Norway – ETB

#MondayMusings – Awesome Oslo

Laurie Hutzler — Mon, 25 Sep 2017 06:00:58 +0000

MONDAY MUSINGS

I have been away from Norway for a while. When I arrived, I realized how much I missed working in Oslo. The Drama Days summit was wonderful. Interesting panels and most of my local professional colleagues in one place!! I did a short lecture on The Emotional Toolbox and the following day a full day workshop.

I had a great weekend off– well, sort of off. I had several project synopsis to read in preparation for one-on-one consultations for the Norwegian Film Institute. Excited to meet all the writers. Several of the projects have already been commissioned by the NRK (Norway’s equivalent to the BBC).

Some great drama and comedy shows are coming from the network– I particularly loved Norsemen, a wacky comedy, Valkyrien, a wonderful medical thriller, and Occupied, a show about the stealth takeover of the Norwegian government by Russia for the oil and gas resources (on TV 2). You can catch all of this on Netflix!

Here is a great video that gives a taste of Oslo:

Nordkapp Film Festival

Laurie Hutzler — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 09:37:37 +0000

Monday, 10 September 2012

I arrived in Tromso and am having dinner with the festival organizers. Had a brief tour of the local area. I must say that Norway makes my heart sing. Its beauty is breathtaking and its people are open and friendly. Also the fish is the best in the world. Fish restaurant for me tonight.

For the next several weeks this blog will be a sort of travelogue along with musing and observations in my consulting and teaching travels.

Here are a couple of observations from the plane:

1. Nordic men are stunningly handsome. Just sayin’

2. Scandinavians love America. I sat next to two Norwegian plumbers on the plan. They were part of a group of 15 plumbers who were wrapping up a trip to New York. They saved their money and met company performance goals– so off all the plumbers went as a company reward. (Would this happen in America as a reward?) They had a fabulous time and the guy I sat next to is eager to return for a longer stay with his wife.

3. The Norwegians are open and friendly observation is totally true. Tall blond and handsome guy sitting one row forward helped me put my iPhone on non-roaming International mode so I wouldn’t rack up thousand of AT&T charge while in Europe.

Here is a look at Tromso–

April 2012 – Writing Lessons from Norway

Laurie Hutzler — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 23:57:26 +0000

At the Western Norway Film Summit I looked at a number of projects under development by writer/directors and their producers.

First of all, let me say what an inspiring range of talent there is in the region. The films were all very different and had a wonderful local sense of place combined with the potential universal emotional appeal that gives a film “legs.”

This isn’t to say there weren’t challenges to overcome in the stories and characters in the films discussed.

Here are three key take-aways about common issues that make a film project less effective and less emotionally compelling.

CONFLICT

No matter how poetic, beautiful, or inspired the visuals in a film are, without conflict you don’t have a story.

There are three levels of conflict–

External conflict (obstacles presented by the physical environment or terrain, the weather, the society or culture, or any other obstacle presented by the larger external world of the story)

Relationship conflict (conflict or opposition between the people or creatures in the story)

Internal conflict (conflict within a character– the personal or psychological obstacles the character struggles with inside him or her self).

The Internal conflict drives the other two kinds of conflict. By this I mean how a character deals with any challenge, opportunity, or threat depends on who they are emotionally. Emotion always drives action.

CONSISTENT OVERALL TONE

A film’s tone should be consistent and yet surprising. The film can and should have ups and downs, shifts and reversals, and comic or dramatic turnarounds. But the story should an overall tone that works as an underlying point of view about the story world.

If a film is a black comedy then the ending must be funny in an ironic way or end in a sharp or biting comic twist. You don’t want to end a warm romantic comedy with a sad, ironic, or scathing twist at the end. Nor do you want to end a sharp dark comedy with a moment of emotional violins.

Be careful that shifts in tone fit a consistent comic or dramatic sensibility. Comedy must, of course, have moment of drama or pathos and drama must have moments of humor or absurdity. But reversals in tone should not be confusing, jarring, or pull the audience emotionally out of the story.

FOCUS

Detail makes for a rich story world. Avoid details that only complicate the story plot. Strip away all details that don’t support the main character’s emotional journey.

Audiences love SIMPLE stories about COMPLEX emotions. Complex stories about simple emotions are confusing. There is a great difference between what is complex (consisting of many different but connected parts) and what is confusing (extraneous information that is bewildering or difficult to follow).

I find that no matter how experienced or talented a filmmaker is he or she has to keep returning to the basics in every project. It’s so easy to forget the key tenets– we all need to be reminded of what is fundamental in each new story.

April 2012 Ullensvang Hotel – Film Summit

Laurie Hutzler — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 08:06:38 +0000

Many ferries ply the smooth waters of Norway’s fjords. In some remote communities the ferries are the only links to the outside world.

Preparing to board the ferry. It will turn out to be a five hour boat trip through some of the most magnificent scenery imaginable. The pictures that follow don’t do the landscape justice!

Pulling away from Bergen on the ferry. The charming and friendly town as seen from the water.

Other boats plying the fjord. Water traffic is a key mode of transport for goods, materials, and people.

Passed lots of lovely homes and farms located in sparse settlements along the fjord.

Wind-blown on the deck of the ferry. Gorgeous day but very windy!

Snow capped mountains and glaciers lining the fjord along the ferry route.

Up close snowy mountains seen from the ferry deck.

Balcony off my hotel room at Ullensvang and one view of fjord. I had almost a 360 view of mountains and fjord from my very beautiful room.

Another mountain view from my room window.

Final hotel room view- also from balcony.

Building on hotel grounds.

The summer hut where famous composer Grieg worked and wrote on the hotel grounds.

About 200 people at the Film Summit. Nearly that many at my Character Map Class. For those of you who missed it a link to the eBook http://etbscreenwriting.com//products-page/e-books/the-character-map/

Participants took a field trip to Odda one of the first industrial factories in the world. Now vacant and in planning stages to be a film studio.

Dinner for 200 at the enormous hydro-electric plant which once powered the factory.

Goodby Hotel Ullensvang

April 2012 Bergen, Norway

Laurie Hutzler — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 01:30:01 +0000

April 15, 2012

I arrived in Bergen, Norway and am staying at a hotel overlooking the water and mountains–

April 16, 2012

Tech Check at the venue– the large local cinema in Bergen. Very nice facility and wonderful tech guys who ensured all would run smoothly. Even set me up with wifi access. Then More walks around the city.

April 17, 2012

Workshop day. Had a nice crowd. Enjoyed the questions and discussion. More walks around the city.

: Walked down steep winding streets leading to the harbor with lovely houses flanking the cobblestone walkways.

: The smallest wooden house in Bergen. Like a doll house. Very old and lived in continuously.

: Lunch at a cafe overlooking the fjord. A little too windy to sit outside. Had a lovely fish soup. Bergen is the place for fish and seafood beautifully prepared. Had smoked salmon, Norwegian potato salad along with fresh cucumber and red pepper for breakfast.

View out the window over the water from my hotel room. Same view from the hotel dinning room.

My cure for jet lag is to sleep on the plane as much as possible and then walk in the sun on arrival. I had a very lovely tour guide from the organization sponsoring the workshop showing me the sights. We walked all along the harbor area.

Charming buildings in the downtown area near my hotel.

Buildings built and lived in by German fish-workers. They were segregated at the time. The buildings burned down and were rebuilt in 709 AD– that’s not a typo– these buildings were built in the 8th century!

Sculpture celebrating dried fish, a traditional Norwegian diet staple

Traveled up the mountain on the funicular. Gorgeous views of the city below. Had lunch at the restaurant at the top. Wonderful mushroom soup.

Bergen houses feature these adorable tin buckets filled with spring flowers. They are simply hung on hooks near the door. This shot filled with pansies is one of my favorites.

Sculpture on the street of a homeless kid. The description says something like “no one is exactly as they seem.” Several other sculptures around town of people leaning against buildings or standing in random places. Also enjoying the art in the hotel by local artists depicting landscapes, cityscapes, sports, and modern folk art.

Another great row of commercial buildings.

Sculpture of famous fictional Norwegian detective, who lived in Bergen, Varg Veum– Producer friends made about 8 movies of the novel series.

Dinner in a famous local restaurant. Delicious fresh halibut.

Large standing polar bear in restaurant but not on the menu. A relic of days gone by.

Goodbye Bergen– Great hospitality & great new friends. On to the ferry and the Western Norway Film Summit.

Workshops & Consulting in Norway

Laurie Hutzler — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 13:02:23 +0000

April 17th: Master Class in Bergen

For screenwriters, directors, and creative producers

Format: Around 5 hours

April 18th: Film Summit Presentation

Morning: Fjord ferry with the participants from Bergen to Ullensvang Hotel

3:30pm Arrival at Hotel

5:00pm 60-120 minutes presentation to the whole group

PS: we can also move this presentation to April 19th

Evening: Dinner at hotel

April 19th: Film Summit: Individual Meetings

10:00-5:00pm Conference programme or a few one-to-one meetings

Evening: Excursion along the fjord, and dinner at special location

I am delighted to be returning to Norway to work with the talented film producers, directors, and writers in Scandinavia. The Master Class below is open to all filmmakers and is a great introduction to or refresher on using The Emotional Toolbox method to solve problems in your project. The ETB method is a specific, practical approach which immediately pinpoints story and character problems and offers clear character-based solutions.

I hope you can meet in Bergen me if you are in or around Scandinavia in April.

April 17th: Master Class in Bergen, Norway

An introduction to the Emotional Toolbox, the Character Map and the Nine Character Types for screenwriters, directors, and creative producers. Session open to the public. For more information contact: Sigmund Elias Holm [email protected]

April 18th: Film Summit Workshop

Applying the Character Map to specific projects under-development. Closed session. By invitation only.

April 19th: Film Summit: Individual Meetings

One-on-one consulting discussing projects in development. Closed session. Juried project selection.

Day Two at eQuinoxe

Laurie Hutzler — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 08:22:40 +0000

View from Outside the Advisor’s Meeting Room

Today we had our first advisors’ meeting. The scripts selected for the workshop are submitted from a variety of international writers. Austria, Germany, Croatia, Denmark, Canada, Hungary and Norway are all represented by projects here.

In discussing the work to be done on the scripts, the advisors kept going back to the basics. No matter how accomplished the writer is, it is always necessary to go back to fundaments when a script isn’t working well. Primarily we discussed issues of want, need and price. Here is what I mean by those terms.

The Want

The character immediately identifies something he or she desires or wants. The character begins to put all of his or effort into obtaining some very particular concrete, and often, selfish or self-centered goal.

This goal is something real, graspable and very tangible. It is something the character can obtain or acheive physically: seduce the woman, sell the stock, solve the crime, win the tournament, reveal the mystery, get the promotion etc. It is NOT an abstract or amorphous general desire.

The Character’s Want is:

– A clear simple ego-driven goal.

– A physical embodiment of the character’s selfish or self-centered objective.

– An objective or object that is real, concrete and graspable.

– An objective or object that must eventually be surrendered along with the character’s Strongest Traits.

The want is always an actual “thing.” It is something specific that could be obtained with a bit of concerted effort. For example: a new car, money to pay the rent, a girlfriend, the prize trophy, etc.

The character’s Want is NOT an abstract concept. For example: be a better person, be a better parent, become more tolerant, become more forgiving, be more honest, trustworthy or responsible.

The Character’s Need is:

– Some deeper human longing (to be a better father, to appropriately separate from family, to love more generously, to act with integrity, etc.)

– A true longing the character isn’t aware of, ignores, denies or tries to suppress

– At the heart of the character’s truest, highest most authentic self

– Something that must be embraced instead of obtaining the want

The Need is a more abstract intangible set of internal qualities. It is is a deeper for what is good, true and authentically right for the character as an individual of quality and worth.

The Price the Character Must Pay is is the terrible personal cost of obtaining the Want and abandoning the Need. OR The terrible personal cost of abandoning the ego-driven goal or Want and embracing the Need. If the character chooses the Want he or she inevitably surrenders to the fear and falls to the Dark Side. The story ends in tragedy. If the character embraces the Need, he or she finds completion. This may or may not be a happy ending but it is one of emotional satisfaction and wholeness. Which price is the character willing to pay? The character must ultimately pay one price or the other. The more expensive the price is for your character the more compelling and urgent your story will be for your audience.

The Comedic Turnaround

When a character surrenders the Want and embraces the Need sometimes the Want turns around to meet the character. This happens often enough in life that we believe it in a film. For example: A young couple has a solid marriage, good jobs and a comfortable home. They plan to start a family. They try and try but nothing, no personal method or medical procedure, works.

What they Want is a biological child. Finally, they embrace what they Need: to be parents to a child who needs them. They adopt a beautiful baby and are deliriously happy. What happens one year later?

Answer: The wife gets pregnant. The Want has turned around to meet them. Warning: This doesn’t always happen. It is only an occasional surprise. Surrendering the Want and embracing the Need can’t be used as a clever tactic or cynical strategy or it will feel false. The character must be truly willing and feel fully satisfied to abandon the Want and walk away from the table. The comedic turnaround is only possible by completely embracing the Need. This turnaround is always a totally unexpected reversal for the character.

The Want

In the story the character should immediately identify something he or she desires or wants. The character begins to put all of his or her effort into obtaining some very particular concrete, and often, selfish or self-centered goal.

This goal must be something real, graspable and very tangible. It is something the character can obtain or acheive physically: for example, seduce the woman, sell the stock, solve the crime, win the tournament, reveal the mystery, get the promotion etc. The Want is NOT an abstract or amorphous general desire.

The want is always an actual “thing.” It is something specific that could be obtained with a bit of concerted effort.

Snowy Alpine Walk

The Character’s Need is:

– Some deeper human longing (to be a better father, to appropriately separate from family, to love more generously, to act with integrity, to grow up and assume responsibility etc.)

– A true longing the character isn’t aware of, ignores, denies or tries to suppress

– At the heart of the character’s truest, highest most authentic self

– Something that must be embraced instead of obtaining the Want

The Need is a more abstract intangible set of internal qualities. It is is a deeper desire for what is good, true and authentically right for the character as an individual of quality, dignity and worth.

The Price

The Price is the terrible personal cost of obtaining the Want and abandoning the Need. OR The terrible personal cost of abandoning the ego-driven goal or Want and embracing the Need.

If the character chooses the Want he or she inevitably surrenders to the fear and falls to the Dark Side. The story ends in tragedy. If the character embraces the Need, he or she finds personal completion. This may or may not be a happy ending but it is one of emotional satisfaction and wholeness.

Which price is the character willing to pay? The character must ultimately pay one price or the other. The more expensive the price is for the character the more compelling and urgent your story will be for the audience.

When a script isn’t working well, isn’t as compelling a read as it should be or has some kind of emotional disconnect in the story, the problem is usually the lack of a clear, urgent and well-developed Want, Need or Price.