Hey, writers. This is a new series that I wanted to share with you all. So I carry around a stack of notes everyday and I’ve been asked things like, “What are those?” and “Why do you carry that everyday?”
So here’s one of the sheets. I call it a Writer Resource. I’ve referred to it many times, and will continue to do so in the future.
Enjoy! 🙂
Also, if you want to know when the next Writer Resource will be published, let me know. I’ll alert everyone that signs up by writing to me at alohaalvinonoahu@gmail.com or asking in the comments section.
Breakdown:
Type of Scene
<> Movie title Description of the scene
Dogfight
<> Dunkirk
<> Star Wars
<> Captain America Falcon vs Planes
<> Top Gun
<> Poe Dameron He’s a good pilot!
<> Spider-Man Spider-man versus Green Goblin
Countdown
<> Dunkirk Drowning pilot, sinking airplane
<> Indiana Jones Grab the hat before the door closes
<> Indiana Jones The rolling boulder
<> Star Wars The trash compactor
<> Tomb Raider Break away flooring
Speed scene – Pure Speed
<> Nerve Blindfolded motorcyclist
<> Man of Steel Clark starts flying
<> X-Men Quicksilver in the kitchen
Speed scene – Chase scene
<> Rogue Nation Tom Cruise and Rebecca Ferguson on motorcycles
<> Batman Begins “It’s a black…tank”
<> Bourne Ultimatum Jason Bourne chasing the moped assassin
<> Fantastic Beasts Newt Scamander chasing the jewel thief
<> Harry Potter Quidditch
<> Tomb Raider Paint bucket
<> Terminator 2 John Connor on a motorbike
Altitude
<> The Dark Knight Pfft. A fall from this height isn’t high enough to kill me —> I know —> *crunch!*
<> Iron Man The parachute that won’t open
<> Iron Man 2 Flight crew, freefall
<> Jurassic Park Jeep in a tree
<> Black Panther Fighting at the edge of the waterfall
1v1 featuring hand-to-hand combat
<> Game of Death Bruce Lee versus Kareem
<> The Raid Kitchen fight
<> Matrix Neo versus Seraph
<> Ong Bak Tony Jaa versus Saming
<> Rocky versus Creed
<> Gorgeous Jackie Chan versus Brad Allen If you haven’t seen this yet, you really should take a minute. Poetry in motion.
1v1 featuring weapons
<> Family Guy Peter Griffin versus Chicken
<> Daredevil versus Nobu (Ninja from The Hand)
<> Princess Bride Westley versus Inigo Montoya
<> Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon Zhang Ziyi versus Michelle Yeoh
<> Avengers Black Widow versus Hawkeye
<> Kill Bill Black Mamba versus the woman who feels she should have been called Black Mamba
Big Bad (As in, “Hide from the Big Bad Wolf”)
<> Aliens Anything featuring the Xenomorphs, really.
<> Terminator 2: Judgment Day Killer Machinery
<> Jurassic Park Velociraptors and children in the kitchen
<> Amazing Spider-Man Gwen hides from the Lizard
<> Avengers Black Widow and Hulk
1v10 featuring weapons
<> Iron Man 2 Black Widow versus guards
<> Daredevil Daredevil on the staircase versus the bikers
1v10 featuring hand-to-hand combat
<> Rumble in the Bronx Jackie Chan in the grocery store
<> Daredevil Daredevil in the hallway
<> Jack Reacher Jack versus brothers of Sandy
1v100 featuring hand-to-hand
<> Fist of Legend Jet Li fights everyone at the school
<> Matrix Reloaded Neo versus Agent Smith + Agent Smith + Agent Smith…
1v100 featuring weapons
<> Kill Bill The Bride versus the Crazy 88
<> John Wick <3 <3 <3
<> Logan Laura doing her thing
<> Avengers: Age of Ultron Many, many Ultrons
Mexican Standoff
<> Transformers Dark of the Moon Ironhide and Sideswipe versus Decepticons
<> Matrix Revolutions Trinity, Merovingian, and many others
<> Pulp Fiction “Be cool, honey bunny!”
Gunfight
<> Ready Player One Giant fight scene
<> Matrix Lobby scene
<> Bright In the club, Officer Ward and Poison
Staredown
<> Captain America Cap and Red Skull, with the bridge pushing them away from each other
<> Black Panther Black Panther staring at Killmonger as a train whips by
Stealth
<> Transformers Captain Lennox and crew infiltrating a building
<> Batman Begins
<> Harry Potter Wandering the halls in the night
<> Hacksaw Ridge Finding survivors
Rube Goldberg Machine
<> Indiana Jones Fistfight near a helicopter blade
<> Amazing Spider-Man The fall of Gwen
<> Enter the Dragon Mirrors and rotating walls
Giant Enemy
<> X-Men Red & purple Sentinels
<> Hellboy 2: The Golden Army “No, brother! No!”
<> Godzilla
<> Dr. Strange Looping Dormammu
If I were in your shoes, writers, I’d ask “How do I use this?”
Recently I was working on a scene with a dungeon in it (think Dungeons and Dragons and Tomb Raider). I liked what I had in the scene, but then it didn’t feel right. I thought about it for a while and I looked at my list. “Hm…needs…a Countdown.” Instantly, the dungeon scene went from so-so to much more intense.
The list isn’t perfect, but it has definitely helped me.
Think of the Matrix. How many times does Neo need to fight Smith?
<> First fight? 1v1: No problem.
<> Another fight? Maybe 1v100.
<> Another fight?? Hm…Let’s try Dragonball.
Lights…Camera…
Let’s take a quick look at all the components put together. Here’s a clip from Jurassic Park:
Can you spot the different sections? There’s definitely a Big Bad, but how about a Chase or maybe a Countdown? Is there only one Countdown? The pros make it work and everything fits. Love that scene.
So, writers…did I miss any? 🙂
This Writer Resource is going to be a living document. I know the list can be expanded on. If there are any scenes that are your favorites or you feel should be in the list, let me know in the comments.
Aloha,
Alvin
P.S. Here’s your quote of the day: “A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” ― Richard Bach