Finding Ideas 43Santa Claus at the movies suit of armor
carjacker fast food, drive-in window hammock
Percival the Parrot inside a motor home birthday cake
cowboy on an escalator boom box
robot chicken plucker at a space station player piano
lion tamer jungle island hot potato
tooth fairy atop a flagpole skateboard
T-Bone Tony Shape-of-Things Gym tuft of monkey fur
reality show participant Australian Outback tiddlywinks
truffle pig secret garden sparkler
Muck Muck Monster salt mine oil lamp
bride playground magic beans
wizard inside a seashell laser sword
Cherie Shipshape airship hangar Slinky
soccer player pirate ship doll house
unicorn Planet Doom necklace of kelp
PEOPLE PLACES THINGS
Plots
Find a list of classic plots. Many experts believe there are only so many basic plots and all
stories are based on these few (like the Cinderella plot). Some believe that all plots can be
broken down to only three: Man vs. God (or nature), Man vs. Man, and Man vs. Himself.
Update old stories. Substitute your own characters. Since stories are usually developed out
of a character’s personality, new characters make an entirely new story. Each character has
unique values, motivations, and relationships and makes decisions accordingly. Place your
story in a different time period or place, or put a new twist on it. Spoof a story we all know.
Evaluating Your Ideas
Writing teachers have always advised their students to write what they’re passionate about.
The theory is that you will write with more conviction and more originality, providing your
audience with a very personal and emotional experience—your very best work. This can be
excellent advice if you’re looking for ideas for a student film, an independent film, or even
an original TV series. I would agree that the very best ideas might be those that are inter-
esting to you, those that you want to explore further and spend some time investigating.
Once past the brainstorming process, it’s time to evaluate your ideas. Some people climb
a mountain “because it’s there.” Ideas are not mountains, and they should never be used just
because they’re there. Sometimes an idea hasn’t been used before simply because a hundred
other people have considered the idea and decided it wasn’t a very good one. Ideas must fit
the current marketplace. And “pushing the envelope” can be a good thing, but there are
envelopes that are better left sealed...with superglue. When we get to development, we’ll
look at ways to evaluate what ideas are best to develop now.