How to End my Script
Different types of Endings
To try to help me with my script writing, I’ve been looking at different types of endings. This video has been very interesting.
How to Write a Screenplay that’s a Crowd-Pleaser — Back to the Future & the Flat Character Arc
By StudioBinder
It explains that there are 4 different ending types –
- Sweet Ending
- Semi-Sweet (Need)
- Bittersweet (Want)
- Bitter Ending
According to this video, which backs up a lot of other things I’ve seen,
“Wants are external Goals that are known to the character, specific to them, and drive the plot forward.”
For example, in Soul (2020) Joe Gardner, the protagonist, says “I could die a happy man if I could perform with Dorothea Williams”. This is something that he wants, and he knows and expresses that he wants it. It is a specific “want” to him, most people in his world are not concerned about performing with Dorothea Williams.
And “Needs are internal goals that are often unknown to the character, universal to us all, and drive the character through their arc.”
For example, in The Matrix (1999), Morpheus tells Neo that he is “trying to free your mind, Neo, but I can only show you the door.”
And Morpheus also tells Neo, “You have to let it all go, Neo, fear, doubt and disbelief”. I think that letting go of fear and doubt are things that most of us can identify with, I certainly can, and the journey that Morpheus is trying to take Neo on is very relatable to in the world they live in, but a journey that Neo is not sure that he actually wants to go on, so it certainly isn’t a “want”. But it is a “need”.
At the end of all endings (pretty much) the protagonist gets some combination of their wants and needs. The combination that they get determines how you can describe the endings.
At the end of Back to the Future (1985), Marty says “Everything is sweet”. It’s a traditional happy ending where everything works out. But from this research I can see that when you are writing a script, it’s important to plan for the ending throughout the script and set it up from the start. I think that may be why I have been having issues with my ending, since I didn’t originally do that. So I need to rethink a bit.
After Rethinking
After some thinking and analysing, I concluded that because I have said at the start that “We need more Joy” is part of what I want to deliver from my film, that means that I want my story to have a Sweet Ending, where both Sam’s wants and his needs are met. I could have chosen the Bittersweet or Semi-sweet, but it wouldn’t have delivered as much joy. I do still want it to be bit open ended as to what happens, but I want to veer more to a sweet ending than to have the audience know for sure that either the wants or needs were not met.
When we meet Sam, he is happy, we see he has a good relationship with his boyfriend, shown by the text messages between them. He doesn’t seem to have much money, shown by “If you’re here to rob me, I have 44p that I found on the ground”. This all sets up the status quo.
Sam then sees how he could be in the future, apparently obsessed with getting money like Sam F1 and Sam F2, and money being the cause of his death. As he meets each of his possible future selves, he keeps trying to question them about why they are trying to get money rather than doing more worthwhile things like stopping world wars, going back to experience historical times like the dinosaurs, and stopping Cadbury’s making Bounty Bars (the comedy one, rule of three, and subverting expectations, relatable because let’s be honest, do you actually know anyone who actually likes Bounty Bars?).
Being put in these situations is making him examine and question himself and realise that these possible future Sam’s are not who he wants to be. So there are a few wants that we can consider:
- He wants to be different to these possible future Sam’s
- He wants to not die like Anna tell him he does
- He cares about his friends, like Leo, and doesn’t want him hurt.
His needs are less obvious. I think his needs are
- Although he is not unhappy with his life, he needs to do something more with his life, and the possibility of time travel gives him that opportunity.
A sweet ending is generally regarded as a satisfying ending. But you have to be careful that you don’t make a sweet ending too perfect. So, you need to have some obstacles. This is a bit tricky in such a short film. But I have tried to incorporate it by having Sam get frustrated that his questions to each of the other Sam’s, about why they are only after money and not trying to do good or see the past, are not being answered. And also, by Amma not being prepared to tell him exactly how he died. I also have to keep the comedy element too. It is a lot to pack into a short film. I decided to have the last Sam (who it is implied, by the multicoloured hat Sam finds at the end, is also the main Sam of this film) come back to do something good, i.e. try to stop himself from getting a splinter. I kept it as a small action, for the comedy element. Nick (tutor) had discussed the idea of Pathos with me, and he also liked the splinter idea, as I do, so I will keep it in.
I also left the initial ending on a slight cliff hanger, where we see Sam looking at the multicoloured hat that has fallen in front of him, in a “will-he-won’t-he?” way”. I have also made it so that although it is not totally obvious, if people are paying attention, they can notice that this multicoloured hat is the same one that Sam F3, who comes back about the splinter, is wearing and so yes, Sam who is sitting on the bench does pick up the hat and time travel. After most of the credits, I have planned a final post-credit shot where we see Sam with the multicoloured hat on appear suddenly back on the bench, so the audience can deduce that yes he did put the hat on and time travel. But I am trying to make it not to “in your face” obvious, to have a little bit of uncertainty for the audience to work out and spot for themselves. And keeping to “Show don’t Tell”.
I am happy now with this ending, and it shows that you should keep researching throughout the whole project especially whenever you get stuck.