SCRIPTREMIX Session 3: Setting

Welcome to the third session of ScriptRemix!

Part 1: Why Setting Is Important

In this video we will go through the reasons why setting is important to the plot, conflict, character development, and themes of a story as you start building the world of your script. 

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Examples of Dynamic Setting (some of which are mentioned in the video):

Part 2: Guided Meditation on Setting

In this video you will be led on a sensory walk through your world in a guided meditation focused on visualizing the place(s) your characters will inhabit.

EXERCISE: Meditation Questions (15-20 minutes)

Please put your timer on and write down your main character’s responses to these questions:

  • How does this place make you feel? 
  • What do you see when you look around you? What can you smell? Hear? Taste? Touch? 
  • Do you want to stay here or leave? 
  • Who else is in the space with you and how do they make you feel? 
  • Is the space crowded? Expansive? 
  • If you could do one thing to make this place better, what would it be? 
  • What kind of a government exists in this place? What rules or laws? 
  • How long have you been here for? 
  • If this place was a body part, what body part would it be? 
  • If this place was a colour, what colour would it be? 
  • Why are you here, and why right now? 
  • When is it in time where you are? (Date and year.)

Part 3: What Makes for a Dynamic Setting?

Learn some techniques for building a dynamic setting that is connected to the themes and symbols in your piece.

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EXERCISE: Map Your Opening Scene (20 minutes)

Put your timer on for 20 minutes.

With a paper and pen, draw a map of your opening setting. This could be the floor plan of a home or apartment, or it could be a city street or park. Draw significant objects in the room or scene. For the moment, leave any people out of the space.

Label the significant objects on the map. In the margins of the map, jot down:

  • 5 things that happened in this place before your main character was born.
  • 5 things that have happened in this place in the past 5 years of your character’s life.

Wrap Up

Now that you have done a sensory walk through your world, considered why setting is important, and learned how to make it dynamic and connected to the themes and symbols of your story, hop over to the next page to look at story structure. The spine of a story is essential to how your beautiful universe of ideas will translate to an audience.

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