I read a script last week for a new client. It had good structure, well developed characters and a premise that was a little formulaic, but certainly was good enough to set up the story the the writer was trying to tell, and could draw an audience just with the genre. There was a reasonable amount of conflict and it had a nice, feel-good ending.
And yet, something was missing.
It was a boring script, overall, and I had a hard time figuring out what the problem was. Even with the good things that were going on, I didn’t particularly care about the characters and I wasn’t particularly engaged in the storyline. The dreaded “B” word crept into my head. The script was Boring. But why was the script boring? There was suitable conflict and character development. Was I just missing it ? Was this a good script that just didn’t appeal to my taste and sensibility?
Then, I had my “A-Ha” moment.
There was a serious lack of drama in the script. Yes, it was a family film, but even family films and light hearted comedies need to have some element of drama to them. There was conflict and the main characters all grew and changed in some way. On the surface, it lookes like that should be enough to create the dramatic elements that would make the story interesting. But then I realized that the writer didn’t threaten the main characters with any consequences should they fail. The hero received a call to adventure and even refused the call, but was never informed of all of the dire consequences if she didn’t succeed.
As such, we in the audience were never informed of the consequences. Therefor, we’re never engaged in the Hero’s journey and never care if she accomplishes her goals or not. It just doesn’t matter because there’s no inclination of how things will be better or worse depending on the outcome of the adventure.
It might seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many writers fail to include serious consequences for their main characters. It doesn’t have to be as serious as the world ending or the death of a friend or family member. It does, however, have to be very important to the main character and that will make it important to us in the audience.
And that is one of the fine lines between boring and interesting.
If you have a script that you feel is straddling that line, then please feel free to contact us, and we can help you get on the right side of it.