ABSTRACT
This chapter approaches the “character” as a system of value that is in a relationship to the world it inhabits. Is the character at peace or in disharmony with the world in which he/she lives? That relationship between the individual character and the world/society it is evolving in, can be harmonious, discordant, critical or in need of acceptance, etc. A character, his/her personality, personal/family/private/intimate/public story, desires, fears, internal conflicts, acquire their true meaning and power according to a minimum of two systems of values: the main character’s and the world in which they operate. Developing a character while bearing in mind the system of values that dictates his/her actions and reactions to various events allows us to work out the character’s multidimensionality and to give him/her real character.
Our screenplay’s characters, all of them, actually, cannot “become real” and acquire a genuine personality without inhabiting a specific world: be it real or imaginary, the world created in the screenplay is governed by a set of rules, codes and conventions. We will see in the second half of this chapter how to build convincing and credible, real and/or imaginary worlds, how to define them and make them stand out.
