Screen Adaptation

A Scriptwriting Handbook

Kenneth Portnoy

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2012
• eBook ISBN: 9781136049057
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Film & Video

Screen Adaptation : A Scriptwriting Handbook, 2nd ed. examines the challenge screenwriters face when adapting novels, plays, and short stories for the screen. Thoroughly updated to include new exercises and example from current films, this book provides practical, usable information on how to find the best plot line for a script, choose key characters, and understand the goals and formats of different genres.



Topics include:
determining which characters and events are most valuable on developing the main story;
expanding short novellas and condensing long novels;
using dialog to advance the story and reveal character;
comparing the formats of plays, short stories, and novels to those of screenplays
approaching the marketplace

In this book, both beginning writers and professionals will find the tools necessary to evaluate a prospective source and create a successful screenplay

1

Introduction

Many interesting films have been developed from short stories, novels, and plays. But the process of adapting a work into a screenplay is complex and often fraught with tricky problems. The entire novel may require several readings. The screenplay, however, must tell a story within a two-hour framework or risk losing the audience’s attention and the profitability factor so crucial to a successful film, TV, or cable dramatization.

Dune, for example, is a 500-page novel. But the modern film audience doesn’t want to sit through an epic film. As a result, the writer condensed the story into two hours and ten minutes, losing many of the key elements that made the novel so popular with its readers. The Big Sleep is another film from a novel, but the movie underwent several crucial changes to accommodate audiences of the late 1940s. Elements dealing with homosexuality, drugs, nudity, and pornography were eliminated from the film to avoid offending the more conservative audience of the time.

When stories are too long, it becomes necessary to reduce the number of subplots and characters to fit the two-hour storytelling length. East of Eden, a John Steinbeck novel, was adapted for the screen. Although it had several plot and subplot lines, the adapter concentrated on only one plot line—the story of the Trask family. Why was this plot line chosen? Because the Trask family’s story had the most conflict—a key element of any successful screenplay.

Structure

Adaptations always change structure. In The Bridges of Madison County, the focus of the novel is entirely changed by making Francesca the central character instead of Robert. Now the story has a more typical dramatic structure with a protagonist, a strong inner conflict, and the possibility of character growth.

In The English Patient, the screenwriter also changed the focus of his main characters. In the novel, the story focuses on Hana’s relationship with the Indian soldier and her uncle, the spy. In the movie, an English patient’s love affair becomes the main plot line, with Hana and her relationship with the soldier forming the subplot.

In Leaving Las Vegas, the O’Brien novel (1990) begins with Sera and the backstory about how she became a prostitute. In the movie, Ben and his drinking problem become the central focus illustrated visually in the opening scene at a supermarket. Ben, wheeling a shopping cart, stops to buy a bottle of vodka, then scotch, then brandy, then beer, and so on.

In The Grapes of Wrath, another Steinbeck novel adapted for the screen, key time-sequence elements were altered to accommodate a more dramatic structure that would build to a climax and create more tension and suspense. In the novel, for example, the Joads experience the friendly government camp at the beginning of the book after finally arriving in California. In the screenplay, this incident occurs later in the story, thereby allowing the Joads’ problems to intensify as their search for work and their negative treatment in California portrays even more dramatically the hopeless plight of these migrant people.

In The Ox-Bow Incident, the entire novel’s ending was changed to create a more visual filmic experience. Because of the screenplay’s limited time sequence and the fact that the viewers cannot go back and review material from the original work, the screenwriter must have a progressively advancing story line with explicit conflicts that allows the viewer some understanding of the writer’s message.

Sometimes, as in The French Lieutenant’s Woman, a subplot is added to achieve audience identification and understanding. Here, the movie company subplot was added so that the audience has a more modern element to identify with in terms of character conflict and problems. By updating these problems to a twentieth-century movie company, rather than the nineteenth-century landscape of the novel, the screenwriter succeeds in giving the audience a more recognizable terrain. Thus, the movie becomes more of a relationship story, which is so popular with twentieth-century audiences.

A novel’s structure is sometimes condensed to speed the story up. Such is the case in the film version of The Graduate (Henry, 1967). In the novel, the climax involves Ben telephoning Elaine, pacing in front of her dorm, looking for her in the cafeteria, and searching for her in the library before his father suddenly appears. At this point, an entire scene is devoted to Ben and his father. Ben explains the sordid details between himself and Mrs. Robinson. His father wants him to see a shrink. Ben refuses and then goes off to San Francisco to find Carl and Elaine. Ben finally winds up in Santa Barbara for the wedding; the novel ends with Ben taking Elaine away before she marries Carl.

In the screenplay, these scenes are condensed. The climax focuses on Ben getting to Santa Barbara to stop the wedding; the screenwriter puts in some amusing obstacles, such as Ben running out of gas, to prolong the tension. When Ben finally arrives at the church, Elaine has just taken her wedding vows. This provokes Ben into his chant of pain and causes Elaine to leave Carl standing at the altar. The entire scene is more dramatic than it is in the novel. It builds to a nice pitch with Ben arriving as the vows are completed. The drama is reinforced by the scenes of Ben running to get to the church before the end of the ceremony.

Characterization

Characterization is a key element in both novels and screenplays. But, in the screenplay, the writer has fewer pages to establish and make the characters sympathetic. In Heartburn, for example, the crucial argument between Rachael and Mark at their friends’ house is added into the screenplay. Their argument over a piece of chicken reinforces that Rachael is far from the perfect woman, unlike the Rachael in the novel. She gets angry, fights in public, and leaves the party in a fit. Movie audiences aren’t interested in perfect characters. They want to see complex human beings like themselves. The scene is also more dramatic—it has conflict and intensity. It holds the audience’s attention.

Sometimes a character in a source story is too negative. In The Big Sleep, the character of Vivian is too sleazy for the protagonist, Marlowe, to fall in love with. Therefore, the writer changes the character and makes her more well-rounded. After a shoot-out with a gangster during the film’s climax, Marlowe tells her, “You looked good back there.” Vivian has to be good if she’s going to be a worthy love interest for the protagonist. The writer also adds the flirtatious dialogue between Vivian and Marlowe. Marlowe asks Vivian, “What’s wrong with you?” She replies, “Nothing you can’t fix.” It’s always good to involve the main characters in a romantic situation.

Similarities with Source Materials

The similarities between a screenplay and its source material are often greater than the differences. Such is the case in the adaptation of Stand by Me from Stephen King’s novel, The Body. Here, a similar theme and social issue make for a similar story. In both stories, the writer focuses on the bonding that takes place among the four boys as they grow into manhood—a journey symbolized by their search for the dead body. Most of the plot actions in the original story and the adapted screenplay are the same, except for a change in the characters who perform them.

This is a common occurrence in most screenplays; an action is retained from the source but it is associated with a different character. In the novel, Chris pulls the gun on the gang, but in the screenplay Gordie pulls the gun. Thus, the writer is able to show character growth for Gordie, the protagonist, by showing him taking the action of standing up to the gang during the climax of the movie. In Jurassic Park, the protagonist defeats the dinosaurs in the novel. In the movie, he gets some help from nature and his ally.

Although there are many changes a writer can make when adapting material, all sources require the same imaginative processes one uses in developing an original idea or a story based on an imaginative character or plot line. Even though a character or idea might be based on a real person or incident, the writer changes the character or situation to make the idea original. In the same manner, a writer who bases material on a novel, short story, or play also changes the material by using her imagination. The process is the same, even if the original source is different.

In the past, many producers disagreed with the idea that original works and adapted works were similar. Writers of so-called adapted material were paid less than writers of scripts that dealt with original ideas. Many producers felt that the process of adapting a work was easier because the writer already had material provided to him in the form of a character, a plot line, or a theme. In recent years, this attitude has changed; writers of adapted material make the same or even greater amounts of money for their scripts. Studios have begun to accept that the adapting process may involve even more work than writing an original play or screenplay, because the scriptwriter may have to change entire characters and story incidents to make the script work within a dramatic context. Sometimes this involves considerable time and effort.

Approaches

Once a writer decides to deal with an adaptation, there are two fundamental approaches to develop a screenplay. In the first one, the writer can seek to forestall criticism that his work is disappointing because it doesn’t remain faithful to the original, by sticking to his source material as closely as possible. But using this approach eliminates the possibility of the writer putting his own mark on the material because of his awe for the original material.

In the second approach, a writer can take a looser attitude. She can approach the material as if it were her own idea and put a distinct mark on it. Because film is a totally different genre than the novel, some writers argue that an adaptation is basically like an original and should be created in a fashion that bears the stamp of its creator’s personal vision. In my opinion, the successful adapter must take a position somewhere between these two extremes.

Writers must approach the material with a certain amount of reverence, but not enough to become totally absorbed in preserving the original writer’s vision. This reverence is the biggest problem for students who are doing an adaptation for the first time. They feel a duty to preserve the original at the expense of their own work. On the other hand, a beginning writer should keep in mind that the idea she is working on is not really her own. She should feel some obligation to preserve the integrity of the original material, if possible, but not at the expense of the new work.

The adapter, therefore, walks a tightrope. His chief concern should always be to make the original material work within a tight dramatic structure. If he can preserve original characters and plot lines to accomplish this goal, then all the better. But a writer must be prepared to make changes so that the story works. Unfortunately, many beginning students use a novel, short story, or play as a crutch and are afraid to be too ruthless, even when changes are really necessary. Often such screenplays fail.

The reasons for changes are usually pretty obvious. The original story isn’t dramatic enough as a novel, novella, or short story. The novel or short story is a narrative style that does not readily lend itself to dramatization. Sometimes novels and/or short stories can be very introspective, with the writer interpreting what the character thinks and why he acts the way he does. Of course, in the screenplay, with some comic exceptions (Woody Allen’s Annie Hall gives us the thoughts of the characters after they first meet), the writer has no way to reveal his characters’ thoughts except by externalizing them in dialogue. Occasionally, voice-overs in films work to reveal inner moments. Sometimes characters even talk to themselves, but, for the most part, the characters reveal themselves through their interactions with other characters.

Potential Problems

In addition to knowing which fundamental approach to use, there are other potential problems when dealing with the novel or short story. For a screenplay, the writer needs to reveal the emotions of his characters. Using emotion serves to hook the audience into your story. But sometimes novels and short stories, especially more modern experimental ones, don’t reveal their characters’ emotions. Instead, these stories talk about emotions. Without sharing emotion, however, the main character in the screenplay is never tested.

Without a test, the story doesn’t generate suspense and the potential conflict between the characters is weak. This is especially true of stories that are philosophical. A dramatic story must contain characters whose emotions are being tested under some unusual circumstances and whose reactions to these circumstances cause the action to move in a rising fashion, generating a beginning, middle, and end to the story.

Short Stories

In a short story, the main character is usually not fully developed. The necessary motivation and information so abundant in the novel is absent. Again, the writer must develop this character, give her emotion, and find a way to reveal this emotion through dialogue and action. The creative process of adaptation often follows the same steps required in the creation of a screenplay based on an original story.

Frequently, the material of a short story provides no characters to which the main character can react. Thus, as with an original story, the writer must supply characters from his own imagination. In a short story, the plot may be too static. Again, as in the original, the writer must provide action. The novel has an abundance of backstory; however, in the short story, this backstory may be nonexistent. Thus, it is up to the writer to provide the missing information.

Depending on the source material, the adapter is forced to either cut and condense the original material, such as with the long novel or play, or to expand the existing material, as in the case of the short story. For example, the novel may contain too many extra scenes that slow the pace of the story. The novel may contain too many characters, subplots, or scenes that are too interior. These characters and scenes may need to be cut to make the story more visually suited to the film medium. The key here is to be judicious. Pick relatively static scenes and either cut them to their basics or eliminate them entirely if they don’t advance the story line. On the other hand, don’t totally disregard the original source material, especially in the case of classic stories in which even minor characters are well known.

Sometimes it is necessary to change the location of the scene. If too many scenes take place in the same place, as in a play, or too many scenes take place in interior locations, it may become visually necessary to open the work by taking scenes outside.

In the case of short stories, the writer must add material to make the script long enough to fit into the time requirements of a movie. This process might include the addition of scenes, characters, and plot lines, often from very sketchy source material. Even for shorter dramatizations for cable TV or public broadcasting, the writer will need to expand the material if his original source is a short story.

Novels

Time is another element to consider when adapting from the novel or short story. In the novel, there are three time periods—past, present, and future. The screenwriter must deal in the present and devise ways to reveal the past through flashbacks or dialogue between characters in the story. The novel deals with internal reality; the screenplay deals with external events. The rendition of internal states and memories cannot be easily represented in film. The stream-of-consciousness novel, so popular in the twentieth century, is difficult to adapt to film. Representations of dreams on the screen tend to fail even when the film uses dissolves and superimpositions.

Of course, other differences between a film and a literary work can also affect the adaptation process. Film is more subject to the appeals of a mass audience than books, which may have a more limited audience. The scriptwriter has to make her story commercial and worry about the rating the film will receive if it’s to make a profit. Novelists don’t have to worry about censorship of their material. There is no X rating for books.

Novels and short stories are singular works. Films are products of collaboration. The screenwriter has to write with the idea that a director and other people will transform his work to the screen. Note that in a play, the director cannot change any of the writer’s words without permission. Unfortunately, this is not true in TV and film. Thus, the conflict between writing what he wants and the demands of others involved on the project often can weaken the screenplay. The novelist has a single editor to please and, even then, isn’t subject to the changes that editor may seek to impose on her.

The length of a novel differs from the length of a film. A person can read a novel over days and months. Novels tend to be longer and use more involved plots, subplots, and mythical elements. A film needs to be told in one two-hour stretch, use fewer characters, and rarely is mythical; but it has the advantage of editing and visualization. Novels can evoke more from one’s imagination because all the “pictures” are supplied by the imagination of the person reading the book.

Scope of the Chapters

The following chapters explore the adaptation process in more detail. They focus on the problems one encounters with characterization, structure, social issues, themes, and dialogue when adapting from a novel, short story, or play into a screenplay. The initial chapters deal with general problems involved in developing a screenplay, such as characterization, structure, and social issues, with some case histories interspersed—the adaptation of Kramer versus Kramer, The Bridges of Madison County, Jurassic Park, Leaving Las Vegas, and Apollo 13. Even though many of the examples in the chapters involve choices writers make when adapting from a novel into a screenplay, they can be easily applied to the problems of adapting from a short story or play. The main point is that the writer of an original or the adapter of the novel, short sto...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Principles of Dramatic Writing
• 3. Characterization
• 4. Structure
• 5. Kramer versus Kramer
• 6. Social Issue
• 7. Action Adventure and Science Fiction: Jurassic Park and Apollo 13
• 8. The Short Story
• 9. Plays
• 10. Dialogue, Starting to Write, and Marketing
• 11. Love Stories: The Bridges of Madison County and Leaving Las Vegas
• Appendix
• Bibliography
• Index