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Little Red Riding Hood

A

Adamington

Hey guys, I'm kinda jumping around all over the forum today,

I'm currently study at "college", in a media type course, and we have been given an assignment to write a short screenplay about a modern adaption of the little red riding hood story.

I'll be honest, I'm struggling with coming up with anything creative, I'm not the type of writer, that can write to a certain limitation. I'm better at coming up with original ideas, but I guess I'll have to try with this assignment.

I am just curious, if you fine folk of indie talk could give me some up lifting advice, more some ideas, or inspiration, I'm definetly not looking to copy from anyone, I'd feel bad about it if I did, and something like that would be on my conscience for a long time.

We are pretty limited equipment and location wise, but I don't know if that will be a problem.

All advice is well appreciated.

Thanks for reading.
 
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You can steal my idea for a treatment I was writing. Little Red Riding hood works on a Ranch and goes by the nickname Red because she has Red Hair instead of a hood. She has to deliver something to her grandma but is warned to get there before night. She goes on her way and meets a strange woman who needs to use a phone. Red tells her she will take her to her grandma's. One the way they meet a ranch hand who is trying to track down some wolves that have been killing sheep. The Ranch hand is suspicious of the old woman and tells Red to be careful. The lady claims to have finally gotten reception on her cell phone and leaves. Red makes it to her grandma's but finds it strange that she seems to be hiding. It turns out the lady killed/kindnapped her and is actually a werewolf. Moon rises lady turns into a werewolf. Chase scene/action happens. Ranch hand comes in and saves Red. The end. Its a little rushed because i am at work but its the best i got for the moment.
 
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Adamington said:
Thanks Columbus!

That's given me some inspiration, I'll have to tweak some aspects around, buts it's a great start :D
Click to expand...

No problem. Just remember I want a special mention ;). its weird though that you posted this at this moment when I was thinking about doing a Little Red Riding Hood short the other day that involved werewolves.
 
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Also you could use variants on the title... Little=miniature,small,or the opposite(big, giant, etc); red=or any similar color used predominantly on the main character or subject matter; riding=horses,bicycles,motorcycles, etc.; hood=hat, helmet,"neighborhood",venting equipment over stoves, etc.
Using these elements, then move on to a story line using the 3 act play scenario... beginning, middle, and end. Create a question, explain the question, then solve the question.
Using a list of variants should allow you to create something of your own...
 
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How many pages does the short screenplay need to be? Min max?
Do you need to be able to shoot it yourself with a few cast members and crew?
Are there other requirements for the assignment?
 
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I made a short film based on LRRH. After having run away into the mountains, a girl encounters a cannibal named Wulf. Shot it in 2005 and a sequel in 2006.
Wulf
Wulf II

I don't do the horror film thing anymore, so feel free to use what you want.
 
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rayw said:
How many pages does the short screenplay need to be? Min max?
Do you need to be able to shoot it yourself with a few cast members and crew?
Are there other requirements for the assignment?
Click to expand...

We never really got a page limit, but under 5 minutes would be ideal, we only have few members, and the only requirement, is to follow the original story, but with a modern twist
 
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How's the LRRH story go?

  1. LRRH goes through the forest to take cookies to GrandMa.
  2. Forest wolf stops her alng the way.
  3. LRRH tells him her destination.
  4. Wolf leaves, LRRH continues.
  5. Wolf gobbles up GrandMa.
  6. LRRH arrives, blah, blah, blah...
  7. "The better to eat you with!"
  8. Huntsman enters and kills the wolf.

Something like that?

Do you have a more detailed outline you're required to follow?

What approach were you hoping to take? Drama, dramedy, farce, horror, thriller, musical, etc.?
 
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Ultra modern, adult and corporate version.......

Vanessa Redman believes she's landed the dream job as a personal assistant at Wolfe & Partners, a high flying corporate law firm. Not only is she earning considerably more than her last job, she's been given her own small office next to the company's friendly CEO. One day, she is sent on an errand by the CEO to collect important documents relating to a internal affairs issue - someone high up in the company is stealing from company accounts. She is sent to the internal affairs office across the city. On the way, she meets a well dressed and also very friendly man who charms her and despite carrying out an important errand and against her better judgement, agrees to join the friendly stranger for a coffee. She is taken in by his wit, charm and humor and is secretly disappointed when he has to leave early. Vanessa continues on her errand. She collects the important documents from the internal affairs office and returns to Wolfe & Partners. She finds that it's later than she anticipated and a lot of office staff have left for the day. She visits her CEO's office where her nightmare begins. Her CEO is dead, brutally murdered. Vanessa then meets the "friendly" stranger again, who is no longer so friendly. He is an executive within Wolfe & Partners, and the subject of the investigation of internal affairs. Over the final hour he subjects Vanessa to physical and sexual torture inside the locked CEO's office. Who will save her?
 
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rayw said:
How's the LRRH story go?

  1. LRRH goes through the forest to take cookies to GrandMa.
  2. Forest wolf stops her alng the way.
  3. LRRH tells him her destination.
  4. Wolf leaves, LRRH continues.
  5. Wolf gobbles up GrandMa.
  6. LRRH arrives, blah, blah, blah...
  7. "The better to eat you with!"
  8. Huntsman enters and kills the wolf.

Something like that?

Do you have a more detailed outline you're required to follow?

What approach were you hoping to take? Drama, dramedy, farce, horror, thriller, musical, etc.?
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's pretty much the story, we just had to twist it around to make it feel more modern. I'd love to make it a drama, with some tragedy, fthats even possible.
 
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londonfilmmaker said:
Ultra modern, adult and corporate version.......

Vanessa Redman believes she's landed the dream job as a personal assistant at Wolfe & Partners, a high flying corporate law firm. Not only is she earning considerably more than her last job, she's been given her own small office next to the company's friendly CEO. One day, she is sent on an errand by the CEO to collect important documents relating to a internal affairs issue - someone high up in the company is stealing from company accounts. She is sent to the internal affairs office across the city. On the way, she meets a well dressed and also very friendly man who charms her and despite carrying out an important errand and against her better judgement, agrees to join the friendly stranger for a coffee. She is taken in by his wit, charm and humor and is secretly disappointed when he has to leave early. Vanessa continues on her errand. She collects the important documents from the internal affairs office and returns to Wolfe & Partners. She finds that it's later than she anticipated and a lot of office staff have left for the day. She visits her CEO's office where her nightmare begins. Her CEO is dead, brutally murdered. Vanessa then meets the "friendly" stranger again, who is no longer so friendly. He is an executive within Wolfe & Partners, and the subject of the investigation of internal affairs. Over the final hour he subjects Vanessa to physical and sexual torture inside the locked CEO's office. Who will save her?
Click to expand...

Haha, that definetly sounds interesting, a bit of torture porn will get the emotions going ;)
 
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Adamington said:
Yeah, that's pretty much the story, we just had to twist it around to make it feel more modern. I'd love to make it a drama, with some tragedy, fthats even possible.
Click to expand...
Cool.
What're the screenplay & short deadlines, respectively?

Personally, to keep the budget as close to £0 as possible I'd try to reduce characters when possible.

The intrinsic heart of the story is W(olf) wants both G(randma) and R(ed), but H(untsman) foils the goal.

W(G+R), undone by H.

Wolf does not have to be a character.
Conflict can come from internally, such as a depressing attitude/outlook, or externally, such as a weather event or tax deadline.

Frankly, I love how telephone conversations can imply a second or multiple character(s) when only one is seen on screen.

Red can be on the phone with Grandma who is flippin' out over Wolf Collection agency coming to repo Red's car but will consider holding Grandma's as collateral. Red's boyfriend Hunter saves the day with a big fat envelope of cash from a recent drug deal.

Red can be having this whole argument over the phone with her brother/mother as she recalls the events.

Maybe Grandma has Red stopped at the front door, refusing to let her inside because she doesn't want to catch Red's "Wolf" virus, a horribly mutating pandemic disease. Too late. Grandma also gets infected with the "Wolf" virus. Mr Hunter, the next door neighbor saves them both from a horrible fate by gunning them down, either at their pleading request or against their will.

This can be told as narrative voice over of the events leading up to the grisly aftermath scene.

Yet a third iteration, the cookies can be drugs or something drug related.
U.S. is real big on meth these days. Whatchu got all over the news in Scotland?
Red has just stolen Mr. Wolf's meth cook, Cookie, and is transporting him to Red's distributor "Grandma", Mr. Wolf's direct competitor, to gain organizational leverage.
Mr. Wolf contacts a freelance henchmen "Hunter" to gun down two men at the rendezvous point: Red and Grandma.
However, Mr. Wolf gets there first, guns down Grandma and Red inside the building.
Hunter arrives, sees two guys leaving the location, having never met Mr. Wolf or Cookie, assumes they are Red and Grandma and guns them down outside.
He calls Mr. Wolf's cell phone to tell him the good news, and of course the cell starts ringing in one of the dead guys' pocket. WTF?! Not so good.

See?

You can just go crazy turning this scenario around.
 
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rayw said:
Cool.
What're the screenplay & short deadlines, respectively?

Personally, to keep the budget as close to £0 as possible I'd try to reduce characters when possible.

The intrinsic heart of the story is W(olf) wants both G(randma) and R(ed), but H(untsman) foils the goal.

W(G+R), undone by H.

Wolf does not have to be a character.
Conflict can come from internally, such as a depressing attitude/outlook, or externally, such as a weather event or tax deadline.

Frankly, I love how telephone conversations can imply a second or multiple character(s) when only one is seen on screen.

Red can be on the phone with Grandma who is flippin' out over Wolf Collection agency coming to repo Red's car but will consider holding Grandma's as collateral. Red's boyfriend Hunter saves the day with a big fat envelope of cash from a recent drug deal.

Red can be having this whole argument over the phone with her brother/mother as she recalls the events.

Maybe Grandma has Red stopped at the front door, refusing to let her inside because she doesn't want to catch Red's "Wolf" virus, a horribly mutating pandemic disease. Too late. Grandma also gets infected with the "Wolf" virus. Mr Hunter, the next door neighbor saves them both from a horrible fate by gunning them down, either at their pleading request or against their will.

This can be told as narrative voice over of the events leading up to the grisly aftermath scene.

Yet a third iteration, the cookies can be drugs or something drug related.
U.S. is real big on meth these days. Whatchu got all over the news in Scotland?
Red has just stolen Mr. Wolf's meth cook, Cookie, and is transporting him to Red's distributor "Grandma", Mr. Wolf's direct competitor, to gain organizational leverage.
Mr. Wolf contacts a freelance henchmen "Hunter" to gun down two men at the rendezvous point: Red and Grandma.
However, Mr. Wolf gets there first, guns down Grandma and Red inside the building.
Hunter arrives, sees two guys leaving the location, having never met Mr. Wolf or Cookie, assumes they are Red and Grandma and guns them down outside.
He calls Mr. Wolf's cell phone to tell him the good news, and of course the cell starts ringing in one of the dead guys' pocket. WTF?! Not so good.

See?

You can just go crazy turning this scenario around.
Click to expand...

Hey Rayw,

Thanks for the time to write all that! :D

It's been really helpful, I find the last story the most interesting, sounds like my type of thing. I could really use any drug, they are all a problem in Scotland. With the budget, which is £0, I don't know what we would do, when it comes to the gun part, maybe replace it with something else, a knife would be a bit ridiculous, turning into kill bill or something.

But, this has helped bring some ideas, yours, and other members.

Thanks for all your time :)
 
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Do the lovely stores in Scotland sell children's toy pistols or guns?

Spray paint one black, fill it with sand to give it some heft, and don't let the camera linger on it for very long.


(Here in the States we're overflowing with toy guns for kids. It's absurd.
Here's me including some mockery of such.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItD7KveY0-M
 
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rayw said:
Do the lovely stores in Scotland sell children's toy pistols or guns?

Spray paint one black, fill it with sand to give it some heft, and don't let the camera linger on it for very long.


(Here in the States we're overflowing with toy guns for kids. It's absurd.
Here's me including some mockery of such.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItD7KveY0-M
Click to expand...

Okay, thanks for the tip, I'm sure I can just find some in amazon for a cheap price.

Im new to filmmaking, but I guess I can just have characters aiming the guns, then take them out the shot, and put it somewhere else, and have some sound effects.
 
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