Advice?

[badplanmobile]

For my final project in a college screenwriting class, I'm thinking of writing about a group of college age friends and their adventures in the world of gender, as it were. I myself am sapiosexual and gender-questioning, but those are very recent realizations, and I don't have much personal experience to draw on for writing this, so I came here for

Comments

[rapierice]

This is an awesome idea. I wrote a jHorror thing for screenwriting class, haha. Really great, you should do it.

[badplanmobile]

Thanks!

[itcomesinphases]

Firstly: You must remember that the majority of your intended audience will be largely ignorant of the infinite combinations of gender/preference. I would attribute only one 'deviant' (and I do mean non-gender-binary) trait to each character at the outset. So perhaps at first, Sam should appear to be the typical 'in-the-closet gay man'. I would knock the 'playboy' off of Alan's characteristics simply because it might put a less positive light on omni sexuality (which the world at large calls bisexuality.) Having Alan be polyamorous would allow you to show his omnisexuality without making it look like he'll jump into bed with anything on two legs

[badplanmobile]

I realize I was getting really overly complex with the characters, but I think I might be able to pull it off by using Alice (whose name I think I'll change because it sounds to much like Alan) as a translator for the audience. The other characters are all older than her, and had more time to work things out. She's pretty much just started college and only just met Alan and Sam, so she's still learning about them which would help the audience learn

[pink_pet]

Hey, sounds like a great idea. Here are a few thoughts/structural considerations for you to consider

[badplanmobile]

I was thinking of having them live together in an on-campus house. I don't know how many colleges have that, but mine does, and it would also make sense that Alice has only just started living with them, because she's a lower classmen. I was also planning to use Alice as the translator character for the audience. Even though she isn't straight, my idea was that she thought she was until she came to college and met the girlfriend character.
I've already given Alan a conflict, which is trouble with his parents, and also trying to save up money for transitional surgeries and whatnot when he doesn't have the support from his parents. I'm not entirely sure what conflicts the other characters will have, although it'll probably be relationship type stuff. I was also thinking about a subplot about the difficulty being a geek and/or fanboy/girl, which probably doesn't seem like to much of an add-on when I've already got a Whovian and an astrophysicist, but I'm not sure...

[rkt]

is Alan the only character who has a race?

[eeka13]

You beat me to it.

[guruburu]

Yes. (Whiteness is not a race, duh!)

[badplanmobile]

Alan's the only one with a listed race, but the intent is to have color-blind casting, so the others may be any ethnicity. Although Alice is probably white.

[gymx]

A compelling story takes priority over a rainbow cast.