Script notes for the Podcast

Script notes from the Podcast on Raiders of the lost Ark:
What do you learn about the production process used on the film?
The story for Raiders of the lost Ark was created by Philip Kaufman and George Lucas. The film was directed by Steven Spielberg and the screenplay was done by Lawrence Kasdan. Lucas and Kaufman helped each other develop the story and branched out their ideas, for example there were some points that George wanted to add that wouldn't of been seen otherwise.

What do you learn about what makes a good character?
Indiana Jones is seen to two have almost like a split personality in the film, the viewer gets to see his normal life and his action packed one. This idea in itself creates a more interesting storyline and makes it more diverse than most other films. In the film, Indiana acts as a role model to both the viewer and some of the characters in the film, for example when the girl in the class puts the apple on his desk and it staring at him as if she is in love with him.

It is seen that within the first scene of the film, we dive straight into the action packed side of Indiana Jones, the peaks the interest of the viewer and makes them want to watch more, the scene practically acts as a teaser for this Bad Ass of a man. They show a good character by making the actor seem really passionate about what's happening, you can clearly see that he loves artefact's and is skilled with his whip, two things that the character is passionate about.

What do you learn about how to make good story?
The two hosts talk about how the opening scene is one of the best they've ever seen and that it is a great example of how to create good story. The first scene or couple of pages of script is what needs to gain the attention of the viewer, it should let the viewer know about the positives and negatives of the scenarios in the film. When creating 'good story', you need to think about how you can make it interesting and dramatic so that it keeps the attention. Without even truly introducing the character in the first scene, the managed to build a lot of tension which just shows a good example of good story writing.

Good story also needs to show good conflict between the characters, it needs to be clear that they clash for whatever reason, in this film, Indiana Jones' interest is keep the artefacts safe because he's passionate about them, whereas the protagonist is only into the artefacts as a way to communicate to god for the sake of evil.

What lessons can you take from the podcast and the film that you can apply to your radio drama?
Personally I have learnt that if the first couple of minutes or first couple of pages doesn't interests a viewer/listener, then it isn't going to work out well. It needs to appeal to wide range of people, not just a certain type, the more people that are actually interested, the more and more they are going to want to see in the future. It is also very important to make the conflict between characters very clear, if the viewer cant notice the conflict within the first couple of minutes then they are going to lose interest.