{"id":363,"date":"2019-05-23T04:24:37","date_gmt":"2019-05-23T04:24:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/?page_id=363"},"modified":"2019-05-23T04:24:39","modified_gmt":"2019-05-23T04:24:39","slug":"how-to-write-film-noir","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/how-to-write-film-noir\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Write Film Noir"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"http:\/\/tvtropes.org\/pmwiki\/pmwiki.php\/SoYouWantTo\/WriteAFilmNoir\">http:\/\/tvtropes.org\/pmwiki\/pmwiki.php\/SoYouWantTo\/WriteAFilmNoir<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Essential Characters:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Anti-Hero<ul><li>Not the stereotypical brave and powerful hero\u2013 more like a protagonist that is in it for himself and is an outlaw<\/li><li>Not the most brave or heroic<\/li><li>\u201camoral misfit\u201d<\/li><li>Shouldn\u2019t be portrayed as any kind of crime fighter\u2013 just an ordinary guy<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Femme Fatale<ul><li>Woman to die for<\/li><li>Manipulates and confuses the protagonist<\/li><li>\u201cExploits with everything she\u2019s got to wrap men around her finger\u201d<\/li><li>Protagonist knows she\u2019s trouble but he can\u2019t resist<\/li><li>Very unlike the \u201cdamsel in distress\u201d<\/li><li>Generally pretty villainous\u2013 gets the protagonist into all kinds of trouble<\/li><li>Always out to fulfill her own agenda and will eliminate anyone in her way<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stylistic Elements:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cPrivate Eye\u201d Monologue<ul><li>Voiceover describing encounters\/events<\/li><li>Short, simple words with a lot of metaphors to show intellect but to avoid geekiness<\/li><li>References to pop culture = good<\/li><li>References to religion (Judeo-Christian) = even better as long as it\u2019s not overused<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Plot:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Classic = murder mystery<ul><li>Heist\/con = common too<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Has a MacGuffin<ul><li>Motivating element that drives the plot along<\/li><li>Does nothing but drive the plot along then serves no further purpose<\/li><li>Won\u2019t pop up again, won\u2019t explain the ending<\/li><li>Has extreme value, but is pretty useless nonetheless<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Easily Complicated<ul><li>Don\u2019t overcomplicate the mystery<\/li><li>Ends with a lot of plot holes<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Costuming:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Men = suits and fedoras<\/li><li>Women = black dress &amp; stockings, trench coat<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-link is-provider-writers-anon-taunton-039-s-writing-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"hCcTjaeadZ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/writersanontaunton.wordpress.com\/2016\/05\/18\/11-elements-of-writing-noir\/\">11 Elements of Writing&nbsp;Noir<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;11 Elements of Writing&nbsp;Noir&#8221; &#8212; Writers Anon - Taunton&#039;s Writing Group\" src=\"https:\/\/writersanontaunton.wordpress.com\/2016\/05\/18\/11-elements-of-writing-noir\/embed\/#?secret=pvHOa4pEEf#?secret=hCcTjaeadZ\" data-secret=\"hCcTjaeadZ\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>The Outsider<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Protagonist = outcast<\/li><li>Traditionally male<\/li><li>Sense of alienation\u2013 not many people care about them<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>No Heroes<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Protagonist is NOT a hero<\/li><li>Driven by revenge, greed, lust, etc.<\/li><li>Cross moral lines to get what they want<\/li><li>Even so we empathize with them and their situation<\/li><li>Important to show that protagonist has some hope to succeed<ul><li>Makes the audience hope for him and then you get to tear away that hope in the end<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Fatalism and Nihilism<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The world is one that resembles the American Dream gone wrong<\/li><li>A world without hope where the bad guys win and everyone suffers<\/li><li>From the beginning the protagonist is doomed on a fatal path<ul><li>Suffering of the protagonist is of his own creation<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>\u201cThe joy of noir is watching the moral breakdown of a character as they desperately try to escape their fate\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>The Femme or Homme Fatale<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Sex and lust<\/li><li>Attractive stranger APPEARS vulnerable and there to help the protagonist<\/li><li>Traditionally a woman who manipulated the protagonist to kill her husband or lead him on a wild goose chase<\/li><li>Uses feminine wiles to get protagonist to do what she wants<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Creatures of the Night<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Commonly associated with the night\u2013 certain aura of darkness only the night can bring<\/li><li>Night helps add the noir atmosphere and mood<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>First-Person<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>First person narration by protagonist (usually detective)<\/li><li>Helps put the reader into protagonist\u2019s head<ul><li>Adds to the aura of claustrophobia needed to create noir<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Unreliable narrator technique: is the protagonist telling it as it really happened, or are they deluded, confused, or lying?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>The Mystery<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Classics generally start with a dead body or missing person<\/li><li>Generally a murder mystery or about murder in some way<\/li><li>Murder adds to the nihilistic nature of film noir<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>City Streets<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Classics are generally in an urban setting<\/li><li>Lots of tall buildings and cramped downtown areas<\/li><li>However it can take place pretty much anywhere<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Broken Noses<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Violence is essential to noir<\/li><li>\u201cSymbolic darkness of the world made real\u201d<\/li><li>Fights between villain and anti-hero<\/li><li>\u201cThat\u2019s just the way it is because life is shitty and noir is telling us how it really is\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>No Happy Ending<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>No happy ending<\/li><li>\u201cboulevard of broken dreams\u201d<\/li><li>Protagonist can die (physically or metaphorically)<\/li><li>Protagonist can lose everything (money, family, job, grip on sanity, etc.)<\/li><li>Protagonist might just lose the object of their desire<\/li><li>Protagonist is either at the same place or behind where he started\u2013 CANNOT be further ahead<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Pared Back Prose<\/strong><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Simple, direct, and hard prose<\/li><li>No flowery descriptions<\/li><li>\u201cJust get to the point and make it snappy\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/nofilmschool.com\/2015\/07\/stylistic-elements-film-noir-explained-one-handy-infographic\">Noir Film Language<\/a><br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>http:\/\/tvtropes.org\/pmwiki\/pmwiki.php\/SoYouWantTo\/WriteAFilmNoir Essential Characters: Anti-Hero Not the stereotypical brave and powerful hero\u2013 more like a protagonist that is in it for himself and is an outlaw<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-363","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","one-column"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=363"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/363\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":365,"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/363\/revisions\/365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~MahikaG\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}