.

(Enter MIRABELLA)

MIRABELLA
Show me what? Hey, babe? Why's there a penis drawn on your forehead?


THE END


NOTE: This is written as an exercise for my Playwriting Workshop. The workshop is offered through Bindlestiff Studio in San Francisco for their Stories High Program. The assignment: Write a scene with two characters. Character A wants a book from character B.

my new full-length play

my new full-length play will be about Filipinos in the US Navy. That's my subject, but i have no idea about what the story will be, YET! i'm hoping that by brainstorming here, something will come out.

so this started from going to a wedding this past weekend down in san diego. the wedding was on a naval base, and the daughter for one of my dad's closest friends was the one getting hitched. anyways, it made me start to think about these men. what made these men join the navy and provide for their families? i just found out that the US started granting filipinos to join the us navy in order to have a military base in the pi. just everything about this subject is very personal and add onto that... i miss my dad. we never really talked about anything, well except when he'd yell or nag at me about something. but being at this wedding... seeing his compadres. all navy retired men.

so, as i said this is my subject. i have no story. i'm almost finished reading a screenwriting book by this guy named syd field. at first i was very weary of picking up this book for the simple fact that i'm going to be a PLAYWRIGHT, and i was feeling pretty stuck up. but i had to put that aside and tell myself that at the core of ALL OF THIS is that i just want to be a storyteller. this book, "Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting" has totally opened my eyes and really made me aware of a story/films structure. something that i never really thought about, but something that i definitely needed.

so here a couple of story ideas that are floating in my noggin':
- a group of navy retirees get together to honor someone who's died and there's a hidden treasure involved
- something to do with a navy family
- more things...

anyways, i'll write more later.

btw, i had a lot of fun just getting away! very much needed!