Ok. So I'm going to enter a highschool filmmaking competition this year. The time limit is 6 minutes, and I've been thinking up ideas. Anyway, I live in New Zealand. Some of you may know we have one of the highest suicide rates in the world, so I want to illustrate that. I also want to illustrate highschool groups.

So I pieced some of this together and came up with this:

The film would be about many things. But one would be about a boy who is a little slow (mentally). He is brutally beaten/bullied by a group of high schoolers and verbally abused by others. Everywhere he goes he is laughed at and insulted.

In one of the scenes, while he is being beaten, one of the so called 'popular' kids shows some interest in helping him. But he doesn't want to ruin his 'popularity' so he does not do anything. In the end of the film, the popular kid decides to help him finally, but it's too late. The boy has hung himself and is dead.

The film would basically be about how highschool kids are afraid to step out of their 'confort zone' or their group.


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Anyway, this VERY rough and needs some development. I want to add more in there, maybe some interesting characters. I want to be very clever with this. Despite the fact I am a high school student, I don't want to make it the way many other highschoolers make films. I want to take it very seriously, and tell a thought-provoking/emotional story. I was thinking maybe I could have two things running at once that link together at the end, but I'm stumpted for clever ideas. If anyone has any ideas/comments, PLEASE post!

-Chris

I like the idea and the reason behind it. Personally, if you are limited to six minutes, I wouldn't make it too complicated or it will seem shallow, rather than good and people may not be interested in your main point - hs/teen suicide and that comfort zone.

If you have two stories running at once - you have the popular group, with the boy wanting to help as that group's focus and the "nerdy" group, with the boy committing suicide as that group's focus.

I don't want to tell you how to shoot it or influence your creativity, but make a list of both groups, characters, their assets and liabilties (of each group and each character within the group), but focusing on the two main people.

Then just start writing (from your notes) and you'll be surprised what comes out of you!

Good luck.

don't kill him in the end. everyone always ends up killing themselves in highschool films. it's funny, at school we sit around and compare first film ideas, and they're all pretty much the same.

Really? What would I do instead? Just end happily ? If he doesn't die, that kills the focus of the movie.

-Chris

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I live in New Zealand. Some of you may know we have one of the highest suicide rates in the world

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I wasnt aware of that.
I agree, too that many student films have the character die. But I think it would suit the film if he commits suicide. The happy ending just doesn't seem to fit. But that's just my opinion.
Good luck with it all, and be sure to keep us updated.

"Really? What would I do instead? Just end happily ? If he doesn't die, that kills the focus of the movie."

People seem to think that any high school movie which doesn't involve suicide has a happy ending. It's not so black-and-white.

I personally would end the movie with the kid in a puddle, covered with mud and bloodied. As he's getting up a hand is offered from off screen. It's the friendly kid from before. He introduces himself, and there is some character interaction as they walk away.

Nothing too overt, just open-ended and realistic. If you want to see this kind of character development handled in a pretty subtle, realistic manner see "Ghost World".

I sort of like the idea of not having him killed also. Again, I don't want to write your piece, but . . .

Perhaps you can have the lead twitching from the end of a rope (be careful!), with the nice guy finding him and trying to get him down. They are arguing as the suicidal kid doesn't want to be cut down and the nice kid is trying to help him.

Nice guy can finally get him down and it could end with the sad guy telling nicey that he'll eventually finish the job - with nice guy begging him to think about it and call him if he wants to talk. That could leave it pretty open. Nice guy wants to help. Sad guy may or may not do it.

Just a thought and another opinion! Good luck.

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Originally posted by Mark M:

Perhaps you can have the lead twitching from the end of a rope (be careful!), with the nice guy finding him and trying to get him down. They are arguing as the suicidal kid doesn't want to be cut down and the nice kid is trying to help him.

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To me, I may find that funny once seen on screen. It would be just kind of humorous to watch 2 people fight while one of them is almost dead. Maybe you could take the mentally disabled boy and you can see him climbing a cliff somewhere(I know there are many cliffs in New Zealand). And you can see the struggles that he is having climbing it. Then you could cut to the "popular group" making fun of the mentally disabled group execpt the one guy isn't laughing. And cut to the boy looking down from the cliff and getting ready to jump. And people are looking from below of his attempt to kill himself. And then the popular guy comes in to save the day. Just my opinion. Like your concept though!

How about the kid tries to kill him self, and is already in the process (i.e. he's already hanging but not dead, he cuts himself up but hasn't bled to death, etc), the nice guy finds him, and helps him (i.e. calls 911, or lifts him so he won't choke) but the sad kid gets sent to a place (not necessarily an insane isilum [sp?]) where he will get help. So it doesn't really end happily, because the kid has to live at a place (which he probably hates), but he doesn't die.

quote:

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I personally would end the movie with the kid in a puddle, covered with mud and bloodied. As he's getting up a hand is offered from off screen. It's the friendly kid from before. He introduces himself, and there is some character interaction as they walk away.

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Thanks, I like that idea. I didn't realize most high school movies ended with someone killing themselves! None of the ones I have seen had that ending, but you guys know best, so..:P

Thanks everyone for your ideas. If anyone has anything else, feel free to throw in some ideas. I'm trying to throw something else in the story, but I can't really think of anything.

-Chris

I'm concerned about whether you'd be able to find actors for this one.

Anyway, who's the main hero of your script? The 'slow' boy or the 'popular' one? Because if it's 6 mins, I think second one fits better as the 'main'. You could develop his feelings (sympathy, fear to loose 'good rep', hesitation) much more vivid that those of the first boy. I also don't like the 'brutally beaten/bullied' part, I would change tough guys with some teenage girls (their vicious tongues can make much worser harm). Or if you still want high schoolers to get involved, I'd make it like 'Hey mAN, have some bucks? Hey, nice jacket...I've said LOOK AT ME, you ***** of a #$%@!", or something like that.

I love your idea. i have a suggestion: maybe you can have the slow kid murder the popular kid that cares (e.g. the popular kid wants to help the slow kid but the slow kid thinks he wants to torture him and decides to murder him, along those lines...) and then suicides at the end. How it all actually comes together is up to you. Its only a suggestion....

I don't think I want to put any murder in this particular film, but thanks for your idea! I'm still thinking about actual content in the movie. (not the end, like what actually happens in the movie) Right now all I have is a rough idea.

-Chris

if you do a 6 min short, i can give you one important advice. Don't do it about many things, do it about one specific thing and focus 100% on that.