directing I need help coming up with a simple plot

I'm a senior in college in for film production, im in a directing class right now that is more theatre then behind the camera, I have to direct a four minute silent scene based around serial starters these are my parameters

You do one continuous scene but change the physical parameters as the scene progresses. For example: sit, stand/kneel for the first minute; upstage/midstage/downstage for the next minute; ¼ /profile/ ½ for the next minute; all of the above for the next minute.

I'm having immense difficulty putting a story together for this, any help would be greatly appreciated
 
Perhaps a courtroom drama scene. Starts off with a lawyer seated next to his client, moves into a pacing exposition speech, then he cross examines the witness, getting close and varying his volume and tone, then a final scene where he or she addresses the jury, gesturing and pushing home the point raised in the cross examination.
 
Perhaps a courtroom drama scene. Starts off with a lawyer seated next to his client, moves into a pacing exposition speech, then he cross examines the witness, getting close and varying his volume and tone, then a final scene where he or she addresses the jury, gesturing and pushing home the point raised in the cross examination.
That sounds promising but it Has to be a silent scene and I only have two actors
 
It's your homework so i'm not gonna put too much thought into this lol but here ya go

Girl and Guy kneeling, building a sand castle
Guy stomps it out to the ground.

He shows her a frisbee. She goes long. She catches the frisbee.
She throws it away in the opposite direction.

--
There is a premise at least.
This assignment isnt that complicated.. just write a 4 minute silent film where the actors move positions?

Thats every silent film, you never have a silent film with people just sitting there doing nothing - it would be too boring.
Maybe go watch some classic silent films for inspiration.
 
So if I'm understanding this correctly, this is an exercise in writing stage directions? No words, just action. So you are writing a mime scene.
Yes pretty much, like I said I only have two actors I’m working with in this group, the scene Has to be four minutes long, in the first minute are use sitting, kneeling, standing, each character must be doing one of those three but not both at the same time, The next minute I have to use mid stage, backstage, front stage, same rules apply, The third minute both characters body positioning either needs to be 1/4 or three-quarter position, The fourth minute are all three being used at once…. I guess what I am saying is I am having difficulty creating a story around these movements
 
It's your homework so i'm not gonna put too much thought into this lol but here ya go

Girl and Guy kneeling, building a sand castle
Guy stomps it out to the ground.

He shows her a frisbee. She goes long. She catches the frisbee.
She throws it away in the opposite direction.

--
There is a premise at least.
This assignment isnt that complicated.. just write a 4 minute silent film where the actors move positions?

Thats every silent film, you never have a silent film with people just sitting there doing nothing - it would be too boring.
Maybe go watch some classic silent films for inspiration.
Thank you very much this is just the creative nudge I needed, and you’re right it really isn’t that difficult, I guess it’s just reading it on paper makes it seem a lot more difficult than it really is,
 
This is a great challenge. I dropped out of high school so never took
a film class but this sound like a lot of fun - something I would have
really enjoyed doing as a director.

Have you watched any silent shorts? If not, this might be the time to
start. If you have maybe you should rewatch a few and find some new
ones. Two people in some kind of conflict will push you through all
the directions this requires. Could be funny. Could be dramatic.

I hope you tell us what you come up with.
 
KISS - Keep It Simple, Stupid!

You want one simple set and a simple situation. This will allow you to focus on the physical actions of your actors.

What kind of story? Two people will eat a meal together (kitchen or restaurant), spend time in a room of the house (bedroom, TV room), work in a small office or other confined space (repairmen, emergency services and the like), or traveling in a car or truck.

As you are not allowed dialog, let sound tell a substantial part of the story for you. Sound is POWERFUL!
 
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